CD and SACD for me.
I have to say and I don't mean to insult anyone (I really don't), but looking at what folks are using for a CD player here I'm not surprised vinyl gets your vote even with the surface noise, lack of dynamic range and the diminished high frequencies from playing. Inexpensive and/or old CD players sound like crap.
Perhaps it's not the the "sound" of CD vs wax that is truly being compared. Surface noise, a lack of dynamic range, and other sonic imperfections do undoubtedly exist with vinyl and are surely a factor in the scenario. I don't think that anyone would question that a more "faithful" reproduction of the source material across the audible spectrum does indeed come from a capable digital source. If I want to distinctly hear the buried echo of the telephones ringing in the background of the studio in Led Zeppelin's "The Ocean", I cue the CD, or even run the mp4 via Apple Lossless off of my Mac Pro through my system. With the simple push of a button, music is faithfully reproduced.
But, when I sit down and "listen" to music, CD's and mp3's are the last thing on my mind. I enjoy the artistic pageantry and the physical simplicity that accompanies vinyl. It's a beautiful thing. A tiny chunk of a sculpted mineral at the end of a cantilever tracks a vinyl groove. A changing magnetic field that is mathematically isomorphic to the topology of the groove sends an analogous electrical current flying down a superhighway of wiring and into your components.
I own 2 or 3 copies of a few albums on both CD and vinyl. One of these is The Clash on Broadway, of which I own two copies on CD. One disc looks like it's been washed with a sandblaster, the other looks brand new. I notice that they both play identically. Due to the probabilistic nature of the transfer of digital information, what would be heard as a crack or a pop from an analog source is compensated for by the hardware.
The medium of vinyl requires care and dedication. In my opinion, it's more of a listening experience. From tip to tail, I feel more involved in the music when I listen to vinyl. Not to mention the acquisition of records. Between yard sales and flea markets, Jerry's and grandparents' attics, there's nothing like finding a crisp clean pressing of something off the wall.
Except of course, maintaining those albums. As we all know, digital sources do not degrade in quality due to usage over time. Analog sources do. For me, that spawns a deeper sense of appreciation for the music itself. Vinyl seems to walk the artistic and temporal side of the line much more so than digital music. That significance to me is greater than the presence of surface noise, diminished high frequencies, and lack of dynamic range.
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