Does Every Track Sound Great on Your System?

Best to just enjoy the actual music.

SQ can vary listening  to different genre recording and media.

This is a good question. Over time folks struggle with their system and different recordings.

My first reaction is that you are listening to your system and not the music. You are focused on a couple parameters. I think this is probably because of your system, not be cause you are focusing on the wrong thing. When I sit down and listen to my system, I am instantly drawn to the music… I have to force myself to listen to the system. In a couple of earlier iterations my system stuck out and I was drawn to listen to it (and would get bored pretty quickly).

I have continually learned about what makes a system sound good. After fifty years, I am now of the mind that the real keys are overall tonal balance, midrange bloom (high resolution in the midrange), as well as rhythm and pace. Your observations strike me as those one would make with a system that is shy on midrange as well as rhythm and pace. Because instead of drawing you in to the intimacy and emotional content of the music you are drawn to the ends of the spectrum and their balance.

Typically if your system highlights the details you are drawn to the mastering techniques and venue instead of the content. This will make many recording sound off. My system emphasizes the midrange without overemphasizing the detail (it’s there, just not too obvious) and the rhythm and pace draws me in. Almost all albums sound great. There are some simple terrible recording, like early Yardbirds that sound terrible, well, because they sound like tin.

@ghdprentice +1.  I find myself almost always being drawn into the music rather than listening to my system. I often find myself tapping my feet in time.  I never really thought about it the way you expressed it.

Early Beatles and Stones CDs always seemed thin to me.

@danager & @tablejockey   "Optimize the bass for each song or shoot for an average that sounds best for most and live with it."  I identify with this.  I listen to music that ranges from electronic dance or club music to solo vocals and it is hard to get it all right.  

@knotscott I can adjust the bass by plugging a port or there are jumpers on the back of my speakers that can bump the bass up or down a db.  I am wearing out the carpet though by adjusting it for one song, and then the next it is not right so I adjust it again.  

@jastralfu Thanks.  Glad you get the bass in that portion of the song.  It is a bit much on my system for my ears and I like bass.  Maybe it is my room or a node or something.  

@ghdprentice   You know what I am doing and you are spot on with my mind set.  I am hyper analyzing the sound because I am evaluating a new amp.  You know how it is when testing out new gear - I am in that mode and trying to decide whether to keep it or box it up.   I love the mids and treble, but it is more bassy.   I am getting lost in the  mids and treble for songs so I am understanding what you are saying - I just have to play another song.   I find myself lost emotionally in a higher percentage of songs then before but then on some songs, but not all, the bass is too much.   Might just be the song or I don't like songs with too much bass or particular frequency or maybe a room node.  Yet on other songs I love the extra richness and power in the low frequencies so I don't want to tone down the bass on those songs.    

We are all chasing perfection on a budget.