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HDCD: What do you like?

I'm upgrading from my transport/DAC to a one box. All the ones that I'm considering are HDCD compatible, but my present system isn't, nor do I have much HDCD stuff in the collection.

I need some music to evaluate the HDCD players. What recordings do you like? Is anything particularly revealing of how the player reads HDCD.

(This can probably be construed as a "what do you like to test with?" post, but I'm hoping to narrow it down.)

Eric
eleonida
seldenr
59 posts
 
I agree with the Cary CD 303 recommendation. Owned one and it convinced me that HDCDs, despite some opinions to the contrary, are generally superior in sound quality. I highly, highly recommend the Rachmaninoff "Symphonic Dances" by Minnesota/Oue issued by Reference Recordings. Fantastic piece, fantastic performance, fantastic recording. My wife really likes the Dixie Chicks, and their first album was HDCD encoded (don't know about the rest), although not as noticeable a difference as with the Reference Recordings catalogue.

Hope that helps!
sugarbrie
3,854 posts
 
Dave Brubeck "Time Out"
elgordo
530 posts
 
Reference Recordings has a sampler or two with identical tracks in redbook and HDCD. This (these?) will let you compare. Don
bob_bundus
1,834 posts
 
Although we don't know your musical preferences, Stevie Nicks' Enchanted HDCD boxed set is one that I particularly enjoy time & again. It's not even identified as HDCD anywhere (on the box or discs) so this was a pleasant surprise indeed.
And I have *never* heard of a Pacific Microsonics DAC implementation that offered degraded 16bit redbook performance, in fact quite the contrary. Furthermore, everything that I've heard available in 20 bit is significantly superior.
msnloeth
57 posts
 
Brian Culbertson, "Nice and Slow". Good bass, smooth jazz, HDCD.
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