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I much prefer vinyl, and am always growing my collection of records.
Downloads are taking off and it has been 25 years since CD was launched, yet audiophile demand for turntables and vinyl continues unabated. When did you last spin a record?
Are you kidding? I only play CDs in the car and the computer. Otherwise, just today I was playing Santana's eponymous album on my Linn LP12. Dum Dum Dum Dumdumdum! Glorious drums, dudes, from a 24 year old LP that I've owned since High School!
As a surprise gift, my brother recently sent me a monaural copy of Jefferson Airplane's "Surrealistic Pillow". I used to "go on" about the preference I had for some of the mono mixes, since excessive reverberation (muddying things up, in my opinion) seemed to be a typical means of "enhancing" the stereo mix, in the days when mono and stereo versions coexisted. My mono Beatles recordings were precious to me, since I found the stereo ones reverb-muddied. Since I have many recordings never reissued, and given that side-by-side comparisons have repeatedly shown me a lack of musicality and sweetness in many CD's, I treasure my records, and play them... occasionally. I've had reason to join critics of the "Sonic Solutions No-Noise" treatment of music originally recorded to vinyl. The treatment of, say Jimi Hendrix' catalog (now superceded by another remastering) just seemed to filter off the high end,thereby removing the "air", "chime" and atmosphere of the recording. Vinyl originals still sound better than CD reissues, to me, on numerous pop recordings I have (Bangles, Lena Lovich,Police, Hendrix, as examples.)
I hate to admit it, but I haven't listened to any of my vinyl collection since the '80s. I don't even own a turntable at the moment. I do, however, still buy vinyl. I just have no way of actually listening to it. I will buy a 'table later this year when I do my next major system upgrade. I would rather go back to watermark-free vinyl than unload my hard earned cash to help fuel the format wars.
I have never listened to music records at home. The family never owned one. But I have listened to 45s in the "Media Learning Center" in the school library when I was in elementary school some 15 years ago. I fondly remember those "suitcase" turntables and those heavy "flight crew" headphones. Other than that I have no vinyl experience.
A few years back, as a result of reading Michael Fremer in _Stereophile_, I bought a Music Hall MMF-2 (a "re-introductory level" component ). I've since replaced it with a tricked-out VPI, but never mind that; the pertinent experiment is to buy a good-sounding recording on both CD and vinyl (for me it was Art Blakey's "Moanin' " on Blue Note, among others). Compare. No question, your ears will tell you what you need to know. The solution to vinyl's well-known limitations is simple--don't listen to it all the time. I certainly don't buy or listen to vinyl exclusively. But neither would I consider being without it. Even if you only listen to few highly selected, treasurable vinyl discs 1/100th of the time, it's still worth it. How are you going to really hear your system if all you have is CD? For me, vinyl records are a tonic, as needed as my annual vacation--an essential ingredient of audiophile sanity, balance, and perspective.
Still sounds better than CD. Strange even digitally mastered/recorded vinyl sounds better than the same CD. Weird eh? But digital is getting better, but somehow it'll never be quite the same. And I am not old enough for nostalgia to come into play. Records are just k'know...cooler!
After spending years and major money trying to get 16/44.1 digital to be musical, I went back to vinyl last year. I have never been happier with the sound of my system. I just don't care what the specs say, 16/44.1 does not do music justice. Something is wrong with it, and I can hear the problem on every cd player, dac, that I have ever heard. I have a Wadia 860, but it only gets used on occasion. But my Basis Debut gets a work out daily. Maybe 24/96 or SACD will fix the problem.