I like to listen to music. There is always music playing at our house. But one subset of listening to music that I hold especially dear is playing records. Sure, I have loads of CD’s and truth be told most of the music I actually listen to these days comes from outer space via satellite radio. But what I really enjoy is playing records. I know that there are folks out there who are fairly passionate about promoting or defending their various viewpoints about which is better digital or vinyl. I don’t want to be one of those people. I think it’s a bit of a fool’s errand to compare the formats in any case. It’s a bit like asking what is better; a climb at Squamish or a climb at Red Rocks.
The techies can argue back and forth all day about waveforms and sampling rates, and sampling accuracy, and digital to analog conversion and dynamic headroom and such. Discussions ensue about how the original recordings can be mastered differently depending on if they are bound for CD or vinyl. And then there are the people that will point to other factors being way more impactful on the quality of the sound you hear such as your choice of loudspeakers and your listening room configuration. And yes they are all correct to some extent; all of that is important to sound quality. But there are other factors at play here.
You don’t dance to just get to the other side of the floor.
-Unknown
These factors have really nothing to do with technology, but with philosophy. Short of actually playing your own music, listening to records provides a more intimate and personal connection to the audio. It’s not so much about performance as it is about the whole experience it engenders. In this day and age of instant gratification, it is an experience to which the person must dedicate a certain amount of attention and time. It’s almost ritualistic in nature. This starts from the very physical aspects of the album itself. Albums get more of the senses involved. From the cover art to the liner notes to the actual smell. You then remove the record from its dust jacket carefully holding it by its edges; tilting it at an angle to inspect the surface on each side before you decide A or B; One or Two. Next comes the cleaning to remove the ever present bane of vinyl… dust. And finally there is the lowering of the tone arm and stylus into that groove where it picks up that unbroken and elegant analog waveform.
And now it’s time to sit back with that steaming cup of French roast or the glass of Islay single malt and just listen to the music.