Warren M. Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 (edited) On August 18, I'm presenting my sound system at the Sydney Audio Club, including my turntable system. It's a good turntable system providing the listener with a sense of "being right there". I have a pretty big high-quality record collection, but a very limited time to play tracks on my turntable (most of the time will probably be spent playing my top-of-line JLTi Oppo 105D "signature" digital player). I'm tempted to limit classical and jazz tracks to say 6 minutes each to maximize the number of tracks I can play. I thought it would be neat to ask Stereo Net readers what specific records/tracks they would like to hear imagining themselves at the meeting. I don't just mean a specific piece of classical music like say "Bach's Toccata and Fuge in D minor" since every performance/recording has specific merits. But you could make that sort of generalised suggestion too. Here is what I have chosen so far, to give you an idea: Jennifer Warne - Famous Blue Raincoat, off the Famous Blue Raincoat 20th Anniversary Remaster album, Cisco, 45RPM (I'm comparing it to the 20th Anniversary remaster on CD) Beatles - Because, off my UK 1st stamper Abbey Road album (every other pressing or digital remaster I've heard is forgettable after this one) Stravinsky - Firebird Suite: Infernal Dance - Philadelphia Orchestra/Riccardo Muti EMI on the incredible MFSL recording everything else up for grabs Don't concern yourself about whether I have the record you're suggesting: With 3000+ vinyl records, there's a moderately good chance I do. Any and all opinions are valuable to me. Regards Warren Edited May 30, 2019 by Warren M. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keyse1 Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 (edited) Highway61 And Astral Weeks and Donny Hathaway Live can’t quite remember the exact name of the record but great band great singer and great sound Edited May 30, 2019 by keyse1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyr Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 41 minutes ago, Warren M. said: Jennifer Warne - Famous Blue Raincoat, off the Famous Blue Raincoat 20th Anniversary Remaster album, Cisco, 45RPM (I'm comparing it to the 20th Anniversary remaster on CD) Great choice, Warren! 41 minutes ago, Warren M. said: everything else up for grabs Don't concern yourself about whether I have the record you're suggesting: With 3000+ vinyl records, there's a moderately good chance I do. Here are 2 tracks which my 'golden-eared' mates use as test tracks for comparing new gear : "Mining for Gold" from The Cowboy Junkies "Trinity Revisited" - Diverse Records DIV 015DLP (this track is sung by Natalie Marchant). "The Wind That Shakes the Barley" from Dead Can Dance "Into the Labyrinth" - DAD3013. Hope the showing goes well. Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren M. Posted May 30, 2019 Author Share Posted May 30, 2019 23 minutes ago, keyse1 said: Highway61 And Astral Weeks and Donny Hathaway Live can’t quite remember the exact name of the record but great band great singer and great sound Highway 61 Revisited - the song? or another track? Astral Weeks - again the song, or another off the Astral Weeks album? I don't have the Donny Hathaway Live album - don't have the record and don't particularly like the performances, but the sound is fabulous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keyse1 Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 1 minute ago, Warren M. said: Highway 61 Revisited - the song? or another track? Astral Weeks - again the song, or another off the Astral Weeks album? I don't have the Donny Hathaway Live album - don't have the record and don't particularly like the performances, but the sound is fabulous. Never play songs play the whole record that is the only way to hear them there isn’t a bad song on either record including sound i may have misunderstood your post I was thinking records not songs lot of soul music from the 60’s with incredible musicians and producers who new how to not let technology get in the way of making records that sound great Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren M. Posted May 30, 2019 Author Share Posted May 30, 2019 2 minutes ago, keyse1 said: Never play songs play the whole record that is the only way to hear them there isn’t a bad song on either record including sound i may have misunderstood your post I was thinking records not songs lot of soul music from the 60’s with incredible musicians and producers who new how to not let technology get in the way of making records that sound great I have an hour! To demonstrate an entire system! There's another 1½ hours for audience CD/server tracks and vinyl. If you have a way to play whole records in this scenario, I'm all ears (pun intended). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keyse1 Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 4 minutes ago, Warren M. said: I have an hour! To demonstrate an entire system! There's another 1½ hours for audience CD/server tracks and vinyl. If you have a way to play whole records in this scenario, I'm all ears (pun intended). Sorry I really missed that time restriction Try A Day In The Life From Sgt Peppers much better than anything on Abbey Road in every way even though Abbey Road is my favourite Beatle record Cant You Hear Me Knocking from Sticky Fingers sounds great 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren M. Posted May 30, 2019 Author Share Posted May 30, 2019 28 minutes ago, andyr said: Here are 2 tracks which my 'golden-eared' mates use as test tracks for comparing new gear : "Mining for Gold" from The Cowboy Junkies "Trinity Revisited" - Diverse Records DIV 015DLP (this track is sung by Natalie Marchant). "The Wind That Shakes the Barley" from Dead Can Dance "Into the Labyrinth" - DAD3013. Hope the showing goes well. Andy Hi Andy. I have "Into The Labyrinth" on digital (CD quality) but not on vinyl. The Wind That Shakes The Barley is an incredible track for the massive hall reverb and her glorious voice. I think I'll use it on the digital player. Thanks for suggesting it - never would have thought of using it. The JLTi Oppo signature is scary good btw - don't think I've heard a digital player as good. Still not close to my turntable though. Thanks again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren M. Posted May 30, 2019 Author Share Posted May 30, 2019 1 minute ago, keyse1 said: Sorry I really missed that time restriction Try A Day In The Life From Sgt Peppers much better than anything on Abbey Road in every way even though Abbey Road is my favourite Beatle record Cant You Hear Me Knocking from Sticky Fingers sounds great I only have the stereo digital remaster of Sgt Peppers. Really really terrible! I'm at a loss why they would dump that crappy lo-res mastering onto vinyl. I can promise you, if you ever hear a fresh UK 1st stamper of Abbey Road, your opinion will change radically - it sounds like you are sitting there with the audio engineer in the mixing studio. The whole of side 2 is a revelation. Compared to it, my old Australian pressing sounds like listening with wet cotton wool in your ears. Day In The Life and She's Leaving Home ARE my favourite tracks on Sgt Peppers. I might search through my various digital copies for a decent version for the JLTi Oppo server. I have Sticky Fingers on CD - I'll have a listen to Can't You Hear Me Knocking and think about it for the digital side Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeromelang Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 Remember to switch off and unplug the oppo while playing records..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren M. Posted May 30, 2019 Author Share Posted May 30, 2019 2 minutes ago, jeromelang said: Remember to switch off and unplug the oppo while playing records..... Why on earth would I do that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian McP Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 2 hours ago, keyse1 said: Highway61 And Astral Weeks and Donny Hathaway Live can’t quite remember the exact name of the record but great band great singer and great sound It's 12 min long but has an amazing groove and live presence! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian McP Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 From the Skin I Live In soundtrack https://www.amazon.com/Skin-Original-Motion-Picture-Soundtrack/dp/B005TQKFXC interesting mix of classical and electronica, superbly recorded, amazingly dynamic, will put the fear of god into any audio system! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allthumbs Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 The opening of Dylan Thomas' "Under Milkwood" read by Richard Burton. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allthumbs Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 The opening of Dylan Thomas' "Under Milkwood" read by Richard Burton. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blybo Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren M. Posted May 30, 2019 Author Share Posted May 30, 2019 9 minutes ago, blybo said: She has a really nice ummm presence Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chocmonk Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 By the way Warren what type of sound system do you have besides the oppo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chocmonk Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 By the way Warren what type of sound system equipment do you have besides the Oppo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aussievintage Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 For something very different from way back demoing early HiFi systems, Arthur Lyman's Taboo - and play it real loud to surprise them all with the jungle sounds. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob_m_54 Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 (edited) 49 minutes ago, aussievintage said: For something very different from way back demoing early HiFi systems, Arthur Lyman's Taboo - and play it real loud to surprise them all with the jungle sounds. If you want to surprise them with sounds, Pink Floyd - Several Species of Small Furry Animals Gathered Together in a Cave and Grooving With a Pict. Off Ummagumma Edit: Nah, play the whole album... Edited May 30, 2019 by bob_m_54 thoughts 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mat-with-one-t Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 I love this classics vinyl. A great chunk of vinyl to showcase a system. One of the best ever live recordings from an engineering point of view, and the musical passion is infective. Harry talks to you as the audience member, as if he can see into the future and see a dude in his lounge in Melbourne in 2019, and sing directly to him.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mat-with-one-t Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 And please pardon what I’m about to say..... Given an audience of mostly middle aged guys at an audio club meeting (it’s ok, I’m one of them....), then the music needs to meet their taste. I often get played music I hate on fancy systems to “showcase” sound, but it misses the very point - music. I’d prefer to hear great music on a **** stereo than **** music on a great stereo. Thus, something that combines musical tastes (jazz, old rock, a little classical) may be a great time- effective strategy. Thus, if you can get a hold of this gem, you get amazing Beatles covers, recorded in ‘64 (I think), with classical overtones and wild jazz arrangements. Done! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren M. Posted May 30, 2019 Author Share Posted May 30, 2019 11 minutes ago, Mat-with-one-t said: I love this classics vinyl. A great chunk of vinyl to showcase a system. One of the best ever live recordings from an engineering point of view, and the musical passion is infective. Harry talks to you as the audience member, as if he can see into the future and see a dude in his lounge in Melbourne in 2019, and sing directly to him.... I'll think about it. I have a Classic Records 200g reissue of one record. Haven't listened to it for a long long time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren M. Posted May 30, 2019 Author Share Posted May 30, 2019 2 hours ago, Chocmonk said: By the way Warren what type of sound system do you have besides the oppo The power amplifier (which can be flicked into an integrated amp midstream) is Joe Rasmussen's latest and most extraordinary reinvention of the JLTi Yaqin MC-100B. Now Mark 5, he replaced the 12AX7 input stage and 6SN7 driver stage by a MOSFET-based front end, ramping up the transconductance level massively before feeding the (now) 6CA7 tubes in the output stage. The circuit is fairly revolutionary and the sound is simply phenomenal. Joe has no web page for this amp yet. He built my Mk 5 a month or so ago and has built a couple more since (mine was the first). This will be the first public audition of this amplifier design in the world. The preamp is the latest Doge 8 (Clarity 2019 edition) First audition in Australia. The turntable is a Once Analog Mk2, upgraded by Vince Hamilton to highest spec components in 2014 (a little while before he ceased production). The arm is an Audio Origami PU7. The cartridge is a Lyra Kleos. The phono preamp is an Eastern Electric MiniMax tube phono extensively re-engineered by Joe Rasmussen. The digital server is not a standard Oppo BDP-105D. The cost of the enhancements is vastly more than the cost of the original player! It is a JLTi Oppo BDP-105/D Level 4.2+ACB "Signature" which is a radically different beast to the original and, to my ears, the best sounding digital player I've ever heard. I'm also bringing my enhanced Sansui TU-X711 super-tuner though it will only get a few minutes air-play. My speakers are the amazingly tiny floor-standing Totem Arros with a REL T-2 sub. All the interconnects, speaker wire, and power cords are AntiCables reference level. I could give you more info but that should suffice 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts