I’m trading Spotify for CDs with the affordable Fiio DM13 in 2025 – here’s why
I used to have a lot of CDs. And by ‘a lot’ I mean a lot of. Since I was a teenager in the late 1990s, a significant portion of my disposable income went to music, but when Spotify launched in 2009, that started to slow down until I ordered my last CD from Amazon on July 29, 2016 (Drive Like Jehu’s self-titled album, if you’re interested).
I’ve been streaming pretty much exclusively since then, and while I’ve gotten rid of a lot of CDs over the years (especially the albums where I couldn’t name a single song without looking at the tracklist), there are a few out of the hundred where I can’t find myself can do to get rid of it.
With no way to play them, I had streamlined my hi-fi setup to just a few RuarkMR1 Mk2 speakers and a iFi Uno DAC connected to my diskless MacBook Air when I moved from London a few years ago – that seemed stupid.
But I’ve spent much of my young adult life collecting these shiny silver discs, some of which were purchased at gigs by obscure mid-2000s math-rock bands and certainly can’t be found on Spotify or Apple Music will be.
Even though they now live in boxes under the stairs, which are little more than a backup archive on a hard drive full of ripped MP3s, they are still part of my identity. And one day the perfect solution arrived in my inbox.
What’s in a name?
Try to buy a small, affordable CD player these days and you’ll mostly find cheap, plastic all-in-one systems made by companies called things like Pjlopj, Lvcdodvd and Gelielim (I actually made one, but I dare I bet you don’t). don’t know which one).
Why was I listening to audibly inferior versions of things I’d spent so much time and money collecting?
To be fair, the FiiO name isn’t much better, but at least the company has a recent history of making hi-fi gear, with a number of its products getting five-star reviews here on Ny Breaking. So the news about the new $139/£139 (about AU$275) DM13 CD player was music to my ears.
Here was a battery-powered CD player that’s barely bigger than an old Sony Discman – not quite pocketable, but small enough to keep in a drawer when not in use – and has Bluetooth on board, so you can use headphones can connect, load a copy of Okay computer and take to the streets like it’s 1997 again.
Mine arrived in the mail just before Christmas, and the brushed metal chassis makes it vaguely reminiscent of Apple’s old Superdrive (RIP), especially if you opt for the silver version. If you connect it to a computer, it can even convert CDs into MP3s.
I tried to pair it with my Ruarks via Bluetooth, but thanks to the limited single-line display and very basic manual, trying to get the two to talk to each other was like trying to change the clock on a microwave using only Morse code.
Luckily it also has standard aux and optical outputs, so I just pulled out my box of miscellaneous cables (we all have one) and went wired instead. I had created the perfect hi-fi system for a millennial with limited space.
Don’t look back angrily
Top tips for CD revivalists
1. Check Ebay for CD bargains
A copy of Oasis’ debut album Definitely maybe will set you back the best part of $35/£30 on vinyl, but resellers like Music Magpie (or Discogs in the US) have eBay stores where you can pick up a CD copy for much less. Also try your local charity shops.
2. Only buy things you really like
If you start buying everything on CD, you’ll quickly end up with a collection that’s difficult to manage and you’ll be forced to purge some of it. Spotify and the other streaming services are the perfect quality control tool, allowing you to try before you buy.
3. Keep your CDs out of the sun
My CD collection spent more than ten years of its life near a window where the evening sun fell. The result is that quite a bit has severely faded spines and partially bleached back covers, which bothers me from a sentimental perspective rather than a resale perspective. Try to take better care of yours.
It’s not just because I’m a hoarder who can’t let go of the past that I plan to spend 2025 feeling like it’s the pinnacle of Britpop all over again (and the Oasis reunion has nothing to do with it either).
Spotify’s refusal to improve streaming quality has bothered me for a while, but it wasn’t until I listened to some of those old MP3s that I realized how striking it is. Why was I listening to audibly inferior versions of things I’d spent so much time and money collecting?
I also rarely listen to an entire album from start to finish anymore, so instead of just switching to another digital format, I thought a CD player would be the perfect way to reconnect with music.
I’m not the only one plotting a renaissance of physical media. CD sales increased by 2% in 2023 and again by 3.2% in the first half of 2024. That small upward trend is partly due to younger generations developing an interest in owning tangible formats, but not having the disposable income to spend on vinyl (apparently it’s all about snozzberry vapes).
I understand that. I bought many of my CDs for £7 or less from shops like Fopp or Rounder Records (another RIP) in Brighton, UK, and the thought of spending over £20 on just one album at the time would have horrified me . What if it was nonsense? (Which, considering some of it was mid-’90s math rock, was pretty likely.)
With people like me unloading hordes of old CDs, there are bargains to be found – and while the format isn’t as indestructible as once claimed, the discs are often in good condition even if the cases and liner notes are not.
You can plug in some headphones, load up a copy of OK Computer and hit the streets like it’s 1997 again.
I probably won’t abandon Spotify completely. As portable as the FiiO DM13 is – connecting Bluetooth headphones presented fewer problems and it has skip protection – my pockets are only big enough for my iPhone 16 Pro. Streaming is also unbeatable when it comes to discovering new things, and I don’t have room to significantly add to my existing CD collection. My bank balance wouldn’t thank me either.
But the contents of those boxes under the stairs will get their chance to shine again in 2025 – and it’s all thanks to another little black box with a funny name.