Subj : Turntables and LPs
To   : Nightfox
From : Ogg
Date : Wed Sep 15 2021 11:31 pm

Hello Nightfox!

** On Wednesday 15.09.21 - 08:33, Nightfox wrote to Ogg:

 Og>> laser turntable been around? I had no idea that this was
 Og>> getting explored back in the 80s.[...]

 N> I don't know how long this has been around.  I think I
 N> first came across that laser turntable maybe 8 years ago..
 N> Interesting if it was being explored in the 80s.  I'd think
 N> the price would be less than it is if that were the case.

According to the article the first models were about $35K.   
Now, they are $10K; that's a pretty good reduction!  LOL

 Og>> I was positioning myself to digitize my LP collection a few
 Og>> years ago, but when Spotify came along, [...]

 N> The advantage is it's your own copy of the music.  I don't
 N> like to rely on streaming services all the time..

Spotify offers a download option. Then, it's not required to  
rely on an internet connection at all.

What's the point of recording and filing the tracks of an LP  
when I can get exactly the same thing from Spotify in download  
mode?


 N> Also, storage is cheap.  I'd probably prefer to have a CD
 N> version though.  I ripped my whole CD collection in 2009,
 N> and I sometimes still buy music on CD and rip it on my PC.

Storage is indeed cheap.  I'll still seek out an occassional  
actual CD too.


 Og>> The 1st generation CD players did a horrible job with CDs
 Og>> when they first came out.

 N> I imagine that may be why some people think vinyl sounds
 N> better.

That's part of it.  The early products had a two-fold problem:  
the DACs in earlier models were poor, and the mastering of CDs  
was not well done.

This article is a good read and explains some issues that even  
persist to this day:

http://www.audiodrom.net/en/as-we-see-it-tips-thoughts/65-road-
to-hell


 Og>> No need to buy the laser turntable just yet. Audition one
 Og>> if/when you get a chance. The cost of LPs is crazy at
 Og>> $20+

 N> I'm not sure where I'd be able to borrow one.  I haven't
 N> seen any in my area.

Not borrow.  I mean, go to a facility or audio shop that has  
demo rooms.  But even at $10K per player, I doubt that any  
independent shop would bother to get one.


 Og>> Further into the wiki article above: "A similar technology is
 Og>> to scan or photograph the grooves of the record, and then
 Og>> reconstruct the sound [...]

 N> I've heard of that being done too.  I think it would be
 N> interesting to have a music collection in the form of
 N> photos (as PNGs or JPGs) rather than audio files.  I wonder
 N> if you could even save some drive space that way..  I
 N> wonder if a photo of a vinyl album would be smaller than
 N> individual FLAC or MP3 files for the same album.

I wonder about the data-sizes with the photo approach too.

The key here is to extract the data established by the vinyl  
grooves and store it in digital format for repeat listens.  But  
the designers of those players aren't thinking of that for the  
player; they are wanting to replicate the real-time play of the  
vinyl, at each and every play.

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