My niece is getting a record player for Christmas...I don't understand.

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[ARCHIVED THREAD] - My niece is getting a record player for Christmas...I don't understand. (Page 1 of 3)

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:16:51 PM EDT

So apparently memberberries are getting strong, and vinyl is making a come back.

I've heard the argument that old vinyl sounds better because everything was recorded in analog in a the studio, and it comes through better on vinyl.

Isn't pretty much all the new stuff recorded digitally now? I don't understand why they would want an obsolete medium? I guess you do get digital rights when you buy a vinyl album, but it seems like being nostalgic for the sake of nostalgia.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:19:20 PM EDT

[#1]

Quoted:
So apparently memberberries are getting strong, and vinyl is making a come back.

I've heard the argument that old vinyl sounds better because everything was recorded in analog in a the studio, and it comes through better on vinyl.

Isn't pretty much all the new stuff recorded digitally now? I don't understand why they would want an obsolete medium? I guess you do get digital rights when you buy a vinyl album, but it seems like being nostalgic for the sake of nostalgia.

View Quote

They have been releasing new albums on vinyl for a while now.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:21:13 PM EDT

[#2]

Our 14 y/o wanted one too, along with an old ribbon tyewriter and the hand held walkie talkies the kids had in Strange Things.

I am totally cool with the retro stuff. Was a real bitch finding new ribbons for the typewriter though.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:23:05 PM EDT

[#3]

Quote History

Quoted:
Our 14 y/o wanted one too, along with an old ribbon tyewriter and the hand held walkie talkies the kids had in Strange Things.

I am totally cool with the retro stuff. Was a real bitch finding new ribbons for the typewriter though.

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I have an old Smith Corona typewriter from about 100 years ago. It weighs like 40 lbs. It's just a decoration that we don't have out.

If my kid ever asks for an actual typewriter I'm gonna box it up and record the hilarity.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:24:38 PM EDT

[#4]

My step daughter is 14. She also wanted a record player and got one for her birthday

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:25:14 PM EDT

[#5]

Hipsters...goes with handlebar mustache.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:26:14 PM EDT

[#6]

Been seeing record players in Wal-Mart here and there for a year now at least. The first time I was like, wtf?

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:27:41 PM EDT

[#7]

I still have a record player.

Of course I grew up with records and have a sizeable collection so it's a little different than kids who've never seen them before suddenly wanting one.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:29:59 PM EDT

[#8]

I still have a bunch of records. They suck, threw the player in the garbage a few years ago.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:30:14 PM EDT

[#9]

vinyl recordings have a depth and soul to them that digital music lacks. Many showcase clubs and bands are going back to analog boards for that very reason

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:30:37 PM EDT

[#10]

Quote History

Quoted:
Hipsters...goes with handlebar mustache.

View Quote

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:30:46 PM EDT

[#11]

Quote History

Quoted:
Hipsters...goes with handlebar mustache.

View Quote

30 year old audio technology = "Hipster"

50 year old rifle design = the forum where people make fun of "Hipsters"

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:32:43 PM EDT

[#12]

Quote History

Quoted:
vinyl recordings have a depth and soul to them that digital music lacks. Many showcase clubs and bands are going back to analog boards for that very reason

View Quote

"Depth and soul" = pop and hiss? Because we can add spurious noise to digital files if you want.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:34:27 PM EDT

[#13]

I'm about as far from 'hipster' as it gets, and I just inherited my in-laws' turntable system and vinyl collection. There is a very real, noticeable difference in audio quality, especially compared to low bitrate MP3 that was the norm for CD ripping for a while.

A new needle, a good set of cans, and a mint-condition original Zeppelin album is an experience not to be missed.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:34:49 PM EDT

[#14]

Wife and I only play music on our record player. old vinyls are cheap as fuck and awesome!

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:36:09 PM EDT

[#15]

Quote History

Quoted:
vinyl recordings have a depth and soul to them that digital music lacks. Many showcase clubs and bands are going back to analog boards for that very reason

View Quote

Until a spec of dust lands on it and it start to skip, or everyone on the dance floor jumps at the same time and the needle jumps tracks.

Hell, I didn't even like CD's getting a hairline scratch on them was like the end of the world.

I'll take my audio in high res digital format on a solid state drive please. I can attach my phone to a shotgun stock, and run a 3 gun course without my tunes missing a beat.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:36:41 PM EDT

[#16]

Member when musicians made music and put it on vinyl that sounded better than, member when CDs came out and how bad they sounded to vinyl, member when Hillary almost destroyed freedom of choice, member when OP was cool.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:36:51 PM EDT

[#17]

Quote History

Quoted:
vinyl recordings have a depth and soul to them that digital music lacks. Many showcase clubs and bands are going back to analog boards for that very reason

View Quote

I haven't heard of anyone going back to analog. Which bands or clubs are doing that? I prefer analog, but the outboard gear I don't see coming back for almost anyone

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:37:13 PM EDT

[#18]

Quoted:
So apparently memberberries are getting strong, and vinyl is making a come back.

I've heard the argument that old vinyl sounds better because everything was recorded in analog in a the studio, and it comes through better on vinyl.

Isn't pretty much all the new stuff recorded digitally now? I don't understand why they would want an obsolete medium? I guess you do get digital rights when you buy a vinyl album, but it seems like being nostalgic for the sake of nostalgia.

View Quote

It's a lifestyle, bro. You either get it, or you don't.

Most recorded music is recorded in the digital domain, so one can be spinning their wheels if they don't know the provenance of the master, but this being said, crappy digital playback is ubiquitous, so one might make some games with a nicer vinyl rig, regardless of how the master was recorded.

Vinyl actually never died and it's actually stronger than it's ever been, both with the independents and with the big corporations. There are companies out there like Acoustic Sounds and Music Direct (among others) that are producing great analogue recordings and records, so quality stuff is out there.

Then there are the millions/billions of records one can find at flea markets, thrift stores, used record stores, etc.

Chris

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:38:07 PM EDT

[#19]

Quote History

Quoted:
I'm about as far from 'hipster' as it gets, and I just inherited my in-laws' turntable system and vinyl collection. There is a very real, noticeable difference in audio quality, especially compared to low bitrate MP3 that was the norm for CD ripping for a while.

A new needle, a good set of cans, and a mint-condition original Zeppelin album is an experience not to be missed.

View Quote

Even a CD is only 16 bit.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:38:34 PM EDT

[#20]

Quote History

Quoted:

30 year old audio technology = "Hipster"

50 year old rifle design = the forum where people make fun of "Hipsters"

View Quote

Yep

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:39:41 PM EDT

[#21]

I dont see the problem. Vinyl has always had a following, just a bunch of music nerds. We are the gun nerds.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:39:54 PM EDT

[#22]

If we are going to buy music might as well buy it on vinyl. It's not just that being able to pull a record out of it's sleeve, put it on and enjoy the artwork.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:41:34 PM EDT

[#23]

Quote History

Quoted:

30 year old audio technology = "Hipster"

50 year old rifle design = the forum where people make fun of "Hipsters"

View Quote View All Quotes

View All Quotes

Quote History

Quoted:

Quoted:
Hipsters...goes with handlebar mustache.

30 year old audio technology = "Hipster"

50 year old rifle design = the forum where people make fun of "Hipsters"

Sorry, 30 year old tech is CD...

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:44:38 PM EDT

[#24]

Of course I grew up with vinyl, and 8 track, and cassettes, and real to real, and CD's. I was stationed in Japan in the early 80's. Assembling extremely high quality audio systems was a thing for us. I bought my first CD player in 1983, when I was 19. We were all about the music that has become classic. 60's and 70's stuff. Music that was recorded and printed in an almost primitive way compared to today. Vinyl does not sound better than CD. Anyone who believes otherwise is a nitwit. Vinyl sounds more raw with all of it's flaws, pops, cracks and hiss. That's it. CD's give a richer, crisper, cleaner sound.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:48:50 PM EDT

[#25]

Quote History

Quoted:

Even a CD is only 16 bit.

View Quote

Actually, after throwing out the 'least significant' bit(s,) it's probably closer to 15 bits, or even 14 bits.

I've often heard kick ass digital CDPs, stacks and DACs (even owned some) and digital can be fine if done right, but the money spent on a great digital playback solution will exceed that spend on a great vinyl system, although you can go nuts on the latter.

Chris

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:49:22 PM EDT

[#26]

Modern digital music mastering is total shit. Everything is mastered loud as hell so it sounds good on cheap equipment. Vinyl FTW.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:50:34 PM EDT

[#27]

You know what else is weird?

Some guys are still in to M1 Garands and 1911s.

I even read a thread about flint locks yesterday.

FLINT LOCKS!

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:53:37 PM EDT

[#28]

Quote History

Quoted:
Of course I grew up with vinyl, and 8 track, and cassettes, and real to real, and CD's. I was stationed in Japan in the early 80's. Assembling extremely high quality audio systems was a thing for us. I bought my first CD player in 1983, when I was 19. We were all about the music that has become classic. 60's and 70's stuff. Music that was recorded and printed in an almost primitive way compared to today. Vinyl does not sound better than CD. Anyone who believes otherwise is a nitwit. Vinyl sounds more raw with all of it's flaws, pops, cracks and hiss. That's it. CD's give a richer, crisper, cleaner sound.

View Quote

Good luck finding a recording that isn't compressed to complete shit. I'm a SACD and vinyl guy. I can't stand CDs anymore.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:54:11 PM EDT

[#29]

If my kid asked for a record player for xmas I'd buy it in a heart beat.

Way cheaper than the iPhone I bought him.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:55:25 PM EDT

[#30]

Quote History

Quoted:
My step daughter is 14. She also wanted a record player and got one for her birthday

View Quote

ThatisAWESOME.
There is hope that the newest generation will play vinyl records, shift manual transmissions, wear BOOTS, Curb-STomp Communists, build bonfires and play loud music and ride in back of pickup trucks, and look back and call the baby boomers a bunch of PUSSIES.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:55:30 PM EDT

[#31]

Quote History

Quoted:
I dont see the problem. Vinyl has always had a following, just a bunch of music nerds. We are the gun nerds.

View Quote

The 1911 is outdated right?

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:55:32 PM EDT

[#32]

Quote History

Quoted:
I'm about as far from 'hipster' as it gets, and I just inherited my in-laws' turntable system and vinyl collection. There is a very real, noticeable difference in audio quality, especially compared to low bitrate MP3 that was the norm for CD ripping for a while.

View Quote

Watching low bitrate bootleg movies might be the norm for some people, but that doesn't make analog film superior to modern digital recordings.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:56:20 PM EDT

[#33]

I've never heard any vinyl that sounded better than digital. It probably does sound better than a cassette or 8 tracks used to, well maybe not a new store bought album on cassette. Of course I've never listened to vinyl on a nine thousand dollar turn table or some such shit. I think it maybe hitting the point of diminishing returns a bit once you get into that realm too though, I don't know.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:58:24 PM EDT

[#34]

I have a wind-up record player that I play sometimes. It has a unique sound.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:58:34 PM EDT

[#35]

Quote History

Quoted:
vinyl recordings have a depth and soul to them that digital music lacks. Many showcase clubs and bands are going back to analog boards for that very reason

View Quote

I spent a fortune on 1/2 speed master vinyl for my technics turntable back in the day. If I recall it was like about $24 for a master and about $10-11 for a standard pressing.

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:59:02 PM EDT

[#36]

Quote History

Quoted:
Of course I grew up with vinyl, and 8 track, and cassettes, and real to real, and CD's. I was stationed in Japan in the early 80's. Assembling extremely high quality audio systems was a thing for us. I bought my first CD player in 1983, when I was 19. We were all about the music that has become classic. 60's and 70's stuff. Music that was recorded and printed in an almost primitive way compared to today. Vinyl does not sound better than CD. Anyone who believes otherwise is a nitwit. Vinyl sounds more raw with all of it's flaws, pops, cracks and hiss. That's it. CD's give a richer, crisper, cleaner sound.

View Quote

Dynamic Range much?

Posted: 12/7/2016 2:59:28 PM EDT

[#37]

There is a place for vinyl but as for it being better than CD or digital....hahaha. It's a proven fact that digital can produce signals above and below the frequencies that vinyl has to work with. It's all in the way it is recorded not the media it is recorded on. If you like pops and hiss and you think that makes it better than digital then more power to you. Everyone likes different things. Myself, I am a CD collector.

"Vinyl Free Since 1983"

2015 Physical Media Market Share

Posted: 12/7/2016 3:01:04 PM EDT

[#38]

I listen to records a lot.

Granted, they're old records, so I have no idea how new ones sound.

Old records are definitely better than the remastered CDs.

Posted: 12/7/2016 3:03:08 PM EDT

[#39]

I want the re-release of 2112 with the holograms that spin.

Just not enough to actually buy it, and a player.

But it looks cool as fuck.

Posted: 12/7/2016 3:04:10 PM EDT

[#40]

Go price a standard digital amp and a tube amp and get back to me regarding the superiority of digital over analog.

Fucking tube amps are way outside my budget but they have a market so there must be a reason why.

Posted: 12/7/2016 3:08:13 PM EDT

[#41]

Quote History

Quoted:
There is a place for vinyl but as for it being better than CD or digital....hahaha. It's a proven fact that digital can produce signals above and below the frequencies that vinyl has to work with. It's all in the way it is recorded not the media it is recorded on. If you like pops and hiss and you think that makes it better than digital then more power to you. Everyone likes different things. Myself, I am a CD collector.

"Vinyl Free Since 1983"

2015 Physical Media Market Share

https://musicbusinessresearch.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/figure-4-the-market-share-of-different-recorded-music-formats-in-2014.jpg

View Quote

Yeah, 'Perfect Sound Forever,' I get it and owned a Revox B225 CDP back in 1985, so I was onboard early. It's not about recreating the frequency extremes, it's about chopping up and reconstructing a waveform and the quality of the digital filters being employed.

I'd be curious to know what exactly your digital set up is?

I use pretty much all of the common formats, including cassette tape and tube FM, so I'm non-partisan on the matter.

Digital is the wave...the future, no getting around that, but McShit burgers sells more hamburgers than anybody else on planet Earth, so they must be better, right?

Chris

Posted: 12/7/2016 3:11:28 PM EDT

[#42]

Most people just want vinyl again because it's trendy.

That said, in many cases, vinyl DOES sound better, but not at all for the reasons that people think. Vinyl sounds better because its inferior format doesn't permit for the massive dynamic range compression that is occurring with digital media now. The "loudness wars" have resulted in albums with overblown output levels and no dynamic range, because they're so compressed. Vinyl's format is limited in output, and because of that, they're usually mastered without that huge wall of sound, i.e. their output peaks are lower, but they're usually less compressed too.

This article explains it pretty well:
http://www.soundmattersblog.com/vinyl-vs-cd-in-the-loudness-war/

Posted: 12/7/2016 3:11:51 PM EDT

[#43]

Quote History

Quoted:
"Depth and soul" = pop and hiss? Because we can add spurious noise to digital files if you want.

View Quote

Yeah, I don't understand it.

Posted: 12/7/2016 3:13:08 PM EDT

[#44]

Quote History

Quoted:

Watching low bitrate bootleg movies might be the norm for some people, but that doesn't make analog film superior to modern digital recordings.

View Quote View All Quotes

View All Quotes

Quote History

Quoted:

Quoted:
I'm about as far from 'hipster' as it gets, and I just inherited my in-laws' turntable system and vinyl collection. There is a very real, noticeable difference in audio quality, especially compared to low bitrate MP3 that was the norm for CD ripping for a while.

Watching low bitrate bootleg movies might be the norm for some people, but that doesn't make analog film superior to modern digital recordings.

"Better" and "worse" will always be subjective. My experience with vinyl is that it's simply "more", for better and worse. To me, it's been worth the time and I think it's a person's loss if they dismiss it out of hand.

Posted: 12/7/2016 3:15:34 PM EDT

[#45]

You really can't beat the sound of vinyl.

However, to get that sound you can get into some serious coin. Some of the real vinylheads drop 10K on a freaking cartridge. And that doesn't even include the plinth, tonearm, platter, tube amp, etc. Turntables are almost like instruments themselves.

Im format neutral. I like Vinyl, CD and SACD. But there is something special about certain albums on vinyl. And it has nothing to do with hiss, hum, pops, etc.

The kids just want it because it's a fad. Audiophiles want it because it is a completely different aural experience.

Posted: 12/7/2016 3:20:41 PM EDT

[#46]

I've got a modern turntable and a bunch of vinyl.

It doesn't sound better than a good (well mastered) CD.

But it can sound essentially the same.

Nowadays sometimes I just want to relax and not have every damn thing - including listening to an album - become an I.T. problem.

Posted: 12/7/2016 3:23:39 PM EDT

[#47]

(with good equipment, that is)

Posted: 12/7/2016 3:27:09 PM EDT

[#48]

i like the idea of this younger generation asking for record players and wanting to spin vinyl. It adds some diversity to their choice of listening media and brings some responsibility. Taking care of records and such.

I say whatever floats your boat, but for those of you that have never sat down for a listening session on quality epuipment. Should try sometime. I have some MFSL records that would flat blow you away!

You'd probably change your mind about the quality.

Posted: 12/7/2016 3:27:57 PM EDT

[#49]

Quote History

Quoted:

I haven't heard of anyone going back to analog. Which bands or clubs are doing that? I prefer analog, but the outboard gear I don't see coming back for almost anyone

View Quote

Dave Grohl is big into recording on all analog equipment. He recorded some music with Zac Brown Band and others. The ZBB album was great.