@jjss49 ...
“i would venture to say that digital front end will outperform analog at low (1-2k) to middle levels (2-4k) but when you get into really good analog, have it all dialed in (no trivial task) it sounds better but then you are into quite expensive territory at that point - all cases here factoring in the all important phono stage too...”
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I agree, at the low end consumer level anything goes... I hadn’t intended on implying anything in the $1K - 1.5 range would conform to this generalization. The question was on mid-level, which to me would start at the least around $2K.
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I always consider the Phonostage part of the analog end. It has a very profound effect on the output and cheap ones really sound bad. My examples of comparisons started at $2K simply because you do not get much consistency below that level... and even that is pretty low. There are lots of variables, but I said for compatible and complementary components. I know a person that has put together a system costing over $30K and it simply sounds terrible, both digital and analog. I could do better for $5K or less. So, myself and several other people I know and trust have confirmed this generality, and it is a generality, normally holds... equal investment in a quality analog end and digital end will result in a better sounding analog end. While the ratio has changed radically over time. It used to be an analog end costing a fraction of the cost of the digital end would out preform. Over the last thirty years that ratio has gotten smaller.
I now have the best digital end I have ever heard. It caused me to upgrade my analog end. I thought that finally analog had met it’s match. But, my analog end at about $10k less than my digital end.. but it still bests my digital end. This data point fell right in line with the generalization. I keep thinking the generalization is going to fail but hasn’t yet in my experience and those I know and follow,
Having said all this. I love listening to both, period. Both ends are satisfying, musical detailed and wonderful. But, I have to give the nod to the analog end. I listen to the analog end when I feel like choosing an album, or hearing more deeply into something. I have no noticeable surface noice on 95%+ of my albums. I clean all albums when I buy them and they really never need more than a quick wipe with Last cleaner if the get really dusty... very unusual. As you get up in quality of turntable surface nice just goes away. With a disk washer virtually all pops go way... handling records properly will result in no skips,
Assembling a high end system is challenging. Some people cannot do it. My example of my friend. He has three degrees in science... he is highly analytical. But, is not good with the ambiguity and the nuance of putting a system together. He uses his skill to choose a single component... then another... then another... when put together they sound terrible. He isn’t able to calibrate his tastes and observations to that of reviewers and to remover their prejudices (which they try and show) and then to integrate over the whole system. It is a lot of work, it requires it to be a labor of love. I really love huge unstructured problems... and am good at them, so high-end audio has been really rewarding for me, and really frustrating for my friend of over 50 years.
