Quite a lot of shade is getting thrown at CDs in the press these days. The LA Times reports, “The compact disc era may finally be entering its hospice stage,” while Rolling Stone declares, “CDs Are Dying Three Times as Fast as Vinyl Is Growing.” Putting aside the misleading equivocation of the RS calculation – CDs still outsell records by a generous margin – it’s clear that vinyl and even cassettes are hipper than the poor old compact disc.
No doubt, I love my vinyl, have a hard drive full of digital files and listen to online streams. But CDs still have a lot to offer. This is just as true for personal listening as it is for radio stations. Well, at least for community and college radio stations where DJs pick their music rather than just piloting an automation system or selecting from a tiny approved digital catalog.
So, before you toss your shiny silver discs into the dumpster or drop them off at the Goodwill, I want to urge you give them another look and listen.
Here are 10 reasons why CDs are still pretty awesome:
1. Used CDs Are a Bargain Right Now
This past weekend I paid a visit to the enormous Amoeba music store in Hollywood. There you can find racks upon racks of discounted CDs for $5 or less. Looking for some classic rock like Led Zeppelin III? It’ll set you back $30 on vinyl. On CD? I saw it for just three smackeroos. And it’s not just classic rock. If you’re looking for just about any popular album from the last fifty years, you’ll probably find it cheaper on CD than just about any other format, period.
You don’t even have to make the pilgrimage to Amoeba. Just check out your local record shop, thrift store or garage sale. Folks are nearly just giving CDs away. And that’s your potential gain.
2. You Probably Own a Bunch of CDs Already
They might be in the back of a closet or in a storage unit, but if you’re over the age of 30 there’s a good chance you already own a bunch of CDs that you might not be playing. Go unpack them and it’s like getting free music! Even if you don’t, chances are your parents, siblings, friends or other relatives have some CDs they’d be just as happy to give away, thinking that streams and downloads are somehow superior.
If you’re a college or community radio DJ, it’s likely your station has many hundreds or thousands of CDs.
3. There Are Tons of Out-of-Print Albums Only on CD
During the compact disc’s two decade heyday – from about 1983 to 2003, when the iTunes store went online – millions of albums were released on CD. By about 1993 record companies seriously scaled back which albums were on vinyl or cassette. By the turn of the century only a small percentage saw an analog release, or had tiny analog releases, while digital-only distribution had yet to take off. That means thousands of albums recorded during that time were pretty much only available on CD. Although many have been re-released for streaming and digital download, there are still countless out-of-print albums for which compact disc is the only way to hear them (outside of extra-legal file sharing).
This category isn’t just limited to obscurities. Even some critically acclaimed and classic albums remain unavailable except in the original CD release.
4. CDs Are Yours Forever
Sure, you can lose a CD or scratch beyond playability. But otherwise the music on that CD is yours forever. Even if Taylor Swift and Neil Young collectively decide they’re pulling all their music from Spotify, you can still hear their albums if you bought the CD.
5. A Broken CD Only Ruins One Album
CDs are more durable than vinyl or cassettes. And, although we were promised “perfect sound forever” when CDs first debuted in the 80s, we all know they can get scratched beyond playability. Still, one messed up CD ruins just one album. What happens when your USB thumb drive or hard drive full of MP3s crashes? Hundreds or thousands disappear. Regular backups and cloud storage help to prevent these disasters, but at a cost that adds up much faster than the price of a new CD.
6. You Can Sell Your CDs
Thanks to the “first sale doctrine” in copyright law, when you own a CD (or vinyl LP, cassette, book, or most physical media), you have the right to lend, sell or give away that album. The same is not true of an MP3 or digital download. Selling that file you “bought” (more like “licensed”) from iTunes or Amazon is actually called “piracy.” Of course you can copy it all you like, but good luck hocking it when you’re tired of that album (or need to pay the rent).
7. CDs Sound Great on the Radio
While the pops and crackle of vinyl have a certain charm, I defy most radio contemporary listeners to sit through hours of poorly maintained records played on misaligned community radio turntables. There’s a reason why stations rapidly adopted CDs in the 1990s, they’re easy to use and sound good on air. They also sound better than lot of digital files.
I hear plenty of poorly compressed MP3s that only get worse after put through broadcast audio processors. Streams from YouTube can border on unlistenable, taking on a gurgling shimmery underwater tonality. The situation degrades over a station’s webcast, wherein these already lossy files get encoded yet another time and further degraded. It’s true that digital files don’t have to be terrible, but it takes some care and attention to detail to ensure. CDs, by comparison, just work, and usually sound great.
8. Good CD Players Are Cheaper than Good Turntables
Although there’s been a renaissance in decent quality, relatively inexpensive turntables in the last decade, $250 is still pretty much the lowest reasonable entry point for anything durable. However, right now you can buy a pretty nice brand new Teac CD player for less than $150. And there are even decent CD boomboxes out there for well under a c-note, like this Sony. Moreover, if you’re willing to go used, these days thrift stores are filled to the brim with players for less than the cost of dinner out. Plus, even a bargain basement CD player will never ruin your CDs like a cheap record player will chew up your vinyl.
9. Blu-Ray and DVD Players also Play CDs
Even if you don’t have a plain old CD player, there’s a good chance you have a device that will play CDs, since DVD and Blu-Ray players all support the format. On top of that, because of demand these video disc players can be had cheaper than single-purpose CD players. A perfectly adequate Sony Blu-Ray can be had for under 80 bucks, while a nice Sony DVD player comes in for less than that cheapo suitcase record player at Target.
10. It’s Easy to Rip CDs to Your Computer and Smartphone
Though you can still buy some off-brand CD walkmen, you still won’t see me walking around with one. Like most folks, I listen to music on my smartphone while on the go. But that doesn’t mean I have to rely on streaming or digital music stores. CDs are a snap to rip on your computer, using free built-in software on both Windows and Macs. It’s true that most new laptops don’t come with CD drives anymore, a brand-name USB drive that reads and writes both CDs and DVDs sets you back less than 35 clams.
If somehow the files you ripped get lost or corrupted, just go back and re-rip your CD. Easy peasy.
For those who like to make and record music, here’s a bonus reason:
11. CD-Rs are Cheaper To Make than Cassettes (or Records)
Want to record and distribute your own music? It’s cheaper and easier to do it on CD than cassette or vinyl.
Of course you can completely D.I.Y. both cassettes and CDs. A spindle of 100 CD-Rs will only run you about 17 bucks, and can still be had at your local discount or office supply store. Finding blank tapes is tougher, though cassette stalwart National Audio Company will sell you 100 fresh C60 blanks for $90 – more than 5x the cost of CD-Rs.
Once you have those tapes, then you’ve got to dub them. Using a double-deck that’ll go no faster than double real-time. Better make a weekend of it.
Using just an inexpensive CD burner you’ll probably finish a full CD in just a few minutes. It’ll take just an evening to make enough to sell at a show.
And if you want to go the way of pro duplication, there’s probably still a company that makes CDs nearby. Even if you send it out, you can get 100 CDs made and printed, in custom jackets for under $200, and get them in just a couple of weeks. Cassettes? Budget more like $300 or more. And vinyl? Think more like two grand, and waiting for months.
I guess that’s why I still see stacks of new shrinkwrapped CDs in cardboard slipcases at local bands’ merch tables. Cost and convenience still outweighs hip, even in indie rock.
