Does vinyl have a sound?

Nil, In connection with the recent passing of Dave Brubeck, I took out some of my old Columbia LP recordings of the DBQ. Gone With the Wind is a 6-eye that I have owned since new (i.e., >40 years), played it on any and every rig I have ever owned, good and bad. The LP is full of ticks and pops, but the dynamics and sense of depth are completely intact, still thrilling in fact, if you can listen past the surface noise. Paul Desmond's solos are still to die for. So, this one example would lead me to say that the sense of depth and 3D-ness that are so characteristic of the best in vinyl are not an inverse function of surface noise at all. On the other side of the same coin, some of the recent re-issues of classic LPs are disappointing in these same areas compared to the originals, yet they are dead quiet.

Lewm, I don't doubt your claim at all, I was merely pointing out to OPs experience that sometime he hears plastic sound on percussion - is due to poorer set ups and vinyl up keeps, not Vinyl medium as a whole. On optimum or best set ups and equipment this should not exist is what I was trying to say. (Map said it better). This from my own experiences and climbing my learning curve.

Saying vinyl has a plastic sound really has no meaning at all. When mastering we would compare the metal stamper with an acetate with the vinyl pressing. If we did a good job they would all sound the same. The metal stamper did not sound mettalic. This is like say silver wire is brighter than copper because it looks brighter. Simply not true
Alan

Sometimes I hear a diamond sound from my stylus, an aluminum sound from my tonearm, a wood sound from my shelf, and a plastic sound from my cartridge body.

OK, I'm not serious. The point I'm trying to make is that if you only think you hear it sometimes, it's probably just the recording. It may or may not be able to be minimized with different components. If vinyl had a plastic sound, every record would have that characteristic.