Im still not sure where i see Nrchy stating that recordings sound like crap on his system and he cannot listen to them. There ARE bad recordings out there, that is a fact and anyone who says all recordings are great is an idiot.
Ive got some bad recordings, but i still love em for the music on them, good recording or not, and they certainly sound better on my system than with some crap walmart setup, but that doesent mean the recording was well done.
This totally reminds me of threads i have seen in the past...
"Bad experience with dealer"
"i went to a retail shop and blah blah blah, the dealer was a total jerk to me blah blah blah"
Every single time i see a thread like that some idiot who was not even there comes in defending the dealer to the death as if it is not possible for a dealer to be a jerk, and do everything they can to make the victim of the bad treatment look like the monster. Yeah, yer hearing 1 side of the story, and guess what, the person very well may have been treated poorly for no reason, yeah there is the chance they were actually the jerk, but it CAN go both ways.
Most dealers ive dealt with really kick ass, great guys, very helpful, and very polite, but i have had a run in or two with the occasional jerk.
Same goes with recordings, some are good, some are bad. Does it mean a bad recording is intolerable to listen to? No, not really. Unless it was done in some guys garage with garage sale equipment with thier instruments out of tune and no talent for playing.. However, bad recordings can still be a pleasure to listen to, because you listen to the music more than the recording, and the inefficiencies of the recording can easily be overlooked by the great musical content.
Does that mean an excellent well thought out system will make a bad recording sound like a true to life LIVE experience? No. Of course not. But a great system wont hurt the recording, it might make it a little more forgivable, but it wont make a bad recording great.
I guess i really got off on the wrong foot with some individuals here, but it reminded me so much of the "Dealers can do no wrong" attitude i see from time to time. Instead of acknowledging that bad recordings exist, and attacking the poster's system and knowledge seems a little bit weak and rude.
Guess what? Some recordings Suck. That is all there is to it.
I dont remember Nrchy stating he couldnt listen to these cause they sounded bad. He probably does listen to the occasional bad recording because the quality of the music not only makes it worth it but very enjoyable.
However, wouldnt it be nice if the recording was properly done as well? Does it mean your system sucks because a poor recording doesent sound like yer in the room with them when they record it?
He was just questioning the level or recording equipment some people use and looking to use discussion to explore the idea that some recordings might be done poorly because of a lack of concern by the recording agency. That has absolutly nothing to do with his system. A poor recording is still a poor recording, even on the best thought out and engineered system.