Vinyl vs. top-notch digital

Interesting questions. I have found that there is a $5000 factor. In my quest for what I seek I have found you need a table that sells for around $5K, An arm a cartridge and a phono pre in that price range each to get near SOTA play back. And LP's do vary widely in quality. All that being said I have never heard any CD based system that evokes the qualities that a well tuned LP play back system can even with a poorly pressed LP.

Here is my perspective based on experience. You pretty much will have to go for top- notch Vinyl also. Not necessarily top-notch price bracket, although you may end up at similar or higher prize bracket than you digital. Top notch Vinyl definitely sounds better than the top-notch digital. No question. More organic and complete natural sound. Fortunately my digital comes very close to my Vinyl, sometimes eerily close to the uninitiated. So much that at time convenience of digital playback takes a precedence. But the minute on a whim a same music Vinyl is played back, digital stops. Almost always.
I would listen with my ears first before jumping in to serious investment. I started at entry level Vinyl and graduated to 'top-notch' vinyl rather quickly. No regrets though.

I have thought for a long time about this difference between vinyl and CD sound. They are in reality two entirely different perspectives on the sound of music. Since Stringreen and I are both violinists and have played for some 30-40 years in symphony orchestras, I think that we may come from the same or similar perspective on this subject. When one is playing say the Mahler 5th symphony , the sound on stage can reach 105-110 db and you can literally feel blown away by the impact of the brass, percussion, etc. A digital recording can capture the tremendous dynamics,bass, and scope of the orchestra spread out around you that one gets when on stage.
A friend of mine and I have measured the SPL with an Ivie SPL meter of the Los Angeles Phil. in the 15th to 20th rows in the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in LA during concerts and they run usually 80-88db with ocasionally peaks of 92-94db. This gives an entirely different perspective and is much more pleasurable to listen to.
In MHO, CD gives the on-stage performer perspective and Vinyl the listener in the audience perspective. Which is best? I don't pretend to know.It is different for each listener and only he or she can make the decision as to whether they want to listen with a close up,dynamic,and super detailed sound(CD), or do they prefer the more distant auditorium sound(Vinyl). I only know that I cannot listen to CDs for any length of time without feeling that I am on stage getting blown away,and listening fatigue takes over. Whereas , I can listen to Vinyl, good vinyl, all day without fatigue and feel relaxed.
I do not know if this helps or answers anyone's questions, but this is my MHO.

Jeff,

Everyone has given you good advice. The Rocky Mountain Show is not far off. If it is convenient for you to attend, I urge you to do so. You will be treated to many analog sources in a couple of days. Finding another A-Goner with a very good analog source willing to share time, music, and knowledge is the next best idea. You might take your Meridian with you and A/B the analog to the digital if you have the same recordings in both formats. Some members have mentioned hi/rez downloading. I am not so confident that this will be better than comparable existing software digital formats. In short, the analog and digital formats are recreations of the original live performance. Go to a concert and assess which format most closely creates the illusion of the real thing and go from there.

Jeff - Glad you started this thread...very thoughtful responses. In a sense, I'm mainly saying "me too." I worked hard for several years to get the best out of CD's, including picking up a demo Linn CD12 and having Great Northern Sound modify my Wadia 860, and I've had some extended experience with an EMM CDSA. All three are among the best you can do in digital, as far as I can tell. But something was lacking. I had an Linn LP12 that I hadn't used for 15+ years. I had it refurbished last fall, and put a new Koetsu Black in it, and bought an EAR 834P phono stage. I was amazed. Good vinyl is just wonderful. Digital can be fatiguing. Vinyl rarely is (although, as with CD's, there are vinyl dogs out there). And, yes, you end up in searches for 2nd hand vinyl, then you find yourself buying a record cleaning machine, etc.

But I'm fascinated by Violin's comments, and think he's onto something, also. I find that I like classical music more on vinyl...and my "reference" is my typical listening post, mid-hall in a good concert hall. Yet, I tend to prefer pop music on CD, perhaps because, like Violin, I spent a lot of time on the bandstand over the years, playing rock, later fusion, and country. Jazz (except fusion), works pretty well (for me) either on vinyl or CD, although I think vinyl tends to catch the sonic nuances better than CD.

You ought to be able to get a fine rig for around $5-6K. If you go this route, and want some thoughts on places to find good 2nd hand classical vinyl, send me an email.