2. analog
  3. 140184-113812

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
cleeds
2,065 posts
 
iamhe

A digital recording takes snapshots of the analog signal at a certain rate (for CDs it is 44,100 times per second) and measures each snapshot with a certain accuracy ...  This means that, by definition, a digital recording is not capturing the complete sound wave. It is approximating it with a series of steps. Some sounds that have very quick transitions, such as a drum beat or a trumpet's tone, will be distorted because they change too quickly for the sample rate.

While this seems intuitively true, it is actually completely false, demonstrably so. See this.

A vinyl record has a groove carved into it that mirrors the original sound's waveform. This means that no information is lost.
But information is lost. That's easy to prove. Ask anyone who has ever made their own recording and then had an LP pressed from it.

Not to nitpick, but a groove is not "carved" into an LP. It is stamped. Only the master lacquer can be considered to be "carved."

I'm a vinyl guy, so I hesitate to correct these errors. But it's important to understand what LP gets right, and where it has limitations.
glupson
1,794 posts
 

chakster,


One more thing. If it is fun you are in this for, and I believe you are and you should be, exploring digital may be a good idea. Give it a chance. You can keep your analog everything and start playing with digital. More toys you might have not even thought of. You, basically, double the fun and that is really fun.

iamhe
31 posts
 
glupson:

Thank you.  I enjoy both platforms to include streaming Pandora.  My current vinyl collection is pretty limited because I believe older vinyl tends to sound better.  For me the comparison between any format is relevant because it drive technology forward.  However that does not nessasarly negate the inherent qualities of older technology and perhaps to build on it. 
Post removed 
biketech60
35 posts
 
Regarding vinyl records - They are all dirty until properly cleaned with a fine Record Cleaning Machine and only then can you tell the sound quality . Recently I've discovered the finest lubricant that also improves the ability of the stylus to get what's in the vinyl grooves and eliminates static build-up .
As others have pointed out , there are higher quality components in every category , including records themselves . CD's can sound marvelous and are more convenient . Play what you prefer .
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