I don't have that CD, but I agree that CD sound has the potential to be excellent, and certainly up to par with even the finest modern equipment, which essentially makes high resolution digital irrelevant. To say nothing of vinyl. And here's a heretical statement: 'low resolution' digital downloads as offered by sites such as itunes and emusic can sound excellent as well.
Redbook Digital Can Sound Great -- On Occassion
Just spun a new CD last week that really impressed me. The CD is Michael Buble, To Be Loved (Reprise 2013). Mr. Buble sings old standards like -- You Make Me Feel So Young, It's A Beautiful Day, Something Stupid, Come Dance With Me, among many others. Sometimes I think it's Frank Sinatra or the other original artists actually singing, but with Mr. Buble's own vocal style. For those who like the old standards, it's a unqualified "Buy" recommendation.
But there's an added surprise. There's a number of threads currently running that speak to the pros and cons of digital, in generally, and redbook CD, in particular. IMO, the recording playback quality of this CD is exemplary (almost as good as vinyl), which I think permits the inference that if the industry did a better recording job in the redbook format, there could still be life in that medium.
So, if anyone has the CD, I'd appreciate hearing your comments. And, if you like the old standards, it's a "Buy" recommendation -- just for the enjoyment of listening to a modern re-do of the music.
But there's an added surprise. There's a number of threads currently running that speak to the pros and cons of digital, in generally, and redbook CD, in particular. IMO, the recording playback quality of this CD is exemplary (almost as good as vinyl), which I think permits the inference that if the industry did a better recording job in the redbook format, there could still be life in that medium.
So, if anyone has the CD, I'd appreciate hearing your comments. And, if you like the old standards, it's a "Buy" recommendation -- just for the enjoyment of listening to a modern re-do of the music.
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I agree very much with the above comments.The quality of sound is often genre related,most jazz CDs sound quite good to excellent.Pop,rock and some other genres don`t do as well in general. If you have a good redbook source component you can enjoy very good music reproduction.Some players are clearly better than others.I enjoy redbook playback immensely. Regards, |
Try excellent isolation of your digital from ac power and excellent isolation of your digital from your analog side. You will be pleasantly surprised at the dynamics, detail+nuance that are in that favorite CD of yours. As they say, if you haven't tried this "you ain't heard nuthin". You will have beautiful sound-on all occasions. |
Rja, I don't think "the computer thing is temporary" but here to stay. But having said that, as I mentioned above, there are some very well engineered redbook CDs out there and I think I tripped into a few. I read in another thread that some vendors sell "gold" quality CDs. I seem to recall Acoustic Sounds in Kansas being mentioned. I'd call the company to find out for sure. |
Computer digital is here to stay and will become more popular as the quirks and bugs are eliminated. However redbook is not going to dissappear either. There simply too many available and at good prices. In a well devised system they can sound oh so good. Some make playing CDs sound as taxing as navy seal training, but of course they're pretty simple and very reliable. I'm listening to trumpeter Marcus Printup right now and it's sounding beautiful. |
Redbook CD is often the only format available for many recordings. As others have mentioned, the recording quality can vary from poor to excellent. What is disheartening is that so many previous good analog recordings had poor digital transfers and remastering efforts to CD, only to have re-issues later (or none at all). Just like MP3, computer download audio will likely be here to stay. I don't want to invest too fully now in high res downloads or standalone DACs for a computer source. I believe that storage and transfer to DAC options are in a state of flux, with newer options likely to make current storage (laptop hard drive best for audio?) and interface options which are not dedicated for audio, obsolete. There must be something better than USB coming down the pike later also. Transports, digital cables (why do digital cables sound different from one another), and power supplies mattered before. The source quality will matter in the future. Good stand-alone red book CD players (and quality transport/DAC combos) have that part down. Red book digital recordings can sound great. |
Charles1dad, I had a good laugh at your reference to navy SEAL training as I have a friend who was one during the Reagan years and to him, everything was kind of blah and not worth getting all lathered up about after what he went through. I guess it all depends on ones reference and just how much of a pain they can be when making a point or defending a position. All the best, Nonoise |
Riparian, I have conjectured the same point you did about the industry being in a state of flux. Hopefully, the industry will come together and decide on the next format. It happened in the early days of vinyl (RIAA) and in the early 1980s when redbook was made the reigning standard. In addition, many of the DAC brands out there have designed and built DACs with 4 to 6 different format capabilities. That's a big waste of design and manufacturing time which just increases cost. I checked the Acoustic Sounds web site last night to get a sense of its high quality CD offerings. They have a nice selection. I plan on ordering one or two CDs to see if it's hype or real. I'll report back. |
Knghifi, It`s pretty simple,if you`re pleased and satisfied with the current state of CA(computer audio) then all`s good for you. Other people have their own perspective and address the situation accordingly.As time passes I believe there`ll be a more standard and uniform approach to setting up a CA sourced system.The sarcasm puzzles me, if you`re happy with your CA front end that`s fine by me. Regards, |
If you want to experience improved sound from digital try this experiment-assuming you have some form of isolation/conditioning on your digital and amp. Take the conditioning off the amp and add it to the conditioning of your digital. I hope you have a pleasant surprise. Of course this will work best with complementary components, i.e. an isolator and a conditioner, or 2 isolators. Comments most appreciated from those who try. |
Whoa there "pardnah" -- I was around when there was only 4 VHF stations (3 (NBC), 6 (ABC), 10 (CBS)) and 4 UHF stations (17, 28, 39 and 48) in my neck of the woods -- Philly. I liked the ole' rabbit ears/metal clothes hanger antennae that were the rage back in the 60s and 70s. Anyone remember Soupy Sales?? Sh*t, I'm old! :-( |
Wonder if Soupy is still alive???? I can't believe how many years have passed. When I was a kid in the early 70s, my dream rig was my Crown IC 150 pre, Crown DC 300 amp, Thorens TD 160 TT and Infinity 2000a speakers w/ electrostat tweets. Today, folks sniff at my Crown gear. Hate to tell ya how many ESL panels and cross-overs I burned out. The dealer kept telling me the speakers were rated at only 35 watts (I think). I drove them so hard they smoked. Today, I drive my rig so hard, my wife smokes. ;>') |
Sadly, Soupy died in 2009. Wiki has a nice bio: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soupy_Sales |