Evaluation CDs ?

[Larry Elliott]

I would have thought that 20 year old samples would be excellent.

[hbphotoav]

You mean... like, with musical use of actual dynamic range, and everything...?

Works for me.

Included on my setup disk (or as .aiff on the iPod)... Alison Krauss "Crazy As Me" for finding upper mids that squawk; Chris Jones "No Sanctuary" for low acoustic guitar/bass tones and killer basso voice; Toto "Dave's Gone Skiing" for crunchy E Gtr bliss and drums (also good for loosening dust from the rafters); Steely Dan "IGY" because it's very nearly perfectly balanced, and I never tire of it; Eva Cassidy's version of "Fields of Gold" for more female vocal; James Taylor "Carolina On My Mind" for acoustic guitar and male vocal; and The Sheffield Labs Test Disk for pink noise, channel/phase tests, tone sweeps and all sorts of other cool stuff. If I want brickwall test tunes, a bit of Robert Randolph Family Band "Ain't Nothing Wrong With That" or Carlos Santana "Da Ley Yaleo" or "La Migra" doesn't hurt too much.

Classical includes "O Fortuna" from Carl Orff's "Carmina Burana" (James Levine/CSO, 1984) and Lang Lang's "Chopin: The Piano Concertos" (Zubin Mehta/Vienna Philharmonic, 2008, autographed in Montreal the same year). Only a 24-year swing, that.

[panatrope]

I would suggest one of the Opus 3 test CD compilations (eg., CD99400 - Test CD 4.1 - Depth of Image, Timbre, Dynamics). As all of these were mastered in analog (AKG C24, M15), then for real modern possibly add one of his newer DSD mastered recordings for comparison.

The other recording (not modern) I reach for with a new set of speakers is the 1965 Decca Julius Katchen/LSO/Gamba recording of the Beethoven Choral Fantasy Op 80 (from the 1994 CD compilation). Apart from a little excess tape noise in the piano opening, the judgement is based on how immersive the sound stage is, over the range of voicings - piano solo, orchestra (including brass), small groupings of winds and strings, vocal soloists and chorus. All this in 19 minutes ...

[Rolo 46]

Crikey
Only 3 replies so far...
We live in a 24Bit hirez world and there no recordings we are amazed at ?
Howabout movie soundtrack orchestral, that seems to be the area of big budget,talent and lush style, any killers there ?

[David Spearritt]

Originally Posted by Rolo 46

Crikey
Only 3 replies so far...
We live in a 24Bit hirez world and there no recordings we are amazed at ?
Howabout movie soundtrack orchestral, that seems to be the area of big budget,talent and lush style, any killers there ?

Because:
1. Its been done to death, there are numerous threads on this.
2. Its based on taste largely, one man's spectacular is another man's ordinary
3. There are just too many new great hi-res audiophile recordings around now. Everyone is doing them.

Try the major labels, Decca for opera and voice, DG or SONY for chamber and piano, Linn records, Opus3, .....

[Rolo 46]

Shame and name David.

[panatrope]

Originally Posted by Rolo 46

Crikey! Only 3 replies so far... We live in a 24Bit hirez world and there no recordings we are amazed at ?

Well, I was amazed at my 24/96K/AKG C426B Blumlein/NagraV recording in 2009 in our new Recital Hall of the Feldman "Rothko Chapel" - but of course I can't publish it, as it has already had its permitted once-only broadcast. (And it was unique because of performance circumstances that I could use this simple minimalist technique ... most of my subsequent recordings had to use the 48K MADI feed from the house DigiCo system.)

I am afraid that for a lot of us, our "amazing" or possibly definitive recordings are sitting on our hard drives, and nowhere else. It is often hard to separate emotional connections from attempts at objective judgement. While I have "professional" monitors available, I will always run a check against my "domestic" speakers hand-built 35 years ago. Definitely not faultless, but I will run a new broadcast master on these, and compare it against some personal benchmarks. If the master stands up OK, it ships.

From then on, it is what others think that matters. And as I said in a previous signature: "De gustibus non disputandum est".

[The Listener]

Try some of the hi-res download shops for 24bit/96 (and other resolutions) of great recordings from any time, for something new you could start with "Nordic sound" compilation of L2 label - they seem to be Grammy nominated on a regular basis :

https://www.hdtracks.com/index.php?f...D7041888513520

2L - the Nordic Sound // actually you can't go wrong with anything from that label: http://www.klicktrack.com/2l/search?...1&order=&desc=

These are sonically probably the best recordings today (for my taste).

I also like almost everything (sound wise) from the labels enja and ECM (their "New series" especially for classical)

Try Absolute Ensemble on enja, "Absolution" album maybe for some fresh sounds...

Arvo Part's "Symphony No.4" was recently (2010) released on ECM and it doesn't sound too bad also "In principio" that I just checked recently

These Gyorgy Ligeti albums in "The Ligeti Project" were recorded rather recently and immaculately for Teldec ("supervised by the composer" which is something I cherish a lot in classical recording projects - only then I believe that the original intent of the composer was really captured, all the rest are more or less successful interpretations): Amazon.com: The Ligeti Project III: Cello Concerto / Clocks & Clouds / Violin Concerto / Síppal, Dobbal, Nádihegedüvel: Gyorgy Ligeti, Siegfried Palm, Frank Peter Zimmerman, ASKO/Schonberg Ensemble, Capella Amsterdam, Amadinda Percussion Group: Music

This No.III album is good for testing - especially the dramatic percussive last work on the CD, but I have the whole series and they are all great (if you like Ligeti of course)

I also like a lot of Harmonia mundi releases - try their compilation of Early music: harmonia mundi Great artists and great recordings.

This John Adams recording of "Naive and sentimental music" is very dramatic and I like the music - not typical minimalism at all: Naive and Sentimental Music | Nonesuch Records

Or his very recent release: Son of Chamber Symphony / String Quartet | Nonesuch Records

I think that all suggestions are at least from 2000 and some even fairly recent.

Enjoy!

[David Spearritt]

Originally Posted by Rolo 46

Shame and name David.

OK, here are a few of my favourites for demo purposes.

1. http://www.amazon.com/Rachmaninoff-S.../dp/B00005QD5Z
2. Amazon.com: J.S. Bach: Oster-Oratorium: Johann Sebastian Bach, Philippe Herreweghe, Collegium Vocale, Barbara Schlick, James Taylor: Music
3. Amazon.com: Verdi - Requiem / Angela Gheorghiu, Roberto Alagna, Daniela Barcellona, Julian Konstantinov, Claudio Abbado, Berlin Philharmonic: Angela Gheorghiu, Daniela Barcellona, Roberto Alagna, Julian Konstantinov, Claudio Abbado, Berlin Opera Phil
4. http://www.amazon.com/Rossini-Overtu...5797242&sr=1-1
5. Amazon.com: Barbara Bonney - Fairest Isle: Barbara Bonney, Christopher Hogwood, The Academy of Ancient Music: Music
6. http://www.amazon.com/Handel-Scarlat...5797317&sr=1-1

But most of my hi-res audiophile demo recordings are from my own work recording live concerts of international artists for local radio, most of which can't be released.

[Rolo 46]

Thank you David

But they date from 2000,1995,2002,2001,2001,2001, and 1997

I don't doubt they are wonderful but the youngest is 10 yrs old

10 yrs is a long time , the advances made are astounding, but the recordings seem to be thinner on the ground.

Thanks again.

[The Listener]

I posted you some very recent suggestions... oh well, maybe I'm on the ignore list.

[Rolo 46]

No they are appreciated and noted dear Listener

[Larry Elliott]

Best of the Year Discs for 2011 - Audiophile Audition