[OftheOhio]

Your dad got it, I’m surprised you didn’t. There is a “presence” with lp’s that you don’t get with any other medium. Reel-to-reel was very close and even 8-track had it somewhat. Nothing since does, cassettes destroyed hi-fi, and cd’s are little better than those. Separation, I don’t know what you call it. It definitely was a more true sound as far as instruments were concerned. Sure there was the scratchiness, so what.

[AnotherUnixGeek]

There is a “presence” with lp’s that you don’t get with any other medium.

Maybe. But the maintenance headaches aren't worth it, and even the finest care will not prevent degradation of the medium over time. But I do miss the large format artwork on LPs.

[entropy12]

I converted at home about 200 of my favorite LP’s to MP3 files, using a Sony turntable and a kit bought on eBay. When I listen to that music on my Sansa MP3 player, there is great separation, amazing clear sound and no scratchy blips. There were many steps involved in the conversion process, but none too difficult.

[AnotherUnixGeek]

Nothing since does, cassettes destroyed hi-fi, and cd’s are little better than those.

Also, I think you may be referring to something which has nothing to do with the CD medium itself - the rise of CDs was accompanied by the rise of the Walkman and other portable music players - producers started applying compression to their music to make it jump out of cheap portable headphones, and the dynamic range or the "presence" you refer to suffers as a result.

Get a good remastered CD from Mobile Fidelity or some other reputable source, rather than a mass-market release CD, and do an A/B comparison with your favorite LPs. You might find the space and range you want exist on both, and while the CD is far easier to maintain without worrying about sound degradation, a lossless FLAC rip is far easier to store and preserve than even the CD.

[Flatus I. Maximus]

> There is a “presence” with lp’s that you don’t get with any other medium. Reel-to-reel was very close

Which is interesting, because the vast majority of the music on those lp's was recorded on multi-track reel-to-reel tape first, and then cut into the acetate master disc used to make the metal molds used to press the vinyl disc. This "presence" you speak of is an artifact of the medium.