Why the Nostalgia around Vinyl Records is Delusion
This is one of my pet peeves where people claim that Vinyl can sound better than digital. No, it can't.
1. Vinyl records are a mechanical representation of an analog waveform
Every time data is changed from one form to another it loses fidelity
2. Vinyl is recorded and played back with dramatic EQ curves to correct for the medium
This is why you need a separate phono preamp. There is a market for audiophile versions of these that can run into thousands of dollars.
3. Vinyl Records can't have deep bass: the needle will jump out
Disco records were cut as 12" records with deep grooves, which helped. You could not reproduce EDM music on Vinyl without making a lot of compromises.
4. The comparison should not be from Vinyl against CD, but to what is available today.
CDs were great 40 years ago but the technology for mastering is light years beyond what was available 40 years ago. CDs are 16 bit, 44.1 kHz. High quality streaming is available today at 24 bit 192 kHz.
5. 24 bit digital is not 8x more resolution than 16 bit (cd quality), it is 256x (2 to the 8th power)
With the right equipment, this makes a huge difference. The bit depth is how many steps are between off and 100%. The sample rate is how often the samples are taken. 192 kHz is over 4x higher than CD. So 24/192 is objectively over 1000 times better than 16/44.1 CD quality.
6. Most people have never heard 24 bit 192 kHz sound through a good system
I have this setup with a combination of Apple Music masters, an external DAC, a dedicated headphone amplifier and planar headphones. Pick a great album that you might be familiar with like the Beatles remastered or Stevie Wonder's Songs In the Key Of Life or Allman Brothers Live at the Fillmore or many of the dozens of albums available this way. It sounds incredible.
7. I sold my record collection of over 2,000 records: I am very familiar with records
I had been buying records since I had a paper route. I dealt with the surface noise and clicks and pops because that was the only practical way to listen to music. I have seen the light. I can listen to 90+% of any music every recorded with the click of a button.
8. The record-playing experience can be something to enjoy
The ritual of taking an album out of the sleeve and putting it on can be pleasurable.
9. Album artwork is something to be enjoyed
The foldouts like Alice Cooper's School's out (turned into a student desk), 2 and three way gatefolds, the comics from Parliament records, the collages from Jello Biafra in the Dead Kennedy's records, the head shots of the Beatles that came in the White Album. These will be missed.
10. Insanely expensive turntables exist. These are art objects but won't help the sound much.
Like this Vanquish for $148k:
https://houseofstereo.com/products/vpi-industries-vanquish-system
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