Post by Marpow March 22, 2015 (611 of 2132)
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fredblue said:
Seeing as you mention him, just might be worth raising it, in case you don't own it already, that there's a 5.1 mix of Bill Withers' "Just As I Am" album (the one with Grandma's Hands and Ain't No Sunshine on it).. on DualDisc.. it's rather good (in spite of being in Dolby Digital).
Adam, thanks for the tip.
I received the Bill Withers Dual Disc about a week ago and finally took a listen. Very good and yes my ears continue to improve and though the DDigital 5.1 is a little flat it is still a great mix and highly enjoyable. Especially after listening first to the MOFI live, stereo. The studio version vs the live recording makes it all come full circle.
Is he the only soul singer to use an acoustic guitar? Certainly not the norm.
Beautiful voice and style Mr. Withers has. He really calms me down.
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Hi Mark,
You are more than welcome! Implementing Audyssey for the most part really adds significant resolution, detail and tonal balance but on some 5.1 discs I revert to Pure Direct on my AVR. Not sure if you have any of the original early 2000's Elton John 5.1 SACD's but as an example the vocals just don't sound right on the first 3 EJ discs using Audyssey and I use Pure Direct for "pure" DSD 5.1 playback. YMMV:)
Rammiepie is absolutely correct in guiding you to power conditioning and up-grading power cords as the first step in improving the playback chain. As counter intuitive as it may seem the levels of audible improvement start with the power (AC conditioning and AC cords), next in my opinion is isolation and mass dampening on source and preamp/amp, next are the interconnects and, last but not least, speaker cables. Cable dressing is critical keeping high current carriers ( power cords and speaker cables) a minimum of 2" away from interconnects/HDMI cables and always at right angles to the low level signal carriers.
Mark, you definitely have caught the audiophile bug and, man, is it ever a gas!!
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Post by Marpow March 22, 2015 (613 of 2132)
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off the grid said:
Hi Mark,
You are more than welcome! Implementing Audyssey for the most part really adds significant resolution, detail and tonal balance but on some 5.1 discs I revert to Pure Direct on my AVR. Not sure if you have any of the original early 2000's Elton John 5.1 SACD's but as an example the vocals just don't sound right on the first 3 EJ discs using Audyssey and I use Pure Direct for "pure" DSD 5.1 playback. YMMV:)
Rammiepie is absolutely correct in guiding you to power conditioning and up-grading power cords as the first step in improving the playback chain. As counter intuitive as it may seem the levels of audible improvement start with the power (AC conditioning and AC cords), next in my opinion is isolation and mass dampening on source and preamp/amp, next are the interconnects and, last but not least, speaker cables. Cable dressing is critical keeping high current carriers ( power cords and speaker cables) a minimum of 2" away from interconnects/HDMI cables and always at right angles to the low level signal carriers.
Mark, you definitely have caught the audiophile bug and, man, is it ever a gas!!
That's really cool. I am going to print your suggestion so I remember.
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Power is power is power. Power cables transmit electrical current to your equipment and that is all. Conditioners may help with spikes, but have no affect on sound if power is steady and flowing through to your equipment. Those that think otherwise have tin foil caps.
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Post by rammiepie March 22, 2015 (615 of 2132)
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Marpow said:
That's really cool. I am going to print your suggestion so I remember.
Mark, when you order the Shunyata Research power cords down the line, I would highly recommend SR's HDMI cable, as well ($95 list). Since you use that cable for your main listening, it's a worthwhile investment.
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Post by rammiepie March 22, 2015 (616 of 2132)
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samayoeruorandajin said:
Power is power is power. Power cables transmit electrical current to your equipment and that is all.
Absolute HOGWASH. The Ears don't lie.......instantaneous UPGRADE.
Yeah, FD, spend thousands on music and neglect what makes it all come together.....POWER!
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Right, Rammie. Try and convince others of your hogwash. Most people realize that what you're preaching is bologna. I agree that electrical current can spike and not flow absolute in certain areas, but to say sound is somehow affected by electrical current itself is laughable.
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And Rammie, I've tried the upgrade route before with power cables, once paying $300 to "upgrade" a power cable. Did absolutely nothing special to the sound.
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Post by rammiepie March 22, 2015 (619 of 2132)
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samayoeruorandajin said:
And Rammie, I've tried the upgrade route before with power cables, once paying $300 to upgrade a power cable. Did absolutely nothing special to the sound.
Years ago I spent literally thousands on those massive Richard Gray power conditioners and crazy priced power cords and I feel that Shunyata Research at a MUCH LESSER PRICE POINT is superior in EVERY way.
Their $125 power cords are all Mark would need to make the package complete, replacing his stock McIntosh power cords.
You are always fixated on $2000 power cords, FD. I bought one for $1795 for my Meridian 861 v.8 which I deemed the heart of my system and since I saved a bundle on the Meridian, the $1795 purchase was justified in my mind.
I've installed SR power cords/conditioners in 3 of my 5 systems and IN EVERY CASE the improvement has been revelatory.
Your $300 power cord today could almost buy you 3 SR power cords http://www.musicdirect.com/p-9670-shunyata-venom-3-power-cable.aspx and guaranteed they'd sound better because vast improvemnents have been made in their research and development. I've paid as little as $109 each when Music Direct has their 10% off sales.
Of course if we all had solar panels in our house we wouldn't need any of these "additives."
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Problem is Rammie, the wiring that goes from the curb to your house is "untreated." It comes to you via the common "un-special" treatment. No "conditioner" is going to change that fact regardless. Now, as I said, power sometimes spikes, so you do need something to protect your equipment, but that is all.
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