I still prefer cd's; Nuclear Blast usually has a lot of good stuff. I like their packages 'cause you can get other stuff with the cd's.

However, if it's 2 am and I'm buzzed and I simply must have something, iTunes comes in handy.

edit: I still buy vinyl too

I still prefer buying CDs and really only buy MP3s in case of music that's not available on CD. And frankly I wouldn't ever consider buying only one song from an album - to me it's almost like buying a single scene from a movie - so this possibility doesn't make download services any more attractive.

Btw, Tool rocks. Never listened to their music until a friend gave me one of their CDs as a birthday gift last year (we barely knew each other back then which made the gesture even more awesome). I was quite amazed by their music and I've got to agree: Tool is indeed very odd. The album I got is 10,000 Days and already the "case" is some fucked up shit.

bandit.fm & amazon. Listen to the clips and buy. Find lot of old song on their. I mainly buy mp3 or .Flac format.
FWIW iTunes software for PC is bloated crap. Fine for Mac lovers (im not an Apple Fan)but for rest of us.No thanks.
Also unless im wrong the default format music sold in is .aac??

I'm not exactly sure because it's not all in one place, but it's several hundred hours worth of stuff. In case it wasn't clear, though, my post was mostly a joke. The music that I don't own on physical media I like to keep in FLAC for archival purposes, but everything on my iPod or my computer is in 320 mp3s . Personally I can't tell the difference, especially with headphones or shitty computer speakers. I can tell a (small but noticeable) difference on my grandfather's ridiculously amazing equipment, but he's an audiophile with an incredible setup. Even on my "best" equipment (that a poor college kid can afford) I can't tell which is which.

Hardware makes a huge difference. It reminds of me of the "coat hangers are better than Monster cables" fiasco. No point in running uncompressed audio through shitty equipment.

Seeing how all my entertainment has gone digital of late, I have little use for CDs nowadays. Music was actually the first one in that department to go digital for me around 04/05. Once in a really rare while I will buy a CD if for whatever ludicrous reason some artist refuses to sell his music digitally anywhere. *shakes fist at Garth Brooks* So yeah, all MP3s or similar.

Where do I buy my music? iTunes. Say what you want, but it's pretty much the easiest way to browse and buy music anywhere. Also, ever since the music industry has been persuaded to drop their god-awful tries at DRM there really is no issue buying from there either.

Thinking of eventually buying some stuff from Bandcamp as there are a few artists I've stumbled upon that are quite enjoyable. Who'd ever thought I'd ever have a thing for French Canadian country music? Not me, for sure. ;)

I'm far from an Apple sheep, but I do have a certain fondness for their iPod lines - I only buy one every few years. I'm thinking of finally getting an upgrade (or downgrade? Meh, don't play many games any way, so it's a moot point.) from my iPod Touch 2G. The new iPod nano looks very enticing. I really liked the newly introduced radio feature, which works remarkably well, of the last one, but I didn't like it's teeny tiny size. This new one is a lot more appealing.

I was looking at antique players last weekend, those things go for a lot, 400 bucks for one that isn't falling apart!

Your tone sounds so defensive :)

We should be able to use products without feeling like we have to defend ourselves, regardless of what it is. I've given up trying to classify myself as an iSheep, Microslave, or whatever other evil of the day is.

The other post about iTunes had a similarly defensive posture :)

I also use iTunes, although just recently. I used to be hardcore about having the object so I would collect cases and manuals and liner notes or whatever. But it is DRM free so I can do what I like with my music.

CDs. Not necessarily because I need the physical objects, but because I don't know any good digital music stores which sell here.

Wasn't there a vinyl thread a while ago where you were supporting the medium? Or have I misremembered?

I stopped buying music a long time ago. I almost never download music either. The dreaded "Getting older comes with a diminishing interest in music" effect have hit me hard.
That and constantly hearing shitty radio music at work which makes me wanting silence at home more than music as a big contributing factor.

Otherwise I've already bought my mp3s. :P If I do use mp3s it's usually from a old CD I bought years ago that I rip. Quality wise downloaded music files is shit. If I want good quality music files I rip them myself. Oh and mp3 isn't a good music file format either. Stopped using that when I started ripping my own CDs a long time ago.

When I do listen to music it's usually on Youtube or Spotify. It's practical if I only want to listen to a couple songs or want to check out a new artist.

I also have the VH1 Classic channel for that nostalgic kick that I sometimes crave. :)

CD. I buy it. I own it.

You do not actually "buy" MP3. You merely pay to "rent" or "lease" them from Amazon, App Store, Google Store, or whatever. Those MP3 are tied to your accounts or a particular service, and are NOT transferable. If Amazon/Apple/Google/whatever decides to cut you off from using the MP3 you have (foolishly) paid for, or suddenly decide to change their terms and demand you to pay a monthly ransom to continue to use their services and your music, they can. Because they have full control over your access to the MP3 you have already paid for. They can always stop you from using the products you have already paid for at anytime.

I sorta pity all the young kids who "buy" everything digital.

Are you stuck in 2005? I'm not sure I could find DRM'd music anymore if I tried. Certainly not from the big three you mentioned anyway.

No where. I don't buy stuff with crappy quality.

Nowhere. I only listen to last.fm and audio cds.