https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cds-at-best-buy-are-going-the-way-of-the-dodo/

Best Buy has officially stopped selling CDs.  This is actually a big deal.  It means the CD has now gone the way of the cassette and the 8-track.  Believe it or not, the only physical way to consume albums that's still popular is good ole' vinyl.  Who would have thought?

I have to say the last CD I bought was probably around 2010.  I think Lady Gaga's "Born This Way" was the last album I bought on CD and I quickly ripped it to MP3.  I haven't really listened to CDs as my primary format for music consumption since the mid '00s. 

What was the last album you bought on CD and when was the last time you listened to CDs regularly?

Last album I bought was Nasir. I always buy albums from artists I support. I still listen to CDs on the regular, I have an older car.

Best Buy (at least the ones near me) stopped selling CDs long ago, but that doesn't mean the CD is dead.  Sure, they my not be flying off the shelves like they once were, but there are still loyal fans of the CD.

If I'm gonna pay money for music, i want a physical hard copy. 
So far this year, I have bought 4 CDs:

Camila Cabello - Camila
Anne-Marie - Speak your mind
Kylie Minogue - Golden
Bebe Rexha - Expectations

I think in the mid 2000s. Although my sister bought Taylor Swift's 1989 album on CD in 2014 and I downloaded that onto my phone.

Damn, its officially an end to an era...

I think the last CD I bought was Eminem's Recovery back in 2010. I also made tons of mix CDs from some of my favorite artists back in the Late 2000s from Lil Wayne, Drake, & Akon to name a few. I also had a few Salsa mixes, along with some R&B and Jazz mixes back then (I had, and still have, a very varied musical taste).

And annoyingly, streaming will be the only way people can consume music legally, thus putting the songs they love at the mercy of the rights holders (they may no longer give them the songs they like).
Probably the last CD I bought was from Russia, from some short lived and obscure nu-metal band called Secret Diary. This was from around two years ago.
I never really listened to CDs regularly. Even last decade I had an MP3 player and had songs ripped to it.

I can't even remember the last time I bought a CD but it's been many years since I listened to one.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cds-at-best-buy-are-going-the-way-of-the-dodo/

Best Buy has officially stopped selling CDs.  This is actually a big deal.  It means the CD has now gone the way of the cassette and the 8-track.  Believe it or not, the only physical way to consume albums that's still popular is good ole' vinyl.  Who would have thought?

I have to say the last CD I bought was probably around 2010.  I think Lady Gaga's "Born This Way" was the last album I bought on CD and I quickly ripped it to MP3.  I haven't really listened to CDs as my primary format for music consumption since the mid '00s. 

What was the last album you bought on CD and when was the last time you listened to CDs regularly?


So the article states that after the next 2 years in 2020 Best Buy will stop selling vinyls, so what happens after that time? ???

So the article states that after the next 2 years in 2020 Best Buy will stop selling vinyls, so what happens after that time? ???


You’re right. It’s not happening all at once:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/gizmodo.com/no-best-buy-has-not-completely-stopped-selling-cds-yet-1827306694/amp

But it certainly is looking like Best Buy is phasing the technology out. It’s about time, in all honesty. The technology hasn’t been relevant since the mid 2000s, and it’s far gone from its 1990s heyday.

It is unfortunate though that there are very little physical media formats to listen to music on. I like Spotify and Apple Music as much as the next guy, but having a sole allegiance to the will of the music recording companies is IMO unethical. Besides, how can we guarantee that Spotify and Apple Music will be around in the next 10, 20, heck even 30 years?

You’re right. It’s not happening all at once:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/gizmodo.com/no-best-buy-has-not-completely-stopped-selling-cds-yet-1827306694/amp

But it certainly is looking like Best Buy is phasing the technology out. It’s about time, in all honesty. The technology hasn’t been relevant since the mid 2000s, and it’s far gone from its 1990s heyday.

It is unfortunate though that there are very little physical media formats to listen to music on. I like Spotify and Apple Music as much as the next guy, but having a sole allegiance to the will of the music recording companies is IMO unethical. Besides, how can we guarantee that Spotify and Apple Music will be around in the next 10, 20, heck even 30 years?


I remember a lot of the late 90's to early 2000's vehicle models being compatible for cassettes and CD's. That's how my family's 1999 Mercury Villager was but my dad's 2002 Ford Ranger only allowed CD's and he bought that in Christmas 2001. I'm actually a little surprised Best Buy is still going on as long as it has considering that Circuit City has been out of business for nearly a decade now including Radio Shack a few years back, but over the last few years I've needed Best Buy badly for laptops, wireless USB's and universal chargers. Spotify is my favorite music app and I haven't used Apple Music in over 4 years years.

but having a sole allegiance to the will of the music recording companies is IMO unethical. Besides, how can we guarantee that Spotify and Apple Music will be around in the next 10, 20, heck even 30 years?


Amen and amen! And hence a question I posed as a thread here some time ago. What comes after streaming?

I used to download my music illegally from beemp3.com before Spotify became a thing 😅.

I used to download my music illegally from beemp3.com before Spotify became a thing 😅.


All the kewl kids got their viruses from Kazaa and Limewire.

I used to download my music illegally from beemp3.com before Spotify became a thing 😅.

Yeah, have fun with some of the songs on there you like being taken down. This wasn't an issue for me until after a few months or so immediately after using Spotify. Since then, I've been on and off of streaming.

What was the last album you bought on CD

I got Halsey's Badlands (standard edition) and Britney's Glory (deluxe edition) for Christmas.


and when was the last time you listened to CDs regularly?

Fairly recently. Just a few weeks ago, actually. While comparing the DTS, Dolby and PCM tracks on Led Zeppelin DVD and The Eagles' Farewell I Tour DVD, I popped my Weird Al Straight Outta Lynwood DualDisc into my Blu-ray player and discovered that it offered the album in "enhanced stereo" (16-bit/48kHz resolution). I listened to a few tracks. Then I listened to Badlands in its entirety using the Blu-ray player. The player skipped in a couple places (something that's been happening with my player when I play certain Blu-rays or CD's. Strangely, DVDs play fine.) It's an LG BD550, and this is a known issue with this particular player. But anyway, the sound was marvelous through my alarm clock stereo and premium Sony headphones.

You’re right. It’s not happening all at once:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/gizmodo.com/no-best-buy-has-not-completely-stopped-selling-cds-yet-1827306694/amp

But it certainly is looking like Best Buy is phasing the technology out. It’s about time, in all honesty. The technology hasn’t been relevant since the mid 2000s, and it’s far gone from its 1990s heyday.

It is unfortunate though that there are very little physical media formats to listen to music on. I like Spotify and Apple Music as much as the next guy, but having a sole allegiance to the will of the music recording companies is IMO unethical. Besides, how can we guarantee that Spotify and Apple Music will be around in the next 10, 20, heck even 30 years?


and who knows if YouTube too will still be around as well.

All the kewl kids got their viruses from Kazaa and Limewire.


THIS. Me and my friends thought we were bosses 8).

Prequelle by Ghost a few weeks ago.

About time! Lol.

I remember going to Best Buy in 2014 and they were still selling cassette tapes, Best Buy is slow when it comes to phasing out  technology. Vinyl is actually more popular now than it was 10 years ago, so I'll be surprised that they're phasing those out since so many music review Youtubers use them

My last CD was Chinese Democracy by Guns N' Roses in 2008 and before that it was Meteora by Linkin Park. I stopped using a CD player in 2004 and got an MP3 player.

I remember going to Best Buy in 2014 and they were still selling cassette tapes, Best Buy is slow when it comes to phasing out  technology. Vinyl is actually more popular now than it was 10 years ago, so I'll be surprised that they're phasing those out since so many music review Youtubers use them

I've noticed vinyl was back in, but why?

I've noticed vinyl was back in, but why?

https://media.giphy.com/media/NNdPkBSa0UwDe/200.gif

...And sound quality.

Assuming it's taken from an analog or hi-res digital source (anything above 16-bit/44.1kHz; usually 24-bit/96 or 192kHz), it can theoretically sound better than the CD, all things being equal. It's also harder to abuse dynamic range compression, one of the main criticisms of modern formats. Vinyl is harder to brickwall than CDs, etc., because it would damage the needle.

https://media.giphy.com/media/NNdPkBSa0UwDe/200.gif


The so-called vinyl resurgence is nothing but a hype. And I am someone who has been buying vinyl records since the 1960s. We didn't call it "collecting vinyl" back then. That was far too pretentious. We just called it "buying records". The new, overpriced vinyl albums are just digital masters bumped down to vinyl. What's that all about? The original vinyl albums were analog and that is the beauty of them. Absolutely nothing sounds like it. Buying a digital vinyl album (an oxymoron right there) is like buying decaffeinated coffee or non-alcoholic whiskey or something like that. The whole reason for it's existence has been removed. I'll stick with my old albums and the occasional old gem I come across in thrift shops. Although that has been slim pickings lately as hipsters comb these places. But they will soon lose interest and hipsters are fading out anyway, so pretty soon I will have the field all to myself again, just as I did in the years when nobody wanted records anymore.

I've noticed vinyl was back in, but why?


I love vinyl. It's fun playing them! I don't know. Maybe other people feel the same.

I love vinyl. It's fun playing them! I don't know. Maybe other people feel the same.
Vinyl looks interesting but it appeals to me less now because it's a simpler piece of technology to me which I now understand more, and most of the songs I like aren't on vinyl. Vinyl also has its drawbacks, like repeating at some points. It's also really not portable.

The so-called vinyl resurgence is nothing but a hype. And I am someone who has been buying vinyl records since the 1960s. We didn't call it "collecting vinyl" back then. That was far too pretentious. We just called it "buying records". The new, overpriced vinyl albums are just digital masters bumped down to vinyl. What's that all about? The original vinyl albums were analog and that is the beauty of them. Absolutely nothing sounds like it. Buying a digital vinyl album (an oxymoron right there) is like buying decaffeinated coffee or non-alcoholic whiskey or something like that. The whole reason for it's existence has been removed. I'll stick with my old albums and the occasional old gem I come across in thrift shops. Although that has been slim pickings lately as hipsters comb these places. But they will soon lose interest and hipsters are fading out anyway, so pretty soon I will have the field all to myself again, just as I did in the years when nobody wanted records anymore.
Yes. Hipsters have kept them alive.

Vinyl also has its drawbacks, like repeating at some points. It's also really not portable.


True. They are too heavy to take anywhere when they are stacked together. They don't go with the times either lol.

Chumbawamba's greatest hits.

and who knows if YouTube too will still be around as well.


As long as people want to video themselves lighting farts on fire, we'll have YouTube.  ;D

I used to have all my sister's 80s and 90s cassette tapes: GN'R, Metallica, Ugly Kid Joe, Alice in Chains, Damn Yankees, Skid Row, and a lot more. Dad got high and made me toss them out. Actually, his being high is the cause of a lot of priceless stuff being lost. My brother in law gave me all his D&D boxsets, which go on Ebay for a couple hundred a pop now, I was forced to toss that out too.

True. They are too heavy to take anywhere when they are stacked together. They don't go with the times either lol.


This comment straddles this topic and the "what was it like in 1972" topic, but back then carrying around a cool album (or two or three) under your arm was the height of hipness. Carrying around a 45 single however, wasn't. It just didn't have the same cachet.

Hmmm... Last year? Of course I had to buy Kendrick's latest masterpiece as a physical copy like ::)

I've noticed vinyl was back in, but why?


people still enjoy retro.

I love vinyl. It's fun playing them! I don't know. Maybe other people feel the same.


I love the sound of the crackling of the record.

...And sound quality.

Assuming it's taken from an analog or hi-res digital source (anything above 16-bit/44.1kHz; usually 24-bit/96 or 192kHz), it can theoretically sound better than the CD, all things being equal. It's also harder to abuse dynamic range compression, one of the main criticisms of modern formats. Vinyl is harder to brickwall than CDs, etc., because it would damage the needle.


A decent turntable, a decent cartridge and a top notch elliptical stylus (or "neddle") is all you need to have vinyl sounding like a CD. It's very important to keep you records clean though, which some find inconvenient. That and flipping side.

But hey, I grew up on cassettes in the 90s....so that flipping and maintenance isn't a problem for me

I remember going to Best Buy in 2014 and they were still selling cassette tapes, Best Buy is slow when it comes to phasing out  technology. Vinyl is actually more popular now than it was 10 years ago, so I'll be surprised that they're phasing those out since so many music review Youtubers use them


The last time I saw a cassettes for sale in a commercial retail store was in Sam Goody around 2005. The Game's "Documentary", Mary J. Blige - No More Drama", Ciara - Goodies, and whatever Britney Spears album was out around that time (maybe the one with Slave 4 U? I wasn't a fan and can only name her first two albums).

Last cassette I bought during the true cassette era was Scarface - The Fix

To answer the question posed in this thread: it was probably a compilation of New Age (meditative) songs.

Oh please, I remember seeing a thread like this back in 2011. Hell, I just bought a CD last weekend. It's never going to truly die.

Thats right buddy,just like 8 tracks :)

Im listening to one now!!

Oh please, I remember seeing a thread like this back in 2011. Hell, I just bought a CD last weekend. It's never going to truly die.

I strongly disagree. Laptops don't even have CD players anymore now.

I bought Dreamcatcher's ESCAPE the Era (Outside version) album at FYE back on Sunday. I think CDs could stop dying in the US and whatnot if they took some notes from the kpop industry by making the packaging look nice and provide extras as incentives to buy CDs as it'd mainly be fans buying them anyway. I refuse to just stream, plus I enjoy having physical copies of albums I enjoy.

I strongly disagree. Laptops don't even have CD players anymore now.


Instead they have disk drives you can attach via USB plugin.

Bought a CD yesterday :D
A Belgian Trip Hop group, a big favorite of mine I highly recommand :)

http://i.imgur.com/IAnj5Ag.jpg

Gotta love discount CDs ;D

Samantha James "Subconscious". That was 7 years ago!