It's true from time to time. Low's last digital releases are actually unlistenable due to heavy-handed compression, but the vinyl seems to have been spared.

I had to record the vinyl to get usable digital files.

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wk_end 16 hours ago | parent [-]

The loudness and compression on Low's last couple of albums is very much deliberate, so it's surprising that the vinyl doesn't have it. Though I heard similar claims about Sleater-Kinney's The Woods, which was also intensely compressed for artistic effect.

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Slow_Hand 15 hours ago | parent | next [-]

This. The loudness is an aesthetic choice.

The reason it was backed off for the vinyl master is most likely due to physical limitations of the medium. If the audio channels are too loud (wide) there is risk that the needle will jump out of the groove.

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esikich 11 hours ago | parent [-]

This is exactly why vinyl is inferior to tape and digital.

	▲	majkinetor 18 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		You mean beside all the noise it has?

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CarVac 15 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

There's compression and distortion for sure on the vinyl, but when you look at the waveform on the digital it's right up to the max. It completely changes the sound.