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Classical music listening... what is a better source High Rez or Vinyl?

For many of us who really enjoy classical music, for me it is Baroque and opera, what is the better and more consistent for source high fidelity listening?

I am a mid hifi guy and have a Pro-ject Classic SB turntable with a high output MC Sumiko Blue Point No. 2 cartridge.. I am using a Jolida JD 9II Tube phone stage, with a vintage Telefunkin tube upgrade.

I have a Rogue Sphinx 3 integrated amplifier, with a vintage Mozada tube upgrade. My digital source DAC/SACD/CD is a Yamaha CD-2100 player.

I have refurbished Ohm H's loud speakers.

I have been picking up many vintage classical albums recently, mainly 1980’s releases in excellent condition too, at my local transfer station, and it has been mixed bag in comparison to my high resolution music files and SACD collection.

I was expecting much more when it came to vinyl and classical but I have not been as won over, as I have been with rock and jazz on vinyl.

My experience with SACD and high resolution, 96/24 or higher, has been very rewarding with a wide variety of classical music. Opera really shines in digital IMHO. Strong and full on classical piece are quite stunning on many a SACD releases I own. Rachel Podger’s Vivaldi: L’estro armonico - 12 concerti, Op. 3 on SACD is an excellent example of the audio quality I demand, as this recording is exceptional! Plus there are are very few new remastered vinyl releases for classical, particularly for opera, these days. A perfect example of this is Shubert’s Winterreise featuring Joyce DiDanato and pianist Yannick Nezet-Sequin, which I saw performed at Carnegie Hall for this recording and which sounds phenomenal in 96/24, and was release recently.

That would seem counter intuitive but that is clearly what the market is showing.

On one of these threads I recall someone posting how strings of violins, and the intensity that they are played at, can lead to degraded sound quality depending on the type of cartridge used.

I want to hear back from the classical music posse here to help me get to that higher level of listening with classical vinyl.

Is it the cartridge?

Or should I just stay with my digital sources?


idigmusic64
mikelavigne
2,199 posts
 
when the vinyl playback tools and the vinyl pressings are top notch the vinyl classical music reproduction experience is unsurpassed. of my approximately 3000 Classical Lps, this magic happens maybe 60% of the time. my best sounding 45rpm classical vinyl is a force of nature and pinch me level of musical involvement. digital does not come close to this.

that said; my overall listening is about 60% digital classical since it is very very good to great and so accessible. i love exploring new classical titles with Tidal and Quboz, or listening to my high rez classical files. i have many dxd and quad dsd classical files. i could be completely happy just with the high rez classical.

if i were starting over i would not do the vinyl classical as acquiring the best pressings is not only expensive but takes considerable effort and patience. and for great classical vinyl the investment for the tt, arm, cart is not trivial. Jazz or rock can be very fine on more modest levels of investment. classical music will really expose any warts.

finally it does come down to what level of expectations you have for the performance. which only you can determine. my expectations are very high, and i have devoted considerable resources to high level classical vinyl playback. i have 4 turntables, one of which is my ’go-to’ for classical music.
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islandmandan
1,260 posts
 
I was reminded again last night, even though I didn't play any classical, I played some jazz that had no electronic instruments, just how good vinyl can sound.

It just really perks my attention and enjoyment when vinyl sounds this good. I do also love my digital front end, and yes, some multi-channel classical music, but when the vinyl is good, it just sounds so "right"..

You've got to love this stuff........

Regards,
Dan  
bkeske's avatar
bkeske
5,597 posts
 
@melm 

Is the "Paris" LP an all analog recording?

I have to assume it was a digital recording. I believe most new classical albums are digitally recorded, but I’m not sure for Paris. Her Retrospective LP was an analog recording, but not so sure about this one. It does not specifically state in on the LP itself, not in any reviews I’ve read, which are very few.

To me, it matters little as it still sounds great. I have some LP’s that were digitally recorded (most in the 80’s, the record companies were proud of that at the time and made sure it was stated on the cover typically) and while some still sound very good on vinyl regardless, some not so much. It really comes down to mastering and engineering. You cannot make a broad brush declaration that one is worse or better than another.
melm
1,078 posts
 
Not looking to pick a fight here.  I am an old-time classical music analog lover still with major investment in analog.  Until about 4 years ago I couldn't listen to digital for more than 20 minutes at a time.  I would have been in full agreement then.   Problem is that while everyone knows that you had to spend some bucks for good analog, digital with great specs seemed to come pretty cheap.  I thought when I bought an Oppo 105 that digital nirvanas should have arrived.  But classical demands so much more.

Truth is you have to spend more on digital and do it with the kind of care we analog veterans are accustomed to.  In any event, I am here at the moment simply to take issue with the "the nuances that only vinyl can offer" remark.   Given that a favored LP is giving the sort of pleasure described, and I don't for a moment doubt that, some credit must be allocated to its digital source.

Cheers.
bkeske's avatar
bkeske
5,597 posts
 
@melm

Fair enough.

In any event, I am here at the moment simply to take issue with the "the nuances that only vinyl can offer" remark. Given that a favored LP is giving the sort of pleasure described, and I don’t for a moment doubt that, some credit must be allocated to its digital source.

Not classical, but a perfect example, that only I can confirm. Not classical, but just bought The Trinity Session by the Cowboy Junkies. It arrived yesterday. When that album fist came out, I bought it on cassette, then/and CD. So, had both for a long long time.

After listening to both the cassette and CD versions not so long ago, I decided to buy the period vinyl. As stated, arrived yesterday.

I dropped the needle and was immersed in that vinyl version much more than by my digital version, and also more than the cassette (albeit, that was a time period when cassettes were actually pretty good, some call the mid-80’s and into the 90’s their ‘golden years’). There is a depth, a naturalness, timber and tone, and small details that both sprang out of that album in vinyl form while also ‘sucking me in’ like never before. If you are familiar, that album is very quiet, and recorded pretty ‘raw”, similar to many classical or older jazz trio type recordings.

That is an example of an ‘album’ I’m very familiar over the years, loved it, but have only really listened to it in digital form (and cassette, as I said, and still have a Nakamichi deck that plays my cassettes from time to time). Bottom line never had it or ever remember hearing it on vinyl, and it simply ‘blew me away’ in comparison to other formats I know well. That’s what I meant, and I’ll stick to it. Same can be said for some of the same classical selections I have in both formats, but to be honest, those are much fewer.

I think I made it pretty clear, this is all very subjective, and there are an incredible number of factors, but I know what I prefer, and perhaps you do as well. Great. Enjoy the music.

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