Do you Prefer Vinyl or CD for listening to music? me and my friends we're talking about this the other day, while I think most music sounds better on Vinyls, I do think that Techno sounds better on CDs.
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Do you Prefer Vinyl or CD for listening to music? me and my friends we're talking about this the other day, while I think most music sounds better on Vinyls, I do think that Techno sounds better on CDs.
I prefer CDs. You can record the sound from a vinyl on to a CD and play the CD back and it will sound remarkably similar if not indistinguishable from the original. Records are big, bulky and every single time you listen to them they degrade in quality. Putting the needle down on the disk causes a permanent "pop" type sound when played back in the future. A spec of dust causes audible problems as well. While records may sound a bit warmer, it simply is not worth the trouble that must be taken to play them back properly.
Truth be told, it is all in the mastering. Back in the early days the treble on CD versions of music was increased dramatically to give a fake "crisp and clear" sound to woo stupid people. Nowadays recordings are seriously fucked up right in the studio and it doesn't really matter what medium you listen to your music on because it will sound like ass. Watch this video to see what I mean:
CD. Although I do have a good amount of records (plus the 100+ my brother owns), I prefer CDs. We actually have this machine that burns records onto CDs, and then I just stick the music onto the computer. IMO, it's Record>CD>Mp3.
I'll listen to records sometimes, but I almost never listen to CDs unless my phone/Mp3 player is either dead, or (ATM) lost.
I doubt I can tell the difference, since mp3s to me almost always sound great, but I want to post for this Mr. Show clip
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XCumH8LRo1A
hehe
I've been very interested in this question lately myself--just asked my Dad yesterday the exact same question, since I myself missed out on the vinyl heyday, and CDs are my golden-standard, for now. The impression I've gathered so far is that vinyl is potentially better, but much depends on the quality of the equipment at all levels, and they are far more work as regards upkeep, etc: does this sound accurate in your experience, Jesse813?Quote:
Originally Posted by Jesse813
Also, forgive me, I'm not trying to hijack your thread, but if I might add: also, how do SACD & DVD-A compare to vinyl and CD? I just got my first universal player, but have yet to purchase a SACD or DVD-A disc.
Yeah a lot depends on the equipment, however its the same w/ VHS, CDs, and DVDs. as for SACD & DVD-A I haven't listened to any yet, I plan doing this soon though.
That video reminds me of DVD/theater vs. VHS/TV broadcast. DVD/theater is more like the original recording and VHS/TV is more like the "altered" version. This is fine and dandy when you watch it in a soundproof bunker, but in reality watching a DVD with a wide range of volumes is a one way ticket to pissed off parents (if you're young and watching at home), pissed off roomates/immediate neighbors (if you live in an apartment), or just generally pissed off people that don't want it to sound like the entire city block is exploding when they are doing something else. I wish DVDs had an option to listen to it in theater-style (when the environment allows for such) and TV style when sudden loud noises will get you bitched at.Quote:
Originally Posted by Joe Redifer
Ghaleon, SACD and DVD-A are still digital representations of the original audio waveform, but they are such high quality that only the very best electronic equipment could notice a difference between that and the master recording it came from. Problem is that both formats were never accepted by the public so new releases are very rare. Both formats are better than Vinyl since they do not deteriorate, but again if the master recording sounds bad, so will the SACD, etc.
They do. Dolby Digital allows for "Midnight Mode" or some such other garbage that compresses the sound so that loud sounds aren't too loud. This is compatible with any Dolby Digital soundtrack and you will find the option on most receivers that feature Dolby Digital. You don't need to select anything special from the disc itself. You just need to make sure that you are streaming the Dolby Digital code to the receiver digitally. Some DVD players may even have this mode built in to them for the analog outputs.Quote:
Originally Posted by 17daysolderthannes
Gotcha, that's why I paid the $200 for an Oppo DVD player with good upscaling and SACD/DVD-A playback, but I have yet to actually use it with a high-res audio disc, so wondering if anyone could compare and contrast among the 4 variants (vinyl, CD, SACD, DVD-A).Quote:
Originally Posted by Joe Redifer
I would add that some receivers allow you to apply some form of generic dynamic range compression, "midnight mode" or whatever they choose to call it, to any input source, even if it's not Dolby Digital with preencoded dynamic range compression info. Also, some DVD players allow you to output range-compressed analog audio, especially with Dolby Digital content that's preencoded with the range compression data.Quote:
Originally Posted by Joe Redifer
Those Oppo DVD Players are pretty good. I have one myself since I didn't want to invest in Blu-Ray.
Yeah, mine's the 981 HD, got it NIB very recently (ebay). Had a bad experience with the first one received, but the seller really came through and sent me another one. Also, I just ordered Dark Side of the Moon on SACD three minutes ago, so I'll let ya know how that turns out. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Jesse813
Keep in mind that it is likely you'll still hear some tape hiss from the original analog master recording unless they did something to remove it. However if I recall, that album was recorded as quadraphonic and I'm sure the SACD delivers on that front.
I have a few DTS 5.1 audio CDs and they are really cool.
I'm listening to a vinyl right now. I prefer Vinyl if the master is good. I prefer CD if the Vinyl master wasn't good.
Click for full size
That is true.Quote:
Originally Posted by Joe Redifer
Early CDs sounded so terrible partially to fake clarity, I am sure, but partially also because they're pulled right from the Vinyl masters which lacks almost all bass because of the limited bandwidth of vinyl (the record players reinsert the lacking bass). This additional bass in comparision to [early] CDs probably added to the reputation of Vinyl having a warmer sound.
Vinyl is incapable of storing even 22khz. The only real advantage of Vinyl is that it is analog, so 50s, 60s and 70s originals actually might sound better than a remaster with a 16-bit resolution, but starting with the early 80s everything was either recorded digitally or mixed and mastered digitally so it just doesn't matter.
What I do recommend though is 70s or 80s equipment. Even MP3s sound great via an old amp + old speakers combo.
Record players don't add the bass, the preamp that did the RIAA EQ curve did.
Look up the phono RIAA EQ curve.
EDIT: There's hardly anything in the turntable itself. Here's my turntables insides: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...turnadjust.jpg
Notice the extreme simplicity of it. The preamp does the RIAA curve, which for most, is in their receiver.
