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Silver Member Username: SuperjazzyjamesPost Number: 574 Registered: Oct-10 | I tried asking this in tuners where it belongs, but got no response. I've noticed that a lot of local radio stations advertise that they broadcast in HD. The overall sound quality and bass on these stations are better than that of the stations that are not HD. Is this the full measure of HD radio? Or do I need an HD tuner to realize the full potential. |
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Platinum Member Username: Jan_b_vigneDallas, TX Post Number: 15613 Registered: May-04 | . You need a HD tuner just like you need a CD player to play CD's. |
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Gold Member Username: Stu_pittStamford, Connecticut USA Post Number: 4180 Registered: May-05 | To the best of my knowledge, you can't get HD radio on a standard tuner. I'm not saying the stations with HD don't sound better, just saying it probably has nothing to so with that. I want to say that maybe they're sending out a cleaner standard signal as a possible side effect of better equipment/mixing (or whatever it's called) being used, but I'm probably off on that account. I've heard several people say HD radio doesn't sound any better than a good standard tuner. Obviously quality of equipment counts - I'm sure a Magnum Dynalab will blow the doors off a Sony HD tuner, so I'm not sure if they were really comparing apples to apples or not. Interestingly enough, I haven't seen an audiophile brand HD radio tuner. Maybe they know HD radio is inherently worse if the equipment is the same quality? |
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Platinum Member Username: ArtkAlbany, Oregon USA Post Number: 13596 Registered: Feb-05 | Just remember HD does not stand for High Def, it's hybrid digital. It can sound better than standard FM but not worth buying an HD radio or tuner to me. http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/hd-radio.htm |
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Silver Member Username: SuperjazzyjamesPost Number: 595 Registered: Oct-10 | Thanks guys! When I heard the difference in quality, I figured that was a bi product of HD. It is rather curious that high end cos. are not making HD tuners. |
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Platinum Member Username: Jan_b_vigneDallas, TX Post Number: 15619 Registered: May-04 | . No high end company built an El-Cassette either. Technologies and new ways to connect to newer technologies have been keeping the industry alive for quite some time now. With the current economy, not many people are rushing into new technologies that might not be around in a few years; http://www.hdtvuk.tv/2006/10/sobering_though.html It's like the thread on BluRay audio, how many people really need their eighth copy of "The White Album" if they won't be able to play it in a couple of months time? Maybe they'll all save up for a decent turntable instead. . |
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Silver Member Username: SuperjazzyjamesPost Number: 604 Registered: Oct-10 | Or an iPod! Sorry, had to say it! |
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Silver Member Username: SuperjazzyjamesPost Number: 611 Registered: Oct-10 | In all seriousness, I think in a few yrs, everything we listen to or watch will be stored in digital media. The sales people at the high end store claim that the record is coming back. I don't see that lasting. |
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Gold Member Username: Stu_pittStamford, Connecticut USA Post Number: 4192 Registered: May-05 | I think a lot of the vinyl sales are to people who'll collect it, but never actually play it. You'd be surprised though; a used record shop in Albany, NY sells a ton of vinyl and cheaper TTs to UAlbany students. He's on a street that has a lot of students living on it, so it's a bit of a cult-like shop. Lots of great stuff for reasonable prices. He's got frequent buyer cards and stuff like that. The students buy vinyl up in droves. Surprisingly, a lot of the customers are women. Doesn't explain the new vinyl sales, but maybe some of these guys are buying it. |
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Silver Member Username: SuperjazzyjamesPost Number: 617 Registered: Oct-10 | I think you're right about people collecting and not playing. I have record I won in a raffle. It's called "A Bend in the River" I forgot the artist. It's still in the wrapper. Wanna buy it? Btw, I don't refer to records as vinyl because cds are made of vinyl too. I know, I'm weird! |
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Platinum Member Username: ArtkAlbany, Oregon USA Post Number: 13609 Registered: Feb-05 | What, you don't call cd's polycarbonates? |
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Silver Member Username: SuperjazzyjamesPost Number: 619 Registered: Oct-10 | No Art, should I call them that? |
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Gold Member Username: MagfanUSA Post Number: 1905 Registered: Oct-07 | Yes, even though polycarbonate is just another 'fossil' plastic. Also, CDs have a metalized layer which vinyl lacks. It may be aluminum or perhaps gold. Silver may oxidize even quicker than aluminum and limit the disks lifetime. |
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Silver Member Username: SuperjazzyjamesPost Number: 623 Registered: Oct-10 | Usually the reflective layer is aluminum foil. I have 2 where 24 karot gold was used, The Who albums "Tommy" and "Who Are You" as done by mobile fidelity sound labs. My son as a 24 karot gold digital remaster of Metallica, "Ride the Lightning" done by digital compact classics. |
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Platinum Member Username: NuckPost Number: 15617 Registered: Dec-04 | How about HDCD? That format did not garner a lot of attention either. |
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Gold Member Username: Stu_pittStamford, Connecticut USA Post Number: 4195 Registered: May-05 | I'd love to get my hands on a gold Ride The Lightning. One of my favorite albums of all time. Not a single track that I skip on that one. |
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Silver Member Username: SuperjazzyjamesPost Number: 625 Registered: Oct-10 | It's sad Nuck, I have at least 2 cds with HDCD (high definition compatible digital) layers. I'll probably never get to hear them. From what I've heard, you need a play that can decode HDCD plus a unit made by Denon that I think (not sure) goes either between the player and the preamp or in the tape loop to get the full benefit of the format. Stu, the gold version of "Ride..." is considerably better than it's Aluminum foil counter part. When I was into metal, there were only 2 Metallica songs I didn't like. Neither was on that album. I listened from 83 When "Kill 'Em All" was released till 95, "Load". My sons have all metal cds except 2. The 2 I kept were father's day gifts from them in 94. One is Believer, "Dimensions" from the older guy. The other is Mortification, "Post Momentary Affliction" from the younger guy. The latter, IMO, is the best metal album of all time. If you were to look at my collection then compared to now, you might not believe I'm the same guy. |
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Gold Member Username: MagfanUSA Post Number: 1906 Registered: Oct-07 | Minor point:: It's not 'Aluminum foil'. Foil is VERY thick compared to the layer which is SPUTTERED on a CD. Sputtering takes place in a pretty hard vacuum with some inert gas ambient trickled in using an MFC (Mass Flow Controller). And it is an electrical / mechanical process not chemical, since the aluminum is unchanged by the process and will not react to the inert gas, usually Argon. The layer thickness? Well, the layer has a nice shine so I'd say it was deposited on the cool side and isn't that thick. Thicker and warmer deposition tends to get a 'frosty' look about it. Again, this is just a guess, but I'd say the layer was way less than 1 micron...You also must consider the size of the 'geometry' in choosing a layer thickness. Gold CDs should pretty much last until the 'plastic' part frosts over or decomposes. Aluminum? That stuff oxidizes pretty readily so regular CDs won't last anywhere near as long. |
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Silver Member Username: SuperjazzyjamesPost Number: 629 Registered: Oct-10 | That's good Leo, I always though when metal was too thin to be sheet metal, it was foil. Thanks for clearing that up. MFSL claims that gold has numerous advantages over aluminum such as high reflective ability, withstanding heat better and other things. I just wouldn't want to pay $40 to $60 per disc for every single album I have. |
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Gold Member Username: MagfanUSA Post Number: 1912 Registered: Oct-07 | Nutty aside:: Gold is cool stuff. In addition of being a 'noble metal' it has the property of extreme malleability. Gold can be hammered thin enough to pass light. As I understand it, the light will be green. |
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Silver Member Username: SuperjazzyjamesPost Number: 639 Registered: Oct-10 | If you hold a gold cd in front of a light, green light will come through! |
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Platinum Member Username: Insearchofbass2 hifonics 2607s, 2dcSounds12xls SPL\idmax12SQ Post Number: 16123 Registered: Jun-04 | hd in car recievers sounds a little better than regular stereo I had one with hd |
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Silver Member Username: SuperjazzyjamesPost Number: 676 Registered: Oct-10 | Only a little Sean? |
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Platinum Member Username: Insearchofbass2 hifonics 2607s, 2dcSounds12xls SPL\idmax12SQ Post Number: 16132 Registered: Jun-04 | im talking hd through the radio stations not the digital units they have where you need a subscription |
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Silver Member Username: SuperjazzyjamesPost Number: 685 Registered: Oct-10 | You need a subscription too?....Wait! You're not confusing HD with satellite are you? I refuse to pay for radio service. |
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Platinum Member Username: Insearchofbass2 hifonics 2607s, 2dcSounds12xls SPL\idmax12SQ Post Number: 16134 Registered: Jun-04 | no I had hd built in the radio and reception was free.....i was just saying it wasnt the satelite version |
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Silver Member Username: SuperjazzyjamesPost Number: 687 Registered: Oct-10 | Okay, thanks for clearing that up. The chances of me ever buying an HD tuner are still .000001% or less, but that's better than what it would be if I had to pay for svc. Needless to say XM and serius are not in my house. |
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Platinum Member Username: Insearchofbass2 hifonics 2607s, 2dcSounds12xls SPL\idmax12SQ Post Number: 16136 Registered: Jun-04 | no problem |
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Gold Member Username: MagfanUSA Post Number: 1915 Registered: Oct-07 | XM and Sirius are part of some 'small dish' packages. I consider them indispensible and have 'em on maybe 8 hours a day. Jazz? Jazz lite? 3 or 4 rock feeds.....'50s. '60s. on up. Blues? Sinatra? Grateful Dead? Elvis, for Pete's sake! Big Band and Swing. Wynton Marsalis has a show on the Jazz feed and it it like a masters class in jazz. Quality? about the same as MP3-320. Certainly beneath CD quality, but using the optical feed to a decent DAC, I get the most out of it. I also have leveling and compression off in the setup. |
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Silver Member Username: SuperjazzyjamesPost Number: 690 Registered: Oct-10 | To each his own Leo! By all means enjoy. For me, it would be a waste of $. I find Wynton Marsalis very informative when he speaks of jazz and he's one of my favorite musicians alive today. I don't know when his show is on, but if it happened to be when I was busy and unable to catch all of what he had to say, that would agrivate me. My radio listening is maybe a total of 2 hrs per week tops in 5 to 10 minute drives and it's mostly in the background. Serious listens are done at home when I choose the music. |
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Gold Member Username: Stu_pittStamford, Connecticut USA Post Number: 4210 Registered: May-05 | I'd love it if Spotify came to the US. It's huge right now in parts of Europe. There's a free version and a paid subscription version. Basically, you make your own playlists and play them. Kind of like the illegal download sites where you can download whatever you want, only it's completely legal. Music is in mp3, but most users say it sounds pretty good. These users are hifi guys on forums, so it's not like a bunch of idiots who think their $50 desktop speakers rock. Not sure what the subscription service gets you over the free version. I know you can't record anything from either, but if you've got an iPhone, you can get an app and get the service on the go. Maybe that's part of the paid version? They've said they're launching in the US several times, but it keeps getting pushed back. I don't think the big labels like the idea too much. Although, there is a way to buy whatever you want from them. Seems like a great way to discover new music and/or hear stuff you weren't sure of before going out and buying the album. |
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Gold Member Username: Stu_pittStamford, Connecticut USA Post Number: 4211 Registered: May-05 | A couple students at the college I work at are from the UK and aren't happy they can't get it here. There's ways around it, but they've got to re-do it every 2 weeks, which gets old. |
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Silver Member Username: SuperjazzyjamesPost Number: 692 Registered: Oct-10 | You would think international barriers on the cyber level would be down by now. I've overheard those conversations between "idiots who think their $50 computer speakers rock" they crack me up. Even using my old subwoofer with the speakers built into the monitor sounds better than those. I only even have those set up so I can hear songs on iTunes before buying or watch Annoying Orange on youtube. Having the computer in the music room is not feasible right now. I got caught chuckling to myself once. Those kids must have thought I was just a crazy old man. One did follow me into the magnolia room after I found the pc accessory I needed. He left the mag rm, I think a little enlightened. |