It's not false to say that, most often, vinyl discs and receivers have a higher possible degree of audio fidelity. That's because the way discs are pressed doesn't "chop" off natural peaks and valleys in sound, and because the (older/nicer) receivers were made with more analog components that behaved similarly. On the contrary, most digital recordings are recorded and then encoded into "lossy" file formats and then replayed on cheaper speakers with fewer/smaller components. That's because repeated studies have shown the average listener (key note -- AVERAGE) does not mind, nor notice, a considerable loss in audio fidelity, unless they're really and truly searching it out. And if they're searching it out, the argument would be that they're no longer an average listener, but a purist.

That said, as with many things in life, it is what you make it. There were certainly budget discs with 15+ tracks jammed to a side with TERRIBLE audio fidelity, and similarly cheap turntable setups with cheap needles, bad capacitors, and tinny sound. I've even had a turntable that turned at 33 rpm (instead of 33-1/3) which made the records sound different on it compared to other turntables to the astute listener. And there's some very nice digital equipment out there, too, if you're willing to shell out the money.

I must confess two things: 1) audio snob though I often am, it's hard to beat the convenience of more lossy digital music, and 2) despite the protestations of a friend, I never could hear a difference from the tube-type amplifiers many avow.