Good question.
Funny thing is that my Coffee Buddies and I just spent an hour discussing this.
I am in a sort of different place than most people.
When I was in HS, LPs were $3. and I got like $5 as an allowance and also got to pick up some money mowing lawns, washing cars and shoveling walks. I can still remember the day I brought home Sargent Peppers and the day I spent listening to Santana's Abraxas and studying the album art.
But back then my turntable was a real POS. I would have to balance a penny on the tonearm to keep it from skipping.
In my mid-20s, I had an album collection that was almost a yard long. And Then I bought my first good stereo system. Discovered that my vinyl collection was pretty much ruined. Not even the covers were any good because a roommate's cat used them as a scratching post.
I started a new album collection. And my stereo system included a cassette deck. The first time I played each album I would tape it and then never play it again. Mostly early 80s music. and maybe 2 feet long. And I still have them and have no idea what to do with them. They must be worth something.
I also bought pre-recorded cassette tapes. probably close to 100. and made a bunch more from radio shows. Plus I started getting into Grateful Dead Tape Trees. i have about 50 grateful dead concerts. Don't ever listen to these anymore cause you can download better quality stuff on the internet now.
But then the CD came out and that is all I bought. Some of the CDs I taped so I could listen to them in the car or when jogging. then when I got iTunes I put all my CDs in iTunes. According to iTunes, I have almost 5000 songs. but that number is probably inflated cause my audiobooks are in there too.
With the invention of the iPod, I almost never play an LP, tape, or CD anymore. I also don't buy much music anymore. But when I do buy music it's with iTunes.
I do like Pandora. the ads don't bother me much. I have Spotify on my computer but I rarely use it.