> People had the option of buying vinyl, CD or cassette in the mid-'90s, and they generally preferred CDs.
While agree with you, you haven't proved that this is due to a CD's objectively better sound quality. CDs are also more convenient than either tapes or vinyl: vinyl is bulky and much easier than a CD to damage. Tapes are smaller but also easy to damage. Both wear out with use faster than digital media.
Case in point: MP3 also took off massively despite objectively worse sound quality due to lossy compression. Because they were more convenient than CDs, and this convenience was boosted each time hard drive sizes and internet speeds increased.
> While agree with you, you haven't proved that this is due to a CD's objectively better sound quality.
I hadn't intended to, as that would be impossible. My point was more that "people preferred records and tapes for their flaws" is only clearly true of some early enthusiasts.
And it was not my experience that tapes were much easier to damage. Tapes were relatively durable unless you pulled the actual tape out of the cassette — and even then you usually got away with just minor signal degradation. CDs were extremely vulnerable to scratching, any scratch could render them pretty much unlistenable, and they were fairly brittle with a wide, thin surface area.
CDs are not all that vulnerable. If they're either in the case or the machine, they're fine. You can wipe dust off with a lot more vigour than with vinyl.
I've had tape machines that would pull the tape out and scrunch it up. Strands of tape everywhere is more than "minor signal degradation". CDs are not prone to repeated signal degradation or to turning into spaghetti.
While agree with you, you haven't proved that this is due to a CD's objectively better sound quality. CDs are also more convenient than either tapes or vinyl: vinyl is bulky and much easier than a CD to damage. Tapes are smaller but also easy to damage. Both wear out with use faster than digital media.
Case in point: MP3 also took off massively despite objectively worse sound quality due to lossy compression. Because they were more convenient than CDs, and this convenience was boosted each time hard drive sizes and internet speeds increased.