Why even Steve Jobs loved vinyl records

There is a myth about vinyl records. Contrary to all prophecies of doom, the record medium is far from dead, on the contrary. There’s something going on in the dead thought world of crackling vinyl.

Even former Apple CEO Steve Jobs loved records. This is rather astonishing, as he has helped the MP3 player – in the elegant iPod’s attire – to achieve a worldwide breakthrough like no other. On the other hand Apple has also invented the .aac format, a high-quality version of a digital music file.

According to a report by the Recording Industry Association of America RIAA, record sales have risen sharply in recent years. Many musicians have rediscovered vinyl records for themselves, and vinyl magazines also celebrate the new old trend on the Internet, for example the vinylist.

Do vinyl records really sound better?

Records create a very special atmosphere. There is this quiet crackling, then the transparent, spatial sound. It’s kind of strange, the technology is over six decades old – and has hardly evolved in this time. And yet – what the record conveys is difficult to reproduce with digital technology. Let’s hear what a proven expert has to say about this.

Adam Gonsalves of Portland’s Telegraph Mastering has worked with numerous artists and is an old hand at the record making business. He says: “Vinyl is the only consumer playback format that is completely analog and lossless. All you need is a decent turntable with a decent needle and you’ll enjoy an authentic listening experience. It’s a little more foolproof and less technical.” He continues: “This warm vinyl sound – I think that’s what people like about it. It’s very closely related to the way people listen to music organically.”

Vinyl records awaken memories of one’s own youth

There may be another reason why many of us are so into records. Often they are the bearer of our youth memories. An atmospheric evening with the records leads us back to the wild years of youth. There is hardly anything that can bring back old memories as quickly and as deeply as music – preferably accompanied by a quiet crackle.