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Stuff You Tried To Love

I know we talk a lot about confirmation bias- we buy something and then convince ourselves we like it. Or something like that. But did you ever buy something you wanted to love and just couldn’t make it work? For me, Esoteric X-05 SACD/CD player. Bought from a local who was upgrading to the X-03. Big, beautiful piece of gear, but I couldn’t get used to the sound after 6 months of trying. Sold it to another local- I insisted he listen before he bought and I believe he sold it soon after as well. Totem Forest and Hawk. I loved the whole concept. Slim, easy to live with. Couldn’t get them to work in my room. The Model Ones were much better. I had a couple of other pieces, but this is long enough. BTW, these were bought used without audition.

chayro

Showing 4 responses by larryi

larryi
3,742 posts
 

bolong, 

That sound is spittle (Davis apparently did not clear the spit valve before recording) and it is in all versions of the record.  

larryi
3,742 posts
 

Three great jazz albums were released in 1959.  If you said your favorite was "Kind of Blue" or "Take Five," I would not be sure that you are a serous jazz fan--those great albums were loved by Jazz fans and those who only casually listened to jazz.  But, if you said "Shape of Jazz to Come,"  I would KNOW you are a jazz fan.

larryi
3,742 posts
 

I can't imagine that anyone would find the Mal Waldron/Eric Dolphy album "The Quest" unlistenable, but, it is a matter of personal preference.  I am often shocked at what clicks with different listeners.  A friend asked me for some examples of jazz recordings because he was new to jazz.  I supplied an extreme range of albums, and his favorite was Coltrane's "Interstellar Space," an album many find totally inaccessible.  Another friend asked for a range of classical recordings; again, I included music from a wide range of styles-- Renaissance to modern.  The chosen favorite was Harry Partch "Delusion of the Fury."

larryi
3,742 posts
 

There is also the case of instant love while other pieces slowly become favorites, or in some cases music might fall out of favor.  I find it impossible to say why certain music did not click at first while others were instant favorites; there is no obvious characteristics that make sense to me about what I like.  Instant favorites include Shostakovich Piano Trio No. 2, Schoenberg's Gurrelieder, Beethoven late string quartets, anything by Schubert, most of Mahler, but, Prokofiev and Bruckner did not initially tickle my fancy.  I did not pay much attention to British composers like Britten, Vaughn Williams, Walton and Tippett, but now I like them a lot (throw in Alwyn too).  

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