Why I Prefer Listening to Vinyl Over Spotify

Guest blogger Marlies, from music blog Letsgroef.nl, prefers listening to vinyl. She also listens to digital music via Spotify or on YouTube, but spinning records on an old-fashioned record player is still her favourite. That said, she’s not an audiophile and doesn’t get involved in those vinyl-versus-streaming debates or analogue-versus-digital discussions. For Marlies, the charm of LPs lies in completely different things.

Waarom ik liever vinyl luister dan Spotify

Does vinyl sound better than streaming?

Some people say vinyl sounds far better than a streaming service like Spotify, Apple Music, Deezer or Tidal. Vinyl would supposedly sound much more dynamic, with warmer tones, and the music would come into its own much more. But my ears don’t hear those digital/analogue differences. I’m not an audiophile, and I don’t need high-end audio just to listen to a song. A perfectly ordinary record player and perfectly ordinary speakers are enough for me to enjoy music. So it’s not the quality of LPs that’s why I’d rather put a record on than listen to Spotify.

Is vinyl more convenient than Spotify?

Actually, vinyl isn’t convenient at all. A record is extremely sensitive to dust and it gets scratched easily. It’s also quite a faff to take the records out of their sleeves, put them on the turntable and then put them back in the sleeve after playing. Very long-winded. Really, you’re much better off listening to a tune on Spotify. But even so, the convenience of streaming can’t compete with vinyl.

Waarom ik liever vinyl luister dan Spotify

So why do I still prefer vinyl?

If it’s not the sound of vinyl, and if old-fashioned record spinning is quite a cumbersome job, why do I still prefer putting on an LP? Well, here it comes. My 5 main reasons for playing a vinyl record instead of streaming.

#1. Listening experience

Playing records is a real listening experience for me. That may sound a bit dramatic, but when I put a record on, I actually sit down and properly immerse myself in the music. Pure relaxation. No yoga exercise can compete with that. When I play a track on Spotify, it’s more like a nice tune in the background. I also often catch myself listening to a random single song when streaming, while with an LP I’ll really play the whole album.

#2. Sleeves

I love looking at the sleeves. They’re little tangible works of art. A way of ‘holding’ the music. Lovely to gaze at. Those record sleeves just have something magical about them!

#3. Collecting

Nothing beats rummaging around at a record fair or working your way through the crates in a record shop. Adding to your collection and having a quick chat with other vinyl collectors. And it’s always handy when that shop assistant points you towards other gems.

#4. Strange taste in music

I probably have a strange taste in music, because a lot of music isn’t on Spotify. Music that I do have on vinyl.

#5. Nostalgia

The fifth reason is purely a nostalgic one. I can’t part with my collection. I’ve moved house with my record collection countless times. Just as someone might flip through a childhood photo album and remember days gone by, I spin records!

There are probably many more reasons to choose vinyl rather than listening to music via a streaming service. What are your reasons? Leave a comment!