CDs Vs LPs
coolatheart It's my understanding ALL vinyl is manufactured from a digital imprint.That may be your misunderstanding, but it's a misunderstanding, and not even remotely true. |
sleepwalker65 CD is fundamentally flawed from a standpoint of being incapable of faithfully reproducing the original analog content without the staircase effect and artifacts.While this seems intuitively sensible, it’s been proven completely wrong, unless you want to reject science and math. For those who have any lingering doubts, this excellent video will put the matter to rest. See it for yourself. |
dynaquest4 ... digital CD recordings are, and were designed to be, far superior to standard LP recordings in every way that mattersThat may be true, especially if you think extended HF response doesn't matter. No amount of money spend on beefy turntables and complex tonearms will produce the dynamic range of which the LP is incapable.The problem with this claim is that the CD's potential for greater dynamic range (compared to LP) is rarely needed or utilized. In fact, the opposite is the case. As a consequence of the loudness wars, a CD is typically more compressed than its LP counterpart. |
sleepwalker65 The video that @cleeds referred to is heavily slanted toward trusting that the conversion back to analog fills in the missing pieces with a perfectly synthesized replacement.Actually, the video is not slanted at all. It scientifically and visually demonstrates that your claim of the CD’s "fundamentally flawed ... staircase effect and artifacts" is mistaken, no matter how intuitively reasonable your claim might appear to be. As as a person who can’t put on the blinders and “un-see” what I know ...What you think you "know" is mistaken. Don’t get me wrong - I have my issues with the compact disc. But claims of the "staircase effect" have been shown to be false. The reason this is important is that if you seek to get the most from CD - and many of us do - it’s important to know what it gets right, and what it gets wrong. And claims of the "staircase effect" are just nonsense, as shown in the video. |
phomchic ... given the vastly superior dynamic range of a CD compared to an LP, and the perfect reproduction of the data stream from a CD compared to the distorted output of an LP cartridge, a CD is clearly capable of vastly better reproduction.This is where the pro-CD argument falls apart, because listening can reveal that CD does not inherently enjoy a "vastly superior" advantage over LP. The CD’s superior dynamic range is one of potential, and only rarely utilized. Other limits of LP performance - such as wow and flutter - can be well below audibility, so there’s no need for improvement. I’ve defended CD here against those who invent explanations of its defects, such as the mythical "staircase" argument. But at the same time, I’ll defend LP from those who don’t understand the extent of its performance limits. The claim that CD is "vastly superior" is just as nonsensical as the "staircase" and "dropout" claims of its critics. Both CD and LP are capable of extraordinary performance. And at their best, they sound very much more alike than different. |
elizabeth The largest negative for vinyl is the equipment choice and setup. IF one has the skills, or a really good tech person to chose the right cart/arm combo, then set it up. At this point I would say almost no one has a person really skilled to do it. Most are half way guessing and klutzing to 'good enough'.Agreed! And that is supported by what many people post here, and the tools they are using ... it's clear they're not precise enough to get the alignment spot-on. Then the cleaning of LPs. Really it has gotten to a new level, but I have not made that leap to an ultrasonic cleaning machine.Ultrasonic is the way to go, imo. |
