Does vinyl have a sound?

Lewm, I don't doubt your claim at all, I was merely pointing out to OPs experience that sometime he hears plastic sound on percussion - is due to poorer set ups and vinyl up keeps, not Vinyl medium as a whole. On optimum or best set ups and equipment this should not exist is what I was trying to say. (Map said it better). This from my own experiences and climbing my learning curve.

Saying vinyl has a plastic sound really has no meaning at all. When mastering we would compare the metal stamper with an acetate with the vinyl pressing. If we did a good job they would all sound the same. The metal stamper did not sound mettalic. This is like say silver wire is brighter than copper because it looks brighter. Simply not true
Alan

Sometimes I hear a diamond sound from my stylus, an aluminum sound from my tonearm, a wood sound from my shelf, and a plastic sound from my cartridge body.

OK, I'm not serious. The point I'm trying to make is that if you only think you hear it sometimes, it's probably just the recording. It may or may not be able to be minimized with different components. If vinyl had a plastic sound, every record would have that characteristic.

@ Atmasphere you say the arm is critical for good tracking and good sound given other good quality elements of a set up. I wondered how would I know if an arm was good or bad. I have been told that the JMW 9 arm on my VPI Scout is not good. I can't express how much I like the set up I have with this "poor" arm. I only own one other good table an MMF-5 that also came with an arm and a cartridge to boot. The VPI had a package price but the cart was installed by my dealer. So my question is what makes an arm good or bad at tracking and why do I really like the Scout as it is.

"Saying vinyl has a plastic sound really has no meaning at all. "

Ever hear great vinyl on an old ceramic cart Soundesign compact stereo?

Or I would expect on a newer vintage styled Crosly player?

99% of the vinyl world is not high end. Never has been! Well, maybe briefly in the late 50's when hifi stereo recordings were new, prior to mass market.

You have to look at the reality and not the theory or top % of performers when talking about these things because a novice will face a challenge in many ways to get to the promised land.