Telarc recording quality

Cpdunn, don't fall into the trap, don't go from enjoying the music to listening for the flaws. I assume your comparing Telarc to the other mass market labels, to which it is definitely superior. Many of the comments on this post are comparing it to other high end labels, and I agree that others do sound better, i.e., audioquest, xrcd, chesky among others. While you should try these others, in the end its about enjoying the music.

In answer to Kana's question, while I don't have an EMM Labs player, my heavily modded Sony is plenty good enough for me to note that the SACD versions of Telarc's recent releases are superior to the redbook versions. A lot of that muddiness I noted is pretty much gone in the SACD layer, inner detail becomes more apparent and the sense of space vastly improves. I also have noted that the CD versions recorded in DSD are a little less "clean" than earlier Telarc recordings, for whatever reason; again, some of the problems in that area go away when the volume level is raised. In the end, Cpdunn, Tonyp54's advice is absolutely correct--enjoy the music!

Rc and Tonyp: yes, it is about the music, and that's sage advice. I hadn't notice the volume thing; namely, that the sound seems to clear up at higher volumes, etc. I'll check that out tonight (with a little single malt... umm.. yeah, mixing threads there).

Rcprince- mahalo for answering my question.

The low output levels can be heard on Michel Camilo's Live at the Blue Note. Excellent music, but I need
to turn it up at least 6 dbs higher than other live jazz recordings. If you have the SACD, I'd be interested in
how it performs.

Telarc recording quality has gone through a number of overall sonic changes during the past 20 years or so. The very early ones were well balanced, and quite musical. Then they turned a bit dull, (a reaction, I suspect to early complaints that CD sound was too harsh>) Today, they are a mixed bag, with some quite realistic and musical, and others (especially some of the SACD's) a bit bright and "tizzy". One should try to listen to any Telarc recording before purchase. Also, a question, why did they stop issuing the excellent Soundstream recordings in SACD?