Does Anyone Think CD is Better Than Vinyl/Analog?


I am curious to know if anyone thinks the CD format (and I suppose that could include digital altogether) sounds better than vinyl and other analog formats. Who here has gone really far down both paths and can make a valid comparison? So far, I have only gone very far down the CD path and I just keep getting blown away by what the medium is capable of! I haven’t hit a wall yet. It is extremely dependent on proper setup, synergy and source material. Once you start getting those things right, the equipment gets out of the way and it can sound more fantastic than you can imagine! It’s led me to start developing a philosophy that goes something like this: Digital IS “perfect sound forever”; it’s what we do to the signal between the surface of the CD and the speaker cone that compromises it.” 
So I suppose what I’m asking for is stories from people who have explored both mediums in depth and came to the conclusion that CD has the most potential (or vice versa - that’s helpful too). And I don’t simply mean you’ve spent a lot of money on a CD player. I mean you’ve tinkered and tweaked and done actual “research in the lab,” and came back with a deep understanding of the medium and can share those experiences with others.

In my experience, the three most important things to get right are to find a good CD player (and good rarely means most expensive in my experience) and then give it clean power. In my case, I have modified my CD player to run off battery power with DC-DC regulators. The last thing that must be done right is the preamp. It’s the difference between “sounds pretty good” and “sounds dynamic and realistic.”
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Showing 1 response by humbertorami

This question comes up often. It is not what sounds better, but rather a personal choice of a type of sound. Vinyl differs from CDs and they in turn, sound different than HD tracks.
For long listening sessions vinyl is without a doubt the winner. Also in terms of wholeness, a coheret field of music, vinyl is unbeatable. If you are looking for detail and increased dynamic range, then CD's and HD tracks are the way to go, but bear in mind, that you will not be happy listening for exteded periods of time. 
I too went through the few years, of CD wonderment; eventually I started listening to vinyl again and was stunned by the warmth and wholeness of the music experience. I own about 1500 lps , no CD's since what's the point? You copy them to  a hard drive and are done with the ugly plastic object (however, you will need a decent D/A and those are not cheap) I also use QoBuz and Audirvana and like the combo a lot. My TT is an Acoustic Signature Primus with a MC Dynavetor K 17 DX cart, Sutherland phono stage, and VTL 6.5 preamp. Finally setting up a decent vinyl system is definitively more expensive, but also more rewarding.