The audiophiles' debates on what's better, CD or LP are endless, but the main reason I like records is this: great majority of ethnic music ever recorded simply was never and will never be released on CDs. So if you're looking for for something authentic and long forgotten, there's no choice but to dig through piles of records. And if you happen to find some traditional song on early 78rpm disk, it very well might be the only surviving recording of it. Another beauty of old acoustic records is that you can be sure you're listening to the real authentic sound, without any sound processing, mixing or effects applied. That gives you a special treasure-hunting exchitement and one of a kind opportunity to hear the real voices from a century ago.

As for those few popular albums that actually got digitized, their quality often leaves much to be desired. One reason is that transfering those records to CDs was done some 10-25 years ago, using an old technology. Another reason is that the demand for vintage ethnic music is extremely low, so every effort was made to make the restoration as cheap as possible, which certainly reflected on the quality. The difference is really audible even without any fancy equipment, trust me.