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CDs Vs LPs

Just wondering how many prefer CDs over LPs  or LPs over CDs for the best sound quality. Assuming that both turntable and CDP are same high end quality. 
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wspohn's avatar
wspohn
609 posts
 
Meaningless question - you can’t generalize.

On some albums vinyl sounds better on some digital, and there can be a half dozen or more remasterings in either, any of which can sound great or crappy, depending on what they started with and what they did with it.

Digital wins on convenience, but if you care about the sound and love the particular material it is tempting to own both formats and see for yourself which is better in a given instance.

I swing both ways - around 0.8 terabyte of digital vs. ~ 4k LPs.

PS - if you complain about pops and tics you are either buying bad used vinyl or lack a proper record cleaning machine.  The fact that you are too lazy doesn't invalidate the format.
notesaddict's avatar
notesaddict
63 posts
 
I recently purchased Leonard Cohen's excellent "Old Ideas". The vinyl album included the CD, so comparing the two mediums was accurate. No question, the vinyl is superior.
tomcy6's avatar
tomcy6
2,598 posts
 
It’s nice to see this topic being discussed without devolving into a shouting match. I’m a digital guy myself. I have a turntable and three or four hundred Lps as well as a couple hundred cassettes but don’t listen to them much. I have a large collection of cds and I also enjoy the wide variety of music available on streaming services. It’s nice to be able to try before you buy and listen to stuff you won’t buy but would like to hear once or twice.

Nobody is wrong in their choice of format. It’s a matter of hearing, system and taste. All of which are different for each one of us. Some people love vinyl and digital hurts their ears. That’s just the way they are and there’s nothing wrong with that. Other people prefer the sound of digital. There’s no right or wrong in general, it’s a matter of preference.
jdave's avatar
jdave
26 posts
 
As amazed as I am at how good CDs can sound, I think that vinyl sounds better the majority of the time with a good cart and a good phono stage.
Regarding the pops and clicks; with my collection, which has always been well cared for and played on good equipment, it's not that they're there all the time. But when I'm playing something loud, there are some uncleanable pops in quiet places that almost hurt your ears. Those are really the only annoying ones.
 
aalenik
67 posts
 

To my delight, this has not become another 'war'.

My call is that it depends on the individual LP or CD, as well as the gear it's being played on.  Some recordings are simply better than others; Some discs (LP or CD) are produced better than others.

One common fallacy I've seen is the 'vinyl junkie' who's spent tens of thousands on his analog rig and is comparing it to his $900 CDP.  There's some self-fulfilling prophecy for you.

For whoever asked, TTs, tone-arms, carts and the media itself have all improved, so new LPs on a nice rig can be quieter.  That being said, digital media still DO have better dynamic range AND frequency range. (And if you're not listening to pop, you can mostly avoid the 'loudness war' compression.)

BTW, if you think you like 33-1/3 rpm LPs, try listening to a 45 rpm re-issue of some favorite recording.  After that, it's hard not to see 33-1/3 as anything but a huge sonic compromise.

I'm surprised that nobody has mentioned SACD (DSD), or maybe I missed it.  In my experience, DSD is the best of both worlds.  IMHO, SACD is to CD what 45 rpm LP is to 33-1/3.

But once again, it is the individual recording & production of the media that always makes the biggest difference, so there's lots of overlap.

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