Best tracks to test stereo imaging, tonal balance and dynamics

This is an excellent cd to test it out. the recordings are exceptional and the commentary before each track tells you what to look for.
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+1. Have this.
Further recommend Dali CDs Vol 1 ,2 & 3.

 
The original 16/44 WAV files are available for purchase from Chesky site. Much better than Spotify SQ.
Hey Thanks! But no point for me - I run a low resolution system :p all happens over AirPlay, no dedicated DACs - given up on my FLACs and WAVs & Hi res streaming services. It is all convenience based :) I have realised I enjoy music a lot more when it is convenient and not complete trash sounding :).
 
Hey Thanks! But no point for me - I run a low resolution system :p all happens over AirPlay, no dedicated DACs - given up on my FLACs and WAVs & Hi res streaming services. It is all convenience based :) I have realised I enjoy music a lot more when it is convenient and not complete trash sounding :).
Sure. Whatever floats one’s boat. :)
 
In the end , we listen to music and not test tones or sterile jazz vocals. IMO much better ways to test your stereo would be to play well recorded music that one actually enjoys. The Elvis RCA Living Stereo recordings (Elvis is Back ) is one of the best examples , with the track ‘Fever’, or The Chilites ‘A Lonely Man’ album, both I listened today again.
 
In the end , we listen to music and not test tones or sterile jazz vocals. IMO much better ways to test your stereo would be to play well recorded music that one actually enjoys. The Elvis RCA Living Stereo recordings (Elvis is Back ) is one of the best examples , with the track ‘Fever’, or The Chilites ‘A Lonely Man’ album, both I listened today again.
It depends a lot on what one is looking for in the system and how experienced and confident one is of ones own ears.

For those who have been in the hobby for quite some time, it is easy to figure out what they want, but for someone who is new it will take time. In those cases a test cd is just like a reference to validate with for eg the chesky cd, has wonderful music but at the same time will tell you where and how the soundstage should be, how good the transparency is , the presence of harmonics etc which can be pretty overwhelming in the initial (y)ears !

But with time and experience, you dont really need one as you develop your own music tests !
 
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It depends a lot on what one is looking for in the system and how experienced and confident one is of ones own ears.

For those who have been in the hobby for quite some time, it is easy to figure out what they want, but for someone who is new it will take time. In those cases a test cd is just like a reference to validate with for eg the chesky cd, has wonderful music but at the same time will tell you where and how the soundstage should be, how good the transparency is , the presence of harmonics etc which can be pretty overwhelming in the initial (y)ears !

But with time and experience, you dont really need one as you develop your own music tests !
Very true, this ! In the initial years of my dedicated stereo setup , all I listened to were Stockfish, ECM , Chesky , Dali & Hoffman CDs recommended on pages of Stereophile , while my actual music ( all the classic rock and pop albums I grew up listening , Hindi retro music etc ) lay relegated to second shelf, while I tried to figure out how wide was my soundstage , whether it had depth and transparency , are the micro dynamics audible blah blah.

And then gradually realised all these could be perfectly and even better checked with the best quality recordings of the albums I actually loved. Many of these albums are from the fifties & sixties and were not recorded for audiophile listening at all. For eg I never thought that a Shirelles record from the sixties or a Jagjit Chitra album (mid seventies ), or a King Crimson record (late sixties ) could be a benchmark in judging one’s setup’s true prowess in resolution and dynamics.
This of course took time , experience and self-realisation.
 
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@arj - from the CD you recommended I have found a new voice I am in love with - Sara K. - singing If I could Sing your Blues.

thank you for introducing this voice - I have been "tripping" on her voice since first hearing her. "Tripping" as I have no other word to describe it.
 
@arj - from the CD you recommended I have found a new voice I am in love with - Sara K. - singing If I could Sing your Blues.

thank you for introducing this voice - I have been "tripping" on her voice since first hearing her. "Tripping" as I have no other word to describe it.
Goa and tripping has many meanings ;)
Cheers,
Raghu
 
@arj - from the CD you recommended I have found a new voice I am in love with - Sara K. - singing If I could Sing your Blues.

thank you for introducing this voice - I have been "tripping" on her voice since first hearing her. "Tripping" as I have no other word to describe it.

She has appeared in many Stockfisch recordings.. Listen to any the recordings done by label you will realize how a great well done cd at 44.1 can sound.

some of their featured albums are by Barb Jungr, Radka Toneff and then there is the fantastic Allan Taylor- try listening to his Beat Hotel to get an idea of his sound !

 
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