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Pieces of music that digital can't get right

Ok I have a litmus test for digital when ever I have the rare option of upgrading my digital front end. Its tough on digital. Brutally tortuous and unforgiving. Digital proponents have a difficult time accepting these sonic tests. 
1. Ok here is the first one. On the opening of America's "Ventura Highway" the opening dueling guitars are ambient and bounce off each channel very pleasantly in the analog domain. In the digital domain the channels are totally separate and too clean and sterile lifeless sounding. They are  not talking to each other It was like this with ny Marantz 8005 but the SA-10 gets halfway there.
2. In the opening of "I Feel Fine" by the Beatles the electric guitar sounds alive with ambiance and decay. The Digital is clean and lifeless.
 Ok am I right with these observation?. I have a pretty good SACD player in SA-10. Its no slouch. Do the mega expensive super smart and accurate DACs get my two above mentioned  passages right? Or are we hearing colored vinyl artifacts. Well if we are I like the record better!
blueranger

Showing 4 responses by michaelgreenaudio

michaelgreenaudio's avatar
michaelgreenaudio
1,019 posts
 

"Ok am I right with these observation?."

Blueranger, your using the same components for both sources. One input is "tuned" to your Table. Your CDP needs it's own system so you can tune it in to your digital source.

Systems using CD's require completely different sonic settings vs systems tuned to vinyl.

Michael Green

http://www.michaelgreenaudio.net/

michaelgreenaudio's avatar
michaelgreenaudio
1,019 posts
 

Actually 4'33" is a good example. If someone is experiencing black silences with digital that's a sign that the system is out of tune.


mg

michaelgreenaudio's avatar
michaelgreenaudio
1,019 posts
 

I would go one step further and say "every source device does require unique tweaks to get optimal results".


MG

michaelgreenaudio's avatar
michaelgreenaudio
1,019 posts
 

For me personally, I don’t use multi-source same system settings for doing any referencing.

This was a big issue back in the Tape Vinyl source days, and was one of the major reasons Equalizers were used. It never really worked, using preamp sections with multi-sources but we always had frequency adjusting tools to somewhat help, but it never really was a purist approach. In reality to have a true discrete system you would only have one source, or even one input, for the system. HEA tried to bend the rules on that one, but that’s not being discrete.

You know, saying systems that only have one volume control with several inputs is being discrete is a bit of a scam. Saying one volume control is discrete period, is a scam when you think about it.

MG

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