Comparing quality on vinyl with Digital

I cannot see vinyl as 'vinyl'. Some sound good, others don´t, there is a huge span in quality in vinyl playback IMO. Are we talking about the best there is, then maybe we also should come forth with what we think that is?

 

I'm always saying that my vinyl playback is colored -- it's one of the reasons why I like it!

EDIT: Scott beat me to it!

 

You've been keeping a running count of each? Now I am flattered

 

yeah but the point is...he has been told that. at least twice

 

Maybe my opinion doesn't matter, either. No worries -- never said I was an audiophile.

 

My replication of a recording is more accurate than your replication of a recording.

 

But is your file size bigger??

 

It varies. From 7 inches to 12 inches. But I average somewhere between and just refer to it as the big 1o inch.

 

What is the distinction being drawn here? Different CD players also sound different. I once tested six of the seven disk players in my home through the same amp, using analog outs (the only one I didn't test was a Hello Kitty boombox because it would have required me to purchase an interconnect I would never use again) - all the players had different sound qualities.

 

If you only go for digital then you miss some really wonderful analog LPs. If you only go for analog, then you miss some really wonderful digital masterings.

Maybe the best thing to do is be like Switzerland - format neutral all around.

If the best mastering is on vinyl, play that.
If the best mastering is on SACD, play that.
If the best mastering is on DVD-Audio, play that.
If the best mastering is on CD, play that.
If the best mastering is on computer file, play that.
If the best mastering is on tape, play that.

 

"I don't care what you think, my waffle hat is pretty."

 

But not nearly as different as an array of tables and carts.

 

No with only 5 TTs, 5 arms and 5 carts we have directly 125 combinations! Most of these combinations are likely to be distinguishable.

 

I'm coming to the conclusion that the reason I prefer digital recordings on vinyl is because the vinyl mastering process filters out all the nasty distortion I hear on digital playback formats

 

Ever listened to a vinyl pressing of Michael Franks ~ The Camera Never Lies? It would seem they managed to retain all the digital nasties on that one; harsh on me ears. Vinyl's ability to resolve inner detail means GIGO. Caveat, that was relatively early digital. I still prefer analog; but, thank goodness digital has gotten better over the years, much better.

 

I think that may be a factor in why, to some, digital has a bad reputation. My understanding is that in the early days of compact disc (CD) the Record Industry was still trying to get a handle on digital recording and its differences from analog recording (such as picking up sounds that analog would not). Due to this, the sound quality on some early CDs weren't very good (I've heard that some of the early Billy Joel CDs had him sound a bit like a chipmunk).

To me, I think that both analog and digital recordings can sound excellent, but there are many factors that affect the sound quality beyond analog/digital, both of which have the potential to sound excellent. Many people mention mastering and mixing as major factors in the final sound and I agree. Take an excellent analog or digital recording, give it a bad mastering and mixing and you end up with a bad-sounding final release whether the original recording was digital or analog and whether the final release is digital or analog.

To me, one factor that works against analog is that the medium itself colors the sound. Vinyl and tape (in their various forms) affect the sound of analog. As an example, on the LPs The Beatles released they would put their two best songs as the first songs on Side One and Side Two because that was the position on an LP that offered the best sound quality. Likewise, on the album So by Peter Gabriel he intended the song "In Your Eyes" to be the last track on Side Two of the LP but due to the limitations of vinyl it was made the first track on Side Two of the album.

In the above case, it also shows a difference between the two analog formats. While position is a factor with the LP, it isn't with tape formats. Beginning of the tape, middle of the tape, or near the end of the tape isn't a factor when it comes to sound quality. Again, this illustrates how the medium can color an analog recording.

With digital, the medium doesn't color the sound in the same way, although the various ways that digital audio information is stored can color the sound. While MP3, AAC, WMA, and FLAC are all ways to store digital audio, with the exception of FLAC (which, sound wise, should be identical to the digital original) each can color the final audio due to the different ways they lossily compress the audio.

Thanks for reading. The above is my own observations based on years of using audio equipment and playing music as an average listener. Please correct me if my perceptions are wrong.

 

For the love of god why?

 

This must be the digital bunny. We all know the analog bunny has a pancake on it's head not a waffle.

 

It's a mistake IMO to put equality sign between "analog" and "vinyl" (even if it's AAA vinyl record). In theory, professional analog tape could be capable to capture audio with greater resolution and more subtleties compared to hi rez digital, but in real life some of this resolution is lost and have to be sacrificed when mastered and pressed on vinyl. Vinyl record have it's own restrictions and requirements, and is not the best and ultimate analog audio medium.

 

Surely, notice the jagged edges & stepped construction of the waffle vs the pancake.

 

Best analogy ever, that pancake is just so smooth and fluffy. Just like my best records.

 

I wonder if the ears VTA needs to be adjusted between pancakes.

 

Here's my theory. Not a particularly original one, so someone may have already said as much: It's easier to make vinyl sound euphonic in cases where the acoustics of a room, the recording, speakers or other variables stand in the way of truly accurate and uncolored reproduction of an original sound event. With vinyl you can more easily reach a local optimum where everything sounds really nice indeed and nothing grates on you too much despite imperfect conditions.

With digital though, a global optimum can be reached. On the way there, flaws in your chain or listening environment will be more clearly revealed which might be disappointing. But the potential is there to make things sound nearly indistinguishable from the recorded event. Arguably, 44.1/16 is more than enough to beat vinyl in that regard.