"Factory Blue"
DeKay
Any song recommendations for testing purposes?
Hi y'all,
So me and my pal came up with an idea about testing our own " streaming system " and see which is better, but yeah ofc, there can only be one variable, otherwise the test wouldn't be fair, no?
we decided to only change the streamer/player in each test, well luckily, my friend who happens to be an ultimate PC Hi-Fi fanatic, so the test itself which became rather easy haha, equipment-wise for sure.
Last Sunday, we were just chilling in my living room and chitchatting, he said he wanted to listen to some new modern pop song, so I played Shiver by Ed Sheeran, and he said the dynamics don't seem quite enough, I was like what the heck do you mean, and he said his system could present more details in the music than mine, anyways, so I brought my streamer over to his place, and would like to have a competition hahaha.
As I mentioned, he's a PC Hi-Fi dude, so he's done a lot modifications and all that upgrade stuff to his PC, so he used USB port to connect to his DAC and the rest to play the same song, Shiver by Ed, well truth to be told, I also thought the dynamics weren't quite sufficient as well lol, ofc he said my perception was biased bc he judged my system first, thus, we both agreed to play some more complicated tracks, like classic genre or something, however, both of us aren't that much of a elegant music admirer I'd say, which I sincerely hope you guys can share some nice songs with me!!!
BTW, we both played TIDAL via Roon, the only difference is just he used PC, I used Munich M1T, no network switch or linear power supply attached.
Best,
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- 42 posts total
To be honest, I have done this wrong more than I have done it correctly. The problem is that you don’t know what the albums you choose are supposed to sound like… or most of us do not. The worst I ever did was choose my current favorite albums. While Rebecca Pidgon’s Spanish Harlem is great…the electronic i picked was not. So, a selection of symphony, acoustic jazz, rock, world, vocals… etc. is better. But it is still not a good empirical ruler.
I don’t think there is a really good short term answer. But there is a long term one. Listen to acoustic music in live venue… over and over and over. Much in the same setting so you can completely understand the sound. Different instruments, mass effect, study the acoustics, reflections… reverberations.. nuances. Through long exposure you and your subconscious learn the subtleties of live music. Walk up to someone playing a piano, move to different positions, cymbals, drums, all forms. Listen to nuances, wall reflections. I think I got serious about this about 25 years ago… then I got season tickets to the symphony ten years ago… I really started learning. Using a broad variety of music to compare my own system and audition equipment was a small step in the right direction, but live acoustic jazz and the symphony completely changed my auditioning and selection of gear. For the better… my systems went from good reference type systems where I could hear the musician move his feet and tell the microphone technique and flaws, to one that swings and completely wraps me into the musical moment and it can be hard to sit still it is so moving. It is way too easy to build a system based on details and slam and completely lose the music. A long term effort, worth every bit of it. |
@macg19 No question “Switch Blade Knife” is phenomenal especially on MOFI . I play that and “Love Over Gold”. Also Donald Fagen “Morph The Cat”. Just astonishing Depth, Texture and Nuance. |
- 42 posts total