Vinyl vs. top-notch digital


I have never had an analogy rig. My CD player is a Meridian 800, supposedly one of the very best digital players out there. From what I've read, it appears there is a consensus in our community that a high-quality analog rig playing a good pressing will beat a top notch digital system playing a well-recorded and mastered CD. So here are my questions:

1) How much would one have to invest in analog to easily top the sound quality of the Meridian 800 (or similar quality digital player)? (Include in this the cost of a phono-capable preamp; my "preamp" right now is a Meridian 861 digital surround processor.)

2) How variable is the quality of LPs? Are even "bad" LPs still better than CD counterparts?

Thank you for any comments and guidance you can provide.
jeff_arrington
Well, if we could always listen to master tape dubs we wouldn't listen to either vinyl or digital. Both are consumer grade not pro grade formats.
Digital cannot, at least at present, capture the emotional content of music. You have to 'imagine' it with digital, with analogue you don't have to. That said, compressed analogue recordings are no fun, but still better overall than digital. 
Sadly, I too listen to more digital on youtube through headphones than vinyl and Nak tape deck through speakers because there is so much new to me music over there.
Mint good pressing vinyl can be very quiet, no ticks and pops. Most of my favourite records do have some noise, though. Also depends on your table set-up and how well the records are cleaned.
Yes. 1/4” tape. I’ve never heard any debate from the vinyl crowd on which is more superior, many discussions though. All seem to agree that tape is the best. I don’t know if this is also the same consensus the digital crowd shares too.
Some of us record  music ( live stuff not a copy of ) using high speed tape and great A2D converters and are well aware of the manifest advantages and disadvantages of each format. Both can provide stunning realism and emotional connections....

and yes of course I have a decent TT :-)
Yes. 1/4” tape. I’ve never heard any debate from the vinyl crowd on which is more superior, many discussions though. All seem to agree that tape is the best. I don’t know if this is also the same consensus the digital crowd shares too.

The digital consensus is, "Its better." The analog consensus is, "Its not." 

The digital consensus, well I hate to get all technical and everything but its what we call, "Wrong."

Chinese Butterfly- Streaming it now in high rez from Qobuzz.... lovely 

have to be flatlined or willfully ignorant to not connect with the interplay with Gadd...

but like all things, YMMV