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is it possible to make digital audio sound like vintage vinyl

sam here with another question. is it possible to make digital audio sound like vintage vinyl ? i realize i'm gonna get ripped a new a-hole however this is not a joke question. honest answers please i can take the heat

as crazy as it sounds it seams perfectly logical to me. now here is what i did using my 2013 dell pc windows 7 32bit.

using foobar 2000 with the convolver dsp filter i made an impulse file consisting of a 1 second wave file extracted at 32 / 88 

from the intro to pink floyds us and them on 1st press vintage vinyl u.k harvest label. just the surface noise before the music 

starts and applied the impulse file to a digital album to see if the digital album now sounds like vintage vinyl.here's the results

not sure if i made the digital audio sound worse or really what i achieved ? feedback will help me decide if i should

abandoned this pipe dream and move on. source is digital download flac 16/44 same source for both before/after samples.

audio sample 1: http://pc.cd/GB3

audio sample 2 (impulse applied) http://pc.cd/7eA

audio sample 3: http://pc.cd/7DP7

audio sample 4 (impulse applied) http://pc.cd/bw2

audio sample 5: http://pc.cd/3etrtalK

audio sample 6 (impulse applied) http://pc.cd/lTf7
guitarsam
109 responses Add your response
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stevejewels
7 posts
 
Is it possible to make a digital file sound like an analog LP?

Indistinguishably? No

Adequately? Possibly

When you digitize a file you select some of the information to keep and some to discard.

"Lossless" means after you have performed the step above you select a means of storage that does not lose any more of the original information.

There are now two problems. You must have D to A hardware to fill in the parts lost when you digitized the file. Some hardware is better than others. Some methods are better than others.

How the hardware and software go about putting Humpty Dumpty back together again is the trick.

If there was a perfect way to do it why are there so many DACs and methods?


geoffkait's avatar
geoffkait
23,365 posts
 
You can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear 🐷 You can paint a donkey different colors but it’s still a donkey. Once you have a format that doesn’t have air you can’t magically get air by converting it to another format. Hel-loo!
millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
Is it possible to make digital audio sound like vintage vinyl?

Yes.
1. Take digital file.
2. Press LP.
3. Play on vintage TT.
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cleeds
5,947 posts
 
heaudio123
Digitize a turntable with a good A/D and play it back with a good DAC. Will you be able to tell the difference?
That’s a $1 million question.

My vinylphile friends don’t like it when I say this but: It is possible to make a digital copy of an LP that is indistinguishable from the LP itself. I have made hi-res digital files from some LP tracks and they are spooky-good.

To be clear, other than for portability or preserving the occasional ultra-rare record, I don’t think it’s really worth the trouble to digitize an LP. It’s a pretty tedious process and it’s not uncommon for even a 50-year-old LP to play back without issues, so what's the point?

I’m an analog guy, so it pains me to acknowledge this but it’s true. Whatever can be pressed onto an LP can be accurately transferred to digital.
lalitk's avatar
lalitk
5,443 posts
 
Is it possible to make digital audio sound like vintage vinyl.....the simple answer would be, not possible. If you like the convenience of digital, invest in a good streamer with a tube DAC and enjoy both formats. You like your music on the go, subscribe to Spotify or Qobuz. 

All audio formats, Vinyl, Reel to Reel, CD and FLAC are going to sound different and this remains a fact! 
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heaudio123
689 posts
 
Digitize a turntable with a good A/D and play it back with a good DAC. Will you be able to tell the difference? 


I think you can but need to address crosstalk and other artifacts too.
oldhvymec
5,101 posts
 
A simple no. you can't. There is no heat from me.. You just can't do it.
They sound different, because they are different. Digital, Analog..
I like both, I like Vinyl the best, I like digital it's easy. I like music...
All kinds, every kind, just no Yoko Ono....

Regards
mahler123
3,319 posts
 
If you want digital to sound like “vintage vinyl” the snarky response would be just fry some bacon while listening.  A more helpful response would be why is that important?  If the sound of vinyl is necessary , why not just listen to vinyl?  If it isn’t convenient to have a turntable with (traveling, etc) then just digitize your lps to a hard drive.   I would look into getting a DAC with tubes and call it a day
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