What is the world coming to? Vinyl outlives CDs at Best Buy.

[cpd]

Oh yeah. Cartridges, turntables, record cleaning supplies and tools; it's all there on their web site.

And its not just online. The last time I was in my local best buy, they had an entry level Sony TT in stock. No LP's by me yet (although the Barnes and Noble across the street has a pretty big selection). I still like the local record stores. That's where the fun is. Also, that's another part of the experience. Shopping for music is an enjoyable experience.

 

[cpd]

I do appreciate your thoughtful and well-reasoned responses here, and I hope you'll make more frequent appearances.

I would post much more frequently, if I didn't have to spend so much d@mn time cleaning my record collection!

 

[Swerd]

Leave that dust in place. It's vintage dust .

 

[MR.MAGOO]

My local used record stores have some gems I haven't found at BB or B&N stores.

 

[yepimonfire]

I'm a millennial and I think vinyl is stupid. Most new albums are recorded digitally anyways, even when being pressed to vinyl, and I much prefer a digital recording anyways. I've yet to hear an analog recording that sounds as sharp and clear as a digital one, sure analog has its own sound, but it's a coloration, one that sounds veiled and muddy in comparison.

I've noticed the same thing, that all of the LP buyers are young people. I like how we both refuse to say "vinyl". The proper term is LP or record album.

I'm trying hard to avoid letting this become another "those millenials" rant, but how is it that they became so misinformed? Just try to have a simple conversation about microwave ovens, plastic food containers, or vaccines with them.

I'll give credit to one nephew. He knew I have an old turntable and records and asked me what I could recommend. I told him "Don't go there". He is a film maker and knows how the resolution & convenience of digital photography & film making makes going back to analog film unthinkable. I told him how its similar when comparing digital audio to analog audio. Better resolution rules. He got it right away, no further argument.

The same nephew actually explained the fascination with "vintage" things to me. As he grew up, very few things were built well enough to last a long time. Most stuff was cheap and designed to fail early. Older things, that still survive now, are different, and have some appeal. That actually made sense to me.

So there's hope for those millenials! He even promised to get his kids vaccinated, admitting that he had, until recently, been against vaccinations too. So I won that point as well. Don't ask about microwave ovens – he still thinks they are EVIL. He refuses to drink tea or coffee made from water boiled by microwave .

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[Mikado463]

I'm a millennial and I think vinyl is stupid. Most new albums are recorded digitally anyways, even when being pressed to vinyl, and I much prefer a digital recording anyways. I've yet to hear an analog recording that sounds as sharp and clear as a digital one, sure analog has its own sound, but it's a coloration, one that sounds veiled and muddy in comparison.

How and by what means have you come to that conclusion ?

 

[panteragstk]

I'm a millennial and I think vinyl is stupid. Most new albums are recorded digitally anyways, even when being pressed to vinyl, and I much prefer a digital recording anyways. I've yet to hear an analog recording that sounds as sharp and clear as a digital one, sure analog has its own sound, but it's a coloration, one that sounds veiled and muddy in comparison.

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Am I wrong or weren't tons of early CDs (even new ones sometimes) recorded using analog equipment and then converted to "digital" when put on the CD?

 

[Irvrobinson]

Am I wrong or weren't tons of early CDs (even new ones sometimes) recorded using analog equipment and then converted to "digital" when put on the CD?

That's correct. And as member John Dyson has shown by examples, many of these early CDs were apparently made from Dolby A processed master tapes without applying the required Dolby A post-processing. However, done properly, the sound from Dolby A processing master tapes passed through an ADC and burned into a CD can be outstanding, so much so that it would be difficult to discern from an all-digital recording. Many could be effectively better than an all-digital recording, depending on the skills of the recording and mastering engineers.

 

[yepimonfire]

How and by what means have you come to that conclusion ?

The science and data to back it up, along with personal experience. Digital perfectly captures and stores the input signal, and near perfectly plays it back, and I can play a digital recording 1000x without it wearing out.

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[slipperybidness]

The science and data to back it up, along with personal experience. Digital perfectly captures and stores the input signal, and near perfectly plays it back, and I can play a digital recording 1000x without it wearing out.

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But, if the input signal was trash, then the output signal will remain trash.

I have some vinyl that sounds better on my system than the CD counterpart, but I have more CDs that sound better than the vinyl.

We tend to find that the recording and the mastering are more important to the final audio quality than the medium is.

As far as robustness, digital is the clear winner.

 

[Mikado463]

The science and data to back it up, along with personal experience. Digital perfectly captures and stores the input signal, and near perfectly plays it back, and I can play a digital recording 1000x without it wearing out.

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ahhhh, there's so much you don't know or understand kid, I don't know where to begin. To start with I doubt very much if you have even heard analog done 'right' let alone understand that the 'conceptual truths' to which you speak are not always there in the end.

 

[Alex2507]

Irv,

Please put this douche in his place so that I may be entertained this morning.

TIA,
Alex

 

[Irvrobinson]

As far as robustness, digital is the clear winner.

As far as fidelity digital is the clear winner too. But fidelity means that a bad recording or mastering still results in a bad album.

Why is it that vinyl advocates must constantly remind everyone that LPs can still sound better than poorly recorded CDs? Is anyone seriously thinking that any rational person here says that the mere act of using digital media miraculously makes a recording excellent?

 

[Mikado463]

Why is it that vinyl advocates must constantly remind everyone that LPs can still sound better than poorly recorded CDs? Is anyone seriously thinking that any rational person here says that the mere act of using digital media miraculously makes a recording excellent?

Irv, we're talkin' millennials here and your trying to be rationale ........ good luck !

 

[Irvrobinson]

Irv, we're talkin' millennials here and your trying to be rationale ........ good luck !

Good grief, Mikado, you sound like an old fuddy-duddy.

 

[Verdinut]

I agree with vinyl advocates when they say that LPs can still sound better than poorly recorded CDs. The CD medium has the advantage of a wider dynamic range than the compressed LP format, but a lot of CD recordings are done and mastered by incompetent sound engineers who put microphones too close to the recorded source and you don't hear the acoustic spaciousness of the hall.
Some record at too high levels and you get that edginess on the disc. That does not happen as frequently with pop music as with classical music where the dynamic range is wider by a great margin. As an example, on one opera recording, the dynamic range goes up to 35dB. With analog you could get away with a little saturation, but with the digital process, you have to make sure that a peak SPL does not exceed the Zero limit. Otherwise, you get distortion and there's no possibility of correcting the mistake afterwards.

 

[Verdinut]

Well, I did, expressing surprise that a retailer as mainstream as Best Buy would have an economic incentive to stock LPs but not CDs. Obviously, a really good recording on an LP played on a well-designed phonograph is going to sound better than a bad recording on a CD, or even an SACD or a Blu-ray.

I guess that BB's decision to stock only LPs is based on the fact that the greatest percentage is sold to the young generation. They want to attract that youth in the hope that they will remain faithful customers for years to come.

 

[Mikado463]

Good grief, Mikado, you sound like an old fuddy-duddy.

LOL and damn proud of it !

All kidding aside, I am and have been for years an advocate of both formats. I'm lucky enough to own a system capable of rendering both analog and digital to quality levels of playback when and where commensurate !

 

[Mikado463]

I guess that BB's decision to stock only LPs is based on the fact that the greatest percentage is sold to the young generation. They want to attract that youth in the hope that they will remain faithful customers for years to come.

LOL, I know you're only joking ......... they're 'riding the wave', nothing more.

 

[snakeeyes]

LOL, I know you're only joking ......... they're 'riding the wave', nothing more.

I wish Best Buy would focus more on getting more of the magnolia listening rooms and more speaker brands and get rid of all disc sales, Blu-ray included. Hopefully they are devoting some more space. People love the zero interest card deals. It’s the Home Depot of audio video but it could be much better. The price match there is very nice. I try not to walk in there so I don’t end up with a laptop and a tv and a refrigerator. LOL.