Comments on: Is vinyl really better?

By: delphic

delphic — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 01:31:13 +0000

Aside from the ubiquitous vinyl v. digital debate, one also needs to consider the ego/status/pride that comes with a really kick ass vinyl collection. Digital media allows almost any DJ, producer, or music fan to acquire a vast collection of tracks. As a DJ, I am proud of my various classic white labels and hidden treasures found during epic digging sessions and hold high respect for any fellow DJ with an awe inspiring crate.

Of course, this is a VERY academic question. If you compare a modern record and CD on a 20,000 watt sound system in a modern club (where most producers want their music heard), any quality questions will be eliminated by reverb, feedback, echo, and any other distortion from room shape, size, etc.

By: Shadus

Shadus — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 21:11:43 +0000

A lot of the difference between vinyl and cd format is simply the loudness war. If you get a modernly produced cd and modern vinyl there is only minor “warmth” differences, but compare vinyl mastered prior to the worst effects of the loudness war and the same song remastered today and you’ll notice the quality is absolutely crap on the newer version.

By: Kid A

Kid A — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 16:44:09 +0000

Jason, the reason that digital can’t sound like vinyl is because of sample rates. CD has a standard sample rate of 44.1 kHz, meaning that it can record frequencies up to 22,050 Hz. This seems to work well, since even the best of human ears can hear only up to 20,000 Hz. All of the other frequencies above that are either lost in recording, or if recorded, discarded during mastering.

Vinyl isn’t the same way. All of those frequencies (pleasant even-order harmonics) are still present on the medium after mastering. Even though we can’t hear them, they interact with the frequencies we can hear, so we sense it as warmer.

Most major albums today are recorded at higher sample rates than 44.1 so that vinyl can be mastered from it, and then the CD release can be downsampled from the master.

By: Sid

Sid — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 01:48:05 +0000

I don’t know if vinyl is any better than CDs, but theory says that it’s more accurate in playing-back what was supposed to be recorded. CDs involve discretization of sound in the process, which costs in accuracy in playback.

If you want to add “analog circuitry warmth” to the sound, you can do so, no matter what the recording medium is, and the listener will be able to tell the difference.

I think that this whole dispute has to do with people who got used to listening to vinyl of older times and got used to “its warmth”, not because it’s vinyl, but because of the standard hardware and techniques that were used in recordings back then.
E.g. no matter how good a studio is, there is always a little reverb and a little “studio noise” to the recorded sound. Our ears are so used to it, they pick it up subconscioussly, and they can tell when it’s not there. Likewise, certain amplifiers have a distinct sound, and there are plugins nowadays which try to emulate it.
What I’m saying is that, if you’re producing exclusively on a computer, these characteristics won’t be there, unless you account for them.

To conclude, the vinyl can be made to sound like a cd, and the cd can be made to sound like vinyl. Today, it’s merely a matter of artistic taste/creativity.

By: Sally

Sally — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 08:42:02 +0000

Hi,

just wondering if anyone knew if you could still put music onto vinyls, as in own mixes and such…please please get back to me! thanks

By: jason

jason — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 23:01:41 +0000

Can’t hi-fi manufacturers add a DSP option that ‘vinylizes’ the ‘clean’ digital sound? The signal could have distortion added to re-create the ‘warmth’. This would keep everyone happy!!

By: Dr. Vega

Dr. Vega — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 21:41:11 +0000

I have CDs, I have sound files on my computer and I have vinyl. People seem to be more impressed when I put a record on. I get “oohs and wow’s.” I have a few friends that are way into vinyl, they have tons and they mix and perform. Most of the company I have over are not music junkies, so to them the vinyl sounds smooth, new, crisp.

I like a vinyl record better then a CD, any day of the week. I just own way more CDs then vinyl.

I hope to one day break all of my cd’s.

By: sam

sam — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 17:33:46 +0000

i agree with nathan, the satisfaction you recieve from the actual touch of the vinyl to get it in time is much more rewarding that tapping a button in time to the music. also i find that with more bassline-y stuff nothing beats vinyls as the distortion is what makes the bass…clean it all up on a cdj and it just sounds like the perfect grid and abolishes all the emotion from the tracks.
pc mixing is not always a bad thing. i saw benga skream and artwork (dubstep artists) play live using cubase on macs and it was just as impressive, if not more so cos they were using the orginal productions. still people who call themselves djs and have never owned are pair of decks should be shot. its not impressive if a trained monkey could do it.

By: nathan (no jokes lol)

nathan (no jokes lol) — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 00:46:52 +0000

you have more options with cd’s but i guess its hard to let go of the vinyl that you learned with, plus, you can get more pride out of a nice mix you did with vinyl, as in with cd’s its so much easier that you dont get as much pride out of your work.
I think every one should learn on vinyl and then add one or two cd decks to theyr set. but I’m 100% against mixing from your pc.

By: origin

origin — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 00:17:39 +0000

This is always an interesting conversation, but I have a point that is rarely discussed when this topic arises.

Better or Worse is a bit tough to quantify when you are talking about comparing digital media (CD, mp3, etc) to an analog medium like vinyl records. They are created using two totally different processes. CDs & Mp3s are made by digitally converting the master file to either CDDA or mp3 formats. Putting a stereo audio file onto vinyl is often a process in which the the music is processed through a multitude of analog compressors, EQ, etc to ensure maximum sound quality and level. This processing is a major part of the vinyl sound, so it is important to remember that comparing a recording of a song on vinyl to that same song on a digital medium is not a particularly useful task. In my own experiences with putting original music on vinyl, I find that I prefer the sound of my music on vinyl. That said, I also am a fan of the fat, “Analog” sound, so someone who enjoys a cleaner sound may prefer a digital recording medium.

-origin