Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Stereo Recommendation for CDs That Image and Demo CDs

Hey everyone- now that I'm all set up with my M-60's, thanks to Spiff and Curtis, and of course, the fine staff at Axiom, I'm quickly finding out that my CD collection is lacking.

I'm wondering if anyone here could give me some recomendations on CDs that they find to have great stereo imaging, or that they would use to demo speakers or equipment with? Now that I've got speakers that acutally image well, I'd like to find some high quality recordings that would compliment my system.

I'm open to any style, any suggestions. Rock, jazz, classical, acoustic, vocals, house/dance/electronica, whatever.

And, just incase you guys wanted a suggestion or two from my collection, I'd recommend-

Dead Can Dance- Spirit Chaser- Probably the best recording I've ever heard. Great CD to demo equipment on.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000002N74/qid=1063224519/sr=1-6/ref=sr_1_6/002-5694491-7976808?v=glance&s=music

Willie Nelson- Essential Collection- new double CD release of most of his classic tunes. The imaging on "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain" makes it seem as if he's playing the guitar right in front of you.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00008BXK3/qid=1063224805/sr=2-2/ref=sr_2_2/002-5694491-7976808

Chill Brazil- double CD collection. I recently got this set before I purchased my M-60's and I wasn't all that thrilled with it. Now that I've heard it on the new speakers, it's my favorite CD to listen to. Imaging is great and recordings are outstanding.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00006BCDB/qid=1063224686/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/002-5694491-7976808?v=glance&s=music

Just thought I'd add the links there for anyone interested in picking up these CDs I've listed. Don't feel like you have to do the same in your reply, though.

Thanks for the help.
Kevin

Johnny Cash - American Recordings.

AWESOME CD for enjoying a stereo setup. Just johnny cash and a guitar.

Spirit Chaser is great

if you want better, get Patricia Barber - Modern Cool

I have Dead Can Dance - Wake
and track 5 & 7 image amazingly

Opus3 Cds

any of these:
http://www.opus3records.com/cd_samp.html#19400

Kevin, I'll suggest the same CD that I've mentioned previously as a low cost(about $7)item having thrilling music in excellent sound: Smetana's Ma Vlast(My Country) with Berglund and the Dresden State Orchestra on Seraphim SPH 73736. It's in stock at several Borders in the LA area, depending on where you are.

Oh I forgot...check out this link too.

http://www.uhfmag.com/AudiophileStore.html

Pink Floyd-The Final cut.. Particularly. "paranoid eyes"

and Roger waters-Amused to death.

You must buy this CD! It's called Sacred Treasures II (on the Hearts of Space label) and is absolutely the most stunning choral recording (and performance!) I have ever heard. It is guaranteed to make the walls of your listening rooms completely disappear. The ambiance of the church and the decay of the voices is chillingly real.

Make very sure you buy this one -- this goes for everyone reading this. It brought tears to my eyes the first (and second) time I heard it on my Axioms.

Tears? Now that may be a little hyperbole, but I have to agree with Peter, this CD is simply incredible. I remember Peter and I sitting down listening to it with the lights off, the doors closed, and the volume up and just being completely floored by how darn real it sounded. It puts you in the hall(/cathedral), and you can hear the decay of the voices and the coronets move past you with the most 3 dimensional soundstage and imaging I've ever heard. It might not be the most exciting music, but in terms of putting you IN the music, that's number one on my list.

I just grabbed that Sacred Treasures II cd from Ebay for $2.50.

Thanks for the help guys. I'm putting all these down on my "must have" list.

I can't believe I never knew of that Johnny Cash CD until just now. That's first on the list.

Keep 'em comming, guys.

Kev

This cd might not be for everyone, but my Axiom's (the M60's) do an excellent job of wrapping you in a creative world of orchestra sounds, synths, and beautiful vocals brought to you by Goldfrapp's "Felt Mountain". The production or sound quality may not be up to par to many audiophiles because it is a very *hot* recording. If you want to test brightness on your Axiom's, this would be a good one to listen to. When I first listened to this cd, it was in my car and I absolutely hated it because it hurt my ears. However, the supposedly "bright" Axioms actually made it more tolerable and brought me a whole new appreciation for this album. The sounds were no longer a pile of noisy mush drilling my ears, but instead a rich array of enveloping sounds. Along with Alison Goldfrapp's lovely vocals which seem right there in the room with you, it's so trippy...IF you can handle that type of music! Again, not everyones cup of tea, but if we are talking about imaging, this does it for me. Very cool!

Well as most know, Johnny Cash passed away today, so I am just giving this reccomendation for the best cd for showing off a stereo again. I am listening right....Thanks for the music Johnny Cash!

Johnny Cash - American Recordings...go buy it!

Just ordered Sacred Treasures I, II, and III from Amazon. hehe...

Thanks, Peter!

You'll let me know, of course, whether my impressions of the acoustics contained on disc II are all in my head, right?

Sure! The only problem is that the II and III are both back-ordered -- won't be shipped till mid-October.

You know, there's a reason the phrase "patience is a virtue" was coined before internet shopping was invented.

I always take the following CD to audition speakers: Delerium - Karma. Huge sound stage and gorgeous female vocals.

Twopecker- I'm running up to the Virgin Megastore this week just so I can pick up the Johnny Cash - American Recordings CD.

And, the only reason why I'm getting something from the overpriced Virgin Megastore is because I was given a gift certificate to them. So after buying this CD with the $100 GC there, I should have change left for some gum. Those prices are INSANE!!!

Thanks, again, everyone for the awsome recomendations.
Kev

Just wanted to mention that the new Rosanne Cash album, Rules of Travel, is an excellent piece of work. There is a duet with her father called "September When It Comes" that is beautiful and heartbreaking.

American IV is good too.

It's amazing how a good set of speakers will bring out the recording quality of a CD. Hard to believe that there are so many poorly recorded CDs out there. Before I purchased my new system all CD sound quality sounded the same. Not now. One CD that I used to audition my speakers was Sarah McLachlan's Ratities, B-Sides and Other Stuff. Great CD, it really helped identify the strong points and not so strong points of the speakers. On a decent system the sound stage is amazing (check out tracks 10,11, 12,13)

While auditioning speakers I could easily determine if I liked the way they sounded with the CD. I auditioned the PSB Image 6s, Axioms M60s, and 80’s, Energy C7s, Totem Staff’s and Meadowlark Kestrels.

It made choosing the speakers a relatively easy task. I would definitely recommend it as an audition CD.

I read an article recently that suggested bringing CDs that you don't know very well with you when you audition a speaker. This way you're not bringing with you the preconceived notion about how your music "should" sound.

The basic idea the author was trying to put forth was that the most accurate (and thus "best") speakers are the ones which bring out the most differences between CDs.

It makes more sense when you look at it the opposite way: the "worst" speakers are the ones which tend to make all your CDs sound the same.

The article was a fascinating read. If anyone is interested, I'll try to find it.

Rosanna Cash - Rules of Travel, is a very good recorded cd, with a good sound stage. For a bonus a duet with her dad Johnny.

Metier

I had a friend that was into synthesizer music. I remeber hearing some awsome stuff, but can't quite remember the name of the group, I think it was "Fresh Air" or something like that. This one particular track had the sound of a match striking, then you could hear the crackling and popping of a fire, then crickets chirping in the background....It was totaly relaxing. Another track had the sound of wind blowing, and as it picked up it had wind chimes and then a storm came through with thunder and rain...realy awsome stuff. I woul love to get my hands on a copy. if any of you have ever heard of them give me a shout.

timmy

The album Modock is referring to may be “Fresh Aire” by Mannheim Steamroller. That’s Chip Davis and friends on drums and synths. Now they would probably call it Fresh Aire I as opposed to II, III, etc. I first heard it on Quad electrostats [dating self] and had to buy the record. I don’t remember the match/fire cut but the crickets/windchimes/storm were really fantastic on it. I still have the record in a box somewhere, along with II and V, and have heard III and VI. The vocals and instruments coming in at the beginning of Fresh Aire V are quite nice. It looks like they have been issued on a collectors set of volumes 1-8, but I have the vinyl.

I actually picked this cd up because someone on this site recommended it, don’t remember who. It is Mark Knopfler Sailing to Philadelphia.

I think that was me. Have you had a chance to listen to it? His next CD is even better I think. It's called Ragpicker's Dream.

Yes I have. I liked the one you recommended so much that I bought that one too. I will admit that I like the first one the best though.

What about motion picture sound tracks? I thought Titanic's sound track was awsome.

Oh! Since I brought up movies! I liked the begining of Saving Private Ryan with all the bulets flying around. My all time favorite was the bank shootout in the movie Heat. I think it is one of the best sounding shoot outs ever put on film. To bad I don't have axioms to appreciate it even more. LOL :-(


webbb,
Thanks for the Mannheim Steamroller info! Can't wait to get to the music store! Fresh Aire III is the album I remember hearing! Once again this forum rules!!!

timmy

Absolutely...Heat had AMAZING sound. I was shocked that it wasn't even nominated for an oscar that year.

As far as amazing sounding cd's...if you like electronica you've got to get The Propellerheads' decksdrumsandrockandroll. You can usually find a copy on Ebay for a steal. It's an incredible cd.

I second this recommendation. Allegri Miserere WOW! I understand that the early Roman Catholic Church wouldn't release sheet music for this piece (another good reason to go to church) so Mozart (yes W.A.) went to the Cathedral where it was being played, listened to it, went home and transcribed the whole thing from memory.

Even if it isn't true it makes a nice story.

BTW. I think the Tallis Scholars do a really nice version.

I am listening to the Sacred Treasures I CD right now. Yes, it is an excellent recording -- the rendition of the cathedral ambience and choral imaging are both impeccable. The Russian cathedral bell at the very beginning is almost scary! This recording also sounds excellent in DPL II Music 5.1. The only nit I have to pick is that most if not all tracks have a significant noise floor (tape hiss); this must be an ADD or AAD disk (surprisingly for a "classical music" CD, the jacket does not specify the recording mode). Nevertheless, this is an entirely enjoyable CD, especially late at night. I look forward to receiving the series II and III CDs in 3-4 weeks!

Jazz At The Pawn Shop...awesome...

I just received the cheap CD's from BMG that I ordered a few weeks ago. (Thanks for that tip, btw!)

I ordered the entire Simon & Garfunkel collection. All five of their original albums have been remastered. Nice stuff.

I also ordered the "We Get Requests" by Oscar Peterson (Thanks for that tip Alan) It is indeed a nice cd.

Frank Sinatra Live at the Sands with the Count Basie orchestra conducted by Quincy Jones. Sweeeet!

Finally in that batch of CD's was Johnny Cash: American IV - The Man Comes Around. Wow. Some of those tracks are simply perfect. So simple. So touching. It's a great CD. I'm not all that keen on his "Bridge Over Troubled Water", but some of those other tracks are stupendous.

I've been on a CD buying frezy lately. I can't get enough great music. (Thank you Axiom!)

Some other recent delights:

Vince Guaraldi Trio - Jazz Impressions of Black Orpheus
Groove Armada - Goodbye Country (Hello Nightclub)
Dead Can Dance - Box set (3 cd's and live DVD) BUY THIS!!! You can find it on Ebay for under $30!

You'll have to excuse the fact that most of the stuff i listen to is not known to the masses. I just got received my NAD C541i so I'm listening to EVERYTHING that i own to find it's weaknesses. None so far. Especially when you add the fact that it's playing through my pair of M22's and EP125. I must say Burr Brown is the MAN!! Anyway, well here's my list:

#1 - Porcupine Tree - Lightbulb Sun
Pink Floyd - Pulse or Dark Side of the Moon (duh)
Gatacca - (the soundtrack)
Gideon's Press - Bound for Nineva (if you can find it)
Dave Holland - (anything you can find)
Spock's Beard - V, Day for Night, or Snow
Genesis - The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
Ray Sharp - Exaudio (ALL piano stuff)
Bill Douglas - Deep Peace (and anything else you can find)
K-Pax - (the soundtrack)

Well that should give you a few hours of enjoyment. Let us know what you discover.

Jason

This thread is a bit old but i'll toss my hat into the ring:

Buena Vista Social Club.

One of the best imaging (especially with the surrounds in DPL2:Music mode) i've ever heard. The genre i believe is Latin'.
Out of those clips on Amazon, #1 is the best representation of the rest of the cd but that type of music is certainly not for everyone
A little more mainstream i really enjoy the nicely mastered Barenaked Ladies Gordon cd (track #4 is fantastic).

As for dvds, i would go with Ice Age. The opening scene with the glacier cracking in DD 5.1 is astounding.

Great choices! Buena Vista Social Club is one of my all time favorite music type DVDs. Loved Ice age too but at the moment I'm smitten with the new release of Lion King on DVD, especially the Disney Home Theater Enhanced Mix.