[iqak]

I am looking to find some excellent album/cd music suggestions with which
to test headphones and amplifiers.
 
I have graduated through a good portion of the Shure series, landing finally
on the new SE846's. These have me re-experiencing (and re-ripping) my music
collection.
 
As a product of the 60's (1962) I tend to gravitate to the following:
Rush (La Villa Strangiato)
Early Aerosmith
Electric Light Orchestra
Queen (Who needs you, News of the World)
Beatles
Doobie Brothers
Eagles
Pink Floyd
Yes
AC/DC
Lynyrd Skynyrd
Rolling Stones
Steely Dan
 
I tend to love Songs with a good mix of Slow quiet portions that Get Quicker
and/or louder as the song progresses.
I also love instrumentals and technical solos. 
 
As you might expect, I've had the time to complete my collection of
most of the above artists. Not expecting much new material from them either.
 
So:
If anyone has any CD suggestions, I'm all ears >8^O

 

[Mr Geek]

Im in a similar situation (looking for good stuff to play) 
 
I just downloaded the The Ultimate Headphone Demonstration Disc from HD Tracks and from the brief listen it seems quite good for testing your kit out.

 

[cel4145]

Best thing to do is use a wide variety of music from the genres you like to listen to. After all, what matters most is how the music you like sounds

 

[Me x3]

Hi,
 
There's a DVD-A from The Beatles' Love album that sounds amazing. (I think it was released in 2006)
 
Edit: Yes, 2006
http://dr.loudness-war.info/album/view/4857

 

[SauceBoss]

Machine Head- Unto The Locust Album
Recorded pretty good for metal, packs a punch and will push headphones to their limits,  also it have wide scene ad air.

 

[MattTCG]

It all comes down to the kind of music you like. I tend to pick good recording with nice mids/vocals, extended bass with texture and in my preferred genre. 

 

[Claritas]

Whatever you know best. I test with my favorites subgenres first (organ, piano, and countertenor).

 

[iqak]

Essentially this is to become a shopping list for me when I pop into
the Local CD store (Dimple Records).
 
I am searching as much for New Artists to expand my horizons /
collection as I am for demonstrating hardware.
 
I've ordered a couple of Dr. Chesky's disks, that I hope to use
mostly for demonstrations.
 
 
If you have a CD that you could not imagine living without, I'd be
interested to know what those suggestions were.

 

[Claritas]

Bach. The Goldberg Variations. Glenn Gould. CBS/Sony, 1981 (digital version).

 

[MattTCG]

There is so much great much to test from, you can't go wrong. Pick something you like. 

 

[AnalogSavior]

I personally like to use a classical CD that I'm very familiar with to judge gear.  That and the Rebecca Pidgeon The Raven, as it is an outstandingly produced album.

 

[MattTCG]

The Raven is one of my favorites also.

 

[metal571]

The Beatles - Abbey Road (2009 Remaster) will be excellent for you. Very high quality recorded album.

 

[iqak]

Abbey Road is absolutely my favorite album, hands down.
Everyone at the top of their game.

 <-Ringo Banging his kit.
 
Still watching everyone's suggestions.
Need help with the Classical music.
I guess I'm still on this fence and find it difficult to locate recordings
that relate to me.
I'll give Rebecca Pidgeon The Raven a try.

 

[AnalogSavior]

If you want a recommendation for some classical, I personally like Tchaikovsky's 1st Piano Concerto.  My favorite version is performed Karajan and Kissin
 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ybymtzye8Ng
 
http://www.amazon.com/Tchaikovsky-Piano-Concerto-no-1/dp/B000001GAR/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1398896195&sr=8-2&keywords=tchaikovsky+karajan+piano
 
Don't know how it compares production wise, but I love the performance.