Table Stakes

Table StakesWhat goes around comes around, and the sonic dinosaur of the past decade--the turntable--has survived the rage for CDs to become a status symbol among audiophiles. One reason, of course, is the good news that artists such as Pearl Jam and Smashing Pumpkins have their latest releases pressed on vinyl as well as on CD. (Pearl Jam's latest album, Vitalogy, sold more than 70,000 copies in LP format.) Another reason is that many music critics believe that LPs sound warmer and richer than...