This opinion comes from an audiophile with experience in low cost entry level higher end equiptment...I currently own Acurus pre and amp...a yamaha new cd player, an AR ES-1 table on a vincent phono preamp..thru excellent 80s refurbed Allison and AR speakers..At this level one can still get superior sound from both and i have but it all depends upon the recording engineer first...after that, the silence of a digital format is always more desirable over pops and clicks of vinyl during silent passages...In this day and age ,owning vinyl for me is more a vision thing...one of watching the beauty of a tone arm tracking a record and a reminder of your teenage years!,,Honestly,i also use an audioengine D/A converter to my laptop and get as good sound as i need in a 10x14 room...The same held true when i owned and used maggies in the same system....I found your more apt to marvel at the sound of a great analog recording on a quality table more than a CD player simply because there are more parts involved to pull this off....ie: tonearm,cartridge matching for perfect resonant frequency necessary for balanced sound,as well as a nice dampening suspension and isolation...because of these factors,when you get it right,the results ,all of these parameters considered can be incredible provided one uses a quality vinyl recording
Does Anyone Think CD is Better Than Vinyl/Analog?
I am curious to know if anyone thinks the CD format (and I suppose that could include digital altogether) sounds better than vinyl and other analog formats. Who here has gone really far down both paths and can make a valid comparison? So far, I have only gone very far down the CD path and I just keep getting blown away by what the medium is capable of! I haven’t hit a wall yet. It is extremely dependent on proper setup, synergy and source material. Once you start getting those things right, the equipment gets out of the way and it can sound more fantastic than you can imagine! It’s led me to start developing a philosophy that goes something like this: Digital IS “perfect sound forever”; it’s what we do to the signal between the surface of the CD and the speaker cone that compromises it.”
So I suppose what I’m asking for is stories from people who have explored both mediums in depth and came to the conclusion that CD has the most potential (or vice versa - that’s helpful too). And I don’t simply mean you’ve spent a lot of money on a CD player. I mean you’ve tinkered and tweaked and done actual “research in the lab,” and came back with a deep understanding of the medium and can share those experiences with others.
In my experience, the three most important things to get right are to find a good CD player (and good rarely means most expensive in my experience) and then give it clean power. In my case, I have modified my CD player to run off battery power with DC-DC regulators. The last thing that must be done right is the preamp. It’s the difference between “sounds pretty good” and “sounds dynamic and realistic.”
So I suppose what I’m asking for is stories from people who have explored both mediums in depth and came to the conclusion that CD has the most potential (or vice versa - that’s helpful too). And I don’t simply mean you’ve spent a lot of money on a CD player. I mean you’ve tinkered and tweaked and done actual “research in the lab,” and came back with a deep understanding of the medium and can share those experiences with others.
In my experience, the three most important things to get right are to find a good CD player (and good rarely means most expensive in my experience) and then give it clean power. In my case, I have modified my CD player to run off battery power with DC-DC regulators. The last thing that must be done right is the preamp. It’s the difference between “sounds pretty good” and “sounds dynamic and realistic.”
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- 203 posts total
- 203 posts total