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Vinyl VS Digital

After 20+ years I broke out my turn table from the 70's again.  I have been mostly listening to CD and streaming music for the last 15 years on higher end gear in a dedicated and treated home theater room.  I also have a dedicated two channel system in the same room.  

All the hype surrounding analog has prompted to me to purchase a dedicated preamp so that I could once again hook up my TT.  I also purchased an Aurlic Aries to compare.  I'm ready to upgrade my old Technics SL 1600 MK2 running a Grace Cartridge.  But I have concerns.  

I could care less about the additional hiss, crackle and Pop thats not in digital.  I think its cool to put on an album and just listen to my 30 year old small collection from when I was a teenager.    

I started doing A/B comparisons by switching between the TT and the Aries (FLAC).  I even bought new vinyl to do so.  The thing keeping me from going "All In" is the imaging.  No matter what I do with (aligning the cartridge), I cannot get the imaging to match that of digital.  Specifically, voice and instrument that stems from center stage with digital cannot be reproduced with the TT as source.  One might say the stage is wider but its too wide to point where definition is lost.  Don't get me wrong it still sounds good but is it right?  Is it my TT or is it in the recording.  Or is this the difference I am suppose to be hearing?


  
ap_wannabe

Showing 2 responses by uberwaltz

uberwaltz's avatar
uberwaltz
13,381 posts
 
I would agree that early CD copies played back on my $25 1986 Pioneer cdp sound much better, less forced and compressed than newer copies played back through say the OPPO 95 in the ht rig.

As I said I appreciate the strengths of each media.
I also do spend a lot of time searching new to me music on Tidal/Deezer and the sq is nearly always excellent.

But the other side of me just returned from a trip to our LRS with a bag full of new to me vinyl which is spinning right now and sounding very nice indeed.

Imho you cannot and really should not even compare the two.
uberwaltz's avatar
uberwaltz
13,381 posts
 
Totally agree with last two posts.

My sources comprise of;
Vinyl, cassette, cd and Tidal/Deezer streaming.
So two analog, two digital.

I found by far the easiest way is just to live with the differences period.
I do not care if analog sounds like a digital version and vice versa and have no intention of ever trying to even make them sound the same.
I have a modest amount invested in each source and I am more than happy with my sq.
Are there better playback options for each of the sources I have than I am using right now?
Absolutely and as finances and availability allow I do upgrade where possible and practical.
Of course somebody whose whole rig revolves around say Vinyl only SHOULD have better sq than my TT setup will produce but that is not a point I am remotely worried about.
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