Changing directions a bit from last week's Peel remote giveaway, we turn again to music — high-resolution music, in particular, and we're giving away $100 worth of downloads courtesy of HDtracks, the Web's leading purveyor of lossless, uncompressed, and better-than-CD-quality tunes to one lucky reader.
To qualify, leave a comment below and tell us about your high-res listening and what you'd like to see from us on the topic. What kind of files are you listening to? What sort of gear are you using (dedicated player, music server, computer, DAC, etc) to listen now, and what do you plan on picking up in the months to come? What's your favored format? What are your favorite high-resolution releases?
And, of course, what would you like to see us covering? More gear? More formats? More reviews of high-rez releases? Don't think it makes a difference and you're happy with 128 kbps MP3s? We want to know.
The winner will be chosen randomly from among those who leave on-topic comments below (you'll have to register — no anonymous commenters, we need a valid e-mail contact address to inform you of your win), so don't be afraid to speak your mind. We'll take entries until midnight (Eastern Time), on November 2nd, and notify the winner via e-mail by Friday, November 4. Good luck!
I rip all of my physical media to a network attached storage device and store all of my downloads there as well. I then stream those files to a Dune Media Player and bitstream from there over HDMI to my Integra 80.3 Pre/Pro. I find that the DACS inside of that unit are excellent and the Dune handles any files that I can throw at it up to and including multichannel 24 bit / 192khz. No more CD/DVD/Blu-ray/DVD-Audio/SACD media for me!!!
I would like to see coverage of PURE music blu-ray titles such as the Rush-Moving Pictures and Steve Wilson-Grace for Drowning. I am sure a lot of us just want great studio music and not be subjected to noisy concert videos on blu-ray. I would prefer the release of music as FLAC files complete with metadata rather than physical media if possible.
I have been listening to Hi-Res music for years, since DVD-A & SACD came out. I love music in surround, but the added space and depth of Hi-Res Stereo is awesome too. I have ripped the Hi-Res tracks from DVD-A's for my server system, which currently includes using a Squeezebox Touch with a dedicated Laptop as my server. Since I use iTunes for our pods and to keep it simple I convert everything to Apple Lossless and totally enjoy how incredible Hi-Res (heck even redbook, too) sounds via a server. Plus it's awesome to be able to have the Hi-res stuff shuffle with the rest of my collection. I have purchased Hi-Res albums from HD Tracks, as well as Paul McCartney's website, and getting the Hi-Res files as a bonus download from Tom Petty for the Mojo & Damn the Torpedoes Blu-ray audio discs.
I appreciate the fact that you can get Hi-Res from HD Tracks, but to me the extra cost ratio is too high. I would buy so much more if the price was more competitive and without a physical product I don't understand why the prices are still in the same ballpark as actually buying a DVD-A or SACD.I would like to see more stories in Sound & Vision (been a subscriber to Stereo Review since 1987) about the economies of putting out a Hi-Res release. Also I enjoy stories about what goes into mastering or mixing records, like the Tom Petty, Porcupine Tree, and the current Pink Floyd articles. The little details about what goes into those releases are fascinating.
Current gear to play high rez files:
1. Centrance DACmini
2. Woo Audio headphone amplifier, WA6-SE
3. Grado PS-1000 headphones, Shure 535 headphones
Would like to see more information about:
1. Bona fide software to play high resolution files
2. Bona fide, legal high resolution music sources. I like HDTracks but current selections are very limited. My favorite artists that would like to see in hi rez formats:
Pink Floyd
Alan Parsons Project
Steely Dan
Porcupine Tree
Dire Straits
Radiohead
Progressive rock in general
I agree that the albums available on HD Tracks are pricey. Perhaps with winning this prize, I could experience their product and find it worth the extra cost.
I've been ripping using apple lossless for some months now after ncreasing my storage. I had been ripping at 320 but now that I have all that extra room lossless is all I want to hear from now on. I use a lot of Apple products for distributing music around the home and having the lossless available everywhere has been great. A lot of work to re-rip all the important stuff, but well worth the effort! Thanks for the continuing coverage of the significance of high bit-rate audio.
Since I'm rarely paying attention, I'm happy enough just to have the music available while I'm walking.
I use my computer with a creative X-FI card to listen to my audio primarily as I am a college student on a budget at the moment. I use my Ipod Classic away from home. I listen on two different sets of Westone IEMs, The UM2's and the Westone 4's while away from the computer. While at the computer I use my Klipsch 5.1 ultra system. For the price it was (400) it gives really quite decent sound.
I rip everything into apple lossless as of late because of the ipod, but had been doing straight wav files. I would love to get my Eagles live album in high res just for the hotel California song from when they reunited after 14 years. That intro would be phenomenal sounding.
I don't have much money to be purchasing high res playback equipment, but I am working with a cousin of mine who builds tube based Guitar amps to build a tube based headphone preamp to sweeten up the sound a bit from existing sources. If that goes well, perhaps I will build a full on amp for speakers.
I really personally enjoy the things you all cover in your magazine. It lets me drool over stuff I can't afford right now but want to some day own. I like the mixture of audio and video items as I plan to one day build a house around an amazing theater room one day when/if I get enough money to do so.
I mostly listen to classical music. Currently listen to Blue-ray/SACD w/ Oppo BDP-83SE and use MediaMonkey to play downloaded FLAC files, but most of my listening is via Internet radio, which can sound pretty good, but not as good as hi-rez FLAC files. As soon as I can afford it, I think I will buy a Pre/pro with 24/192 DAC (Marantz AV7005) or a DAC with headphone output.
All my music is stored on a Synology NAS drive that streams to some squeezeboxes. Main system has a squeezebox touch connected to Cambridge Audio 840A.
However the whole squeezebox thing is wearing me down a little and i am seriously considering the Sonos line.
All my music is stored in FLAC (and 256mp3 for cellphone listening)
I have a bunch of downloads from HDTRACKS too. but another $100 would only whet my apetite.
Wow, I'm basically a novice to all of the technology use today. Most of my listening is done using whatever pair of headphones that I have at the time plugged into my very old ibookG3 playing cds, AAC files stored in my itunes library or internet radio. One day I hope to upgrade to the big leagues and enjoy music as it should be heard. One day.
I'd like to check out HDtracks. I'm all about ripping your music from CD to a hi-rez format: to hear the difference between that and a HIGHER quality audio would be pretty sweet!
I have purchased several HD titles from HDTracks. The quality is considerably greater than standard MP3 or iTunes formats. I haven't moved the FLAC files to my Olive 4D, but I'm sure that they will sound even better on my home theatre system. A good, mainstream FLAC player comparable to iPod is a potential future purchase. The market for better than MP3 quality is out there, and HDTracks is a leading provider. Try it out!
usually burn my HDtracks to a cd for playback in my car. really appreciate the diversity of music offered by HDtracks.
I've been importing all my music in Apple Lossless format for years. I just purchased the Pink Floyd Discovery Box Set and was finally able to get my Floyd collection upgraded to lossless! I'll be purchasing the Immersion Box Sets of The Dark Side of the Moon, Wish You Were Here, and The Wall in short order.
I'm currently listening to my lossless music files on my iMac and iPhone (sadly, with run-of-the-mill speakers and headphones that can't convey the glory of lossless audio), but I can still appreciate the noticeable clarity above the lossy material in my collection.
Blu-ray discs, and DTS-HD Master Audio are my preferred HD video and audio formats of choice, though I'd be interested to learn more about the HD media server options some other members have posted about. I actually like the "collecting" aspect to building a collection of Blu-ray movies and HD audio (I like the cases and physical collectibles featured with many of the bigger releases such as Citizen Kane, The Sound of Music, Blade Runner, The Lord of the Rings, Pink Floyd, etc., and hope physical media isn't completely done away with in the future).
I've only downloaded a few of things from HDTracks, usually due to price (seemed too high for what I was interested in), but their offerings have grown considerably and several of the recent HDTracks emails I've gotten have featured some very compelling releases. If I'm lucky enough to win, I'll definitely be putting that $100 to good use!
Once I was exposed to High End sound quality (many years ago) I could suddenly tolerate more music if delivered with outstanding audio quality, and unfortunately, listened less and less to music of my first choice when it was not delivered at a good enough quality.
So am I a music lover or a sound lover? I guess both.
I was an early adopter of SACD (and DVD-A). Until today I am happily buying releases such as King Crimson 40th anniversary DVD-A, Pink Floyd SACDs, Steven Wilson DVD-A and Blu ray, and many others.
Multi-channel is great, but critically listening I do with 2 channels.
I have a dedicated Win7 music server for my music listening room. Rip with EAC to the lowest compression FLAC. Playback with Media Monkey.
M2Tech Hiface USB to coax SPDIF which feeds my processor (24/192).
Kernel Streaming together with the M2Tech Hiface was an improvement beyond my wildest expectations.
I wait for OPPO to release their 95 with a coax SPDIF input to serve as a DAC. This will be the ultimate digital hub.
I save a copy in MP3 320 format on my home NAS which has a built-in squeezebox server. This eliminated format compatibility issues with different playback devices.
To my delight, my 17 YO kid is already sold on the advantages of Hi-Rez when compared with his friends 128 MP3. Don't despair, together we will change the world.
Enjoy.
All my music is in the ALAC format. I never listen to MP3 or AAC so winning a $100 gift card to HDtracks would be a welcome surprise.
I used to listen to all my music from just MP3 format and once in a while bust out a few vinyls. Recently I was introduced to HDTracks from a friend that works at Living Sound. We listened to a few tracks through a computer using a USB DAC through a pair of B&W PM1's. I was floored as soon as the music started. I didn't realize that sound like that was possible without going to vinyl. As soon as I got home I registered and started downloading. Since then I have blown friends and relatives away and even converted a few of them away from iTunes and to HD audio. I have a modest system now. Yamaha HTR 5850, Monster Z1 speaker cable, Audioquest interconnects with Infinity Beta 20's.
I just started with high resolution streaming. I use a Squeezebox Touch to stream files from my PC to my receiver. I use a Denon receiver and Axiom speakers in an acoustically treated family room. I listened to some DVD-A high res prior to trying streaming. I have only purchased from HDTracks in FLAC. I love the music I have tried thus far. I currently cant stop listening to Ray Charles, "Genius Loves Company". I want you to cover and lobby for an adoptable formula for bringing hi resolution music to the masses. I feel it is a niche market, but that doesn't really excuse how difficult it can be to experience this better music. Current suppliers of material make it difficult. Need for special hardware and software make it difficult. Every time someone says that I only need one simple program or piece of equipment to make it work, I am reminded that so many people just don't get it. I love FLAC as an idea, but if there is not iTunes support, why does it make business sense to make it the only format option? I know that higher resolution music sounds better, but not two and a half times better, so why is the price two and a half times the cost of an iTunes download? If someone can figure out a compelling business model, maybe we can get a wider selection of titles and a wider population of buyers. This is what I want you to write about.
At home, I listen to FLAC files ripped onto an external hard drive using Winamp and played through a Western Digital media player, or I listen to SACD / DVD-Audio on an OPPO 981. For music on the go, I play Apple lossless on an iPod Touch connected to a Cypher Labs AlgoRhythm Solo DAC and an ALO Audio Rx headphone amp. I've got an inexpensive set of Sennheiser headphones that isolate public transit noises very well, while providing comfort and very good audio quality for the money.
It's good to see that HDtracks carries a number of my favorite titles that I own on SACD or DVD-A disc, not necessarily because I plan on buying another copy, but because the music continues to be available despite the industry abandoning hi-res on physical media.
In terms of coverage, I would be very interested in knowing whether there are alternatives to Winamp and the WD media player that I could use to boost audio quality without a huge investment.
Until FLAC, I was not really interested in moving my audio stuff to a digital server. But in the last six months I have been transcribing (call it ripping if you must) my CDs and LPs to FLAC files. Doing so wiped out Windows Media Player as a management system and some my earlier rips were with WMP, but VCL player and WinAmp do a fine job. For audio out of my computer (the older Dell that is becoming a music server) an now using a TurtleBeach Micro II USB sound card. It has both stereo audio outputs that I use with headphones - my old reference Yamaha Orthodynamic HP-1s - and it has an optical output that I feed to my AVR that I am using for stereo as well as surround. So as well as being deal silent - no computer noise through the card - it does a great job of delivering high-quality audio to either phones or a an AVR.
I have some files from HDtracks as well and would enjoy more. I am not quite over the hump of not having the actual physical material such as a DVD or Blu-ray disk with the same audio track. Nonetheless, I will continue to migrate my library of slightly over 500 jazz CDs plus others as well as transcribe my LPs over to the media server in FLAC format. I also use AVS Audio Converter to move files to the 32 gb micro SD card in my cell phone, keeping them as FLAC for portable audio. The program does a fine job of conversion, though I wish it were a little faster converting lossless WMA to FLAC.
My current hd audio library is with dvda and sacd discs. I haven't tried hd downloads yet. Most content is from jazz or classical styles. Some concerts sound interesting.
SACD reviews that hit classical or jazz music would be nice!
I've ripped all my CDs to my PC hard drive in FLAC format. With disk storage so cheap these days, I see no reason to use any lossy formats.
Hurray for HD Tracks, providing us with high-quality music in an age where small, tinny MP3 files are so common!
I have slowly transferred the majority of my CD collection to my PC and backup hard drive for portability's sake. I drop to a thumb drive and listen on the car stereo and/or my desktop at work. They are MP3 set to the highest res VBR. I also listen at bed time via Sennheiser 595s, a Sansa player, LOD, and a c-moy amp. This has provided the best results to date, but I have a new FIIO E10 DAC pre-ordered and I will be hooking up to my two channel set-up when it arrives. I'll be getting some 96/24 files to audition soon.
I love the convenience of digital music. I use an oppo bdp-95 with a 1.5 TB usb connected drive. My 16/44khz cd's sound great but it's the 24/172 & 24/196khz files that really stand out. Interestingly 24/96 stuff is only marginally better than cd. I would like to see more coverage on technology for playback of digital hi-res files.
I have been buying the DVD-A version of anything I can find for the surround sound treatment of current and past favorites. I have used FLAC files for years to trade shows (allowed by artist). But primarily I want to buy and collect shiny discs with special packaging. These days that now includes Blue Ray Audio CDs. Rare but the wave of the future. So please flag and report any new BlueRay audio come out. SACD just never caught on as big as Blue Ray will become.
I bought a few rarities as computer files but after a while I lose track of them. Cloud storage should solve this problem. Then I would be more willing to buy Hi res tracks if they included back up in the cloud after purchase like Amazon now offers.
I'm just getting into high-res digital. The high-res version of Nirvana's Nevermind sounds great!