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Radiohead: Vinyl vs CD Comparisons ??

post #1 of 42
2/12/09 at 12:56pm
Thread Starter 
Radiohead is hands down my favorite band ever. I've owned all of their CDs over the years, and know every song inside and out. It wasn't until I started to get into Hi-Fi that I realized how TERRIBLE the majority of their CDs are recorded (IMO, Kid A was the only decent one). I found myself turning the albums off in mid-play because of this. How could this happen to my favorite albums?!

That all changed, though, when I decided to buy Kid A, Amnesiac, and In Raindows on new vinyl. Holy cow, am I impressed! I've seen other posts relating the CD problems to volume output (mastered to be loud, and that's it. It's a sad trend really, and a topic for another thread), and everything suffered from it. No dynamics, mediocre imaging, and convoluted sound. But as I've played these vinyl versions, I remembered WHY these were some of my favorite albums, and also heard things in the recording that I never knew existed!

I started this thread because:
1. I wanted to relay my utter joy with these Radiohead records.
2. I want to see what other people think of the differences if they've had the opportunity to hear them.
3. I also want to buy OK Computer and Hail to the Thief on vinyl, but I want to know if anyone already has it and the sonic differences on those two are worth it, as well. I hear the HTTT is an obvious one b/c that CD was mastered the worst out of all of them.

Thanks Everyone!
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post #2 of 42
2/12/09 at 4:00pm
I have always thought Radiohead albums were reasonably well recorded and mastered on CD. I do not hear the dynamic range compression and clipping problems that are typical of the loudness war. I have In Rainbows on both vinyl and CD, and honestly do not hear much of a difference.
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post #3 of 42
2/12/09 at 4:55pm
Yeah, I find Radiohead albums to be recorded quite well too.
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post #4 of 42
2/12/09 at 6:33pm
Curious if the vinyl will play the low end on HOUSE OF CARDS without
any feedback that is some mighty low notes.
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post #5 of 42
2/12/09 at 6:38pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by ozz View Post
Curious if the vinyl will play the low end on HOUSE OF CARDS without
any feedback that is some mighty low notes.
I think it depends on the quality of your vinyl rig, really. Many entry level tables placed on something that offers little to no isolation with create some terrible rumble.

If your stuff is set up properly and you've got all the right hardware from A-Z, you can reproduce any frequencies with ease!
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post #6 of 42
2/12/09 at 6:41pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by rederanged View Post
I have always thought Radiohead albums were reasonably well recorded and mastered on CD. I do not hear the dynamic range compression and clipping problems that are typical of the loudness war. I have In Rainbows on both vinyl and CD, and honestly do not hear much of a difference.
Honestly, I thought the In Rainbows CD was mastered well, too (taking back my statement from the original thread post). So the problematic ones are going to be:

OK Computer
Amnesiac
Hail To The Thief

I don't remember what forum I saw it on, but someone provided some wave spectrum shots from HTTT, and the dynamic range was simply non-existent! It was fully maxed out, start to finish. I've actually turned off Amnesiac and HTTT because of how unpleasant they are on CD.
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post #7 of 42
2/12/09 at 7:32pm
OK computer is excellent on vinyl - heading towards reference. I think it was recorded onto tape originally. The pressing was also onto 180g and over 4 sides which helps.

The CD version is fine, it just lacks a little of the dynamic range and richness, although it's clearer (and more clinical). It also has a bit of irritating sibilance here and there.

My replay chain for digital doesn't really add up to a can of beans though, so that might make a difference.

An excellent pair for comparison the which will keep the vinyl v CD debate going for ages.
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post #8 of 42
2/12/09 at 7:41pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by BombayTheIndian View Post
I don't remember what forum I saw it on, but someone provided some wave spectrum shots from HTTT, and the dynamic range was simply non-existent! It was fully maxed out, start to finish. I've actually turned off Amnesiac and HTTT because of how unpleasant they are on CD.
Interesting. I'm listening to HTTT now. There's definitely distortion on instruments other than the guitars, and loud in-your-face rock and roll blasts, but I'm sure these are being used for artistic purposes, and would also be there on the vinyl. Are there any specific spots on the CD that you could point to (track and time) that you find especially egregious?
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post #9 of 42
2/12/09 at 7:49pm
egregious? Fantastic word!
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post #10 of 42
2/12/09 at 8:28pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by BombayTheIndian View Post
I think it depends on the quality of your vinyl rig, really. Many entry level tables placed on something that offers little to no isolation with create some terrible rumble.

If your stuff is set up properly and you've got all the right hardware from A-Z, you can reproduce any frequencies with ease!
Yep, right on.

By the way, this is a headphone forum, right? If you're getting acoustic feedback to your TT through your cans, I think you might have them just a little too loud.
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post #11 of 42
2/13/09 at 6:45am
I just checked the dynamic compression on "Let Down" from OK Computer for you guys. I don't have a Vinyl version of any other Radiohead album, though.

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post #12 of 42
2/13/09 at 7:43am
Interesting n3rdling, thanks, not quite loudness war, but close.
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post #13 of 42
2/13/09 at 12:23pm
Thanks, n3rdling. Is it clipping during those loud sections on the CD, or just maximizing the use of the dynamic range? I zoomed in on the loud sections at around 1:54 and 2:00. I'm not sure if I'm looking at it right, but it doesn't look like there's clipping to me.





For a fairly mellow song, it sure is cranked up, though! I normally can't stand overblown dynamic range compression, but for some reason it doesn't bother me with Radiohead. I guess it's because they're so damn good that I subconsciously overlook the apparently less than perfect recording.

I think you guys have convinced me to buy OK computer on vinyl now.
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post #14 of 42
2/13/09 at 12:26pm
kind of annoying. but it looks to me like they mastered it to be loud and keep most of the dynamic range.
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post #15 of 42
2/13/09 at 1:05pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by rederanged View Post
Thanks, n3rdling. Is it clipping during those loud sections on the CD, or just maximizing the use of the dynamic range? I zoomed in on the loud sections at around 1:54 and 2:00. I'm not sure if I'm looking at it right, but it doesn't look like there's clipping to me.





For a fairly mellow song, it sure is cranked up, though! I normally can't stand overblown dynamic range compression, but for some reason it doesn't bother me with Radiohead. I guess it's because they're so damn good that I subconsciously overlook the apparently less than perfect recording.

I think you guys have convinced me to buy OK computer on vinyl now.
I agree! That was great of N3rdling to post these up. I'm sure this pattern carries over to the other Radiohead recordings. Here's a breakdown of Body Snatchers and Weird Fishes from In Rainbows: vinyl on top, cd on the bottom. While this was done with someone with a less-than-stellar vinyl rig (their quote: just a technics 1200 with a NOT great stylus), it still gives you a pretty good idea of what's going on.



After what everyone's said here now, I'm really excited to go pick up OK Computer on vinyl. Is the 180g version you're referring to the Capital reissue that came out September 2008?
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