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Comment by stephencoyner | Hacker News Reader

I buy a lot of new rap vinyl because having a physical copy is the only way to guarantee the music doesn’t change (unless you can find and download the files online which can be hard)

Many artists don’t clear samples and are forced to make updates or remove them entirely.

While streaming has given us quick access to almost any music, it has also created a new impermanence in the industry that’s very frustrating.

On top of that, it’s not uncommon for rap albums on vinyl to come with the instrumentals that are never made available on streaming at all. I’ve been ripping them to have the MP3s on the go

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It's CDs that ensure music doesn't change. The music changes every time you play a vinyl record, as well as simply while the LP is on the shelf. CDs by contrast store an immutable copy of the music.

OP was referring to multiple versions of a track due to licensing and censorship changes rather than the media itself altering.

GP was being pedantic, and probably knew what OP meant.

Yes, but their chosen solution is vulnerable to the media itself altering, which is not the case with CDs (which aren’t vulnerable to licensing issues either).

CDs work just as well for that though, and they're easier ro rip.

A friend made me a copy of Robyn Hitchcock’s “Black Snake Diamond Röle” when I was 16 or so. Totally floored me, it’s imprinted on my brain.

It was re-released a few years ago, but the opening track is missing the sax because they no longer could find the master tapes with it. The song on Spotify and new pressings is just not the same at all.

That’s my reason for always buying a physical copy if I can.

An excellent point. A prime example of this is "Captain Murphy - Duality", which currently costs 1300$ on Discogs. It's a record released in 2013 in limited copies with high unlikely chance it gets reissued due to sample clearance restrictions.

Great point. I'm annoyed every time I listen to Biggie and the songs have been changed. Luckily I have most of the original CDs, but have been too lazy to re-rip.

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