Can "Digital" damage my gear?

As for viruses being serious issue from the beginning (being treated seriously) - you must be kidding?

Nope, I'm not. The fact that virus attempts have escalated over the years does not mean they did not exist before.

The first version of Windows (1983) was released about 10 years before the internet became open to the public. It took the commercialization of the internet to give the viruses, worms, trojans and all that a chance to go big time. The fact was Microsoft valued ease-of-use for non-technical consumers more than they valued security.

However, these malicious files work by targeting the operating system and programs. The vast majority of them have targeted Microsoft products. Music files don't do that. There is also the lack of a universal target. What corrupts an iTunes player won't work on a Windows Media Player. You've got a variety of software players plus an array of hardware players out there. Hackers can't get their jollies with one malicious file screwing with 90% of the users as they do with MS computers.

So you're pretty much left with putting a loud noise in a song. Would a commercial label do that? Unlikely; they wouldn't want the lawsuits. So we're kind of back to the risk of music from questionable sources, such as a listener using their megabucks stereo as speakers for listening to a low-bit-rate U-Tube video.

We're back to risk analysis and prioritization. I've had my share of situations with my stereo equipment over the past 35 some-odd years including blown tweeters, damaged styluses, and other things that required repair or maintenance. You are certainly free to worry about this problem to your heart's content, but it is not prominent on my radar screen.

There was an asteroid (2009 DD45) that just missed the earth the other day if you want something big to worry about. ;-)

Keep in mind that analog circuits can malfunction in ways that result in high volumes and/or high frequencies. Something as simple as a turntable phono cable that gets partially unplugged could blow a tweeter if the volume knob on the amp is turned up. Or, one of your neighbors could get into shortwave radio as a hobby with you finding out the hard way that your cable and equipment shielding is no longer adequate.

So, yes, there are some risks in the manner you describe with digital sources. That doesn't mean that you are risk-free if you have no digital. A bit of caution deals with most situations, however.

I've got over 40,000 songs on my digital server. I have never come across a maliciously recorded digital song. I've had damaged CDs give me silence, clicks, pops and stutters but no blasts of noise.

Each person gets to worry about those things they choose to worry about, but it strikes me that you're concerned about item number 4,999 on the list of 5,000 things that can go wrong. The only way I might be concerned is if I were downloading music from "free" services or buying lots of pirated CDRs.

Lots of people have had blown tweeters over the years and I'd be fascinated to hear of one blown by a malicious digital recording.

- that's exactly what people said about computer viruses at the beginning.

I've been involved with computers since the early 1980s. I don't ever recall such a statement by anyone. Viruses have always been a serious issue with networked computers from the beginning and that risk has grown with the internet putting more and more systems on open networks.

I've still not seen nor heard of any issue with recorded music in this fashion.

As for your concern over internet soundbites, perhaps that is a greater risk than ripped music but it also means it is far less convenient to scan prior to listening. If you're at a web site and cannot listen to a 10 or 20 second clip until after scanning you've lost a lot of ease of use and functionality.

If this is a concern, you could use a dedicated music server that doesn't do other computer duties. I do this and have no urge to use my main stereo for playing internet soundbites.

I gather this is just an issue of risk prioritization. But note that you were unable to give an example of a piece of stereo equipment - tweeter or otherwise - damaged by digital music and can only discuss it in terms of a theoretical exposure. Perhaps you are just more prescient than I, but at my house I think the bigger exposure is the dog chasing the cat and knocking something over.... ;-)

I wouldn't worry about damage to your amp from LP clicks and pops. Over the past 10 years I've converted my LP collection to digital using Adobe Audition. It allows you to zoom in on clicks and pops and most are not more than a thousandth of a second long, even when they are loud.

Your bigger worry would be HF oscillation in the circuit due to other factors, such as the faulty preamp I noted above, but you'd need a worse case than the one I had.

Back to your original issue, there are lots of things that can cause damage to your equipment. The particular concern you had is frankly one of the more remote scenarios. If you suffer equipment damage, you're far more likely to get from one of the old fashioned and time tested methods. ;-)

Actually, the last high frequency oscillation problem I had involved a Conrad Johnson PV-10A tube preamp several years ago. A power supply cap went bad and it had a high frequency oscillation that I couldn't hear but fortunately my 24 year old son could. (It was up close to 20 KHz.)

Another option to consider for your operating system is Linux. I use that for my music server (Fedora Core 8). There are very few viruses for Linux and none that install at the "user" level. (You have to be "root" or "superuser" mode for a root-kit to install and proper Linux protocol dictates that you do not do day-to-day computing in that mode.)

Oh well, off to hear the Dublin Philharmonic tonight in a live concert. Remember to enjoy your music!

Can LP clicks & pops damage a system?

Very unlikely, but theoretically possible if the volume control were high. Over the years there has been a few times that a damaged record has sent me diving to turn the volume control down.

Once a record is in your collection and you know how it has been treated this would be an exceptionally rare event. But the first time you play a record, especially a used one, it wouldn't hurt to exercise a bit of caution.