I love vinyl too. At work I am on a screen nine hours per day. To come home and "shut off" in front of my VPI Prime with a well recorded album is my happy place.

It's all about the mood you're in, when you're listening. And the whole ritual of dusting of, carefully putting the needle in the groove, puts you in a mood, that streaming never will. Sitting in your favourite chair, with the cover, and sleeve notes, is just special.

Another nice memory you shared there with us Steve. I am 100% with you on your thoughts regarding vinyl vs digital. I can listen and appreciate both but only vinyl joins the dots all the way to my brain and makes me connect to the music in an effortless way.

I love this! While I'm not anti-digital, there is certainly something special about a properly set-up vinyl rig (and decent source albums, of course! Nothing can cure a bad pressing).

"Analog connects the dots...with digital it just doesn't happen". So true, and that emotion really drives your passion for music as for audio itself in a special way. Thanks for sharing these thoughts and your experience Steve, great stuff!

Love this episode, Steve! A well told story that demonstrates how human talent translates to our everlasting enjoyment.

Always enjoy your ability to describe an experience! I really appreciate the viewer system trailers.

As a 20 year old college student I’m definitely in the camp of gotten into vinyl after it was popular and honestly it’s the format that got me into higher quality listening and as a young person it’s really the experience of listening to the music that I enjoy I feel like a lot of people my age music is more just background noise not something you sit and listen too where vinyl you really take the time to listen to the music also I love the thrill of the hunt trying to collect them from thrift stores and garage sales

Great segment, Mr. Guttenberg, on the impact and importance of the ever present legacy of the vinyl audio format. Notably, I had a friend ( an incredible musician in his own right who for his own personal reasons decided to abandon the unsavory underpinnings of musical business at that time ) used to reside in the East Village. In a nutshell, Jimi Hendrix performed with him on different occasions at the Cafe Wha, for example. I was fortunate enough to come across a vinyl recording of his in the early part of nineties and then I really appreciated the reason why Jimi Hendrix would be part of his creativity because he was certainly on another level, not only musically but in terms of his global awareness at that time period.

“Analog conects the dots that digital never does” -Steve. Isnt that the definition of analog?

Yesterday I bought my last turntable; VPI Prime 21. This was partially because of the video on "buying your last turntable". Thank you, Steve!

Always enjoy your stories Steve. I have discovered a lot of different type of music through your channel. Thank you

I built a vintage (late 70s) technics system about 3 years back and started my vinyl journey. Not only do I love the sound, but some of the artwork is amazing. My latest fascination is picture sleeve 45s.

Your knowledge and insight in audio has always given me the proper mindset to enjoy the hobby thank you.

LOVE your show! I have learnd so much and you give me perspective on the wonderful world of audio, listening and HiFi! Thank you Steve! (btw - Very cool shirt!)

It’s fun for me to see somebody’s reaction when they hear something. I’ve spent quite a bit of money the last couple of years on my setup. It wouldn’t be classed as “high end” by many in this comment section, but it sounds amazing to me. I’m in my early 50s. Had a mate around the other week, who is only slightly younger. I threw Abbey Road on the turntable. His eyes went as big as saucers as he was listening to it, and he looked and me and said, I feel like I’m listening to this album for the first time, I feel like I’ve never really heard it before. Mission accomplished 😂

Been there, done that, now I’m back for the past year. IMO vinyl records are the most musical form of listening. I still stream and play CDs but every time I put on a record it’s much more special in terms of listening enjoyment.

This episode will make me fire up my turntable today. I think ill start with my jimmy Hendrix and rem records. Thanks Steve. Your the best!

I love Band of Gypsys! On "Machine Gun" when he starts his solo with that long, sustained note... I've never felt so much emotion and feeling in a single note.

How cool that you could go to that session and you have that pressing! Incredible!

Great program Steve. The very first REM album Murmur has some great recorded atmosphere plus an innocence they lost pretty quickly as they became "big". I still love listening to that first album & hope you've given it a shot. The Beatles in Mono LP Box is hands-down the best way to listen to The Beatles. CD Mono box is second. Ortofon even released a dedicated 2M mono cartridge to coincide with the released of the mono box. One of the reasons I got interested in my phono cartridge (Ortofon 2M Bronze) was because of some comments that it was great with mono recordings. The Phil Spector Back To Mono LP box set agrees.

Vinyl is a physical format in a different way than tapes or CDs. The stylus when played on the grooves creates music. When you turn off your receiver while the TT is still playing, you can hold your ear to the stylus and still hear the music through the grooves. I like to think of the record as an “instrument” and the cartridge as a microphone. I believe that is why people think that vinyl sounds “alive” or has a presence to it. It may not sound better to everyone, but it does sound different. One other note, a well recorded and clean LP played on a high end record player will almost be void of tics and pops and can be very quiet and dynamic . That is when you really get into the magic of vinyl.

Dear Steve, many thanks for your enthusiasm that affects everybody endorsing our passion. I agree with you about Jimi’s Band of Gypsy masterpiece. Greetings from Italy.

What vinyl has what I've always referred to as 'immediacy'. It pulls me into the live performance. I've had DVDs that do that as well, but this analog thing is lovable.

I was hooked on vinyl when a customer on my newspaper route gave me a large carton of 78 RPM records. This was in 1958. Lots of goodies from the 30s and 40s.

I've never got goosbumps listening to digital. I've gotten them may times from vinyl.

I too was listening last night. I get your friend with mono. I was listening to “Hamp and Getz”. When Lionel Hampton came in on the vibraphone, on the first track, Cherokee, I was there, standing on the other side of the instrument. Amazing!

Great video Steve! I have gotten back into vinyl over the past couple of years. I don't know if it sounds better to me than digital or not, but there is a clear difference. It is more engaging for sure. I can say that some records I have listened to sound better than digital, but I have also listened to some digital recordings that sounded better than the vinyl version. So I will continue to enjoy both ways to play music.

Note that the Cowboy Junkies' Trinity Session is a *digital* recording...

Right after watching the video, I cued up my copy of the Classic Band of Gypsies. Thanks Steve, for featuring the album, it’s been a while since I listened to it. They I played the Eagles On the Border. The slower Eagles songs are similar to Dawes and The Decemberists, two current bands that I really like. But while the Eagles flow out my speakers, the recent digital recordings just kind of sit there. The vocals and instruments each have their own place in the soundstage, it’s more like a bunch of paper plates hanging is space. Vinyl and analog rule.

Thank you for sharing the story about cutting the Jimi Hendrix album. Only someone who was present, like yourself, could say what that was like and know we all know. Thank you, Steve.

The old 78s, played through a mono cartridge and single speaker, and (important!) properly equalized, can sound stunning.

I have LOVED vinyl since I bought my first 45 Dave Clark Five's "Anyway You Want it" in the mid 1960s. Now I continue the pure joy of vinyl on my high-end system, with a thousand or so albums Don't play 45s anymore.

Hi Steve what a fantastic story about meeting Eddie Kramer , it must have been incredible talking to him about his time working with Jimi.

I agree with Steve. I have my copy of Wish You Were Here, and there is nothing like the analogue synth solo in the first track. Also, you tend to listen to whole albums, and have a more intimate experience.

Vinyl has so many opportunities for optimizing at the recording level, AND at the playback level! One makes it One's Own Experience, deeply personal! Much deeper than pressing the "Start" button for digital recordings!

As usual many thanks for the record recommendations Steve.

Great video Steve, I was saying the same thing about vinyl vs digital myself earlier today. Can’t explain it but I see the musicians and feel the instruments with vinyl, digital however is great but I’m not fully engaged

I started playing vinyl when I was around 13 yrs old , on Dahlquist spkrs , Luxman TT and amp. It was magic. I still remember the Grace Jones record was one of my fav. Then everything went CD and I had a Sony and later a Wadia CD player. Now just streaming but I still recall those nights of long listening vinyl sessions. Can I enjoy the digital format , yes I can. Will I ever go back to vinyl , perhaps one day.

Love your content, I’m glad you’re around

sometimes ya have one of those nights where everything falls into place and the music soars.......what a great story Steve...

This was a nice video that gives a good perspective from the LP enthusiast side. It was fascinating to watch, even though I’m admittedly very much a partisan for CDs, which I believe have been unjustly maligned the past decade. It would be nice if you could find the time to talk about the little silver disc that won’t die some time. Maybe suggest some recs for CD players or transports. Great work as usual-and thank you!

Couldn’t agree more, Steve. I’m a vinyl guy, and I totally get it. It’s definitely my preferred medium. Can’t believe you were at a session with Jani, Kramer, and Marino. Including you, that’s quite a cast! Document is such a great album, and my favorite REM album. Well, that and Green. I love my mono records, and I’ve got a mono Grado cart. Thanks, Steve! Great stories, man.

Most recording studios go to a lot of effort to give their rooms a “sound” with plenty of well-controlled natural reverb while avoiding problems like slap echoes and standing waves.

I can dig it. Was just playing Hendrix on vinyl last night 🌙

Love the Larson system, I’ve always been intrigued by that speaker.

I grew up with vinyl. My father was a music lover. I remember Peter, Paul and Mary - The Kingston Trio - Dave Brubeck Quartet - Porgy and Bess - Nina Simone - The Hollies - Classical Music - Roger Miller - Hank Williams and so many more. I remember sitting for hours and playing through the stack - I can still sing most of the songs off the albums I liked best. Yesterday, I sat beside my father in hospice and played him about 3 hours of music from those records I remember so well (played off my phone). For the last couple of weeks - music is about the only thing he will respond to at all. The first album I purchased with my own monet was Pink Floyd The Wall. Today I have 4 versions of The Wall - my original LP, a new vinyl LP, the CD Version and The Wall Live in Berlin on SACD. I still listen to my original. The CD Version gets the most play just because I only play CD's or streaming at work as I am not actively listening and set up in the morning to play continuously. Today I have 5 Pink Floyd Albums in the CD Changer at work. Anyway, I have to admit I love old formats. I don't think the sound is inherently better, but I have some hearing issues and would probably have difficulty telling a clean tape from a clean vinyl from a CD or even a SACD or HD streaming. But the Vinyl makes me feel different. Maybe because when I listen to vinyl I am always ACTIVELY LISTENING. With other formats that are more set and forget I often have it as background music, or playing while I am reading or more active. So the vinyl sound gets more of my attention.

Nice system, Jan, and nice view out the window too!👍

I bought Genesis Foxtrot to play on my first decent turntable, amazing as it took me back to my older brother playing it so many years ago, also Bob Dylan Desire and the original Easy Rider soundtrack, all amazing mastering.

Whereas binaural and ambiophonics speaker layout really reproduces the room even better.

Thanks for the video, very impressive. Good.

Great episode! My jaw dropped when you covered the "System of the Day" and showed the picture of Jan's place. I have family in Norway (Hammar and Bergen), and I could swear that the view from Jan's window is one I have personally seen at sometime in the past. It was truly surreal!

🤔 Steve, that was a different kind of nostalgic "you were there" moment. Quite unique. Vinyl replay is a nostalgia trip for many of us. I can often remember the exact moment I scratched an LP 😜 Glad to be free of vinyl hassles for new classical recordings. I had a chance to "inherit" a classical LP collection recently...I passed and took the 600 CDs instead. Just finished ripping them to my Bluesound Vault2. (Jazz on LP would have turned my head;-)

Digital has many advantages: low noise floor, no tape saturation with accompanying roll-off (assuming the digital recording level doesn't crash into the bit capacity wall, which is really, really bad; watch the peak levels like a hawk and don't count on compression for saving grace), tighter bass, and extended highs. But in the sweet spot in the middle, good analog still has that glorious intangible that digital still hasn't quite found. Everyone hears differently, in subtle and sometimes blatant ways; just like everyone sees differently. Some people will pick up on certain aspects of musicality that other miss, but they they are probably totally clueless about other things on the recording (Nobody's perfect, Saavik. -- Spock, translated from Vulcan). So just figure out what you like and trust your ears. Happy listening. :-)

Now we're talking! :) Vinyl brings more attention these days. Thanks, Steve!

My Turntable definitely has a different "feel" than when I stream. It's objectively not as revealing, at least with my setup, but there's a pleasing quality to the music that streaming doesn't capture. Toe tapping

I get it, Steve. I have both digital and vinyl and I also cannot account for why the vinyl is such a better listening experience, with one caveat, which I am coming to see is the most important aspect of vinyl listening, (which is the point of my post). It’s finding the best recorded and mastered sources you can. You obviously are beside yourself about the Hendrix master, for good reason. I also have a few well mastered albums that are astounding to listen to. It’s become the main quest in my vinyl hunt. Maybe others here can share what well recorded/ mastered gems they’ve collected?

You have a way of telling the story and painting the picture 👍

I have sat on the floor of Princeton Record Exchange for hours digging through the dollar bins. Lol. Great record shop.

Hi just played Lou Reed live take no prisoners had from new. Before I looked at your show love records .thanks Steve keep going.

I love both vinyl and C.D.'s. I have to admit: I thought the vinyl resurgence was a FAD and I was wrong, and damn glad that I was wrong! 🤩 I STRONGLY recommend not loaning them to anybody unless it is a trusted friend and you KNOW they will take care of them. I made that mistake with about 6 of my fave records including direct to disc!

Who would have thought that the original recording and playback format - a mechanical one (well electro-mechanical now) - would still be around 143 years after its invention, and 134 years after the introduction of flat spinning discs??? But here we are and vinyl is still hanging in there, with "Record Store Days" devoted to it, and while it likely won't ever be as popular a format as it was in the 20th century, it seems here to stay, at least as a niche, well-respected format that offers pretty good sound quality even compared to so-called "high resolution" audio. Who knows, it might stick around just for fun for another 100 years or more simply because it works and many people love how engaging putting on a record is. It is still astounding that a needle, er I mean "stylus", vibrated by a groove smaller than a human hair can create such sound. Just freaking amazing.

My last 3 albums that I paid good money for had major defects. It broke my heart. I'm going back to cd's and digital once again. I will still listen to vinyl but will only buy new albums for novelty purposes only. That'll work for me anyway.

my favorite live album...first heard it in the '70s, still the best!......."some old friends with a brand new name...a band of gypsys"

I turned 60 early this year and have now retired from work. I'm upgrading my hi-fi in order to spend many of my long days and hours ahead (hopefully!) listening to the music I've collected over the course of the past 50 years. I've decided to reconnect with my vinyl collection which has been sitting up in the attic for the past 2 decades. I discovered a long forgotten Luxman PD131with SME III Tonearm during the process of digging out the vinyl. A decent set up- I've decided to recommission the turntable as part of my project. I've managed to track down a handbook for both the turntable and tonearm so with a little patience and a few hours of TLC I should soon reconnect with that "needle drop" and warm analogue sound. I will of course continue to listen mainly to my CD/SACD collection and also embark upon streaming for the first time. I will happily exist in my multi-format cocoon wrapped in waves of nostalgic bliss listening to good music.

Hard core monophile here like your friend! I have a Garrard RC121 with GE vrII cartridge for 78 and 33 rpm recordings, and a belt drive for stereo. For vintage "Golden Age" jazz on mono a proper cartridge and stylus is a must!

I just bought a stack of vinyl used today. Buying a turn table next...jumping in with both feet.

Fantastic Daily Audiophile Steve. Thank you. I’m one who my very best sounding records are mono 45s from Salina. Nothing sounds as real to me as an old mono recording on these superlatively made records. I have a Ortofon 2M White S mono cartridge with the same stylus as the Black and silver coated coils and it sounds good…… but ……my several times more dear Soundsmith Paua stereo cart sounds *beyond great* playing Analog Productions rendering of these old mono records. They are haunting. Especially Billie Holiday “Body and Soul”. Louie and Ella or Ellington Masterpieces are right there and I also have the other Holiday 45s but, Body and Soul maybe is haunted. If I can ever afford it I’d like to purchase a premium mono cart and a less expensive turntable for it. H.W. told me once in the VPI forums that you don’t need a great turntable for mono as its only reading lateral information. But the better the cart……..

Maybe true 25yrs ago, but nowadays all music is recorded digitally and a DAC is used to create the vinyl master disc. So not sure how people are hearing this big difference between the CD and vinyl recording. Even Steve covered this fact recently….

I also listen to both Stereo and Monaural vinyl. I feel each gives me a different REAL life experience. I was born with stereo hearing (duh!) and relate natural sounds in a stereo phonic way (like most people); hearing birds at a distance from different directions while walking in the woods, or even the sounds of the city. But when it comes to hearing actual music performed live I've had very few true sensible stereo musical experiences. (Modern) Classical music halls are engineered to minimize sound cancellation (to make every seat a sonically good location), often done by bouncing additional sound energy (waves) with reflective panels above the performers. So I've heard some great performances in person, but the sound came to me from all sorts of different paths/angles. Listening to stereo classical music almost seems weird to me because the instruments are separated so well (but unnaturally). Unless I've been super close to the performers in an acoustic (non-amped) situation, most of the sound is coming at me at such a narrow angle that it is functionally Mono. That doesn't take away from my enjoyment at all. I love live recordings and when they are Monaural it just feels like I'm listening from the middle of the auditorium. A live stereo acoustic jazz recording definitely pulls me in and makes me feel like I'm in the club at a table close to the performers. Ooooooh, so cool!

Alas, I was one of those who gave up their vinyl collection. My turntable had died. So too my CD collection was given away as streaming took over. But back to LP’s. One of my first albums was given to me by a cousin, Kinks, You Really Got Me, in mono. Okay, I was a wacky kid at times and would head off to the store to buy an album without a clue as to what I was buying. I lucked out, mostly. I bought that album with the band mates sharing a dry bathtub. I bought that album with the tall guy standing in the back of a rowboat, with his dog. I loved the album cover of three guys chilling on some pillows before an old photograph of three Indian braves. Naturally, I knew what I was doing when I was buying a Beatles album or Led Zeppelin, but I had my misses too. We needn’t go into those. I understand the appeal of vinyl albums even though those are bygone days for me. I loved the album artwork, the care it took to take care of the album, the inner sleeve, D4 Discwasher… Playing an album is a ceremony, a dedication to see it through, and to live with the pops and clicks that eventually happened from overplaying and haphazardness. I get it, I had it, I’ll remember it all.

I think the mono cartridge makes a difference. At least it has for me having many LP’s from my interest in West Coast jazz when I was a DJ in college. Chet, Gerry and Bud sound pretty good in mono!

I had tickets to the show on jan. 1 and I didn't go to the Fillmore because there was a snowstorm in NYC. My friend ended up going. The guy with the afro in the gatefold section of the album was a classmate's brother. I went to the Fillmore many times including the Who, Jethro Tull and the last weekend with the Allman Brothers.

My preference is vinyl but I think the type of turntable and arm/cartridge is very important. My daughters friends buy vinyl to hang on their walls. They also bought the little turntables with the integrated speakers which give off sound but it's not good quality sound. I also like used cleaned vinyl rather than the brand new stuff. Digital is good as there can be less background noise and streaming is just really convenient but vinyl is the winner for me because of that link or connection you speak about.

Vinyl and streaming both have their certain qualities. But when I listen to my vinyl. Taking out the LP, placing it on the platter, giving it a quick dust-off, starting my fully-automatic TT and then sitting back in my recliner. It just feels like I'm truly taking time to..."enjoy the music".

I’ve owned my forever turntable 23 years now. Zero interest in ever getting a different table

I have a stereo cartridge I use for mono. I have jumpered the pins on the back of the cartridge to operate in mono. Probably not the same but works for the few mono LP's that I have.

Of course one is going to be blown away by a turntable/amp/speaker combo as compared to crummy ear buds. And they will be equally impressed after listening to music from a CD source when they had previously heard it only on vinyl. 🤣

Band of Gypsies - first track - " Who knows" - has been my all time fav. song for 50 years, since first hearing the Album at age 12 - one of the first "funky" songs that I'd heard - I only listen to the CD version now - but, as Steve rightly points out - the recording quality is unbelievable.....

Best theory I’ve heard to date, vinyl sounds better to some of us because the real world has distortion, and so we like distortion. When sounds interact with each other, waveforms collide as they hit our ears, but digital nullifies that effect because it’s too perfect. I’m mangling the science in this summary, but there’s a youtube on it out there somewhere so I know it’s true. :)

The Cowboy Junkies Trinity Sessions was recorded on a single Calrec Ambisonic microphone to R-DAT. Although originally a digital recording, that microphone could produce magic! The vinyl version captures all of that beautifully! I've blown away friends who've never heard an LP before - much less one that transports you to the room. They all say: "I thought digital was better?" Just listen for yourself...thanks Steve!

Band of Gypsies is a wonderful record. It was my high school soundtrack.

That’s a great Hendrix story!!!

Rock and Roll going strong!

Vinyl definitely has more "presence", more "soul" it sounds more like live music than any other format. On paper it shouldn't be better, but it just is. I listen to all formats but vinyl is my favourite.

You’re right about the difference between recording studios and actual rooms and halls.

I have two turntables too. One stereo and one mono. Both are moving coil cartridges. Have about a thousand albums.

How can you not be a big R.E.M. fan? ;)

Fantastic story Steve! Not all studios are dead spaces. For example the studio where Van Halen recorded their first record had an amazing room sound that carried over into their first few records and then after that when they moved to 5150 studios, they lost that classic room sound as the 5150 studio was a smaller “dead’ space, and the follow on recordings lost that amazing room sound as a result. Vinyl is great but it’s not really practical. I owned 3 records in my life - I think it was a Queen record, AC/DC for those about to rock, and Billy Joel Glass Houses. But then the CD and tape came out and it replaced LPs for me. And today I live in a small apartment where I have no room to store bookshelves full of records - all of my music is stored on a single 8TB drive that is 6 inches long and 2 inches wide - and I have over 50,000 tracks. That’s why digital is not going to be replaced by Vinyl for me. It’s a matter of practicality.

10:15 Princeton Record Exchange! This and Jack's Music Shoppe in Red Bank, NJ are my favorite places to go for used cd's and vinyl...

I wonder which group loves vinyl more: Those who grew up with LPs or those who grew up with digital and have a romantic view of anything vintage? Somebody needs to do a poll!

I think You have heard of Stig Carlsson OA (Ortho Aucustic) series. He began in the 1950-th . First commercial was the coal box some years after them he started the OA-series. Stig died 1997 but there was a group that continued his work , and that ended up to be Larsen Speakers today. So think You should take time to find a pair of Larsen 9 to listen to.

I love the term Vinyl Curious. Too funny.

Hi Steve, with the Cowboy Junkies recording... It was recorded at Sharon Temple in the town of Sharon of all places, outside Newmarket, Ontario, Canada. Everyone who lives in that area knows the lore of the famous recording. It's become a tourist destination since for fans. Love your channel. My bank account however is not a fan. Cheers!

Cowboy Junkies - Song - Mining For Gold you can hear the air from the Church furnace, makes listening to this song more intimate. Thanks.

Thanks for another interesting chat! Fantastic story of what appears to be an amazing pressing - I envy you that disc! There is indeed something beguiling about the sound of LP. I've not used my Roksan Xerxes and the 2000 LP's I have for many years now, but I don't have the heart to sell it all in case I get rich and move somewhere with enough space to set it up again! Would I replace my Streaming set up? Absolutely not - even if we ignore all the other advantages it has, its uncontestably more accurate than playing LP's. The kind of harmonic distortion that LP's suffer from, sounds extremely pleasant and adds a character to music that may not be accurate, but is still extremely pleasurable to listen too. I don't have data to back it up, but I suspect its similar to the kind of harmonic distortions produced by using Tubes in your amplifiers, which again is not perhaps the last word in accuracy, but can produce some wonderfully involving sounds. As a young man I saw the world in Black and White, if Hi Fi was not as accurate as it could possibly be, then it was pointless. Age has given me a more balanced perspective and I now understand this: Once you have reached a certain level of fidelity, hi fi is about choosing the sound you want to hear. If it doesn't lose much fidelity, but sounds involving and amazing to you, then that's the system for you. Listening to music is not always the same as listening to Hi Fi.

BTW I have a Music Hall 9.1 turntable. Paradigm tower speakers and a tube preamp and amplifier and an Ortofon bronze cartridge. Just listened to Humble Pie's classic Rock On. Heaven!

I forgot to mention earlier, as much as you enjoy and talk about vinyl and analog, I'm surprised you don't review more photo stages,turntables and cartridges. Not very many do it seems

What a surprise to see Jan's system. As it so happens, I am awaiting delivery from Sweden on my own pair of Larsen 8.2s. Thanks to Joe (of Joe and Tell) for bringing them to my attention. Well-reviewed in Europe, but relatively unknown here. I was going to go with a pair of Ohm Walsh, but discovered these guys at the last minute. I like the idea of them being made specifically to go up against the wall.