Vinyl vs Streaming

 

nubiann

78 posts

04-05-2026 at 02:21pm 

audphile1

 

And let’s be real. This is a mostly aged (ahem) crowd whose hearing is changing, and the draw of convenience & downsizing looms large at a certain point. 

Dismissing someone because they can’t hear 18 kHz is like dismissing a photographer because they can’t see ultraviolet.
 

not quiet the same. photography is about understanding light, creating artistic composition and knowing what aperture and exposure to set to capture what you intend and keep the viewer’s focus on the right objects in the photograph. You don’t need to see in ultraviolet.

One somewhat tangential subject is that the breadth of repertoire available digitally dwarfs that on vinyl.  I listen primarily to Classical and once independent CD labels revved up we began to be able to hear thousands of composers who somehow didn’t land in the Classical Canon , and it’s further expanded with streaming.  I have read and heard that similar things have happened with other genres.  Heck, I know people that have bands as side gigs to their regular jobs that have been able to release songs that have got thousands of clicks.

I am old, had an high-end system in the 70s, Bob Carver front end, moving coil cart..beautiful Infinity speakers. It sounded incredible in that moment. Lots of time has past…got out of it….but…
5 years ago…I decided to get back in..music is something that I can still enjoy at my age…I researched heavily. Decided to go all digital..99% streaming. I made some mistakes..learned more…It’s been a fun ride. I am a separates guy. I am now using a hi-end dedicated streamer, D2D converter, R2R DAC, a tube preamp that I personally modified. LPS where ever I can. Streaming Qobuz on Roon.  I have no way of knowing how this sounds compared to vinyl (I have no records or turntable😅). It’s all about the music and I have tons at my fingertips. I smile whenever I sit down to listen or research new music.  Thanks foray the  "pondering", here!
As long as we are all having fun…that’s all that matters!

Even with digital, I find that even local digital files sound just a LITTLE better than streaming though that gap seems to have narrowed with better power filtration.

I listen to digital (mostly local digital files) about 95% of the time due to the much greater convenience factor. However, I still like the sound of (most) vinyl better and I'm starting to listen to more vinyl again after having become a mostly empty nester.

The three main sources used are parity in creating an enjoyable recorded music. Neither supersedes the other in producing music to a standard capable of encouraging long-term listening.

Added to the equation is where one is invested in their choice for a used Source/sources, and shares their thoughts on the impact being made on them, as a result of their choices made.

Some are keeping to a single source, as a maintenance of a superseded technology, or have selected multiple options from a source to be used. Another has detached from use and ownership of superseded technologies and has invested in the most relevant technology. 

The most relevant technology certainly takes up less real estate and is able to create music from a multitude of methodologies, extending beyond the home system, using devices pretty much ubiquitous to nearly all individuals, i.e., a phone + ear buds, and when in the home, with hardly any change to the methodology for using the phone. The same phone can be used with another auxiliary and reproduce the same music replays through $100K Speakers. Why would this not be promoted as a method to listen to replays of recorded music.