Vinyl vs Digital

Yes, he’s had the baby! :rofl:

3 Likes

Our use case for vinyl is quite different. Our vinyl collection is small, and is only ‘vintage’ albums. My wife’s Beatles albums she purchased in the 1970’s, and a variety of other 70’s rock and jazz albums that were all pressed at the time is the core of it. So we’re comparing say a second pressing of Revolver (don’t own a first press) to the 24/48 Beatles USB version via ND555. Again, I lean more towards the “they are different and both great” than the “VINYL IS SO MUCH BETTER WHAT’S WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE.”

3 Likes

I am surprised that we don’t hear the distinction analog-vinyl and digital-vinyl used in the discussions of SQ.

When I first started thinking about acquiring lp’s a few months ago, @Richard.Dane commented that he finds some new digital-vinyl to be quite nice in its own right, and that I should not dismiss it. I’m not doing his comment justice. But for example the MFSL lp of Beck’s Sea Change really IS good, and not the same-sounding as a rip of the MFSL cd. Rock-in-vinyl-groove + RIAA and all.

Not necessarily… in modern music there is a lot of electronically and digitally created audio and instrumentation that has never been analogue anywhere in the chain… even at composition time … but I take your point for microphones and inductuctive pickups.

1 Like

Well, today I have:

  • Set up the RCM in the loft;
  • Transferred 130 of my favourite albums into the living room.

Leaving 2.5k in the loft. Over the last 5 years I have digitised a fair few of my favourite albums, which is a useful backup. Now I am going to re-arrange my listening habits and play FAR more vinyl.

2 Likes

I was thinking the other day about the subject of electronically and digitally created music/sounds. We have to realize that no one really knows what they should sound like–there is no standard there. With natural music, we have a reference to go by.

Well said. Having been a vinyl guy predominantly over the years I’ve gone out of my way at times to source so called audiophile re releases of albums I used to have years back. In most cases I’ve been disappointed mainly in the performance vs price ratio. I have old run of the mill records from the 60’s and 70’s that sound far better.
These days I just purchase based on the music, not the recording and take my chances.
I listen to Naim Radio and really like it. If I were to purchase any particular artist I’d go with a download just to keep things simple.
As for Vinyl, the gold is in the browsing through hundreds of second hand albums ( when possible) and every now and then coming up with a diamond.
Quick edit. I’ve developed a theory based on guesswork! In the early years digital was competing directly with analogue for market share. This influenced the way it’s sound developed. As the decades rolled by digital eventually started competing with digital and the sounds changed again. Now I’m not sure where we are at but This can explain why some people like NOS dacs that measure poorly over newer versions. I personally feel that my ND5xs is the most organic sounding digital source I’ve ever had.

And I just had to Google what a NOS DAC was!

Well now I know…

But as usual …I’m a little confused
The reason chord DACs are heralded as sounding so good is all the over sampling?

Or is it all the taps? …Now I have to Google what a tap is…

1 Like

I might do the same.

That was simple!!
If you have a lot of taps…You have a lot of bathroom’s
If you have a lot of bathroom’s…You have a big house
If you can afford a big house…You can buy a better DAC
How easy is that

6 Likes

It figures. :grin: Least you were honest enough to admit it, I read it and had no idea but didn’t want to let on.

Back to vinyl from analogue/digital sources.
In the ‘old’ days when CD’s first emerged and for a good many years after that, they were all marked with a 3 letter code …AAD, ADD or DDD, which the first 2 letters showed how much of the recording/mastering process was analogue or digital.
Is there anything similar for modern vinyl on the box? I have looked and asked my friendly but clueless retailer and found nothing.

I’ve never seen it as just vinyl vs digital. There’s a whole lot of other variables - analogue or digital recording, mastering, vinyl pressing, CD mastering, WAV, FLAC, high-res. One thing overrides everything good music, well recorded and produced is just that regardless of playback medium.

Regards,

Lindsay

2 Likes

Quality can be lost at any stage of the record / store / replay process; and that applies to the artistic quality of reconstruction of the performance as well as technical quality.

1 Like

If you build a house with 9 bedrooms and only 1 bathroom, people will think you’re filthy rich! :rofl:

5 Likes

One rather “binary variable;” there is no iPhone app for me to use to play my vinyl without getting out of my chair :sunglasses:

2 Likes

There an iPhone app for how many steps you take …Walking backwards and forwards to change the record…

1 Like

Just sitting on the sidelines soaking up information! That’s all, but is anyone familiar with this technology:

“Turntables are enjoying a big resurgence in popularity these days, especially since ION Audio introduced the conversion turntable a few years ago. With an ION Audio or Akai Professional conversion turntable, records can be converted into digital files as they’re being played, so the music on your rare, prized records can be preserved digitally forever and, since they’re now digital files, you can play them on your portable device through your headphones or ear buds. Pretty cool.”

Put on the gloves
Take out the record
Wash both sides
Put it on
Demagnetize it
Take off the gloves
Sit for 15m
Get up and flip
Another 15m
Then put the gloves again
Struggle with inner sleeve
Then the outer one
Put it on the shelf

I always owned a turntable playing my fathers records waaay before it was cool…

Sometimes I can hear than vinyl sounds better, specially with good blue note pressings but I hear no analog bliss with modern music, rock or even classical vs good cd…
Still I keep them, maybe even upgrade my turntable when I retire… I want a Kronos:)
For now cd555 is just fine

4 Likes