Vinyl vs CDs/MP3s/digital music?

[Windwalker]

I think this image shows a good example of analog vs digital music:

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Exactly. Sawblades on our eardrums.

 

[ShivaFan]

I voted vinyl - there is something sacred about it, seriously. It emulates the universe. All things are like vinyl, and the worlds have grooves in them such that when the magic needle touches the cut, it plays.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

As the bandwidth in digital music is increased (the digital square wave gets smaller and smaller to approximate the analog sine wave more accurately), the audio may seem more accurate to our ears, but IMO our brains and minds can still perceive the artificial choppiness of the square wave and feel that something is not "quite right" with it - or, at least I do. Yes, it may sound great on one level, but it's not "real" or "alive" - it's only an approximation of life.

I don't see how people fail to hear the difference. On vinyl, all the fine subtle elements come to life, things are more clear, and there is a fullness to the sound that digital does not have.

 

[psychoslice]

When C/D's first came out I was determined to stick with vinyl, but when I finally brought a C/D, I was hooked, I have just sold all of my Beatles collection on vinyl, sad to see them go though.

 

[roger1440]

It depends. I used to have the IPod Classic. It has a capacity of 160 GB. I had about 10,000 songs on it. It probably would have maxed out at around 40,000 songs. The gizmo is smaller than a pack of cigarettes and fitted nice in my pocket. It would be impossible to carry that amount of music with me in other format. Imagine how much physical space the equivalent music on CDs would take. It would take a huge truck.

 

[buddhist]

If storage capacity determines superiority ... then digital wins.
If clarity ... then, digital can easily win.

If depth and complexity (like life itself) ... then analog is the only way to go!

 

[Zardoz]

The only medium I don't really like is 8-track and cassette. They worked when he had them, but rewinding is such a hassle, and it has been many many years since I've used either. I really like vinyl, but ultimately it's your sound system that matters first, because a good system is needed to bring out the fullness and quality of the medium. Vinyl on a small stereo will not sound as good as digital played on a larger stereo system with equalizer sliders. But on a good system, vinyl sounds so much richer and fuller than digital.
But live is still the best way to enjoy music.

8-track was awful. However, auto-reversing cassette was a no-rewind solution.
I remember recording live at concerts (I was a roady) and off of FM.
Even with fairly good mike, the studio music broadcast over FM sounded better.
Live is only as good as the amps & speakers, which are crap for many concerts.

Only acoustic live is really 'live'. Think Orchestra not modern concert.

Vinyl recording isn't an option without some special gear, but don't expect much.
I have some 78's recorded live, and they .... sound like garbage.
A lot of my classical is on 78 so I know how it should sound. (Yes, I have 78's. I'm old.)

 

[Altfish]

My ears are not a sensitive as they were due to too many loud rock/punk concerts, so they are not good enough to detect the alleged subtleties of the LP.
I vote CD, the fact that you lumped that together with all the rest is disconcerting though. CD is better than mp3

 

[Windwalker]

I have some 78's recorded live, and they .... sound like garbage.
A lot of my classical is on 78 so I know how it should sound. (Yes, I have 78's. I'm old.)

I'll bet you're using the wrong stylus on them. Are you using the same stylus you use for LPs? You might want to look into getting the right one if you wish to enjoy 78s. http://www.esotericsound.com/CartStyli.htm

 

[buddhist]

My ears are not a sensitive as they were due to too many loud rock/punk concerts, so they are not good enough to detect the alleged subtleties of the LP.
I vote CD, the fact that you lumped that together with all the rest is disconcerting though. CD is better than mp3

I suppose I wasn't comparing the various digital formats among themselves ... I was mainly comparing analog to digital.

 

[Zardoz]

I'll bet you're using the wrong stylus on them. Are you using the same stylus you use for LPs? You might want to look into getting the right one if you wish to enjoy 78s

In have two stylus for 78's actually, some of the older records are not standard groove. Same with speed, I have variable-speed turntable because not all are actually 78 RPM.

My point was the live recordings are poor quality; most live setups were for voice, like speeches of politicians, and not music.

Once reel2reel tape came along, that dominated recording.