I have a big problem. My stereo is too good, too accurate. I can't stand it sometimes.

Was the experiment with the McIntosh preamp unsuccessful in the end ?

 

One thing I'll throw in as someone who has also spent a little time sitting at a mixing desk (I ran a little project studio for a couple of years and have dabbled since, though nothing in your league) is that I can very much fall into 'analytical mode' when sitting directly between a pair of speakers. It took me a while to realise that, for me at least, it was this 'hot-seat' listening aspect that got me back into a kind of 'dissection mode' where I'd start pulling it all apart in my mind and hearing individual mic feeds, mic positions, clipping, compression, drop-ins, exactly what reverb or other FX had been used and where etc etc etc. Sitting off-axis seems to very much reduce this for me and I find myself enjoying the music far more in a 'notes and rests' kind of way rather than being distracted by mechanical aspects of the recording. That's not to say I don't enjoy highly focused lights-out hot-seat listening now and again, I even enjoy headphones, but I spend a fair bit of my time listening off axis these days and just enjoying a room full of music.

 

Well, if it's about your work all I can say is man up. Keep something nice and "euphonic" on the side. And doubtless you've got a nice Martin or Gibson lying around to remind you of what reality sounds like.

 

I had the very same thought when I first read you post. Best of both world I'd say.

 

Listen to the 100 consecutive copies of the white album on your stereo good or bad. That's reality ;-)

 

you bet! Indeed.

 

I like that idea...
That would be good for all of us!

 

I think most of my music sounds great on my system and at the same time there is a lot that doesn't. I really don't care much about that. I just listen to what I like. It makes no difference one way or the other. I have many albums I do not listen too and I've never blamed my system for it. They just don't sound good. Many do though and that's what matters to me.

 

I would like to set up a system (just for fun) with theses



and this (with a matching preamp)



and this




sit back and let her rip

 

A switchable tube buffer might be the quick and dirty solution.

 

When ever I hear a pair of vintage speakers that I used to go gaga over , I usually say " what a bunch of rubble . How far we've come .

 

I've said exactly the same thing about several very expensive and audiophile-magazine-approved NEW speakers I've heard.

If you offered me a secret magic box that would make my 604s audibly, absolutely indistinguishable from anything Wilson Audio or Thiel or Vandersteen or Sonus Faber manufacture, I'd throw the thing off the bridge.

 

When I first saw the title of the thread I thought it sounded a little crazy, but when I thought about what you do for a living, how developed your ears must be, and how passionate you are about sound quality, I quickly realized that this would be a serious issue for you. I hope the cables help.

 

Steve, could it be that you are at a point where you are realizing that "perfection" is not the "Holy Grail" after all? Even though the concept of perfection exists, perfection itself does not exist, and it never will exist because there will never be a unanimous consensus on what it is. I would not be surprised if in 6 months you changed a piece or two of equipment in the sound system you now describe as "perfect." Think of how sh**ty it would be to apply that same "perfectionism" to how you perceive the people in your life.

For me, the enjoyment of music is the emotion I get out of listening. Yes, a great sounding system can enhance the experience, and I really enjoy picking apart the mix and mastering of a song. However, if the music that moves you cannot be enjoyed because you are too preoccupied picking apart EQ, distortion, stereo image placement, dynamics, etc., then you may want to re-evaluate what is more important to you - the music itself or the technical aspect of the engineering. I still get a kick out of listening to a song on AM radio, like the oldies that I grew up with in the 1960s & 70s, even though I can get better dynamics and wider frequency playback at home. I enjoy both experiences. For instance, the mono 45 mix of "Tears of A Clown" by Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, which is obviously not a demonstration quality recording, still provides a wonderful musical experience for me because of the song, plus the less than ideal recording adds a little extra "character" to the experience.

Which is more important to you - the music itself or the technical aspects?

 

I cannot speak for moops, but I was thinking of the experiment with a modern era McIntosh C46, as described in this thread:
http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threa...in-system-into-a-vintage-sound-system.333132/

 

Try Guru Speakers. High resolution, neutral, yet easy on the ear, even for media with really poor sound quality.
http://guruaudio.com/

 

As 70% of your music is good I wouldn't have thought it a good idea to make radical changes for the 30% not good (and that 30% was already annoying). Frankly I don't know what you are fussing about. I'm sure if you took an average persons collection they would have 30% or more less then good recordings. Whilst I don't claim my set up is perfect I can hear poor recordings and it's very frustrating but that's the way it is. 'Shrill' I can do something about but distortion I can't, not to mention silly stereo trickery.

I agree with the suggestion of an equaliser; and some way of getting you into listener mode instead of work mode.

I got 'shrill' on some female vocals which turned out to be the result of too much reflections. Changing room treatment around solved most of that but adjusting my equaliser (a Behringer DEQ2496) helped too.

Recently I've upped the tweeter levels (7kHz and above) by 3dB or more (the rest is as flat as I can make it) to allow me to hear some subtle percussion that I could only hear on headphones. I could hear it from the tweeter close up with my ears sideways (like listening to headphones) but it never made it to my listening position and round into my ears. If I cupped my ears I could hear it. This may be to do with me being a sixty year old with deteriorating hearing or just my own hearing generally. At the moment I'm seeing if this is satisfactory or if there is a penalty to pay with harsh vocals again - there may be!

 

Yep, that's the one I was thinking of, sorry I should have been a bit clearer.

 

It could just be job burnout.
Don't know how old your kids are but if they're young put on some of their kiddie music and sit back and just enjoy it with them.
It's hard to separate your job with your relaxing time when they're the almost the same thing.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family

 

Good point . I've also heard several very expensive new speakers that were not worth the wood they were built on , but many are jaw dropping .

What are 604's ?

 

This is a fascinating thread and I recall a conversation with a friend of mine a couple of years ago when he was laughing about Neil Young complaining about the SQ of MP3 format. My friend remarked at the time that this was the godfather of grunge mind you, not Yo-Yo Ma or some classical guitarist! Now we have people on this forum discussing the merits of audiophile pressings of groups like Nirvana, and others upset about the SQ on Rolling Stones releases, most of which were not likely recorded all that well by a group that is rough around the edges on their best night!