I have to say I agree Nilthepill. The recordings are not excessively processed. It seems odd that the Mapleshade line is consistently on almost every major recording or audiophile major publication list as the best of the best and someone could find them intolerable. Several major Jazz Publications also site the musicians great performance. Something seems off base here (e.g. see http://www.mapleshaderecords.com/main/WHAT'S~1.HTM and Stereophile's Records to Die For listings over the last 5-8 years among many others). When you read some people's comments on these threads you should probably screen for emotional content (you might try this" imagine if the person's blood pressure is at 62 or 110 when they write their comments, everyone should be allowed their opinion but no should be allowed to trash others (companies or people), even with that said the cyper (vapor) bullies on these threads are sure to step in and rip on me and others immediately following this comment. It really seems like the subjective audio field is some measure of greatest or compensation for not achieving in some other area of life. In my 20+ years in the audio field I have found no single person's opinion complete because everyone has their own idea of great sound that is true for them but not for everyone. Excellent hearing does not equate with the understanding of what makes good music or we could find the next Classic Artist in the hearing lab. This should be about having fun and tapping into the soul the way that good music can. I have seen nothing in these threads that does not seem like the venacular of audio publications. And to those that are uninitiated it may sound like expertise. But really it is about packaging an emotional plea using the tone and presentation of a audio pub to make it sound somehow scientific or real engineering understanding. It is often a veneer of technical depth robbed from people chatting with other or from reading pubs. Quantity of words does make a thoughtful review. Nor does calling someone else stupid etc if they do not agree with you.) I know far less than what I don't know about audio, music, and things in general. But I am a good listener to those who pose well formed arguments that can be scientifically tested and verified. I applaud Mapleshade for the what they are doing. I encourage all to use some of the Mapleshade recordings that Audio Research uses to test their equipment. Maybe Audio Research needs some help understanding what a great recording is. Not all Mapleshade recordings are great, some are so so. But give them a try, chances are you will agree with hundreds of pages of glowing reviews of their recordings the world over. Thanks!
