How much is about the recording

I’m pretty happy with my simple streaming set-up.  I often read (my real passion) while listening to music playlists on Qobuz, and the songs that make me stop reading and listen are typically the well recorded, high-res ones, whether I like the song or not.  I guess that’s my barometer.

Thanks Tom, I certainly have enough of those artists to sample the range of recording quality you're describing. 

Mike

I always use spherical styli (Denon 103) for cuts with low dynamic range. Save the micro-line for the audiophile versions. There’s an analog solution for everything. 

It's all about the recording.

@ russ69
Could you make a slightly more arbitrary meaningless statement"

i.e. WHICH, Diana Krall version of "Garden in the Rain" I have found 6 versions in 30 second of looking? I stil haven’t found one cut being use d in multiple collection. And if one was shared between collections was it REMASTERD, and in that Remastering, someone did some butchering?
Just listened to the one from "Love Scenes’ and I think what you are hearing is Krall’s STYLE of STROKING the keys. I have shown many friends over time how she strokes the keys rather than Pounding/striking the keys. Then when she does strike at keys, it does come over with more emphasis. Watch some of her live concerts and you can see it.

Also on studio albums there should be little to NO noise suppression used to begin with. SO possibly if you do hear some, it is likely on a Live cut. Then on that note is it really ’Noise Suppression’ or is it ’COMPRESSION’ that you are pointing out?