Gearslutz.com - View Single Post - If I can hear a guitar's depth from playing vinyl, why can't I hear it on my monitors

Kiwiburger · 3rd August 2008

And you are comparing your turntable & cd player through the same speakers?
What is your turntable?
What is your D/A?
Anything else in the equation - mixer, phono preamp?

There is a very real possibility that the vinyl mix is totally different with different reverbs etc. Very often what you think might be room mics in a mix can turn out to be artificial reverb applied later.

Vinyl in theory has the higher noise floor, lower dynamic range, and higher distortion and wow/flutter. That might add to the enjoyment of the listening experience, but generally doesn't improve the fidelity of reverb tails.

IMO it is the removal of noise and jitter that reveals reverb tails. Getting a Benchmark DAC-1 and upgrading my power amps certainly made a big difference for me. But it depends on what you are comparing with.

Make sure it isn't some simple like an out of phase cable or a mono/stereo width difference. Sometimes reducing the stereo width can increase depth: the reflections that contribute to a 'wide' sound get summed and they then contribute to making the sound more distant and often stronger.

3rd August 2008	#2
Kiwiburger Lives for gear Joined: Feb 2006 Posts: 4,075	And you are comparing your turntable & cd player through the same speakers? What is your turntable? What is your D/A? Anything else in the equation - mixer, phono preamp? There is a very real possibility that the vinyl mix is totally different with different reverbs etc. Very often what you think might be room mics in a mix can turn out to be artificial reverb applied later. Vinyl in theory has the higher noise floor, lower dynamic range, and higher distortion and wow/flutter. That might add to the enjoyment of the listening experience, but generally doesn't improve the fidelity of reverb tails. IMO it is the removal of noise and jitter that reveals reverb tails. Getting a Benchmark DAC-1 and upgrading my power amps certainly made a big difference for me. But it depends on what you are comparing with. Make sure it isn't some simple like an out of phase cable or a mono/stereo width difference. Sometimes reducing the stereo width can increase depth: the reflections that contribute to a 'wide' sound get summed and they then contribute to making the sound more distant and often stronger.