Jump to content

CD's or Vinyl


BlackSabbath73

Recommended Posts

  • Replies 58
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

BS73...I recommend you listen to the albums on a turntable if for not any other reason than to just experience what your mom and dad listened to back when they were your age.

I still have a huge lot of albums and they were meticulously kept. It included my purchasing anti-static sleeves where the album was placed and then into it's original paper sleeve and finally placed into the album cover. Unfortunately most folks didn't go through the extremes like I did but then again I didn't know back then that I would be replacing them with CD's.

There is no question CD's sound better than vinyl (regardless of whether analog or digital is better).

PS - Prior to vinyl records they were made of a product very similiar to glassware. If you dropped your album it would shatter into pieces. My mom still has plenty of these albums from the 40's and all in good shape (mostly 78's). Her earliest record she found at some garage sale many years ago.....a 1908 recording of Enrico Caruso.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Digital is not better than analog. You can't compare a VHS which runs slow as hell with a DVD that spins so fast. Just like you can't compare a record with a CD. A more fair comparison would be with a studio reel to reel recorder which goes faster and is of much better quality. As I mentioned before, is cheaper to make digital media and equipment. Analog media and equipment for the end user does not give it justice. Digital is simply much more convenient and more easily mass produced.

It has nothing to do with how fast something spins, it has to do with how mechanical the contact between the media and the media reading device is. There are NO mechanical contacts between a CD/DVD and the reader (the laser). The reason CD's get scratched is because no one seems to understand how to handle them. People will wear surgical gloves to handle their records but use sand paper to clean their CD's. And yes, digital is better than analog because there are less mechanical parts to wear out and there is NO contact between media devices.

Digital is not easy to produce as there is so much that goes into it that the majority of the people here wouldn't understand. I used to do consumer electronics repair, an analog circuit is 10 times less complex than a digital one but 5 times harder to repair because of all the moving parts. Analog devices have limitations when it comes to their ability to reproduce the most accurate quality sound/picture; digital does not have these limitations.

The whole point of comparing CD's to Vinyl is because they carry the same type of media that consumer's can purchase. That and the question was raised as to which is better. And reel to reel is no better than vinyl or cassette or even 8-track.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

alright lets see here

It has nothing to do with how fast something spins

Yes it does. Why do you think CDs spin so fast? Is not so they look futuristic. The faster it goes, the more information can be read at a period of time, the more info, the better it will sound. Just like a picture with higher resolution looks better than another one with a lower one. Same reason 45rpm records sound better than 33rpm. This is a fact.

it has to do with how mechanical the contact between the media and the media reading device is

That's why I said this: "The huge advantage of digital is that sound won't decay no matter how much you play it." The sound of a brand new reel of tape on a clean head will not suffer from the contact. Only after repeated play it will suffer. Digital can technically last for ever.

And yes, digital is better than analog because there are less mechanical parts to wear out and there is NO contact between media devices.

The question is what you mean by better. Is it the sound or convenience and longetivity.

Digital is not easy to produce as there is so much that goes into it that the majority of the people here wouldn't understand.

My father apraised many pressing facilities and I've seen how they are made. Is mass production at it's best.

I used to do consumer electronics repair, an analog circuit is 10 times less complex than a digital one but 5 times harder to repair because of all the moving parts.

Again the question above and that doesn't make you an audiophile.

Analog devices have limitations when it comes to their ability to reproduce the most accurate quality sound/picture; digital does not have these limitations. The whole point of comparing CD's to Vinyl is because they carry the same type of media that consumer's can purchase. That and the question was raised as to which is better.

Maybe products intended for the end user, not for professional use. And again: is all about convenience.

And reel to reel is no better than vinyl or cassette or even 8-track.

Better by miles.

I love CD's. I can play them as many times I want without worrying about sound loss. Plus the skipping, size and the ability to easily make copies of it. That doesn't mean digital sound is better than analog.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You Canadians are getting screwed. I can't imagine paying more than $15 on average per CD. I'm guessing you buy mostly online...?

yeah right. I dont buy the 25 buck ones

I might get them for Christmas... I usually buy the cheapest I can get. Some old ones are like 7.99, most of them I buy are between 10-15 bucks.

BTW Canadian money is less than American.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

alright lets see here

Yes it does. Why do you think CDs spin so fast? Is not so they look futuristic. The faster it goes, the more information can be read at a period of time, the more info, the better it will sound. Just like a picture with higher resolution looks better than another one with a lower one. Same reason 45rpm records sound better than 33rpm. This is a fact.

That's why I said this: "The huge advantage of digital is that sound won't decay no matter how much you play it." The sound of a brand new reel of tape on a clean head will not suffer from the contact. Only after repeated play it will suffer. Digital can technically last for ever.

The question is what you mean by better. Is it the sound or convenience and longetivity.

My father apraised many pressing facilities and I've seen how they are made. Is mass production at it's best.

Again the question above and that doesn't make you an audiophile.

Maybe products intended for the end user, not for professional use. And again: is all about convenience.

Better by miles.

I love CD's. I can play them as many times I want without worrying about sound loss. Plus the skipping, size and the ability to easily make copies of it. That doesn't mean digital sound is better than analog.

You completely misunderstood everything I said. Quality when comparing analog to digital has nothing to do with speed. It has to do with how the media is read. There is nothing more than that. Analog is mechanical, digital is not. That is where the quality comparison is. If you knew how to read a schematic and break down a digital circuit into all of it's functions, you would see it's not as simple as you think. Mass producing a CD is only a fraction of what goes into producing quality sound from a CD. I've been in the electronics production industry for 7 1/2 years and posses an electronics degree, don't argue electronic theory with me.

And by the way, CD's spin fast because of the fact they are recorded as a complex serial bit stream that must be put back together in order to make a sound. Where as a record is recorded as sounds that are converted to magnetic fluctuations picked up by the needle and amplified so that the sound can be heard.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have never heard a record but have heard that they have a much deeper and defined sound then cd's do.

What people usually say is that vinyl sounds warmer than a CD. There is a reason for this. Much of the high frequency, 10k-20k hertz can't be captured or replayed using vinyl. Played at the same volume levels you must turn up the volume on the vinyl to reach the same decible levels as CDs. What you effectively have done is to increase the midrange and bass of the recording. If you like that sound, just take your CD, turn down the treble or higher frequencys on your equalizer and then turn up the overall volume. I spent ten years listening to vinyl then switched in '85 when CD players finally became affordable. I have never missed it. The comments on ease of track selection also matter but the dynamic range and lack of background noise are much more important. Unless you are a DJ I would say not to waste your money or your time. Also, anytime you play a vinyl record you wear away a small portion of the information on it. So unless they are to be used only as collectors pieces, you will be slowely ruining every album you play, every time you play it. CDs do wear out but that is due to oxidation, not to wear. And finally, you can't play vinyl in your car.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Where as a record is recorded as sounds that are converted to magnetic fluctuations picked up by the needle and amplified so that the sound can be heard.

It's actually like how when you are driving and bumps in the road produce a sound as your car hits them. Cassette tapes have to do with magnetic fluctuations whereas vinyl albums have to do with the vibration of the stylus as it passes over bumps in the grooves of the record. Each time you play the vinyl record these bumps are worn down slightly which is a drag if you play something a lot. You will lose sound quality over time. I could stick to the politically correct line I have taken in my two posts to this thread but why.

Vinyl sucks compared to CDs. Unless you are a DJ don't bother.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

But I feel cooler listening to a Vinyl. CDs are for people to lazy to get up and flip the record over.

Oh, absolutely! Yesterday we bought a new turntable (used one, they´re hard to find nowadays... but a good one...) I heard "Broken English" (M.Faithfull) first and it was... DEEP! It sounds cooler, it´s like the old german amplifiers and not that japanese sound... high and sharp... anyways, cd might be better, but vynil is so cousy...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

how about laser disc players for cars?

and talking about amps. Remmember the old vacuum tube ones? When I was like 15 or so my dad gave me his old reel to reel player with the matching tube amp and speakers. I used to plug my guitar into the amp, unplug the speaker, turn the volume all the way to 10, and connect the amp to my old stereo (not in that order :laughing:). To this day I still can't get that same exact sound that I remmember like if I was hearing it now. Of course I eventually blew the hell out of those tubes :(

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Please sign in to comment

You will be able to leave a comment after signing in



Sign In Now

×
×
  • Create New...