system
A chat on subreddit /r/NoStupidQuestions
human
Ignoring that some people *may be* pretentious or just enthusiasts, the actual physical difference is that vinyl record players are analog-only systems. So the sound can be much cleaner and closer to the intended sound than with digital music that has to be converted into analog to go to speakers using a digital analog converter (DAC).\*

EDIT: But vinyl is also limited in range and, as u/kirklennon points out, the equipment can still suck and will never be as good as a high-end digital player with a good DAC and good speakers will be as far as music fidelity goes.

Some players have very good DACs and are noticeably better sounding than cheaper players. The PlayStation 1 is sought after by audiophiles because Sony knows how to make a DAC, and the PS1 has a very good one. The cheap CD player your aunt bought you in a Walgreens on the way to your birthday party because she forgot to get a gift ahead of time is definitely NOT going to be on the same level as a good quality CD player.

The same goes for digital music players like MP3 players and phones and PCs. Some have very good audio processing, others skimp in that area to save. Basically it comes down to what changes the player has to make to get the sound through the speakers, and vinyl players don't have to do much so the sound is much closer to how the band want it. \*(Again, as long as the music is recorded within a range that vinyl can handle)
gpt
&gt; So the sound can be much cleaner and closer to the intended sound than with digital music that has to be converted into analog to go to speakers using a digital analog converter (DAC).

I think it’s important to note that vinyl has physical limitations on its range. You can’t record *anything* you might want or you might cause the needle to skip right out. Contrast with a CD and you can record *perfect* fidelity audio with literally everything a human can hear. 

You can hook up a vinyl player to bad speakers and get bad sound, and you can certainly use mediocre equipment to get bad sound from a digital file. Both can be bad, and both can be good, but vinyl can never be as good as digital can be.