[scannon18]

 

 

[IBMprest]

Hate to burst the bubble guys but analogue blows away digital. Of course it takes lots of money (reference table, step-up transformer, moving coil cartridge) for an audiophile-grade vinyl front end but there's no comparison. Digital processing is like a filter and strains out the natural timbre and resonances of music.

 

[DaBomb77766]

Digital is hands-down is better than vinyl - you don't have to worry about little blips and scratches on the disc, and if you use SACDs, you're pretty much listening to the studio master.  Say what you will about analog being better, but the physical process of putting the digital master onto a vinyl disc will always cause more errors than etching an aluminum platter with a laser, which has near perfect accuracy.
 
Of course, most people can barely tell any difference (if at all) between good 320kbps MP3s and lossless files.  I'm all but certain it's just the general appeal of listening to a totally analog source that makes us think it's "better" - it may sound "different," but if you want something that's as close as possible to the digital master, SACD or plain old redbook CDs are far better.

 

[nick_charles]

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if the original studio master at a higher sampling rate and bit depth is transfered onto the vinyl wouldn't it sound better then 44.1khz/16bit used on a CD?

 


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if the original studio master at a higher sampling rate and bit depth is transfered onto the vinyl wouldn't it sound better then 44.1khz/16bit used on a CD?

Some are even recorded at 192/24 are they not? Do they transfer this level of quality is the question.

Vinyl is much noisier than CD let alone high-res. Vinyl in pristine condition has at best a SNR ratio of 75db, with some very rare half-speed masters reaching maybe 80db on a good day with a following wind, a 24 bit recording has a theoretical SNR of 144db so the transfer processes loses all of the advantage of the higher res recording, this is not a matter of opinion it is a matter of physics. Vinyl has many other limitations such as poor performance heading towards the label due to the tracking becoming physically harder and the turn tighter, again this is not a matter of opinion, some linear tracking arms can ameliorate some of this effect. By all rational criteria the lowly CD is more accurate than vinyl ever can be. Whatever magical properties vinyl may or may not have, in the physical world it has much worse linearity, channel crosstalk, channel balance, distortion and speed variation problems, many turntables such as the lower Regas frequently hitting 1% speed error. On headphones with music which has a wide dynamic range the incipient noise in quieter sections is really intrusive, for rock and pop with high average levels it is fine but for quieter classical passages the noise is grating. Rumble, hum, feedback, groove noise not even mentioning clicks and pops.
 
On the other hand when you consider how it works, basically dragging a rock through a canyon while it careens wildly from side to side, vinyl actually does a pretty decent job
 

 

[DaBomb77766]

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On the other hand when you consider how it works, basically dragging a rock through a canyon while it careens wildly from side to side, vinyl actually does a pretty decent job
 

Yeah, I must say, the idea of vinyl recordings is pretty neat.  I've always wanted to get into vinyl simply due to the novelty of it - not for audio bliss, I'd say that SACD or high-resolution lossless files from a place like hdtracks would be much better for that.  My dad has a rather massive collection of vinyl records and a modest turntable with a preamp, so I might as well start there.

 

[sterling1]

My CD collection began back during the dawn of CD. I replaced some LP's  then with the same material on CD, just to eliminate the annoying snap, crackle, and pop. Only in those days did CD sound different. I remember the CD version of Journey's Don't Stop Believin" did not disclose fret squeak apparent on the LP. Interestingly, later pressings of the LP did not disclose those fret squeaks. At any rate, the only thing for sure is this,  LP, 78, or 45 material which is not available on CD or other will require a turntable, cartridge, and a phono amp, that's to say,  if you want to listen to those tunes.

 

[mulveling]

So on one hand we have people with ample hands-on experience in high-end implementations of both digital and vinyl playback. I'd hazard a gamble that a significant percentage of folks in this group prefer vinyl. On the other hand we have folks well versed in internet-quality research and casual analysis, usually with NO experience in quality vinyl playback. Surprise! This group overwhelmingly prefers digital. 
 

 

[yepimonfire]

uh....no
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So on one hand we have people with ample hands-on experience in high-end implementations of both digital and vinyl playback. I'd hazard a gamble that a significant percentage of folks in this group prefer vinyl. On the other hand we have folks well versed in internet-quality research and casual analysis, usually with NO experience in quality vinyl playback. Surprise! This group overwhelmingly prefers digital. 
 

 

 

[AuralRelations]

I grew up in the digital age. I never used a turntable until a few years back. I'm 23 now and love my turntable. Does it sound better than my digital versions? In most cases yes or they're the same. The little crackles in the background don't really bother me and there are some LPs that I have that sound like CDs with no noise at all. I like digital because you can get a really great sounding setup for very little money when compared to vinyl. I blew so much money on vibration control alone with my turntable. There's just something I love about how mechanical and tangible spinning records is. Would I give up one for the other? No. 
 
I listen to both but I have more of an emotional connection to my physical records. I feel like owning a record player is like owning a classic car. It's a pain in the ass but when everything is working properly, you get an immeasurable sense of pride and joy. "I've nailed it," I say to myself after setting up my table perfectly. 
 
I, for one, will be very sad when the day comes that vinyl will no longer be produced.

 

[yepimonfire]

i don't see that happening any time soon. i recently read something showing that vinyl sales were up, above CDs and above MP3s. don't remember where i read it though, but vinyl is still going strong.
also, its hard for analog versions to sound better then digital ones when theyre pressed from a digital master in the first place. i will say analog recordings have a much different sound then digital ones, even when theyre put onto a digital source, why? i don't really know but they definitely sound different then digital recordings, but i still feel well produced digital recordings sound superior to analog ones, analog sounds colored, some people may like that sound, just like some people like the coloration of tubes, but when it comes down to purity and true fidelity digital reigns supreme.
 
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I grew up in the digital age. I never used a turntable until a few years back. I'm 23 now and love my turntable. Does it sound better than my digital versions? In most cases yes or they're the same. The little crackles in the background don't really bother me and there are some LPs that I have that sound like CDs with no noise at all. I like digital because you can get a really great sounding setup for very little money when compared to vinyl. I blew so much money on vibration control alone with my turntable. There's just something I love about how mechanical and tangible spinning records is. Would I give up one for the other? No. 
 
I listen to both but I have more of an emotional connection to my physical records. I feel like owning a record player is like owning a classic car. It's a pain in the ass but when everything is working properly, you get an immeasurable sense of pride and joy. "I've nailed it," I say to myself after setting up my table perfectly. 
 
I, for one, will be very sad when the day comes that vinyl will no longer be produced.

 

 

[sterling1]

I was glad to see the arrival of CD. Setting up my turntable and cartridge was a hassle. Attempting to tweak it for the best results was a never ending ordeal. Pops, and bad pressings distracted from the pleasure of the experience.  Today,  wondering  about vinyls' come back, I've revisited it. I do not understand it. Playing new or old LP's,  mastered from analog or digital, only rarely do they sound as good as CD;  plus, vinyl is less convenient. Still, the capability to play LP's is important to me since some of my music library on LP has not yet been digitized.

 

[Gazza]

Vinyl to me sounds leagues better than the best that digital has to offer. I wish this wasn't the case as the convenience of digital versus the sometimes onerous impracticality of vinyl makes it a much more appealing option in may ways. Alas, vinyl sounds so god damned nice that I simply shrug my shoulders and order more vinyl.

 

[DaBomb77766]

Could just be that "analog" sound you guys like.  Perhaps pairing a good CD (SACD?) player with a good tube amp could give you best of both worlds.

 

[yepimonfire]

i agree
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Could just be that "analog" sound you guys like.  Perhaps pairing a good CD (SACD?) player with a good tube amp could give you best of both worlds.

 

 

[yepimonfire]

are you talking about old vinyl or new vinyl? old vinyl is older recordings, many of which were definitely better then some of todays recordings due to the overuse and abuse of dynamic range compression.
 
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Vinyl to me sounds leagues better than the best that digital has to offer. I wish this wasn't the case as the convenience of digital versus the sometimes onerous impracticality of vinyl makes it a much more appealing option in may ways. Alas, vinyl sounds so god damned nice that I simply shrug my shoulders and order more vinyl.