How Much To Rival Good Digital Playback

I will agree with you on one thing, Pbb. If you do not currently have LP's, or only a few, it will cost you quite a bit to build a record collection. If one already has a ton-o-CD's this is another concern. OTOH, the cost of MOST vinyl will run you less per recording than CD.

Properly implemented, I cannot agree with your 5-1 theory with respect to cost (if one can even equate quality to cost in the first place). If you assemble a set of equipment that does not mesh well together (Analog or digital) the outcome will be crap no matter how much you spend.

Back to the 5-1 theory. I did this awhile back. I had a preamp that contained an MC phono stage. I bought a demo Nottingham Spacedeck with Spacearm and then added a Shelter 501MkII cartridge. Cost? About $2700 all told, shipping included (about $3,600 retail). I also formerly owned a Sony SCD-1 deck. Cost? $2700 used all told (about $5K retail). In my experience, the vinyl front end bested the digital front, and not by a small margin. More dynamic, more involving, much more enjoyable. I compared recordings of the same material and not one person felt the digital sounded better.

Granted, this is but one example and there may be others out there with dissimilar experiences one way or the other. I am only saying that, having spent the exact same amount of money, the analog front end sounded wholly superior. As such, my experience would summarily dismiss the 5-1 cost notion.

I have gone on to establish a much stronger analog front end recently and would gladly compare it to any digital system of equal or reasonably greater value.

What is good digital playback and how much does it cost? TWL gave about as good a response as possible (as usual). Digital and analog sound different to me reguardless of price range so I guess it is a matter of taste (what sounds better to you) and how far you are willing to take either one. One thing I believe they do have in common is the importance of source material. A really good pressing will sound better on a $1k system than a crappy one on a $5k system. While I reccommend vinyl be warned that quailty software is probably going to cost more than digital. If you don't live in large metropolitan area good used vinyl is not that easy to find.

Bld63, I guess from living in the Bay Area, Ca (used vinyl mecca) and from being able to find what I can't find in my usual local haunts from about 50 on-line providers, I've become spoiled. I've seldom had trouble finding the vinyl I've sought at a relatively reasonable price, usually cheaper, and often much cheaper, than on CD (50's jazz and imports excepted!).

Not very much. $400-$500 if you know how to select a decent used and/or vintage deck/arm combo and you learn how to set it up yourself.

Without this effort (developing these skills) then figure 2X-4X the above.

Never experienced much of a surface noise problem, but I use a different cleaning method than most that involves thoroughly irrigating the grooves prior to a brush/pad ever touching the LP. Currently use a Water-Pik, but used a simple faucet with the addition of a pressure nozzle before (both work fine).

Additional:

-decent cartridge
-decent phono preamp that it synergistic to the cartridge
-decent shelf/rack on which to place the TT
-cleaning system

A good sound reason to get into vinyl is to listen to the music that never made it to CD. We have approx. 1500 CD's and 2000 LP's (not many duplicates between the two formats).

I have listened to but one CD player that reminded me of decent vinyl playback (an Oracle player a few years ago).
In the same audition we listened to BAT and AR players (both were nice, but neither reminded me of vinyl).

In a way the original Bel Canto DAC 1.0, other than lacking detail, sounded a bit like vinyl. This quality was lost with the 1.1 version which nonetheless sounded better overall.

Just to say that the two formats need not sound alike to be good. I grew up with vinyl/tape and this is the type of sound I am used to.

My personal experience is in-line with what 4yanx has written.
I used to own a Music Hall MMF-5. I had the orig. tonearm wires cut off & female RCA jacks installed so that I could use my own cables. Other than this the TT was stock. Incl. tax & this mod. it cost me $480. My trusty-rusty H/K HD7625 CDP was bought for $400 (retail $560 but I got a good deal). I can confidently inform you that the MMF-5 bested the CDP by a long shot. The vinyl was simply more emotionally involving. I ran the MMF-5 into my CAT phono stage, which is dead quiet. So, other than the expected groove noise, the system was just as quiet as the CDP when the music played. Of course, the better I scrubbed my LPs, the lower the this noise got (upto a certain pt).
The performance of the MMF-5 could be improved & I checked the AudioAsylum for MMF-5 tweaks. I found a # of them such as employing blu-tak on the motor, using the Ringmat instead of the felt mat, using a silk string or audio cassette tape instead of the rubber belt, upgrading to the G1042 MM cart. Most of these tweaks cost very little. Also, when I was shopping for the MMF-5 I found that HCM Audio offered the MMF-5 with G1042 MM for $75 more than the stock. So, it was possible to get higher grade perf. at a marginal extra cost right from the get-go.
In conclusion: I'm saying here is that it cost marginally more than my CDP to get far better sound.
AFAIK, the present owner of this TT is still enjoying it!

I started with a piddly little collection of less than 20 LPs! However, I knew that vinyl was the way *I* wanted to go. So, like other members who have posted this:
* Make sure that you want to go the vinyl route. I.E. ensure that you can endure some "pain" as vinyl play-back is seldom plug-and-play.
* Make sure that you enjoy seeking LPs at Salvation Army, Goodwill or your local store.
* Make sure that you can clean these LPs so that you can maintain a high quality sound.
* Make sure that you will be able to endure the pops & clicks on many used LPs as their prev. owners probably took minimal care of the vinyl. If you like music (rather than being analytical of the sound each & every time you sit to listen) then you might be able to endure the pops & clicks. I know a bunch of friends who just cannot stand the thought of vinyl!
* Make sure that you can endure this high maintenance hobby 'cuz (make NO mistake) it IS one!
* Most of all, make sure that you have the vinyl mind-set. How many CD-ONLY guys will walk up to the rack & flip the side of the LP??

It's a lot of fun to spin vinyl both from the music & memories pt. of view BUT the opinion is HIGHLY personal.