I'm getting deeply drawn into the so-called high definition digital format (typically 24 bit/96 kHz), so I'm constantly shopping around for such material. There seem to be more and more of the high-end virtual stores getting into the high def game, which excites me to no end.
However, one strange thing that I've noticed is that a lot of the esoteric high-end material that is being offered (often times with a lot of accompanying verbiage praising the ultra sophisticated recording equipment and techniques), tends to sound super quiet. One of the more recent examples is some tracks I've downloaded from http://www.lessloss.com -- the playback is barely audible. I'd say it's probably three to five times quieter than most other music I play. What's the reason for this? Why can't they offer these tracks at normal volumes? I don't feel like getting up and cranking the volume on my pre amp, just so that I can actually hear what is being played. Also, on many of these ultra esoteric highest imaginable quality tracks (if one were to believe the sales pitch), I fail to detect any special sonic qualities. For example, on the "Steinway & Sons grand piano recording" page (http://www.lessloss.com/steinway-sons-grand-piano-recording-p-202.html), they claim things such as (and I'm quoting verbatim): "In Excerpt #1, notice at 50 seconds how the harmonics of the sustained strings remain true to the nature of the piano's natural sound, even when suspended this long. Notice the sound of the pedal action and the beauty of the wood sound of the hammers' action. And, at 2'50", notice how dead-on the harmonic content of the suspended strings is, with no artificial wavering or high frequency fluctuation. The recording seems as stable as the grand piano is heavy. Nobody would dare say that this recording sounds "digital" in the derogatory sense of the word." Listening to it as hard as I might, I fail to detect anything special. It feels like going to a posh restaurant and reading the blurb on the menu that is extolling the virtues of the unreasonably expensive meal you're about to eat, and then when the meal arrives, it turns out to be bland, tasteless, and a big let down. Now, I do have a number of other high definition piano recordings that are so freakishly realistic sounding that it'll rip your head off, but no such magic here. So what am I missing? Or, am I missing anything? I've noticed the same unsubstantiated hoopla with other vendors, such as Chesky Records, for example. Their much ballyhooed superior recording and mastering sessions always leave me wanting MORE sound. It all sounds super wimpy and anemic. Or, maybe it is that I'm lost for the ultra rarefied and refined world of super-human esoteric high end of audiophilia? -- magiccarpetride ------------------------------------------------------------------------ magiccarpetride's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=37863 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=84091 _______________________________________________ audiophiles mailing list [email protected] http://lists.slimdevices.com/mailman/listinfo/audiophiles
