Going Digital

[audiopie]

don't do it, mate! or else you go to hell! ain't a dj myself, tho - vinyl is the absolute bliss

I second that, coming from the traditionalist side of me. You can kiss a record for being fucking ill but you can't kiss an MP3.

If it does turn out that you rock the MP3 route, you might as well just keep the recs you got. They're like Photographs, they're pieces of yer past that brought you and others joy.

Good luck with that!

[incyde]

well man i hear you on the space issue.... vinyls certainly do take up a hell of a lot more space, they can scratch, bend, warp, and the like, not to mention they can get heavy, but that's a minor setback compared to the pure soul that vinyl can have. for me (and probably most) no matter how many you've got to carry around it's just that much better to be able to see, and just FEEL that wax being played right in front of your eyes, reacting to your every touch. the other reason i won't go mp3 is that the sound quality will never ever ever compare. i think no matter how carefully and what high tech stuff you use to convert vinyl to digital, it will come out missing something because mp3's really are just a copy of sound that is reproduced by a computer, whereas with vinyl there's an actual physical reaction going on. plus its not like you carry round with you ALL of your records, just the ones that are hot for the moment, and you usually can leave the older ones at home. am i right does anyone else know what i'm sayin?

[incyde]

well man i hear you on the space issue.... vinyls certainly do take up a hell of a lot more space, they can scratch, bend, warp, and the like, not to mention they can get heavy, but that's a minor setback compared to the pure soul that vinyl can have. for me (and probably most) no matter how many you've got to carry around it's just that much better to be able to see, and just FEEL that wax being played right in front of your eyes, reacting to your every touch. the other reason i won't go mp3 is that the sound quality will never ever ever compare. i think no matter how carefully and what high tech stuff you use to convert vinyl to digital, it will come out missing something because mp3's really are just a copy of sound that is reproduced by a computer, whereas with vinyl there's an actual physical reaction going on. plus its not like you carry round with you ALL of your records, just the ones that are hot for the moment, and you usually can leave the older ones at home. am i right does anyone else know what i'm sayin?

[audiopie]

well man i hear you on the space issue.... vinyls certainly do take up a hell of a lot more space, they can scratch, bend, warp, and the like, not to mention they can get heavy, but that's a minor setback compared to the pure soul that vinyl can have. for me (and probably most) no matter how many you've got to carry around it's just that much better to be able to see, and just FEEL that wax being played right in front of your eyes, reacting to your every touch. the other reason i won't go mp3 is that the sound quality will never ever ever compare. i think no matter how carefully and what high tech stuff you use to convert vinyl to digital, it will come out missing something because mp3's really are just a copy of sound that is reproduced by a computer, whereas with vinyl there's an actual physical reaction going on. plus its not like you carry round with you ALL of your records, just the ones that are hot for the moment, and you usually can leave the older ones at home. am i right does anyone else know what i'm sayin?

[eskay]

Don't sell your vinyl, it's worse than selling your soul to the devil, but if you do sell em to me.

ha, ha!!

Some good advice, cheers everyone. Maybe I'll record them onto my laptop and then store them somewhere.

I agree that they are like photos. I was moving them around at the weekend and saw some old hiphop that I bought when I was 16/17. It does take you down memory lane.

The problem is finding somewhere to store them. The loft gets too hot in the summer and the garage too damp in the winter!!

Decisions......

[shards]

Just coz your going digital doesn't mean you have to get rid of your vinyl!

Besides, its heard to get really good mp3 rip.

If you gonna use mp3's download then download from bleep coz the quality is really good.

Personally I use torq because it is good value and offers VST support.

If the release is both digital and vinyl buy the digital, if the release is just vinyl then buy the vinyl. Save space and money!

Combination innit

I agree with all of the above, and had come to the same determination. I'm purchasing a laptop & switching to Digital before heading O/S for a few months, so that I can have the majority of my collection available with me to perform while I travel- obviously dragging a bookshelf full of vinyl covering several genres over the past 15 years around with me would be impractical, not to mention prohibitively expensive.

In the long term, it's going to be more economical- usually it costs less than 2 quid to purchase & download an mp3, including net connection & bandwidth costs- as opposed to 7 or 8 (AU$19-$20) for singles & 10-13 (AU$25-$33) for 2EPs it costs to get them them on this side of the world. The sound quality never detoriates like records, and the price of HD space will continue to fall as time passes- while suitable physical storage for records will likely rise.

I'm more comfortable working with vinyl because that's how I started mixing, and agree that learning with it is an art that should be imparted to those taking up the craft- even if they intend to play from CDJs, Ableton or Tracktor. Some might prefer the feel they get from vinyl & the physicality of control in turntablism. (Note that hybrid systems like FS & Serato have been marketed to Turntablists wishing to avoid further back injury from their crate requirements with some success ) Others, once having mastered the basics of beatmatching & programming may prefer to explore the manipulation of the sound that digital formats allows.

The big problem that Dubstep faces with lossy Digital formats is the reduction of the bass frequencies outside of the human hearing range- the ones that you'd probably feel though, and whose resonance adds to the bass you can hear. Hence the recommendation to record your vinyl in .wav format, or better still at a higher sampling rate than CD's 44.2KHz- though whether you'll derive any additional benefit will depend on what format the source the was originally recorded to (ie. did the producer record the track as a wav or 320Kbps mp3 when they gave it to the label?), and also its mastering when pressed.

[dusty]

Don't convert to mp3. Stick with FLAC or WAV. You will only regret going for a lossless format in the long run.

[dirty]

Always better to have wavs or aiff than any other file but many online stores only sell mp3's. This won't be a problem for the majority of people playing the tracks at hom e or mixing in their bedroom but I'm sure the big DJ's who would normally get dubs cut would be given the wav from the producer. There is some quality control.

Anyway I didn't here anyone complain on fri when Plastician used serato!

I don't really understand why people have such strong opinions on this, just use what is best for you, don't watch what the next man is doing.

[digital]

Always better to have wavs or aiff than any other file but many online stores only sell mp3's. This won't be a problem for the majority of people playing the tracks at hom e or mixing in their bedroom but I'm sure the big DJ's who would normally get dubs cut would be given the wav from the producer. There is some quality control.

Anyway I didn't here anyone complain on fri when Plastician used serato!

I don't really understand why people have such strong opinions on this, just use what is best for you, don't watch what the next man is doing.

Dirty knows.

Its also about how accessible the music is to the DJ. There is no way I can afford the expense and time of getting dubs cut at the moment, where as I can heavy tunes in a WAV format without leaving my house for a minimal cost.

With regard to the difference in quality, this is a debate that will go on forever. I agree that some tunes have sounded better on dubplate than in digital format but I also think that some people just think dubs/vinyl are better because of their tradition and embracing the digital age is seen on the whole negatively.

Chest Boxing was played by Geeneus on dub, then by Plastician on Serato at fwd on fri and I couldn't tell the difference. However, this was after 5 JD's.

[vonboyage]

just use what is best for you, don't watch what the next man is doing.

Spoken like a true G