Turntable got absolutely crushed by CD


Long story short, i've just brought home a VPI classic 1 mounted with a Zu-Denon DL103 on JMW Memorial 10.5 with the appropriate heavier counterweight. Had everything dialed in..perfect azimuth, VTF, overhang, with only a slightly higher than perfect VTA. Levelling checked. All good. 

I did a comparison between the VPI and my Esoteric X03SE and it's not even close. The Esoteric completely crushes the VPI in all regards. The level of treble refinement, air, decay, soundstage depth and width, seperation, tonality, overall coherence is just a simply a league above from what I'm hearing from the VPI. The only area the VPI seems to be better at is bass weight, but not by much. 

I'm honestly quite dumbfounded here. I've always believed that analogue should be superior to digital. I know the Esoteric is a much pricier item but the VPI classic is supposed to be a very good turntable and shouldn't be a slouch either. At this point I feel like I should give up on analogue playback and invest further in digital. 

Has anyone had a similar experience comparing the best of digital to a very good analogue setup?

Equipment:
Esoteric X03SE 
VPI Classic, JMW Memorial 10.5, Zu-DL103
Accuphase C200L
Accuphase P600
AR 90 speakers

Test Record/CD:
Sarah McLachlan - Surfacing (Redbook vs MOV 180g reissue)



chadsort
fleschlerThank You for the hot tip. 7000 CDs is not bad at all.  Happy Listening!
Dear friends: This thread as some others ones shows the wide/big diversity of opinions or audio references or way of thinking on each one of us something like a Babel’s Tower and is impossible to have a true agreegment between 5-6 gentlemans.

We are in an audio analog forum and analog and digital we use it to listen MUSIC but on all this thread no one of us speak about MUSIC, no one speaks why digital or why LPs preferences against near field live MUSIC as a reference. Many not even has a refrence or the reference is other LP or other CD. The reference almost all of us have has nothing to do with live MUSIC at near field position.

If we can’t understand or even not experienced live MUSIC seated at near field position then our way of thinking always be and will be: " that’s what I like it " and we are and been not MUSIC lovers but only " sound " lovers that means almost nothing ! but the ones that like " sound ".

Digital and LP/analog technologies are only the " media " to really enjoy MUSIC not only to just listen " sound ". Of course that some of us only target is to listen " sound "  with out care about the Sound of MUSIC.

Both technologies has its own trade-offs and like many of you I enjoy digital an analog.

The OP thread tittle is rigth: digital crushed analog with out doubt and not because I said or say that but because exist facts behind the digital superiority against so many analog trade-offs facts.

Yes, I love the art work in the LPs but this fact makes no MUSIC, I like R2R analog " sound " but is imperfect and inferior to digital, I like what surrounded the analog experience at home but I like it not for make " sound " but to stay nearer to the near field live MUSIC always.

The digital and analog recording proccess are not exactly the same as are way different the digital and analog playback overall proccess.

If we try to understand  those digital and analog recording/playback proccess then all of we could speak more or less the same language that’s the live MUSIC language and not only speak of sound.

Reading through this thread many of us have some kind of misunderstood on all those proccess and we speak according to those misunderstood of facts.
Example: LP’s samples never are " original " and faaway from been " Original master recording " but a copy of. Digital always is the master not a copy.

Seems to me that even that we are in an analog forum our targets are way different and not always related with near field live MUSIC experiences and nothing wrong with that because it’s a privilege for each one of us to decide about.

In the latest years my main target is to stay truer to the recording that permit me to stay nearer to the near field live MUSIC.

Today my room/audio system is not just a hooby but a lot something " else " something more than a hooby because MUSIC is an important part of overall way of life.

Regards and enjoy the MUSIC NOT DISTORTIONS,
R.




Btw, some one said in the thread that the ones that likes digital are " stupid ", well then I'm " stupid " and so what?. That person is less stupid because dislike digital? . Maybe the other way around, ignorance/poor knowledge levels always exist.

R.
I agree rauliruegas. I like both when they recorded and mastered correctly.

When I record a chamber group and choirs, I use a near field technique. When I record an orchestra, I use a mid-field technique but close to row 3 through 7. I do not place mics above the orchestra 10’ like so many current recording engineers do.

I do not record in the Yarlung recording method which is so amophous sounding compared to the classic Decca, Living Stereo and Living Presence techniques.  Yarlung records deep into a hall and way above the musicians heads.  Yuk.  But they do master what they've recorded well (especially Steve Hoffman work).

I once considered CDs inferior sounding, until about 1995 when I acquired higher end CD playback equipment. By 2005, I fell in love with well mastered CD sound as much as LPs..
Music heritage recorded in analog, mastered in analog and released in analog has much longer history. That was the one and only standard for all recordings made in the golden age. Fact? Yes

When anyone is talking about Digital, claimed is better than Analog you’re talking about recordings made in the beggining of the digital era and til the presend day. You’re all agree that digital in the 80’s and digital today is not the same quality, there is an improvement in modern digital standards. Fact ? Yes

When we’re talking about fidelity we don’t want our analog source (decent records from the 70s) to be digitally remastered for some reason other than to sell them again in digital format by the labels, claimed they are even better.

I am sure there is no problem in modern music originally recorded in digital in top quality and released in digital. This is fine!

But when you’re talking about music heritage such as amazing albums recorded 40-50 years ago in analog and release originally on vinyl, i hope you understand that this is much better than a digital copy?

So please don’t mix together new digital music that you can copy with no loss in fidelity and analog heritage (recorded prior to digital era in ) that is better to have on original source as vinyl (or tape if you will ever find it).

Personally i don’t need a digital copy of whatever quality, made from the analog album recorded in analog in 1969, if i can buy an original vinyl. Digital reissue is always inferior compared to a decent original vinyl. 

-In my opinion digital is for new music recorded digitally in the digital era. 
-Analog is for music heritage recorded in analog at least 40 years ago. 

P.S. For some reason many modern live bands make their recordings in analog on mastertape using vintage studio equipment. Even in music industry analog is not replaced by digital even in 2018.