Kind of Blue SACD on a whim.

@n80-jazz, perhaps more than any other type of music, affords you the ability to explore based on the performers. Many of the sidemen who worked on albums for a featured performer appear either as featured artists or sidemen on other recordings, so you can "surf" an artist and find a wealth of material.
I had lost interest in straight ahead jazz a while ago and got hooked by venturing into so-called "spiritual" or soul-jazz typically recorded in the ’70s. Cecil McBee, who shows up on a number of the releases from Strata-East, is an amazing bassist who has recorded a huge number of albums, some famous, others fairly obscure.
This sort of free-wheeling exploration can lead you down many different paths--from the relatively rare Jothan Callins’ Winds of Change to Art Pepper Today (where Pepper reprises "Patricia," a track that got a boost from the popular TV show Bosch).
Coltrane was a huge influence on a lot of the people who were responsible for this movement, but there were other reasons too-- the change in popular music that left jazz in the rear view mirror, greater self-awareness within the black community and a fair number of small labels that acted as collectives for musicians, among them Black Jazz, the aforementioned Strata-East (with some stratospheric prices these days) to Nimbus West, which released output from Horace Tapscott, Nate Morgan and others. (Nate Morgan had an amazingly strong left hand, and had the chops of a McCoy Tyner with a little funk thrown in).
In the course of my own self-education, my ears became more accustomed to what I probably would have regarded as cacophony ten years ago-- I’m not much for so-called "free jazz" (where 4 different people are playing 5 different songs simultaneously), but just like your palate changes after exposure to food, wine or other consumables, your ears for this stuff can become different through exposure.
Best advice I could offer is to explore and if you identify a player you like, search through their discography for more of their work. You may find that rewarding, and along the way, will enjoy the experience of learning.

@tablejockey I’m also at a happy point as far as systems go. And as with other hobbies, once I get to that point gear no longer interests me. I decided a while back that vinyl was not my thing. Not a knock on anyone who loves it but the level of commitment it takes is simply not worth it to me. So I spend a lot of time exploring stuff. Like jazz. I also search out and buy the best quality CDs I can find for music that is important to me. I just like having some sort of ’hard copy’.

@keegiam I’m sure you’ve probably noticed that A’gon is often a place of strife between the believers and the deniers...across the audiophile spectrum. I used to wade into those pig wrestling matches but I don’t anymore. Its pointless unless you like that kind of sparring. But, a lot of folks like it and a lot of folks like inciting it. I sometimes find myself doing that and immediately wishing I had not. I should not have mentioned that $600 liquid you paint on your terminals. It was not relevant to my original post.

@whart I’m pretty much of a Philistine when it comes to jazz. Watched the whole Ken Burns series and was intrigued. The story of jazz is a great story. So is the story of the blues, which I love, and country music too, which I generally cannot tolerate. I like the interconnectedness of jazz and even in my brief foray into it that aspect is fascinating and as you say, a great basis for exploration.

Thanks to everyone for great conversation. Looking forward to the SACD arriving. In all honestly, given my not-so-golden ears, I doubt I’ll notice a big difference from Qobuz but I will still be happy to own a quality hard copy of that album. Also looking forward to continuing to explore jazz in my own slow way.

@n80
@whart 

Great posts today.  Everything very well said. 

Enjoy your journey n80.  Obviously many in the jazz crowd are very passionate about the art form.  Hopefully you'll let us know in 6-12 months how your exploration went.  (You'll get the most attention and best advice on "Jazz for Aficionados" - 26,000 posts.)

Thanks. I started the journey about 12 months ago but it just sort of faded away but now its getting rev'ed up again so who knows, maybe it'll take this time.

Just listened to Cannonball's "Somethin' Else" and really liked it. Miles shines on this one too.

I've lurked in the Aficianados thread a bit. Waters a little deep for me there. Jazz, like any other genre I suppose, is so broad and it is tough to just jump into random stuff. I think I'm going to follow the connections of the late 50s for a while. Late bop/early modal. Need to give A Love Supreme a few more critical listens. I like Blakey's "Moanin'".

n80
there is the current MoFi SACD as well as the Columbia late 1990's SACD (stereo only version). Both are excellent to my ears. It is simply a preference.

Happy Listening!