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Are most recordings so bad it's not worth spending large on speakers?

In my interest in finding a speaker with a more lifelike sounding speaker than most monopole - e.g. (bipole, dipole, omnis) I emailed Morrison at Morrison Audio about his omni speakers, which for full range are around $14k. I explained I use my speakers with my TV, and to listen to folk, jazz, blues, some rock.

His response re my music choices, was, "The recordings are dreadful in terms of a lifelike reproduction. You needn’t spend so much on speakers. A monopole pattern is just fine since that is what the recordings are tailored for."

Comments?

cdc2

Showing 2 responses by georgehifi

georgehifi's avatar
georgehifi
10,312 posts
 
I have been struck with how wonderfully some early recordings can be and how horrible a few later recordings are.
It’s "Dynamic Range Compression" in the newer ones, read my last post as sample of the same album, new release vs original release.
http://dr.loudness-war.info/album/list?artist=Sade&album=Diamond+Life

Cheers George
georgehifi's avatar
georgehifi
10,312 posts
 
Overly compressed
This is the key to bad sound, as there are no quite gaps/passages anymore between the softest notes and the loudness notes, they are all just given to you at the same level, which sounds LOUD! even when turned down.
Your brain doesn’t get a chance to chill in-between the notes anymore.

Go to the dynamic range website, and see the older first recorded version are less compressed that the later remasters! of the same album.
Sade albums when looking at this remember green is good, the later stuff is compressed red, orange, or yellow
http://dr.loudness-war.info/album/list?artist=Sade&album=Diamond+Life

Cheers George
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