Vinyl is back – for now
Vinyl sales have risen by 27.9 per cent with a projected 5.8 million vinyl records sold this year, compared to 4.6 million sold last year (according to www.digitalmusicnews.com and a fabulous article written by Paul Resnikoff). I’m not quite sure what sparked this change or why people like me love it so much. I think it is just a matter that you are bringing back something from the past, just to keep some part of your life a little less modern. However I can’t just sit here and rave about records because I can’t say they are super practical, so here are some of the things about vinyl records that are a little less fun.
Price: This is the biggest inconvenience of all, because of course vintage is expensive. It really comes down to the production. CDs and MP3s compact the sound to fit more onto one CD or to take up less space on your iPod or Phone. One album is usually takes up about 35 MB of space. Well, if you did not compact down the size, you would get a record. The size is never compacted so there is usually three or four songs on one side and depending on the size of the album, there can be two or even three vinyl records. Hence the average $25 price tag on new vinyl records. Not to mention the average $45 for old vintage finds.
Scratches: They scratch so easily and to start up an album on your player takes great precaution. It is hard to have a scratch free album – it takes practice. My first album I ever bought (Mumford and Sons Sigh No More album, for the record) doesn’t even play the last song anymore!
With that said, it takes a special kind of person to like vinyl. It is definitely fun to collect and have as a hobby, if you are willing to pay the price.