http://www.harbeth.co.uk/usergroup/showthread.php?2046-An-honest-appraisal-of-vinyl-v-digital-romance-v-reality/page9
scroll down to post 179 there is that video
scroll down to post 179 there is that video
BigH said:More expensive turntables sound closer to digital.
plastic penguin said:Given that vinyl is a contact and CD is non-contact, does it make any difference when played in ordinary or real time?
This is the main problem I have with these scientific studies.
BigH said:plastic penguin said:Given that vinyl is a contact and CD is non-contact, does it make any difference when played in ordinary or real time?
This is the main problem I have with these scientific studies.
The problem I have with this is I don't understand what you mean.
plastic penguin said:BigH said:plastic penguin said:Given that vinyl is a contact and CD is non-contact, does it make any difference when played in ordinary or real time?
This is the main problem I have with these scientific studies.
The problem I have with this is I don't understand what you mean.
All these clever graphs makes no audible difference in a normal house with children running around. Does it really matter if the vinyl graph is wobbly while the cd is still?
chebby said:Vinyl vs CD is such a 1980s debate. We all know why we use either (or both, or neither) and we have had up to 30 years to decide.
I started buying CDs around 1996 and didn't let go of vinyl completely until a few years ago. I always bought new LPs (or s/h in excellent condition). I always had them cleaned on my record dealer's Keith Monks machine before 1st use and always looked after them. (Anti-stat inner sleeves too.)
Stylii were regularly brushed and replaced long before necessity forced the issue. Records were regularly gone over with a carbon fibre brush before play. They were stored correctly and I never experienced the clicks / pops / scratches etc. that plagued many users. A warped record would never have been purchased (or returned for exchange / refund as soon as discovered). TT drive belts were replaced long before they needed new ones.
My cartridges were always carefully aligned and set for recommended tracking force and were always pretty decent examples of their kind. (Like the Goldring 1042 that I used - with two stylus replacements - for 11 years.)
I made pristine recordings of many albums (and made many and varied compilations) onto brand-new TDK tapes on decent cassette players like the Yamaha KX580 SE or the old Sony Walkman 'Pro'. Partly for convenience and partly to keep albums in good nick.
This carried on until about 2007 when I finally decided enough-was-enough and sold the TT then gave away the cassette player (and tapes) to my older brother.
I had used a CD player (on and off) since 1996 and had a reasonable collection of classical and jazz CDs and a big collection of BBC CDs (drama, comedies, history etc.) and other stuff that simply could not be obtained on LPs.
Despite all the above vinylations, BBC FM radio had always been my 'primary' source since my teens and a decent FM tuner + roof aerial was always at least as important as any turntable. My migration away from LPs didn't start with CDs but with a combination of changing taste and the emergence of DACs. I used my first DAC - a Firestone Audio USB one - with an Arcam Solo-Mini and there was no looking back. I was hooked on iPlayer Radio and ripping my CDs.
I had a slight 'stutter' with an impulse purchase Rega P2 a few years ago, but soon realised my error and sold it - virtually unused - to a fellow local forum member here.
The final remaining (and best) of my old vinyl was sold a few months ago to remove any lingering temptation.
So oscilloscopes, lab tests, stupid CD vs vinyl debates etc. had no bearing at all on my move from vinyl. It was the sheer relief of shedding the 'faffage' expended on vinyl care / vinyl use and my discovery of the DAC (and the world it opened up) and a change in my tastes (and lack of choice on LP) that drove it.
I still love a good turntable as a 'thing'. But - like the steam locomotive - they are a labour of love that I am happy to leave to the enthusiasts (along with debates about which is better).
andyjm said:There is nothing new in Alan's video, vinyl LPs have worse performance than CDs in every measure (except maximum frequency, which is irrelevant to anyone old enough to post on this forum).
However, while not as faithful to the original recording as a CD, some listeners do prefer the 'vinyl sound'. Funny things humans, but there you go - ultimately it is the listener's preference that matters.
Even when the evidence is there, Audiophiles will still find a way to dismiss it.. Like you said funny humams..andyjm said:There is nothing new in Alan's video, vinyl LPs have worse performance than CDs in every measure (except maximum frequency, which is irrelevant to anyone old enough to post on this forum).
However, while not as faithful to the original recording as a CD, some listeners do prefer the 'vinyl sound'. Funny things humans, but there you go - ultimately it is the listener's preference that matters.
BigH said:Well not everyone lives in a normal house, who wants kids running round when you are playing the hifi? In that case you may as well get a Sony mini system for £60.
MajorFubar said:BigH said:Well not everyone lives in a normal house, who wants kids running round when you are playing the hifi? In that case you may as well get a Sony mini system for £60.
Amazingly, many of us into HiFi have also exercised our right to multiply.
You see what I mean?:rofl:Jim-W said:NB:This is a collector's perspective and will be of limited interest to hifi enthusiasts.
I couldn't care less if scientific tests prove that the signal from a CD is more faithful to the sound of musical instruments. I couldn't care less about pristine quality records;I often buy VG copies and I actually enjoy trying to restore them to some sort of listenable quality:it's hit and miss of course. Trying to find mint copies of rare 40/50 year old records is virtually impossible and I'll happily settle for VG examples.
What am I trying to say? It's not about sound quality or faithful reproduction for me, although it may well be for others. Well, fair play to you. It's more to do with the appropriate cultural context of the recorded music, the album art, the beautiful labels, lyric sheets and inners that I can actually read without a magnifying glass, the tactile experience of removing the record and placing it on the turntable and even, funnily enough, watching it spin.
Damn it, it's having an original copy of a record because I like the music and because a tiny silver disc that disappears into a tray, which may well sound better, doesn't excitte me like searching through endless crates of crap only to discover a battered mono copy of The Pretty Things 'SF Sorrow' or Archie Shepp's 'Four For Trane.' So there's a bit of crackle and a few clicks? The fact that it's an original copy far outweighs any flaws inherent in a medium that is heir to degradation though climate, warping, scuffs, scratches etc. This was how the music was released/presented at the time and this is how I chose to listen to it; I know the digitally remastered, remixed, lossless, flac ( I'm out of my depth here) version will sound cleaner, brighter and crisper and will be a damn sight cheaper than the knackered original that I lust after.
I guess this chop logic defies understanding unless you are similarly smitten. Collectors eh? Blimey.
David@FrankHarvey said:Adding some simulated scratches to a CD signal doesn't really make a digital format sound like vinyl - maybe only to those who despise vinyl, in which case, they wouldn't be using a program like that anyway.