Your ears aren't screwed up, but there is some disagreement among listeners as to the sound quality of Telarc releases. In their classical recordings, their general practice has been to record principally using spaced omnis, which results in a spacious sound but loses some immediacy and pinpoint imaging that a lot of audiophiles like. I also find that some of their recordings can sound a little muddy unless the volume is turned up a bit. And there is something I recall about some of their earlier recordings that they were recorded in inverse polarity and sounded better (less bright) if you reversed the phase on your DAC. All that said, I find them to be one of the better recording companies out there on a consistent basis, and like most of their releases--they do seem to take better care than others in their recordings in not screwing around with the microphone feed.
Telarc recording quality
I have several Telarc CDs, some classical and some jazz, the jazz being mostly Tierney Sutton's recordings. I am always amazed (and delighted) at the quality of the recordings. Sutton's CDs, in particular, are clean with an immediate sound, so to speak, as well as being superbly balanced and focused.
What is it that Telarc does so well that others don't? Or, are my ears really screwed up?!
What is it that Telarc does so well that others don't? Or, are my ears really screwed up?!