Is vinyl still a "perfect" source?

Vinyl never was a perfect source, and we all know the vinyl bugaboos such as static buildup, tracking angle distortion, compression as the groove nears the center, etc.

I'd say a better source would be 2-channel 1/4" audio tape running at 7.5 ips or faster. But nobody makes pre-recorded analog open reel tapes any more, and even when they did, they didn't sound all that good because they used cheap noisy tape and high speed reproduction made them noisier and (I think) more compressed.

For all their faults, LPs can provide a really satisfying playback quality that communicates the emotion of the performance with ease.

As for LP versions of digital recordings, I STILL prefer the LPs over the CD versions. Digital recordings today are made at 88.2 KHz sampling or higher--up to 2.7 MHz for DSD. Many are made at 24/96 KHz or 24/192 KHz.

As Michael Fremer said, which would you rather listen to--an analog master made through a professional quality DAC at full resolution, or a CD dithered down to 16/44.1 KHz and decoded through a mass market DAC?

I can tell that digitally recorded LPs are missing a little something compared to analog-recorded LPs, but they still have more treble smoothness and more body to the melody-carrying instruments and voices than the CD version.

LPs are at their best playing back music that was recorded, mixed, and mastered in the analog realm. A CD reissue of an LP recorded between 1958 and 1985 can't hold a candle to the LP. With albums digitally recorded after about 1990, the difference between the CD and LP is closer, but I still prefer the LP.

04-07-07: Elizabeth
LP is just a "nostalgia" medium.
Things were never better than in the 'old days'.

To me, CDs and LPs are analogous to shirts made of no-iron polyester vs. 100% cotton.

The no-iron polyester is more convenient as it doesn't require prep time; you can pull the shirt from the dryer and put it on right away. The cotton shirt requires several minutes of ironing and more meticulous handling to preserve the creases and not re-introduce wrinkles before you put it on.

Polyester wearers are punished for the convenience by having to wear a polyester shirt all day, which can be scratchy, doesn't breathe well with your skin, and seems to soak up and radiate armpit stink more efficiently.

Cotton shirt wearers are rewarded for those few minutes of ironing and handling by getting to wear a soft, comfortable, breathable shirt all day long.

The point of a shirt is to wear it to look and feel good all day. The point of playing recorded media is for enjoyment and to be moved by the performance.

Records take more care, but I am rewarded with an organic, emotionally engaging sound that puts a smile on my face. CDs are more convenient, but the performances engage me only on rare occasions, and many times the digital edginess and bleached sound makes it a relief to turn the stereo down or off.

I listen to music to be moved by it. This is something that LPs do easily and often. It is something that CDs do fitfully and seldom.

04-08-07: R_f_sayles
There is still good vinyl, great vinyl, and yes, bad vinyl today as there always was BUT, again, most of the time it’s the turntable that is lacking, not the vinyl IMHO.

I'm finding this out more and more with my first TT rig in 25 years. My current TT setup is much better than anything I had in the old days, but is definitely entry-level (Technics SL1210 M5G, Shure M97xE or Ortofon OM 10) compared to a lot of the rigs you guys have.

Still, I am totally blown away by how good vinyl generally sounds. Many of the same LPs that I thought sounded mediocre in the '70s sound really good to me now, with low noise, lots of slam, deep, full bass, smooth treble, and dynamic range.

And much of the vinyl I listen to now is from the 99-cent bins at used record stores. I clean them up and they sound fine. For a sanity check, I occasionally play the LP and CD versions for my wife, and to her, "there's no comparison" (her words) in favor of the LPs.