CD Got Absolutely Crushed By Vinyl

A $50 Pioneer DV-05 modified with six capacitors and a higher end A/C cable will beat your Technics turntable.  Just ask Oregonpapa.  My friend modifies a 21 year old DVD player with dual lasers with just some cap to improve the power supply and some other caps (about $110 in parts).  Rivals my EAR Acute which cost $6000.  I also have a $22K analog front end.  It sounds great as well.  Sure, I hated CDs until the mid-90s due to either bad CD mastering (Japan could really do great jazz CD mastering in the mid-80s even) and generally bad CD players.  I've heard many $1000-$3000 CD players that sound very musical and enjoyable, unlike the 80s and most 90s players.

geoffkait  Your CD dark matter is not a CD player but an additive tweak to remove scattered light from the laser.   It could be a phenomenal product but you still need a CD player and your tweak would be expensive for my 7000 CD collection.  I'm just pointing out that great sounding CD players don't have to cost an arm and leg like high end analog.  Also, that this 1998 DVD player modified beats all those "digital sounding" (just not equal to any analog) players I heard/had from the 1980s and early 1990s (my friend and I collected about 3 or 4 dozen players from Sony, Denon, Sharp, Marantz and a dozen other names).  Anyone want an 80's Sony or Sharp?  I'll give them to you if you pay packaging and postage.  

What does the sticky tape tabs do to reduce laser light scatter?  Does the tab have special properties?  
I use the Walker Talisman to reduce/eliminate static from CDs and LPs.  CDs show immediate improvement upon use.  
In a Steve Hoffman forum, Machina Dynamica is ridiculed as hokum.  I always thought it was an intellectual tweak parody.  

I was upset with ElizabethH highly negative comment on that forum about the Shakti sticks, I assume she is referring to the Hallographs.  The Hallographs are being used by seven of my friends and myself to GREAT advantage.  My speakers lack focus (despite their name).  For me, they focus the soundstage, widen it, enhance the imaging and depth of the soundstage.  They are my no. 1 tweak tied with Stillpoints for vibration control.  After that come Perfect Path Omega E-Mats.  

inna - Well I listen to a significant number of other poets in European languages, including much Yiddish poetry sung by great artists from the 78 rpm to LP era.

The classical instrumentalist and vocal remasterings of about 30,000 78s on my CDs sound better than I could ever achieve on my VPI 19-4/Ultracraft/Grado/Marantz 7 78 rpm front end. Heck, the last great sounding 1927-32 recordings of Eddie Lang on a CD that I heard last week were as good as it gets for those 78s unless one has mint copies and knows what e.q. was used to replicate the sound as intended.

CDs can sound FABULOUS. I know since I have an excellent analog system and a darn good CD player. I 100% disagree.  Digital sound may not be perfect, but it's sufficiently adequate for my day to day listening along with my 78s and LPs.

Okay, I found the site listing for Dark Matter CD liquid treatment and a Dark Matter CD Tray square treatment.  I assume you are referring to the top of the tray treatment then since I thought it was for the treatment per CD.  Can you instruct me as to how and where on the top of the CD tray the squares are to be placed?  There are 10 squares.  What size are they?  If they are too large, they will cover the corners of the tray too much.  Also, if I place them in the CD tray area which holds the CD, the CD will not spin as freely.  https://www.stereophile.com/content/machina-dynamic%E2%80%99s-new-product  This ad states there are 15 squares.  Why the double stick tape if it is to be placed on top of the tray?  80% coverage is indicated as optimal.  Again, how does one cover 80% of the tray with a sticky side up as well and permit the CD to spin freely?

As to colonoscopies, I have invested in MotusGi, an endoscope that does not require prep (horrible liquid consumed the day before and diet change), as it is self-irrigating and self-evacuating. It has a protective sleeve to prevent patient to patient contamination (we had an outbreak of serious bacterial infections at Cedar Sinai Med Center in Los Angeles two years ago from inadequately sterilized endoscopes). Most importantly, this FDA and EU approved new endoscope is 98% effective versus current 78% effectiveness (which may have to do with the cleanliness of the colon for the procedure).

Johnson & Johnson has a director on the BOD and I'm betting they buy the company in several years after manufacturing, marketing and distributing the endoscopes for this tiny Israeli company who have limited funding.

Geoffkait Okay, I misunderstood as I thought both sides of the square had double stick tape. It has a smooth, unsticky side which the CD rests on. Good. Also, I misspoke as to the Walker Talisman. Of course it is the magnetism problem that it alleviates as it has nothing to do with static of CD plaster or LP vinyl. I think I will try your invention. It may work. I know that eliminating stray laser light can enhance tracking ability. I’ve noticed the positive change occasionally when I use a cd edge trimmer and black sharpie (I said occasionally as I find that it is too infrequent and I really don’t want to put stress on the CD during the cutting operation).

Right, I listen to all sources other than streaming.including RR tape occassionally.  Different sources are not mutually exclusive like religion.

Prof answer is nonsense.  

I am going to buy the Dark Matter tabs.  If they don't work out, I can afford the economic loss.  I've had worse experiences purchasing "mint" condition LPs on ebay which are trashed by ignorant and/or cheating sellers.  

If it does improve the sound ala Perfect Path Omega E-Mats (which cost me a lot of moola for a dozen), then I will also buy it for my Blu-ray player for video/audio improvement.  I will also promote it as well.

I've been burned by sellers who claim near mint condition from England and the LP is good condition, filled with pops and clicks.  The seller would refund me if I paid the freight back (which would cost me for two shipments).  They threaten to give me a negative review if I return the disc.  That's not worth it.  Also, low cost LPs under $7 with $4 shipping are not worth shipping back either.  

As to CDs, I have 30,000 vocal selections and another 25,000 other historic recordings on CD which are either not available on LP or poorly transferred to LP.  The remasterings on CD that I keep are very good to superb.  

Sometimes LPs sound better than their CD remasterings and sometimes not.  I enjoy both and do not regard the CD as inferior by nature.  Only the hottest LP stamper of a well recorded and mastered LP beats the same CD.  Unfortunately, like in Rock and Jazz, those hot stampers sell for $200 to $800 ala Better Records.  I make do with slightly less than hot stampers and often the CD version sounds superior.  

I did not know that the seller could not leave negative feedback after the order was paid for.  I've been threatened twice with negative feedback after telling the seller that the record was in garbage condition (one looked fine but had one channel carved out/distorted by some reckless user and another had a 1000 pops/clicks and also looked NM).  Maybe I'll start buying a few more records on ebay again.  At least with CDs, I've never received a bad one from 1000s I've purchased from ebay and Amazon. 

I've been reading on line concerning absolute versus inverted polarity. Let's say my CDs are mostly (92%) inverted polarity. They sound great. Why? Maybe my equipment, speakers and/or CD player make polarity inversions whose end result inverts polarity. The combination of an inverted polarity CD and an inverted end result from the audio system equals absolute polarity, where two mistakes make it right. So quoted in http://www.absolutepolarity.com/   

I was just listening to Ramsey Lewis Trio "In Chicago" on CD and the bass on the left channel is constantly moving up and down horizontally, just like the LP, both mono and stereo versions.  Also, the 3D soundfield of orchestral recordings sound just like my LPs.  Who says that CDs don't reproduce the horizontal soundfield?  That's just dumb.

P.S. The 1980s CD players generally sounded just like Geoffkait described bad players, except for a few like the Kyocera 310 and 410 units which sounded lush and analoglike, lacking in the deep bass.  I have several of them which I purchased cheap 15 years ago when they were already obsolete to repair.

Yes, I meant the vertical soundfield.  My mistake.  As to depth, wow, I've got as much depth as intended by the recording engineer.  CDs can sound awesome.

I've had audiophiles over who have $850,000 and $1,000,000 systems and the former one's system stunk even though the owner only felt that it was a little bright (I would have quit listening to music is was sooo hard, bright and forward).  His jaw dropped when he heard my system.  Oregonpapa and Robert know how awesome my main audio system is (from these forums).  Oregonpapa's system is excellent too!  Our systems cream 95% of all audio store and show systems.  Until I move, I have a 5,000 cu ft room to really let my big speakers sing out.  So, when I say CDs can sound as good as analog, there's knowlegable audiophiles and music lovers who agree.  It's a thrill having people get goosebumps listening to my music.  They stay for hours and don't want to leave.  That's a system playing engaging sounding music.

It's true, audiophiles often don't know what music should sound like reproduced in a listening room but they think their systems are excellent (although look how often they change gear).  I haven't changed my components from 10 to 30 years (SME IV and VPI 19-4/Ultracraft are the longest in my system).  I use tweaks to get the most out of the equipment despite their "age."  

A Benz Ruby 3.  

Yes, Geoffkait, I don't believe my audio system is the best; however, it is among the most enjoyable.  My resolution, imaging and ambiance retrieval are not as good as many inferior systems but when taken as a whole, it is better than most audiophiles.  So many have systems in constant flux, constantly changing components.  I view my audio system as a system, carefully put together to create synergy.  

My current project is to build my new listening room in my new home.  It is a great challenge and will go against common conceptions.  I will be using carbon filters in the 12" cabinet size walls for the bass which apply to frequencies from 30 to 125 Hz, the fundamentals.  The exterior and interior finishes are to provide support for the bass.  No bass traps will be required.  Do to cost restraints, I will be using a wide frequency acoustic foam unlike most foams and geared toward the cherry plywood interior wall finish.  I hope it works.  My current room was based on traditional dual drywall, staggered stud, wide plate criteria.  Both current and future rooms will have 6" minimum engineered slab foundations.  

The new room won't have anything but seating and equipment.  My current room has 42,000 LPs/78s/CDs (in metal drawers).  So, huge difference.  I'll post the results after I move in.

I used a Tandberg 310? to make live performance cassettes when I couldn't drag me Tandberg 9100 to the site.  Although the cassettes sound good, the RR recordings were better and with much lower, unobstrusive tape hiss at 7.5 ips.  Now I have a Pioneer 1500 which I can record at 15 ips but I prefer (as do others) the convenience of the Tascam digital recorders at 96/24.  I prefer the digital recordings to the cassettes overall.  The cassettes did have a wonderful, warm sound presentation.  The digital recordings are more immediate sounding and noiseless.

Plus, I keep mentioning the fantastic historic performance reissues on labels such as Marston at bargain prices for rare recordings in great sound, better than I can achieve on my 78 rpm set up.

CD is not a dead format.  Many great remasterings are happening and have happened in the past few years.  I keep finding superior sounding recent reissues of Jazz and Classical on Amazon at great prices.  E.g. Monteux's famous RCA Sleeping Beauty recording.  I have 3 vinyl issues, including a 1s/1s but the bass is not the best and the vinyl pressings are not quiet, hurting the delicate parts of the music.  The recent Australian Eloquence release, while missing a touch of ambiance (could be from being a 60 year old tape) has superior bass and is nearly totally quiet background.  A great CD release.  I've found that the Eloquence series sounds better than most Decca CD reissues  E.G. all of the Albert Wolff recordings.

Yes, I spent the equivalent of $22K, a VPI TNT VI plus, modified SME IV, Benz Ruby 3, Townsend Seismic Sink, Audio Interface SUT and phono pre-amp.   My CD players cost $6K (EAR Acute) and $150 (mod. Pioneer DVD D-05).   Plus additional ICs and A/C cabling.  Vinyl often better than equivalent CD but 90% of CDs sound great versus 20% of vinyl (I have many U.S. pressings of Angel and Columbia labels, (all inferior to CD remasterings) for instance.  .