That fancy youtube thing! - Music for Oulwans 'n' Oulfellas

Slightly off topic - apologies - but I wondered where yiz stood on the latest technology debate, i.e. vinyl records versus everything else.

A vinyl-head has just given me an ear-bashing about the "superiority" of records over all other media. Won't hear of tape or CDs and laughs at MP3s. For me, vinyl means lots of clicking noises, then "Thummmmm", then cracklecracklecracklecracle, then music ruined by cracklecracklecracklecracle, then silence, some more clicking noises before silence breaks out again.

There are dozens of records in my attic, a nice old turntable and huge speakers but I couldn't be bothered using them. I've replaced most of the vinyl tracks with youtube I mean digital versions and I still regularly hear magical little flourishes, even on MP3, that vinyl kept hidden.

I remember similar stuff when FM radio arrived. "Oh, you can't beat music from the Medium Wave."

Are these vinyl-heads right? Is the sound from vinyl superior? What does "superior" mean?

looksee wrote: »

I was, in my youth, given a copy of the Beatles White Album when it first came out, sadly it didn't last long - problem with vinyl. I listened and enjoyed. Many, many years later I listened to some of the music from it on Youtube and was absolutely amazed at the depth of sound I was hearing, a whole different experience. So I am with you there Brens.

Phew! I thought I was alone. There are lots of twiddley bits on the CD and MP3 versions of Beatles albums that were hidden by vinyl.

Nowadays, the old, dusty, delicate stylus has been replaced by a laser, thereby (pretty-well) eliminating one source of loss of detail. Amplifying digital signals is easy so perhaps the vinyl-heads have an impression of inferiority because many CD / MP3 players are supplied with poor speakers.

I took some care to attach the best speakers I could to my set-up. I care not a jot about the mockery and complaints bestowed on me simply because they're huge dust collectors - they do their job very well so be off with you, you, you rascals you!