I have vinyl and digital. I’m doing 99% digital mostly because of my limited vinyl collection. Two months of Tidal and it’s vast library is just a bit more in cost than one new vinyl release in my area. I find the digital SQ is rather good as well.
1 Like
I prefer vinyl for critical listening but digital for everyday. The CD555 sounds good enough that I could pass on the vinyl. The CD555 (w two 555PS DR) uses a SL i/c, whereas the Verdier uses a HiLine; no Superline available for vinyl. The tonearm cable could also use an upgrade, but this will be a can of worms to open. Everything matters in analog, and small changes are expensive and there are few opportunities to “demo” changes. A nice CD, or streamer, is plug and play pretty much. Plug and play is hard to beat.
This is precisely where I was…ND555 and Roon and 1800 cd quality or hi res files on my server. Then I bought a tt . . . no regrets about adding vinyl to the mix!
Never have never will.
I grew up with vinyl since before I could walk practically and later I worked for years with access to a maxed out LP12 and I never felt vinyl was superior. I sometimes felt that vinyl got the better deal on which master was used but all things being equal, I never found vinyl to be preferable.
I do remember a very funny test a mate and I did once. He stuck on some vinyl of Jon Strong in the demo room to make a point about how immediate it sounded with so much presence that the same CD played back lacked in his opinion. Sure, the vinyl sounded warmer and more immediate. But I suspected this was more to do with the coloration of the playback process people become fond of.
So I routed it out of the record out to a DAT recorder that was popular at the time (mid 90’s). Play it back… and lo and behold the digital format recorded from vinyl… sounded just like vinyl!
Being a true vinyl head, his response was “Yeah you’re right. Digital doesn’t sound like vinyl on purpose, not because it can’t… but I don’t care. Vinyl is still better just because.”
I’d also put forward that in the modern age where most things are mastered digitally and often the HD downloads are similar to or copies of the digital masters, there is little to be gained by a lossy conversion to an analogue format.
Allegedly the black dye used in vinyl manufacturing is magnetic, so clear vinyl has greater sonic potential. Classic Records issued some clear vinyl single-sided 45rpm pressings back in the day. I have Jethro Tull’s “Aqualung” from that series.
1 Like
Vinyl, by a whisker. But there are a significant number of digital files on my Melco that sound better than their vinyl equivalents. Is your digital replay equipment of equivalent price to your vinyl kit?
Being a bit creaky these days, I also find the process of having to get up & change sides detracts somewhat from the pleasure of the listening experience.
It’s really interesting to me that people with an ND555 can still prefer vinyl
I too would opt for records given the choice of only one source… though I only have an NDS / core and I have heard how good the 555 is…
My Rega P8 (alpheta) really is quite special though …and a bargain at circa £3k (with rega phono stage)
I prefer vinyl but recognise I am a bit of a dinosaur as I have been buying LPs for over 50 years.
The whole CD era just passed me by apart from in 1987 when I bought a CD player to buy the 20th anniversary of Sqt. Pepper on CD. A year latter I bought an LP12 with a Naim NAC72-HiCap-NAP140 and never looked backed.
Over the years I have heard a few streaming systems, including top flight systems from Linn and Naim, but always preferred the music from my vinyl system,
The music from my generation and era just sounds and feels better on vinyl to me!
After saying this, I would advise new comers to go for a streaming system.
Richard
1 Like
When I just want to sit down for a an hour or so and properly immerse myself in the music, then invariably I will go to choose an LP. Otherwise, it’s digital pretty much everywhere else - particularly in the car and on the move, apart from listening to the radio, where FM still rules.
1 Like
Having owned my LP12 for 30 years I still use and enjoy it. I buy both new and used vinyl and somethings just sound better on vinyl. I had a really good improvement by swapping out the Cirkus subchassis for a Majik one and this has stopped the LP12 falling behind in SQ compared to my streaming system.
That’s a valid question Tony, and I’d have to say no, however I have been quite impressed with the NDX 2 over the Nova,
While my LP12 was quite high spec 25 years ago, it could be upgraded in many ways these days with Linn or 2rd party enhancements - quite difficult to know whether to spend limited cash resources improving the LP12 further vs trying to get a far better streamer as I’ve never really taken to digital sources apart from convenience, and my old Naim CD player got very little usage when it was new.
I’ve home demoed the NDX 2 but I think would struggle to home demo an ND555 as my dealer does not have them in store. The NDX 2 has been very tempting as a stepping stone mind you.
I could fork out £20,000 on an ND 555 and still find I preferred LPs.
1 Like
on my 2 sources Lp12 (bio on my page) and NDX
I can say even with HD files 24/192 - 96 the vinyl records I have of the same recording just have more music and detail - I play vinyl around 95% of the time
comparing
Yes close to the edge 24/192 vs Vinyl
Supertramp breakfast 16/44 vs MoFI
Steven Wilson To the bone 24/44 vs Vinyl
Rodger waters The Wall Live 24/192 vs Vinyl
St Pepper 24/96 vs new remastered
and so it goes on, for me the chosen route is Lp12, love my NDX just love vinyl that little bit more
1 Like
Definitely digital. There is so much more to the music - much better bass, clearer treble - way better. I finally sold my Rega Planar 3 a couple of years ago because I just wasn’t using it. Really ought to sell my vinyl records - not sure of the best way to do that, though.
I could never go back to vinyl.
Hello Bart
Nice combination. You have all covered. I am 75 years young this year, so probably not going to pursue vinyl. If I was younger, I might feel differently. I am really enjoying the digital content.
Are you happy with Roon/ND555? Considering a Nucleus and Roon. Seems like that is the way Naim intends us to go, with TIDAL not native and Qobuz part of Roon.
Bailyhill
Bailyhill, I had a milestone birthday recently, albeit I’m about 15 years younger than you. I had no intention of every starting with vinyl, but my daughter found my wife’s old records in her ex-husband’s home…bundled them up…and brought them over. She really wanted to hear them again (although we play all the same music on the ND555) - so I took that as a sign and opportunity to “try” vinyl. We actually ended up loving it, and chose Rega due to ease of setup and relative immunity to foot-fall issues. (Zero issues with it sitting on the upper level of a Fraim).
We LOVE Roon on the ND555. The user-interface is fantastic, and the ability to run it on a laptop and not JUST a phone or tablet it great for me. I run it often from my Macbook as I’m reading online. As we age, the big screen of the laptop vs. the phone or iPad is nice 
And the notes about the artists and albums aren’t bad, although when we start discussing who played what on what album, I go to Wikipedia. But again that’s easy to do on the laptop.
I highly highly recommend a Nucleus, and Roon. I don’t use Tidal or Qobuz, as I seem to have all the content I want.
1 Like
Digital or Vinyl?
Vinyl for me, esp when able to fully enjoy the ritual of playing an album from start to finish. Handle the sleeve, look at the lyric sheets etc.
Digital UPnP streaming of CD rips when I want to queue a few albums on the trot when working and not worry about flipping vinyl.
In reality its a joy to have both!
I’ve now owned a turntable for eight months after a fifteen or so year hiatus and i’m thoroughly enjoying reacquainting myself with records. Both vinyl & digital sources (modest compared to many rigs), are roughly equal in terms of SQ. Perhaps, my preference will change as I improve each source in turn?
I thought having the record player would be just a flash in the pan and I’d get bored with the faff. But, eight months in, the RP6 has proven so addictive, I’m now seriously considering using my saved upgrade stash to take vinyl playback to the next level (P8 / LP12), as opposed to a Naim streamer which I thought would be the next upgrade. What started out as a bit of nostalgia fuelled fun is now fast becoming my fav source.
3 Likes
Hello Japtim, we have the same sources. For music from the 70’s, i find the rp8 / delos cart much more real sounding vs the same albums on hirez with my nds.
The nds/ 555 dr costs 6 times the rega/ delos.
1 Like
Ultimately vinyl for me. Best example is when I bought the Jeff Beck at Ronnie’s set on CD and then saw the vinyl version at the Signals show a couple of years ago. From the first few bars the supremacy was clear, more organic, fluidity and better soundstage.
Regards,
Lindsay
When I had Vinyl years ago, I loved Vinyl… Then there were years I had CD players, I loved CD’s…
… now-a-days it’s NAS and TIDAL feeding a NDX so I love streaming! …but I do Love It All…
I would love to have it all but to take an old quote from years ago, " You can’t always get what you want, but if you try sometimes, well you might find you get what you need."
I love music and I’m doing the best with what I got!
Choices are wonderful and may you all get what you need!
3 Likes
Still vinyl for me, but since buying an Oppo 205 last year, I am coming round to digital (though it’ll never replace the glory of analogue vinyl).
The Oppo is not only a great 4K blu-ray player, it is superb universal music player which can take virtually format thrown at it - CD, SACD, BDA, DVDA, hi-res via USB etc.
I have been especially impressed with SACD (DSD straight to anlogue via the Oppo’s DAC and anlogue outputs in stero - I haven’t got a multichannel setup), which to my ears sounds like the most “analogue” of digital formats. I only have a couple of dozen SACDs, mostly classical, but rock CDs (Can, Goldfrapp, Floyd etc) sound pretty awesome too - I only wish there were more of them.