Vinyl in actual use has a much narrower range than CDs or MP3s. One things that is common, though, is for Vinyl to be mastered differently than the digital final result. So, it is entirely possible for the CD/MP3 release of a given song to have a much narrower dynamic range than a Vinyl release of a given song despite being released on demonstrably inferior technology.
Said differently, the limitations of a medium can lead to better decisions. What can be done with a limited toolset is often better than what can be done with an unlimited toolset.
In this specific case, it's not a result of the toolset, but a result of the consumer. The vinyl enthusiast is buying something they are a fan of at a higher price and expecting a quality product. The typical MP3 customer is buying it based on a 15 second sample. So, the 'loudness wars' still apply to many digital products, sadly.
They could still just as easily take the existing digital master and dial down the amplitude a bit to work with vinyl. This would be especially easy considering how few vinyl records they sell vs digital. But, many people are paying a premium for vinyl and expecting better sound.
Vinyl has been demonstrated to be able to cut and playback frequencies of up to 70khz, and many commercially released records from as far back as the 70s had data up to the mid 40khz range (and in fact this is required for quadraphonic playback).
Even if it's theoretically capable of doing that, I think the average cd player produces a better frequency range than the average record player. In any case, I thought the parent was talking about dynamic range, not frequency range.
Vinyl sounds nice to many people. It has likeable, some say 'musical', distortion.
A turntable with a nice amp and speakers is a novel treat to people who have grown up with low-bitrate mp3s and ear buds. Sounds different. And having to work a bit harder and paying attention means you tend to get more out of it.
Of course, a well-mastered CD and a nice pair of headphones also sounds great and might be a more accurate reproduction of what they heard in the studio.
Α FLAC player with a nice amp and speakers is an even nicer way, and, about the working hard part, I could say the same for waiting tables to buy your music.
I don't know, this all sounds like rationalization to me. Saying "I grew up with vinyl so it sounds more familiar to me" is fine, I grew up with 8-bit graphics and I like them, but they're not objectively better. Trying to rationalize this preference with things like "bigger pixels are easier to see" is a bit disingenuous, though.
"Loudness wars" has everything to do with mastering and very little to do with the actual medium. Yes, the onset of the loudness wars coincided with the rise of digital distribution, but you can master a record to be just as loud as a CD. On the other hand, you can't master a record to have as much dynamic range as a CD. That's why classical music enthusiasts tend to prefer CDs.
