Exile on Main Street. Any system that can make that awful recording sound decent wins.
Top 3 songs to evaluate a system
Hi everyone,
So here is the question: what are your Top 3 music pieces to evaluate a system?
The songs should be complementary to cover a wider range of features, but not necessary. If you only listen to one type of music, it would make sense to only evaluate with this type.
Bonus: identify one good part of the piece where you pay extra attention because this is where the difference between systems is more visible.
I'll start:
Holly Cole Trio - Girl Talk - My Baby Just Cares For Me
Highlight: The vibrating cord at 1:59
MaMuse - All The Way - Glorious
Highlight - The clean guitar and the high drum beat that rythm the whole piece
Metallica - ... And Justice for All (Remastered) - One
Highlight - The first drums at 0:53, but the whole guitar as well
Doing this myself, I realize it's very hard to only pick 3!!
So here is the question: what are your Top 3 music pieces to evaluate a system?
The songs should be complementary to cover a wider range of features, but not necessary. If you only listen to one type of music, it would make sense to only evaluate with this type.
Bonus: identify one good part of the piece where you pay extra attention because this is where the difference between systems is more visible.
I'll start:
Holly Cole Trio - Girl Talk - My Baby Just Cares For Me
Highlight: The vibrating cord at 1:59
MaMuse - All The Way - Glorious
Highlight - The clean guitar and the high drum beat that rythm the whole piece
Metallica - ... And Justice for All (Remastered) - One
Highlight - The first drums at 0:53, but the whole guitar as well
Doing this myself, I realize it's very hard to only pick 3!!
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- 130 posts total
Rick Wakeman - Jane Seymour from The Six Wives of Henry VIII. The pipe organ at St. Giles takes you right into the church and the Moog piece takes it to another dimension. Jeff Beck Group - Goin Down from the S/T Orange album. The separation of the instruments in the left and right channels and right out of the center. The beautiful tone and resonance of Max Middleton’s piano. And of course Jeff Beck squeezes just about every note that you could get out of a guitar. Close your eyes and you can feel the strings bending. The whole album is just fantastic. Santana - Waiting from the S/T first album. The soundstage and spaciousness comes at you from every direction in the room. The music just floats. And one more. Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris - Why Worry from Real Live Roadrunning. Emmylou sounds like an angel. Oh wait, she is an angel. |
1.
Concordia Viols - Crye by Concordia Viols (2001-10-02) - Amazon.com Music The gorgeous sound of the consort of viols will tell you everything you need to know about a speaker's midrange. 2. John O'Conor - Beethoven: Piano Sonatas, Vol. 1 (Moonlight, Pathetique, Appassionata) - Amazon.com Music Well-recorded piano music tells you a lot about a speaker. 3. Samuel Barber, Erich Wolfgang Korngold, André Previn, London Symphony Orchestra, André Previn, Gil Shaham - Barber: Concerto for Violin & Orchestra, Op. 14 / Korngold: Much Ado about Nothing Suite, Op. 11 - Amazon.com Music Here's a real litmus test. On speakers that are tipped up or otherwise too bright, the violin tone will be edgy or astringent. On good speakers it will be just right. As for bass extension, there are bass figures here that are not loud but should be audible; listen to hear how clear they are. |
First is Stevie Ray Vaughan vinyl version of “Tin Pan Alley”. This song gives you everything needed. Good bass guitar breaks from light to hard pick control, and the part when you can hear the drum stick hit the rim before the skin. Not all systems will render this. Second is anything Doors. Their albums have great sound stage and depth. You actually feel Jim is closer than the rest to you. Third is Jethro Tull “Thick as a Brick”. This album front to back is one of the best produced you will ever hear. Wide rang of instruments to check system balance. Artist to never use Joe Bonamassa the bass on his albums is mud and sounds terrible. |
- 130 posts total