Agreed @edcyn! Recordings can be magnificent on their own terms. In addition to the Monument recordings of Orbison, the Barnaby and Warner Brothers’ recordings of The Everly Brothers are sublime (the Rhino LP’s are very good, the UK Ace LP’s even better). The Classic Records LP pressing of the 1950’s RCA recordings of Elvis are startling in their "in-the-room" immediacy and presence, of his voice and the instrumental accompaniment. When those recordings were made (late-50’s/early-60’s), electronic manipulation was relatively minimal. Those recordings played back on a quality hi-fi create sound far superior to that heard at most live Rock ’n’ Roll shows.
Do we ask too much of our audio systems?
In high school, I taught myself to play guitar and later started playing in rock bands for about 10 years. I used a low powered mono tube record player in my bedroom to study Clapton, BB King, Page, Hendrix, Beck and all guitar heros of the time and learn how to play. In those years, I never bothered to upgrade my system, mostly because nothing seemed to be able to replay what I experienced playing live in a band, with a Les Paul in hand and a screaming tube guitar amp. As the years went by I built half dozen speakers and had a decent Pioneer front end, using a Philips TT. My system sounded better, but never equalled the emotion and involvement of playing live. So, I guess I grew into Audiophilia thinking nothing is as good as live music. Now I have heard some very good systems and speakers, but still wonder..."am I chasing something un-attainable?" Do we ask too much from our audio systems?
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- 29 posts total
- 29 posts total