Sound Quality of red book CDs vs.streaming

I have experienced the apparent superiority of DVDs, Blurays and 4K blurays to streaming 1080 and 4K videos over the internet on a Sony 940D 75" monitor (I employ higher end cabling and a Synergistic Research black duplex with Stillpoints for vibration control under the non-video monitor equipment).  Maybe I just need a better streamer (at 300 Mbs speed) but I prefer the media to the streaming.  I still enjoy streaming video.  

As to audio, I prefer the physical media as well but don't have the streaming capabilities of the video system.  I listen to 78s, LPs and CDs.  I say that my video system is closer to perfection for visual enjoyment than my audio system.  Yet I spend hours per day/night listening to music rather than watching TV.   I get such a high level of emotion out of my audio system that I long to listen to music daily.  I'm addicted to music more than I am to equipment despite being an audiophile.  I rarely change equipment, only tweaks (cables, acoustic treatments and vibration controls).  What I lack in ultimate resolution (such as rampant among the newest high end speakers), I have in tone qualilty, harmonic layering, dynamics and rhythm/pace of the music.  It a sign of how good it is when friends and acquaintances don't want to leave when listening to music in my home-they are immersed in a sonic wonderland.  

I first got the audio/music bug at 5 years old when listening to my uncle's 5 way mono box speaker system with a 15" woofer powered by Heathkit pre-amp and amp and an AR turntable back in 1961.  Sure, it wasn't high resoultion or stereo.  So what?  It was both gorgeous sounding and super dynamic for his average size living room.  I always requested visiting his home to hear his 500 record collection from doo-wap, to opera, classical and pop.  All in glorious mono.

The greatest thing about Tru-Fi is that it creates a level in quality what is affordable for many more people. It proofs that you can get a system what brings you closer to the music for a lot less money.

People have no idea how much the acoustic, smog, highfrequent noise and magnetism limits the effectiveness of each part in your system. You only have accesss to a very limited level of the full potential of each part.

And again we can proof this with sound over and over again. The sound will always proof the truth. The highend shows in Munic proof each single year that money will never help you or give you a stunning level in sound quality.

Diversity (layering) in sound has the biggest influence on our emotion. So even a mono loudspeaker what is able to create a good level in layering in sound will make us experience emotion during listening to music.

But when you let people hear a system what can reveal all the details and aspects of a recording the experience will become a lot more intense.

@bo1972  

You still haven't answered my question. So to you the Lumin is an absolute best (best of the best) and the all the other brands are garbage or is Lumin the best in their price points? 

I have been putting off getting a music server, I really like owning the physical CD.  For the last few years I was listening to a hard drive with my CDs ripped to FLAC via computer through my OPPO player and DAC.  While the sound and overall convenience was great it really was a PITA to unplug the drive and plug it into a PC to add music.  

I finally caved in and bought a BlueSound Vault 2i and although I just set it up I can say I think it was a worthwhile purchase.  Set up was super easy, I was playing songs from my drive , listening to internet radio, sending music from my tablet to it via Blutooth...   this thing is like the Swiss Army knife of gadgets.  

I will try to explain it. All people who sell audio products have a totally different focus than I have. It is not even comparable. They all work by trail and error. So they all connect a Lumin with an amp, loudspeakers and cables togheter.

And again we are talking about facts. But when I would ask them: what is the DNA of a Lumin? Or what are the differrent properties/aspects of sound a Lumin can reveal or does not own?

They all have no idea. Based on the fact that their insight is not able to think by properties. No do they see the different connections between each single part within an audio system.

We know in details the full DNA of a Lumin networkplayer. Because we choose it by DNA. So we know how to create and use the full potential of it. As we know which cables and other accessoires you can use and which you cannot use.

We use the menu and settings even different than all other companies who sell Lumin products. We modify all Lumin Players and even the Lumin L1 drive. This creates a superior level compared to each Lumin out of a box.

Audio shops sell Lumin players out of a box by trial and error. And again we are talking about a 100% fact. No person in the world can deny or change that. Sometimes I send new clients to a shop to audition the same Lumin as they want to audition at our place.

I already know the outcome even before I have send them to the other shop. The level out of the same Lumin (even without a modification) is superior by Tru-Fi compared to the same Lumin in any audioshop on this planet.

You and all shops see it as a product. It is just a Lumin out of a box. In our world we are only interested in the DNA of a Lumin. When you use a Lumin by Tru-Fi the level in effectiveness is far superior to the limited level you can reach by trail and error.

I give you another example, when an audio shop visits their clients to install an audio system or a part of it. They bring in a few screwdrivers, a measuring tape. And sometimes a leveler. When they install a new flatscreen they come with simmilar tools.

Now our world. When we install an audio system or an part we come with the most advanced high tech measurement equipment and tools of over 7000 dollar.

When we come to install a flatscreen again we come with the most advanced calibration software in the world with the best tools of over 7000 dollar. The tru-fi world is a world what goed so much further in details than the limited trail and error world ever will and can go.

Superiority is a choice you make as a company. We have to goal and ambition to be the best in our world. Insight and knowledge you only can create by research and testing. And we are talking about thousands of hours. And this never stops and will go on untill I quite.

So now I hope you will understand that a Lumin out of a box is a totally different Lumin by Tru-Fi.

Yet, 50% of the sound is attributable to the room.  Room acoustics are more important on a percentage basis than a modified Lumin1.  The totality of the audio system equipment, media and tweaks is half the sound.  I'd like to know how your sound room was constructed to meet the 50% portion of the absolute best sound in the world?

An excellent selling point for headphones. 

And yes the acoustic has the biggest influence on sound and stage. In the Tru-Fi world acoustic limitations are gone. When we visit a new client or we go to an audio show we go back in time for 20 years of time.

It looks like they all have been sleeping. We will share our Statement Audio Pro-measurement with different manufacturers in 2019. In the last 8 years I have spend by far the most time regarding research in the acoustic influences of rooms.

Statement Audio Pro-measurement is by far the most influantial tool in audio available. And it will bring audio to a much higher level than what is possible at this moment.

Beside the acoustic. We have done a lot of research since 2015 regarding smog, highfrequent noise and magnetism. And also in these parts we made huge steps in using many different accessoires. And we evfn use it in our modifications.

It creates a superior level in effectiveness. The cost are lower than what can be achieved by other tools for the same money.

I have contact a few times a week with a person who owns the biggest technical support company in my country.

They do technical support for: Lumin, Pass Labs, Marantz, Onkyo, Denon Primare, Mark Levinson, Audio Research and many more.

We talk a lot about the parts they use these days inside their amps, sources etc. The parts are getting cheaper each single year. And these are the facts and they count. This is why audio doesn’t get any better.

I think system variations and opinions on this matter will vary greatly. I have two CD players in two audio systems and have compared the sound of those to my Node 2 streaming ripped CDs. Most often the ripped versions sound slightly better, but maybe the noise of the CD spinner or something else is a factor. My NAS is in another room from my audio room. When I stream via the Node 2, I think Tidal albums sound as good as my CD players, but with Tidal MQA albums, it edges out my CD player with about 80% of the content I find. I cannot argue with Bo1972 (poster above) since he is some kinda audio god and knows everything about Tru-fi.

Audio is a profession but most people who work in this would have never understood that. Maybe I never met any person who spend that much time as I did in over 20 yaers of time.

That is not the problem or you cannot blame them. But doing both sound&vision by trial and error proof on facts that they are all lazy and own a limited level in insight and knowledge.

Now when I talk with people who also work for a long time in audio it is very easy to make them all understand that trial and error has no foundation. They all agree, so I ask them; what they F. do you think you are doing.

The 3th of july 1998 what my first day when I started to work fulltime in audio I knew (I was aware) that I had to learn what the dna/footprint is of each individual part. So I started to learn in properties of sound.

Now 20 years later it looks like the whole F. world have been sleeping in those 20 years of time. Because the facts proof (all manufacturers and distributers agree) that they work by trial and error. And now they all understand that is has no F. foundation.

It proofs on facts how low the level in awareness is of most human beings. And if you think or believe that I think and believe I am Jesus or special. You are all wrong. I think that what we do is normal and they way it should be done.

For me the difficult part in life is that I see and experience most things as neutral or as a given. But....I life in a world where most human beings see and experience things as positive or negative. That is why people always defend their system or product when I write something they don’t like to read.

Come on, grow up. We are talking about luxery products. This is not a matter of life and dead. Try to learn to look further. In 2019 we will start helping manufactuters to create better products for consumers. So they will get a much better quality for the money they spend.

If you all think and believe that I do this for myself. Again you are 100% all wrong. I only can do this based on the fact that I want others to get a better result. Without my clients I would have stopped a long time ago. When we say; we take care of all our clienst. This is exactley as I wrote it.

We are there to support them. They can call me each single day. Even at christmas. I will be there to support them whenever they need me. We live in a world who is getting more selfish and egoistic each single year. We loose the connection with eachother.

We want to proof the benefit. We believe in a better world for all people. And those whi have nothing need the most support. It is my personal goal to create a foundation for those who have nothing.

I only could spend all those thousands of hours in both sound&vision so I cooudl one day start my foundation for those who have nothing. All these years this was my goal. Without this I would never had the dedication and effort to do it.

I wish you all a great christmas and a happy 2019. I hope to see you in 2019 so you all can experience what Tru-Fi is. And how Statement Audio Pro-measurement can bring you all to much higher endresult.

bo1972"Audio is a profession but most people who work in this would have never understood that."

Audio is a profession for an engineer but it is not for someone like you who is a retailer and there is a problem with Tru-Fi as we have discussed because you have refused, resisted, and avoided addressing the ICSS Factor that I discussed with you and until you comprehend, understand and accommodate ICSS factor into your music reproduction system installations your work will be inadequate, incomplete, and inconsistent in performance.

I have always had contact with different  specialists since 1998. Without these people I would never had been so far as we are now at this moment. I needed their insight  and knowledge to be able to understand sound as in its entirety.

The biggest problem in audio is that no one understands sound as a whole. Sound is so much more complex than people can even imagine. I have been aware of this for a long time. This is why I contacted different specialists. 

Manufacturers now understand when I talk to them that they do not understand sound as a whole. They cannot answer the questions which are needed to understand sound. They never have thought so deep in details as I have thought about it. This is the main reason why they cannot answer these questions.

I learned a lot thanks to live music. That is why I will use conservatorium students by presentations in 2019. This makes it a lot more easy for me to explain what intimate sound is and does. And even what 3-dimensional sound is and does to our emotion. 

This makes it possible for me to show that I copy the way sound and instruments sound and behave in a room. And that Tru-Fi sound simmilar to this. 

We can create our own targetcurve with our Statement Audio Pro-measurement. We recently introduced the latest version of our S.A.P.-measurement. It is the biggest step we ever made from the former measurement to a new one. 

S.A.P.- measurement proofs how much more you can get out of a poweramp. This also proofs that what we call 'a 1980 amp or preamp' is very limited in endresult. Each amp or preamp owns a targetcurve. But you cannot change it. And what people do is they gamble with cables to create an improvement by trail and error. 

This will always be very ineffective. Tru-Fi overrules it as it it is audio for little children. The latest version of S.A.P.-measurement proofs that it can adapt the sound based on all the dna of each part what is connected to a system. When we do a measuerment all the parts we use during a measurement influence the endresult.

What I means is that it can adapt the endresult to the dna of the amp(s), loudspeakers and cables which are connected. This is why it can outperform any 1980 poweramp or pre amp. I call an amp or preamp without a measurement-system a 1980 amp or preamp.

They still work rather the same way as they did in 1980. When we visit a show or new clients the facts proof that often there is nothing adapted regarding smog, highfrequent noise and magnetism. Even when people have spend 300.000 dollar or more, it never will help you with the influences of these limitations.

The facts proof that people in audio have very limited insight and knowledge regarding smog, highfrequent noise and magnetism. When you take a look at the brands who have a roomacoustic measurement system they often make the same kind of mistakes.

So it proofs that they copy the way of measuring from eachother. I can proof on facts that the way they measure is the level of a child. They are not able to understand how you need to measure. Trail and error will never make you understand what you do.

They cannot see the connections why the way they measure does not make sense. But in my world it is very easy to understand what they do wrong. I can hear the limitations they create by the way they measure. But they don't see it. I call this audioblindness. It is not even on their radar. 

They do not own a brain to be able to think and make decisions based on connections. When they would have had a brain what sees these connections they would 100% never made these mistakes. For me audio is like a Formula 1 car. I want to improve it all the time and over and over again. To create an even higher level or result for me is like dope.

I have to admit that music is the most addictive thing in life for me. But.....creating sound is the second thing in what I love most. Creating new levels in sound&vision for me is so addictive. Tru-Fi makes it possible for me to make improvements very easy and this never stops.

Tru-Fi is like an enigma machine, you can see it as 3 wheels what can be changed in different combinations.

Wheel 1 are all the different aspects/properties of sound
Wheel 2 are all the parts who infleucnes sound and stage
Wheel 3 are the the aspects which influence the human emotion.

I can make many different combinations with them to create new data. This is how I work. I create new data and compare it with the old data. And when it is better based on all the aspects/properties of sound it becomes the new reference in that part.

This is what I do constantly. Like auditioning new products. To see and hear if they can reveal all the different apects/properties of sound. Each product what is incomplete (misses different aspects/properties of sound) we never will use or sell these products. This counts for over 99% of all audioproducts. This proofs how difficult it is to find the perfect DNA.

When I judge all the other roomacoustic systems there are, I would not even used one of them. In my world they are all useless based on Tru-Fi.

The facts proof the way they measure and the systems they use, they all have too many limitations.

So what are those limitations?

They all loose details in the whole freq. range. What is unacceptable in my world. They all have compression limitations. We don't have these limitations. This is my insight and knowledge and when you want to use it, you are going to pay.

When I would not have a photographic memory in sound. Or I would not be able to reveal the DNA of each single part I would never had been able to understand it and create it. It is that simple. Then I would have done sound&vision just like the rest of the world by trail and error.

@bo1972,
What kind of trail does Tru-Fi leave behind? Is it by error? Just curious.

geoffkait understands it very well. And yes portable audio with a headphone is a lot easier to create a stunning level in sound without acoustic limitations.

When I audition a more expensive Astell&Kern (even a SP1000) with a Jerry Harvey audio headphone it is really stunning. I would prefer this over almost any trial and error created system.

My clients ask me often what to do when I would not be there anymore. They never want to go back to a trial and error system without S.A.P.-measurement ever. I advised them to sell everything and go to portable.

Trial and error systems with acoustic limitations is not a nice world you would want to live in for a long time. 4 weeks ago we had discussions with different distributers and manufacturers about that audio is often not a nice hobby?

They all agreed, they meet the people like we do. And most are more busy wihgt their system than with music. I visited hundreds of systems of people. And the thing what had the most impact on me is how less music most people own.

Without music audio is useless and never worth the money you did spend. I give an example, in 2006 I met a person wiht a system of over 80.000 euro. He owned 40 cd's. So I said to him: I cannot help you?

He was surprrised about my reaction and said: I don't hope I invited you for nothing.

I said; that will not be the case. But...I cannot help you when you only own 40 cd's. The money you spend will never be worth it when you just own 40 cd''s.

He was surprised about my reaction. And yess I can be very direct. You always get the truth even when you didn't ask for it. Because I don't believe in a fake world full of lies.

He agreed that he was not happy. I said; even when I improve your system you still will not be happy. I tried to explain to him that without music audio is 100% ueseless. And after some time he understood what I meant. And said; I think you are right.

I always want to help people. You only can really help other people when you are 100% honest. I want people to become aware that sometimes  their decisions they made limit them in their happiness. We see that working by Tru-Fi made all people use their system so much more.

I only work and believe in making audio systems complete regarding the aspects/properties of sound. I have seen and met many people with incomplete audio-systems. And often with a lot of acoustic limitations. And no one was happy. I will never accept incomplete audiosystems. I would directly stop doing what I do now.

In my world each person owns a system what can reveall all the details and aspects/properties of each recording. And without acoustic limitations. Music is for me the most emotional thing you can buy and experience. That is why it is my goal to give this to everyone who would like to own it.

I had the luck that I could be busy with audio 80 hours a week. I had the freedom to use everything we sold. I had in 1999 already a highend system what was a lot more expensive than the products we sold.

But I could lend everything I wanted from distributers. I was lending expensive stuff all the time. It is like a child in a candy store. And you have the freedom to try everything you would like.

Live music made me understand sound and music a lot better. A friend of mine had a room for 60 people with a Steinway wing. He gave classical concerts. These days I use those concerts a lot for Tru-Fi.

Here I learned that voices and instruments are very direct and small. I call it intimate focus. I can demo this with music. When you have a 2-dimensional system and a 3-dimensional system at the same place. You can learn people that when an audiosystem is able to reveal depth, voices become more close to you and stands fully free in space.

When you play the same song in a 2-dimensionals system. What is sold in over 99% in audioshops.The conenction with the instruments and voices are gone. People often describe it as: the music stands further from me.

I can let people experience this with conservatorium students. After this I will demo a Tru-Fi system. So they will understand that it creates the same kind of emotion and the feeling of a more intimate experience.

This has a huge influence on our emotion. What I do these days, is that I talk about one property of sound. And I will use music so people will understand what this property can do with your emotion.

The people who own a Tru-Fi system understand so much better why a recording is recorded the way it sounds. A Tru-Fi systems can reveal all the different aspect of sound so much more easy. These clients do not want to go to audio shows anymore.

They get irritated very fast when they audition an incomplete system. It doesn’t make sense for them anymore. I give you an example. 2 months ago there was an audio show in my country.

They had 70 rooms with audio systems. Different clients of mine visit this event. They said: 68 systems where 2-dimensional. This is what trial and error creates. They will never take these systems serious ever in their life again.

This is what Tru-Fi does with people. There are not a lot of loudspeakers for sale in the world who also can create diversity in height. In Munic highend audio there was only one system what was able to reveal diversity in height. But this one costs over 700.000 euro.

Diversity in height not only let you hear the differences in height of voices and instruments. It also creates a much better harmonic sound of a recording. This even has a big influence on our emotion. Also this we can learn people what it is and what it does to their emotion.

We judge each system and single product on all the different aspects/properties of sound. And when one or more aspects/properties are missing I am not interested anymore. Each incomplete audioproduct will always create a limitation.

I know a lot of people who work in the world of audio. I have no idea of the people who visit Audiogon so now and then are aware that most reviews are paid ones these days. And that they write things what is not the truth.

When I speak to new clients many of them buy things based on reviews. So it proofs how easy it is to make people believe that those reviews are true. Most maganzines or websites live from that money.

But the question is: do you care more about the money than being honest?

I think far over 95% will choose for the money. I am 180 degrees the opposite of these people. But makes this me a better person?

I don’t see myself as a better person. I am who I am and do things my way. I can only do it this way. Like the people who own a company in audio or a magazine in audio first focus on being able to pay the people who work for them.

I would never want to change my life with theirs. Because I believe and focus on long term thinking. The audio industry is decreasing now for many years in a row. I think and believe that trial and error will make it decrease even more.

Trial and error will not create a better quality for consumers. It is and will always be very ineffective to create a quality what never will become stunning. And I think and believe that only a superior level in quality and emotion can change a demand.

Tru-Fi proves that many people who auditioned it wants to own it. Tru-Fi also proved that women are interested in audio. And like to use the system of their partner. Women have a better developed hearing than men own.

But....men have a lot more interest in audio equipment than women have. But....when you talk about music, women also like music. I did run an audio shop and I had a 2-dimenional system always ready for shootout. And a 3-dimensional system ready for shootout.

Most women never liked to be there and give their opinion about a system or loudspeaker. They where only there for the looks. But.....what I learned was when I demoed and presented the 3-dimensional system to women. They could become enthusiastic as well.

Women are more demanding in quality compared to men. Even children are not interested in trial and error systems. But...when we ask children to listen to a Tru-Fi system, we see the same kind of reaction by women. Each person likes emotion and needs emotion.

But....most trial and error sytems are poor in emotion. Many people are not interested anymore in an incomplete system what only can reveal a limited level in emotion. I understand them all, I would not be interested in it as well.

Of course headphones cannot project that big soundstage way out in front of you like speakers can (ideally) but on the plus side headphones can be very transparent and provide that special you are there sound with the right recordings. The performers can be out in front of you on occasion. Many studio recordings that give “performers in the head” sound with headphones provide a relatively unconvincing soundstage. It’s a trade off. What headphones tend to have in spades is dynamics and detail, whilst avoiding the potentially steep cost associated with room treatments, space, electronics, speakers, cables. And years of effort. 😬

No, but the stage what the more expensive Astell&Kern can create with Jerry Harvey Audio headphones is in stage still bigger than all 2-D systems.

I test new products all the time. We want to know the DNA, we are always looking for products who can reveal all the different aspects/properties of sound.

The biggest limitation in audio is that most audioproducts are 2-dimensional. In the Tru-Fi world this means that the level in stage depth is 1 meter or less. I decided not to talk about brands anymore. Because people overhere often feel offended when I talk about brands that are 2D or miss other aspects/properties of sound.

I will never talk about those brands again which are incomplete regarding missing aspects/properties of sound anymore. So I will not answer any question when people ask me if a brand or product is able to reveal all the aspects/properties of sound.

Because it is not my responsibility which aspects/properties of sound they can reveal. Manufacturers need to take care of the quality of their own products. So they are responsible for this. We will only talk about the brands we use and modify. We will take care of those brands. And no I will not talk about these brands at this moment either.

As humans we can perceive sound in a 3-dimensional spectrum. So it would be more than normal that audio systems would be able to create a 3-dimensional stage. But....the facts proof (and they count) that most brands and products are still 2-dimensional.

In 2017 I tested different fuses. And even most fuses are 2-dimensional. When I play digital audio I use 3 different powersupplies. When I used one fuse who owns a 2D stage, I almost lost all the stage depth of my system. And the individuel focus of voices and instruments was also very limited.

It proofs how difficult it is to create a stunning 3-dimensional stage. Because it is an imporant part of Tru-Fi. You cannot make even 1 mistake to limit the stage depth of a system. When I visit an audio show I always count the faults they make.

I walk in a room and I see the products they use, So I see the DNA. I see how they placed it in the room. And I start counting the mistakes they all make. This goes automatically. When they start playing music the list of mistakes grows bigger.

I always focus on the faces of people and I become aware that they cannot see all those individual mistakes they made. It is not on their radar and it never will be on their radar. Based on the fact that they do not own the insight and knowledge what is needed to understand it.

People often ask me if it is possible to learn how I work. I would need young intelligent people and they are prepared to spend thousands of hours to learn it. It is like programming your brain. Knowledge and insight is something you need to learn all by yourself.

Einstein: “Only one who devotes himself to a cause with his whole strength and soul can be a true master. For this reason mastery demands all of a person”

Since 1998 I had a lot of contact with different specialists. And I still have a lot of contact with specialists in different areas. But....at the end you need to do all the research yourself. But this is what I love and it never costs me a lot of energy. It is in my system and a part of who I am as a person.

Now the end of 2018 is there. We made the biggest steps ever before in both sound&vision. My insight and knowledge becomes bigger each single year. It makes it easier each year to understand it. The speed I can create new upgrades and improvements is growing all the time. It is like you are standing on a higher platform.

After time you can see more information and details which makes it more easy to understand it. The time has come to share it with manufacturers. We want to share it with different manufacturers at different price levels. For us it is important that many people will have the benefit of it.

We also will create a platform in both dutch and in english. We bought a Sony professional 4K camera with different separate professional lenses and different professional microphones. We will show how we work. And we will talk about different products and systems.

It is something what no one does in our world at this moment. It goes so much further in details than you all ever have seen before. We also will give many upgrades and modification options available. Now we only use it for our own clients. But it will become available for everyone.

We modify amps, preamp, sources and powersupplies a lot. But we also started to modify Oled screens. And we can use it for Qled and led screens as well. The results are stunning. We can create a superior level in vision based on our modifications and calibration no other company can even come close.

Also in vision we did a lot of research regarding the influence of smog, magnetism and highfrequent noise to vision. Here we also have a lot of different tools to improve it.

Recently we started to modify subwoofers as well. And in 2019 we will do a lot of more different products as well.

We will introduce Tru-Fi and will proof that we do sound&vision at a new level in quality and result never heard and seen before. For an extreme born perfectionist it is all about outperforming and be better than the best there is now. See it as a mindset and choice you make.

Bo knows!! Merry Christmas to all and to all Tru-Fi audio! Hohoho.

Just to get back to the original post of this thread for a moment.
Does anyone know what source is being used for streaming tracks?
Do record companies allow their master tapes to be used?

Bo .. I've read many of your posts and still haven't a clue what the hell you are talking about. You never actually offer any information about your mods or measurements. You do however always seem to mention being more knowledgeable and experienced than everyone else in the audio business. Here's what I have gathered about you .. you are not a manufacturer but a retailer, custom installer, and modder. Nothing wrong with that but I think you need to back up what you blather on about with facts not verbosity. I would suggest you speak plainly and simply to us who are less enlightened.

Sorry @rvpiano .. interesting thread btw. 

Wtf,
  regarding Bo +1

I always assumed we were listening to the  CD ripped to their servers as the source. I wouldn't  think  these streaming  companies  had access  to any master tapes. 
+ 2 on Bo , I am glad I'm  not  the only  one  who  wondered WTF 

Audioengr,

When you say “commercially available,”.  In what form?
Hard drive? CD?

You can buy music form studios as well these days. But I will give you some tips to find your own music you like.

I use an Audioquest Dragonfly Red with an Sony Inear of 900 dollar. I listen to new music for about 3-4 hours each single week.

I always try to buy the best quality avaliable.

What is the most effective way to find new music?

You go to Youtube and you fill in above the artist or song you love. Youtube will show on the right side similar music you filled in. This way I did find many new artists and songs I love and bought.

Qobuz has by far the biggest demand in music you can buy. All other websites together have even less music for sale. They are also by far the cheapest in buying music in the world. When you buy a streaming subscription from them the music you can buy from them is a lot cheaper.

After I find the new artist I go to Qobuz to see if they have this music for sale.

Each week I also take a look at new music what came out that week. I always listen to many different genres.

I mentioned it before, ProStudioMasters has many albums in hi-res no other company has for sale. So I always look overhere if Qobuz does not have it in Hi-res for sale.

DSD is by far the best quality you can buy on the internet. I own different DSD 512 recordings and they are from another planet. But there is not that much titles for sale.

* Always try to buy most music you really like, Music you buy to impress friends based on the recordings quality which are stunning will not make you happy after a longer period of time. So be aware of that!

So where to buy DSD?

- Acoustic Sounds
- Native DSD.com
- Highresaudio.com

Overhere you also find titles in different genres which they only have in hi-res.

-HDtracks, I sometimes look overhere. But the same music you buy from Qobuz is better in quality and always cheaper. Sometimes they have titles in hi-res no other has. Then I buy it overhere.

- 7digital.com also sometimes has music no other one has for sale.

Where to find titles the above websites do not own?

- Bandcamp
- junodownload

* You can go to google; fill in the name of the artist and the word flac/wav download. And this way I also could find music what was difficult to find.

Is Hi Res PCM/DSD/MQA always better than a good 16 bit-44.1 khz recording?

The answer is no, I have a lot of stunning recordings in 16 bit 44.1khz which are even better than good Hi Res recordings and DSD recordings.

Is each recording you buy in Hi-Res a good quality?

The answer is no again. Most new hi-Res recordings are often limited and poor. In the world of the loudness war many recordings are screwed.

There are a lot of improvements needed in the world of recording as well. We have also ideas to improve this and we will share this in 2019 as well.

Enjoy your chirstmas and time with those you love.

I want to make clear that streaming quality of Qobuz and Tidal is not bad. I think for most it is more than acceptable. I have many clients who use it.

I only use it when new clients want to listen to a particular artist or song I do not own.

But the Modified Lumin L1 drive with the modified SBooster is about 80% better in result. When you compare the same music between streaming by Tidal and Qobuz and the modified Lumin L1 (with modified SBooster) the level in excitement and emotion is far superior.

When I showed the difference between it at our clients their house the reactions where priceless. It are the smiles you see on their faces and becoming a kid again.

Audio at a superior level is so addictive. And this is what we want to share with as many people as possible all over the world!!

Still most recordings are still poor and limited. So if you play them by CD, streaming or a recordplayer. It all will not help you. Here is still the weakest point.

Does it have to do with money?

For the biggest part I would say: No.

There are many small studios who can make really good recordings. And they do not own the best equipment. It depends more about the skills and knowledge of the people who are responsible for the recordings.

We are a lot more than a retailer. I have worked in audio shops as well. I have even run a shop. But the limitations of it made me aware that this is not the way to go.

I wanted to bring both sound&vision to a superior level. This needs a totally different approach. So I started to spend a lot more time in research and tests. Consulting in sound&vision is also so much more fun than working in an audioshop.

I have seen in over 20 years how limited audioshops are in result. So I wanted to create something what could bring a superior level than the poor level people get by trial and error.

I met hundreds of people with trial and error systems. And they all own lmited systems with too many faults in it. Over 95% owned very little music. This proofs that trial and error is very ineffective. With those people I had a good conversation admitted they never had been happy with their system.

I think it is difficult to become very happy with any trial and error system with faults. I always say: each fault is one too many. It will always limit them in a high level in intensity and emotion.

Statement Audio Pro-measurement is the biggest step to a world of freedom without the limitations of the acoustic problems of a room. But also the research in smog, magnetisme and highfrequent noise made us solve many more faults in each system.

When I see and hear where we are now. 10 years ago I could not even think or imagine that it all would be possible. I created so many huge steps and improvements. What makes the world in sound&vision so much nicer.

Has anyone else noticed that quite a few hi res downloads are aggressively compressed? It seems inescapable, even SACDs, and Japanese SHD CDs and Blu Ray. I mean, what’s the point?

Dear geoffkait,

you are 100% right and I have the same experiences. That is why Hi-res does not garantee you anything. There are also many poor DSD and MQA recordings as well.

No format can ever garantee you anything. It costs me a lot of time to find good new music and in a good quality. That is why I spend 3-4 hours each single week. There is no other way to find it.

@rvpiano-re the question of master tapes as a source, my impression is that most of the majors will not let the master tape out of the door, and usually supply a flat transfer on hi-rez. There are of course exceptions- the "audiophile labels" like Acoustic Sounds and a few others (Classic, ORG, MoFi in some cases) do get access to the tapes, probably because of long working relationships with the labels. For digital streaming, I suspect that if the end product is a digital file, there is even less likelihood that a master tape was used as a source, and which master? A safety? A copy made for a particular market may sound different than another. It’s the stuff that keeps record hounds searching, comparing notes and pressings. I don’t know the answer as it applies to streaming, which was one of my questions earlier in this thread- whether the streaming platforms identify the source and mastering.
What I wrote above really applies to older recordings where tape was the medium. If you are a Steve Wilson fan, you’ll know that he remixes a lot of this stuff (mainly prog rock) in the digital domain using the multitracks and eschews ’mastering’ as such, believing that his mixes are the final product without more EQ (apart from what may be necessary to meet an RIAA curve for the LP releases). Some of that stuff is pretty good if you are a fan of this type of music.

Audioengr,

My question is do the streaming companies buy the tracks from the record companies directly, and if they do is it via hard drive transfer or software?
Or is there a distributor (middle man?)

I did compare the same music at the same format and quality from different websites. Even here you find differences.

HDtracks also gives you different freq. sample rates. But often the music is only avaliable at one sample rate.

The same music I bought from Qobuz was often a lot better the same music from HDtracks.

Even the same music I bought from Qobuz was almost in all situations better than the ripped music of the same album. In my world the best quality always counts. And all the rest have no meaning at all.

Acoustic Sounds only sells DSD 64 recordings. I bought different recordings I already owned in DSD 64 at a higher DSD level. And this makes sense.

I love superiority in music and in audio products. The best is always a lot nicer than less. It gives the music often a totally different experience when the level of the recording is higher.

Most people believe (based on assumptions) that a separate dac is better than an inbuild one. In our world the facts what we can hear only counts.

We have proven many times that a source with an inbuild dac easily ouperforms a separate dac. Our modified sources always win and outperform each single shootout against a dac and drive.

People have often no idea how much they loose by the choice of a separate dac. Even the most expensive dacs with upsampler had the same limitations as the cheaper dacs.

Often the level in diversity (layering) is limited. When we use one of our modified sources it often makes the dacs and drives sound like dinky toys. Because it is not even a fair competition.

Our sources are superior in all the aspects/properties of sound. The most important one is the diversity (layering) in sound. And in this part the differences are the biggest.

I know since 2 years that diversity in sound is the most important aspect/property of sound. So it made us spend the most time on this property in the last 2 years. Our modifications are being created on all aspects/properties of sound. But we did put more focus on this part. And also regarding all our other modifications.

This is why it makes it so easy for us to outperfrom all separate dacs during a shootout. We also win in resolution and in dynamics. The other limitation almost all dacs have is the fact that they are not able to reveal all the different aspects/properties of sound.

In a Tru-Fi system it is very easy to explain to each person which aspects/properties their dac or source misses. We often feel sorry for new clients. They never bought the best student of it’s class. We will always own the best student in each price range. So there is no competition. We know the outcome even before they visit us.

I have to admit that it is a lot more easy to create a superior level with a source with an inbuild dac. So far we never had a shootout of a separate dac what outperformed one of our modified sources.

Just for the record (no pun intended) the pleasure center of the brain 🧠 🕺🏻could not care less whether the sound is coming from speakers or headphones. Once the sound gets into the ear canal everything is up for grabs. Music soothes the savage breast. Fake music doesn’t cut it. A lotta times sound from speakers or headphones doesn’t pass muster. You can’t fool Mother Nature.

Humans have a different taste in music. But......our emotion works almost the same way regarding music and sound. And no....you cannot fool your emotion.

The reason why many people are not satisfied with their system is based on their emotion. When you listen to your system and it lacks involvement. Your emotion tells you that it does not get stimulated enough by your system.

Most people (and even I believed in it untill 2016 based on assumptions) believe that audio and sound is a matter of personal taste. Tru-Fi proofs (we will make videos of the people who own a Tru-Fi system who now understand that trial and error cannot create a more emotional and personal system) that sound is not based on personal taste.

Tru-Fi proofs that each single human being prefers any audiosystem what can reveal all the aspects/properties of sound over any incomplete trial and error system. I understand that this is difficult to comprehend. When you listen to a Tru-Fi system you will understand it. We see that all new clients now believe that sound is not based on personal taste.

Almost no human being will prefer an incomplete audio system over any system what can reveal all the different aspects/properties of sound. Because this is how your and my emotion works.

Tru-Fi will change your thoughts about audio. We see it by all new clients. Tru-Fi will create a new truth!

That is why Hi-res does not garantee you anything. There are also many poor DSD and MQA recordings as well.

You can get the best version with the highest DR if you feed the Artist and Album name, in to this, and 8 x out of 10 it’s the earlier releases that have the highest constant DR.
Click on the one with the highest DR, get the cat no. and go buy the cd for $2 s/h on ebay, forget the re-mastered or downloaded that’s always a flip of the coin if it’s compressed of not.

This Supertramp is not typical, but gives you an idea, what version to look for.
http://dr.loudness-war.info/album/list?artist=Supertramp&album=Crime+of+the+century

Cheers George

An audiosystem cannot create emotion by it self. The emotion is inside the music. That is why you need an audiossystem what can reveal all the details and aspects/properties of the recording. This has nothing to do  with a personal taste. But is 100% based on facts.

All the different aspects of sound can influence our emotion. And again we are talking about facts. So you need all the aspects/properties of the music to experience all the emotion the music possesses. There is no other way to feel all the emotion of the music.

Dear Geoff,

I really like all your comments. Nice to see there are more people who understand it.

I have just tesyed my cd copies of dave brubeck qiartet "take 5" (columbia) and "what's new" (telarc), and "late night bruneck" (telarc) against spotify and tidal.
Results are always consistent.... Cd is either clearly better, or auguably better.
Always clearly better than tidal who pretends hifi, and arguably better (sometimes just not) than spotify who pretends mp3, which i despise.
I just got a deal with tidal, basically 3 months for free, and i am floored by how inconsistent the service is compared to spotify.  With spotify, you know what you 're paying for and you end up surprised sometimes.
With tidal, you don't get what you are paying for, and sometimes, you feel it is worth something.
In other words, spotify delivers on the promise 100% of the time and more, wheras tidal sporadically does... A little bit like buying CDs before you can listen to them somehow.

@bo1972 
Thanks for your insights, could you clarify one thing, you say above you prefer player/dac rather than separates yet you recommend Lumen L1. So do you recommend Lumen D2 player or L1 plus dac? 
Thanks!