2. analog
  3. 1340176293

Is a vinyl rig only worth it for oldies?

I have always been curious about vinyl and its touted superiority over digital, so I decided to try it for myself. Over the course of the past several years I bought a few turntables, phono stages, and a bunch of new albums. They sounded fine I thought, but didn't stomp all over digital like some would tend to believe.

It wasn't until I popped on some old disk that I picked up used from a garage sale somewhere that I heard what vinyl was really about: it was the smoothest, most organic, and 3d sound that ever came out of my speakers. I had never heard anything quite like it. All of the digital I had, no matter how high the resolution, did not really come close to approaching that type of sound.

Out of the handful of albums I have from the 70s-80s, most of them have this type of sound. Problem is, most of my music and preferences are new releases (not necessarily in an audiophile genre) or stuff from the past decade and these albums sounded like music from a CD player but with the added noise, pops, clicks, higher price, and inconveniences inherent with vinyl. Of all the new albums I bought recently, only two sounded like they were mastered in the analog domain.

It seems that almost anything released after the 2000's (except audiophile reissues) sounded like music from a CD player of some sort, only worse due to the added noise making the CD version superior. I have experienced this on a variety of turntables, and this was even true in a friend's setup with a high end TT/cart.

So my question is, is vinyl only good for older pre-80s music when mastering was still analog and not all digital?
solman989
mapman's avatar
mapman
22,389 posts
 
Chad,

My background is more digital image processing than digital audio but I recall even back in the 80's implementing image enhancement algorithms that increased information content in digital imagery without peaking out or saturating teh brightness levels. When I see spectral visualizations of many modern digital recordings that sound pretty good to me, I believe I see a similar kind of approach. The few that are truly earbleed material (mostly newer core pop stuff + an occasional remaster) appear to clip loudness levels/waveforms but I am not sure this is as prevalent in modern recordings overall as some seem to think.

Just my observations. I enjoy many newer digital recordings and remasters, but not all. Not much different than back in the golden age of vinyl even....
chadeffect
586 posts
 
Hi mapman,

I think as ever some recordings are worse than others and some genres are worse than others. But the software used to master and record with is much more sophisticated, clever and transparent now.

The name escapes me but there is a fairly new limiting software that was designed to limit in away the ear couldn't detect! Yes you read correctly. I think it was made by izotope. But it was amazing the levels you could get out of it without any pumping effects or nasty side effects.

If you wanted a hardware limiter of that standard it would cost thousands. But it could never compete with the software for the transparency or speed for several hundred.
Ag insider logo xs@2x
rauliruegas
13,103 posts
 
Dear Chadeffect: +++++ " But the software used to master and record with is much more sophisticated, clever and transparent now. " +++++

between other things software on digital medium is a tremendous " advantage or disadvantage " ( depend how it's used. ). Digital is a computer like and today exist a lot of software/plug-inns for the digital producers can choose what ever they want be the kind of performance of any recording, they can inclusive make that a digital source sounds exactly as a LP and many producers made it.

That kind of manipulation but in different way can do it on the analog side too and that's what recording enggeners did and do it.

As you and as I posted in this thread both alternatives: digital and analog, have its own trade-offs.

My point is which one in its own medium is truer to the recording more accurate and not which one likes me more. I like both.

Regards and enjoy the music,
R.
Ag insider logo xs@2x
rauliruegas
13,103 posts
 
Dear all: I forgot. Main advantage on those recording manipulations is that in the digital alternative everything happen in the digital dominium: ceros and ones, that permits that the audio signal stay " untouchable " with out phase shifts, distortions, noise and the like that in the analog alternative are added through those recording manipulations.

With out touch the recording signal IMHO in the digital dominium/alternative there is almost nothing you can't do it leaving the recording signal " untouchable ".

Today exist designs ( Phono stages. ) for LP playback that everything " happen " in the digital dominium including the RIAA eq. where this RIAA eq. has no single frequency deviation and distortions as happen in all analog alternatives.

IMHO we can't close our eyes against the digital technology and its several advantages inclusive to help analog.

Regards and enjoy the music,

R.
mapman's avatar
mapman
22,389 posts
 
The vinyl/digital debate is a perfect example of a classic Dilemma.

Both have their strengths and both have their weaknesses. Neither solution alone is perfect to meet the needs of many.

Modern strategic thinking says that one can not analyze their way out of a dilemma. Attempts to do so by definition will always turn out to be futile and just re-inforce the fact that the dilemma exists.

The solution is to apply Synthesis to create something new from both that is leveraged effectively to meet all needs.
More to discover