VPI Scout - Is vinyl really all that?

[tigerwoodKhorns]

I have my VPI Scout all set up with a Dynavector 20xH cart and have had some time to listen to it. I was very skeptical of vinyl and figured that there would nto be that much of a difference from CD's.

I will hold judgment as to whether it blows CD's away. I think CD's sound very good in my system.

I will give a little background. Before gettign my TT set up, I went over to a friend's house. He had just gotten a Music Hall setup that was $500 including the cart. A lot of the vinyl that he had sounded flat, and a lot sounded very good. Kind of hit or miss. He had a great A/B test. A Nora Jones SACD that he bought included a vinyl copy. We listened to both and honestly could not tell the difference, it was that close. He interpreted the result as Vinyl is good, but why give up the ease of CD's? I looked at it this way, a $500 TT, including cart sounded the SAME as his $4,000 Esoteric SACD player on a new recording. I was impressed, but a little troubled that much of the vinyl did not sound all that great.

Now to the VPI. It was pretty easy to setup, but a PITA to get all of the parts. If you buy one, make sure you have the correct length cart mounting bolts and a stylus force gage. You will need it and may not be able to find this stuff locally. Try DJ supply houses. I had to mail order teh Shure gage. Thanks ebay, took two days to get it.

I got the TT set up and played Peter Gabriel Plays Live. Great album. I was very skeptical. I am the guy who likes his SS over tubes (very good SS, can't be just any SS, and yes, tubes sound just as good as high quality SS for less money, but being up and running and listening to music in 20 seconds is nice) and who did not think that SET was that much better than a $100 digital amp. Very skeptical of the hoopla. I figured that I would try vinyl for a few months and then be selling it for a high end CD player.

Well, I was immediately floored. The sound is so thick. That's the best way that I can describe it, very thick and you really hear the beat of the music. My CD's have great soundstage, imaging etc, so that is not being bettered. But, the music is just different. I ususally and on the net when listening. When I put vinyl on I get the urge to put the laptop down and listen, it has all of my attention. I also can't stop my foot from tapping. (OK - everyone picture Steve Martin as Nathan Jones in the beginning of The Jerk)

I still can't say that vinyl is definately better than CD's, but I had to put FM on to type this. I tried with vinyl on and could not concentrate. it just takes you away. You have to get up every 20 minutes but it does not interrupt you because all that you are doing is listening to the music. It has been a pretty good experience so far. I now have my eye on a VPI record cleaning machine. This seems like it is a necessity. Surface noise is not that bad, but soem records are silent and other are not. I want them all silent.

Thanks to all that steered me in this direction.

One last thing. I was worried about the PRAT thing and considered a Rega. The VPI has PRAT. It is not just there, I get lost in the music and the beat, just like Nathan Jones...

[edwinr]

A great post. I've had similar experience with vinyl myself. Not all vinyl albums sound great, but when they do, it takes a very good SACD or CD to compete. I've done the comparison myself, and I've found SACD and vinyl to be very close. I've got a late model Rega P3 fitted with a Denon DL-103 cartridge. Not the very best turntable in the world, but certainly good enough to highlight how good vinyl can be.

There is definitely something about vinyl that demands your attention when you listen. I haven't figured the reason out yet. I solved most of the surface noise issue by buying a VPI 16.5 record cleaner. An expensive option if it didn't work very well. But man, does it work...!

[jazman]

I have my VPI Scout all set up with a Dynavector 20xH cart and have had some time to listen to it. I was very skeptical of vinyl and figured that there would nto be that much of a difference from CD's.

I will hold judgment as to whether it blows CD's away. I think CD's sound very good in my system.

I will give a little background. Before gettign my TT set up, I went over to a friend's house. He had just gotten a Music Hall setup that was $500 including the cart. A lot of the vinyl that he had sounded flat, and a lot sounded very good. Kind of hit or miss. He had a great A/B test. A Nora Jones SACD that he bought included a vinyl copy. We listened to both and honestly could not tell the difference, it was that close. He interpreted the result as Vinyl is good, but why give up the ease of CD's? I looked at it this way, a $500 TT, including cart sounded the SAME as his $4,000 Esoteric SACD player on a new recording. I was impressed, but a little troubled that much of the vinyl did not sound all that great.

Now to the VPI. It was pretty easy to setup, but a PITA to get all of the parts. If you buy one, make sure you have the correct length cart mounting bolts and a stylus force gage. You will need it and may not be able to find this stuff locally. Try DJ supply houses. I had to mail order teh Shure gage. Thanks ebay, took two days to get it.

I got the TT set up and played Peter Gabriel Plays Live. Great album. I was very skeptical. I am the guy who likes his SS over tubes (very good SS, can't be just any SS, and yes, tubes sound just as good as high quality SS for less money, but being up and running and listening to music in 20 seconds is nice) and who did not think that SET was that much better than a $100 digital amp. Very skeptical of the hoopla. I figured that I would try vinyl for a few months and then be selling it for a high end CD player.

Well, I was immediately floored. The sound is so thick. That's the best way that I can describe it, very thick and you really hear the beat of the music. My CD's have great soundstage, imaging etc, so that is not being bettered. But, the music is just different. I ususally and on the net when listening. When I put vinyl on I get the urge to put the laptop down and listen, it has all of my attention. I also can't stop my foot from tapping. (OK - everyone picture Steve Martin as Nathan Jones in the beginning of The Jerk)

I still can't say that vinyl is definately better than CD's, but I had to put FM on to type this. I tried with vinyl on and could not concentrate. it just takes you away. You have to get up every 20 minutes but it does not interrupt you because all that you are doing is listening to the music. It has been a pretty good experience so far. I now have my eye on a VPI record cleaning machine. This seems like it is a necessity. Surface noise is not that bad, but soem records are silent and other are not. I want them all silent.

Thanks to all that steered me in this direction.

One last thing. I was worried about the PRAT thing and considered a Rega. The VPI has PRAT. It is not just there, I get lost in the music and the beat, just like Nathan Jones...

Congrats on your new Scout. Believe me, you are only scratching the surface. I would dare say that the Scout will overtake the imaging and soundstage of your CD player with a different cartridge, better isolation, motor upgrade, and a humble VPI PLC (prior to the SDS). If your Dynavector was new, you should have had the proper bolts. A stylus gauge is mandatory to set up any cartridge. Experiment with the VTA on your current cartridge.

Properly set up, the VPI Scout is unbelievably good. With the few tweaks mentioned,....oh my! A record cleaner will help with some of the surface noise, but so can a cartridge. Continue to enjoy the music.

Klipsch out.

[3dzapper]

Great post Chris! I think you nailed it. An SACD can sound very good, a good vinyl recording can be as good yet more "involving".

Rick

[lwhaples]

Enjoyed the post. I find that I can't spin vinyl,if I plan on getting anything done.

Larry

[Audio Flynn]

Good coments.

My TT is very onld and my cart modest in price but the "thickness' is duly noted.

Vinyl gets a hard knock on dynamic range but most commercial digital

software is restricted in dynamic range due to mastering and production.

Time for me to bring up some new LPs from the basement...................

[maxg]

There was I but 5 years ago. Nice tale. Been there, done that etc. etc.

The world is pretty much at a loss to explain it - but this 60 year old + technology takes some beating and when it comes to connecting to the music there just doesnt seem to be anything that gets close.

Now just wait till you start tweaking - as Edmond says....

[coltrane]

Good day all,

I have to say that I became hooked on vinyl about a year ago. At the time I had around 1500 cd's and I happened to find a great deal on an old vintage Thorens table. I figured what the heck, I'll grab the table and hit a good used record store and see what happens. 2,000 records later I am here for the long haul. I am left with only about 250 cd's as I have sold most of them and purchased vinyl.

I completely agree with the above statement that it is much more involving and attention grabbing. Cd's were always in the background but now I sit and focus with vinyl. I am a huge jazz freak and I can't describe the difference vinyl makes when listening to coltrane or dexter on a record. I love the sound of my tubes+klipsch+vinyl!!!!

Delano

[tigerwoodKhorns]

I listened to a few more LP's last night. Peter Gabriel and Genesis. You just pop the LP on and listen to the whole side. Every song seems to grab you.

I think the difference is the details are all there, some maybe not as much as digital (volume wise) but it is all fatter. Not sloppy, but just more resolution, I think. I am going to enjoy this for a while and then try some CD's again. I just have no urge to play CD's right now. I really did not expect, or believe, this would happen.

When I go back to CD's I'll try soem well recorded material, like Neil Young.

The last thing that I want to hear is that a $10,000 TT setup will blow me away. I tried to jump into this at a high enough level so that I did not short change it. The VPI 16.5 will be soon. I think the next step, when the Dynavector gets tired (a while from now) is a high dollar cart, but that is way off. I want to spend my time buying LP's instead of equipment for a long while.

I am going to a thrift store this afternoon to scrounge for LP's.