The Rapid Rise (& Fall) of the CD

DACs have improved till, for single-ended use, there is a new Sabre chip ESS9038 outclasses far more expensive and difficult to get accurate ladder DACs. I still use mostly discs: CDs and 5-channel SACDs, but I have some downloaded copies of symphonies and ripped CDs on my computer. I am unwilling to tie myself down to a paid subscription service. I do not care for how music is catalogued by name of artist and name of song because I know which composer I want to hear and what symphony, concerto, overture, etc. I want to choose. 

I don't get the aversion to streaming if the intent of this hobby is the music. Streaming easily beats out any physical media for easy access and affordability. Between my cd's, vinyl, cassettes, reel to reel I probably have well over 10k physical media, this simply pales in comparison to whats available with streaming. I could never have the storage space or afford to purchase even 1% of the entirety of streaming libraries, streaming is a music lover's paradise.

Cd, reel to reel, vinyl, steaming, cassettes, it’s all good afaic…have it all and love it all…certainly not getting rid of collections I’ve been building since the 1960s…enjoy …

I don't get the appeal to streaming because my intent is the music I like to listen to. Having the world at my fingertips is meaningless and wasteful if I only like to listen to what would amount to about 1% of the music out there, comparatively speaking.

I get my take on what's out there easily enough to not have to spend on streaming what I had to with my CD set up to have it sound as good. For me, that's money down the drain. I'd rather buy better speakers for that kind of money. 

I've been to sites where you type in your favorite musician(s) and up will pop recommendations that closely align displayed in a field with the closest ones being the most similar and the furthest ones not so much. In each and every instance of investigation of said artists, not one appealed to me as much as the one I used for input. The display wasn't meager and would show about 20-30 artists. After a while, I stopped using it for its uselessness. 

This was some time ago and I can see how it was a primitive precursor to what's now used by Tidal, Qobuz, Spotify and others as part of some algorithm in their searches for similar music, with images and liner notes to sweeten the deal. I'd still have the same results if I streamed. 

There are places to go and listen to what's out there without paying a thing for it. That's more than enough for me. Spending time to listen to what others have collated and curated resulted in disliking most of what I listened to, just like with that site I mentioned before. To be honest, I find it boring.

It appears to me that some sort of hoarding is the latent function with pride and command of ownership as the manifest function (it's the way my mind works, YMMV). Like I've mentioned before (twice), this passive aggressive push to get others to stream by faint condemnation and curiosity (sealioning) instead of just letting it go, is what unnecessarily divides us. There's no need for hard lined conformity. I've never asked for justification for my set up: just wanted to share for those who are curious. Happy listening to one and all in your own way.

All the best,
Nonoise

@nonoise  Nobody wants to make you stream.  Some people really like being able to find new (to them) music through streaming and are free to express that like on this forum. 

There are probably more threads with differences of opinion on Audiogon than not.  That's the way forums work.  If you don't like reading about streaming, don't read the threads.  There are many topics I avoid in these forums.  It's easy to do.