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Wondering what CD's you use to evaluate audio equipment such as speakers.
Follow Ups:
For Bass: "Wish You Were Here" from Pink Floyd. The sound of the whirling bass in the begining of "Welcome to the Machine" and the very low Synth notes in it are quite a stress test for woofers.
For Volume and control: The Colour of My Love" from Celine Dion. The song "The Power of Love", is a hard song to play very loudly as it has screaming vocals combined with low bass notes. I have heard more than my share of speakers that could not handle Celine's Whaling and had to be turned down.
For imaging: I like to use the Song "Bohemian Rhapsody" from Queen. The multi-layed vocals are a great test of a speaker's ability to image well.
For Trebble extention: Just about anything from Metallica's S&M cd's. If the Cymbals and flutes are clearly heard over all the other stuff going on, and remain coherant, then it is a good sign that the speaker's trebble is not lacking.
For Male Vocals: Good Ol' Blue Eyes is a favorite, as is Boyz II Men's rendition of the Beatle's classic tune "Yesterday". Garth Brook's "In Pieces" is another favorite test cd for male vocals. As the song "The Cowboy Song" has no drums in it, this is a test of the weight of the vocals.
For Female vocals: "Fly" by the Dixie Chicks is a good one to use. Natalie Maines's voice on "Without You" gives me an idea of a speaker's ability to reproduce a powerful female voice propperly. The "Now That I've Found You: Collection" From Alison Krauss is another favorite of mine to test female vocals. Anything by the Carpenter's in my opinion will also Demonstrate a speaker's abiltity in the department of female vocals.
For Transparency: I like to either use Cannon in D minor or Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 8 in C minor(second movement). These two songs give me a sense of what instruments sound like on a set of speakers. If it sounds like a piano or a recording of a piano is the question I ask when I listen. Does Orchestra leap out of the speakers on Cannon in D minor or do the violins sound mutted? These two songs are good for transparency elvaluation in my opinion.
For accuracy: I bring some of the worst recordings that I have such as MP3's. If these sound even worse, I then say "wow, these speakers are acurate" If "Californication" does not sound bright on a set of speakers then it might be masking some Deficiency.
For wow factor: Yes, I said wow factor. For this being the most important consideration in selecting a set of speakers. The wow factor is an easy concept to grasp. It is when I play one of my favorite songs and say wow this sounds fantasic. "Master of Puppets" from Metallica, "Revolver" from the Beatles, and "August and Everything After" are 3 of the cd's that I use to test the wow factor. I have heard these cd's more times than I can recall, so to me it makes sense to use them to how some of my favorite tunes will sound.
I use several from all over the map. What one speaker does well with one may not do so great with another.I like to use Patricia Barber's Cafe Blue album simply because it is so well recorded and being Jazz you get a great set of drum, horn and string solos. Plus she has a strong multi octave voice. UHF uses the disc as well and it's available on LP, SACD, HDCD, and a Gold edition, and regular CD(which was already reference standard quality).
I use Sarah McLachlan for my female vocal segment(Fumbling or Surfacing seem to be the best albums recording wise from her though B Side rarities is strong as well).
I also take my Albinoni album from Naxos ref #8.552244. This album features a beautiful Oboe recording as well an Adagio for Organ and Strings. The Organ typically reveals shortcummings in bass response. It's also a beautiful album to just relax and enjoy...even if you're not much of a classical music lover.
YoYo Ma should be used for the Cello(or other Cellist of your liking), and is an instrument that covers a fairly wide band and is a very lyrical instrument. Also try and pick up Flute or Oboe solos two of the most natural accurate instruments in an orchestra.
Then I usually put on Madonna's Ray of Light Album both because we need to see if the speaker has the dynamics necessary to keep up with the pace of dance/pop music...all the while with a very well recorded album(for pop).
Phil Colins But Seriously is also a good one and gets some Male Vocals, as well as Romanza from Andrea Bocceli(Sp?)
I usually put on The Outfield Play Deep and Jackson Browne's Pretender and Running on Empty albums just to make sure that lesser recordings still sound solid in the bass department. These ones can sound very good, but often get ruined.
Lastly, I put on Motley Crue's Dr. Feelgood Album...not a bad recording at all actually and let's face it - sometimes we want the speaker to get down and pound. Kickstart My Heart is always a fun one to put on...look at the snobs retailer's face when you ask to play it on the 801s. LOL.
Seriously though, I like my speaker to do it all well if possible.
Old journey, Brian Adams, Old springsteen, and if it dont sound like shit, I know I have problems!
Several different ones for varying reasons. Currently the list is: 1. Remy Shand - The Way I Like It - it is complex and very rhythmic. The bass can overpower some of the subtleties in the instrumentation. 2.Any early Frank Sinatra/Rosemary Clooney - His/her voice has a wide range so it is hard to reproduce well. 3. George Winston Solo CD's - the piano is hard to reproduce also without sounding harsh.I use more but, these are the main CD's I use.
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