

Why CDs May Sound Better Than Vinyl - jipumarino
http://www.laweekly.com/music/why-cds-may-actually-sound-better-than-vinyl-5352162

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ectoplasm
Alright, so the reasons I've heard over the years that vinyl sounds better
are:

a) the high-frequency roll-off starts at 15 kHz; b) the needle vibrates which
smooths out the sound and provides warmth; c) the needle melts the vinyl at
the molecular level which also smooths out the sound and provides warmth; d)
the needle picks up feedback from the room; e) not all vinyl is created equal,
you get a lot more quality out of a 5-minute 12" 45 rpm than a 30-minute 12"
33 1/3 rpm; f) clicks and pops and burns are part of the charm; g) the runout
groove nagging you to get up is part of what vinyl sounds like; h) vinyl is
physical and cool and sometimes extremely rare and barring an ABX test your
perception of how good something is will be affected by these supposedly
irrelevant meta qualities; i) some things are only available on vinyl, so of
course it sounds better; j) depending on the type of music, the mastering
won't be targeting mp3 players with earbuds but instead big club systems, so
if you have good speakers, it might be easier to find the mastering you want
on vinyl.

I don't know how many of these I agree with. Honestly the worst thing about
vinyl is that it's heavy.

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WalterBright
> the needle picks up feedback from the room

But that's a bad thing. I learned to isolate the turntable from the speakers
when playing disco. Also, had to walk softly else the needle would skip.

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mirimir
Yes! Also, random noise can trigger asymptotic feedback at high levels. And
asymptotic feedback tends to blow out amps and speakers.

~~~
ectoplasm
The best general purpose solution I've seen is suspending turntables on wide
elastic bands. An isolated booth also works.

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WalterBright
I just find this hilarious. If you like the sound of vinyl; record it to a
CDROM, play the CDROM, it sounds just like vinyl, pops, clicks, skips and all.

Also, back in the glorious disco era, record companies would release 12"
single disks, where the grooves were spaced wide enough that the bass beat
could be laid down. What more proof does anyone need that 33 records are
inferior?

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DanBC
12" singles were about extended play time, not about bass.

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WalterBright
I'm afraid that is incorrect. I own many disco ones, and the bass is what
they're for. The grooves are spread out and it frequently runs at 45 rpm. It's
pretty obvious if you listen to one vs the 33 version.

~~~
DanBC
Feel free to show any industry material promoting the sound quality of 12"
45rpm. They were only ever pushed as having more content than a 7" 45rpm.

~~~
ectoplasm
The non-existence of ads on the internet from 40 years ago is not a validation
of your universal claim. Second, people still press 12" 45 rpm singles, why
would they do that when 33 rpm is available?

Here's something written by an engineer:

[http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/why-45-rpm-
great-45-rp...](http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/why-45-rpm-
great-45-rpm-12-lp-explanation-by-kevin-gray.132280/)

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qq66
As a vinyl enthusiast, I find claims of vinyl's superior "sound qualitY"
(whatever that means) to be laughable. A CD can clearly outreproduce a vinyl
even the first time you play the vinyl record -- by the fifth time you're
playing the vinyl record it's clearly inferior from a technical perspective.

The thing that's fun about vinyl is that it feels more like a physical
artifact -- each one sounds different, the album art is bigger, it's been
around for a few decades, etc... that's why I like it.

~~~
WalterBright
Oddly, I like the smell of the vinyl. In it's own way, it's like the pleasant
smell of a book.

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ars
May?? What do they mean May??

Why do you need an entire article for something that everyone already knows?

Even if you especially like the sound of vinyl, you can just play one and
record it on a CD.

I watched a video of how they make vinyl. They take a ... wait for it .... CD!
And play it into a machine that cuts the grooves.

~~~
bnegreve
Yet I think this article is interesting because it provides us with several
explanations of _why_ people _perceive_ analog recording as better.

Here are a few quoting from the article:

\- _" few people who would tell you that recording classical music to analog
tape has any benefit at all," Metcalfe says. But for some artists, he says —
particularly in rock — those layers of distortion are preferable._

\- _[...] recording to analog tape isn 't any purer than recording music
digitally. But the distortion and pitch variation that analog tape adds to the
recording are preferred by some artists and audiences._

\- _" Because vinyl is a reflection and any digital is a reconstitution; it's
not the same thing."_

\- _[...]the distortion and pitch variation that analog tape adds to the
recording are preferred by some artists and audiences._

\- _However, for a less skilled mixing engineer, mixing to analog tape can
"'glue' the music together in the most wonderful way,"_

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ars
Like I said, if you especially like that sound then simply record it on a CD.

Reflection and reconstitution? Those words have no meaning in this context.

And the thing about less skilled magically improving because of analog is just
hocus.

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WalterBright
Does anyone believe Neil Young, an aging rocker, can actually hear the
difference? Old age + decades of loud music = hearing loss

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ArkyBeagle
Neil Young does not understand mathematics based on the Fourier Transform,
especially sampling theory.

Pono is also how he wants his legacy to be "archived". He does have quite the
body of work.

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b0sk
Why round wheels may be better than square ones.

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WalterBright
Triangular ones are better than square ones, too. One less bump.

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smegel
It may sound "better", but I find it lacks the warmth and depth that vinyl
provides.

Edit: /s. Sigh.

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dandrews
"Warmth" and "depth" seem imprecise to me. Do those words have quantifiable
meaning to an audiophile?

~~~
WalterBright
warmth = the warp your record acquires when it gets warm. Mild warp (warmth)
means the sound speeds up and slows down as it rides the hills and valleys.
More warp (warmth) is the gap in sound as the needle achieves that coveted
liftoff effect. "Warmth" can also happen when the manufacturer punches the
center hole off-center, a depressingly common characteristic. Also known as
"Doppler shift".

Depth = when the grooves are too close together and exceed a certain depth,
you can simultaneously time travel both forwards and backwards in the music by
about 2 seconds. This quantum "depth" effect is most prized.

