Music to evaluate Speakers and System

This is a topic that comes up regularly and, after a slow start, garners a fairly long list. The bottom line, however, is that it does not matter what others use since the most important factor is YOUR familiarity with the recording, not its genre or technical issues. The only way to hear anything that will distinguish the sound from what you know is to eliminate as many variables as possible. Using a familiar recording is essesntial. Too bad one cannot use the same acoustics!

Kal

Almost any Wagner, if your system can do any of his operas at full trottle without collapsing than your cooking.

I think the best is to use the Music type you listen to..If you like Female Jazz singers you should use that format..I happen to love Female Jazz singers so thats what I use to evaluate..If you mostly listen to Classical that should be the Format to use..For loud Rock Music I would expect that would be the area you should use..I would think this makes the most sense to me..Maybe not for others...

I'll second Kr4s recommendation. Excellent advice.

I disagree that one should use whatever one likes. A system should play everything well unless one is happy to predispose what one can play and enjoy to one genre or another.

A nasty test is the Sheffield Drum Track - Track 1. Try this at realistically high SPL levels and see if it holds together properly without sounding compressed, dull, warmly resonant or boomy. If this difficult percussion test fails then there is no need to waste time auditioning other much easier music. Suprisingly Piano (another percussion instrument) is also tough for most systems - so I would cue that up next after drums. Next I would try brass instruments...as most "Hi-fi" is often too polite to do brass instruments proper justice...they should be able to sound loud and brash (edgy) and placed forward in the soundstage - sometimes but not always mellow and subdued.

Be wary of spending time on female vocals, saxophone or clarinet, as these are generally pretty easy for any system. Male vocals are significantly harder and as someone mentioned...keeping it all together at realistic levels on a big jazz band or Wagner can tell you an awful lot too.

Really one should methodically go through each instrument one by one to check timbre...some systems hold together at high levels but sound too much like "hi-fi" and just aren't natural sounding on the detail...and one needs both for long term satisfaction. Some systems do everything well and then fall down over a specific frequency or instrument - this can be a long term irritation that can drive you crazy. And some systems only do one thing exceptionally well...this to me is the worst scenario if you like music, as this kind of system, no matter how impressive or magical, is only good to demo one or two tracks!