Have you considered test cd's like Granite Audio or Nordost? They do run through some frequency sweeps among other tests/burn in. |
Mob Fidelity SACD, Doobie Bros Captain & Me: play the track Southcity Midnight Lady
That's a demo track fo sho |
Thanks, for the recommendations, please keep em coming.
Questions, Are highs consisered trumpet,flute, saprano saxaphone and cymbals?
When you want to test your tweeters air and extension, what type of music or intruments are you looking for.
Thanks! |
Just listen to a range of music you like. You'll know pretty quickly if the ribbons are more extended and sweet than what you're used to. |
For me female vocals, cymbals and violin are the litmus test for highs.
I always listen to Rachelle Ferrell's "first instrument" for female vocals. There are many excellent SACD's with very well recorded solo violin (e.g. Bach partitas), and numerous Jazz trio recordings with great cymbal work (Lenny White is usually quite busy on the cymbals). |
Edorr, Rachelle Ferrell "First Instrument" is excellent! Try Dianne Reeves "I Remember." |
Use regular music to test your speakers. Listen to how well the ribbon tweeters integrate with the other driver(s). The high frequency range of the ribbon tweeters should be smooth and continuous with the rest of the frequency range of your speakers.
I own a pair of speakers with extended range ribbon super tweeters and was cautioned by the manufacturer not to use high level high frequency test tones with them as you can easily damage the ribbon tweeters that way. |
There is a song on Moody Blues "Days of Future Passed" that has probably one of the highest notes that I've heard in a song. I believe it is "Evening Time to Get Away". It floats back and forth between the right and left speaker a couple times throughout the song. I only have it on vinyl. I can only imagine what the SACD would be like. The ribbons on my Infinity speakers throw that note out like its coming from behind the listener.
Have fun, JD |
Not sure what genre you're into, but there is an incredibly beautiful "classical song', with very high female vocals (but not opera style) interplaying with a violin (Gidon Kremer), on the Arvo Part album "Arbos". The song is called "es sang for langen Jahren". This is another staple recording of mine to evauate "highs". |
I would use one of the early Nora Jones records. The vocals are very up front and on a good system, you can actually hear the sound of her mouth opening, and the breath sounds. On a poor system, you will either lose these things or the vocals will sound harsh, but on a good system, she sounds like she's in the room. BTW, the music was good on the first two records, as Nora wrote very few of the songs. She's a decent enough singer, but her writing is for shit. |
On CD look for Vaughan Williams the Lark Ascending with Iona Brown on violin and Neville Marriner conducting. The finest semi-quavers I have heard yet and a brilliant recording for violin. |
Into The Labyrinth-MoFi SACD Dead Can Dance.
The first cut will test your highs nicely. It will test your lows as well! Great album with outstanding female and male vocals.
Regards, |
Thanks everyone ! Really appreciate all the great recs.
I love Dead can dance. I have most of their CDs .
I do like jazz,blue grass,folk,alt country,rock
Would female opera singers be a good test as well? |
whether female opera would do what you want. One good recommendation would be Joan Sutherland available on arkivmusic.com as Classic Recitals-Joan Sutherland Opera Arias. It goes back to 1959. The flexibility of the voice is amazing, have not heard anyone else who came near. She never sounded that good by the mid 60's. Highly recommended. |
Keith Jarrett's "Death And The Flower" is now on SHM SACD, and is a lot of fun in the highs. |
I've never heard close-miked opera, so the highs are generally somewhat muted compared to more modern stuff. Of course, it's a more realistic portrayal of what one would hear from the audience, but I don't think that's what you're looking for at this point. |
Thanks again for all the recommendations.
Now that I have a few cd's to look into, is there one or two SACD's that really work out a speakers tweeter. The whole SACD must be great as well, not just a track or two.
Appreciate all the contributions! |
if you can, try bluray options as well. lots of movies with very detailed sections. the first sherlock holmes leaps to mind with several sections of high jingley things and detailed sounds. |
