gg107
Responses from gg107
| Yamaha CDS-1000 or Denon DCD-1600ne I have the Denon, and like the OP, Sonus Faber speakers (Olympica III, used with a McIntosh power amp). I considered the Yamaha, but didn't buy it because of reliability concerns. The Denon took several months to break in, and originally, I was ... | |
| Luxman Knockoffs or Counterfeits? Is there any reason using a step-down transformer would degrade sound quality? | |
| Great classical pianists For the Beethoven sonatas -- the New Testament of solo piano -- I prefer Annie Fisher. Her playing is full-blooded, passionate, engaged. Among current pianists, I find Vikingur Olaffson compelling, especially in Philip Glass. His technique is... | |
| Looking for good recordings of female vocals I have not yet tried... Puccini wrote amazing stuff for the female voice. His operas Tosca, La Boheme, and Madama Butterfly contain gorgeous writing for the female voice. To my taste, his final opera Turandot is unsurpassed in this category, with two great soprano role... | |
| Looking for good recordings of female vocals I have not yet tried... She’s been mentioned before, but it bears reemphasis: Ella Fitzgerald! Arguably the greatest vocalist of any gender or style of music in the history of recording. In the realm of the living, Kate Bush is a great vocalist. And do not miss Ute Lem... | |
| Amplifier Longevity Question First, as the OP, let me say thanks to all who posted in response to this thread. Audiogon is a good place, with thoughtful and helpful members! The consensus seems to be that my 20+ year old amps, which have been in daily use for about 14 years,... | |
| Who is your Favorite Historical Conductor? Mengelberg is an interesting choice! I recall reading somewhere that Mengelberg thought he could just make changes to Beethoven's scores because, after all, Beethoven was deaf, not to mention dead, and who would know better what would work than t... | |
| Amplifier Longevity Question Very amusing, @yyzsantabarbara! My dealings with MD have not been entirely satisfactory. I called them to see about getting a replacement remote; the person I spoke to said he would get back to me in a day or two. I did not hear from MD; after a... | |
| Shostakovich Fifth Symphony I've been on a Shostakovich kick this year -- his work seems unusually well-suited to the current zeitgeist. The 5th Symphony is a strong work, but FWIW, as I've listened to more Shostakovich, I've come to prefer the 9th, 10th, 15th and, especial... | |
| Classical Music for Aficionados The Brahms symphonies are each great, but I find few recording rise to the challenges of the music. Conductors including Karajan, Stokowski and more recently, Ivan Fisher, emote and editorialize too much. The Carlos Kleiber Brahms 4th, though, i... | |
| Sonus Faber Amati Trads or Serafinos + Gravis Vi? I own SF Olympica IIIs powered by a McIntosh MC402 amp. I listen to large scale orchestral music and classic rock. The idea that full range SF speakers lack enough "dynamic punch" for classic rock strikes me as flatly incorrect. This is especia... | |
| Most Realistic Recordings I'll second the recommendation of Vikingur Olaffson's DG studio recordings. His recording of Philip Glass compositions, in particular, is realistic and nothing short of stunning. | |
| Question about upgrading my SACD player I have one of the players you're considering, OP -- the Denon DCD-1600NE, bought last year. I also have an older Sony model, the SACD-CE595, still in use in my office system. While I'm happy to have the Sony, which I believe is similar to yours,... | |
| How far down the Furtwangler rabbit hole did you go? Many years ago I was driving home after a long day, and the first notes Beethoven's Ninth began on the car radio as I pulled into my driveway. I had no idea what orchestra was playing, or who was conducting. I had heard the Ninth before, live an... | |
| CDP under $2K recommendations, please Last year, after posting an inquiry on this site similar to the one above, and considering the helpful responses, I bought.a new Denon DCD-1600NE CD player. The MSRP now is about $1,500; then, it was about $1,100. Initially, I wasn't thrilled, a... |