2. analog
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Is a vinyl rig only worth it for oldies?

I have always been curious about vinyl and its touted superiority over digital, so I decided to try it for myself. Over the course of the past several years I bought a few turntables, phono stages, and a bunch of new albums. They sounded fine I thought, but didn't stomp all over digital like some would tend to believe.

It wasn't until I popped on some old disk that I picked up used from a garage sale somewhere that I heard what vinyl was really about: it was the smoothest, most organic, and 3d sound that ever came out of my speakers. I had never heard anything quite like it. All of the digital I had, no matter how high the resolution, did not really come close to approaching that type of sound.

Out of the handful of albums I have from the 70s-80s, most of them have this type of sound. Problem is, most of my music and preferences are new releases (not necessarily in an audiophile genre) or stuff from the past decade and these albums sounded like music from a CD player but with the added noise, pops, clicks, higher price, and inconveniences inherent with vinyl. Of all the new albums I bought recently, only two sounded like they were mastered in the analog domain.

It seems that almost anything released after the 2000's (except audiophile reissues) sounded like music from a CD player of some sort, only worse due to the added noise making the CD version superior. I have experienced this on a variety of turntables, and this was even true in a friend's setup with a high end TT/cart.

So my question is, is vinyl only good for older pre-80s music when mastering was still analog and not all digital?
solman989

Showing 1 response by david12

david12
1,454 posts
 
It seems to me, that the out of hand dismissal of CD sound quality, is a little out of date. Ironically, as LP became a"legacy" medium, the offerings of turntables, arms and phonostages etc, exploded in terms of quality and quantity.

I put legacy in quote marks for vinyl, as it seems to be going from strength to strength. If one medium is threatened, it's CD, with sales falling off a cliff and some manufacturers, like Linn, abandoning CD players altogether. Well what is left seems, compared to 20 years ago, to be of such better quality. Even middle grade CD players are excellent and the top end, Nagr's, Zanden's and Wadia's, quite superb. Better than top flight LP? maybe not, but the gap is smaller and the effort and cost of getting to top flight sound, a jolly sight easier.

The argument for having both, for me, is the greater access it gives yme, to the range of music I want in my collection. I am an opera lover and live in the UK, so the incomparable world of 50's to 70's EMI and Decca boxed sets, is available on E bay, garage sales and charity shops. In this instance, the CD copies of these recordings, I absolutely would agree, is nowhere near as good.

Is one better than the other? maybe, do I care, no. I weant access to the music I want, in the best format it's available on. That might be CD or vinyl.
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