Analogue-free system


I have had a TT since 1971, starting with a $99 AR table, then progressed to a couple of Thorens tables and then a SOTA Sapphire in 1984.  It was later upgraded to the vacuum platter.  With a SAEC 407 arm and Dynavector 20x2 HOMC, the sound for years was much better than any digital source I had. 
However, with the acquisition of an upgraded Oppo 103D a few years ago, less and less was I able to discern a superior sound with the TT.  Now, with the introduction of Tidal and Spotify, I find myself listening mostly to streaming music, as well as from jazz stations like KNKX and KCSM.  And of course my large CD collection.

It was the end of an era when the buyer picked up the SOTA rig this week, which has left me with a lot of fond memories of the decades I spent with the very fine analogue set up. I am perplexed that there is still so much interest in TT, but am aware that using a TT provides a more participatory audio experience than simply streaming music or storing all your music on music server.  Cheers, Whitestix
whitestix
I’m among the listen to both camp. I listened only to vinyl most of my life. I still have a turntable and a few hundred Lps. I also have a lot of great music not available on vinyl. My digital sounds great too. To each his own.
andysf,
Are you by any chance in San Francisco?  I live in Sacramento.  Let me know.

Kalili,
Regarding my Oppo, I have some thoughts.  My pal has a $4000 Modwright-upgraded Oppo CD player in a $30K system and I think it sounds as good as his TOTL VPI TT set up -- both fantastic.  He recently bought an Oppo 205D ( no idea why, maybe for its enhanced video capabilities) and we compared his Modwright Oppo to his new Oppo and neither of us could discern much of a difference in SQ.  I borrowed the Oppo 205 and compared it to my 103 in my home system and really didn't find anything remarkably different about the 205 compared to my 103. Both sounded fantastic.

I have run my Oppo directly into my Don Sachs preamp and then through various DACs, including the Schiit Gungnir and Denafrips
Ares, and the SQ was, to my ears, identical with the DAC in the loop or out of the loop.  Identical. It is possible that if i bought a $3K-$5K CD player that the SQ would improve, but I am not sure that would be a good value proposition.  If you have a significantly better CDP in mind, would be keen to know about it.    Cheers, Whitestix   
I don't have any specific recommendations for a transport but I expected the Denafrips add a bit of "charm" when paired with the Oppo. Sounds like you've got a good synergy going on in your system and shouldn't have to look for something else.
Dear @whitestix : I think you are correct on your point of view and as other gentlemans that posted here Digital is the NEW BOSS and sooner or latter we all analogue lovers will be fully digital.

I own over 7K LP´s but certainly know for sure Digital not only today outperfors it but day by day ( as cell phones/Ipad/computers. ) will be and is better when analogue can't and has not any chance ( LPs. ) to improve to the digital quality level performance.  Analog technology is fully limited when digital is way open to follow growing up.

All those posts surrounded the superiority of LP vs analogue are only a " kik's dead " that audiophiles just are denied to accept, they can't accept reality can't accept the true and that's why we read words surrounded  LPs as: involving, true to the live music, more emotional and the like.

I know that one thing is not to accept the reality and other very different thing to be stupid about.

Digital has not all that " entretainment/fun " around: shopping/choosing cartridges, tonearms, matching cartridge/tonearm, TT kind of drive, choosing mats, choosing clamps, plattforms, headshells, re-wiring, VTA, VTF, different kind of set up alignments, all the the take care to mantain clean the LP and stylus tip and everything, check up for speed stability, buy different protractors and compare in between, hundred of tests/evaluations/comparisons and of course all the analog forums over the net.
But if you  erase all that fun just gone/goes and with digital stays the MUSIC and nothing but the MUSIC.

Yes. sooner or latter my analogue hardware must goes.

Regards and enjoy the MUSIC NOT DISTORTIONS,
R.