What a surprise!

Vinyl can be that good Mark, when replayed via a decent turntable.

I'm still trying to find a digital source that floats my boat as much as good vinyl on a decent TT.  Still looking, despite having no conscious bias against digital sources (and I have at least 2 good ones)

Best regards, FT

Mark,

There are so many variables and we should be careful not to describe an individual preference as absolutely “better”, but good vinyl on a good TT is hard to beat for me.  

Regards,

Lindsay

The NDS is good, very good, but it does use rather old DAC technology.. the world has moved on... don’t get me wrong, the NDS can be exceptional, but to my ears there are alternatives that sound more enjoyable .. and I am talking electronic rather than electro mechanical alternatives 

Mark, Keep it down mate, we don't want everyone knowing

Simon-in-Suffolk posted:

The NDS is good, very good, but it does use rather old DAC technology.. the world has moved on... don’t get me wrong, the NDS can be exceptional, but to my ears there are alternatives that sound more enjoyable .. and I am talking electronic rather than electro mechanical alternatives 

like what Simon?   the hugo i guess?

Personally I really love vinyl and also really like cd, at some point I will add a streamer...

so much depends on the recording but I like the fact I can swap formats depending on my mood at the time

Oh boy,so the RP 10 I have been researching would be even better,you would think.WENGER,so the Sopras must sound good with Vinyl then?,I have only used streaming and CD/DSD disc’s in the last 30 years or so,but want to get back into Vinyl next...I do miss it...(I think).

No quarter posted:

Oh boy,so the RP 10 I have been researching would be even better,you would think.WENGER,so the Sopras must sound good with Vinyl then?,I have only used streaming and CD/DSD disc’s in the last 30 years or so,but want to get back into Vinyl next...I do miss it...(I think).

Vinyl has a unique sound which to me just sounds right , if you are thinking about the RP10, that is one seriously good tt

Hi Mark,

You obviously 'get' the sound of vinyl. Some audiophiles do and some do not. A relatively humble TT can deliver something in terms of an organic connection to the music that the finest digital sources seem not to achieve (to the ear of the believer). The really daft bit being that this can seemingly apply to digitally recorded and mixed material on vinyl. Perhaps some of us enjoy the sound of 'vinyl colouration'? Dunno.

Once acclimatised to vinyl; a digital source can sound like it's missing a vital ingredient or two of the recipe; but ............ simply - vinyl sounds different.

I, and a like minded group of audiophile friends have discovered that with a listening session, it's best to start with a digital source and then switch to vinyl, if desired. Going in the other direction can be frustrating.

I love both my digital and vinyl-replay source equipment in equal measure; enjoying the strengths of both.

John.

my nds/555dr can’t compete with my rp10, on most tracks.  I very doubt than a modern high end dac on the nds, like dcs vivaldi, chord dave or msb, will really change that.  But i want to try the dave into the nds in the next weeks.

Rega 3 does benefit from a rather good ( for a budget... with out trying to sound too snobby) arm

Chuck in a good cartridge and some great sounds come out .

J.N. posted:

Hi Mark,

 

... I love both my digital and vinyl-replay source equipment in equal measure; enjoying the strengths of both.

John. 

My goodness John, have you come over all Lib Dem for a moment? 

Thank You all for helpful and superb replies.

My thoughts are that vinyl is sooooo much better than I ever gave it credit for.

Massive thanks to Moorgate Acoustics in Sheffield for so much help with my choice of TT.

I dare not say it, but how good could vinyl sound?

Thanks

Mark

Freightliner Mark posted:

Thank You all for helpful and superb replies.

My thoughts are that vinyl is sooooo much better than I ever gave it credit for.

Massive thanks to Moorgate Acoustics in Sheffield for so much help with my choice of TT.

I dare not say it, but how good could vinyl sound?

Thanks

Mark

 

you don’t even imagine what a turntable, on the cost of the nds/ 555dr, can sound!      Unfortunately, true analog lps are not produced anymore.  So for me, invest on such a turntable to hear quite always the same lps is non sense.  Rega rp10 is enough...

French Rooster posted:

my nds/555dr can’t compete with my rp10, on most tracks.  I very doubt than a modern high end dac on the nds, like dcs vivaldi, chord dave or msb, will really change that.  But i want to try the dave into the nds in the next weeks.

I heard a MSB dac feeding 202 200 into the silly JBL 4312se (which were the purpose of the audition) and thought the whole thing sounded spectacular. NDX into the same pre-power and Revel Performa floorstanders sucked. And I blame it on the NDX, as I heard the Revels before and liked them.

rainsoothe posted:

French Rooster posted:

my nds/555dr can’t compete with my rp10, on most tracks.  I very doubt than a modern high end dac on the nds, like dcs vivaldi, chord dave or msb, will really change that.  But i want to try the dave into the nds in the next weeks.

I heard a MSB dac feeding 202 200 into the silly JBL 4312se (which were the purpose of the audition) and thought the whole thing sounded spectacular. NDX into the same pre-power and Revel Performa floorstanders sucked. And I blame it on the NDX, as I heard the Revels before and liked them.

msb are probably ones of the few best dacs on the planet.  But the prices are stratospheric ( 100 k for the top level i remember...).   

Hi Mark

I’ve just hooked up and played my, new to me, Planar 3 and I’m blown away, It sounds fantastic! My wife and I just compared a couple of tracks to Wav via the Nas and the CDX2. The vinyl spanked the rest with ease, with a much fuller, realistic, organic sound that immediately put a smile on both our faces. Digital replay sounded thin and compressed by comparison. I wonder now what can be done with the rest of my system to get it anywhere near the full fat sound of vinyl replay? A PS for my 272 and maybe some better wires might be a start.

2 new vinyl fans....welcome to the club!

Good, old, vinyl recordings to my ears can in some circumstances sound better than when digitised but not in all cases. For example the original vinyl Bridge over troubled water lp is marginally better than digital. Buddy Holly master tapes are very good on both. A number of new vinyl recordings, which I have, are mastered digital to analogue recordings so where does that leave us? Can you still get a purely new analogue recording these days that hasn't been digitally compromised? I'm not bashing digital or vinyl as I've learnt that the expertise or otherwise of of the recording engineer and perhaps the location and recording set up are far more important to music satisfaction than whether it's digital or analogue. Linn tt, Naim separates, PMC speakers. Rich 

Rich 1 posted:

Good, old, vinyl recordings to my ears can in some circumstances sound better than when digitised but not in all cases. For example the original vinyl Bridge over troubled water lp is marginally better than digital. Buddy Holly master tapes are very good on both. A number of new vinyl recordings, which I have, are mastered digital to analogue recordings so where does that leave us? Can you still get a purely new analogue recording these days that hasn't been digitally compromised? I'm not bashing digital or vinyl as I've learnt that the expertise or otherwise of of the recording engineer and perhaps the location and recording set up are far more important to music satisfaction than whether it's digital or analogue. Linn tt, Naim separates, PMC speakers. Rich 

for modern recordings, i prefer listening to digital files.   I don’t think there are, like you, pure anolog recordings nowadays.....so finally i enjoy both, streaming and vinyl, but have a preference in listening to lps for absolute pleasure in serious listening.

As a ex Vinyl and analog tape guy ....I find modern digital very enjoyable.

It doesn't have to be a Chord Hugo (although that's what I use for most of my listening - the Chord Mojo in my car)

I recently auditioned a Naim Uniti Nova, with Naim compatible speaker cable, and focal Aria speakers, the result was supremely enjoyable.....

In the next room was an LP12, and that sounded awesome too, but listening to the 2 sources back to back, I was tapping my foot with the Lp12, and I was tapping my foot with the Nova.

The Nova had me lost me the music, and almost had me doing air guitar....

Vinyl is nice but SO expensive compared to Tidal. 

French Rooster posted:

2 new vinyl fans....welcome to the club!

Plenty out there that never jumped the streaming brigade due to mediocre performance

Nothing new in this

French Rooster posted:

Freightliner Mark posted:

Thank You all for helpful and superb replies.

My thoughts are that vinyl is sooooo much better than I ever gave it credit for.

Massive thanks to Moorgate Acoustics in Sheffield for so much help with my choice of TT.

I dare not say it, but how good could vinyl sound?

Thanks

Mark

 

you don’t even imagine what a turntable, on the cost of the nds/ 555dr, can sound!      Unfortunately, true analog lps are not produced anymore.  So for me, invest on such a turntable to hear quite always the same lps is non sense.  Rega rp10 is enough...

how many blue note reissues you can buy ? 45 - 33 then 45 then 33 again....

Emre posted:

French Rooster posted:

Freightliner Mark posted:

Thank You all for helpful and superb replies.

My thoughts are that vinyl is sooooo much better than I ever gave it credit for.

Massive thanks to Moorgate Acoustics in Sheffield for so much help with my choice of TT.

I dare not say it, but how good could vinyl sound?

Thanks

Mark

 

you don’t even imagine what a turntable, on the cost of the nds/ 555dr, can sound!      Unfortunately, true analog lps are not produced anymore.  So for me, invest on such a turntable to hear quite always the same lps is non sense.  Rega rp10 is enough...

how many blue note reissues you can buy ? 45 - 33 then 45 then 33 again....

i did’t understood 45 33 then 45 then 33....?

i have some blue note reissues, but unfortunately a very small margin of the catalog is interesting me.  But the sound is very good in general, agree.

French Rooster posted:

  ...Unfortunately, true analog lps are not produced anymore...

There are still a few cutting LPs that have an all analogue chain, with no digital preview.  Check out Gearbox Records, or the Electric Recording Company as just two examples.