What are some must have discs that sound amazing on your Axioms?

Also what formats will provide the best sound? So much info out there on this, wanted to hear what the Axiom owners preferences are. Just download from a place like hdtracks or go with an sacd/dvd-a?

What are some of your go to albums for each as I know a lot of it depends on the recording and mastering process?

The SACD of Brothers in Arms by Dire Straits. Best thing I've got in my collection.

Any good suggestions on websites to buy high quality discs as well? Thanks in advance!

You need to check out the forum thread called "Stunning Recordings" under the Stereo section. IMO, recording and mastering make more of a difference than the medium.

I'm sure there is some scientist out there that can either confirm or deny my belief that most/all human hearing can't tell the difference above a certain bit rate and depth.

Ken, do you think you can hear the difference between the SACD and CD of that disk? If so, do you attribute that difference to increased bit depth or some other change besides the medium?

I have never tried, Tom. Sorry!

But ... this one goes to eleven. It's one louder, innit?

I have about 20 SACDs now. Whether they sound better than the equivalent CD, I don't know as I've never directly compared them.

I believe that SACDs are generally superior to CDs just for the fact that it is an 'audiophile' format. With that comes with more care being put into producing, recording & mixing the product & the resulting sound is a more pleasing package. While many SACDs are simply stunning, some are rather average, especially if they are reissues of old recordings where all the remixing in the world is not going to bring them up to modern recording standards.

For excellent lively, dynamic fusion instrumental jazz with great, deep percussion, Spyro Gyra's SACDs 'Good to Go-Go' & 'Wrapped in a Dream' are simply top notch. These 2 tend to be the lowest priced of SG's offerings compared to their rarer works & well worth the price.

They make your system sing, especially if you have a sub in your system...

TAM

Heeeey - aren't you the guy who sold me those Pear cables?!

If they were made of Zip Cord, it could have been me, ha!!...

TAM

More often than not, if the CD was recorded/produced well then the other versions, SACD, DVD-A etc. are also from the same recordings and produced at the same high level, for example the aforementioned Brothers in Arms. It is a great CD and all the other mediums it has been produced on have only enhanced the level of detail/quality.

Greg, I don't use the term "amazing" for any discs on any speakers, but I and others have recommended great music(classical by me)in excellent sound in the "Stunning" thread already mentioned. I'd mention a special bargain in this Stravinsky collection available for just a few dollars.


Yes, care taken in recording, mixing and mastering are the controlling factors rather than format, although on average it appears that more care has been taken in many(not all)SACDs. Done properly, the CD format has all the sampling rate and bit depth(44.1/16)needed for human ears and the available music. This was demonstrated about five years ago in a report I read in my AES Journal. SACDs and DVD-As of particularly good sound quality were "downgraded" to CD standards by passing them through 44.1/16 ADC/DAC conversion. In extensive double blind testing the sound remained equally excellent and could not be distinguished from the original.

Thank you, John.

John, I agree with your stance 100% that it's the recording, mixing and mastering that matters.

I admit that I just woke 10 minutes ago and am still fuzzy-brained, but I don't understand the above statement.

Simplistically, you're saying that higher-sampled discs and lower-sampled discs sound the same because in a listening test, they crippled the variable that existed in the higher-sampled music?

I enjoy the 20 or so SACDs and DVD-A discs I have. Not because of the higher sampling rates, but because they are true discrete multi-channel recordings AND they have been remastered with care.

Right, Mark; the sampling and bit rate of the SACDs and DVD-As were reduced to the CD standards and this had no audible effect on their sound quality.