[lonewolfny42]

I'm wondering , when your trying out new equipement, what one cd would you use to demo with ? And, what would you be listening for on that cd ? Any favorites ? Thanks !!  

[PhilNYC]

Hmmm...I don't think I could narrow it down to one CD, particularly because I like to see how something handles different kinds of music.  But here's a short list of stuff I've been using recently:

-Friday Night in San Francisco (Mclaughlin/Dimeola/De Lucia):  Live guitar performance.  Do the performers sound like they are in the room with you?  or does it sound like you've gone to their room?  (it should be the latter).  Can you tell whether they are playing steel string or nylon string guitars?  Can you still hear tonality during the fast passages, or does it just sound like a blur of notes?

-Kind of Blue (Miles Davis):  This is a recent addition to me "demo library".  On a very accurate system, the trumpet should have some "bite" while the rest of the band/recording does not.  

-Companion (Patricia Barber; XRCD):  Particularly tracks 2 and 4.  On track 2 (Use Me), the opening bass line is a good test for bass performance.  On track 4, during the guitar solo, there's a part where the guitarist knocks on his guitar, and because of the way it's mic'd, a good system should make the reverb on this sound like a low and expansive rumble.  This is also a good recording to listen to vocal clarity.

-Sunday at the Village Vanguard (Bill Evans; XRCD):  A good CD to listen for imaging and soundscape.  Also a good one for piano tonality and realism.

-Who Else? (Jeff Beck):  Particularly track 3 (Brush with the Blues)...listen for the variety of sounds and textures Beck gets out of his electric guitar.  It can be gentle and it can really scream.  It shouldn't sound all the same.

-Saxophone Collosus (Sonny Rollins; XRCD):  Yes, it's a mono recording, but it captures the tonality of Rollins' saxophone extremely well.  I'm a saxophone player, so getting this one to sound right is important to me.

-Come Away With Me (Norah Jones):  Yes, it's overplayed.  But that also means that it's a recording that I've heard on a *lot* of systems, so it's a good common reference.  I particularly like listening to the snare drum on track 13.

-Bolero! Orchestral Fireworks (Minnesota Orchestra; Reference Recordings): First track is a good test for dynamics; how big is the contrast between the peaks and valleys in this recording?  Do the low brass instruments really attack?

-Shaman (Santana):  Track 1 just to see if a system can really rock!

-Calle 54 (Soundtrack):  Track 5.  This is a recording that honestly I have only heard two systems in my lifetime that have untangled the peak dynamic passages to a high level of musical satisfaction.  Both systems had comparably-priced luxury car models (one was about the price of a Mercedes E430, the other was about the price of a BMW 745i).  But it's still fun to try this track on systems I can afford...!

[jackman]

Great suggestions.  I picked up some CD's recently that are very enjoyable to listen to and make excellent audition material:

Cassandra Wilson "Glamour"..something.  Very cool record and a great system tester.  Great bass, imaging, her vocals are really enjoyable.  Great cover of Sting's "Fragile".  Highly recommended.  

Michael Hedges "Beyond Boundaries".  If there is a better acoustic guitarist than the late Hedges, I haven't heard him.   It's an instrumental album and his guitar playing is scorching.  Some really nice dynamic passages to give those speakers a workout.  

J

[Thump553]

I don't have any particular favorite album.  I tend to bring one male and one female vocalist (usualllyfolksinger or singer/songwriter) and an old favorite full band rcck album, because that is the type of music I listen to most.  Most importantly, I try to pick albums that have been in my personal heavy rotation recently so the sonic memories of them on my home system are still fresh.

By my criteria, that Norah Jones album is a nearly perfect test album.

[Tyson]

"Devil's Dance" w/Gil Shaham - Violin and Piano pieces.  Great test of a speakers ability to portray attack, decay, transients, dynamics, and ambiance.  Plus, the piano/violin combo is just about the most difficult pair of instruments for a speaker to portray well.  Unlike, say, guitar, which almost any speaker will sound good with.

[Tonto Yoder]

Cassandra Wilson "Glamour"..something.  Very cool record and a great system tester.  Great bass, imaging, her vocals are really enjoyable.  Great cover of Sting's "Fragile".  Highly recommended.  

 

J

You might like Holly Cole's version of "Fragile" that appears on Jesse Cook's CD  ("Vertigo"??).
I  think the Hedges' CD is "Aerial Boundaries"  ??

[Audiobudha]

Phil -

Amen on the Jeff Beck "Who Else" CD... one of his all time classics IMO. If you haven't heard his two latest releases ("You Had It Coming" and "Jeff) you should check them out. Jeff continues to demonstrate why he is on the cutting edge of guitar composition. "Roy's Toys" from You Had It Coming is off the hook.

Another good demo group is Zero 7. If everyone thinks Diana Krall has a good voice (& she does) then give this band a try - outstanding female vocals and etherial lounge music to back her up. Zero 7 was one of the featured bands on the sountrack to "Confidence" with Edward Burns and Dustin Hoffman. The song "In the Waiting Line" is being featured all over the place.

Happy listening.
DB

[PhilNYC]

Phil -

Amen on the Jeff Beck "Who Else" CD... one of his all time classics IMO. If you haven't heard his two latest releases ("You Had It Coming" and "Jeff) you should check them out. Jeff continues to demonstrate why he is on the cutting edge of guitar composition. "Roy's Toys" from You Had It Coming is off the hook....

Jeff Beck is my all-time favorite rock guitarist.  And some of his older recordings (Wired, Blow by Blow) are surprisingly well-recorded...not fantastic, but definitely worthy of playing on a high end system without feeling it's overly compressed or bright.  Sometimes I use the track "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat" from Wired as a demo track when testing out new gear...

[mcrespo71]

Speaking of Jeff Beck, I just picked up 3 of his LP's in tasty mint condition at a used record store in MPLS.  I paid $9 for all three- Truth, O La (apple cover one), and one with a painting of Beck on the cover.  I'm gonna clean em tonight and lay down my needle on them.  I hope these are good ones    

Michael

[elektratig]

Lonewolf,

When trying out new equipment, I'm a firm believer in playing music I know and love -- not audiophile recordings.  Selections might include:

*Richard Strauss's Rosenkavalier (Karajan EMI c. 1955) for the female voices in the Rose Scene and the Third Act trio.

*Strauss's Ariadne (Kempe, Janowitz, King on EMI -- incredibly, this seems to be out of print here)

*Mahler's Sixth (maybe Boulez on DG?) to see how it handles complex orchestral.

*Perhaps Ali Akbar Khan for solo instrumental

*"The Eminem Show" to test bass and in-your-gut impact

*Something by The Tallis Scholars for choir

Conversely, when I'm showing off my system for someone else, I play what THEY love, even if it's not my cup of tea.

Your milage will almost certainly vary!  Happy listening.

[Marbles]

Lonewolf,

When trying out new equipment, I'm a firm believer in playing music I know and love --

Conversely, when I'm showing off my system for someone else, I play what THEY love, even if it's not my cup of tea.
. ...

Excellant post.

[PhilNYC]

Lonewolf,

When trying out new equipment, I'm a firm believer in playing music I know and love -- not audiophile recordings.

Excellent thought.  But it does raise some thoughts in my mind...since getting into this whole high end audio thing years ago, I've certainly had instances where a piece of music that seemed wholly uninteresting to me when hearing it on a cheapo radio comes incredibly alive, robust, and engaging to me when played on a high end system.  Norah Jones was exactly like that for me..."Don't Know Why" sounded like a generic piece of pop to me on the radio, but hearing that song on my system really changed my perspective of that song (and the whole album, quite frankly).  Her voice on the radio sounded thin and uninteresting, but on my audio system it sounds sultry and sophisticated...and that drew me in.  I've also found recordings that I absolutely loved on the radio that sound horrible on a high end system because relative to other recordings (not necessarily "audiophile recordings"), they don't sound as full and robust.  Doesn't mean I won't listen to them on the radio, but I probably wouldn't use them to test audio gear either.

I'm definitely not a fan of recordings that are considered "audiophile" if the music doesn't do it for me (although sure, I do own a version of the 1812 Overture featuring digitally recorded cannons for sound effects...! ).  But I've definitely found that having a high end system has altered to some extent the music that I listen to....

[byteme]

I've run thru this question a ton of times and usually ended up with the same discs in the player.  So I decided to collect a bunch of songs on a single disc that not unlike elektratig, I have come to know and love.  At first I thought the songs I always listened to were because they demonstrated a certain quality but in the end I think it comes down to the fact that I really do just love to listen to them.  Here are the two discs:

Audition and Evaluation CD #1:

Peter Epstein - Vitamin C (From "Old School")
Marc Antione - Latin Quarter
Jessie Cook - Baghdad
Patrick O'hearn - Acadia
Ray Brown Trio - Summer Wind
Sunny Sumter (and band) - Nick of Time (from Mapleshade sampler)
Nora Jones - Cold Cold Heart
Sarah McLachlan - Angel
O Brother soundtrack - Didn't leave nothin but the baby
Steely Dan - Aja
Peter Gabriel - Blood of Eden
Police - Don't Stand so Close to me (SACD remastered)
Jethro Tull - Skating Away
Dave Matthews Band - Say Goodbye
Robert Plant - Ship of Fools

Auditon & Evaluation Demo CD #2:

David Cullin - On the Way
Marc Antione - Steppin'
Ray Brown Trio - The Real Blues
Blue Man Group - Synaesthetic
Clannad - Harry's Game
Gillian Welch - Everything is Free
Eva Cassidy - Tall Trees in Georgia
10,000 Maniacs - Like the Weather
Paul Simon - Diamonds on the soles of her shoes
Steely Dan - Do it Again
Dire Straights - Sultans of Swing
Eagles - Hotel California (Live)
Sting - Desert Rose
Rolling Stones - Sympathy for the Devil
Alan Parsons Project - I don't wanna go home

I obviously kinda set them up to flow a certain way and I actually find myself listening to just these discs on a lot of occasions.  There is a ton of other stuff that I own and really love but these two discs represent the core of what I love to both listen to and audition with.

[lonewolfny42]

I'd like to thank all you guys for such great selections! I never gave my picks (too many that you have picked), and some you have not mentioned are: Bill Withers ,"Lean on Me-Best of" , tracks 1,3, 4, 10,18. Alex De Grassi and Quique Cruz ,"Tata Monk", guitar , flute, dynamics tracks 1, 2 8. Out of the many that were mentioned I full agree with Pat Barber(Companion), Michael Hedges(Live ,Double Planet) , Jeff Beck(love this guy). Holst " The Planets" , "MARS", Boult , London Philharmonic is my favorite classical piece. There is such a great selection of music available, its good to know what others like and listen for. Thanks !!

[LordCloud]

I really can't say that I have particular discs that I always take with me to listen to other equipment, but I do have some stand out favorites that I may or may not take with me depending on what else I take. Here are a few that I can think of right now:

Cassandra Wilson: Belly of the Sun
Harry Connick Jr: To See you, Other Hours
Steve Green Trio: Acoustic Living
Tin Hat Trio: Rodeo Eroded, Helium,
Eric Clapton: Unplugged
Clifford Jordan: Live at Ethels, Mellow Side OF Clifford Jordan
Sterophile Sampler
Dorian Sampler: Tracks 18 and 19
Hannibal Soundtrack
Jazz at the Pawnshop (yes I like it)
Cyrus Chestnut: Nut (the stand up bass on Wade In the Water is incredible)
Vince Guaraldi: Charlie Brown Christmas

[Fathom7]

If you're looking at limiting the options to ONE CD   it would depend for me on just a couple of things (small ones but nonetheless important).

If I'm keeping things to listen to HDCD output:

For the Roses -- Joni Mitchell -- particlularly Tracks 2, 6 & 11.  I know these like the back of my hand and how they are supposed to sound off analog equipment.  What I listen for is the layering, the ability of the equipment to reach the ranges that these tracks particularly hit (vocally and instrumentally) and if I get to hear something new (i.e. that I haven't discovered before) then it's usually a home run.  This also works very well to find if there is any brightness in the system being contributed by one or another of the pieces installed.

If it's just ONE CD to listen that takes HDCD out of the equation:  I have a Bonnie Raitt CD -- Home Plate that I would use.  Same basic reasons -- I know what it should sound like off of analog and if there's close to the reproduction of "good tone" off of what is a truly mediocre recording (no, it's not MFSL) then I know I've got something positive happening.  I especially use track 6 again since there are some things there that I look for in the song that if the equipment doesn't give it to me -- it's not likely long for the system.

Ordinarily I would run through a host of things but since the question involved ONE CD -- them's the choices.  I like byteme's thoughts on collecting the tracks you most want on one CD.  However, I'll stick with what I have and keep at least one generation of recording closer to the original.

F7

[jqp]

My one CD would be Steely Dan Aja. But I would play several cuts from other CDs:

Cake Prolonging the Magic "You Turn the Screw"
Moxy Fruvous Bargainville "Video bargainville", "Lazyboy", "King of Spain"
Take 6 Take 6 "Spread Love", "Mary", "David and Goliath"
Air Moon Safari "Sexy Boy"
Joni Mitchel Court & Spark "Raised On Robbery"
CSN&Y Deja Vu "Country Girl" the pipes, man the big pipes
Neil Young Rust Never Sleeps "Powderfinger"
Little Feat Waiting For Columbus (Rhino Records remastered) "Fat Man In The Bathtub", "All That You Dream", "Spanish Moon", "Apolitical Blues", "Sailin' Shoes" live at its best
Pink Floyd Dark Side of the Moon "Money"
Stevie Ray Vaughn Texas Flood "Pride and Joy"
Tone Poems III - several tracks
Norman Blake Whiskey Before Breakfast "Hand Me Down my Walking Cane", "Six White Horses", "Old Grey Mare"
Genesis Abacab "Abacab", "Keep It Dark"

[lonewolfny42]

Well I did ask for ONE cd, but I know I could never pick just ONE. My main interest was to find out what you >listened for< in that cd. Eg.,on the  Pat Barber cd, "Companion", track two ,"Use Me", I listen to the bass there. Bill Withers, "Best of", track 18, "Just the Two of Us", I listen for the build up into the song,the guitar,the ride cymbal, the cowbell, sax, ect. I guess I'm really listening for certain details in each cd.

[lonewolfny42]

I've run thru this question a ton of times and usually ended up with the same discs in the player.  So I decided to collect a bunch of songs on a single disc that not unlike elektratig, I have come to know and love.  At first I thought the songs I always listened to were because they demonstrated a certain quality but in the end I think it comes down to the fact that I really do just love to listen to them.  Here are the two discs:

Audition and Evaluation CD #1:

Peter Epstein - Vitamin C (From "Old Sc ...

Wayne at Bolder Cable had a excellent sampler cd that he put together for the Mensa Audition Pack. Covered all the bases !  

[Marbles]

If I had to pick One CD it would be Jennifer Warnes - The Hunter, tracks 1,2, 8, and 9

That is the one that I have been demoing equipment with for about 5 years now.  While I wouldn't listen to it for enjoyment anymore, it has all the elements (bass, female and male singers, synthetic bells, nice soundstaging, delicate..even angelic backround singing etc...) I look for when demoing a component.

I also use CD's and LP's that were in heavy rotation just before the new piece (s) arrived.

As was mentioned earlier, pick a CD you know WELL, more so than any  CD we recommend.