Analog vs digital sound

Is it possible to get a digital system to sound like a turntable?

[tubefreeeasy]

I remember hearing the clicks and pops of my albums. Years later, I’d give the same albums a spin and remember those clicks and pops.

[spacemissing]

When I bought my first CD player in late 1987 (a Sony D10, which I still have),
the growth of my record collection began to slow down and it eventually stopped.
CDs sounded somewhere between the same as records and much better, depending on the album title.
Only some years later did I start buying records again, not new stuff, but old, used stuff,
to learn more about what I liked and dislked without having to spend a lot of money.
I will never have a system without a turntable, but I will use a CD player a Lot more often for critical listening.

[telefoneification]

it's amazing how among the vinyl fanatics you can always find someone who has switched from CD to vinyl and the half-cheap system sounds so much better. cd always sounds really bad in these stories.
If the system sounds so bad, the reason is not in the source (digital always sounds bad syndrome)
ok, I'm a long-time CD listener who also listens to vinyl, and both sides have their advantages.

[nathanevans]

If you want a dac that sounds more "analogue" I'd recommend going for something that uses R2R rather than the more common delta sigma chips.

[andrewfurst]

Well-mastered CDs played on a decent CD player or CD transport/DAC combination will sound clearer and more accurate than well-mastered vinyl LPs. The bells, cymbals, and other sharp edges of the music will stand out more on the CD, though not everyone likes that (I do).

CDs also don't have the surface noise that vinyl LPs often have, or can develop over time (minor scratches). I grew up with LPs, and they were great because that's all we had. LPs are very "fiddly" though. I was constantly adjusting the anti-skate and the cartridge weighting, for best sound and equal tracking of both channels. I would use the "Discwasher" brush and fluid (we eventually learned that a combination of alcohol and distilled water worked just as well, at a fraction of the price) to get the LP nicely prepared for play. And then, we had maybe 20 minutes of music before having to flip the LP over and prepare the other side for play.

As Paul says, vinyl sounds "different". It's often a warm comfy sound, where voices and other midrange sounds may sound great, but the rest seems slightly suppressed or murky. Frankly if someone finds vinyl to sound "much better" than a well-mastered CD, my feeling is that they don't have the right speakers/amp/DAC/etc. for their hearing and their preferences. The same goes for solid state vs. tubes, IMO. Some people like distortion or the suppression of reality, and that's fine.

It would be great if digital/solid state systems allowed the user to experiment with the controlled introduction of distortion to suit their listening preferences (some do, to some extent), but counting on vinyl (and/or tube) systems to hit the right level of euphonic distortion is random at best.

Personally I prefer CDs and solid state to the smearing of vinyl and tubes. I like speakers with AMT tweeters, for the undistorted truth. But I'm older and maybe my ears are doing the "pleasant rounding-off" now, so I can't guarantee that a 20 year old wouldn't prefer vinyl and tubes to my system.

[JDavidG.]

I grew up on vinyl. I like all three; vinyl, cd & streaming formats. They all are satisfactory and each has their place. My first Kenwood cd player could pause, repeat, shuffle and had a great s/n ration. Still one of my favorite cd's is Earl Klugh's Soda Fountain Shuffle. Now, I stream before any vinyl purchase due to the price. I don't take near as many "chances" like I used to.

[Douglas_Blake_]

The biggest difference between CD and Vinyl is not digital vs analog ... it is in the way the two are mastered. CDs tend to be more compressed and often are limited to an inch of incomprehensibility. They are driven so hard that if they used those techniques on vinyl the record would skip.

I've transcoded vinyl to digital files and the result sounds exactly the same either way. It's not the medium, it's the guys twiddling the knobs on the mastering consoles.

[jos]

Paul is a great 😊 gentleman! I love his informative short videos!

[sbodid]

I love the fact that you recommend your products! It means that you believe in what you are producing. I have over 400 albums, and probably as many CD's, but I grew up listening to LPs, so it is my preferred media. I recently got back into listening to my albums instead of streaming from my iTunes account and I can say that I enjoy it much more. Thanks for your expertise, and I hope you keep up the great work.

[martinbishop]

Sensible question, both formats (CD & Vinyl) have their strong points. Vinyl has a warmer sound and CD is more detailed and dynamic. Both are preferable to streaming!😃

[kittycatuser]

In 2023, in engineering, in every form of science, in the leading edge of high tech technology, in the entire recording industry, digital is the gold standard.
The only place people are clinging to analogue technology is with vinyl records.

Are they fun to collect and play and hunt for? Of course they are. Are they a romantic trip down memory lane? Of course they are. Do people Lovvvve collecting them? Hell yes. Do some people prefer the sound of records over Hi Res digital? Yes.

Does warmer mean better? Head out to any live musical performance, any genre of music, and tell me how warm the sound was. IT ISN'T.

I have a pretty serious German table and lots of great records and I love playing them but when I want to turn the lights off and relax and hear deep into a musical performance, it's my digital front end every time.

All who prefer how records sound, play them and enjoy them. But when push comes to shove, the cream of the crop of recording engineers, sound mixers and mastering engineers will tell you the closest thing they have ever heard to an actual mater tape or master file, is hi res digital.

[Channel-cmyc]

Paul you are part of great bunch of people out there in the audiophile business. Your experience and knowledge are greatly appreciated!!! Your company and its products part of an excellent range of choices out there. 👍👍

[MrSplit]

Mr. Paul, thank you! Nice video! And you have a point: we are always looking for the best… this or that, which is better. But in this case truth is that they sound different ! ❤😊 AND: you have the right to praise your products!

[carminedesanto]

GM ☕️from Toronto.
The only qualifier I’ve had regarding sources and how a system sounds if it’s good ..of if YOU like it .
Great video 👍

[watchnut]

As much as I try to love digital, and I have a PS Audio DAC, analog just sounds right, particularly vinyl and tubes!

[ironsienna]

To me, reference DACs, like Weiss MEDEA+ or MEDUS have always sounded better than vinyl. They are keeping the organic nature of vinyl and at the same time, they have better dynamic range and micro detail. Also, the soundstage can be as deep and wide or even better than analogue.

[artyfhartie]

Paul, I am watching your video in full analog and the dulcet tones of your voice sound velvety and warm and natural. Not thin and tinny at all like on digital system.

[jkunz]

I wonder if the tiny NYC apartment he was referring to was Steve Gutenberg's?

[Projacked]

I would advise a tube-preamp in combo with the dac, for this guy.

[soulshinobi]

You don't have to justify anything Paul, we know that you do what you do because you love it as much as we do.