Who collects Vinyls out there?

my cassette collection is almost entirely Old Time Radio shows but I do have some of the albums still I purchased growing up in the 80's and early 90's. The vinyls do seem to hold their sound better than the tapes though, especially when played with a relatively fresh stylus.

 

Somewhat on-topic - How many new albums are issued on vinyl? I'm contemplating going to an all-analog stereo setup, but my fear is that I'll have too difficult a time finding records in my genre (mostly new alternative rock) to make it worth while (we're talking a VERY pricey audiophile-grade setup.)

 

The most recent I am aware of (and that is not saying much) was the vinyl set that Metallica released not too long ago. And that does not fall under 'new alternative rock' for that matter.

 

Actually more and more are being released. Now that the CD is dying and giving way to the MP3 vinyl seems to be making a comeback. The best part is the last few new vinyl's (or re-releases) I've bought have included the digital download as part of the purchase.

 

When I first started my music collection there was only vinyl and the older shellac stuff so I have a few hundred of those that I bought to listen to. I guess saving them and taking care of them is sort of "collecting" but my original intent was to listen to the stuff. I also ventured into 8 track and cassette; eventually I abandoned 8 track due to lack of availability although the higher tape speed gave 8 track the potential for higher fidelity than the slow ass cassette medium....I think that's 3-3/4 fps for 8 track vs 1-7/8 for cassette. I got hardware as good as was available for cassette but it never even came into the same universe as vinyl as far as fidelity, realism; but cassettes were small and relatively convenient and portable. CD's are also convenient to store and handle and relatively durable so they make a good background music medium. However, I believe that only the smallest percentage of the highest quality CD's ever made and played on very high end players/electronics are on par with good vinyl....and I believe many, even most, vinyl is better quality than the average person has learned to appreciate.

As already mentioned, I also love the look and feel of a vinyl album, especially the associated cover art and included printed matter.

As the industry started moving away from vinyl, I started accepting other people's stuff that they no longer wanted so I have a few large boxes full of that stuff stored away. I also started buying more vinyl, and I actually "lowered my standards" and would buy marginal stuff that I previously would not have bought, but now I was buying it just to have it in vinyl...so I have a couple hundred or more of those types. Any particular vinyl album that I really like and wanted to listen to I picked out and they're on the shelves above my turntable and stereo equipment.

I haven't kept my record playing hardware totally up to date "state of the art" but the equipment I had back before my kids were born and started spending all my money is still pretty decent stuff...VPI turntable with a nice arm and cartridge, tube preamp, decent solid state amp, etc.

As far as vinyl making a comeback, I think it sort of is. My daughter is a staunch advocate of the DIY punk ethic and her band produces in vinyl...which I was surprised and pleased to find out. I think they may also release some things in digital format to promote easier introduction of their stuff to a broader new audience via online sources.