Dear @o_holter : " It is amazing that it is still competitive. ", amazing and incredible for say the least.
But exist a deep and main reason why of that and the reasonis that almost all of us was what for many years were accustom to listen it and what does it means this fact: simple we are accustomed to the LP developed high distortions it’s what we like even if its wrong and this is not the issue. The deep main reason is that: we are accustomed to those LP sound alond its developed distortions.
Whe appeared the CD as even today we " like it " but do not " like it ", we always have an argument against digital even arguments that are totally false.
We refused and refuse to really think deep down there and ask our self: what are we missing with digital medium? because this is the issue. Here M Lavigne posted that LP is " complete " and obviously and against digital this medium is incomplete.
My take is that all of us are missing through digital medium ALL THE ADDED DISTORTIONS DEVELOPED THROUGH THE RECORDING AND PLAYBACK PROCCESS .
Our brain knows something is " different " down there.
If you take a little of time and make a check-up of all the steps in the playback proccess where the cartridge signal must pass you can understand in more objective way my take my statement about. The cartridge signal playback path is a long tortuose path for the way sensitive cartridge signal and at each of those " thousands " path steps the cartridge signal integrity goes degrading and degrading till we can listen. Maybe in what we can listen are " nice distortions " ( we are accustom for. ) in 30% or maybe 40% of the original signal. Digital is way direct and if anything more complete and nearer truer to the recording it does not matters that we don’t like it so much what we are listning and till we think a little with ovjectivity the LP will stays extremely " competitive " no matters what.
Btw, one of those false argument in favor of LP is that " we listen analog not in digital " but is false because what our ears and body are perciving with digital what comes in is just a SPLs waves exactly in similar way that the SPL waves that comes in from LPs, this is not the issue. Other false argument is that LP moves us more emotionally than digital to the degree that digital could be boring. Other false argument: " When digital is truly better there won’t be cartridge and tonearm manufacturers "" and is false because exist thousands and thousands audiophiles that own thousands of LPs and that " loves " reissues.
I asked you which is your MUSIC REFERENCE and your answer is full of subjectivity: " what we like it ".
I asked you because when talking of digital vs analog almost all always compare digital against the LP REFERENCE or the R2R REFERENCE when in reality and overall those mediums can’t be a MUSIC REFERENCE .
We can argue against that but for me the only true reference are the live events we attended and attend seated at near field position that even at nearer position ( that we can seat. ) is where the recording microphones are " seated " and where pic-up the signal coming from the MUSIC sources.
If we don’t have yet enough lisent experiences like that then we really do not know what I’m talking about and why I repeat and repeat that " nearer and truer to the recording " that in my point of view should be the main target for any audiophile/MUSIC lover.
Sure I can be wrong but not only in this thread but in many others over the years I posted that statement in this and other web forums. Only an opinion.
Anyway, thank’s for your answers,
R.