Recommendations for a jazz record which demonstrates vinyl superiority over digital

And idler drives… Old coveted Garrard. 

Since the majority of idler drives are rim drives, like the well known Garrard, I went with that rather than Idler. Others like Lenco are not rim so you are technically correct since rim drive is a subset of idler drive. So yes... idler, belt, and direct is more correct.

what a bizarre premise.

There are about a million variables to consider in this experiment, and since we know nothing about your system, how do we even know if you have vinyl hardware properly set up and optimized that is capable of even remotely being able to do what you want?

Not to mention the possibility that the album picked will be mastered differently for each format and that makes 1,000,001 variables.

Maybe my question should have been "What half-a-dozen beautifully produced jazz recordings currently available on new vinyl records should I buy"? I don’t think replay hardware has any bearing on the answer to this question?

???? It is at the very heart of what you want to determine. To paraphrase, You stated you wanted to determine if vinyl was better than digital.

Listen to a recording on a DCS Vivaldi stack and then compare it to a vinyl version on a Kenner Close N’ Play and pretty sure you will say digital is better than vinyl. I know, an extreme example to make a point, but if you are trying to determine which is better, you need somewhat of a level playing field.

Play a vinyl record that is superbly recorded on a cheap turntable with a worn out cartridge that wasn’t set up right in the first place and you will say vinyl sucks. So contrary to what you just said, hardware has everything to do with it.

I suggest trying a Groove Note record. If it doesn't sound excellent something is wrong with your set up.

I want to be able to judge whether it is worth spending any more on my vinyl hardware, or stick with digital".

that makes no difference to my point, which has completely gone over your head. 

It doesn't matter what record you try if your current vinyl playback system sucks, or not set up properly so it effectively sucks,  then any record you try on it will suck. I'm not saying your system sucks, I have no idea what it is, but again, not the point.

The point is, you need to listen on the system you are thinking about upgrading to. Not the system you have because obviously you think it is lacking in some way or you wouldn't consider upgrading it. 

regarding tangential arms, yes they have theoretical advantages, but if they are the panacea you describe.... why are they so rare? Very simple,they present engineering challenges which are extremely difficult to deal with. They rarely outperform conventional arms proven by the fact they are so rare. 

Just figure out what you want to listen to and dump most of the money into one of the two or achieve lesser performance and have both. If you have unlimited funds, build two state of the art front ends.

very astute observation.

regarding turntables, you have rim drive, belt drive, and direct drive. They all have their strong points and inherent problems, but unless you are into megabuck tables that have overcome or mitigated the problems inherent to each, by far the best choice is rim drive of the Garrard 301 variety. There are others but that is the one you hear about most often. Not sure what information the previous poster thinks they are masking or how they are fatiguing. My experience is the polar opposite. They make music, it is marvelous.

The holy grail for many is a Commonwealth from Australia. Long discontinued but very desirable. I have one coming in the next few weeks to probably replace my 301. My 301 has been updated including a heavy stainless steel platter and platter bearing which I think is essential, The stock Garrard platter has issues, but it is as old as I am (1955) and sounds superb.

Regarding the UHQR KOB there are many sealed and NM copies available on Discogs.com. I don’t know how much shipping to Australia increases the price but many are below what Acoustic Sounds asks for a new copy.

https://www.discogs.com/release/18884065-Miles-Davis-Kind-Of-Blue

https://www.discogs.com/sell/release/24373778

I don’t want to turn this into a debate on how to set up your table, but get some decent set up tools, protractors, etc, and some way to set azimuth other than by ear, too deep a subject for here but google it. If you have the funds and the patience, I’ve found Analog Magik to be indispensable.

good luck on your journey