Why Vinyl Is Better Than Cds

Take a look at the graph below.

Why vinyl is better than cds.

On a theoretical level there s just no reason it should be the case that vinyl sounds better. Crackles and pops records that skip and the whine of a needle against the lp all problems that the cd advertised itself on solving decades ago. Cds give you more bang for the buck. Cds are now cheaper than lps.

Cds can handle over 90 db. Cds on the other hand have been on the decline. The simplest is to make a record that plays faster. It wasn t long before vinyl recordings of the same content often had better sound quality at normal listening volumes simply because they had higher dynamic range.

While coloured vinyl and picture discs are an easy way to ensure degradation to a record s playback there are practices made to better the way an lp sounds. In practical terms this means that cds have more than 10. The answer lies in the difference between analog and digital recordings. The vinyl format can generate other issues.

There are built in problems with using vinyl as a data encoding mechanisms that have no cd equivalent. Their sales have dropped by 95 percent since 2000 the peak days of cds according to a new report and are currently at their lowest level since 1986. What is perplexing is that when the eventual resurgence of high quality audio came it wasn t via a glorious return of the compact disc but rather a hipster fueled vinyl record revolution. Original sound is analog by definition.

The difference between the loudest and softest sounds an lp can play is about 70 decibels db. Vinyl is in a resurgence of course with records outselling cds for the first time in almost three decades. For comparison listening to vinyl as opposed to digital is like viewing the mona lisa with your own eyes rather than looking at a picture of it on a smartphone. Digital got its act together but not until the death of the cd.

But this article isn t focused on why cds are better than vinyl. It s for this reason that vinyl sounds better than digital. You ll also hear vinyl enthusiasts discussing the warm sound they get from their record players.