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
jtcf's avatar
jtcf
1,589 posts
 
Without actually reading the study how could anyone conclude it was biased?If course CD players generally sounded pretty harsh back in the day so there's that.
geoffkait's avatar
geoffkait
23,365 posts
 
As if professional 😬 psychologists know what things affect the sound. Heck, even audiophiles don’t know all of the varibles. That’s why I say negative results of any (rpt any) audio test cannot be generalized or used as evidence, much less proof. Best to just throw those tests out. Test procedures need to be very thorough and checked by someone who knows what he’s doing. Ditto test results. Just like the big boys do. Good luck, as Bob Dylan says on the trailing wax of all of his albums. 
tomcy6's avatar
tomcy6
2,532 posts
 
Any specifics on what turntables, cd players and amps were used, which specific recordings? Those details could affect the outcome pretty significantly and I’d hate to have to throw away my cd player and solid state amp.

I can understand that if the gear was not very good, turntable and tubes would be the way to go, but I don’t think that a lower quality tube amp would satisfy most audiophiles more than a good quality solid state amp in the long run. Cd player vs turntable? I don’t think we need to go there again.
uberwaltz's avatar
uberwaltz
13,381 posts
 
Cd player vs turntable? I don’t think we need to go there again.
??
Is that not how this thread started??

😎😎
geoffkait's avatar
geoffkait
23,365 posts
 
Ooops, good catch!
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