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Yikes, and I thought I had A.D.D. ;-)

You are all over the place, man. Get a hold of yourself! ;-)

Gosh, where to begin?

> > they want you narrow-nosed DUMMIES to buy MORE of this disposable junk! < <

I've actually been told my nose is kind of on the flat side and that I'm pretty smart. ;-)

> > and as far as regular CD goes, the technology basically DIED in all-in-one machines by about 1991/2. < <

I humbly disagree. I own a $500 Rotel CDP from 1991. As recently as last year, I compared it to a $500 Rotel CDP that a friend of mine was auditioning and considering buying and it blew my old one away in the same system.

Furthermore, I think SACD and DVD came to fruition because of (or perhaps in spite of) redbook CDs, so I think the current technology owes much to the CDs of the late 80's/early 90's.

Remember Reagan's trickle down economics? Same idea with technology. Reaganomics didn't work because no one wanted to trickle any of their money downward - but with technology it works. Just ask any of the designers in this asylum if advancements in technology were built off existing technology.

> > I am still awaiting my demo of SACD < <

To which my original post "Not so fast..." was comparing vinyl, but hey, that's okay. I liked reading your post anyway! ;-)

> > I love electrostatic speakers, and CD sounds so bad that it is UNLISTENABLE with every electrostat I've ever heard, yet the same electronics and speakers sound GLORIOUS with LP < <

Well, I agree and disagree here. I own a set of SL3 ESLs and my CAL CL-10 is VERY listenable through them, so I disagree that CD sounds bad with every 'stat. Would an LP playback system sound better? dunno - never tried it at home but heard the SL3 with better electronics and LP at dealer before I bought mine, and yes, it sounded better than redbook CDs. But was it the LP or was it the $10,000 of associated equipment?

> > I guess I'm just a Missouri country boy... < <
I understand. I'm from West Virginia originally. My sister and cousins had all gone and gotten themselves knocked up, so I was forced to leave home and find myself a purty German gurl < < ;-)

> > What goes wrong in an old turntable? You gotta put a couple of spots of oil in the platter bearing and on the motor spindle once a year? Change a belt every few years? < <

I wasn't necessarily thinking long-term after I bought it, rather how it was treated by the previous owner and what might happen to it during shipping.

> > You have to buy a few "accessories" for it? < <

Hmmm? Le'ts see how much "a few 'accessories'" will run me? The following came from Elusive Disc's website. I consider these essential at the time of purchase of an analog rig...
$210 for their least expensive record cleaning machine
$12 for 1 oz of record cleaning solution
$15 for surface cleaning brush
$100 average cost of a record clamp $25 for stylus cleaner
$15 for the cheap Shure stylus force guage
$35 for the cheap Protrac cartridge alignment tool
$24 for 4 vibrapods (assuming you have a base to put the 'table on)

That comes to $411 for "a few accessories" and I'm probably forgetting a few! And we should mention that this is all going on the assumption that one's preamp has a phono stage! If, like mine, it does not, then you add another $500 (and that's being generous) for a phono stage. This is of course before we purchase the turntable, arm and cartridge.

> > Funny, people will complain about the limited lifespan & high-cost of a replacement needle, but think nothing of throwing their expensive CD player into the dumpster when it starts permanently mistracking because the laser wears out! And have any of us priced the cost of installing a new laser for our players, lately? < <

In the 18 years I've been involved in high-end audio, I've never known an audiphile whose digital source started mistracking permanently because the laser wears out. Perhaps you're referring to the "Asian crap" as you so elequontly called it. ;-)

> > Set the tracking force and anti-skate to zero (with the stylus guard in place, please!), and blow gently or prod the arm gently and let it glide across the record playing area. < <

I'm sorry, but if I just spent a couple grand on an analog rig, I'm not blowing or prodding anything. I'm buying the accessories I need to make sure it's done correctly.

> > It did stick? A little bit? Hmmm, you've got a maybe there. Definitely? OK, either you're going to buy a new arm or you walk... < <

You wouldn't have this dilemma if you bought new, right? OK, thanks.

> > Try fixing a dead laser that easily! < <

Again with the dead laser!

> > So you have some adjustments. Overhang, azimuth, tracking force, antiskating. Maybe you have to adjust the tonearm height. < <

Good God, I'm getting tired just reading about it! ;-)

> > Do you need a $100 special Swiny Test CD with $1000-5000 worth of lab equipment to do this? < <

No, but neither would I be relying on "blowing" and "prodding" something. As I said previously, some items I feel are essential.

> > If you don't want to spring for a record-cleaning machine (OOOH! It's got a MOTOR in it! Complicated and unreliable, run and hide!) < <

The machine I priced was manual. I roast my own coffee manually using a Whirly-Pop cranker, so I think I could handle the machine.

> > don't you have a dealer remotely near you that provides record cleaning services? So pay the man the 75 cents or whatever and get 'em cleaned! < <

75 cents? This isn't 1970, my friend. A few trips to the dealer and you've paid for the $200 cleaning machine. And by the way, like I have time to go to the dealer. What happens if I spill something on a record? I go to my dealer with just one LP? You know, you're making a strong case for why NOT to have an analog rig.

> > Don't buy filthy records! < <

So this probably rules out 99% of the $.50 - $5.00 record "bargains"!

> > And don't try "wet-cleaning" them with Rover's tongue, or that lovely bottle of Corona that you're holding in your left hand! < <

Waste a Corona to clean my record? Think again, my friend! ;-)

> > You scratch a record, it makes a "click" every time it goes around. Scratch a CD bad enough, and you're LUCKY if it just makes a "click" every time it goes around, and it goes around alot faster, doesn't it? < <

Now, I'm not a bithead (I know what you're thinkin';-) but isn't there such a thing called "oversampling" that can potentially "catch" a defect in a CD and correct it - whereby I would never even hear the scratch or mistrack? Sure there is - my old Rotel has it and it's played many scratched CDs just fine. Could any analog rig do that?

> > Don't feel like forking out big bucks for cartridge alignment guages? Give your local dealer some chump-change and let him do it for you! You think you'll need to do it every other day or something? Or even every week? Or even every YEAR? If you change the cartridge, the arm or the whole turntable, then you need it done! If you plan on changing cartridges, arms and turntables like you do undergarments, then MAYBE you need to have your own alignment tools... < <

Okay, I'll give you this one. Scratch the $35 for the alignment tool.

> > I can think of worse investments. Like little edge-cutter gizmos from Germany to shave your digital discs to obsessive-compulsive perfect circumference....only what? $500? $600? < <

EVERYTHING in high-end audio is ridiculously expensive - not just these gizmos. That's why it's "high end". ;-)

> > A buddy of mine just bought a beautiful CJ Walker turntable, from a retail store! For $60!!! It needed some setup work and a cartridge, but it sounds BEAUTIFUL. < <

But does it sound better than SACD? (remember my original post?)

> > A cartridge you should buy new. But not an arm or turntable. You don't need a degree in rocket science to figure out either how to operate a record player or how to fix what gets worn out or broken. YOU CAN SEE IT. IT'S ALL RIGHT THERE. If purchased from a reputable manufacturer, your turntable can last THE REST OF YOUR LIFE. Try that with your Sony CD flayer!

So you're saying that an analog rig, with all its constantly moving mechanical parts, some rubbing together, can last the rest of my life - while a CDP with NO moving, rubbing parts other than selector knobs/switches will run out sooner? Funny, my cousin bought a Dual turntable and a Revox CDP at the same time in the late-80's. Used them both equally. Guess which wore out first? He still owns and uses the Revox (sounds like shit though because the technology was still in its infancy).

> > My turntables are both over 15 years old, and the only thing I've spent money for are new belts ($20, OOOOH!) and new cartridges every two or three years ($200, OOOOOH! That's a whopping $66 a year!!!). < <

But if you had a digital rig for 15 years, and assuming it never broke, you'd have NOTHING to replace because of wear and tear. Right?

> > CD is FALSE convenience, because there is nothing convenient about unsatisfying sound once you're used to what even a relatively cheap but well-though out analog rig can do for you... < <

Sorry, don't buy it. Yes, a relatively cheap analog rig will probably sound better than its comparable CDP. But when you start talking $2k as in my CAL CL-10, I think the gap narrows and you have to spend more on the analog rig to get it to sound better. False convenience? If your standards are that high that convenience is not a factor, then I applaud you. But to me - a very good CDP and ESPECIALLY SACD get me close enough, if not equal to analog, so the convenience of digital wins over.

Thanks for your post. I enjoyed it immensely.

Respectfully,
Aurelio S.



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