Just for fun, I recorded a video of my system playing vinyl and another one with digital, same song.
Videos of Acoustically-Coupled Audio Recordings
- Thread starter Ron Resnick
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Nice music and thank you for posting the comparison. I have no idea which is vinyl and which is Digital, but I have a preference for the first video on top.
The music is more engrossing and soaring. There’s more energy and nuance. The presentation is richer and fuller. The bottom video sounds a bit recessed and thinner to me. Less tonal color. Anyway, that’s just my opinion.
The music is more engrossing and soaring. There’s more energy and nuance. The presentation is richer and fuller. The bottom video sounds a bit recessed and thinner to me. Less tonal color. Anyway, that’s just my opinion.
I have exactly the same preferences as yours. I also prefer the first to the second, it has more energy and is more lively.
Anyway, the first is vinyl and the second is digital (though they are both digital via YouTube)
I agree about energy and liveliness. Clarity is better in the top video too. Yes, both are digital via YouTube, but if the original recording is analog, there is less corruption along the chain if played on a turntable and then recorded to digital.
Could you describe your vinyl and digital set ups? Did you take these videos with a cell phone?
Track is the Introduction from Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake conducted by Ansermet. My vinyl is the original press. Digital is streaming via Qobuz.
Vinyl setup: Esoteric T1 tt, Glanz MH-124s Premium tonearm, Aidas Mammoth Gold cartridge, Robert Koda MC One phono.
Digital setup: Taiko Olympus O I/O with analog daughterboard (with 400hrs break in). For both preamp is the Robert Koda K15EX.
I took these vids with my iPhone 14 handheld.
Same preference as you and PeterA, for the first video. Please note that the volume is noticeably higher in the first one.
Surely. Enough level difference to unintentionally create an extremely misleading comparison, as the the handheld iPhone 14's microphone is not linear; it uses dynamic processing. And it is not a blind comparison, we can easily listen to clicks and occasional mistracking in the first video.
The main potential issue is the quality of the digital version.
Even with volume level adjusted, the first video, despite "vinyl artifacts" (as some always refer), sounds so much more like music. Even recorded by phone, processed by YouTube, replayed over computer or car radio, the difference is pronounced. No comparison, for all the reasons listed above. It sounds more like music. At some point, we just have to accept that everyone prefers the first one so far. I commented not knowing which is which.
Is the exercise to identify which recording is the digital, or is it to identify a preference and describe the differences one hears between the two videos? I think it is the latter. Even if knowing which is which, it does not change what one hears. I level matched the two as best I could by ear and listened and heard clear differences. It was fascinating for me to hear this much touted streaming device, even over YouTube and an unfamiliar system. Same for the turntable.
@tima has the same Mamoth cartridge and his videos are also excellent, IMO. That cartridge seems to extract a lot of information.
Well, anyone with decent ears will know which is which after the first minute. ... Or do you think the digital recording of the Olympus was manipulated to add typical vinyl artifacts?
Do you believe that the poor sound quality we have in the second recording "represents" the Taiko Olympus I/O with analog daughterboard?
I have no idea. I was simply commenting on two videos that were posted as a comparison without any other information. I don’t even know if the intent was to solicit opinions.
It was not my intent to identify the vinyl versus Digital and turn it into that type of discussion. My intent was to describe the differences I heard between the two formats just as was my intent in that thread I started. I’m interested in people describing what they hear. I’m not interested in making this a discussion about the preference for one format. I did not listen with the intent to identify the format. I listened to identify differences and preference for presentation, and to share my opinion.
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Agree, especially in the first few minutes...no idea why this might be so or which is which!
Well maybe my ears are getting old.
I am not really into these IPhone video comparisons but I saw this post and said what the hell I will listen. Now I just did so on my IPad so maybe this disqualifies me but I did hear a difference.
My preference was the first video. It was louder especially at the very beginning which is hard to discount but after a few listens I still liked video one the best.
Was either video poor, I didn't think so. I actually thought towards the ends of the videos the sound quality was fairly close.
So do I know which is which, no. Perhaps I hear through vinyl artifacts or maybe my IPad doesn't have the fidelity to reproduce them, quite likely, lol!
Again this is just a fun comparison. I was even too lazy to level match the volume.
The OSR
Well. this thread was started by Ron with a different objective, it is why I posted.
Surely the majority of people will prefer the video of the vinyl playback - the typical vinyl coloration and artifacts help masking the youtube digital artifacts and limitations. I dislike both ...
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