When and how did you, if at all, realize vinyl is better?

@jsm71 you describe my own thoughts on this well! I’m sure that at the top end of the spectrum there’s a rough parity between vinyl and digital at this point. But there are a number of reasons why I don’t get the "bug" to go after that high end sound in digital format. For one thing, I spend so much time on a computer during the day that messing around with the file structure on my Baetis server when I’d rather be listening to music is really a buzzkill. And as you say, my LPs never stop working because of format changes or digital rights management. The best sounding digital files are at this point gigantic things that cost a lot of money. But a $4 dollar LP can sound just as good. or better. The other thing - and I can’t explain it either - is that LPs hold my attention as if I’m hearing the actual performance, whereas even the best digital reproduction (that I can muster - Hi Res, good DAC, etc) sounds like a very nice image, but just an image. I’m sure there’s a technical way to explain what I’m hearing, but I don’t know what it is…

There is something therapeutic about analog sound that relaxes me that digital simply lacks. I can't explain it.

Dr. Herbert Melcher has shown that the brain has tipping points. Normally music is processed by the limbic centers; this is where toe tapping and other emotional reactions come from. When things go awry with the sound, the brain seamlessly transfers processing to the cerebral cortex- the seat of the conscious portion of the brain. When this happens, the emotion content of the music is diminished or lost.

The problem for digital is that it contains harmonics unrelated to the fundamental tones (instead are intermodulations related to the scan frequency). The ear is used to hearing harmonics that relate to the fundamental tones in some way. Now this inharmonic distortion (aliasing) is not a great amount, but the ear is very sensitive to any harmonic content that is higher ordered (uses it to measure sound pressure so it has to be sensitive) and is also tuned to birdsong frequencies (where many of the aliasing artifacts occur).

In this regard the ear is usually more sensitive than test equipment.

In top of that, the aliasing does not come off as separate tones unless you use special techniques to detect it (an analog sweep tone works rather well though). So the ear converts the result as a tonality of some sort. This is why digital frequently has a crisp sound while analog some how sounds more 'round'. Its a coloration, and unlike analog one that cannot be separated from the music being reproduced.

The result: less emotionally involving/more boring.

@atmasphere  - wow that's really interesting and helpful, thanks. 

I was never completely convinced that vinyl sounded better than digital.  Back in the 80s I was quick to embrace the CD.  The absence of pops and clicks was enough for me abandon records.  Do to my modest analog setup I had never heard the true potential of vinyl.  CDs were a no brainer and seemed to sound better.  I played CDs exclusively for over a decade.  Sold my turntable but fortunately kept my records in storage.  Over time, as I acquired better speakers, amps/preamps etc. and as I started paying more attention to the criticisms of digital vs vinyl, my curiosity got the best of me and I purchased a basic VPI turntable.  Also at the same time I bought a VPI record cleaner.  Owning the highest quality turntable/tonearm/cartridge I had ever had in my life AND having the ability to properly clean my records were revelatory.  Clearly, my records had never sounded better and I spent countless hours revisiting my old record collection.  I ended up upgrading my analog system to a VPI Aries table with improved tonearm a cartridge.  The records just sounded better and better.  Still, I was not convinced that analog was better than digital; just that it was a lot better than I had ever experienced.  It wasn't really until about of month ago when I got my new Vandersteen Quatro CT speakers and listened to my first record that I finally "got it".  Now I finally understand what all the fuss was about.  My system had finally improved to the level where the sonic benefits of vinyl made itself obvious.  The more revealing my system has become, the more sonic characteristics made themselves known.  The speakers were the final and biggest step that convinced me.  Of course now that I have such revealing speakers I am also curious to try new digital sources as well.  So it goes....