# How do you listen to recorded music?



## KenOC (Mar 7, 2011)

Just curious...how do you obtain and listen to music? Vote for your *predominant *method. If you do something else, let us know!


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## DiesIraeCX (Jul 21, 2014)

Rip the CDs and listen to the lossless files on Digital audio player/headphones.


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## brotagonist (Jul 11, 2013)

I have often expressed my preference for owning a hard copy on CD, so my vote should not surprise anyone.

However, I also:

- rip my own CDs for use on my mp3 Walkman;

- temporarily (!) download files from YT for temporary use on my Walkman (do this very rarely, but have done it, since ripping makes my CDs so hot that I can barely touch them; I am scared that it might be damaging); and

- stream from (free or public library patron accessible) third party sites (do this quite a bit since perhaps 18 months ago, so as to thoroughly sample works I might or might not like to own on CD).

I don't buy digital files, but I don't mind having free ones for temporary use, until I decide whether I want the piece or not. I got rid of my record player and LPs in about 1990 and I don't plan on ever getting them again. I don't like the snap crackle pop sound, static and general short life and cumbersome size of LPs.

I admit that even CDs are starting to get a little bit cumbersome, since my collection has well surpassed the 500 album mark. Despite what many say about digital files, I maintain (or like to believe  ) that I can detect a difference between the YT mp3 quality and CDs. For example, I have noticed that CDs tend to have a very wide dynamic range, from nearly inaudible to nearly glass shattering, while mp3s seem to be strongly normalized.


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## joen_cph (Jan 17, 2010)

LPs and CDs equally. 
Loudspeakers. 
Downloads only rarely.


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## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

LPs and CDs equally.
Loudspeakers.
Downloads never .


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## MagneticGhost (Apr 7, 2013)

Buy and Listen to CDs
Buy CDs and Rip Them
Listen to Spotify

All three about equally I'd say. - So I voted Other for multi-option.


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## Andreas (Apr 27, 2012)

I buy CDs and listen at home. Rarely rip something and put it on my phone, maybe for long train rides. Even more rarely I'll rip something off Youtube if it's near impossible to get it on CD (the works of Tadeusz Baird for example).


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## ptr (Jan 22, 2013)

It varies, about 3/5's are self ripped digital discs and 1/3's Vinyl, and 10% are downloads, they are generally stuff that is unavailable as hard copy, I have a bunch of digital, compact cassettes and open reel tapes (lots of air checks), but listen to then infrequently but have plans to digitize most of it.

/ptr


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## Morimur (Jan 23, 2014)

I buy CDs, rip them to flac and store them in one of my external hard-drives. I hardly ever listen to music on earphones.


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

I buy CDs, rip them, then listen to the electronic files on computer and MP3 player, but also burn a disc to play in the car. Rarely listen to the original CD except as I am leaving the music store and can't wait to hear it. Electronic files are stored on my computer and backed up to a thumb drive. Some works are also backed up to a cloud storage space.


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## Antiquarian (Apr 29, 2014)

I am really old-school at heart. At home I listen to CDs and SACDs and LPs directly, without having ripped them to disc, or media player. In my car I listen to burned CDs because my car player has an annoying habit of devouring CDs. When I walk I use an Android player with earbuds, listening to high quality mp3 files. But to answer the OP, it is primarily gingerly handled original CDs.


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Exclusively by buying CDs, both new and used. Occasionally, an opera or two on DVD.


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## Centropolis (Jul 8, 2013)

I've mostly listened to CDs that I've bought. But since Spotify launched in Canada finally, I've signed up for premium and have listened from Spotify this past week. Very cool service.

I was surprised that I even got Spotify to work on my Linux laptop.


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## stevens (Jun 23, 2014)

High resolution videos from Youtube. I download it, burn it on a DVD and look at it on a 42" flat tv with a glas of wine..or two


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## Guest (Aug 29, 2014)

Most of my music comes from iTunes or Amazon MP3, and I listen to it either on my iPod, or put it on a USB thumb drive and plug it into the USB port in my car. 

I also purchase CDs and listen to them in the car, or rip them to my computer and do as above. However, my CD/DVD drive on my computer has died, and I haven't replace it yet, so I haven't done this in a while.


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## Andolink (Oct 29, 2012)

For the past couple of years I've been primarily downloading flac files and then burning those onto CD's to listen either on my loudspeaker system or my headphone rig. I never listen over the computer except to sample clips or YouTube. About 10-15 % of my newly acquired recordings are still in good old fashioned CD format.


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## mmsbls (Mar 6, 2011)

I do several things:

Buy CDs and listen
Rip the CD and listen on my iPod or computer

To determine what music to buy I almost always want to hear the work first. To do that I stream from the Naxos Classical Music Library (through the university where I work). Sometimes if I can't find the piece on Naxos (rare) I will listen on youtube.


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## Declined (Apr 8, 2014)

Buy and listen to CDs, YouTube, or Spotify.


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## LarryShone (Aug 29, 2014)

I usually buy CDs and either play them on the stereo or burn them to my mp3 player.


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## julianoq (Jan 29, 2013)

Most of my listening is from Google Music All Access service (it works like Spotify). To me it is a miracle, since it is quite cheap and have like 99% of everything that I look for available and it is possible to download music to my phone to listen to offline. The few things that I can't find there I buy digitally. 

I have no cds or lps at all (and no space in my tiny apartment for them).


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## GreenMamba (Oct 14, 2012)

Buy CDs and listen to them on my Blu-Ray player. Usually speakers, sometimes headphones.

I never rip a CD, although I do have some through Amazon's Auto-Rip. I occasionally buy downloads and burn to discs.


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## DiesIraeCX (Jul 21, 2014)

GreenMamba said:


> Buy CDs and listen to them on my Blu-Ray player. Usually speakers, sometimes headphones.
> 
> I never rip a CD, although I do have some through Amazon's Auto-Rip. I occasionally buy downloads and burn to discs.


Could you elaborate on that last part? Are you perhaps mistaking "rip/ripping" for downloading? The Auto-Rip on Amazon is downloading the tracks before you receive your actual CD in the mail. Whereas ripping a CD is putting the identical CD tracks on your computer, which is isn't downloading.

That's interesting about playing your CDs on your Blu-ray player, I might have to try that, how do you connect your headphones when you're listening via Blu-ray?


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## Bulldog (Nov 21, 2013)

Mostly it's CD listening for me with a little Naxos Music Library thrown in.


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## Varick (Apr 30, 2014)

I will download pop music, but classical I always buy the CD and listen to it on my stereo system. I also take every CD and upload into my computer iTunes Library via Lossless. When I'm driving, or working somewhere I can always transfer it onto my iPod, and listen to it through that. 

V


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## TurnaboutVox (Sep 22, 2013)

Centropolis said:


> I've mostly listened to CDs that I've bought. But since Spotify launched in Canada finally, I've signed up for premium and have listened from Spotify this past week. Very cool service.
> 
> I was surprised that I even got Spotify to work on my Linux laptop.


Yes, it's a trial version, according to Spotify, but it works very well with my Ubuntu-running PC.

Increasingly I've been using Spotify to hear things I might buy later. I have also bought a few downloads in the last year or so - in FLAC format from Presto Classical, mostly.

I regularly buy CDs which I play using a conventional CD player, but everything I buy is also ripped to my hard drives as .flac files. My PCs have been equipped with external sound cards / DACs over the last 2 years and are connected to one or other amplifier and hi-fi loudspeakers (or headphones). This might be my predominant mode of listening now, I think.

I haven't bought an LP in 25 years but I still have around 200 classical LPs which I still play.


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## opus55 (Nov 9, 2010)

The old fashioned way - buy CDs, put them in my CD player, play through my floor standing speakers. I prefer to have some good amount of air between speakers and my ears.

I also consume music by iPod, smartphone, spotify, podcast and Naxos Music Library. I lament on record store days but it's so much easier to get music now. What I almost never use is FM radio and LPs.


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## Marschallin Blair (Jan 23, 2014)

opus55 said:


> The old fashioned way - buy CDs, put them in my CD player, play through my floor standing speakers. I prefer to have some good amount of air between speakers and my ears.
> 
> I also consume music by iPod, smartphone, spotify, podcast and Naxos Music Library. I lament on record store days but it's so much easier to get music now. What I almost never use is FM radio and LPs.


_Right on._

There's no replacement for displacement: bigger drivers mean more air moved; which means 'bigger sound'; sound that completely envelops and goes _through_ you.

I love my home stereo-- of course.

But for _detail_? Especially in vocal music?-- I love my Sennheisers.


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## spradlig (Jul 25, 2012)

Work or home: YouTube, using computer speakers. I tried headphones a few times, and it sounded better, but speakers are simply more convenient.

Driving, and occasionally at home: Pandora. It's OK, and easy to use while driving.


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## LarryShone (Aug 29, 2014)

DiesIraeVIX said:


> That's interesting about playing your CDs on your Blu-ray player, I might have to try that, how do you connect your headphones when you're listening via Blu-ray?


Well one way I suppose is to have the blu ray player hooked to the TV and plug headphones into said TV.


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## Krummhorn (Feb 18, 2007)

opus55 said:


> The old fashioned way - buy CDs, put them in my CD player, play through my floor standing speakers. I prefer to have some good amount of air between speakers and my ears . . .


Ditto on that. Except that I add dimmed lighting and pour a glass of wine too.

My collection of organ recordings is 50/50 (LP's/CD's), and orchestral ones are mostly all CD's, but a few on vinyl still.

Kh ♫


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## Jos (Oct 14, 2013)

I play vinyl, every day. 
None of the problems that many associate with turntables. The machine is built like a tank, set up properly once and is left that way. The trick is to loose the obsession with constant improvement and the promise of perfection. Put the needle on the record and enjoy.
The other source is streaming, I used to download, but can't be bothered with brimful harddrives that need to be organised anymore.

Got to go, flipping over Murray Perahia for the other Mozart pianoconcerto 

Cheers,
Jos


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## Haydn man (Jan 25, 2014)

On balance most of my purchases recently have been downloads of lossless files as they tend to be cheaper than CD's but I have recently been trying secondhand CD's from Amazon and ripping them 
Also use Spotify to try new works and this may become the dominant route in future


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## Jeff W (Jan 20, 2014)

I used to listen to my CDs more but I've ending up ripping them and listening more and more to my iPod these days... I hope to get back to listening almost exclusively to CDs at some point.


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## circulus (Jul 1, 2014)

I don't participate in the economy, so I use websites like snipmp3 to get stuff onto my iPod. The sound quality is atrocious. But I am planning on getting a turntable soon -- I have a small vinyl collection which so far includes Sorabji and Xenakis.


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## bigshot (Nov 22, 2011)

The leap of convenience and flexibility between LPs and CDs is the same as the leap of convenience and flexibility between CDs and a media server. Night and day. I would never go back.


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## Guest (Sep 1, 2014)

I have sold almost all my lp's and bought many cd's the last time.There is much nostalgia about the lp's and I have mixed feelings .I like to have the lp but listen to the cd for obvious reasons.My turntable is a very good one made by Denon and I used to listen to loudspeakers but lately I choose more often a headphone in order not to disturb my neighbours.I never listen to music outdoors.I still have many lp's most of them are not classical.Music from India and Borneo ( the dayaks)for example.I kept also an lp with I musici with music from Vivaldi ans Albinoni.A Telemann lp is also stil in my possesion,"The Ino cantate" sung by Gundula janowitz,one of my first


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## senza sordino (Oct 20, 2013)

I buy and listen to CDs. And I prefer to buy CDs in a physical shop, where I can browse. At home the stereo is on playing a CD, with my collection of CD hardware nearby. I do not carry CDs to work, I rip my CDs to the computer and put onto my iPod. At work I use my iPod. I voted for buying CDs and listening to these directly.


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## Albert7 (Nov 16, 2014)

I don't care much for storing CD's. I buy from iTunes, Amazon mp3, and rip my old CD collection into ALAC... that's about it.


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