Does Age Matter?

54 and just getting back into analog in the last couple of years. But, what MC said hits the nail on the head. Analog preferred (usually) for “listening”. Digital for discovery and hanging out around the house. I often download something that sounds intriguing before I buy the vinyl. I really don’t need a bunch of one-hit-wonder albums taking up space.

I'm 61. My CD player/transport/DAC cost 5X the price of my TT/cartridge. I still prefer the sound of analog over digital in my system. I do love streaming Spotify for music discovery. But I prefer vinyl over CDs/digital for sound quality. Yes, I know I could improve my streaming SQ by subscribing to a hi-res streaming service........

There are several reasons I dislike streaming. The only time I do it is in the office and I stream a radio station. As far as old music I know exactly what I like. With new music I use my kids as a barometer. They rarely lead me wrong. Who ever new I would like Gorillaz. Whether or not I buy the vinyl vs the Hi Res file depends more on what is available and what I have already. Generally if the file is available I'll buy it. Nothing like instant gratification. If the file is not available then I'll buy the vinyl and if that is not available I might buy the CD which will downloaded to the hard drive. Once I have 10 or more CDs I'll trade them in at Bullmoose Records for store credit and spend the money on vinyl the old fashioned way (which I love) by thumbing through stacks of records. Digital and vinyl both sound great with little pluses and minuses. What I hate most about streaming online is the drop outs. I hate it as much as a needle getting stuck and it happens much more frequently. Most of it is low res anyway. The only time I listen to MP3 files is when I'm mowing the lawn.

this oldster prefers digital by a longshot, but can handle phonographic reproduction assisted by CEDAR declicking/decrackling.