Cartridges 'voiced' to sound like CD. Possible?

[dnewma04]

I'd shoot for 65537 just so it's better.

 

[MWalt]

Or not even the same, but different colors of "uncomfortable".

I'm still a little mystified by the common belief that CDs are somehow inherently lacking in richness (or whatever you want to call it). I can understand that not everybody has had the opportunity to hear a really good CD player or DAC, but does that really necessitate holding on to some belief that its impossible for a CD to sound rich and lifelike?

I suppose it's the flipside of the same coin as the folks who say that LPs can never sound as good as a CD.

I guess I really can't fault them, I'm a "gotta hear it for myself" type of person too.

I agree with this. My digital files/DAC and my TT are competitive. In my setup, it comes down to whichever was mastered/recorded the best that determines which source is "better".

 

[melofelo]

melofelo, what does digital sound like? My CD player sounds analogue, but then, it would, it has a digital to analogue converter built in.

for the music i listen to most..which tends to be from the 50's to the early 90's ..and originally mastered in the analog domain..digital sounds 'processed'...as if someone tried to 'clean up' old and deteriorating mastertapes and in the process make the space in between the musical elements in the recording sound 'quieter'.

All too often the very harmonics and subtle details that make a piece of analog music sound tactile and natural gets left out in this cleaning up process...and too often the result ends up sounding blurred and sterile...or 'edgy'

from my own experience it sounds 'ok'...but ultimately it sounds 'different' to what the original analog mastered music that was originally issued on vinyl should sound like.
And yes... i've compared quite a few recordings on both formats.

for post 90's stuff i don't mind whether its digital or not because modern mastering standards have changed a bit since the days of analog..sometimes for the better...often for the worse.
so to conclude..i prefer the sound to be as close as possible to how it was originally mastered...and in the case of vinyl...if it was mastered digitally..there is no reason for it to be issued on an analog format and if it was an analog master it tends to sound best on an analog format.
but that's just my own preference...
my main quibble with an analog format trying to sound 'digital' or a digital format trying to sound 'analog' is that it is a mistake...both formats should try to sound 'musical'..and give the impression of realism by reproducing the little details the ear uses to distinguish something that sounds like a real instrument played in an acoustic space...from a real instrument that has been sampled,scaled,edited,modfied...or whatever else they do that makes it sound fake to my ears..
but that's just my own preference with the genres of music i enjoy..not a criticism of a format.
digital formats can sound wonderful..when done right...but a cartridge that tries to sound 'digital' or is voiced to sound 'modern' whatever that is... is simply being unfaithful to an analog waveform in an analog format.
just my opinion really based on what i hear in my own system :thmbsp:

 

[melofelo]

My CD player sounds analogue, but then, it would, it has a digital to analogue converter built in.

yep my cd player sounds 'analogue' too...its the music that can sound over- processed when that analogue sound emerges..

 

[TobascoKid]

Catman: funny that you should mention CD and analog matching. I had the same idea last week so I did a real life match. It sure did not take long to find out and is about as scientific as we get today. I am happy with the results.

A vintage but versatile preamp was the key: it is dedicated to the turntable. The CD was the control and I matched up the LP section. I used an old high-compliance HOMC cartridge (really a LOMC cart with a built in SUT) from the early ‘60s. The loading was 200pF and 10k. For tone control, there was not much to change; about 5% more bass and 10% more treble. The CD and LP outputs were leveled as it would not do good to have the CD playing louder. Syncing a newly pressed record to the CD version, I could simply switch the source selector. I was amazed to hear the turntable keeping perfect time to the CD. We know what would happen if it was even a smidge high or low. I have one turntable that runs a wee-bit high but they call that defect “PRAT.”I do not believe a turntable should add its voice to the chorus. But this turntable in “the test” was absolutely honest in keeping time with the CDP. The speakers are my recently, highly, very highly, modified “Demon” LX-8 with the Linaeum tweeters. With my son’s help it was just a quick test. We had a great time listening and learning.

The physicists can deal with the giga-micro-distortions I may have intentionally let loose!