@emailists: Oh yeah, d-2-d is very impractical. Very few musicians (or singers) can record an entire LP side live without playing a number of clams. I was speaking only of the best-sounding LP system, not the most doable.
You use the term "older records" in a way that implies their age alone suggests limited fidelity. Nothing could be further from the truth! The recorded fidelity of Miles Davis' Kind Of Blue is stunning, as are many other 1950's Jazz and Classical recordings, Some early Rock 'n' Roll records too, like the two Elvis albums reissued first by DCC (mastered by Steve Hoffman. I have these LP's.), then Classic Records, and currently Analogue Productions. Recorded using tape electronics and microphones, very simple signal paths, and very mild electronic manipulation (EQ, reverb, echo, limiting, etc.). Roy Orbison's early recordings (after he left Sun Records) also possess fantastic sound quality.
You use the term "older records" in a way that implies their age alone suggests limited fidelity. Nothing could be further from the truth! The recorded fidelity of Miles Davis' Kind Of Blue is stunning, as are many other 1950's Jazz and Classical recordings, Some early Rock 'n' Roll records too, like the two Elvis albums reissued first by DCC (mastered by Steve Hoffman. I have these LP's.), then Classic Records, and currently Analogue Productions. Recorded using tape electronics and microphones, very simple signal paths, and very mild electronic manipulation (EQ, reverb, echo, limiting, etc.). Roy Orbison's early recordings (after he left Sun Records) also possess fantastic sound quality.