Analog and Vinyl: no longer the benchmark

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Al M. said:
But trying to keep it friendly goes only so far, at some point enough is enough.
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Of course I was being sarcastic.

But to be honest, I believe those audiophiles who say vinyl is better than digital on their system to their ears. Having heard countless of their system capabilities and experiencing first hand their hearing abilities, it doesn't surprise at all that vastly superior noise, distortion, dynamic range etc. is lost with those system and ears. Funny stuff.
Just have them put on the 1812 overture recording with real, not digital cannons and play it on their million dollar vinyl system so we can all have a great laugh together.:)
 
AJ Soundfield said:
Of course I was being sarcastic.
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Oh no, I am in fact agreeing with you about the 'ol d1ck measuring contest. My post was not addressed against yours at all, but in a reaction to what you said, just expanding on what had happened in the discussion before.

But to be honest, I believe those audiophiles who say vinyl is better than digital on their system to their ears. Having heard countless of their system capabilities and experiencing first hand their hearing abilities, it doesn't surprise at all that vastly superior noise, distortion, dynamic range etc. is lost with those system and ears. Funny stuff.
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I wouldn't go that far. At its best, vinyl can sound excellent. And until recently, top vinyl was actually the benchmark for me against which to judge digital. Arguably, it may still have a few advantages here and there, but at this point I am not even sure about that anymore. Note that I said, "at its best": unequal pressing quality is a problem, among others.

And i can certainly see why somebody's tastes may lead them to prefer analog.
 
AJ Soundfield said:
Absolute. With chinless audiophile music and rock etc. Agree, have vinyl just because of that.
Put on some good classical on any system extant and its a laugher.
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I have to disagree here. I have heard great orchestral reproduction on several top vinyl systems. In particular, I have heard an absolutely stunning, dynamically truly explosive rendition of the Reference Recordings Berlioz Fantastique. But that is a 45 rpm, on 33 rpm you probably won't get that level of reproduction (which is why it's a 45 rpm pressing).
 
Well, for my standards for fidelity and hearing to perceptually recreating this
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19th century stereophonic technology sound is a joke compared to digital. Obviously YMMV
 

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AJ Soundfield said:
Well, for my standards for fidelity and hearing to perceptually recreating this


19th century stereophonic technology sound is a joke compared to digital. Obviously YMMV
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Perhaps, but I am not talking about non-stereophonic reproduction.

In any case, funny that it is analog that now seems to need some -- well-deserved, I might add -- defense. Just a few years ago most audiophiles would have railed against digital, and a thread like this would have taken a completely different tone.
 
a.wayne said:
AJ,

Digital with Class-D or class-A amplification ...... :)
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No, class AB. Absolute heresy. My own amp is such a heretic and sticks out its tongue against dogmatic purists.

(Not that there's anything wrong with class A.)
 
Al M. said:
Perhaps, but I am not talking about non-stereophonic reproduction.
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Well, I am talking about absolute music fidelity to original soundfields (pardon the pun). Those are my and many others like me standards. There is a lot of research going in those areas, but that falls outside the scope of many luddites.
If there is going to be a "analog" vs "digital" debate, lets bring it all to the table, not cherry pick.

Al M. said:
In any case, funny that it is analog that now seems to need some -- well-deserved, I might add -- defense. Just a few years ago most audiophiles would have railed against digital, and a thread like this would have taken a completely different tone.
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The 21st century can have that effect.:P
 
Al M. said:
No, class AB. Absolute heresy. My own amp is such a heretic and sticks out its tongue against dogmatic purists.

(Not that there's anything wrong with class A.)
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Class-D aside , Technically speaking most amps are AB with but a few exceptions into 8 ohms .... :)
 
I do prefer my 1812 digital copy to my analog LP and prefer my analog LP copy of the Digital recording of Carmina Burana by Telarc , the LP has much better dynamics, so no way to give one up when i need both. Aside, in every comparison i have been apart of, the Digital only crowd usually pick analog as having the better sound when listening , Analog is just a PITA and needs constant attn .



Regards
 
Mike Lavigne said:
I've invested my time and resources in optimizing all formats, digital, vinyl and tape, to the highest points.

while I agree that my digital is now pretty awesome, and that I listen to it 70% of the time, analog....vinyl and tape.....still set the standard for music reproduction to my ears in my system. this is listening 35 hours a week to my system, 52 weeks a year.

the MSB Select II and the other optimizations of my digital performance do break thru prior performance ceilings quite dramatically, and it does go places no previous digital has gone. and, I suppose, depending on one's sonic priorities, if someone valued 'clean' over content, then I can see where they might move digital equal or ahead of analog. but connection to the musical event is what analog does best.

just my 2 cents, YMMV.

I am 100% pro digital, as my over-the-top commitment to it clearly demonstrates. so I'm not in a defensive posture on any of this. it's just my viewpoint.
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I have to agree. The MSB Select II threw all previous notions of what was possible out the window. Frankly, having the Select II at home for three weeks was a real eye opener for me. It’s truly amazing. If I had to pick only one source, considering all factors, the Select II would be it.


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I would have to buy a turntable and some albums... oh, and a phono stage and probably a cleaner..........

Might need to figure in the cost of therapy with the PITA tweaking and care said TT/Records require after how easy even the most complex digital has been since jumping back into this crazy hobby :).
 
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