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Vinyl playback - lack of bass?

Alright, hopefully this isn't a dumb question.

I split my audio listening between analog and digital. Both setups use the same preamp/amp/speakers etc. I noticed that when listening to records, there isn't as much pronounced bass vs lets say when listening to tidal/qobuz. I'm wondering if its my phono that might have a lack of bass? or is it because my cartridge hasn't fully broken in yet? For fun , I connected my sub when I switched to side 2 yesterday, it helped pronounce the bass a bit more as I elevated the volume on the sub. But nothing crazy. but was decent enough. 

Besides that, everything sounds fantastic and great on LP vs digital. Also, to mention, lately have been playing some older original rock records. I should try popping in a newer record for fun to see if it makes a difference (most likely not analog sourced of course). or I can try the new Black Sabbath Rhino release.

Setup - analog - rega p6 w/ ania cartridge (only 30 hours on the cartridge so far). Phono - Moon 310lp. 

Digital - moon 280d mind2 w/ dac

Rest - Preamp Moon 740p, amp pass labs x250.8 , speakers Sonus Faber Olympica III 

 

skads_187
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ericba's avatar
ericba
153 posts
 

Fully agree with @lewn. Not related to digital vs analog IMHO. Your set up is very good. Likely the Rega with Ania cartridge lacks what you are looking for. I bought a Rega P10 last year and was very disappointed , notably because of the lack of bass compared to my older Heybrook TT2 with a Hana SL. Sold it to someone who had a P6 with an Ania cartridge who was finding his P6 too bright. Now have a Linn LP12 /Arko with a Pure Fidelity Stratos and it is a fantastic match with great detail and punch.

chayro
3,092 posts
 

IMO, 30 hours on a cartridge is barely broken in. Reevaluate after about 50 hours running near the high end of the VTF. I think my current cart sounded best at about 100 hours, but I’m not positive about that.  Also, sometimes the table can be very sensitive to what it sits on. Experiment with platforms

jasonbourne71's avatar
jasonbourne71
1,869 posts
 

Bass on LP's is often summed to avoid cartridge tracking problems. Witness the early pressings of Led Zeppelin II where Bob Ludwig had to re-cut the lacquers. Cheap cartridges couldn't track the bass modulations.

tomrk
159 posts
 

I always assumed the bass was not as pronounced on vinyl because of the physical limitations of a plastic disk having grooves that have to satisfy the both the high end and low end of the spectrum (isn’t that why the RIAA curve was used?).

And yes, digital recordings if they were mastered to be pure digital can get down to inaudible frequencies that you just feel.  It becomes more pronounced if you use subwoofers.   Since I have the cutover frequency of my subwoofers at 50hz, I generally don’t hear anything from them with either analog or analog digitized, unless the material has been remastered.  

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