Ok this is a poll but also if you want you can state your reasons why you feel the way you do. I'll start by saying and voting that yes vinyl was better than the digital formats we have; CD's and all the MP3 type stuff and related gizmo's. To me there was a better sound across the whole frequency spectrum and it just sounded better.

This is somewhat inspired by something i watched or read the other day where someone was bemoaning vinyl largely being replaced and they said something along the lines of there are areas of frequency in the original vinyl that just doesn't transfer when the albums are done on CD.

I'm not a sound engineer so i can't vouch for that but it's an intriguing thought.

PS. one area where vinyl definitely wins big is in the album artwork. Remember when you would listen to an album all the while enjoying looking at the sleeve and artwork?

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Luck won't do it and ignorance can't

George Van Eps.

I'm pretty young so I've never lived during a time when vinyl was king, but I do own a turntable and I like to collect some records. And in my opinion, nothing beats the sound of vinyl. It just has a bigger, more complete sound.

Take a short look at this article:
http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/question487.htm

The only thing I miss about vinyl records is the album art.

The first CDs that were released in the '80s were reproduced from the original analog masters, so they sounded 'dull'. The first CD I brought that really sounded great was the OOP 'The Jimi Hendrix Experience' - Live at Winterland on Rykodisc http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Live_at_Winterland.

From this CD I knew that CDs had potential, of course, than the record labels started to remaster the source material for CD's extended range.

I had close to 2000 vinyl records, many were radio 'white label' promo. I moved to a condo in Columbus OH in '90, I really didn't have room for my albums, but I kept them. In 2000, a local record collector made me a great offer for my collection. I sold them, except for my blues & Hendrix records, and replaced the vinyl records with CD versions.

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Tony Houston

I voted no. I think tape was and continues to be the best.

www.tapeop.com

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Being able to play and enjoy music is a gift that's often taken for granted.

Don't leave home without it!

Thanks for the link money4nothin! that confirms it even more for me! That's something like that thing i read someone talking about; they said there's a band of frequencies or something missing from the sound that you get on the vinyl that you can't get on the CD's/digital.

One area where CD's are better is the no crackling that you miss that you get when you put on a record.

But when you listen to an LP it's an altogether more, almost religious experience or something You put it on listen to it look at the great album sleeves and notes and then you get the joy of having to get up to change sides if you want to listen to the whole album

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Luck won't do it and ignorance can't

George Van Eps.

Ha, read this article http://www.macfh.co.uk/JavaJive/AudioVisualTV/Vinyls/VinylVsCD.html.

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Tony Houston

I vote NO - too lazy to get up and change the records

Original & interesting It's been about 30 years since i sold my reel to reel - deck ( and have often regretted it ) tho still got a good quality cassette-deck , which I use for , say an hour every second year.....

Interesting article. But I also suspect the fact , that digital recordings are suffering from too heavy compression, and thereby flattens the sound more.Getting more dull/less engaging for the listener. I've been told that the reason for that, is (besides the 'competition' of getting heard among other records/ads on radio and TV...) - is that earlier they did not want the same amount of bass , as this could lead to the pickup of the record player to jump So the earlier producers did not see a reason to raise and flatten the levels.......
Anyway- I would love to get more digital recordings w better specs -like dvd audio

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A-man

Get a Revox


http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=htt ... AA&dur=461

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Being able to play and enjoy music is a gift that's often taken for granted.

Don't leave home without it!

Nope, there is nothing I miss about cassettes, and I had hundreds of them. I don't miss them jamming or cleaning tape heads. It's the same when I recorded using reel-to-reel, not miss 'em at all.

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Tony Houston

A Revox A77 was a wet dream years ago - but I was also very satisfied with my Tandberg , the time I had it. But hence the link from money4nothin , this seems like true magic:
Quote from Mike's link:
There's something almost religious about re-recording CD versions of classic jazz and rock records back to analog tape. The result is organic - mild tape compression of the high end and a slight thickening of the bass.
End Quote.
Is this possible? Perhaps it will add some compression in the nature of recording to tape- but can it enhance the sound to get equally good (or better ) than a LP ?

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A-man

I've got many vinyl records. I personally think they sound much better (and warmer) than CDs. If I had to choose between vinyl and CD, I'll choose vinyl.

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As far as my solo record, I don't want a gold record or anything, I'm happy to be small and to have the people appreciate the music who really like me for being me.
John Frusciante

Like Mr. Houston I miss the album art and I was an avid reader of liner notes and credits. Also, I liked the free stuff you would get inside occasionally like the inserts in Sgt. Pepper or the poster and individual pics of the Beatles you got with the "White Album". Remember the giant rolling paper inside Cheech and Chong's Big Bamboo? I got a poster in a CD once. It had about 2000 folds in it.

Hated the skips, pops and scratches in vinyl. Remember worn out needles and styluses (styli?!)? Cassette tapes had hiss and Dolby® stole the highs. 8-track? Forget it . . . though I still own a machine.

I guess I like CDs best but some of the re-mastering done to classic albums is almost criminal. Beatles fans: "I Feel Fine" - All of the excitement was re-mastered out of that song.

Still, I have 350+ LPs up north in storage. I miss them.

Not so much the "vinyl" aspect specifically, but the analog recordings sound better. When you break a smooth continuous soundwave into digital bits there are portions of the original wave that are lost. Yes it's minimal and maybe you don't consciously notice it but it's there and you sense it deep down in your music loving soul.

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"Life is like eating jalapenos. What you do today may burn your arse tomorrow"

Oh yeah, I miss the pops, clicks, hiss and scratches of vinyl.

I have CD's that are over 25 years old and play like the day i bought them. Then again I handled them properly and always put them back in the jewel box. I didn't fan them out like a deck of card on the floor of my car either.