We have spent quite a bit of time on Movies of the Night (both that suck and don't suck) so I thought I'd get some advice on 3-5 CDs I should consider to preview the Ascends, and Art I finally heard back from the Paradigm guy so they're back in the mix), the VR Boston Acoustics and whatever else I can find in this one horse town.
Fortunately, we do have some great alternatives on music. I listen to classic - 30% of the time; rock about 30% of the time; jazz about 20% of the time; and various other genres (depending on the mood). So, I'd like a mix of well thought out, well played or sung music that will give me a chance to separate the strengths and weaknesses of several, fairly different speakers.
I will probably buy 3-5 CDs and mix in some of my standard favorites BUT I thought I'd get some expert thoughts and I thought it would be an interesting string. Thanks all.
P.S. to Paul - Yes, I do use my system for HT and it probably plays HT about 50-60% of the time BUT I've got about 400 DVDs and another 250 VHS tapes so I'm fairly well covered there while I'm a little light in CDs. (Two cars broken into over the past 5 years and about 50-70 CDs stolen and I've only replaced a few.)
Both of these are really intricate, well made albums that can show off a speakers mid to highs pretty well. The drawback is they aren't very bass heavy.
Metallica - Ride the Lightning
Weezer - Blue or Green Album
These will show off the bass of the speakers and will also help to get a feel for the clarity of the midrange; on bad speakers these will sound pretty muddy (Weezer especially).
The other point is that these are all really good albums (at least I think so) and a boon to any collection....
OK, I tried a first strike with my P.S. BUT I knew that Paul would not be denied.
So, everyone BUT Paul, please give me some help on this one. (Jan, I know you had a couple of favorites in one of the post threads BUT I can't find it; feel free to weigh in.) Thanks all, Dave.
César Franck - Symphony in D minor. This has everything you could want in a test piece. Massed strings, huge brass climaxes, strong woodwind - and also lots of subtle quiet stuff as well.
J.S. Bach - Toccata and fugue in D minor BWV565, (Kevin Bowyer's Marcussen organ version is my fav). This is a bit of a musical cliché of course, but no worse for that.
Play either or both of the above at a reasonably loud volume. If you aren't stunned into silence by the time they finish, then the system is no good.
Thanks for the great start. I have the Bach piece, although not the organ version you recommend. Great suggestion, I hadn't even thought of it as a potential preview piece. BRAVO!!!
Classical : Baroque music for brass and organ (sacd) pop/easy : Sting-Sacred love(sacd) Rock : Led Zep 4 (200 gram vinyl) Urban : Tracy Chapman - fast car (vinyl) My favorite : Dark side of the moon (sacd)
Love Mahler and the recent Tilson-Thomas SACD's are splendid. I have over 1300 cd's (and I count multi disc sets as 1 for instance the Miles Davis box sets), music is my passion.
Shirley Horn-You Won't forget Me Maria Schneider Big Band-Concert in the Garden Jazz at the Pawnship (If I have to explain....) Marvin Gaye-What's Goin on The Bax Box- Complete Arnold Bax Symphonies on Chandos (Vernon Handley and the BBC Pilharmonic) Miles Davis - Complete Jack Johnson
Just to name a few.
I only have a little over 200 DVD's (my wife has another 100).
I'll take a long look and try to narrow things down. There was a female jazz vocalist that several people mentioned in another string but I cannot remember her name and she was highly regarded. Anyone know who and what the CD was?
I'm sorry you don't have much to listen to Art, I'm sure Paul would loan you some of his DVDs. :-) Thanks guys, Dave.
Looked in my local store and they didn't have anything from her... :-( There's another place I have to try...
Ok, the following list includes some old stuff you might already have:
Paul Simon, Rhythm of the saints. For example, track #2 have nice zylophone and has a good soundstage. The rest of the album has good acoustic percussions. There's also Graceland isn't isn't as consistent but has some great tracks. You can visualize the line-up of acapella (sp?) singers on track 8; very good soundstage.
Shawn Phillips, Second contribution. First track is very progressive, starting quietly with a drum beat that moves across the stage.
Harry Connick Jr, We are in love. Good big band recording, with huge dynamic range and strong trumpet attacks. The band soundstage is good, but the bass guitar isn't very good; a little muddy. Needs to be played loud! (-15 dB on my dial)
Diana Krall, Love Scenes. "Peel me a grape" and "I don't know enough about you" have fantastic imaging, good piano and great bass guitar. The plucking of the bass guitar strings images at center-right and you can almost touch them! Great CD for late-at-night not too loud audition. Gene Harris, Alley Cats. Nice jazz with good drums.
Patricia Barber, Cafe' Blue. "Inch Worm" is a great recording. Tremendous bass throughout the CD. Needs to be played fairly loud.
Holly Cole Trio, Don't smoke in bad. Great trio jazz. The piano and bass guitar are very well recorded and her voice is fantastic. The imaging and sounstage is superb. This plays very well at faily low volumes; great for late-night.
Thanks for the list. I believe the female, jazz vocalist was Diana Krall and I think Art and Jan were raving about her in one of the other strings, although it may have been Edster and Art.
I'm taking off early today to make up for working until 11 p.m. last night and I'm heading to a couple of different places:
Hastings or Sams for the typical look around on some of these and a classic, old neighborhood store that may have some of your older, more interesting suggestions in vinyl.
I'm thinking I may pull out an old Grateful Dead or Sting/Police era CD for one preview series. I'll have to look and see what I've got left.
Supposedly, the Ascends are shipping today so, with any luck, I'll be previewing speakers on Friday and Saturday. YAHOO!!!!
If you buy only 1 jazz trio CD, let it be Diana Krall: Love Scenes. If you get two, add Holly Cole Trio, Don't smoke in bed. And if you get three, add Holly Cole Trio, Temptation.
You're probably right. I've now followed so many strings that I can't recall where I've been and what started them. But, I do remember that it was Deana Krall and you guys were quite impressed with the vocals and instrumentation in a couple of tracks. So, Ms. Krall will definitely make the list. I've also got some remastered recordings of Dizzie Gillespie and T. Monk that I may have to pull out and listen to again to see how they might fit in. (Don't ask, it had to do with a college jazz class at UCLA, my now lovely wife and an incredible professor (Mr. Tanner) who played in Benny Goodman's band for quite awhile in the 30s and 40s. Much fun.
If you like concert DVDs, Diana Krall's "Live from paris" is amazing. Very well recorded, nice use of 5.1, musicians having fun, great (but short) drum solo on track 7, and a fantastic rendition of "I don't know enough about you" with great dynamic range.
I think live performances are great, especially for 5.1 surround because, if done well, you can isolate the vocal, instruments and sound as if you were there. Unfortunately, most of these aren't done very well. I've got a Simon and Garfunkel live in the Park (Central Park). It's OK but just wasn't all that well recorded, I think or my current system sucks, take your pick. LOL Dave.
David, give that Diana Krall DVD a chance. It's really well done!
Bugs, HFO used to be my favorite demo before I had a multi-channel receiver (using the stereo track). I find the 5.1 puts a lots of content on the center channel and there are annoying tick sounds during Hotel California. Stranely, the 5.1 is a different mix than the stereo mix altogether! Listen to the Hotel California beat in both stereo and 5.1; completely different!
Still, I love "New York minute" on that DVD and "Life in the fast lane" is a great drum demo. Man, what chest pumping!
It wasn't Diana Krall, although now I'm buying that DVD anyway. It was Nora Jones and it was her "Come Away With Me", SACD. Anyway, I accidentally found her on an Ascend site review.
So, I'll add Nora to the mix as well. I'm thinking 3 CDs won't get it done and more like 5 will have to do. Thanks everyone, Dave.
P.S. - the Ascends now ship tomorrow so they won't get here for the weekend. I'm now going to have to do something else with my weekend. Hey, Paul, is MIB on this weekend, again?
Or, would I be better listening to Peter's incredible, honkin' speaker setup with some Nora Jones or Diana Krall. Now, there's a tough call AND I'm not entirely kidding here!!!
Eliane Elias - Dreamer Roy Haynes - Love Letters Joshua Redman - Passage of Time Suasan Graham - Poemes De L'Amour Roxy Music - Country Life Alice Coltrane - Universal Consciousness
That'll do for Thursday evening now what for the rest of the weekend!
Or, would I be better listening to Peter's incredible, honkin' speaker setup with some Nora Jones or Diana Krall. Now, there's a tough call AND I'm not entirely kidding here!!!
Planning on flying here for the weekend? Or wondering if Norah Jones is better than Diana Krall? Different styles really. I don't like Norah's organ much, but quite enjoy the piano. I like Diana's voice better; Norah is a little nasal. But I have a few CDs and concert DVDs from Norah as well.
If you're coming here, let me know! ;-) But look on a map first! :-)
also try Santana, "Supernatural"---it has a nice mix of soft and hard songs, strong percussion on some tracks, exquisite accoustic guitar on others, and lots of great vocals. Very good recording, great for hearing tonal definition and clarity.
Another CD I like to take is Dave Brubeck "Time Out" specifically the "Take Five" track.
Art and Edster, thanks for the additional thoughts and enjoy your evening, Art.
Hey Peter, I'm not one of those "dumb" Americans and I don't need a map to find Quebec, although I've only been as far as Alberta so far. Yeah, I know they're provinces and I know who your current Queen is (JUST KIDDING!!) and yes, I know that you dislike it that our TV stations never give you Canadian weather and you get inundated with U.S. weather and news. I know you love Pres. Bush, at least as much as you loved his dad.
How I'd do "eh"? Whoops, that's a BC Canadian, right?
I don't speak french or I'd give that a whirl, sorry. :-) I love Canada but I'm not coming to Quebec anytime soon BUT I'd meet you in Nelson, BC or Edmonton, AB anytime AND I could probably find some Paradigms hanging around Edmonton, too.
I meant no disrespect at all when I mentioned the map. Most people think of Montreal when they think of the province of Quebec and don't realise that I'm a 6-hour drive from Montreal. I thought maybe you'd be flying through Montreal on a trip or something...
Rimouski to Edmonton is an 2844 mile drive, so I'll pass on that! :-)
I don't expect to get Canadian weather on US stations, but I think it would be good for American kids if they saw that the continent continues north of the border. I've seen too many weather maps with only the outline of the US border with no clue showing if the border is on land or on the ocean... :-(
We have our own weather channel problems. They show the main part of the province of Quebec but don't show anything east of the Gaspe' penninsula. People on the lower north shore in the Gulf of St. Lawrence don't get to see their location on the map shown on TV!
Peter, no disrespect felt at all. I was just kiddin' with ya. My wife and I visit Canada every year, usally stay at bed and breakfasts and enjoy the company very much. BUT, we have laughed like crazy when some of the other Canadian guests and American guests get together. You would think these two cultures were a million miles apart at times when I'm closer to Canada than I am to Seattle, certainly politically anyway with my BC Canadian friends.
The weather map thing has come up several times and I've seen Americans look at their Canadian guests like "what are talking about" and I suggest that maybe if our "national weather maps" stopped at say the Mississippi river, they'd get the idea. After all, most Easterners believe that's true anyway. (There's land above the U.S. northern border? LOL.)
I am fairly aware of the split between Quebec and the rest of Canada, although I think it's blown way out of proportion in the U.S. and most Canadians deal with it as we deal with the whole east/west bias in our national media.
Now, on the 6 hour drive from Montreal, if I ever get to Montreal, I'll find a way to get up to Rimouski BUT it won't be in the wintertime I'm betting. (In fairness, I had no idea Rimouski was that far from Montreal - I'll claim to be clueless in that regard) BUT I did enjoy giving you a hard time. :-)
Wow Peter, I looked up Rimouski, looks like you're somewhat near the mouth of the St Lawrence River. I have friends that used to fly into Septiles where a guide would pick them up and then fly them somewhere further north and drop them off for a week of hunting/fishing. Always came back with amazing stories.
I've only been to Quebec once, somwhere near Temiscaming, fishing with my son about 10 years ago. Beautiful area, we had a great time.
I posted a reply yesterday but it timed out. Weird.
Danman is from Sept-Iles!
Rimouski is a town of about 45000 and has pretty much everything we need (except a huge selection of audio stores!). We are less than a 3-hour drive from Quebec City, and have a view on the water. It's a nice place to raise kids. I like it.
Peter, between the giant speakers and the location, you'll be on my stop when I get to Rimouski, for sure. Now, you're telling me I can see water, too. Unfortunately, I've already raised my kids, mostly, and Spokane is also a good place to do that. BUT, there's always retirement, right? Are they accepting anymore "ugly" Americans in Rimouski?
You're welcome to stop by anytime. I have friends coming over from Quebec City next weekend, so I compiled a play list to demo my setup. So I'm ready for you! :-)
I agree with Joseph, have always loved Annie Lennox's voice.
Also consider using her solo album, "Medusa"---flawless album, flawless recording, and a nice mix of different musical styles to give those speakers a workout. Great test for good mids esp.
Now, you buys want me to ad Annie Lennox's "Medusa" to the mix. Well, we're getting heavily biased towards jazz, BUT, I'm ok with that. I've got to buy one decent, vintage rock album to throw in, don't I? I still leaning towards the "HFO" album I think. My son just brought home 5 U-2 CDs and I've got a couple of favorites on a couple of those albums, too.
Now, if I just had those Ascends, Edster, I'd give you a report.
Diana Krall - anything, especially the SACD Norah Jones - again, most anything Pink Floyd - Dark side of the Moon --> fantastic!!
...now don't make fun of me, but Dave Mathews Band's Central Park Concert is an excellent live recording, and really helps bring out a speaker's imaging.
wow, am I the only person who thinks that Norah Jones' second CD was a HUGE let-down? There were maybe 2 or 3 good songs on that one, and they were all covers. Country music does not go well with Ms. Jones I think.
Cyrus and Edster, thanks for the positive input and advice. Ascends arrive tomorrow AND I'm out of town on business but will be home late. How does 11:00 p.m. speaker previewing work?
Andy and Paul, do I have to send both of you to your rooms. Anyway, there are very few communists in England. A fair number of socialists but they have to live with that damnable medical care system that the two houses came up with. So Paul, that's punishment enough, leave Andy alone. (Andy, my son spent two years in England on his mission and loved it dearly, I did too because you blokes were generally wonderful to him.)
