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.”
mkgus

Showing 1 response by jim204

The last time I spun an Analogue disc was in the eighties and I couldn't get rid of it quick enough and it wasn't as if I didn't have a good system.
Ariston RD11S Turntable
Syrinx PU2 arm
Dynavector Ruby Cartridge

This was good gear in that era when Ariston was just as good as Linn.

I went into digital because I was fed up with snap, crackle and pop and tracking distortion and that damned hiss from the analogue recorders that taped the master. I won't say that going digital in the early eighties was great but with my Quad 44 pre amp I could filter away some of that treble glare. It was when Meridian came in with their early CD Players that the CD started to sound good and without the obvious traits that came with vinyl. Now I am a happy camper as I now have a computer I built for streaming and playing CD rips. I now am a headphone addict and the streaming and high rez files that I buy sound as good as and most probably better than some with their high end rigs because I am hearing much more detail than people who listen to speakers as I get much more detail from phones than most speaker system.