SACD versus Vinyl LPs

There is another aspect of vinyl that is seldom mentioned in threads like these, although all the digital formats are more care free, portable, can be played while in the car/jogging/etc........vinyl is just plain more fun. The size is more fun to hold, the album covers are more fun, the linear notes are more likely to be read, and even cleaning them becomes fun.

Well, I was recently one of the folks to hear DSOTM on SACD vs. 30th anniv. virgin 180g LP at Nrchy's place. That LP is one of my favorites and gets spun regularly in my own system at at pretty much any analog audition I attend. I know Side 1 like the back of my hand.

My feelings were right on par with what Nrchy reported. I thought the SACD was a definite improvement over Redbook but didn't touch the latest LP pressing. I have also heard someone else's SACD rig using one of the Sony players, a Krell preamp, my own Conrad power amp, Soliloquy 6.3s and Purist Audio cable all around. My feelings were once again that SACD is a promising digital format but what I've heard so far, simply is not at the level of what good software on a halfway decent vinyl rig can do.

In terms of availability...yes it's hard to find a really good, non-warped new vinyl but it's much harder to find alot of the music I like on SACD (remember, I'm a young fellow and a bunch of remastered oldies and dry adult standard singers just aren't going to do it for me) whereas I can find a pretty healthy amount of my favorites, new or old, on vinyl. Also I am concerned with the reliablity of SACD players. It's a very new technology and I have heard some complaints in that arena.

SACD is too new, too questionable, too lacking in availability, and not sonically thrilling enough for me to want to sink serious cash into at this time.

My disclaimer: I have not heard the ultra-megabuck SACD players, and I have not heard SACD in my own system in my own room...so, as always, take this FWIW!

DSOTM (or “ The White Album~ light”) is a dynamite SACD, even through 2-ch. Although the new 180gm LP reissue is a hair better as far as the realism of the instruments, the SACD is not that far behind. On some tracks, I preferred the SACD’s ambiance, where I could have sworn I was listening in surround even though there are only two speakers in my room (no, the Supreme Court need not get involved here...unless Prozac gets outlawed).

I own a modded Philips 963SA, very, very cheap in comparison with my TNT 5 / JMW 12.5 / ZYX Airy 1000. This SACD surprised me, I must admit. The classical music SACDs I had purchased up till now (about 10) had left me unconvinced about the new format.

Well, I’ll hang around a bit longer, I guess.

I have a question and would appreciate some direction. If I only bought LPs, recorded them onto excellent quality CD-Rs, would they sound as good, better or worse than a Redbook CD? What is the typical sampling rate of a computer sound card and writer? Could it exceed the 44.1 of Redbook? On a recent 6 Moons article they glowed about the EAC software and it really is great from CD to CD, but what about recording direct from LP pre-amp to computer to disc. Anybody had any luck? Thanks!

Tgrisham, I've "backed up" a few vinyls onto HHB 74min CDRs using a tube phono stage into Kurzweil converters and AudioQuest or Mogami cabling, either from the converters to an HHB CD830+ CDR/W transport or into LogicPro6 via optical in on my Mac G5 and burned in iTunes.

Either way, it sounds like a record on a CDR. That is, all the pops and clicks of the old vinyls I was playing, and all the limitations of a CDR :(