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I never really brought into vinyl sounding better/different than CDs, as much as I never really brought into the reverse in the 90s. As @Airhead implies, it's really in the mastering, and if it's shittily mastered, then it's likely to be the same across all formats (eg the KOKOROKO album from last year).
Sure, if the recording / mixing / mastering etc. is lacking, then that's that (although one medium might hide certain flaws better, while another might actually bring them out more).
I was discussing the "better" sound with a serious audiophile / serious collector friend of mine again the other day, and I came to understand that basically his main goal is: to get as close as possible to the way the music has been recorded / mastered etc. - so a clean / neutral presentation of the music is desired, without colouration, without adding "character" or whatever afterwards. Digital is definitely superior here, no doubt.
Vinyl can offer something though that digital can't - very similar to how film photography can deliver on a front that digital struggles to.
I do believe something does get pretty much lost in translation from the analog signal to the digital file. It's hard to explain what it is exactly, but to me vinyl does sound more "alive" / "lifelike", more "3D", more "organic", more "soulful"..
..and I definitely do want that, at least sometimes, with certain albums - and the reality is I do only get that with a small percentage of the albums I like to listen to, just because only a small percentage of the albums I like to listen to are actually available, right now, with a decent pressing, for a price I'm willing to pay - sad but true; I've come to accept that I only get that nice "vinyl experience" I love with a few select albums - while the majority of music I listen to is from digital files.Regarding the handling / storing etc. - as @Airhead said the CD was designed to overcome a lot of the problems of vinyl, delicate sleeves, easily scratched or contaminated etc. -
I guess it's different nowadays, at least for people like me who treat listening to albums on vinyl as a "special occasion" kinda thing, appreciating those big beautiful packages, the artwork, the wax.. handling everything with care, enjoying the whole "ritual".. I suppose back in the day when everybody and their mother played vinyl records, and nothing but vinyl records, all day long, because it was all there was, that was just a different scenario - and I do remember how CD's were appreciated from a portability standpoint alone when they came out.
salad-
Maybe I'm lucky/unlucky, but I never really get that difference in sound that you talk about between analogue and digital formats.
I can notice the difference in some recordings for sure - the mono 60's vinyl pressings of a bunch of Miles Davis and Thelonius Monk stuff I have is very different to the Stereo CDs I have of them; but then that's the difference between 60s mono mastering (for vinyl) vs modern stereo mastering, rather than an analogue/digital difference.At least for older recordings, what I do like about vinyl is the sense of history when putting on a 60 year old record, which you can't get elsewhere. I don't care much for modern vinyl re-issues (unless the originals are insanely expensive) for this reason.
Ste_S
I never really brought into vinyl sounding better/different than CDs, as much as I never really brought into the reverse in the 90s. As @Airhead implies, it's really in the mastering, and if it's shittily mastered, then it's likely to be the same across all formats (eg the KOKOROKO album from last year).
If you're happy with streaming, then obvs that's perfectly fine. If you want to collect, then both CDs and vinyl are fine. The advantages of vinyl in that regard is that it's a larger object to interact with; but then it's also a downside when you're trying to store them.
The bonus of CDs currently is the low price if you're a #buyer, both for equipment the and the media themselves. People have been literally giving the stuff away, although that is starting to change, given the way prices have been going.