So I can keep them in one place - and refer to a list (by link) with my reviews, I've compiled a list of the test tracks I use. Some are definitely for a set purpose (eg Amber Rubarth's Binaural "Tundra" for imaging and sound-stage), whilst others are simply tracks I know well - and use so that I can cross check headphones for a wide range of suitability across genres. Still others are there simply because they reflect my eclectic taste in music
All of the music listed I do actually own - most on CD, converted to FLAC.
Over time I'll try and keep the list updated - and also endeavour to explain why I use some of the individual tracks.
All of the music listed I do actually own - most on CD, converted to FLAC.
Over time I'll try and keep the list updated - and also endeavour to explain why I use some of the individual tracks.
| Genre | Artist | Album | Song Title |
| Rock | 3 Doors Down | Away From The Sun | Away From The Sun |
| Rock | 10CC | Very Best of 10CC | Art For Art’s Sake |
| Pop/Soul | Adele | Live at the Royal Albert Hall | Turning Tables |
| Folk | Agnes Obel | Aventine | Aventine |
| Bluegrass | Alison Kraus & Union Station | Paper Airplane | Dust Bowl Children |
| Rock | Alter Bridge | One Day Remains | Broken Wings |
| Binaural | Amber Rubarth | Seasons From The 17th Ward | Tundra |
| Soul | Amy Winehouse | Back To Black | You Know I’m No Good |
| Indie Acoustic | Angus & Julia Stone | Down The Way | For You |
| Blues Rock | Beth Hart | Live At Paradiso | Lifts You Up |
| Alt Rock | Breaking Benjamin | Shallow Bay | The Diary Of Jane |
| Pop | Christina Perri | Head or Heart | Human |
| World | Christopher Tin | Calling All Dawns | Baba Yetu |
| Alt Rock | Coldplay | X&Y | Speed Of Sound |
| Jazz | Diana Krall | The Girl In the Other Room | Love Me Like A Man |
| Rock | Dire Straits | Private Investigation | Sultans Of Swing |
| Classic Rock | Eagles | Hell Freezes Over | Hotel California |
| Rap/Hip-hop | Eminem | Curtain Call | Lose Yourself |
| Alternative | Feist | Metals | The Bad In Each Other |
| Pop/Rock | Florence & The Machine | Between Two Lungs | Howl |
| Soul | Gabriella Cilmi | Lessons To Be Learned | Safer |
| Rock | Green Day | American Idiot | Boulevard Of Broken Dreams |
| OST | Hans Zimmer | Inception OST | Dream Within A Dream |
| Classic Rock | Jethro Tull | Aqualung | Locomotive Breath |
| Blues | Jo Bonamassa | Live From Nowhere In Particular | India / Mountain Time |
| Electronic | Lindsay Stirling | Lindsay Stirling | Electric Daisy Violin |
| Trip Hop | Little Dragon | Ritual Union | Little Man |
| Pop | Lorde | Pure Heroine | Royals |
| Folk | Loreena McKennitt | Live In Paris & Toronto | Dante’s Prayer |
| Opera | Luciano Pavarotti | The Ultimate Collection | Nessun Dorma |
| Blues Rock | Mark Lanegan Band | Blues Funeral | Bleeding Muddy Waters |
| Opera | Netrebko / Garanca | The Opera Gala | Flower Duet (Lakme) |
| Acoustic | Nils Lofgren | Acoustic Live | Keith Don’t Go |
| Jazz / Pop | Norah Jones | The Fall | Light As A Feather |
| Grunge/Alternative | Pearl Jam | Rearview Mirror | Elderly Woman Behind The Counter .... |
| Prog Rock | Pink Floyd | Dark Side Of The Moon | Money |
| Prog Rock | Porcupine Tree | In Absentia | Trains |
| Jazz Fusion | Portico Quartet | Portico Quartet | Ruins |
| Dubstep / World | Salmonella Dub | Feel the Seasons Change | Tui Dub |
| Folk | Sarah Jarosz | Build Me Up From Bones | Mile On the Moon |
| Acoustic Rock | Seether | One Cold Night | Immortality |
| Reggae | State Radio | Us Against The Crown | Right me Up |
| Jazz Rock | Steely Dan | Goucho | Goucho |
| Alt Rock | The Cranberries | Bury The Hatchet | Shattered |
| Electronic | The Flashbulb | Reunion | God Is Speaking |
| Classical | Wilhelm Kempf | Beethoven Piano Sonatas | Moonlight Sonata (1&3) |
| Indie Acoustic | Yesper | Cannibal King | Cannibal King |
| Classical (modern) | Zoe Keating | Into The Trees | Escape Artist |
| Classical | Julia Fischer | Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto in D | OP 35 1st Movement |
| Classical | Anne Sophie Mutter, Trondheim Soloists | Vivaldi 4 Seasons | Op.8, No.1, R.269 "La Primavera" - 1. Allegro |
| Jazz | Miles Davis | Kind Of Blue | So What |
| Indie Pop | Wildlight | [size=xx-small]Hers Was A Thunder[/size] | Dawn To Flight |
| Indie Rock | Band of Horses | Cease To Begin | Is There A Ghost |
| Modern Funk | Sola Rosa | Solarized : Refreshed | Don't Leave Home |
| Pop | Amanda Marshall | Amanda Marshall | Let It Rain |
