Analogue comeback [LWN.net]

Analogue comeback

Posted Sep 2, 2011 5:21 UTC (Fri) by eru (subscriber, #2753)
Parent article: Catching up with Calibre

... despite the fact that there is still something special about those old analog platters. ...

Curiously, where I live (Helsinki), vinyl record players have made a comeback in the electronics departments of ordinary supermarkets, after an absence of decades. The main difference is these new ones have USB ports and can digitize whatever is played. New vinyl records are also again available in ordinary stores. A passing fad, or people getting tired of digitalization?

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Analogue comeback

Posted Sep 2, 2011 8:36 UTC (Fri) by fandom (subscriber, #4028) [Link]

It's happening here in Spain too, lately supermakets have added a vinyl section and a couple weeks ago it was reported that vinyl is now the fastest growing music format in the USA Some people tell me they sound better than CDs, but I am afraid my ears aren't good enough to notice.

Analogue comeback

Posted Sep 2, 2011 15:58 UTC (Fri) by bronson (subscriber, #4806) [Link]

This is often true but it has very little to do with the physical medium. Modern CDs are notorious for being mastered with the dynamic range squished and loudness pushed past clipping. That makes it sound more impressive on an ipod with stock headphones or in a car with road noise but produces irritating artifacts on decent stereos.

LPs, because DJs won't stand for these shenanigans, are almost always mastered properly. CDs mastered in the 80s are also usually fine, which is why you sometimes see such insane prices on used Rolling Stones discs.

Analogue comeback

Posted Sep 4, 2011 23:45 UTC (Sun) by foom (subscriber, #14868) [Link]

It's really too bad that more car radios don't have a dynamic range compression knob. I often listen to music in the car, and it's basically impossible to hear correctly mastered CDs...