Interesting Article

Czarivey is right. The implication is that something is not right with your setup. True we do have filters but these only operate within reason. I often check the noise levels during silent passages on popular & classical discs listening for nothing but the noise and it invariably proves unintrusive.

Not to cause offence, ironically, the worst T/T demo I've ever heard was the VPI Classic (!!) It was a fully tricked up model with peripheral clamp, JMW Memorial etc. with a Transfiguration cart.
The Dealer had pre-cleaned 2 albums 4 times each and the result was the most nightmarish surface-noise-from-Hell experience you've ever witnessed. Persistent and continuous, the bangs & cracks were LOUD! You couldn't ignore or filter them any more than if someone was slapping your ear every half-second.

Prior to the demo they'd tried 2 other brand new pressings. Again, each had been cleaned 4 times on a VPI 17.5 to no avail.
There were a lot of people in the room and every one of them, being analogue enthusiasts, maintained a dignified composure but you could feel the discomfort at the embarrassing severity of the problem. If you had been a digital enthusiast this would have been the worst possible introduction to analogue.
While all this was going on, privately I longed to be playing bashed up 2nd hand (noiseless) vinyl back home on my own system. Trashy old 2nd hand LPs sounded like a shining beacon of demonstration-quality audio compared with this stuff.
That was 2 hrs of my life that I'll never get back. :(

Contrast this with my most recent experience of new vinyl. An album sealed and stored in a cupboard for nearly 2 years, probably saturated with MRA, played straight from the bag without cleaning but displayed noiseless and "inky black" backgrounds throughout (paying attention, not "filtering", and checking these factors was the specific object of the experiment BTW because I expected to have to clean it).
Peaks also tracked perfectly ;^)
My 40+ year old (uncleaned) vinyl gives the same experience.
What am I doing wrong?

It is a fact that poorly designed or optimised phono stages can exaggerate/stretch the duration of noise pulses from the vinyl. So can turntables under the wrong conditions. Static in a low humidity environment can also be a factor whether you use a zerostat or not.
My comments are not intended as a rebuke or a defence of analogue playback but more an expression of disbelief. :(

BTW Dweller, you mentioned problems with new vinyl specifically and that people don't know how to make LPs anymore? I should warn you that certain LPs that have expressed/exuded a surfeit of MRA will sound exactly the way that you described. It may not be the embedded problem that you think it is?
If the MRA is then successfully removed using a power cleanser you will be treated to a 100% silent disc...that tracks properly on peaks.

Just a thought....

Dear Dweller,
I can probably save you the wait by way of example...

At the invitation of a friend, a while back, I bought a "True_HD" BD copy of the Rolling Stones "Grrr" (60 track compilation of their greatest hits) and for fun I compared it with a bashed up 2nd hand copy of "Rolled Gold" (40 track compilation).
Bearing in mind that the BD was probably derived from "original masters" whilst the LP compilation was from a secondary master, the vinyl versions were easily and noticeably more rewarding, and dare I say "live" sounding and involving, than the state-of-the-art digital offering.
I'm always intrigued enough to test new developments but sad to say it didn't satisfy.

Given your age & experience it's highly likely that under the same conditions you'd have drawn the same conclusion as I did (in fact my 23 yr old daughter would have drawn that conclusion even though she hasn't got the slightest interest in audio ;^)

Given the hype and the level of expectation I found it hard to believe but given a choice I'd ignore the BD completely and run any old vinyl instead - even an old compilation album. I'm not the only one who found the BD too sterile, sanitised and uninvolving. (I think that included digital enthusiasts who preferred earlier SACD versions!)

FWIW I don't think there is anything fundamentally wrong with digital recording as a medium, just that the results (usually) seem totally inconsistent with it's capability i.e. indifferent mastering or the current condition of those master tapes?
As they say, there are no easy routes to musical satisfaction (pardon the pun) when you are dealing with classic material. Most often the best way to jump into an audio "time machine" is to obtain copies of the original LPs.

As a matter of fact, 5 or 6 months ago, a close friend told me he had already been treated, purely by chance, to an early demo and was very impressed.
He claimed he hadn't heard anything this good since analogue...

I'm a tiny bit sceptical. With Meridian it probably won't be just a case of offering media. Their recent headphone amp is an example where they are trying to ambisonically render signals in a manner that is more palatable to the listener. Nothing wrong with that but it is nevertheless, artificial?
The beauty of LPs is that there are no tricks or DSP up the sleeves. They are what they are. They can often deliver from 2 channels what it takes DSP systems 4 to 7 channels to create.
By all means check out the "Meridian experience" - as I would myself - but my point is (for those who have an established collection dating back to the 60s or 70s) : why ditch perfectly satisfying "media" for media that may not satisfy you and cost additional/serious dollar investment in the process?

I take it you have no actual connection with Meridian? ;^)

Apologies, it was a light-hearted suggestion. ;^)

I had visions of Meridian reviving Philips original marketing strategy of getting the punters to focus on noise rather than the music.
I think the analogue enthusiasts that are left are far too sophisticated and informed to be fooled by that one.

The other half of their target market is of course the Digiphile...who already claim to be happy with digital as it stands.
First impressions I get from the grapevine is that many digiphiles are cynical and sceptical about MQA in the extreme. I think they've been stung too many times with the latest new fad. They look like they've made their decision already. :(

Speaking of Peter Cook & Dudley Moore... ;^)

If you can get hold of a rare curiosity of an album called "Consequences" (the full 3-LP set) you'll witness a work of genius. Peter Cook does all the voices in the drama with the exception of the receptionist and Mrs Stapleton, from Jewish accent to posh inebriate lawyer. It's a grower so the full magnitude won't hit you until you've heard it a few times.
"Quote :
Cool Voiced Receptionist : "Mr Hague, may I have the rest of the afternoon off? My niece is on fire..."
Hague (inebriate lawyer) : "Alright (muttering) same bloody excuses every time..."
It was true btw! There was a global disaster going on outside! :D

The musical background is analogous to one of those massive oil paintings with a cast of thousands. If you were to snapshot one tiny bit of it there is always an incredible wealth of detail, sound effect, and subtle musical accompaniment going on in the background at occasionally near inaudible levels.
So, it'll come in handy that you've proved you're able to play older albums without interference ;^)
All the best,

Ghosthouse, you must have blinked. It's all explained here... ;^)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consequences_(Godley_%26_Creme_album)

Cheers,

:) :)
...or not...the system has rationalised the link and given a full list!

From the list shown scroll down to the "Consequences Album" which will hyper-link you to the correct page.
(might even be quicker to google Wiki yourself!)

If you read some of the production notes, you'll see references to how they did the burial scene. I think someone in the studio mentioned that they were actually shovelling "rubble", not sand, down the studio stairs.

When you look at the lengths they went to when "mechanically" simulating the sound of a saxophone, we ask ourselves, "why didn't they just use a saxophone?"
It was probably because they didn't want to compromise the purity of their original intent in fully exploiting the "gizmotron".