Vinyl keeps marching on :)

[9designs2]

Seems most stuff is now also released on vinyl.... the days of only rehashed audiophile versions seems long gone for now.....
This little delivery should keep me entertained for a while.... Ordered on Sunday, arrived Monday morning..... who needs downloads

Checked most of them out on Tidal first, so I have convenience and quality

 

[9designs2]

There's a Linn Axis in MM for £175 ... bargain.

 

[9designs2]

Well I guess sometimes the logic doesn't always stack up..... While the studio most likely did record digitally it's what happens in the mix and mastering stages that are often split due to the format there going to.

So there's plenty of opportunity for the two to sound different.

As for pressing quality, over the last year I must have been lucky, as I'm not really having an issue with what's coming out these days. Perhaps that depends on the style of music you buy as to whether much effort was put into it or was a "marketing ploy" to do a vinyl version.... band wagons and all that.

Couple of weeks back a friend was over, loves his music and has been around long enough to have enjoyed it way before digital ..... I played him a mix of vinyl which he'd long given up on and dismissed plus ripped CD streamed from my NAS.

In short his conclusion was.... Digital, wowww that's impressive, you could sell Hi-Fi off that........ Vinyl.... was "Ohh hmmm it's just more like music and more enjoyable to listen to".

He went away some what puzzled as to what just happened

For some reason that's just the way it pans out.....

 

[9designs2]

I dont buy any of the latest stuff i look for the oldies

I just have to look at the rack for stuff I bough 30+ years ago

 

[9designs2]

Dave Brubeck... So much love, so much want. This has reminded me I need to get a new needle for my turntable - my parents still have tonnes of vinyls knocking around.

He's sounding great.... pressing seems OK so far.

 

[9designs2]

My understanding, from a presentation from the guy who started up metropolis studios in London is the final mix is separately mastered. It has to be for vinyl due to the requirements or limitation of the cutting head. To much level or high frequency content then you burn out the cutting head. Where as CD my have the levels ramped up to make it LOAD for radio/cheap stereo kit. Bass levels need to be managed different as well.... As everyone knows vinyl technically has limitation compared to CD, but some qualities as well.

In practice the difference between the two varies, some times they are close some times not.

"always be acoustically superior on CD" .....

What do you base that assumption on?... Go listen to a high end deck and compare to any price CD/Streamer you like.

If it follows form you'll be "impressed" by the digital sound, but much prefer to listen and relax to the vinyl "sound"....

Like most things in Hi-Fi there are no hard and fast rules and you can rig the result either way by choice of kit and music/pressing/recording etc.

Go listen and decide

 

[9designs2]

Re: CD being superior, I really mean that if your source material is digital you can get a much better representation by keeping it digital than you can scratching it into a piece of plastic for the same price. This is obvious really - a good quality turntable is a challenging bit of engineering, a CD player or even a PC with some lossless tracks ripped to it is something we all have anyway. If you get a kick out of the experience of playing records that's fine, but you will definitely lose some information playing a record compared to the digital original, which you can perfectly reproduce with only a modest soundcard.

Whilst I'm not in anyway trying to say Vinyl is a technically superior format, only that it can be and often is more enjoyable to listen too. Your comments with respect seem more like standard internet blurb, not one of experience.
If you think a basic PC sound card will get anywhere near the sound of a decent TT then you haven't lived

The Leonard Cohen and Rhiannon Giddens both came with the CD as well, which is nice touch. Once ripped I'll be able to compare.
I had been listening to them on Tidal before, soon as the vinyl started it was apparent how much richer, full and detailed the sound was with far bigger sound stage. Much more in the room performance.

Any comparison should be quite even, both my digital an analogue front end is from Linn and from the same range.....

 

[9designs2]

I accept that, but your wording is misleading. I'm arguing (and you agreed with your Metropolis anecdote) that it's not the format that's more enjoyable, it's the music itself, as a result of more gentle mastering. I'm thankful we aren't still experiencing a loudness war in most genres, but it's still a pity that more dynamic mixes are exclusively put on vinyl.

With respect, those are exactly the listening notes people make when they're expecting an improvement. But seriously it would be interesting to digitise the record and compare to the CD like the youtube video I linked - would probably show the same increased DR. Or possibly do a blind level matched comparison. Hmm I should borrow a friend's turntable and try this...

It could well be that vinyl is benefiting from more careful mastering, because they have too!....
If you "recorded" an LP and then played it back you would be capturing that mastered sound plus the signature of the TT being used... so yes it probably would sound the "same".....
Linn themselves now have an ADC built into some of the streamers, which will take the TT output, convert to 24/192, apply room EQ and correction if required and then back out through the DAC... the process is said to be transparent by those who have heard it.

So what we need then is "Mastered for Vinyl" released on CD or HD download..... But you'll still need a very good DAC and analogue stage to get the best sound.

Part of the metropolis presentation, run by PMC, had 3 way comparison between the live artist (Eleanor McEvoy) a mixing desk 24 bit file and a 45rpm single sided direct pressing.... They pressed from the first stage former and not from the stamper as usual. So was only good for 100 demo pressings.
All 3 playing through the same amps and speakers.
So in this case the mix hadn't been messed up by some over enthusiastic record label...

Worst sounding technically was live artist, but that's due to I think to the local mixing desk and balance in the room on the day...(She's great BTW)
Vinyl sounded as every bit as good as the file, perhaps was better on vinyl I can't remember was couple of years ago....blind I doubt you'd be able to identity the source...... It's technical limitations were not apparent.....

It was a single song comparison would have been nice to have longer to hear if one of them came out on top.

I've invested just as much in a digital source, and is used frequently, BUT, there is something more natural and organic about the sound of vinyl that still doesn't come out as often on digital source.