Are We Talking CDs And CDPs Out Of Existence?


It seems the more we join the "CD is dying camp," the more likely it is to happen. We talk at listening sessions, at club meetings, at expos, on audiophile forums, we go into our dealers just to get opinions, to hear of the trends. Sure, some of our motive is in seeking reassurance that our CD collections and expensive players are still relevant. We are also agonizing over upgrading or abandoning different pieces of gear, but it's this tone of "the end is near" that seems to be hastening the transition. Yes, you can't stop the progress of technology, but there is also the idea of preserving the essence of a hobby. We say computers and files are so much more convenient and compact--forget about convenience--it's a hobby. If it was about convenience, you'd have speakers in your ceilings and a panel on the wall, a remote in your hand, music in every room at the touch of a button, a voice command--a glorified "Clapper." And you'd have that lousy sound to go with it. This is why you have an entire wall of gear--it's a hobby. If you're brewing beer, you don't go to a liquor store just because it's more convenient. Sell the boat and get the fish from the butcher's case. No, forget cooking it, just go out and eat. What, you don't want to get up and look at your collection, don't want to saunter over and put on a new disc, you want to run the whole thing from your lap? We lost knobs to remotes--now you just want a mouse? You're going to turn over that gorgeous fifty-pound player/turntable for a tin CD-ROM? (You'll have to spend for solid state memory, or the moving parts in your computer will be inferior to those in your high-end player.) Hell, forget the computer......there's a box for that and a DAC for the box. You won't have anything to do, nothing to handle or read. I'll take my old-fashioned player with all the memories of having it upgraded several times, the satisfaction of hearing the new plateaus, the assurance of having isolated it from vibration, of building the AC cables and interconnects--all the tweaks that go with big pieces of gear that comprise this hobby............
128x128jafreeman
Computer audio is here to stay and will steadily become more user friendly in terms of implementing a home system. Currently people still experience glitches and bugs too often and there's no standardization amongst the many products available. This will be eventually settled. I just don't see Redbook disappearing at all for a long time. CDs are reliable and physical mediums, CD playback is very simple and straightforward, the glitch factor is very low. In a good player CDs sound wonderful and there are "TONS" of musuc available in the Redbook format many can be purchased at very reasonable prices. The two formats can coexist easily and will.
This topic comes up fairly regularly now. If we check the archives we will find me stating a similar sentiment as the op. That was a few years ago.
At this point though, it's been a while since I stood in front of the wall of cds or listened to a cd. Not something I miss in the least. Much simpler to browse my ipone or ipod touch to find the music on the Mac Mini.
Fifteen years ago or so I sold most of my lps and haven't regretted that move. This time I'll not be selling the cds as I want to keep the music I paid for and have ripped to the computer. Plus, they don't take up as much space as the lps did. I will buy cds as long as they are available as ripping them is a snap. What I probably will never buy is a replacement for my cdp, should it die.
As far as this being a hobby, I agree. But for me the hobby is more about listening than touching a disc. I say enjoy the hobby no matter where it leads.
I've been thinking about this very topic for a while. Like others in this forum, I have been a music lover and collector for a long time. I never ever sell any of my CDs so over the years my collection has grown to over 3000 titles and yes that includes classics like Debbie Gibson, Milli Vanilli, and Tiffany. Because of the size of my collection digitizing my library has made it possible for me to quickly and easily access my music. I've been streaming music for over 10 years but have always kept a cdp for my audiophile system. I think computer based music has caught up to SOTA cdps in terms of sound quality so for me it's a no brainer to switch to completely PC based playback. As Charles1dad mentioned, PC based playback is still too DIY though and thus not readily accessible to the general audiophile community. Regardless I think there will always be a niche for physical playback mediums like vinyl and CDs.

That being said, I am really thinking about keeping my cdp purely for nostalgic reasons. This is why I purchase CDs still. I like the process of opening the jewel case and reading the liner notes. This is why I grind my own coffee beans and wear a mechanical watch. As jafreeman posted, that is we call this a hobby. Long live this whacky, frustrating, expensive hobby!
CDs And CDPs Out Of Existence?
Not in my world! And I still play LP's too.
Why? For the enjoyment of Music Quality.
To get those hi-rez 24 bit 192Khz and DSD files to sound like music in all it's glory, you still need a very expensive DAC.
I'm not ready to give up my CD's and LP's for computer-controlled headaches.
If we are, I condone it wholeheartedly! Let me add to it.

I didn't like CDs, with their jagged, shrill sound and expensive pricing when they came around, and I don't like them today. I recently redid my system and there is no question to me that well-made vinyl outperforms CDs every time. As far as computer audio, when there is not a better vinyl pressing out there or when its convenient or I just don't care then it matches or bests CDs as well.

The experience of flipping through CDs is miserable. I can't read the tiny type without glasses anymore, if I ever could. The cases feel cheap, because they are, and break. My wife has no problems with my vinyl collection and when people visit if they know audio, they look to it with admiration (except for the oddballs who are puzzled by it and one friend whose collection is much bigger). Nobody says anything positive about the CDs. I'm going to rip and sell them ASAP.