Music The Best Audiophile Track In The World Ever

[Greenlantern101]

If your listening to mp3s on hi end audio gear there's something a bit wrong

I was testing out my new ipod head phones AKGK451 so the ipod bit was somewhat an integral part of equation. The AKG's are amazing by the way. Been using them since March, best headphones I have ever owned and I have had a great many pairs of headphones.

F1Yorkshire your speaker is likely bust because your amp started clipping the signal, this generates distortion in the speaker that can cause it to shake itself apart. I may seem counter intuitive but even if your amp is way more powerful than your speakers rating, clipping in the amp is less likely to happen and the speakers will cope with the power. It is actually easier to break speakers with a small underpowered amp prone to clipping than it is with a more powerful amp.

 

[Mephistopheles]

I hate any word that ends in "phile" even though I know what it means and I'm being less than logical.

God damned gutter press have ruined what is supposed to be a beautiful word...

 

[Mephistopheles]

At last a woman that believes smaller is better...

 

[Greenlantern101]

I hate any word that ends in "phile" even though I know what it means and I'm being less than logical.God damned gutter press have ruined what is supposed to be a beautiful word...

-phile originates in greek as philios for 'dear' or 'beloved' an audiophile loves music, a bibliophile loves books, yet somehow the one you are talking about means something rather different. Isn't English language confusing at times.

Anyway getting back on track...get it...track..never mind.
Some good audiophile tracks from my recent listening history:-

Betty Blowtorch, I'm ugly and I don't know why. - Punk Rock with good mix of thrashing electric guitar the sweet voice of Bianca Halstead (butthole) tests if your speakers can cope with heavy rock guitar and sweet voices at the same time.

Billy Joel, Piano Man - The harmonica and piano give the mid range and high end a good workout whilst the clarity of the fantastic vocals shouldn't get lost in the music.

CocoRosie, Japan - A real eclectic mix of layered croaky vocals with clipped bass drum some mandolin and oprah thrown in. Sounds shit on my laptop, but mind blowing on my hi-fi. This tests your system. turn it up loud.

Diana Krall, Lets fall in love - Amazing clarity of vocals, you can actual hear her parting her lips and taking a breath before the perfect singing voice takes over. Close your eyes, she is in the room. Not really my cup of tea this type of music but for pure audiophile delight this is a great track and album for that matter.

Paul McCartney & The Blockheads, Iain Dury Tribute Album, I'm partial to your abracadabra- What can I say one of the best singers with one of the best bands. Pure Gold. Sounds amazing on dam near anything.

Eminem, Lose yourself - If I want to test bass this is the first track I go to. Still amazing more than 10 years later. Again sounds shit on little speakers but amazing on proper hifi gear. TURN IT UP.

 

[Greenlantern101]

Many years ago when MP3 players were just starting to get popular, SACD (super Audio CD) were launched as well. I thought at the time that better sound quality was the future and mp3's were a step backwards and wouldn't last. … got that wrong.

So I am really pleased to find out that new Blu-Ray hifi music disks are to hit the shops this month. I might just buy the AmyWine house BR and do a flicking back and forth between MP3, CD and blu-ray for the ultimate geek audio test.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-24441979

http://store.universal-music.co.uk/...k-to-black-pure-audio-2013/invt/0600753450628

 

[F1Yorkshire]

Why would anyone invest in a new floppy media? Digital downloads rule music these days and higher quality music files are becoming more common. It's a step backward if you ask me. Blu Ray discs are only just hanging on due to the file sizes involved for films and games but for music files digital downloads are the way to go.

 

[FB]

digital downloads are the way to go.

Errm...

http://readwrite.com/2013/09/16/amazon-vinyl-record-sales-up-745-since-2008#awesm=~ojLhCPrp3lrEsW

Maybe I'm just old fashioned but I'd rather physically own a CD or vinyl album and then convert it to digital myself.

 

[F1Yorkshire]

I'm talking about mainstream media. Vinyl will never die as it's such an awesome format but it's mainly for collectors and proper DJ's.

The average person buying anything in the album charts is going to be purchasing them online as it's so easy. What is more common are those people who actually download music from other sources. Even people who own a vinyl copy of a record will actually download a digital copy as it's easier than converting vinyl to digital. It's the same to some extent with CD's. If your internet speed is high enough you can download an album faster than you can rip it from a CD.

 

[Greenlantern101]

100% agree FB I would rather own a real physical item than a load of files on a computer. Say a company goes bust like Amazon or Apple (could happen, tax evasion anyone). What happens to the music you downloaded from them. If your computer dies you could loose your music and your money. CD's cost more or less the same as downloads and they are a real thing, not a digital file.

Plus I rather like putting a CD in my hifi and chilling out to a tune. Its not the same selecting an MP3 from a list, and the quality is generally poorer.

 

[F1Yorkshire]

As I've now moved to the new place I need to find a new home for my audio set up. The main living area here is already fully kitted out now with existing technology so mine is surplus*. Ideally I want to create a fully immersive cinema room in the cellar but that is going to be a project for the future as it will be costly as the cellar hasn't been touched since the days it was used as a coal hole.

My short term aim is to fit out the office/playroom with my speakers and amp and completely fry my ears. I'm just going for the single TV set-up with PS4 & PC as inputs. The room shape does lend itself for a proper 7.1 configuration too so will be implementing that as well but I'm thinking of doing one key change.

I quite like the idea of having a dedicated gaming chair with inbuilt speakers and the extra bass speaker in the seat to help get the full gaming experience. When the home cinema is built the gaming chair will remain in the office.

What I'm struggling with is the feasibility of wiring the gaming chair speakers into my existing amp. I'm considering buying an older used gaming chair so if I have to rewire the speakers it won't be as much of a hardship to hack apart the underside of the chair to gain access to the wiring.

Does anyone know anything about the gaming chair wiring? Google is just giving me images of a control panel and a dedicated AV Forum (incidently also powered by xenforo) isn't giving me any answers on the subject.

 

[Andyoak]

I find its best to play something you know and love... so I tend to drop in XTC Apple Venus, John Martyn One World and Frank Zappa Sheik Yerbouti.

If it improves what you know you're going in the right direction.

 

[Greenlantern101]

I want to convert my CD collection into 'lossless' FLAC files rather than the lossy MP3's I currently have. FLAC seems to be the file most audiophiles use rather than the windows or apple versions of lossless codex.

Sadly I will have to download a program to do this as window media player doesn't support FLAC and neither does iTunes.

Does anyone use 'Exact Audio Copy' for converting or 'Foobar2000' for playback. After recent experiences with Malware I am nervous about downloading anything.

 

[Incubus]

I've been looking for one myself to convert audio tapes into digital, because some of the stuff I have on it is quite obscure, and refuses to be found by me on any internet source whatsoever...

I wouldn't dream of converting me old vinyls into anything.

The sound of vinyl is so much warmer and deeper, as opposed to the "metallic" treble-laden sound from any digital source.
Music on vinyl sounds alive. It hisses, rumbles and occasionally scratches... JUST THE WAY IT DOES WHEN YOU'RE AT A GIG! That's what makes it sound more organic.

 

[Greenlantern101]

I've never owned a record player. My dad had one back in the day, when CD first came out I remember them being so much clearer than the vinyl. But I was just a kid. It would be interesting to do a comparison again.

 

[Greenlantern101]

I have installed 'Exact Audio Copy' which is a decent little program loads of options. My only minor gripe with it is you have to manually create and name the folder it is extracting into for artist and album. But no major drama.

For FLAC playback it turns out I had a program already on my HP laptop called 'HP Connected Music' which plays FLAC files and works a treat. Very nice program actually. Only seems to be available on HP laptops.

 

[Greenlantern101]

Just splashed out on a pair of BOSE quiet comfort 25 headphones. Ermahgerd.
The noise cancelling is creepy. Its like silence is being forced into your brain.
The music is without doubt the best I have ever heard, really amazing. So glad I bought them. Been trying to rationalise the expense for some time, then had a fuck it moment. So happy! And they aren't even run in yet, better to come if that's possible.

http://www.whathifi.com/bose/quietcomfort-25/review