Analog Or Digital Music - Which is Better

There accept been abounding discussions on the claim and deficiencies of both analog and agenda recording and reproduction of music. I accept that anniversary accept their abode in today's music scene. If I was in the music business during the 70's, analog disqualified the recording industry, and the 'Holy Grail' was to almanac and carbon music in the a lot of authentic address after distortion.
ANALOG My aboriginal addition to a able recording flat was in 1969 at American Recording Company on Ventura Blvd in Flat City, CA. The ambassador was Richie Podolor (stage name: Richie Allen) and the Engineer was Bill Cooper. In my apprehensive opinion, that was the best assembly aggregation in the music business during the backward 60's, through the 70's and into the 80's. It is about astonishing the physique of plan that this team, both calm and individually, created. The albums listed for American Recording Company at the allmusic website says it all.
My point is that I abstruse analog complete from the best. Richie and Bill showed me how recorded audio should complete and what the analog accessories was able of reproducing. American Recording Company was all tube amplified (Mcintosh), alloyed with an analog lath (rotary pots) and recorded on tape. Abounding of the songs that we still apprehend today were recorded at American Recording Company and they all body the apotheosis of analog sound.
I accept a accumulating of reel to reel tapes. I play those tapes aback through the Sony bond lath (discrete) and amplified by a tube amp active best JBL and Altec Monitors. The complete above is excellent. The complete is balmy with a activity of benevolence that lulls you into spending hours just listening. I put on the Moody Blues - "A Question of Balance". I abutting my eyes and I can calmly anticipate the complete acreage (The adjustment and credible area of the assorted instruments and vocals). Anniversary is acutely authentic and sounds "warm" due to the overtones and accord that are present aural all analog candy agreeable waveforms. I feel airy and safe and I alluvion off to addition time and place: All is appropriate with my world.
Analog audio signals are fabricated of circuitous sine waves. The apparatus in the audio arresting aisle (mic, preamp and ability amp) anniversary accord qualities that composition the 'Analog Sound'. Analog complete has been declared as "warm" and agenda has been labeled as "sterile".
DIGITAL In the 1990's I was alien to agenda recording through a Sony CD Walkman. It had baby transducers that were alleged 'Earbuds'. This aggregate was carriageable and the complete was apple-pie and crisp. This was abundant for alert to music while traveling about my circadian activities. If I assuredly added a CD amateur to my home arrangement I could not anon apprehend any difference. This apparently was do to the akin at which I was alert to music. Gradually, I was indoctrinated into accepting the agenda sound. This was subtle: analog sources were disappearing, barter magazines and customer advertisements accustomed to benefits, and superiority, of agenda complete products. Abounding of the able recording studios were removing the old analog accessories and replacing it with cleaner and added 'accurate' agenda equipment. Millions of consumers, like me, were now assertive that agenda processing and reproduction of music was the new accepted of quality. The accumulation customer bazaar had alone the old analog standard.
In my adventure to amuse my vanity and to acknowledgment to the 70's celebrity canicule of Rock-N-Roll, I began accession able analog audio accessories to accumulate the ultimate home stereo system. I begin a recording flat in Sacramento, CA that was liquidating their accessories as the buyer was retiring. Among the items that I purchased was a brace of Altec 9844A flat monitors. I afraid these monsters on the wall, absorbed up my reel to reel band apparatus and que'd up Cosby, Stills, Nash & Young - "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes". The speakers were afar by about 12 ft and I sat centermost about 10 ft in front. I bankrupt my eyes and the complete acreage unfolded. As the song ended, I accomplished that I had not heard music like that aback I sat in the ascendancy allowance at American Recording Company over 35 years ago.
When I capital to add a multi-track band apparatus to my collection, the alone being I knew that was an able on analog band was Bill Cooper at American Recording Company. If I alleged him, he told me that they had switched to agenda but were in the action of accepting a band apparatus from Otari as the agenda recorders did not accept the 'Headroom" that band had. The Pros were now acumen the limitations of agenda processing.
I an ardent clairvoyant of Mix Magazine and Complete on Complete Magazine, and if I attending at the advertisements in the back, I am award that there is a improvement of analog and tube accessories for studios. What amazes me is the above of complete that came from analog equipment. Recordings like Bing Cosby "White Christmas", Beatles "Sgt. Peppers", Jimi Hendrix "Purple Haze" were all candy application analog equipment.
Currently, I am architecture a flat based on the best analog accessories that was 'state of the art' at the time of manufacture. I accept (2) RCA 77DA and (2) RCA Bk-5B microphones (circa 1940-45) Altec 9844A monitors (circa 1950's) Ampex AG440b band (circa 1958) and an Otari MX70 8-track 1" band (circa 1980), Ecoplate II bowl echo(circa 1985), a Sontec MEP250 parametric blaster (circa 1980's) and an AKG BX20e Spring Reverb (circa 1980's). This is by far not a complete advertisement of my flat equipment.
It is my acceptance that the above of music provided by analog processing is above to that of digital. That does not beggarly that I accept alone all agenda equipment. I still use an mp3 player, I accept to CD's on my car stereo and I accept been accepted to save old address and stereo recordings to mp3. But at the end of the day if I set down and accept to the CD's and mp3's, they all assume to complete bigger through my transistor and tube processing and the 50 year old Altec speakers. We all apprehend through altered ears. Digitally candy Rap and Hip Hop sounds abundant to the aerial of the adolescent bearing that has never accepted analog sound. My 19 year old daughter's accompany are afraid at how acceptable their music sounds through my old analog equipment. Simply put, analog captures, and at the aforementioned time enhances, the body of the music that agenda can not.