The character of analog and digital

Another aspect I find interesting is the desire for and expectation of sameness / similarity.

Roughly one-third (to half) of the front end of each system type is radically different. For illustration, I get a significant difference in sound based on a single power cable swap. I’ve had cable adapters influence the sound of the system.

I expect that an analog system or a digital system will sound different...because they are actually and materially different.

@tomic601  +1

Mastering while important is not the whole process….

Is that the sound of a dropped stylus on a platter or the sound a piano makes genuflecting in the forest?  : )

Yes, a very welcome back to you. I’m honored to be the venue for one of your initial posts.

There's a robust audio club here in the greater New Orleans area. Great group of guys. Fully analog; with some dipping their toes into digital. 

I've heard, maybe three dozen, vinyl systems. Two stand out and I'd love to transport those into one of my rooms. One is in Houston and the other just outside of New Orleans. If I had to choose, I'd take the Houston system over the local one but I'd be blessed to have either.

As someone who is one hundred percent streaming digital there is one commonality that stands out to me about the thinking and approach towards digital from those I know who are fundamentally analog audiophiles: 

That digital should be easy and deliver without much effort. 

I find this especially surprising given the effort and years it has taken them to get to where they are in terms of sound quality and performance from their analog systems.

The second standout point, in my experience, is spending pennies on the dollar for digital when their budgets for the analog side of their systems are up there, way up there.

Digital takes effort and expense and experience. When executed correctly the results are stellar.