Dynamic Range Vinyl Better Than Cd

With the above in mind i began exploring why some vinyl records have greater dynamic range rightly concluding that mastering lay at the heart of the issue.

Dynamic range vinyl better than cd.

Even though digital music has a higher theoretical dynamic range 96db vs. It s different from sitting back and letting your cd changer do its thing. Here are the reasons why. Consumer analog cassette tapes have a dynamic range of 60 to 70 db.

The dynamic range of vinyl when evaluated as the ratio of a peak sinusoidal amplitude to the peak noise density at that sine wave frequency is somewhere around 80 db. Narrow dynamic range sounds very odd to the ear when sounds that are supposed to be loud are quiet and so on. Now assume that your speakers are relatively efficient and can produce a sound level of 96db with an input power of 1 watt. And so are mp3 and aac files with bit rates above 300k which in most cases are indistinguishable from cds.

Vinyl has greater resolution than cd because its dynamic range is higher than for cd at the most audible frequencies. Analog fm broadcasts rarely have a dynamic range exceeding 50 db. 16 bit cd digital audio has a technical dynamic range of 96 db though many argue the perceived range is higher when taking dithering into account. The dynamic range of digital audio systems can exceed that of analog audio systems.

The dynamic range of a direct cut vinyl record may surpass 70 db. A sound level of 136db is jet engine loud. Add to that the 96db dynamic range and the peak output level from your speakers would need to be 136db to experience the full dynamic range from a cd. Vinyl records typically yield 55 65 db.