Pass DIY Addict
Joined 2000
Paid Member
...who indulged me and encouraged me to get a turntable and to build a nice preamp to go with it! 
For a few months now, I have been happily listening to albums from my youth and have been having tons of fun buying albums on the cheap at the local flea market. I am holding each and every one of you accountable for my newfound disgust with CD and all other forms of digital music
Tonight, I finally got around to cuing up one of my albums along with the same title on CD. I adjusted the output level of my CD player (it has both fixed and variable outputs) to match that of my Pearl 2 phono stage, and sat down for a listen. The obvious and clear conclusion: that CD sounded terrible! Vocals were recessed, treble was missing, ... I could go on, but you know what I'm talking about. I thought "perhaps it was just that CD that sounded so terrible," so I cued up a few more, synchronized them, adjusted output levels, and found more of the same...
It is also fairly common for us to have music on in the background while things are going on around the house. Mostly, this is in the form of SiriusXM. We've had it for years, but since I've acquired my turntable, I've been spinning a few albums each evening while my wife is upstairs getting the girls ready for bed. Increasingly, I have been having an adverse reaction to switching from albums back to the satellite before choosing something to watch for the evening. More and more, the MP3 streaming satellite radio just sounds terrible! But it goes far beyond recessed vocals and missing treble, it just sounds horribly gritty and distorted.
So, I just wanted to say:
Thanks!
For a few months now, I have been happily listening to albums from my youth and have been having tons of fun buying albums on the cheap at the local flea market. I am holding each and every one of you accountable for my newfound disgust with CD and all other forms of digital music
Tonight, I finally got around to cuing up one of my albums along with the same title on CD. I adjusted the output level of my CD player (it has both fixed and variable outputs) to match that of my Pearl 2 phono stage, and sat down for a listen. The obvious and clear conclusion: that CD sounded terrible! Vocals were recessed, treble was missing, ... I could go on, but you know what I'm talking about. I thought "perhaps it was just that CD that sounded so terrible," so I cued up a few more, synchronized them, adjusted output levels, and found more of the same...
It is also fairly common for us to have music on in the background while things are going on around the house. Mostly, this is in the form of SiriusXM. We've had it for years, but since I've acquired my turntable, I've been spinning a few albums each evening while my wife is upstairs getting the girls ready for bed. Increasingly, I have been having an adverse reaction to switching from albums back to the satellite before choosing something to watch for the evening. More and more, the MP3 streaming satellite radio just sounds terrible! But it goes far beyond recessed vocals and missing treble, it just sounds horribly gritty and distorted.
So, I just wanted to say:
Thanks!
Last edited:
Didn't you know, digital audio is perfect? It's the gross flaws in analog that are so appealing.
Your enjoyment is imaginary!
Even worse than Sirius/XM is Apple Music. They sucked all the life out of it. Even my wife wanted me to turn it off because it sounded bad.
And my experience: I've owned the same Rega Planar 3 for almost 30 years now, and only recently decided to maybe upgrade it a bit using my bonus money, and only a small fraction of it. My wife was against the idea, because our records are in such horrible shape after going through a flooded basement. I put on a new cartridge, an Ortofon Quintet Blue mc, added the Tangospinner subplatter, belt and pulley, and added a Spin Clean, and was absolutely floored by the sound. I have put on Pandora once, Spotify maybe 3 times, and just recently tried Apple Music. I have NOT put on a CD or anything from my personal digital collection since February, even my hi-res! It just doesn't compare. I have a DVD-A of DSOTM that is the Alan Parsons quad version, a very nice recording, but the album just blows it away. And I can play everything LOUD without looking for the remote to turn it down (my system doesn't really have a remote).
Enjoy the ride! Oh, and get a Spin Clean. It isn't the last word on record cleaning but it is much better than doing nothing.
And my experience: I've owned the same Rega Planar 3 for almost 30 years now, and only recently decided to maybe upgrade it a bit using my bonus money, and only a small fraction of it. My wife was against the idea, because our records are in such horrible shape after going through a flooded basement. I put on a new cartridge, an Ortofon Quintet Blue mc, added the Tangospinner subplatter, belt and pulley, and added a Spin Clean, and was absolutely floored by the sound. I have put on Pandora once, Spotify maybe 3 times, and just recently tried Apple Music. I have NOT put on a CD or anything from my personal digital collection since February, even my hi-res! It just doesn't compare. I have a DVD-A of DSOTM that is the Alan Parsons quad version, a very nice recording, but the album just blows it away. And I can play everything LOUD without looking for the remote to turn it down (my system doesn't really have a remote).
Enjoy the ride! Oh, and get a Spin Clean. It isn't the last word on record cleaning but it is much better than doing nothing.
Pass DIY Addict
Joined 2000
Paid Member
zacster: I'm using an SL-1200 with a AudioTechnica 150MLX MM cartridge, though I haven't gotten around to a tonearm rewire yet (current capacitance is about 350pF). I did get a Spin Clean and was quite shocked by the amount of debris that came from on 15-20 albums! Not perfect, but nothing hits the table without being cleaned first.
abraxalito: My CD player is clearly not the greatest, but is of reasonable quality. Its an Adcom GCD700. I have an external DAC for it that provides more warmth and three dimensionality than the built-in DAC, but still doesn't retrieve treble detail that the turn table does.
abraxalito: My CD player is clearly not the greatest, but is of reasonable quality. Its an Adcom GCD700. I have an external DAC for it that provides more warmth and three dimensionality than the built-in DAC, but still doesn't retrieve treble detail that the turn table does.
Attachments
Pass DIY Addict
Joined 2000
Paid Member
Perhaps the DAC is part of the challenge. Excluding the *very* small audience of people in forums like this, my digital playback chain is superior to 99.999% (just a guess here, but with the number of MP3 streaming devices out there, I don't think I'm very far off) of what the rest of the world uses. And a 30 year old turn table with a phono stage that costs less than a cheap DAC blows it away.
True. Digital audio is more perfect, analog audio is more appealing.
Your enjoyment is imaginary!
Not true. There's no imaginary enjoyment. You can enjoy having perfect audio system, you can enjoy listening to music, all is REAL
Is analogue more appealing because it has more resolution combined with it's flaws and the flaws are overlooked or an added attraction? I believe so!
Most people have not heard a decent(or exceptional) analogue setup for proper comparison. I know several people that have converted from CD to LP after some listening experience with a LP setup like mine.
Most people have not heard a decent(or exceptional) analogue setup for proper comparison. I know several people that have converted from CD to LP after some listening experience with a LP setup like mine.
Last edited:
I've been playing records for 50 years, and the flaws are not an added attraction.
jeff
Didn't you know, digital audio is perfect? It's the gross flaws in analog that are so appealing.
Your enjoyment is imaginary!
Same with amplification. PPM specs are all that matter. Tubes and minimal Class A transistor circuits that sound better are illusory as well.
Not for me either. I don't notice, or I'm not concerned with any of the flaws.
Last edited:
Eric,
your 30 year old turntable cost some $475 in these parts at the time it was manufactured.
In present value, makes about $1750. With a cartridge added, $2k.
If serial manufactured, your phono stage would carry at least a thousand dollar price tag.
$3000 is hardly comparable to a cheap dac/cdp.
I have a CD, which sounded horrible on loudspeakers (>$1000) I built myself.
Through Quad 63's, it's sound quality was orders better.
With my current dac/transport it's even better.
(thank you for the curse invite, rare treat)
Last edited:
I prefer digital music.
I went through my vinyl phase in 1970-ish.
I always had trouble with vinyl skipping tracks or getting stuck in the same groove.
Then I built my own disco in 1980. Trying to play vinyl with 100 people dancing close to the decks was almost impossible. They weren't always stages available.
I now just play from my own pc DJ software into a USB DAC and it sounds great.
I went through my vinyl phase in 1970-ish.
I always had trouble with vinyl skipping tracks or getting stuck in the same groove.
Then I built my own disco in 1980. Trying to play vinyl with 100 people dancing close to the decks was almost impossible. They weren't always stages available.
I now just play from my own pc DJ software into a USB DAC and it sounds great.
Richard Marsh dumped his LP's in favor of HD downloads combined with a really good DAC
I heard a few of these downloads with a Grant Fidelity Dac - It was amazing and the DAC is not likely as good as some others so it's a positive start..
HD downloads are in my radar but not ready to spend the money..
I heard a few of these downloads with a Grant Fidelity Dac - It was amazing and the DAC is not likely as good as some others so it's a positive start..
HD downloads are in my radar but not ready to spend the money..
Pass DIY Addict
Joined 2000
Paid Member
Jacco,
Your analysis is more accurate than my original account. I was looking at the situation in terms of my current out of pocket expenses rather than considering the time value of money and the value of DIY efforts. In terms of dollars spent, my digital playback chain cost me more than my analog chain. My DAC is an Audio GD, so yes, it is sigma delta based, though an improvement over the already nice Burr Brown DAC in my CD player.
Your analysis is more accurate than my original account. I was looking at the situation in terms of my current out of pocket expenses rather than considering the time value of money and the value of DIY efforts. In terms of dollars spent, my digital playback chain cost me more than my analog chain. My DAC is an Audio GD, so yes, it is sigma delta based, though an improvement over the already nice Burr Brown DAC in my CD player.
I think that you are cursed when you grew up on turntable era
I'm so happy with sd card player and dac, never have any intension to try those old turntable, only because i grew in the 90s and my ears never liked any song recorded before my era.
i think that you're enjoyment is more like 'nostalgia', same as i do when i already have built good audio gear now. listening to the music when i grew up is so enjoyfull, because i listened to them using cassette player hehe
I'm so happy with sd card player and dac, never have any intension to try those old turntable, only because i grew in the 90s and my ears never liked any song recorded before my era.
i think that you're enjoyment is more like 'nostalgia', same as i do when i already have built good audio gear now. listening to the music when i grew up is so enjoyfull, because i listened to them using cassette player hehe
- Status
- This old topic is closed. If you want to reopen this topic, contact a moderator using the "Report Post" button.