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Do you still use a cassette deck?

Submitted by Stereophile Staff



In his blog, Stephen Mejias reports on the resurgence in cassette-only releases and is now looking for a good deck. Do you still use a cassette deck?
Choose One	All the time Sometimes Rarely Don't even have one, but do have some tapes Don't have one and don't have any tapes
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Do you buy classical music?

Submitted by Stereophile Staff, Jan 31 2010



A recent article details the lackluster sales of classical music discs. Do you buy classical music?

Yes, quite a bit: 47%
Yes, some: 22%
Yes, but very little: 19%
Never: 9%
What is classical music?: 0%



If sales of classical are down, this surely must mean that there aren't enough new educated listeners to replace those who pass away. It's a cultural problem, in a society where MTV rules and the bar level is being set lower and lower every year.
—T

I try to interest people in the various symphony orchestra labels—the few I've been able to check out have done outstanding work! And yes, I like and buy SACD!
—*Robert LeBeck*

I will buy classical music when the master tape is recorded in analog and not that horrible digital sound.
—*tim coop*

Actually, classical music is among the very few types of music worth buying, because the quality of the recording is usually the best. This, and the fact that it's much more satisfying.
—*Julian D*

Rarely, but I do.
—*Jim M*

Every day this country gets a little dumber.
—*Rick*

Hey, these works are played somewhere with real instruments and an audience every day. How hard is it to just grab your Neumann stereo pair, stand, and DSD recorder and log away a copy for yourself? Not that I do this every day, and that prerecorded music is some type of fad plaguing America....
—*AJSchmidt*

Buying up CDs—even old LPs—like a maniac because I figure a lot of the stuff I want is just going to disappear when the Age of the Download fully engulfs the world. You may be able to download it in highly compressed 256k MP3 files, but dammit, I care about sound!
—*Lawrence*

We enjoy comparing & contrasting live performances against recorded concerts—differing venues, experiences, etc. Truly excellent recordings (ie, performance, mastering) can be difficult to find.
—*Jack*

Especially SACDs, when available.
—*Gordon Gower*

I like my classical on vinyl and the problem there is that the price per disc is getting crazy for new classical vinyl. I do buy a lot of used classical for very cheap and I can usually find more interesting 20^th Century music! If the record companies would make some of the more obscure music available on vinyl I would buy it. I have gotten some new, but it's few and far between. I go to Dustygroove.com for that underground/outsider music.
—*DLKG*

I prefer SACD to digital downloads.
—*Gabriel*

I've "experimented" with some classical CDs that were given to me by family. Very soothing for my frazzled nerves! Now I mostly just listen to classic rock (and techno when I'm inebriated). Sales may be down for classical right now, but our population is aging, sooo I would think the opposite would be happening (increase in sales). Oh well, I know nothing.
—*Don*

CD, SACD, hi-rez downloads, and LP.
—*Vade Forrester*

You really should purchase the Harmonia Mundi Beethoven Complete Sonatas for piano & violin by Faust & Melnikov. Four CDs & one DVD of delicious music, recorded as natural as can be.
—*Marcel*

Recently buying from 2L and liking their recording quality and performance of the artists. Limited catalog though.
—*Chris E.*

I buy some, especially SACDS. I really can't understand this market. Some small labels have lots of classical releases—and on SACD! I think it's a good idea to interview owners of these labels to understand how they survive. They sure have some lessons to teach the big labels.
—*Francisco S., Brazil*

If you like classical music, you will buy classical music. This is simple logic.
—*Fang Qin*

I buy a few every year, good recordings, occasionally SACDs.
—*Ron Yu*

How else can you hear Philip Glass?
—*Kerry Beverly*

I particuarly like the HDCDs and SACDs for their greater fidelity.
—*Douglas Kelly*

Usually used LPs.
—*Raimundo*

I have about 100 or so classical music discs—less than 10% of my entire collection. I'd probably buy more, but my ignorance of the genre and which are the best recordings to get has held me back. And though I find I enjoy a good portion of my collection, they just don't get near as much spin time as the jazz, rock or world music that make up the other 90% do.
—df

Unfortunately, music stores in Delhi are either slashing the classical music titles available or even shutting down. I hope the era of digital downloads from music publishing companies comes soon, else we'll be starved for classical music soon.
—*Kamal*

I try, but selection in stores is limited.
—*Eddy*

Downloads from Amazon.
—*steve*

Love it—especially SACD.
—*Chris Wynn*

I find myself buying more classical discs now than ever before. One reason is that I'm turning into my father and am out of touch with what these young hellions listen to these days. Second, I'm revisiting some of the classics that I've neglected over the years. Classical is about the only genre readily available on SACD. Considering that the discs cost about the same as a standard CD and sound much better, I'm getting a better bang for the buck while getting reacquainted with some old friends.
—*Bill Harris*

It's no wonder sales are down. CD retailers have virtually evaporated. Most of the smaller independents don't have the space or sales volume to warrant much shelf space for them. I buy nearly all my classical music from Amazon.com. Fantastic selection and you can preview discs before purchase. Classical music just doesn't get the proper exposure. There are not many commercial radio stations left, and new releases are often standard pieces recorded over and over. However, most newly recorded material boasts superb performances and high-quality sound. Too bad most people have tuned it out. Check out the DG website for classical done right.
—*Bob Lennox*

ArchivMusic, and downloads. The world is rich with classical, the fact that people don't know that, schade.
—*Paul Basinski*

I've done all the classical music buying I intend to do. I have a small selection and I don't listen to it enough. It requires attention, which I'm ashamed to admit I can't give.
—*Stephen Curling*

The article referred to was really about whether Billboard should continue to track sales of classical CDs. I doubt many regular buyers of classical music consult Billboard very often. On the broader issue—small numbers of CDs sold—the market is international, not just the US, so labels may sell more than US data would indicate. While the old majors issue little, smaller labels are very active, as any reader of American Record Guide knows. And there is lots of music avaiable for downloading in CD quality or (much) better, and on SACD. The market may be small, but those of us who buy classical music appear to be able to keep many labels and downloaders in business.
—*John Arango*

Most of my purchases are classical music. Last year I purchased 12 non-classical CDs. Each month I purchase about five CDs or downloads.
—*Joe Hartmann*

I have a great specialty music store 200 yards from my home. The staff is great, and they help me choose music that I will enjoy, as I don't know a great deal about the genre. I would probably not buy classical music otherwise.
—*Blair*

99.9%
—*steve ott*

It becomes more and more difficult to find new music. Classical reviews in magazines are disappearing too. So Stereophile, please more music, equipment by itself is irrelevant!
—*Jakob*

I'm afraid the volume of my purchases of the latest releases from Telarc, Reference Recordings, etc, is not as much as it used to be—current financial woes and all. The love and need of this classical music in my daily life will never wane, despite what may be hinted at in the article. It may not be in my blood, but I'll be damned if it does not run deep to the heart of me, where it so often reaches out and touches.
—*Serpieri*

It is in fact the only music I buy, preferably in SACD format.
—*FvK*

I haven't bought any classical for at least five years. I borrow it for free from the public library. How many different versions of Bach's or Beethoven's or Chopin's works does one person really need, anyway?
—*OvenMaster*

How many people get to hear a real orchestra or quartet live? Classical is for the most part more complex than pop. If you cannot hear into the complexity—because most audio systems suck—how can you like it if not through hearing it live?
—*Clasiquissimo*

I still have 99+% of all of the recordings that I have bought over the past 50 years and all but a dozen or so are classical. I buy it because I need it—any other kind of music is available for free
—*David Joy*

Only high-resolution downloads—why bother with Red Book?
—*Tim K*

Yeah, about a 1/3 to 1/2 of my music buying is classical. Classical is almost the only thing I buy on CD, everything else is LP. At 27, I certainly don't fit into the expected demographic.
—*Nathan*

In fact, only classical music!
—*Jose Frreire*

No I don't. Occasionally, if I can't find anything else on the radio I might listen to it, but the moon is usually blue when I do.
—*Nodaker*

I already own what I consider "must haves." Considering that I rarely have the chance to actually sit down and listen, buying music is a luxury.
—*Dimitris Gogas*

There are some classical music labels, such as Alpha, Ricercare, etc, whose CDs are of excellent quality and which one cannot download.
—*Steve Venizelos*

Almost all discs I buy are classical CDs. Just listen to some of the RCA Living Stereo discs and you'll know why.
—*Daan*

Most classical recordings are just new performances of the same small group of compositions that everyone else has recorded. How many recordings of _______'s _______ do you think I need?
—*Woody Battle*

I sure do. Jazz as well. SACD and Red Book. My CD collection is growing rapidly. LPs also. I have a music server as well as a big rig. The only thing I ever downloaded were some HDTracks samples. I like having the media in my house. I rip my CDs for the server but play the discs on my Esoteric X03SE for serious listening.
—*Dennis*

I purchase only 24-bit downloads, CD is finished as far as I'm concerned.
—*P.Jay*

The Lebrecht-type gloomy prediction is getting tiresome. As a 23-year-old grad student of science, nearly all of my expendable income (out of a sub-minimum wage salary) goes into the purchasing of classical CDs. I shop at three sites monthly: Crotchet.uk, Arkivmusic.com, and Amazon.
—*Yun*

I buy a little, it's just hard to know where to start. And often there are so many versions of the same stuff, that if you hear of a recommended album, you have to match up five different values to make sure it's the right one.
—*Eric Shook - Pittsboro, NC*

I blame the education system for making entire generations think "classical" music only sounds like the Classical era and associating it with being stuffy and boring. Then they grow up without ever hearing the amazing work of lesser-known composers like Nielsen, Shostakovich, Glass, etc.
—*Jim, SF*

I still find the number of new classical releases coming out each month overwhelming. I'm not worried yet.
—*Dave Cook*

Worthy performances well-recorded, especially those available on SACD
—*Surf Mark*

I don't see the mystery with the drop in sales. Unless you're a collector who has to have every performance of a work, once you have a particular performance, you're done!
—*Steve NM*

This article is shocking to me. I thought classical sales were one of the few genres that were not suffering terribly due to digital downloads. Guess I was wrong. I can't believe my limited number of CD purchases is actually moving the charts!
—*Chris Thompson*

Mainly SACDs that are DSD and multichannel.
—*B. Meighan*

Discs (CD) rarely, LPs yes!
—*Jon*

ArkivMusic.com gets tons and tons of my spare cash. I still miss Tower Records, but I'm still buying a few dozen classical discs per year.
—*Lionel*

I buy a lot of classical music on CD, which I then rip (lossless), in order to have maximum playback quality, an optical backup, and printed liner notes.
—*A Canadian Dilletante*

I buy a little, but no more or less than I always have. Jazz is and has always been my primary focus.
—*xanthia01@gmail.com*

I'm too busy to get to many concerts, but I've become a headphone audiophile and I buy lots of music, mostly classical.
—*Vic DiVenere*

I do buy much classical music—there is nothing like it to soothe, heal, and to think about those entities which are greater than ourselves.
—*D.A.B., Pacific Palisades, CA*

I bought a little at one time, but it's been quite a while since I have purchased any classical music. My God, look what happened to Telarc!
—*Glenn Bennett*

Mostly used vinyl.
—*A. Stock*

I only wish the record companies would release more of their new catalogs on vinyl and SACD, instead of only on CDs or downloads.
—*Francisco*

I buy when the mood hits. I go through periods of buying, but it is hard to justify owning 10 different versions of the same symphony, or concert, or ensemble piece when there are so many other albums to buy. If I had more money I would love to delve deeper rather than cut a broad swath.
—*emiser*

I'm not sure how to define "quite a bit," but I marked it anyway. I'm buying them regularly. I just bought four CDs from Reference Recordings. I also have one from Yarlung and plan to buy more. I'm also going to start buying hi-rez discs on DVD-V as soon as I buy a new player.
—*Poor Audiophile.*

Less than very little. I feel poorly about this, but I might buy a used album from a garage sale once or twice a year. Tops. And then, probably never play it.
—*Tom Ross*

Very little, if one considers movie scores classical. If not, then never. I can't get into it. It is more appealing to hear some rock, jazz, or even pop instead of classical. I simply don't find myself craving it enough to buy.
—*Chuckie Girmann, San Diego, CA*

There are so many great performance and recordings available. I am always looking for music I have not heard before.
—*Robert Jordan*

I buy a lot of different music. Thing is, if you go to a classical music concert, the only people who don't have gray hair are music majors. Until we get a new generation of listeners, sales are going to drop as the listeners do.
—*David L. Wyatt jr.*

Not as much as I'd like to. I just don't know what I'd like and what is a good recording of it.
—*Paul J. Stiles, Mtn.View, CA*

But mostly used vinyl from Everyday Music in Portland.
—*RedBlur*

I made a few purchases of some of the select classical performances I do like. There's not much more is there? Occasionally I do find some that I must have, but it's a genre I listen to only a few times a year.
—*djl*

Yes, I buy it, and usually at concerts, and I like it when the artists bring discs to sell. I picked up three of Vadim Gluzman's CDs when he performed with the Spokane Symphony recently.
—*John*

Very, very little. Out of 3000 LPs, about 20 are classical and about 75 out of my 4000 CDs. I love all kinds of music but classical doesn't pull me in, nor does soul, dance, or much that new music now.
—*pkf2*

By this time we have 50+ years of classical performances. The only "new" material is artists/interpretations that are often inferior to the old performances. Ergo, limited sales.
—*jason*

I have found downloads to have either very poor sound quality or they are horribly inconvenient (ie, have to be played through a computer/server—a horrible idea if you know anything about electronics). So, discs (CDs, SACDs, etc) are the only way to go if I don't want to sacrifice sound quality.
—*Dave Lampson*

Why has Stereophile nearly eliminated reviews of classical music? Most of what is reviewed is awful.
—*ArtR*

Some or little lately, but a lot at various times in the past. Like other genres I guess, sometimes it's my "thing," others it's not for months at a time.
—*Doug Bowker*

I clicked "Yes, quite a bit," but maybe it should have been "What is classical music?" Groups like Kronos Quartet are changing the definition of classical music to include "world music," ie beyond the traditional precincts of Europe, Russia, and North America. I buy about 10 CDs or downloads of traditional European-based classical music per month.
—*Doug Taylor*

In advance, I buy a copy of whatever I plan on attending live. I usually buy from ArkivMusic—not the best choice. Many discs and jewel boxes arrive damaged in transit. Support is terrible.
—*Ron*

Since most shops (Borders, etc) have reduced inventories, I have reduced my browsing habits—and browsing was when I formerly bought most of my discs.
—*Paul*

I buy CDs, LPs, and downloads.
—*Xavier Chorda*

I say some because I already have a sizable collection (mostly on vinyl). I currently buy hi-rez (88.2/24 and up) downloads. Stereophile should have a specific column devoted to reviewing hi-rez (classical and pop).
—*Steve*

30% classical, 30% jazz, 30% pop? 10% other.
—*ch2*

With most of the brick & mortar classical stores going the way of the Dodo, the web is a good resorce. Thank goodness for ArkivMusic for keeping thousands of great titles alive by their On Demand program.
—*Paul Luscusk*

Classical music, from chamber to opera, is about all I buy. Amazon usually sends me to used stores for obscure albums at a lower price, so I doubt much of what I buy ends up recorded by manufacturers—with the perpetual exception of Naxos, the good guys!
—*Skip*

Classical music is music that was written to sound good without any modern "studio magic," It relies purely on the natural acoustic magic of real instruments and nice performance spaces. I love being able to bring part of that experience home.
—*Ben Englert*

That piece in the Washington Post was an eye-opener. This country, if those numbers are accurate, puts a lot of money into maintaining classical music. They've got to find a way to sell better. Is there creativity in the market for sales? I doubt it. I miss the knowledgeable staff at Tower Records, by the way. We've got people who know what they're talking about maintaining the little classical section at the Politics & Prose bookstore, the best in Washington, by far.
—*John in d.c.*

The situation is a little complicated. I listen to classical music. But my preferred playback medium is vinyl. That limits me to performances from the 1960s and '70s. OTOH, there are plenty of works that do not have audiophile-grade recordings from that era, so there is plenty of room for modern performances in today's marketplace. Another problem is that many/most classical music lovers have all of the Beethoven, Mozart, etc, that they really need. So yet another Beethoven cycle isn't going to sell much, especially if one of von Karajan's cycles is still considered the best. I think that it has not helped that classical music has been mostly marketed to the crossover crowd, which is never going to buy more than a few discs. Also, I would like to register my vote firmly against depending on modern compositions. I realize that someone involved with classical music on a daily basis can get bored at some point, but that is not the case with most music lovers. These points may paint a bleak picture, but it means that there are windows of opportunity for those willing to do business a bit differently. The SFS Mahler recordings are one example. Also, the audiophile market could be a great source of revenue from hi-rez recordings. While SACD is barely treading water, many audiophiles have at least some interest in building a music server. A steady stream of new hi-rez classical titles could be quite successful.
—*Louis P.*

It is hard to find any information on new classical recordings today.
—*T. J. Ameche*

Has to get a great review/write-up as I now purchase mostly audiophile-quality recordings
—*Jonathan Cohen*

It's not that I don't like it, I would think that this genre would be better served if there was a dedicated website where one could listen to and/or download it.
—*Jimmy*

Only SACDs.
—*Ivo Rogmans*

How about a little music education in our schools? If you can have football, which kills about 40 kids a year, why not music? It's all about the exposure.
—*audio-sleuth@comcast.net*

I buy used discs. I suspect others consider this matter like I do: Why do I need a new disc when the secondary CD/SACD market online is so vibrant?
—*Justin*

Surround sound tickles my fancy at the moment.
—*John Blackwater*

For about two years now, I have really been into opera. My addiction has been inpired by broadcasts of live Met performances on HDTV to remote locations, one of which is a 15-minute ride from my home. So I have been building an opera library and spending quite a bit of money. MP3s and and Internet downloads hold no attraction for me. For me therefore, it is CDs and LPs only!
—*Ken*

The Nordic Sound and Trondheim Solistene: Divertimenti are two recent purchases
—*Paul. B*

I spend about $100 a month on classical music, virtually all of it in physical Red-Book CD format. I prefer to buy from brick-and-mortar establishments, although that is getting harder and harder to do. Yes, I'm a dinosaur.
—*Jim*

I started buying classical titles back in 1970—there used to be cut-out LPs at drug stores and department stores. No more—new issues come out unannounced and you have to hunt for new titles online. No one listens to classical music anymore.
—*Robin Landseadel*

Let's face it, can any of us name three contemporary classical music composers? Unless the industry keeps re-packaging the same music over and over, store shelves would probably have very few classical titles.
—*Class Act*

Yes. Nearly 80% of my records are classical music. And nearly 95% of my LP (vinyl) is now.
—*Tonko Papic*

Yes, I enjoy the true high-fidelity of SACD multichannel playback of excellent acoustic recordings that are mostly classical music.
—*FiveDotOne*

This is a more interesting and professional article about the sales of classical music albums. I am a die-hard hard-core classical music lover, and I buy classical music albums every month, 95% of them are from my very beloved Deutsche Grammophon & Decca. A few others are from the more conservative and less creative EMI Classics, the cute Naïve and the dying Telarc. Sony Masterworks is useless and it is more like a audio-division of Sony Pictures, which loves producing heaps of movie albums as well as the awful "classical" crossovers (with such "talents" as Yo-Yo Ma). I haven't bought any albums from Sony Classical for a long long time.
—*Tian Xia*

Mostly Studio Master FLAC downloads from Linn Records.
—*Antonio G.*

I buy a lot of classical music. Although I still like indie rock and downtempo, a Beethoven or Bruckner symphony makes everything else sound pathetic. Classical music, along with jazz, is about musicianship and emotions—deep, not shallow emotions.
—M.

Many, many CDs and SACDs.
—*Juan Hitters*

It's the music, on my Thorens/Lavardin/Harbeth 40.1 system. What is better? The concert hall, of course...
—*kbchristian*

At the beginning of CD era, I used to buy several discs per month. Now I have a quite good library of classic classics and the number of new CDs which are worth buying looks quite limited—and also boring.
—*aldo olivari*

But consider which labels really produce new, exciting, vibrant records: The likes of Alpha, CPO, Naïve/Opus111, Hyperion, Dabringhaus+Grimm, ECM, Linn. See a pattern? Whatever happened to record labels controlled by Vivendi Universal, EMI, Sony? The quarterly bottom line megalomania has fatally stifled the spirit of discovery and adventure which is vital if classical music is to survive and thrive. The big record companies are just milking their stale Karajans and Pavarottis and Netrebkos to death, killing the industry in the process. HD direct distribution via the Internet is the only hope of escaping their death grip. We need hungry, curious, tech-savvy upstarts to keep this part of our culture alive.
—*chris*

For classical music I prefer DSD-recorded SACDs. However, I also like high-resolution music files. I never could tolerate the strident sound of strings (which are so important to classical music) on CDs. I wonder if the sound of CD, which is more problematic with classical music than other types could be the real reason for the lackluster sales of classical music? Perhaps if listeners discovered SACD or rediscovered LP they would buy classical music more?
—*Teresa*

Yup, two to four discs per month. Will continue to do so until the choice of hi-rez downloads improves and the prices come down a bit.
—*struts*

I went through a massive classical buying phase about eight or so years ago. These days I have almost no time to listen—I have two boys aged three and one—so my music buying has also almost stopped completely. Maybe when they're out of the house?
—*Bob D*

Why just single out classical music? Aren't all genres of music suffering? In fact, I'll bet that popular music has seen a bigger percentage decline than classical— not that it would surprise me seeing as how most of it is such absolute garbage.
—*mauidj*

Classical music is nice for background, but I can't say that I've ever listened to it—I mean, really listened to it. Having said that, I certainly understand how so many audiophiles like it. (Wish there was more rock music used for equipment reviews.)
—*rudy yniguez*

I thought sales of all music discs in the Internet age were lackluster or worse.
—*chuck*

New releases of classical music don't provide new classical music. They provide the same old music with new "geniuses" with a "totally new interpretation" of the old music I already have on the shelf. The most important thing in the classical business of today isn't about music, but about new and sexy-looking stars. Even on posters for live performances, you find big letters for the stars and small letters for the musical content of the evening. So I prefer to buy jazz CDs and go to jazz performances with new and fresh music. (This all from the German viewpoint, but I assume it is the same in the US.)
—*Oliver*

Some of the hi-rez labels have produced some outstanding discs that sound better than anything I've heard before.
—*Brian*

Over 90% of my music purchases are classical music discs.
—*WSK*

With the decline of music education in schools, are we surprised? The additional problem of those under the age of 30 having the attention span of a gnat doesn't help in appreciating music running longer than three minutes, 42 seconds.
—*Dismord*

Yawn...
—GG

I love what 2L is doing today, as well as some of the great vinyl reissues of those most classic of classical titles!
—*Pete*

Classical music is virtually my only music interest. I buy about 10 discs a month. If they are SACDs, all the better.
—*Jonathan Allen*

I don't buy much music of any genre, but I do enjoy listening to a wide variety of classical music. For those who answered "What is classical music," I would refer them to this example: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0diDwHtATw&feature=related
—*craig*

Just got a bunch of second-hand classical discs tonight. I no longer buy new releases because the present crop of performers leaves me cold. Give me Furtwangler, Karajan, and Bohm any day. Until a new breed appears, classical sales will plummet.
—*Nick*

The future is in the download, possibly 24-bit/96kHz.
—*Lino*

Most of what I like I already have on vinyl—so I'm mainly filling in the blanks.
—*mook*

But with rare exceptions, only SACDs.
—*David Goodwin*

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