Hey RG, very interesting discussion this one. The main part of the conversation is about granularity, (and this is about how and what you recorded it to (i.e. digital or tape and what format), what you do before that to create the "sound" is a different discussion.
OK so digital vs tape.. tape is still far superior if you have really good high quality tape. This is just plain physics, you have to go to Sony Super Audio to get anywhere near really good tape (but you also need the gear to really hear it (desk/amp/speakers etc)). Super Audio is 2Ghz serial (like mp3 on many many multiple steroids). It goes flat from 0 to 100khz (which is actually very important (if you care and have the preamp/amp and speakers to listen to it). A really good tape mastering machine running at 30" p/s (ips), will go out to 80khz. But your ears can't hear 80khz, no but you feel it, and sum and difference (physics) means 2 x 80khz makes a 40khz, makes a 20 khz makes a 10 khz etc so now you are hearing it (so (re)creates colours/spaces/energies etc very important (if you care)).
So back to granularity (how you slice and dice the signal).
Digital:
MP3 (various bit rates, serial, big loss off signal attack times), apple ACC much the same
Wav file (also apple AIF), container format, used for word based digital samples (e.g. CD qual = 44.1khz/(16 bit word to store sample)), 48 khz/24 bit word (much better dynamic range)
Tape is about speed, space and tape properties (how much room is there to store my sample/signal). Given that tape is made up of minute magnetic particles, it's always going to be better than most digital storage, but the more space the better, so cassette is the worst (1 second of music on 1 track = 1 & 7/8 ips x 1/64" (1/8" div by 4) so not much space (shits on MP3 IMO BTW)). But 1 second of music on 1/2" tape running at 30 IPS = 30" x 1/4" of space per stereo track, now you have to go to Sony SA to get anywhere close in digital terms.
So I'd like a 1" valve tape mastering machine (maybe a Studer?) probably with AMPEX 456 tape (the 406 and 407 were good but the 456 was the best top end). But I have speakers etc that will do it justice!
At the end of the day it's all horses for courses. If your target audience wants to listen through some crappy ear buds off their iPhone etc then mix for that medium.
Bouncing to tape (even hi quality cassette (like my Nakamichi)) is a better way of "dithering" than the digital algorithms (it's real and natural), it warms up the sound and does a better job, then re-sample at whatever bit rate/quality you need to turn it back into digital.
VHS audio is digital IIRC (I may be wrong) I do remember when VHS came with better (stereo) audio, it was better than "most" cassettes in it's day, but not better than the Nakamichi decks.
So bouncing to tape (if you have "really good" tape) works well, adds warmth and is the
BEST way to dither down or up.
At what point do you go from analogue to digital ? never if you don't have to (like you are going to make a single on vinyl
) Though I'm all for "mixing in" digital gadgets (FXs delay/reverb etc) but keep the signal as analouge as you can (IMHO))