[longbowbbs]

Quote:

Erm.. I'm thinking about getting a new amp for me LCD2's. Has anyone got any recommendations?

 
Decware Taboo....Fantastic....
 
http://www.decware.com/newsite/TABOO.htm

 

[MorbidToaster]

Do you only drink the finest wines and smoke cuban cigars too? Pretentious much? Jeez.
 
I'll of course agree that I'd take music like this over headphones if not for proper dynamic range alone. 
 
Also, you do realize that the way this post is written makes you sound more like a hipster, right? It's a little ridiculous to talk down to someone that goes to see bands...
 
Why the hell did you call me a hipster, now that we're on the subject? 
 
Quote:

I don't watch "bands", I listen to symphony orchestras and chamber music or piano recitals, etc...where the are no "crowds", just people who silently take in the magic that no headphone can do real justice to.

But, this is something a hipster could never in a lifetime understand.

 

[Man7rah]

So, from what I'm seeing here in the last few pages, there are literally noone that has new experience/info about any combinations as just about EVERY good one has been exhausted to death? no?

 

[JamesHuntington]

As a non professional listener of classical music, I have to guess that there is a true expert in control of every mix/produced album ever made who gives a thumbs up to the final product. Why is that? Because you can only be in one place at one time in a concert hall. If you watch the same concert from two different angles/places you will get a different perspectives. It kinda reminds me of a guy I read on another thread that wanted technology to progress to the point where he could enjoy a trip to the ocean in his living room. Nature is impossible to recreate perfectly except by nature itself. Such as sex, there's smells and sensations you can't enjoy with only one or two senses. Eyes and ears only do what they do; and people are at most a visual species. Maybe some stax electrostats might be better than orthos for some things, but my main thought holds if you consider professionally mixed albums and hearing the full experience. I'm not saying you get everything on headphones that you get live. But I would say that what a recording takes away from the live performance is purposeful and is done for better sound quality. So, it's supposed to sound better. IMO it does  

 

[Argo Duck]

^ I suggest the recording is another of the 'perspectives' you mention.

What bothers me is it's presumably (or necessarily) not the same perspective the musicians - who shape the performance - hear. So the audience, musicians, and recording engineers hear different versions of the same event.

What's "best" then? Does it, for example, 'improve' a painting to view it from a different angle than the painter painted it?

Or in other words - what do we mean by a musical event, and what are we trying to recreate with our audio systems? The excitement and discovery the audience felt (or didn't), such as Chris J and others mentioned a page back? What the musicians experienced? The abstract idea embodied in the musical notes, with the musicians merely there to reproduce them? Or something else?

Dunno. Just thinking out loud here...carry on.

 

[TGTBATQ]

So, I finally ordered my Lyr(GE 6BZ7/6BQ7A tubes) and plugged it up using my audio-gd NFB15.1 as a DAC, holy crap, the difference is absolutely breathtaking!
Highly recommended on my end.

 

[dagothur]

Quote:

So, from what I'm seeing here in the last few pages, there are literally noone that has new experience/info about any combinations as just about EVERY good one has been exhausted to death? no?

Well, I've still got my NFB, and the balanced from that is pretty darn good.  I can run my Q701s and LCD-2s through a splitter run single ended without much strain on the unit.

 

[Rawrbington]

Quote:

Do you only drink the finest wines and smoke cuban cigars too? Pretentious much? Jeez.
 
I'll of course agree that I'd take music like this over headphones if not for proper dynamic range alone. 
 
Also, you do realize that the way this post is written makes you sound more like a hipster, right? It's a little ridiculous to talk down to someone that goes to see bands...
 
Why the hell did you call me a hipster, now that we're on the subject? 
 

cause you're a hipster.
 
Im thinking he's trying to produce a reaction.
But who knows.
Just saw a live band last night.
It was fantastic.
And the human interaction, the smells, the beer, the beer spilt on my shirt, the random odor of marijuana, the drunk girl falling over, all of it... was awesome
 
Love the LCD2
But they can't replicate that.
And neither can a piano recital lol

 

[Darkbeat]

Quote:

Erm.. I'm thinking about getting a new amp for me LCD2's. Has anyone got any recommendations?

 
You know what they say bro, great minds think alike. Ours do too. 

 
 
I'm thinking about getting a Mjolnir, seems to compliment the Gungnir really well and I like a punchy/dynamic sound sig. Also on the potentials list is the V200 and maybe the Soloist. Tube rolling sounds like far too much effort and time that could be spent cleaning my headphones instead.

 

[LugBug1]

Quote:

 
You know what they say bro, great minds think alike. Ours do too. 

 
 
I'm thinking about getting a Mjolnir, seems to compliment the Gungnir really well and I like a punchy/dynamic sound sig. Also on the potentials list is the V200 and maybe the Soloist. Tube rolling sounds like far too much effort and time that could be spent cleaning my headphones instead.

Your not wrong there bro!
 
Both of them are still a bit out of financial reach for me at the mo... But if it was me I'd go with the Schitt.
I've always got two rigs running, one bedside and one in the living area. I'm content with my bedside one (Rdac and Necosoundlab v2.1). But its my "big" rig that I'm looking to improve on, and thats the C2.2 and company (Arcam black box, Vdac, modded Beresford 7510) Just need to get settled with a dac that hits the spot first then I'll be looking for a better amp. I still really like the C2, It's got such a musical presentation, very refined and smooth. I'm thinking that if I can find a more neutral and dynamic dac then I'd be happier. After all, the best amp in the world will only sound as good as the source..

 

[Poladise]

Quote:

So, from what I'm seeing here in the last few pages, there are literally noone that has new experience/info about any combinations as just about EVERY good one has been exhausted to death? no?

Well i had a home demo of the Burson Soloist, RWA Corvina and V200. Two weeks for each.
I was least impressed with the V200, because although it had the most presence and vividness, it sounded too thick and undetailed at times with a kind of hardness and almost glassy quality to it.
 
The Soloist had superior clarity and made to V200 sound muddy by comparison, but for me the Soloist lacked some "natural colour". A bit pale sounding.
 
The Corvina seemed to have just as much clarity / detail, but had that slight colour and sweetness I like. It was my favourite by far. The only problem was it sounded crap at higher volume with my lcd-2 r2 (had the single ended version). Would love to hear the balanced version.
 
For me its either going to be the new Decware Taboo MK III coming in spring or the new RWA Cassabria that replaced the Corvina. I guess this will be an improvement over the amp section of a balanced Isabellina. I'm surprised it hasnt been mentioned it on headfi yet.

 

[Asr]

Ok I'll write something on the topic subject: I recommend the HeadAmp GS-X for the LCD-2, especially in balanced mode. IMO, balanced mode kicks things up a notch on the Audeze headphones. I'd expect the GS-X MKII to be even better, but that's just a guess.
 
Quote:

Polar opposite here,
 
No classical recording whatsoever of any vintage or recording technique comes even close to the sound of the Boston Symphony Orchestra live.
 
It ain't about no fancy 3D soundstaging, it's all about this intangible, very real, very honest, very organic, very beautiful presence that a live orchestra has.

 
Nothing in my post was meant to discount anything from the experience of seeing a live orchestra. I could just as easily make a counter-argument that a live orchestra is the ideal way to listen to classical, if I wanted to.

 
But to counter your argument, the sound of any live orchestra is completely dependent on both the acoustics of a concert hall, and on the seat location, which means that unless you pay for the best seats in the house, the acoustics will more than likely be far from ideal. Listening to a recording at home can pretty much equalize that factor. I've been to lots of classical concerts myself, in which my seat location essentially sucked because it was too far away, and it took away from my enjoyment of the music's sound (not loud enough, lack of treble due to distance, etc).
 
And no offense but I have to laugh at your "intangible, very real, very honest, very organic, very beautiful presence" comment. I actually got exactly that from my Stax OII and BHSE on various recordings, and never got that feeling from any other headphones. The best-amped LCD-2 that I had (out of a B22) wasn't even remotely close. The OII/BHSE made classical music (and other genres) literally sound real. If I had to pick between a classical CD on the OII/BHSE and going to a concert for the "sound quality" alone, I'd go with the CD. The only reason I'd pick a concert would be to see a famous musician on tour, or if the work being performed was a particular favorite of mine, or if the orchestra was an especially good one. Having heard a fair number of different orchestras, I'd definitely say that not all of them are necessarily that good.

The best local one I've heard is the Colorado Symphony Orchestra; I've also heard NYC's, Chicago's, and San Francisco's before. Some day I'd love to see & hear the Vienna Philharmonic.

 

[longbowbbs]

I have had the privilege of attending the Sydney Opera house....Superb....Tough to carry around though. For me, I am glad I have the opportunity to do both....

 

[Chris J]

Quote:

 
Nothing in my post was meant to discount anything from the experience of seeing a live orchestra. I could just as easily make a counter-argument that a live orchestra is the ideal way to listen to classical, if I wanted to.

 
But to counter your argument, the sound of any live orchestra is completely dependent on both the acoustics of a concert hall, and on the seat location, which means that unless you pay for the best seats in the house, the acoustics will more than likely be far from ideal. Listening to a recording at home can pretty much equalize that factor. I've been to lots of classical concerts myself, in which my seat location essentially sucked because it was too far away, and it took away from my enjoyment of the music's sound (not loud enough, lack of treble due to distance, etc).
 
And no offense but I have to laugh at your "intangible, very real, very honest, very organic, very beautiful presence" comment. I actually got exactly that from my Stax OII and BHSE on various recordings, and never got that feeling from any other headphones. The best-amped LCD-2 that I had (out of a B22) wasn't even remotely close. The OII/BHSE made classical music (and other genres) literally sound real. If I had to pick between a classical CD on the OII/BHSE and going to a concert for the "sound quality" alone, I'd go with the CD. The only reason I'd pick a concert would be to see a famous musician on tour, or if the work being performed was a particular favorite of mine, or if the orchestra was an especially good one. Having heard a fair number of different orchestras, I'd definitely say that not all of them are necessarily that good.

The best local one I've heard is the Colorado Symphony Orchestra; I've also heard NYC's, Chicago's, and San Francisco's before. Some day I'd love to see & hear the Vienna Philharmonic.

 
No point in continuing this, I almost pity you.
And that's the nicest thing I can think of to say.
Although I will agree, I have sat in my share of less than optimal seats.

 

[Chris J]

Quote:

^ I suggest the recording is another of the 'perspectives' you mention.

What bothers me is it's presumably (or necessarily) not the same perspective the musicians - who shape the performance - hear. So the audience, musicians, and recording engineers hear different versions of the same event.

What's "best" then? Does it, for example, 'improve' a painting to view it from a different angle than the painter painted it?

Or in other words - what do we mean by a musical event, and what are we trying to recreate with our audio systems? The excitement and discovery the audience felt (or didn't), such as Chris J and others mentioned a page back? What the musicians experienced? The abstract idea embodied in the musical notes, with the musicians merely there to reproduce them? Or something else?

Dunno. Just thinking out loud here...carry on.

 
Just my two cents here,
but at the end of the day, even a symphony orchestra is putting on a show.
IMHO, the point of that particular show is for the audience to hear the performance as best they can.
The performance is not for the musicians or the conductor, it is for the audience.
Which is what I think Aidee is alluding to.
And if the musicians and the conductor are enjoying the show and the audience is not, then the musicians and conductor are not projecting the essence of the performance.
Anything else borders on self indulgence.
 
Unfortunately, the musicians and conductor are also at the mercy of the venue.
So if the acoustics of the hall are "not so good", then the show suffers accordingly.
 
So what is a proper perspective for an orchestral performance?
There are two "proper" perspectives:
in a live performance - the audience
for a recording - the perspective of the microphones, i.e. the perspective which is optimum for the placement of the microphones, and since the microphone is not a perfect analog of the human ear, the optimum place for microphone placement will not be the physical perspective of the audience.
Pull the microphones too far back and the sound becomes too reverberant. Too close and it gets too dry.
 
In a rock or pop concert, the musicians perspective cannot be trusted or employed.
For example, from the perspective of the drummer the show sounds like (1) a drumset and (2) a monitor which is probably dominated by bass guitar, rhythm guitar and vocals and (3) any remaining ambient sound/noise.