Here are 6 of the most common and popular audio music formats that you might consider for a home arcade or game room. Some are easier to source these days than others whereas several might be more a collector’s item just to say you have it.
Let’s take a look at these 6 audio music formats and the pros and cons of each.
1. 78 records pros and cons
78s were the precursor to vinyl records and thus are listed here first. 78 records were thicker than long playing vinyl records (LPs), with a 10″ diameter and made not from vinyl but shellac.
| 78 record pros | 78 record cons |
| Very strong and durable more so than vinyl records. | Sound quality wasn’t great. |
| Less likely to warp than Long Playing vinyl records (LPs) | Needs a special stylus (needle) different from the one used for LPs. |
| For the time, they were innovative and enabled consumers to own music they could play at home which was novel at the time when radio was king. | Early music players didn’t operate at a consistent 78 revolutions per minute (RPM) and may go slower or slightly faster. |
| Some old 78s are worth in the low thousands of dollars as rare ones are valuable to collectors. | Weren’t able to hold more than a single song of 3-5 minutes in length on each side making them a pain for radio stations who needed to hold hundreds or thousands in their library. |
Should you add it to your game room? No. 78s haven’t been made for decades and aren’t coming back. Collector’s items at best to say you have one.
2. 33 1/3 Vinyl LP records pros and cons
Long playing or long play (LP) vinyl records are one of the audio mediums that people growing up in the 1970s and 80s are most familiar with. Along with the cassette tape which we’ll get to in a moment below, it made up the bulk of album purchases for decades.
| Offered better sound quality than 78s. | Vinyl could warp over time. |
| Cool factor. Thinner, shinier and sleeker than 78s. | Vinyl scratches which means the record will skip in parts. |
| Unlike the 78, multiple songs could be played on each side of the record. | Not portable. Large size meant they took space to store, too. |
| Each LP can hold about 22 minutes of music on each side so an entire album can be recorded. | Required the use of a record player which was generally kept in one place in your home. |
Should you add it to your game room? Sure. You’ll need a record player but the resurgence in LP 33 1/3 records means new recordings are available and with the sales of vinyl records going up since 2006, they’re becoming easier to find again. Plus you have thousands and thousands of old vinyl records to consider buying from the past.
3. 45 vinyl records pros and cons
45 RPM vinyl records ended up becoming the go-to audio medium for single songs for several decades, up until the advent of the Compact Disc (CD).
| Aficionados claim better sound than LPs due to the smaller curvature of the record and faster speed. | Only capable of playing one song per side of about 3-5 minutes in length each. |
| Great for jukeboxes. In fact, the popularity of 45s really began due to the uptake by jukebox manufacturers. | If you like 2 or more songs on an album, you might as well as just pay a bit more and buy the LP. |
| More compact than 12″ LPs. 45 vinyl records are 7″ in diameter so they take less space to store. | Like the 78 and 33 1/3 records, it’s not portable. |
| If you only wanted to listen to one song from an album, you could spend about $3 for a single rather than $8 – $10 for an entire album. | Like the 78 and 33 1/3 records, requires a record player and one that has the 45 RPM option. |
Should you add it to your game room? Sure. 45s are great because you can get stacks of them to play old hit singles from bygone eras. A record player or jukebox full of 45s is a great addition to a home arcade.
4. 8-track tape pros and cons
8-track tapes didn’t enter the market till 1965 but were relatively quickly replaced by the cassette tape which was smaller, better quality and more portable.
| Were widely installed in cars so they offered portability not possible with vinyl. | Were introduced after the cassette tape but didn’t last as long. |
| Could hold up to 45 minutes of sound so they are comparable to LPs. | Bigger than cassette tapes which were conveniently small and compact. |
| Smaller and more compact to store than LPs. | You needed an 8-track player in your home or one in your car to use. |
| Rare and retro collector’s item albeit most likely with little commercial value. | Mediocre sound quality and unreliable build quality. |
Should you add it to your game room? No. As with 78s, an 8-track tape player is just a nice to have collectible at this point. New 8-tracks haven’t been made or released for decades.
5. Audio cassette tapes pros and cons
Cassette tapes were easily available and ended up coming in formats with both full albums and as cassette singles.
| The smallest and most portable format used in tape decks, cars, Walkman and other devices. | Cassette tapes can jam and get damaged which ruins the sound. Tape can rip, too |
| Cassette tapes themselves are durable and generally won’t break if dropped on the floor. | Sounds quality is not as good as vinyl. |
| You can buy blank tapes that can be recorded on, whether music or voice. | Tapes have to be rewound or fast forwarded so song access isn’t as quick as with records or CDs. |
| You could purchase virtually any album on cassette just as with vinyl. | Over time, the quality of the sound will deteriorate with use. |
Should you add it to your game room? Sure. Cassette tapes are compact and durable and do offer good sound. Plus you can make and play mix tapes just like the old days.
6. Compact Disc pros and cons
When CDs were introduced to the world in 1982, they quickly replaced vinyl and cassettes as the go-to audio music source and DVDs quickly became the norm for movies and video recordings, too.
| Can be used in a CD player, car, portable Discman, computers and laptops among other uses so it’s very portable. | CDs can scratch and thus skip like records. |
| The lightest and smallest audio format that stacks and transports easily. | While very high sound quality, some still swear that vinyl is better, hence the resurgence in vinyl records. |
| Music can be played repeatedly without fear of sounds degradation. | Aren’t as durable as other audio forms and can snap, crack or otherwise break. |
| Can generally hold about double the amount of music as vinyl and can store video movies too. | These days, digital, non-physical audio options are generally preferred and are more convenient. |
| CDs are relatively cheap to buy whether commercial albums or blanks that can be purchased to burn music onto. | Only one side is usable unlike a vinyl record or cassette. |
Should you add it to your game room? Yes. CDs are the newest of the audio options listed here so they’re still easily available. Many cars still have CD players, you can buy a CD player for your game room or get a Walkman or other device. Many computers still play them too. Plus, they do play really good music with a good quality sound.