- Joined
- Feb 10, 2021
- Messages
- 679
- Likes
- 377
R2R is insanely expensive and it is even if it's in production as a mainstream thing. The reels obviously would sound better but only to one or two generations. And again, insanely expensive to copy and there is a limit on how many time you can play these old tapes back.I finally got myself into the vinyl game. I bought a turntable and a few records to start. I began with low expectations but it still managed to disappoint. Am I missing something?
It was a $500 turntable with >65db SNR and <0.1% wow and flutter. I suppose a high-end turntable could beat these specs but I doubt any can manage >90db SINAD. I also doubt any turntable can eliminate all the pops and crackles.
- No matter how careful I tried to clean the record, there were still pops and crackles throughout the playback
- I could hear the noise floor on the speakers
- The sound felt heavily colored
- The dynamic range felt highly compressed
How can anyone take vinyl seriously in this day and age? I doubt even the best equipment can beat the $7 Apple dongle.
In the meantime, I am going to keep the vinyl hobby for therapeutic purposes. It forces me to tolerate imperfections and be present. I cannot fall asleep or it will just go on and on. Nor can I skip tracks I dislike.
I wonder why R2R tapes are not more popular than vinyl for retro-coolness. I have heard DSD files transferred from analog tapes and they sounded awesome. I am sure tapes (e.g. 15 ips) can be damn good. Alas, I have no space for more equipment. I will stick with digital for serious listening and vinyl for meditation.
If you did not enjoy records as a youth, you will not enjoy them now. People who love vinyl are often mostly remembering the experience of music in their younger years when music was more interactive and more social. You listened to albums, not songs. You looked at the cover and the liner notes were a size where you could read them.
I love Tidal and the way I can find great sounding music for $20 month in better fidelity than I get off of my lps. LPs just sound more alive to me.
TL/dr: The cracks and hiss (not wow and flutter, eliminate that, lighten the cartridge load somehow) are part of it. Clicks too.
If you're short on space vinyl is not recommended. Then it's going to feel claustrophobic. I live in a house for the first time and we have enough room that I can spread out my system a little. But for summer my a/b power amp goes in the closet and the class D comes out.