Re: GG on CD vs LP

[John Hill <jphill@home.com>]

jerry and judy wrote:
>  
> Also Mac users are not affected by the recent dangerous internet viruses
> and worms, probably because they're so few of us that we're left alone.
> <smile>

Isn't the Mac great?  It's nice to be able to ignore all those PC virus warnings
about attachments that will worm their way into your operating system
and files.

> But I dont understand the audiophile concern, digital is digital.

Well, yes and no.  You might be able to show that the streams of 1s and 0s
are consistent but there are issues of *timing* every time you attempt to
transfer data from one place to another using clocks, cables, etc.  Jitter is
a very real issue in digital audio and the results are certainly audible to those
who have trained ears.  If you're interested in the subject, back-issues of
Stereophile have lots of articles on this.  Jitter spectrum is also a measurement
that Stereophile routinely does on *all* pieces of digital equipment.

My other point was that every time you transfer between analog and digital
domains, there are issues of quality relating to the type of analog circuitry
being used and (as Skip reminded me!) the calibre of the all-important
A/D and D/A converters.  These issues directly impact audio quality;  they're
not trivial.

> The
> playback equipment should be the focus.  A lot of the GG recordings are a
> nightmare for audio perfectionists, but I'm never put off by the mostly
> sporadic annoyances, they lend realism(?)   Of course, my 'standard level'
> for these aggravations has always been 78s, so I guess I'm pretty much
> immune...  heh

Can't argue about any of that.  As someone who teaches classes in Critical
Listening as well as audio engineering, I can tell you that most students I
encounter have *no* reference with regard to what actually sounds good.

If one's reference for audio quality is a boom box or a compromised car system,
that person really has *no* basis for making judgements about audio quality.
Or, as an engineer colleague of mine likes to put it, "few people have ever
one clean watt of power".

It's kind of like someone aspiring to be a New York restaurant critic, but all
they've ever experienced in taste is fast food.  That person can certainly
state his/her
judgements or preferences, but they might not have too much relevance
in the big picture of things.  Sorry if this sounds elitist, but many of us involved
in professional audio are concerned about the lack of appreciation of high quality
sound among the masses.  When folks aren't sensitive to these differences, they
often feel that there *are* no differences.  And this is not the case.

cheers,
jh