the Ipod as high end
On Wed, 2 Nov 2011 06:40:28 -0700, Dick Pierce wrote
(in article ):
Harry Lavo wrote:
"Dick Pierce" wrote in message
...
Audio Empire wrote:
LP? It's still flourishing
By whatever criteria one might use to come to
that conclusion, one could also say that Latin
is a flourishing language and the Eutruscans
are a flourishing people.
That's not to deny that there are peaople selling
and buying LPs, but it continuously amazes me how
one can take a product whose current sales are but
a small fraction of what they once were and call
that "flourishing."
Fact of the matter is,
I'm not disputing your facts. I'm challenging the
conclusion.
I walked into a Best Buy for the first time in a few
months, and there on a rearranged shelf were three
different brands of turntables. Hardly a sign of
dying interest.
And 40 years ago, if I walked into any of 15 independent
stereo stores within 20 miles of downtown Boston, or any
Radio Shack, Lafayette Radio, Lechmere's, Sears, Montgomery
Wards, and MANY more, I'd see ten times that number of
brands.
Forty years ago, vinyl was THE source of listener-owned music media. Today it
has to compete with a myriad of other viable music sources. That's a sign of
musical source diversity.
Let's stick with your facts, Harry. Walk to the other
end of Best Buy. How many different labels of LPs do they
sell. Okay, let's make it easy: how many LP's do they
sell.
They don't, but there are lots of stores that do sell LPs. New ones too.
Let's keep sticking with your facts, Harry: how many of
those three brands of turntables at Best Buy would you
let within 10 feet of any of your LPs?
All of the Pro-Ject models I saw at my Best Buy would be fine performers. I
don't know what you're getting at here
And still staying on those facts: how many of those
three brands of turntables at Best Buy would be considered
on par performance-wise with a typical mid-line turntable
carttridge setup from 35-40 years ago.
All of them. Project. Music Hall, and Rega all make fine performing
"high-end" turntables. There's no market for any other kind.
Let's, instead, jump to my facts. How many of those 15
independently owned stero stores still sell three or more
brands of turntables? Well, it's a trick question, because
not a single one of them still exists, most of them having
disappeared 10 or more years ago.
There is a store not 10 miles from me than sells NOTHING but new turntables
(dozens of brands all the way from $200 for a Chinese built belt drive unit
with a decent arm and a cartridge of unknown quality (sold by Music Hall) to
Walker Proscenium selling for more than $60,000.), new turntable accessories
and records.
Well, okay, of the remaining chains I mentioned, how many
of them have 3 or more brands of tunrables available?
Oh, sorry, another trick question: many of them are gone,
also.
But there are scores of new ones that have taken their place. The absolute
bottom tier is gone, that's true. There are no more cheap mass-market tables
from the likes of Pioneer, Yamaha, Panasonic etc., if that's what you mean.
But there are plenty more higher end tables from Japan, China, GB,and Europe
and even the good ol' USA!
So, given that the population of the US, at least,
200,000,000 40 years ago and is over 300,000,00 now,
what, in FACT, has happened to the number of stores selling
turntables, the number of turntables available, the number
of new LPs being released, the number of new LPs available
and sold, per person 40 years ago vs today?
Not a valid question. Vinyl is no longer the ONLY source of listener owned
music media as it was 40 years ago.
If you treat the facts honestly and without prejudice, how
can one say that "LPs are flousriching?"
Because, as a niche market, it is. If you insist that vinyl has to be the
dominate music source in the marketplace in order to be healthy and
flourishing, then we have no common ground to discuss this, because that is a
false requirement in my estimation. The sale of vinyl and the attendant
equipment to play it with is large enough to support the number of players in
that market, and the market segment is growing, not shrinking. That's the
criteria for a flourishing market, not some erstwhile market dominance from a
simpler age when the average music lover had little choice but to buy vinyl
because there was, essentially, nothing else.
And, Harry, I'm going to hold your feet to the fire of
facts, if you don't mind. I did not say LPs were dying,
nor did I say interesting in LPs were dying, no more
than the use of Latin or appreciation of Etruscan art
has vanished form the face of the earth. The notion
that "interest in LPs is dying" is YOUR invention and
are YOUR words, not mine. I would appreciate it if you
would no longer confuse your prejudices with my words,
rthanks you.
That might work with Harry, but not with me. I'm taking issue only with your
statement that LP is not flourishing by any criteria you know and your rather
weak attempts at backing that opinion up.
And the fact is, I have a very healthy LP collection
myself, which includeds many valuable and irreplacement
performances of music that simply isn't being recorded
or released on any medium today.
That's one reason to keep one's LP playing equipment up to date.
Those are the facts, Harry. And facts are different than
conclusions, as I'm sure you are aware.
Well, Dick, your "facts", as stated, seem to lack current market knowledge.
Statements like "...how many of those three brands of turntables at Best Buy
would you let within 10 feet of any of your LPs?" shows that you don't seem
to know that today's record decks, even the cheap ones are very good with
fine performing arms and low-friction bearings. So, with seemingly outdated
"facts" and some of the assumptions that you seem to have made, above,
you'll forgive me for taking your conclusions on this issue with a grain of
salt.
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