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Why play a music CD? No ads, no privacy terrors, no algorithms

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Re: Why play a music CD? No ads, no privacy terrors, no algorithms

#161
post #142

I buy most of my stuff from amazon and bandcamp. The convenience of amazon just sending you a zip file is just too good of an option to me.

>amazon just sending you a zip

I just googled this and it looks Amazon lets you download your music from them, DRM free?

Re: Why play a music CD? No ads, no privacy terrors, no algorithms

#162
post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

or use linux :)

I know this statement of yours is somewhat of a meme, and you may even be saying it tongue-in-cheek, but, this is one of many tiny cuts over the years that caused me to switch entirely to Linux. I don't run Windows at home or at work for the best part of a decade now. I run bleeding edge hardware, I have a high-end gaming PC, my laptop is a 2019 model that only works if I use Linux 5.0 and my wife complains that Open…

Ubuntu today is easier than windows 10 for me. Granted I use Linux heavily.

Re: Why play a music CD? No ads, no privacy terrors, no algorithms

#163
I use streaming services like Spotify and even YouTube purely for discovering new music, on my terms. Music I want to listen to is music I own, as in I have it locally, managed by me. Ads, privacy, audio quality and many other issues plague streaming services.

Re: Why play a music CD? No ads, no privacy terrors, no algorithms

#164
post #158

Where are my Rockbox users at? My tiny plastic Sansa Clip+ MP3 player has been going for years, I'd be nothing without it. >10hrs playback, supports >128 GB microSD, plays OGG/FLAC/MP3/AAC/anything. The Rockbox firmware is still being developed, albeit at a slow pace. By far the best combination of hardware+firmware I own. Unlikely to replace it for another few years. Sadly not produced any more :(

Yeah, I really liked it. My last Sansa Clip+ broke a couple of month ago, though. I couldn't find a decent replacement yet.

Re: Why play a music CD? No ads, no privacy terrors, no algorithms

#165
post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"I'd like to see people's iTunes collection in 30 years" Might look different and be called different, but I bet there is some service offering most music in existence in 2050.

I have at least a dozen albums that are not on any music service today ! In 30 years they’ll be impossible to find in any form. If you get deep into any small/independent music scene you’ll find CDs are still king.

... or bandcamp (increasingly so in my experience)

Re: Why play a music CD? No ads, no privacy terrors, no algorithms

#166
post #158

Where are my Rockbox users at? My tiny plastic Sansa Clip+ MP3 player has been going for years, I'd be nothing without it. >10hrs playback, supports >128 GB microSD, plays OGG/FLAC/MP3/AAC/anything. The Rockbox firmware is still being developed, albeit at a slow pace. By far the best combination of hardware+firmware I own. Unlikely to replace it for another few years. Sadly not produced any more :(

I have the same set-up. The Val Down button doesn't work anymore, but aside from that, it is an awesome little device. I use it for my Gym mp3 player.

Sadly I outgrew my Clip+, and I am using a FiiO X5 Gen 2 for my main player.

Re: Why play a music CD? No ads, no privacy terrors, no algorithms

#167
post #75
post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm curious why a CD would not work anymore after listening to it a lot? Is the laser powerful enough to damage it or is it the heat from the device itself which is degrading the material in the long term?

The polycarbonate substrate could degrade due to temperature, humidity, exposure to sunlight, and other environmental variables. These are concerns for institutions with large CD-based archives (e.g., Library of Congress). [1] In practice, though, it's far more likely that the the disc will get corrupted from small scratches. [1] https://www.npr.org/sections/alltechconsidered/2014/08/18/34...

I have taken several CDs (mainly my Dad's, not my own) from unusably scratched to relatively pristine. The really bad cases need fine grit sandpaper (wet!) followed by plastic polishes. I generally start with Meguiar's plastic polish and work my way to Radtech Ice Creme. In my own collection I have CDs that are around 30 years old and are error-free. I'm not interested in formats or services that won't last at least as long or can't be backed up to my own NAS (nor am I interested in anything less than Red Book quality).

Re: Why play a music CD? No ads, no privacy terrors, no algorithms

#168
A few years ago I bought an 'old' ('00 Integra) that had the stock head unit. It would only play CD ROM. It was a total pain to find actual CDs and not DVDs. I dug up mine and my girlfriend's old zip-up CD books full of ripped/torrented mix-cds from when we were teenagers, and it was an actual blast. It felt so good to rediscover some albums I hadn't thought of in the last 10-15 years. The Integra is getting a little long in the tooth, and I'm going to be sad that my time machine to 2005-2007 is going away.

Re: Why play a music CD? No ads, no privacy terrors, no algorithms

#169
post #129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So, do you buy each song separately digitally or physically? Also, after buying, how do you move it to your setup? For physical copies (CDs or Vinyls), do you rip and convert them to .flac or .mp3? For digital, do you remove the DRM?

I thought that Amazon and iTunes both have DRM free songs (for purchase / streaming does have DRM)

Nice feature I found on Amazon - when I buy the physical CD they add the albums to my "Amazon Music" so I can stream them as well.

Re: Why play a music CD? No ads, no privacy terrors, no algorithms

#170
post #125

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I once was chatting with a producer who worked for Disney for around 15 years. He said the so-called “warm” tone of vinyl vs the “harsh” sound of CDs is really that the vinyl format acts as a partial low-pass filter. So it’s really just that you’re hearing less high-freq sound on vinyl than on a CD.

Perhaps. I have heard they also master differently for vinyl since it can't provide the same dynamic, frequency, or stereo range as digital. Some listeners find the result more appealing.

That does highlight the one infamous issue with "loudness wars" bringing the quality into the toliet to keep the volume high when we all have perfectly good knobs and switches to regulate them.
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