SACD vs ANALOG

Rcprince----points well taken, and I thank you for your response. As for the matter of equipment, my complaints would be the same if I were listening on a Bose Wave Radio:
Some CDs sound great, while others are trash----and some of the "trash" is praised to the Heavens in the audio rags. My system, BTW, while modest, is a bit above the aforementioned Bose, consisting of the Wadia, ARC LS2 preamp, Bryston 4B-ST pwr amp, Sound Lab A-3s. Analog is Rega Planar 3, Sumiko BPS, Camelot Lancelot phono amp. So I don't feel what I'm hearing is equipment-related, since some sources please while others irritate.

I have the Florestan Trio disc, and it's great, but most ordinary CDs of small chamber groups present no problem to my ears.(The Eroica Trio discs are superb, in my estimation. With mastering by Nickrenz/Aubort, I'd be truly astounded if they were anything less! I value their LPs on Nonesuch/Turnabout above most in my collection.) It's the big symphonic/choral works that really get to me----massed violins, trumpets, male voices, etc., sound as if someone is accompanying them with a coffee can full of gravel. As I said before, once heard it's impossible to ignore.

I've found most---but not all---Delos/Eargle efforts to be quite listenable. Tremendous selection also.

You mentioned Reference Recordings, and I find most of them very enjoyable ---almost entirely devoid of the anomalies I'm hearing on other CDs.

That one Telarc of the Brahms Requiem has me baffled, however, to the extent that I wonder seriously if my ears are the only two that have this severe a problem. (I suffer from tinnitus---severe at times, hardly noticeable at others--- and I've wondered if perhaps there is a reverse synergy as a result of induced distortion (intermodulation?)in my auditory system. As I said before, that disc has been held up by several reviewers as a good reference for use in evaluating equipment. A friend suggested that perhaps I simply got a bad disc, which I find hard to believe. I've been under the (false?) impression that a CD either plays, or it doesn't. (It's either "perfect forever" or it's mute, heh,heh.)

Your comment regarding the "box" sound reminded me of my first impression of the WLA "Nature's Realm" hybrid SACD. Admittedly, I've only listened to the ordinary CD layer so far, but within the first minute, it sounded as if my glorious transparent, open-as-all-outdoors Sound Labs had themselves been packed into boxes! The SACD layer has its work cut out if it is to correct that.

It's obvious to me that the only thing I can do for now is to make a trip to the nearest Sony dealer (in Nashville), armed with my three hybrid SACDs, and decide "yes! 8^)" or "no. 8>(". If "no", I'll simply forget about the 9000ES; if "yes!", I may buy that macchina diabolo, (and then wonder what I'm gonna listen to, however!). I've been into audio, admittedly sporadically, for some fifty years, and I cannot recall having to make some of the decisions with which I'm presently confronted. I'm obviously not a cheapskate when it comes to equipment purchases, but I hate to throw good money after bad. I never thought I'd see the day when equipment, in particular speakers, outstrips the available "software"! Maybe the problem is that some present-day equipment is too revealing of the software's faults.

I appreciate your response, and thank you for the invitation to audition discs in your home. Since I live in the middle of TN, that would be a bit inconvenient for me! I am grateful for the invitation, nevertheless.
Best-
Jim

Jim: Well, it sure isn't your system, unless it's too revealing! I must admit having similar feelings about both the Brahms and parts of the Nature's Realm discs as you, although my characterization of them, as I mentioned before, is congested. Sometimes when the tonal balance of a disc is tilted towards the bass as it is at times in those recordings I feel, when the whole orchestra is playing at a loud level, as if everything is congealing and becoming more opaque. However, I can also get that experience with analog as well, though perhaps not to the same extent. Maybe both of us are showing our age? I do suggest you bring that Florestan Trio disc with you if you trek to Nashville, it is a treat on SACD in the smoothness of the strings and the richness of the piano; I'm not sure SACD will help that much on the WLA, though, as it is such a dry recording venue you may be disappointed. See if they have the Delos, it's a showpiece sonically and very natural sounding, particularly in its ambience retrieval. And thanks for the Eroica Trio reference, I don't have enough of them and am going to have to get some of their records. Good luck!

Rcprince--- I guess "congested" (constipated? heh,heh) is a good characterization regarding the WLA disc. I have no sense of air or imaging with the disc---almost as if I had a single Patrician, or Voice of the Theatre, sitting in front of me (Those go back a few years, eh?).

My other hybrid SACD is the Vanguard Stokowski/Virgil Thompson, and I really enjoy it. It's amazing for a 40 year
old recording to have the soundstage/imaging it has. It does sound a bit artificial in places,however, at least on my rig, what with some percussion and banjo sounding as if they were spotlighted at the front of the stage. Of course, with Leopold's reputation for the spectacular, he may well have placed them there. I never would have thought He would have allowed anyone to upstage Him, however! 8^)
Jim

I now have three of the four, I think, Eroica's. I've got several analog and digital recordings of the same pieces they've done, including four versions of the Shostakovick Piano Trio #2, but when I see those lovely gals on the jewel case, I can't resist buying (what a sexist thing to say!). As far as I'm concerned, they are top-notch musicians, regardless of the bad press they received in one of the audio rags recently---the guy must be the prototype
male chauvinist pig!. I think it proves the paraphrase: those who can play, play/those who can't play, criticize those who can!

914nut--You're showing your age with those old speakers! With respect to the Thompson, Analogue Productions has re-released it on vinyl, tube remastering so it sounds quite nice. Definitely spotlighted some of the instruments, that's clear, and I don't doubt the esteemed conductor had something to do with that. The other Vanguard SACDs sound quite good too; while SACD sounds its best for demonstrations with DSD masters, good analog recordings (and not all of the old Columbias that have been released fall into that category) can also sound excellent. I would say that I could live happily with either the vinyl or SACD versions I've got of the Vanguards, which says a lot for the SACDs. As far as the WLA disc goes, it does have quite good string sound, and I'm willing to take their word for it that the hall sounds like that, and I do like the Dvorak performances (I prefer Kertesz on Decca, though), but I just don't enjoy listening to it that much. Much too dry an acoustic. I don't need overly reverberant recordings either, but I would like a little more than what's on that disc.

I invited two audio-dry-files to grab a listen to my most enjoyable system. Opened with cd's. They sat. Crouched forward. Looked for something. Politely asked "Where's the body? Where's the bottom end?" It's there You analytical dip. Why don't you just enjoy the music. These words I mused, but irrepressibly stated "It's offering fine music". Bach's Suite for Cello, no.5; "Shalom Alechem" from Statman/Grisman; Prince's power driven "There Is Lonely" from the Vault cd; their own selections. They knew this system should kick, but no label or genre was scratching their itch. Neither had heard sacd. "Want to hear it?" They figured what the hell, it can't be more disappointing and I is here already. Threw on Hancock's "Headhunter". A little boot shaking goin' on. Spun cuts off of Sony's sampler. They were definitely more responsive. Drawn in to the emotion of the music. After listening to the first cut on Ellington's "Blues In Orbit" I offered to run the same on my Clearaudio TT. As open and extended as the sacd presentation was it was levels below the vinyl. Can't say it any plainer. When convenience(as eloquently stated by others)is desired cd, or better sacd is fine; but when involvement is required, vinyl is to be played.