Direct Drive vs. Idler Drive vs. Belt drive

It took me three decades as a resolute pro analog guy to find a cdp that totally satisfies me, the Eera Tentation I bought in 2014.
In the time I've owned my Eera that was likely beating my analog when it was first installed, I've taken that analog rig (Trans Fi Salvation rim drive tt w Terminator LT air tonearm and Soundsmith Straingauge cart), and abs maxxed it out (bespoke LPSs to tt motor and Straingauge energiser, SOTA Stacore Adv 93kg passive isolation platform under tt, upgraded Terminator arm, mag lev tt bearing and tt footers etc). My Eera cdp is still abs compelling as one of the few digital pieces that nails analog-like flow and tone density, but my analog rig has leapfrogged it...in terms of presence, timbral accuracy, tonal differentiation, and a heavenly combination of heft and speed...the rim drive Salvation tt is the iron fist, the Terminator air arm/Straingauge cart is the velvet glove.
I'm currently listening to the John Coltrane "Selflessness" live lp on original Impulse label, and there is so much going on in terms of transients, polyrythmns, cascading twin horns, and crashing percussion, yet despite this organised chaos, the vinyl sounds totally vital. The cd I've heard here on my Eera is more organised, but more polite and decluttered, losing energy and spirit.
I'm in the happy place of total zen calm w my cd replay after three decades cursing digital Lol...but my really well blended and executed analog front end just reveals more magic, and the bottom line is, it's more compelling in a way digital cannot match let alone exceed.

CD players miss a lot of information on the disc. Across the entire spectrum but especially noticeable in bass frequencies and treble when compared to the analog versions. Or compared to Fully tweaked CD players. Also, tonality is not Right, nor is all the air and warmth there that should be. And don’t get me started on dynamics, which are killer on many LPs and cassettes but obviously, due to Loudness Wars, are MIA on a lot of everyone’s favorite CDs. Please no angry personal messages.

As you know me I am a lover of Vinyl, at least owning 8 turntables..
I just have compared the 1971 Whisbone Ash -Argus UK pressing with the SMH Japanese Platinum CD pressing. On my dCS chain, including an atomic time module, the CD is winning the comparison. 
Best
E.

E, when you get to the best analog and digital, the differences/preferences go w masterings not formats.

My Miles Davis "Nefertiti" on Jap vinyl is so superior to cd, it's laughable.
Go to Miles "On The Corner" and my collectors box set cd is just more immersive than the vinyl.

I’ve got a couple of LP box sets of iconic recordings, by the Beatles or by Miles Davis, or by etc. Just because there is only so much time in the day, several individual LPs in these various sets have never been played. In recent weeks, because we have so little else to do, I have played some of these LPs, particularly the Miles Davis recordings on Prestige that were re-issued by Classic Records maybe 10 years ago. To my dismay some of those Classic sides are abominable. I compared the bad sounding LPs to originals on Prestige, where I own duplicates, for example “Workin’”. Old and worn though my original Prestige copy may be it kills the Classic reissue. In cases like this I far prefer digital. Too late to return that Classic box set but beware.