[yonson]

Soooo.... am I the only one waiting on a Super Aegir? I'll take a mono amp doing 100W into 8ohms and 200W into 4. I mean, more would be better but...$$$.

I am... But unfortunately what I was hoping might make it out in 2021 will probably be '22 or even '23 now, if ever

I doubt we'll get one that is going to be 4 ohm mono stable without going into overcurrent, I'd be happy with close to Vidar power, maybe 75/150/300, but that would most likely require it to be double the size it is now...

 

[RickB]

I agree to an extent. DR sores aren't everything, and albums with lower DR scores can still sound good—despite (and never by virtue of) overcompression.

However, that doesn't really remove all the side effects of over compression, including clipping distortion, time-domain distortion, listening fatigue (it's the aural equivalent of reading a text in all caps), lack of punch (especially in the drums) and shifts toward a less realistic tone for a number of instruments. No matter how much you enjoy an album despite its low DR scores—if its DR score were higher, all else being equal, it would sound better.

I probably don't know enough about it, but I have found albums with good dynamic range to actually be annoying because I have to keep adjusting the volume when the music moves from the quiet parts to the loud parts. The quiet parts are hard to hear with the ambient noise in my environment, and the music then gets too loud when it switches to the loud parts.

 

[RickB]

I swear some sound like up sampled MP3’s.

They may actually be a lossy mastered recording.

 

[liamo]

True.

 

[ev666il]

I probably don't know enough about it, but I have found albums with good dynamic range to actually be annoying because I have to keep adjusting the volume when the music moves from the quiet parts to the loud parts. The quiet parts are hard to hear with the ambient noise in my environment, and the music then gets too loud when it switches to the loud parts.

I think there are two considerations to make here. The first is that what is commonly referred to as Dynamic Range or DR—and is measured via tools like the TT DR Meter, giving the scores shown in the database—is actually a measure of the Peak-to-Loudness ratio (also known as Crest Factor.) It tells you how much difference there is between the average RMS level of the song and its loudest peaks (such as a snare drum hit, for example.)

Dynamic Range is, in that case, a misnomer likely adopted for its immediacy, as it would make it easier to spread the word about the Loudness War.

What you are referring to seems more like true Dynamic Range, defined as the difference in sound pressure between the loudest and softest moments of a piece of music. It varies wildly across songs and genres, and I have little experience of songs with a very high dynamic range as defined in this paragraph.

The second consideration is that compressing the dynamic range of a piece of music is something most CD, DVD, and BD players can do (it’s usually called “night mode” or something like that.) There is no need to do that in the mixing or mastering phase, thus depriving the end user of the option to experience high or low dynamic range.

That said, the contrast between soft and loud moments is often a huge part of what makes a piece of music engaging for me (within the limits of the genres I listen to, which aren’t very dynamic.)

 

[A Jedi]

I doubt we'll get one that is going to be 4 ohm mono stable without going into overcurrent...

It would have no problem if it's built as a mono (single channel) amp.

 

[Balthazar B]

It would have no problem if it's built as a mono (single channel) amp.

Perhaps a Schiit Maegir?

Would think there should be a decent market for such a beast (well, pair of beasts). Stereophile would cream their pants.

 

[tincanear]

I probably don't know enough about it, but I have found albums with good dynamic range to actually be annoying because I have to keep adjusting the volume when the music moves from the quiet parts to the loud parts. The quiet parts are hard to hear with the ambient noise in my environment, and the music then gets too loud when it switches to the loud parts.

for a higher ambient noise environment, try DCA Aeon 2 Closed headphones (with 15% COVID-19-style-discount thru jun 30th). disclaimer: I am not affiliated with DCA, other than being a customer.

added: or, for a cheaper alternative, try the "night mode" on CD/DVD/Blu-Ray players as the other recent post just mentioned.

 

[Les Strat]

I started buying used CD's for this exact reason and ZZ Top's Trace Hombres and Eliminator were two recent editions. I thought I was covered with the Chrome, Smoke & BBQ compilation but decided I liked the original releases better. They aren't as compressed as remasters or reissues and I can listen to them without getting fatigued, which for me shows up as getting slightly irritated the longer I listen, especially to rock guitar. The Modi Multibit, Eitr and Roon combo really make 44/16 sound come alive. I'm saving lots of money on high res albums and using it to buy as many used CD's as I can to fill out the holes in my collection.

I am also still buying used CDs, despite having Qobuz, and, for now, no CD Transport......
This evening I had a listen to two Qobuz versions of ZZ Top's Brown Sugar from their first album- the 'Studio Masters Edition' ( High Res) and the 'CD- FLAC 16/44.1' version.
I agree with Roy G.Biv; the Studio Masters version sounds awful!
In addition to the Giles Martin Beatles remix/remasters, some other remastered albums which I have preferred to the originals, were done by Steve Wilson. His remastered version of Jethro Tull's Aqualung sounds fantastic ( in my opinion). I had the original on vinyl and first issue CD. The Steve Wilson version is my favourite by a long way.
I am less convinced by the benefits of Hi Res.

 

[earnmyturns]

Guess Where?

That's a nice neighborhood in SLC, lots of good food and drink nearby, good road access to Alta and Snowbird

 

[EELawson]

Soooo.... am I the only one waiting on a Super Aegir? I'll take a mono amp doing 100W into 8ohms and 200W into 4. I mean, more would be better but...$$$.

Just buy a pair. Plenty of power. They sound great as monoblocks.

 

[yonson]

It would have no problem if it's built as a mono (single channel) amp.

True, While I would jump on them with the quickness, I HIGHLY doubt Schiit is going to build dedicated monoblocks only though, however a higher power (probably double Aegir price) stereo amp probably isn't out of the question.

Just buy a pair. Plenty of power. They sound great as monoblocks.

Unless you have inefficient 4 ohm speakers, then even as monoblocks they don't have a chance of driving them at levels most would listen at without them going into over-current protection...

 

[Bazile]

Mike, in the other thread, mentions he likes unison out to unison in to move digital data now. Since we're talking new product requests, would you folks consider marketing a computer card with an unison out on it? Most of my Cd's are already ripped. I'd need this card much more than I need a transport.

 

[Cstmar01]

I am... But unfortunately what I was hoping might make it out in 2021 will probably be '22 or even '23 now, if ever

I doubt we'll get one that is going to be 4 ohm mono stable without going into overcurrent, I'd be happy with close to Vidar power, maybe 75/150/300, but that would most likely require it to be double the size it is now...

I’d be down for this. Something that could run 4 ohm non efficient speakers would be amazing.

 

[Mike-WI]

Mike, in the other thread, mentions he likes unison out to unison in to move digital data now. Since we're talking new product requests, would you folks consider marketing a computer card with an unison out on it? Most of my Cd's are already ripped. I'd need this card much more than I need a transport.

I think there would be a market.
I haven't researched recently, but most of the computer audio cards don't seem very updated -- especially compared with video cards.