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Vinyl playback - lack of bass?

Alright, hopefully this isn't a dumb question.

I split my audio listening between analog and digital. Both setups use the same preamp/amp/speakers etc. I noticed that when listening to records, there isn't as much pronounced bass vs lets say when listening to tidal/qobuz. I'm wondering if its my phono that might have a lack of bass? or is it because my cartridge hasn't fully broken in yet? For fun , I connected my sub when I switched to side 2 yesterday, it helped pronounce the bass a bit more as I elevated the volume on the sub. But nothing crazy. but was decent enough. 

Besides that, everything sounds fantastic and great on LP vs digital. Also, to mention, lately have been playing some older original rock records. I should try popping in a newer record for fun to see if it makes a difference (most likely not analog sourced of course). or I can try the new Black Sabbath Rhino release.

Setup - analog - rega p6 w/ ania cartridge (only 30 hours on the cartridge so far). Phono - Moon 310lp. 

Digital - moon 280d mind2 w/ dac

Rest - Preamp Moon 740p, amp pass labs x250.8 , speakers Sonus Faber Olympica III 

 

skads_187
retiredaudioguy
58 posts
 

It is tough for LPs to have loud, deep bass as it required large displacements (L-R & Up-Down) of the groove.  No such limitations in Digital.

If you have an LP and the digital remaster it would not surprise me to find that the CD/SACD has louder bass.

I don't know that I have particularly noticed it but I have CD, SACD, original vinyl and reissue vinyl of LSC-2446 - Scheherazade ~ Reiner, Chicago Symphony I'll listen tomorrow.

richardbrand's avatar
richardbrand
485 posts
 

@lewm 

I just randomly picked a mid-price CD Player - it happened to be the Marantz CD 60 - and digital playback is down to 2-Hz.  No brick wall at 22-Hz

  • USB DSD: 2Hz - 50kHz (-3dB)
    USB PCM: 2Hz - 50kHz (-1.5dB)
    CD: 2Hz - 20kHz
displayname's avatar
displayname
165 posts
 

I agree with others that your cart may just require more breaking in. 

I'll also share that I had the same feeling when I switched to a Hana ML going into my Sutherland 20/20. Added in a Bob's Devices Sky 20-S and Boom! Nice full bass was back. Not sure if that will work for your system, but it worked for me. 

lewm
13,643 posts
 

I haven’t “confused” anything. I was referencing early production cdp’s. I thought I said that. Also, of course the term “brick wall” is a metaphor for very steep slope. I probably was remiss in not acknowledging that SACD and DSD ameliorated the problem. But I still hear an unnatural abrupt cutoff of extreme low bass with physical discrete CDs. For whatever reason.

Research doesn’t support me. I was wrong apparently about the low frequency limit built into RBCDs, but I still hear a less natural extreme low frequency response with RBCDs. I have to re-read some 1970s literature to remember why.

retiredaudioguy
58 posts
 

I did a quick comparison of the first few minutes of Scheherazade, between the SACD and the reissue Vinyl.

I adjusted the volume so that the opening (bass heavy) chords were within a dB or so.  The levels of the violin entry were subsequently somewhat different.  Roughly 4dB difference, the vinyl louder.  The opening is bass heavy, do that would suggest that the bass levels are depressed in the LP.

Part of this is probably that loud passages tend to have higher bass content and LPs, were (are?) dynamically compressed owing to limitations of the medium.  (NO judgement of sound quality but the dynamic range of an LP is 70dB at most, SACD or high res PCM at least 96dB).

 

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