2. misc-audio
  3. 1237138105

Trade offs?

As I have improved my system the quality of the CD recordings has become more and more obvious; unfortunately poor quality and harsh sounding discs seem to bother me more as the reproduction becomes clearer.
Having recently started using Ultrabit Platinum I find it sustantially improves the sound of better recordings but also reveals the harsness in poor recordings.
This all gets me wondering,on this quiet Sunday morning, if perhaps I'm reaching the end of the line on further upgrades to my Spectral/MIT based system?
For example will a better CD player simply reveal that the quality of the recordings are already the limiting factor in my enjoyment, better Cd players won't provide more enjoyment?
psacanli
plato
1,543 posts
 
Aball, I'm 100 percent with you on what you said about systems and recording quality. Congrats for explaining it better than I did. :)
psacanli OP
535 posts
 
Thanks for the comments, and I do understand where Tvad is coming from; however I should clarify, it is through the use of "exceptional" AC power conditioning and isolation, as well as the clarity gained using the CD enhancing fluid mentioned, that I came to this question. As well, I did not say that 'most' of my CDs sound poor- it's quite the reverse in fact - with the efforts I've spent so far more & more Cds reveal the beautiful musicality of the CDs(and I do have a Goldmund turntable as well) and artistic talent of the performers.
My question remains however. Am I reaching the end of the line for CD playback based on the comments I made?
psacanli OP
535 posts
 
I certainly would not consider moving to turntable use only.
How would I access the 99% of new classical & jazz recordings that are not on vinyl?
psacanli OP
535 posts
 
Plato, I much appreciate your comments about AC power conditioning. Certainly there is "nobody" out there getting great CD sound without exceptional conditioning and isolation of the digital.
jmcgrogan2's avatar
jmcgrogan2
6,346 posts
 
03-15-09: Tvad
Well, I disagree somewhat with Plato. If the majority of your CDs sund harsh, it could be that the majority of your CDs are poorly recorded and your resolving system is exposing their flaws.

I have far fewer well recorded CDs in my system than I do poorly recorded CDs (and the same applies to LPs).

As a system becomes more resolving, it more clearly reveals flaws in source material.

If you want more of your CDs to sound less harsh, then I suggest moving toward a less resolving system intended to please your ears rather than providing the absolute truth of the recordings.


Well said Tvad, I could not agree more. Highly resolving systems point out how poorly a recording can sound. Similar to watching a standard DVD on a 1080p plasma vs. the same recording on a Blu-Ray. If your output is high resolution, you need a high resolution source (recording) to show this. A low resolution recording will be seen/heard warts and all.

Cheers,
John
More to discover