[GRC]

Originally Posted by Tubular

But not better than analog sourced brand new clean vinyl on a laser turntable.

..and there's a school of thought that even old, well-used vinyl still knocks CD into a cocked hat.

Consider Led Zeppelin; sold millions, lots of LPs released, etc.

Back in 1969, 1970, the first pressing runs of Led Zep 1 and 2 were released, and the masters for these first pressing runs were, in all probability, cut direct from THE studio master tape; the original, not a copy; and crucially; this studio master tape hadn't been played very often, hadn't been taken in and out of storage, etc, etc. Some of the later pressing runs, especially those in non-UK territories, were likely to have been cut from copy masters.

Fast forward to a few years later, and once the initial pressing runs have gone, they need to re-cut a new pressing master, and the master tape gets used again. and again. and again. The more sales the band has, the more it had to be used, unless they cut the LPs from copy masters.

Fast forward to the late 1980s, when they use the 'original master' as the basis for the CD releases. This master tape has been doing the rounds now for 20 years or more, and given the high volume of sales that Zep have enjoyed, and the number of re-cuts that have been made, let's be honest, there is no way that master is going to be sounding as good as the day it left the studio.

Shortly after the Zep box set had been released, with all the hoo-ha about Jimmy Page overseeing the project to ensure the best sound quality, etc, etc, one of my friends picked up a first pressing of Led Zep 1 and 3; we put them on my Linn Sondek and did an A/B comparison against the CDs, and .... no competition; the vinyl knocked the CD sideways. The vinyl filled the room, the CD just slunk around in the vicinity of the speakers, and was like a pale shadow of what it should have been.

Regards, Graham