Haunting… yes… perfect word.
Ohio - Over the Rhine
I lived near the Pennsylvania/ Ohio state line when I was 16. It was a profoundly emotional time of my life… 1968. I grew up in Chicago and only spent a year and a half in a very backwards part of the country. I lived out West since I have was 18 years old.
When I first heard the tune Ohio, I just could not move. The emotional impact just overwhelming. Since then, many years ago… one of the most moving songs… to me… and albums.
So, I have a ripped version, the streamed version, and the CD version. I got wrapped up in listening to the album, at first, my stored file (see my systems), then streamed, then CD… I ordered the vinyl… this is interesting. They are virtually identical. But I did notice a very slight more forward presentation on the CD version… very slight, on my system… which is everything. But the emotional connection… the warmth and musicality is the same.
Systems can be like this now. Such a minuscule difference… but with the same deep emotional connection… a great time for audio.
- ...
- 22 posts total
Ok. I ordered the vinyl version of the Ohio. So just compared. But of course, this tie with the FLAC 16/44 streamed version… Qobuz. It took me a couple of cuts to detect any difference… it is very subtle. I noticed the vinyl was ever so slightly warmer, but virtually exclusively on Karin’s voice. The streamed digital version had ever so slightly greater detail and transparency. But emphasis on subtle. But there is an issue when comparison with my initial post. In the mean time I had swapped out the power cord from my phono stage from the high quality PC provided by Audio Research with a Cardas Clear Beyond… which warmed up the midrange and improved the detail. I would say the PC change was at least twice the difference I heard comparing streamed digital vs vinyl. This is a reminder of how complex it is to make comparisons. I compromised the results of my initial observations of two weeks ago by changing power cords. I have the CD version, ripped CD version, streamed red book CD version, streamed high resolution version, and the vinyl version. Then my system is composed of about 30 components… boxes, power cords, interconnects, cables, and misc things. Bottom line. In my system, all formats are very, very similar in sound quality. |
@mahler123 , sounds like you have a dog in the fight. Should be a good game. Enjoy the music |
- 22 posts total