amarra or pure music..?

In my set up Pure music sounded slightly wider, but on wide recordings it started to sound a little odd. For me Amarra in the playlist mode works best over most material.

Both bits of software sound good though.

I prefer the look of Amarra as Pure music looks a little cheap to me.

Has anyone tried comparing the latest Amarra 2.1.1 vs Pure music 1.74 or any other like Fidelia recently?

I have tried Amarra's latest (2.1.1) vs Pure music's (1.74) and much prefer Amarra.

I am getting very upset with Amarra's continuous glitch issues though. I am still waiting for these to be fixed. It is expensive software for what it is, and it's glitches are like problems you get with free software. Most upsetting. And soon they intend to charge for updates too!

But sonically I find PM to be diffuse and flat when compared to the more detailed and 3D Amarra. There is not that much in it, but I do find PM to sound a little boring. I guess if you have a bright and peaky system PM may help you tone it down.

If Sonic studio are reading this PLEASE pull your finger out and fix this excellent sounding software. My experience of your software is cheap even though it sounds great and is expensive.

I have been trying out Fidelia which I think sounds even better than Amarra. I am not a fan of Fidelia's interface. Personally I love using the Art work cover flow interface in Itunes to search through the library using Amarra in the background as the output.

Somehow Fidelia's sonics are even more detailed and maybe sweeter than Amarra 2.1.1. There is not much in it but it is there and worth having.

Audioengr

I liked 1.2 a lot too, but 2.1.1 sounds very slightly smoother/vibrant to me in memory mode. The stuttering at the start of each track in Itunes I find ruins it. I hope they fix this ASAP. PM have managed it.

Mapman,

I have found nearly all software sounds slightly different. Don't ask me why! Especially on PC. Even Pro software from the same manufacturer.

Hi Tvad,

the party I meant was the one financed with the cash for selling the CDP. Hopefully sold in time for it to be a real good party rather than a burger and fries!

Hi mapman,

I have media player on one of my studio computers and it does sound a little different from the mastering and production software on the same machine. Not by much. There is something in the treble which is more relaxed and it is not quite as separated compared to Nuendo 5 or Wavelab 6. I do like it though.

I find it odd that they can sound different as they are using all the same hardware.

Having been listening to Fidelia in my hifi system for a couple of days now I think it is very close to Amarra 2.1.1. It has something very slightly sweeter in the highs and I find imaging is more compact, smaller or pinpoint on some recording. It is only on really good recordings that these differences show themselves. Orchestral recordings seem the best way to tell.

As I said I feel both these 2 bits of software sound better than Pure Music 1.74 in my system. Remember all this software is on the same machine and playing through the same DAC/Amp/cables/speakers/same room and same ears!

If I were blind folded I could tell the difference between PM and Amarra or PM and Fidelia, but I would find it hard to tell between Amarra and Fidelia.

Unfortunately regardless of the sonics it is the interface that makes or breaks it for me. When you have spent so much effort getting the system to sound good, it is a real let down when your main interaction with it is clunky, slow or unstable due to the playback software.

Maybe Apple will just get itunes to sound good and all these little software companies will go away or at least sell their code to Apple to integrate properly.

Tvad,

to be honest I have had no real issues until now. The continuous updates sometimes cause as many issues as they solve. Aside from this new issue in Amarra I could not be happier. I know others had had other differing issues.

The convenience of having every record I own, at all sorts of high resolution at the touch or slide of a finger out weighs any of the problems so far. I could never go back to a CDP or any format that means one album or side at a time.

As a result I listen to a much wider selection of my music collection than I ever did. That alone as a music lover is worth any hassle. Once these bugs are sorted which in theory could be any day now, that will be it.

The sound quality is up there with anything I have heard or owned. And I have owned a few gems along the way... I would not underestimate it.

Haha Tvad,

make sure that hair shirt doesnt fit too well. I guess it is like any other format or equipment set up. There is a certain amount of investment in time and effort before you can yield great things.

As a fellow contrarian in many aspects of my life, there does come a point when you just have to say if you cant beat them join them.

The joy of controlling all your music via an ipad or iphone with full artwork and track information right at your finger tips is a fiendishly tempting prospect even for the most bloody minded of audiophile! With the right gear the sound is sublime, so no excuse there. OK there is a little teething now and again.

Come join the party... When I say party I mean watch me reboot. The blasted thing froze. But with the super fast SSHD it will only take 2 seconds! I couldnt walk to the CD rack as fast. Let alone choose one.