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 optimize

Without reading the whole thread. And without going into lengthy explanations.

If we use data terms. LP is a lossy format or let me correct that it is worse than just to be a lossy format.
LP is the equivalent to mp3 plus that it adds sounds that were not in the master to begin with.

The bad reputation CD has it is mostly from bad content that is stored in the CD. When we are in the digital domain it is far easier to apply compression that many record labels want to have on the content. And AFTER compression (loudness) store that data on the CD.
But that is not the fault of the format when that is done. If the content is made to be used in noicy environments (in cars, and as like) and not in a quiet man cave.

In my experience you do not need to plow down so much money into CD playback.
Take some old oppo 85/95/105/205 and use it as transport that plays all formats. Get the digital output from the HDMI out. Connect that to a break out box. So you get the digital your external DAC. Now you can plow money into a good DAC that you also can use for decode when you streaming.

That way you do not need go down that rabbit hole to buy expensive units called CD players. That consists of a transport and a DAC. So more or less when upgrading to a new CD player you logically not upgrading the transport but only the DAC and it surrounding electronics. So you waste money on buying yet another transport that do nothing for the sound quality despite what the marketing wants you to believe. In other words you just upgrading the built in DAC.

Despite all of that above I have plowed down far more money on buying LPs over CDs. But that is of different reasons than for the sound quality.

Like:
I want to hear the new pressing of Adele 25 album. That I heard that are in its way.
(In other words I just want to hear another variant and compare what the differences is against the first pressing. And my old first pressing is getting worn.) 

Talking about wear.. The CD from the 80-ties has NEVER before sounded so good as they do today. When our DACs and electronic is so much better today.