Some thoughts about digital vs vinyl. God knows I enjoy holding an LP cover in my hands while listening to music, checking out the album art, reading the recording info on the back. With digital downloads one is lucky to get even a small reproduction of the front cover art (SACDs do give full reproductions of the LP info, so one has something to hold on to). Digital downloads also fail, in most cases, to provide info on the derivation of the files... upsampling from CDs? remastering from the original master tapes if a reissue? If from a studio digital recording, is the download at the same resolution?
Digital downloads from small recording companies often provide this info. DSD256 recordings are the current rage, with other digital formats derived from this recording resolution. And small companies do provide a pdf of "album notes" and cover art.
New recordings are now often released on vinyl. And there are many reissues now available on new vinyl. However, most new recordings are originally digital. And LP reissues are often from master tapes (or safety tapes) transferred first to digital, then remastered for vinyl release. But where are releases from those digital masters? I want those... I don't want digital masters on vinyl. Seems like the vinyl release is just a filter, a further generation from the original.
Maybe people prefer the sound of vinyl, even if from a digital master. Fine, personal preference... but the vinyl is a bump down, and really an analog filter, from the digital master.
And both formats have other issues. Even with $100K (and higher!) vinyl playback system, it's still friction, a hoe through a furrow (OK, a bit of an extreme metaphor). Eventually noise, clicks and pops, are unavoidable.
But then with digital files, the music is endlessly manipulatable. The loudness wars of the last 20 years are an example of that. Music overly compressed, no air (dynamic range) and almost unlistenable (the ears revolt). I have a number of plugins in my DAW that can do this manipulation. Or make a recording sound like something from the 1930's... Restraint is the most valuable quality of a digital mastering engineer.
I suspect I'll have more to say, or say it differently, in future posts.
