Is vinyl really better?

It has been more years than I want to admit that I have really listened to vinly but my Sota Comet, with RB250 arm and Grado Sonata cartridge just came in Friday and a MoFi Alliason Kraus album came in yesterday. Even with the set up not burned in, the combination was just awesome. It is really hard to describe the difference but the best I can explain it is you just want to sit back and listen and not want it to stop. CD's biggest advantage is convience, plain and simple. Vinyl takes a lot more patience but the pay off is worth it.

Hands down a virgin vinyl will always sound warm, clean and far more organic than CDs. CDs usually sound sterile. 90% of my music collection is on vinyl.

Can vinyl sound better than a CD?
Sure, i use primarly vinyl myself, but will it usually? probably not. Vinyl takes a lot of patience, and the media itself is often much more expensive (ingore those who tell you garage sale shopping is worthwhile, it isn't). Quality vinyl can cost an average of 20-25 dollars a record. Sure, you can buy indie vinyl which is often cheaper than their CD counterparts, but they're rarely well pressed.

I took the vinyl path myself, and while i don't regret doing so (records are just so much fun), it's a long and frusterating path that can be rewarding if you have the patience to invest in a great table, and take great care of your records.

I often thought of stopping by while I have been out for a Sunday drive with my wife. It isn't too much of a trip, a day and a half each way is all.

I am interested in a mini-meet at Todd's !!

Todd - can you fix up a date and call the local Pizza joint? I'll be there...very interested in Vinyl and I am using a borrowed MMF 2.1 now...I want one for myself (either MMF5 or 2.1).

Cheers!

AAh!!

I dont think i'll be around in July...how about tomorrow LOL

Ok lets all jump in with potential dates...majority wins.

Ok... how would you compare it to SACD (DSD encoded and produced) music? Or DVD-Audio 24/192 music? Stereo, obviously, as multi-channel is an arena that vinyl cannot compete in...

Multichannel is not for headphone listening and I am sure you know this

And I do know of ONE attempt at a 6 track vinyl record for a specially designed multihead tone arm and cartridge. But I cant find that link anywhere now...

I heard the Omega-2 + KGSS + Bottlehead Preamp + Marantz SACD/Music Hall MMF5 / AND / Senn HD-650 + Rudistor RP5 + Sony DVP-NS500V / MMF 2.1 and Ratshack preamp ( )

I preferred Vinyl...effortless sound...effortless music...

CD's seem awfully strained.
SACD's are better off...still a bit strained...
DVD-A - never heard
HDCD - never heard
Vinyl - bliss...

I'm not an audiophile but from my comparisons with vinyl and CD I found that vinyl sounds much nicer. It has a more natural sound, wider soundstage, the sound doesn't seem to have a compressed sound about it compared to CD's, the bass feels like it goes deeper, but you have to put up with some crackles every now and then. I prefer the vinyl sound to CD but I still prefer to play music off my computer due to convenience. I would think that DVD-Audio and SACD would sound better than vinyl and they are probably what we always expected CD to sound like but were misled.

Ok, I will go against the grain a little...

I am a vinyl aficionado, so what I am about to say will seem like heresy. I have a Teres TT and a Sony XA777 CD/SACD player for the record. Even regarding virgin vinyl and a properly setup vinyl rig the comparison of LP vs CD isn't always a sure thing I have found. Lot depends on the music you listen to and more importantly, I have found, the era of the recording.

If you are listening to Classical, Jazz or Classic Rock albums originally recorded some 30-40 years ago, then I have never found CD remasters to equal good vinyl. Even many/most recordings from the 80's to early 90's typically sound better on LP. Where I start to question the absoluteness of the statement, that LPs rule over CD, is often in well recorded very modern albums, particularly in the rock genre. Here I have found it to be no better than a 50-50 shot. It varies from recording to recording.

I think a lot has to do with how they originally mastered the album, but just so I am clear, I am speaking of only well recorded, good sounding modern releases. Albums that come to mind, for concreteness are Radiohead's Kid A, Ryan Adams' albs, Wilco, Flaming Lips, etc. Many of the ones I listed I have on both formats and it is a hit and miss whether one format better the other. Sometimes it is clearly the LP that is better, sometimes it is clearly the CD that is better.

Of course, I have a few Jazz LPs that absolutely trounce the CD versions I have heard of the same recording. I would suggest if you are considering diving into LPs that you take inventory of the music you really listen to the most and weigh that against the incovenience and time consumption of the format.

For me, I like music all over the board from metal, to classical, from Jazz to electronica. I think each format has their place.

This is most certainly the most rational statement I have heard recently and brings to front many sound points. Thanks Josh