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The sound quality is worse, but that doesn’t mean it’s not preferable. If you listen to music with a decent dynamic range and has some breathing room, then the
by lc9er 5y ago
The sound quality is worse, but that doesn’t mean it’s not preferable. If you listen to music with a decent dynamic range and has some breathing room, then the sonic qualities of vinyl can enhance that.
The same goes for cassettes. There’s been a (small) resurgence of cassettes, mostly from heavier types of music. There’s something about the harshness and hiss to tapes that fits really well with metal and punk.
As to the collection thing - a buddy has a growing vinyl collection and a decent, mid-range stereo that he pieces together. It’s a system much like my dad put together when I was growing up. Listening to music on a real sound system that you’ve tweaked to a particular room is a far more rewarding experience than ear buds or even the best headphones.
I find headphones to be isolating and uncomfortable after a short time. And playing music from a phone speaker is dreadful.
- dbtc 5y agoI'm still not sure if I agree with McLuhan that "the medium is the message", but I think it is definitely at least part of the message. There will always be something special about a first edition, an original manuscript, and hearing music on its native media. And between headphones, phone speakers, audiophile sound systems, and live music, I choose all of them.
- KingMachiavelli 5y agoI think that playing music on real speakers and 'for the room' is the actual magic. If you put the same time and energy into just setting up a decent stereo system that works well then the medium doesn't mater.
- anyfoo 5y agoThe only reason why sound quality would be "worse" on CD than on vinyl was already mentioned: It sometimes is, or at least used to be, intentionally mastered with less dynamic range. There is no way vinyl can otherwise compete with CDs dynamic range of 96dB at up to 22kHz. But I get your point, the way a vinyl record and its player make the sound "worse" can potentially enhance the listening experience, even if a sound engineer could have applied the same effect on the audio that got put on the CD. Like a CRT screen with old video games.
- lc9er 5y ago> It sometimes is, or at least used to be, intentionally mastered with less dynamic range. Right. Agreed on this. Mastering for the particular medium is a big part of the final outcome.
- worrycue 5y ago> The sound quality is worse, but that doesn’t mean it’s not preferable. If you listen to music with a decent dynamic range and has some breathing room, then the sonic qualities of vinyl can enhance that. So it’s a lot like taking photos with Instagram filters. You are distorting the signal but you think it looks/sounds better.