Which CDs do you use for eqpmt auditions?

[red_ryder 0]

Which CDs do you use for auditions when you buy equipment? Are there particular tracks where you can test certain aspects of music, such as soundstaging, warmth, etc.?

[adhoc 0]

for dynamic range - mahler, symphony 2 by rattle/emi classics.

 

for bass punch and impact - the fat of the land by prodigy

 

for female vocals - the look of love by diana krall

[augustineRS 0]

Mezzanine - Massive Attack.

The 1st track,Angel,IMMO, best for bass respond.

Don't know bout rest of the phones, but so far MX500 PX200 and Shure E2 didn't failed in producing them.Stock buds do have some trouble in the projection of those low bass in the beginning of the track.

 

2 cents....

[red_ryder 0]

Anybody uses Chesky Test discs? Are they worth spending money on or just marketing gimmicks?

[Sipher 0]

what's Chesky Test discs about?

where can i check them out?

[N@Z 0]

They don't necessarily have to be test discs (however they do tend to point out what specifically to listen out for & where in the accompanying literature). Chesky Records Inc. is a company producing HQ recordings. Artists e.g. Livingston Taylor, Rebecca Pidgeon, Sara K etc.

[red_ryder 0]

Check out www.chesky.com CD catalogue. They have a few test discs on sale.

 

A guy brought one to my house once to audition my speakers, that's how I know about them. Think I might have seen them on sale at Gramaphone before also.

[Sipher 0]

thanks

[yongchris 0]

The Chesky Ultimate Demonstration disc is definitely worth having in your stable, even if you don't use it for equipment auditions. The music on the disc is good and the recording is fantastic. The best part of the disc is the introduction to every song. Basically, a short comment on what is the song, what you should hear for, what particular sound the song features (eg soundstage, depth, transients, transparency..etc). It's a good learning disc for training your ears too.

 

http://www.chesky.com/catalog/body_catalog...0133&CATEGORY=1

 

btw, it's only abt $24 at gramaphone if you can still find it.

 

Chris

 

IMO, it's almost the be-all and end-all CD that I need to bring for auditions, as it covers practically the entire spectrum of audiophool qualitites.

 

PS, If you do buy this disc, you should be prepared to spend several hours going through each and every track to familiarize yourself with the sound qualities. Then you will truly benefit from the disc. Also, no point buying it if you're just going to chuck it in one corner and use it only when you want to demo equipment, as you would not know what to look for in each track.

 

[red_ryder 0]

Other than Gramaphone, anywhere else in Singapore where I might find this CD? thanks!

[yongchris 0]

try New Disc Village in Adelphi. I remember seeing a copy there sometime ago.

 

[red_ryder 0]

Thanks! Will do that.

 

 

[cmk 0]

For test discs, I usually will use whatever I'm currently listening to as a reference point, plus others such as :

 

Holly Cole Trio's Don't Smoke in Bed - female vocal with accompanying double bass and piano. The double bass will test system's bass tightness, while the vocals are one of the best recorded.

 

Take Dake Asian Roots - one of the ultimate bass test discs. Lots and lots of bass drums, I mean big bass drums.

 

Avril Lavigne's Let Go - female pop rock with electric guitars and lots of instrumentation. If a system is very good, it will be able to separate the instruments and the guitars won't sound strained. Many systems cannot play this loud, it'll be just too bright, noisy, etc... Alternatively, Michael Jackson's Dangerous CD - same test, separation.

 

Linda Ronstadt's For Sentimental Reasons - one of the best female vocalists. Recorded very well and if the system is good, you could almost place her in the room with you.

 

Recently played : Cyndi Lauper's At Last - she has a nice raspy voice and the recording is excellent. On track 6 "If you go away", there's lots of emotion in her singing, as if she's going to cry. Singing happy songs is easy, sad songs are a lot tougher.