Great cartoon in this week's New Yorker magazine. Has a caption: 'The two things that really drew me to vinyl were the expense and the inconvenience'. Sounds familiar.
Anyone who wants to know how good a recording can sound at home has to audition a high quality open reel tape source played on a SOTA home setup, like a good MBL installation and compare that to 331/3 vinyl and CD. It will be an eye opener. Then an eye closer when you realize how few recordings are available and what a PITA an open reel tape device is.
The good news is digital is starting to challenge that old but PITA reference standard and will continue to close teh gap as time goes on.
Records ain't going anywhere uniquely new or better. Most new ones these days come from digital masters anyway so no real benefit there.
I remember a demonstration that Andy Singer conducted at the NY Stereophile show about 5 years ago with an outstanding system flanked by a DCS stack and a Basis turntable playing the same classical music selections on vinyl and cd. I believe he was attempting to demonstrate the outstanding qualities of the DCS stack. Instead it only demonstrated to me how far digital had to go. The tonality, decay of notes, timbre, dimensionality were far superior on vinyl. I know that cd and hi-res has come a long way in the last 5 or so years, but I am still waiting for the day when any digital format matches or surpasses vinyl. Could MQA be that step? Will it be close enough? As good or better than vinyl? Or just another hdcd-type improvement of degrees.
What I'm beginning to dislike is having to clean more vinyl since many come pressed on two discs versus just one, plus there is less music recorded on each side. Dislike or not, I'm still going to purchase and enjoy. Bought a couple more lp's just today while out and about.
I've never questioned its worth. Music is life for me. Always has & will be. I'm thankful I have been this lucky enough to have had it - up to this point - in my life. There are many things I have not been so lucky with....
- Don't obsess about your rig. Don't do it! Don't you do it! (Spend your money on more important things!! Like the best vinyl pressings there is of your favorite music (this can take a lot of personal time, effort and yes money). - But most important: Enjoy the music! All ways.
"LP's were programmed as two separate sides, the songs and their relationship to the other songs on their one side being a complete experience unto itself. "
05-19-15: Viridian I feel the same about having chosen a real wife over a blow up doll.
LOL! I had a good chuckle reading this one!! ;-) it's been written/said before - anything with boobs or wheels is going to be a lot of fun but it will give you problems....
I like the sound as an alternative/change of pace but I don't like the extra procedural "work" involved. So I don't listen to my LP's as often as CDs or tuner.
Top 10 Reasons it may be (in honor of David Letterman's retirement):
1) you already have a lot of records you want to listen to. 2) you want to get a lot of new music to listen to on a budget, ie used records in good condition for not much each wherever and whenever you find it. 3) many vinyl releases have unique good quality sound that can't be had elsewhere 4) you just like turntables and records for whatever reason 5) there are many older recordings still only available on records 6) you can touch and hold and read record covers without a magnifying glass, especially if you are older 7) You feel better buying expensive new records than CDs or other modern media sources. 8) you like to touch and feel and turn over records every 20 minutes or so 9) records breathe... oh no wait that's actually surface noise and hiss 10) theres nothing more satisfying than a perfectly and I mean perfectly aligned and configured phono cartridge.
It depends on how much time, effort, passion and money your willing to put into vinyl? I was "vinyl absent" for over 15 years, during that time I came close(several times) to buying a near entry level table but knew it was a waste of time and money. Entry level tables have improved over the last 5 years but a good digital set up can equal or surpass them without the inconvenience. 2.5 years ago I ended up buying a 1 owner Rega P9/RB1000 and realize this is/was a great starting point for a serious deck that is clearly superior to all but the very best digital gear.
I never got used to CD's having only "one side". LP's were programmed as two separate sides, the songs and their relationship to the other songs on their one side being a complete experience unto itself. When older albums are put on CD with the two sides running together, sometimes what made each side work is destroyed. Of course, it's a different story with albums made since CD's took over. With them, I find many albums too damn long, with a lot of filler, just to make for a "CD length" album. But I'm old.
If you're the ultra-neurotic type who is going to agonize over every click and live in the constant state of uncertainty over whether your tt is not set up correctly, it's not worth it.
I just was given by my cousin a near mint Yamaha PX3 Linear Tracking table ... first TT I have had since the early 90s ... now I need a phono stage and some LPs! After I get it all set-up I may have an opinion :)
Having set up my 2nd (as in 1, 2) table for mono this week-end, I agree and would not really advise a friend to get into this, but with over 1500 albums carefully culled and thinned out over the years to listen to (and still buying)and way over 5 figures in lp playback gear, it works for me.
Also have nice server, DAC and other digital gear and enjoy it also.
Oh do I wrestle with this one. When it comes to audio quality there is nothing (in my opinion) that beats vinyl. The problems is......well, all the problems with it. Turntables, cartridges, tonearms, adjustments, phono amps, cables, cleaning, more cleaning etc. etc. And then there's that POP.......POP......Pop.......as that darn scratch appears. I love vinyl sound but since upgrading my system I have stayed clear of vinyl. The last straw was when I sent my stylus flying across the room trying to clean it. Given all of that, CD's aren't so bad! Just my two cents so please vinyl lovers don't crucify me.
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