Digital is getting more exciting every year, getting closer to ... live music.
Even one of the most vocal digital nay-sayers, Fremer, has had a gradual turnaround in recent years. Likely not that he has "changed his mind", but that digital is just getting better. He recently gave an "11" in SQ to a vinyl that was sourced from hi-rez digital. And the last several vinyl reviews he doesn't even bother to say if the disc was cut from analog tape or digital file.Digital is getting more exciting every year, getting closer to ... live music.
for the last 2 hours i've been listening to the 45rpm vinyl and digital files of the Janaki Trio album 'Debut' on Yarlung. as i mentioned i have the 45rpm vinyl pressing, as well the Quad dsd download sourced from that tape. before i listened i investigated the recording, and found that there was not only an analog tape source tape for this recording, but also a 176/24 digital master from the same mic feed. so i searched for what downloads were out there, and HD Tracks had an 88/24 download sourced from the 176/24 master. so i went ahead and purchased and downloaded that one. then when i finished downloading it and went to play it, i saw i also have a 16/44 redbook file (of undetermined provenance) of the first track (Penderecki String Trio, Movement 1) too on my server. unknown whether this file contains any HDCD info, or whether my MSB dac would pay any attention to it if it did.
so i have; (1)--tape sourced 45rpm vinyl, (2)--tape sourced Quad dsd, (3)--176/24 sourced 88/24, and (4)---16/44 file from i presume the 176/24 master likely by way of a rip of the commercial CD.
https://www.yarlungrecords.com/product/janaki-string-trio-viny
https://yarlungrecords.nativedsd.com/albums/janaki
http://www.hdtracks.com/debut
since the redbook rip was only of the 7:17 first track (Penderecki String Trio, Movement 1), and in the interest of time, i have only compared that track. it was easy with the digtial to switch back and forth between the 3 different resolutions in Roon. my MSB dac only works in 'bit-perfect', so the dac plays the native resolution and does not up-sample.
i like this music, and enjoy this recording. i'd call it classical mood music, and parts of it challenge the casual listener. it's a piece that might satisfy more on the second or third listen as you get in touch with it's soul. not so much pretty as dark, brooding and intense. maybe 10 years ago it would have been too grown up for me. now it hit's the spot mostly.
the redbook sounds good and dynamically alive and natural sounding. then you play the 88/24 and everything is noticeably better. the redbook comparatively is a bit rough and transients are slightly blurred. the musical focus, harmonics and overtones are more 'there' with the 88/24, more delicacy and 'touch', musical action is more delineated. not a huge difference, but on a recording like this its musically important. is this redbook file as good as the CD? don't know. likely is.....but not 100%. the 88/24 seems to flow better and the sense it's a recording is less. the QUAD dsd is more different than the 88/24 than better or worse. the QUAD dsd is tape sourced, and is maybe more human sounding, but possibly not quite as 'vivid' in some ways as the 88/24. my system 'likes' both of those versions. the Quad dsd version has more space and slightly more decay and ambiance. i'd say some systems might have more synergy with one or the other.
the 88/24 file has over 1 hour of music, whereas the QUAD dsd file is only like the 45 rpm, 28 minutes. so if you are not sure which to get, that might make more sense.
what about the vinyl?
in this particular case, in my particular system, to my particular ears, it's not very close. the vinyl is like a different recording. with the vinyl the recording becomes an event. all sorts of higher degrees of things happen all at once. the musical equation and emotional involvement is much higher. this type music has a tension and sense of projection of energy that while present in the 88/24 and Quad dsd, get unleashed with the vinyl. the sense of being in the room, with more air around the instruments and that air having an organic weight is much more evident. harmonics and decay become more like reality.
i'd say the vinyl has more 'swagger'.
that's how my Sunday morning has gone so far........
Can I ask you a question - If he said he preferred vinyl would you still be questioning his preference?No, no, no. I would never tell somebody that what he prefers is wrong. (In a subjective hobby there is no objective “right.”) I believe I never do that. I do not believe I did that here.
I simply am trying to understand the basis for his preference, and I asked him questions to analyze the motivations driving that preference.
Can I ask you a question - If he said he preferred vinyl would you still be questioning his preference?
Funny but true, digital owners are laughing all the way to the bank. Prove us wrong.
Unfortunately many analogers have too much money tied up in their analog equipment, which limits their willingness to accept they can get better sound from digital at half the cost of their analog investment.
How much is a full tilt SOTA analog vinyl setup cost vs digital?
100 pct vs 20 pct or less....
Remember the killer in this hobby is the last 2 pct.
I disagree but we both have opinions with different skills and experiences.it depends on your expectations.
but just on the performance side of things above a certain point of vinyl investment no amount of money spent on digital is going to look the best vinyl fully in the eye.
but not all would agree. just how it looks from my perspective as one who has tried to get digital as close as possible without limits.
and this has nothing to do with the last 2 percent. other than room optimization might only represent 2% of your investment but might make worlds of difference in performance assuming the room is fundamentally sound to begin with. but with gear, unfortunately....2%....is merely...2%. no free stuff.
. . . the killer in this hobby is the last 2 pct.
Digital has or will equal analog.
Btw I think 200k on a SOTA vinyl setup is closer to reality.
follow the money. there is no economic driver to make that happen. unless it's a byproduct of advances in electronic gaming or another tech industry. certainly the music industry has zero interest in that. consumers are not asking for it. current hirez formats have been in place for 20 years now, and nothing new is on the horizon.
Point #2: you can spend as much as you want on vinyl, no doubt. but at $75k intelligently spent, vinyl easily rises above any digital when playing the better pressings. and at $100k the gap gets wider......and so on.
YMMV, just my 2 cents.