i completely get preferring analog media, so if it’s about the sound characteristics (that ‘warmth’), having physical media, etc fair enough. but if the goal of an audiophile is to get the highest quality reproduction of a recording wouldn’t CDs or FLACs be your best bet?
maybe this only really applies for newer music, perhaps digital releases for music recorded analogue are just digitized vinyl or reel to reel recordings but for music produced in DAWs the highest quality version available for that release would surely be either a CD or a digital FLAC release
I think this topic is like the earlier era of digital cameras vs film cameras. Film cameras were far superior to digital a few decades. Digital cameras could not get even close to the level of detail or stylized moody lighting of film. You could not zoom in and blow up a digital photo and get anywhere near a film photo.So, everyone shit on digital and said it would never replace film.
Now, digital has surpassed film in so many ways it’s not even close. Yes, film cameras are still beloved and have qualities that digital cannot capture, but the majority of professional photographers and videographers prefer using digital cameras.
The same is now true with the discussion of vinyl vs digital music. Digital music files were not as detailed and it wasn’t ever close during the CD and origins of iPods and downloading. Now, with faster internet and inexpensive larger hard drives, its’ very possible. Now digital file sizes have the same amount of musical information as vinyl and for the first time giving records a run for their money. At some point digital files will sound much better than vinyl and vinyl will take on a film quality and enjoyed or nostiliga and the ritual aspect of it.