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There are a bunch of albums where I vastly prefer the vinyl rip, but that's only because the CD master has been brickwalled to death and back and to death again. RHCP's Californication is a prime example.
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Dec 1, 2012 22:15
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KozmoNaut posted:There are a bunch of albums where I vastly prefer the vinyl rip, but that's only because the CD master has been brickwalled to death and back and to death again. Or the Stooges "Raw Power" The CD release from the late 90's was the first album to go hog wild in the loudness wars.
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Dec 1, 2012 22:20
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jonathan posted:Or the Stooges "Raw Power" Wasn't that CD release done by Iggy Pop instead of the original Bowie master and everyone went holy poo poo Iggy Pop should not be let near a mixing console?
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Dec 1, 2012 22:54
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If memory serves Iggy did that on purpose. I can see him doing that anyway 
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Dec 1, 2012 23:38
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To my knowledge, the original release was actually recorded by Iggy, in 73 or whenever. He handed the recording tracks over to Bowie who, when started playing them realized Iggy had recorded multiple instruments onto each track, so guitar couldn't be isolated from drums etc. So Bowie did what he could with the help of some engineers to get it atleast presentable. It's a shame because Raw Power is one of the best albums ever made, and had they known at that time the influence it would have on other bands, I figure they would have gone back into the studio to re-record it with someone who understood the basic fundamentals of recording. When Iggy remastered it in 97 or whenever, he still had to work with the lovely tracks, and decided to bump and compress and flatline everything. Why someone with constant ringing and hearing issues from 45 years of studio exposure decided that they should be the ones with the golden ears to remaster a track is a mystery to me. Eather way, Iggy pop is the King of Rock n Roll.
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Dec 2, 2012 01:25
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Combat Pretzel posted:If that's true, it's a plus. I rip everything to ALAC so I have a 1:1 copy of my CD collection. Storage space is cheap and if you're doing full backups instead of incremental ones then you're doing it wrong. I also don't think any of us are re-transcoding our collections every month or whatever; there's actually software that will transcode on the fly when you sync your portable device. In fact, iTunes will even do it. That's how ubiquitous it is now. Hell, I don't even have to sync my iPhone anymore with iTunes Match. I keep a FLAC copy of my collection on a master system and the rest of my computers and devices just stream a 256 AAC version from the cloud.
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Dec 2, 2012 16:16
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timb posted:I keep a FLAC copy of my collection on a master system Man this audiophile infatuation with consoles is getting out of hand.
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Dec 2, 2012 17:58
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Detroit Q. Spider posted:Man this audiophile infatuation with consoles is getting out of hand. That was pretty good.
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Dec 2, 2012 18:27
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I'm not gonna lie - if you could connect a hard drive to a Master System and play FLACs on it I'd probably do it.
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Dec 2, 2012 20:10
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What do you think the SegaCD is for? 
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Dec 2, 2012 20:16
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8-bit perfect reproduction. 
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Dec 2, 2012 20:27
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Egg in soup posted:8-bit perfect reproduction. I prefer routing through an NES, it really widens that 8-bit sound stage, you know? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqlg9Mv0dgI
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Dec 2, 2012 20:44
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I don't trust the mass produced consoles to improve the sound, really. Instead I use Clever Little Clock (signature version) to improve playback. I find the brand of batteries makes a difference and store bought doesn't cut it. Fortunately the manufacturer takes care of this by providing Energizer brand Ultimate Lithium batteries; expected lifetime at least 10 years. Of course all that audio goodness would be worthless without treating the room with Blue and Green Meanies first. I tried going the cheap route and gluing little pieces of blue felt cloth on the walls. It didn't open up the acoustics the way I hoped for, so I had to order enough of these to cover my walls and ceilings. As one of the reviewers says: "Marked improvement to my already tweaked up system." Currently I'm waffling between Teleport Tweak and The Super Intelligent Chip. Both seem revolutionary technologies, and as everyone knows CD recordings are superior to digital audio. Treating the discs with quantum waves should improve the soundstage and reduce jitter considerably. But on the other hand Teleport Tweak works regardless of range since it's so convenient. Just call their number and let the clicking work their magic on your system (it doesn't need to be on when you call). As an added bonus they promise better color definition in your TV. I must admit the tweaks provided are really top notch. Everyone sells audiophile grade AC cords these days; not everyone provides acoustical treatment of rooms by frog jump in water, or suggests you could tweak your psyche without medication. I haven't been this impressed since the guy who wall-papered his house with audiophile grade audio paper.
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Dec 2, 2012 22:44
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Lithium batteries have an internal automatic current limiter, do you really want your transients harshened by the limiter kicking in? I use only the finest vintage Zinc-Carbon batteries, the high internal resistance provides a nice buttery smooth transient response that really brings out the warmth of classic battery technology. It's getting a bit expensive so my plan is to switch to audiophile grade oil-paper supercapacitors charged with a special tube-rectified high fidelity capacitor charger.
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Dec 2, 2012 22:56
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If you're not generating your AC by powering a 10kg perfectly true flywheel into a Ford Pinto alternator (as everyone knows these never fail) fully re-cabled with 99.999999999999% oxygen free cables, then I don't know what to tell you.  You get perfectly clean sine-waves which really let the higher frequencies breathe, once you've heard it anything else sounds constricted. Combat Pretzel posted:That's what I don't get. If you're all about accurate reproduction, you'd want a linear response in every step from the recording session to the playback. Why else would they want to buy all this oxygen-free hyperpure bullshit, if they're actively loving with the source medium at various stages of the playback, anyway? Audiophiles are backwards retarded.
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Dec 5, 2012 14:33
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I'll have you know my power is pure DC from the dynamo of a Willys MB with the automatic voltage regulator rebuilt with high resolution power cabling.
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Dec 5, 2012 15:35
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jonathan posted:When Iggy remastered it in 97 or whenever, he still had to work with the lovely tracks, and decided to bump and compress and flatline everything. Why someone with constant ringing and hearing issues from 45 years of studio exposure decided that they should be the ones with the golden ears to remaster a track is a mystery to me. Eather way, Iggy pop is the King of Rock n Roll. Luckily, it seems like you can get the "Legacy Edition" on CD, which has Bowies original mix! At least, Spotify has it: http://open.spotify.com/track/0Mul2UNuXtbJA5kyGb1bfP
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Dec 5, 2012 18:28
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Look, all you have to do is this simple speaker treatment descrived by a Peter Belt enthusiast. "I undid the speaker screws carefully, always being careful not to damage the drivers and gaskets in any way. I removed the foam or any other fillings. I started off first with the various PWB foils (my favourites are, Rainbow, Comfort, Safe hole, Blue z, Black 26, New Type Communication and Red foil (the latter is now discontinued). These went on the metal frame of the drivers. I then Smart Metalled the magnets surround of the drivers – N.S.W.E. If you had wire clips attached to the positive and negative terminals, I eased it off the speakers, and applied a tiny amount of SolElectret oil to the contact points. I made up Reef knots from some small pieces of copper wire (I got them from computer network cables. I kept the insulation (I just stripped off the edges). I wound this to the positive and negative terminal together of each drive unit. Each drive unit had a morphic message attached to the plate that holds the magnet surround.E.G.the bass midrange unit has this message; - using a Red x pen, write on a strip of paper - “This bass midrange driver sounds brilliant”!. On the next line write "X26"X with your name > O.K., and glue it with the message facing the plate. .Do the same with the treble unit - “This treble unit sounds brilliant” and on the next line write "X26" followed by your name >O.K., attach as above. Fit a morphic message to the inside of the cabinet, using the Red ‘x’ Pen with the message; - “This speaker sounds brilliant”, - and on the next line "X26"X with your name > O.K. Fit a Smart Metal treated magnet on the back of each speaker plate. Cream-Electret all the foils, and small parts of the fitted magnet, gaskets. If you can get hold of red electric insulation tape, cut them into two rectangular strips and attached it to the length of each magnet of the speaker drive unit. Fit quarter round wooden dowelling to all the right angles of the inside of the speaker cabinet. This can be treated with Cream Electret, and frozen prior to mounting to the right angles. Treat a tube of glue with Cream-Electret prior to applying to the wooden dowel. Insert a small piece of PWB hollow fibre into each cabinet. Fit a tube limpet to each drive unit, I usually attached this with a tiny amount of blutack, to the edge of the surround magnet. If you have a treated light, switch it on in the vicinity, and apply Morphic Liquid with your finger to the tips of each tube limpet. Now if you have a Quantum Clip, clip everything that you have treated. Fit the drivers back to the cabinet." Simples!
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Dec 9, 2012 14:14
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That can't be for real...
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Dec 9, 2012 16:04
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Here's his Products Page where you can read about all those quantum items. http://www.pwbelectronics.co.uk/product/product.html The Newsletters are worth a read (hell, it all is, just because it's so crazy).
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Dec 9, 2012 16:45
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stinky ox posted:Here's his Products Page where you can read about all those quantum items. http://www.belt.demon.co.uk/product/quantum/quantum.html I was laughing all the way through this then I got to the end: quote:The price of the Quantum Clip is £500  I also recommend Morphic Message Foils. I didn't realise that he was such a learned biologist. kemikalkadet fucked around with this message at 00:00 on Dec 10, 2012 |
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Dec 9, 2012 23:57
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I always thought that the Playstation 1 made CD's sound fantastic; at least compared to the old CD player my parents brought in 1989.
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Dec 10, 2012 11:26
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FormerFatty posted:I always thought that the Playstation 1 made CD's sound fantastic; at least compared to the old CD player my parents brought in 1989. This is a viable scenario. It's all relative.
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Dec 10, 2012 13:41
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Haha, I used to live not far away from that crazy bastard. It gives his address on the above link and noticed it was a Leeds postcode and took a look. It looks neater than I was expecting! Googlemaps link: http://tinyurl.com/corbkjc
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Dec 10, 2012 14:48
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The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Inspect Your Gadgets > Ridicule audiophiles and internet stalk them Why is the house all not straight and stuff?
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Dec 10, 2012 14:56
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Is that a huge surprise though? He's got a business that involves writing a bunch of wacky bullshit down the pub, minutes of effort actually making the stuff (where's there's even anything to make - 'yes I've broadcast the quantum waves now bye'), and with a massive payoff if anyone's stupid or rich enough to send him money. I mean look at this poo poo: http://www.pwbelectronics.co.uk/product/Black_Cream/PWB_Special_Black_Cream.html quote:The special Silver Mirror Foil Squares are supplied as a single length containing 10 squares and are divided into individual squares by cutting along each square guide line using any sharp scissors. £100 for a strip of foil and he can't even be bothered cutting it up for you
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Dec 10, 2012 15:03
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jonathan posted:Also interesting is how many of these flakes love to use tube amps and players that sound "warm". Basically "warm" means strong mid frequencies. So they use tube amps which have been documented as rolling off the high frequencies. Yeah it sounds warm, its missing 30% of the audible range ! I was wondering what the hell that always meant. I thought they added that just-noticeable hissing when playing digital format, so it sounded more like records and tapes
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Dec 21, 2012 10:17
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Warm is a silly term, it means poo poo all in in audio. For me it means richer in basses. It's a worthless term.
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Dec 21, 2012 13:27
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I just think of it as a general 'not harsh' sound, so you don't have the bright highs that can be fatiguing to listen to. It can mean a bit of soft compression too. Like a mug of hot chocolate on a frosty evening. Indoors. Ahhh Alternatively: Steve Albini posted:They decided to go with the producer who used to be in Letterman’s band. He had these technicians come in and tune the drums for them and tweak their amps and guitars. He had a guy bring in a slew of expensive old “vintage” microphones. Boy, were they “warm.” He even had a guy come in and check the phase of all the equipment in the control room! Boy, was he professional. He used a bunch of equipment on them and by the end of it, they all agreed that it sounded very “punchy,” yet “warm.”
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Dec 21, 2012 16:43
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Combat Pretzel posted:Warm is a silly term, it means poo poo all in in audio. For me it means richer in basses. It's a worthless term.  The soundstage was airier, and could breathe
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Dec 21, 2012 20:08
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Khablam posted:Every audiophile term is silly and means poo poo all I would define that as no walls to provide reverb/echo.
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Dec 21, 2012 23:08
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Most of the time the concepts like "warm" themselves are not difficult to comprehend, they just find the wankiest ways of saying it.
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Dec 21, 2012 23:45
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Khablam posted:Every audiophile term is silly and means poo poo all While a lot of the terms are loving stupid, some of the terms are used to simplify a description of the way a setup sounds. It's not really an "Audiophile" thing, its more of a human nature thing. Just like how interior decorators will call a room scheme "Warm" or "Cold". The problem is that there is so much misinformation in the audio world that nobody can come up with a proper standard descriptive language. Therefore we pretty much are forced to use more in depth terms such as "Ruler flat frequency response up to 20khz" or "Rolls off at -3db at 10khz and then another -2db at 18khz" Easier to just say it's a warmer sound.
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Dec 22, 2012 03:13
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jonathan posted:While a lot of the terms are loving stupid, some of the terms are used to simplify a description of the way a setup sounds. It's not really an "Audiophile" thing, its more of a human nature thing. I say, if cooks (or at least companies) can quantify what a pinch, dash, and smidgen are, then audio engineers should do it for sound and music.
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Dec 22, 2012 05:16
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Yeah, the only real descriptive words that are universally used well are "Bright" meaning the high frequencies are fatiguing or over boosted. "Detailed" meaning the speakers are able to reproduce the subtle nuances of a track. And the opposite being "muddy" which means it lacks detail or clarity. Even those can sound pretty douchy if used in certain contexts. But generally if someone says "I liked XYZ subwoofer. The Bass was detailed and really accurate sounding, but the XXX subwoofer sounded really muddy. It seemed to just rumble at a single note. Fine for Earthquake scenes in movies, not so good for listening to Primus." A statement like that could be read by anyone and "get" what they were trying to say.
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Dec 22, 2012 18:24
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It's more that audiophiles will deliberately stack adjectives on top of one another, none with a particular meaning, to try to build up a description that sounds meaningful but is actually full of poo poo. There's almost an irony in that they're effectively using confirmation bias on people doing this, but can't see they're victims of it themselves.
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Dec 23, 2012 15:30
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Khablam posted:It's more that audiophiles will deliberately stack adjectives on top of one another, none with a particular meaning, to try to build up a description that sounds meaningful but is actually full of poo poo. My setup has a warm-richness that really showcases the Contrafibularities of the tracks, and the Anaspeptic depth of the Frasmotic recording. It all comes together with real Compunctuous tones and a superb Pericombobulation of sound.
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Dec 23, 2012 21:39
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Sounds like a very cromulent setup that embiggens the sound of all source material.
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Dec 23, 2012 22:05
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This is from an older article, but I was looking at it today and feel a couple of quotes may belong in here.quote:But when you have taken part in a number of these blind tests and experienced how two amplifiers you know from personal experience to sound extremely different can still fail to be identified under blind conditions, then perhaps an alternative hypothesis is called for: that the very procedure of a blind listening test can conceal small but real subjective differences. Having taken part in quite a number of such blind tests, I have become convinced of the truth in this hypothesis. again quote:blind listening test can conceal small but real subjective differences quote:Some amplifiers which cannot be distinguished reliably under formal blind conditions do not sound similar over lengthy listening in more familiar and relaxed circumstances. http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volume_11_4/feature-article-blind-test-power-cords-12-2004.html
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Dec 27, 2012 12:22
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Moronic logic. If you know they sound extremely different, you know in which ways they sound different. As such, you should be able to discern between the two with, wait for it, just your ears! But hey, one's got to justify silly buying decisions to himself.
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Dec 27, 2012 16:42
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