[Kierkes]

Just did the Golden Ears Challenge myself. Those mp3 artifacts are a PITA. And I had trouble with the high cut until I started listening to the hi-hats instead of the vocals.

 

[Mike F]

Much of the Golden Ears Challenge is very easy, especially the first few levels of course, but some of it will be a challenge to most.
 
I think that the mp3 artifacts test shows that the current trend for hi/res files is a white elephant. The importance of recording quality far outweighs that of resolution! I'd be very surprised if anyone could have reliably identified the differences between tracks on that test if they had used 16/44.1 and 24/192.

 

[starfly]

  Much of the Golden Ears Challenge is very easy, especially the first few levels of course, but some of it will be a challenge to most.
 
I think that the mp3 artifacts test shows that the current trend for hi/res files is a white elephant. The importance of recording quality far outweighs that of resolution! I'd be very surprised if anyone could have reliably identified the differences between tracks on that test if they had used 16/44.1 and 24/192.

I certainly can't hear the difference between 16/44 and 24/192. And am always skeptical of people who can, as it's more likely a placebo effect than anything else.
 
I also have a hard time hearing the difference between 320 kbps MP3 and FLAC ripped straight from a CD. Perhaps my ears have suffered too much damage already, eventhough I'm in my early 30's (went to too many parties with very loud music when I was younger). I can hear an obvious difference between 128 kbps and 320 kbps MP3 though.
 
And by the way, those ATC speakers you have are awesome!! I'd like to have a pair of those someday. Have heard very good things about ATC. They build everything themselves too, from the drivers to the cabinets.

 

[groovyd]

my experience with bit rate and precision is that the bulk of the difference is really in higher bitrate stuff that was recorded and mastered more carefully, and sometimes this is the case but not always.  what i mean is if i recorded and mixed to the higher bitrates and precision most likely i payed more attention to details during the process, levels, quality of recording equipment, etc.  if i take a track that was recorded and mastered to be 44/16 then resampling it 10 years later to upgrade sell usually does not improve the sound over the original.
 
so what am i saying? just that the attention to detail during the recording and mastering is really what matters most and sometimes people that do this targeting higher bitrates to begin with are all around more careful about the quality of their recording, but putting lipstick on a pig doesn't make it any prettier.

 

[Soundsgoodtome]

A bit of derailment but I've purchased Chesky albums both HD-Tracks and in CD. Their mastering seems to be the same on both formats and there is no audible difference between the two. That's on the HE560 and MDR-7520 running ~1kbps FLAC ripped via EAC. Another case of no difference in mastering but shows the other way around (bad quality). The new Michael Jackson Xscape album, audible distortions on both formats.

Sometimes HDtracks tells up front that a remaster was done usually on old classicals and symphony, even boasts the equipment used to re-do mastering. Most of the time they don't say there was any remastering done (although there was) and just say "our HD-tracks has warmth."

 

[groovyd]

the only hd tracks i audibly noticed as something 'better' where those that were originally recorded at that higher standard and specifically for the purpose of providing the highest quality of recording.

 

[starfly]

So today I was at RMAF/Can-Jam and I got to listen to the new Sony Z7, which also uses LCP drivers just like the 7520, except these are 70mm and aluminium coated. The sound is really good, similar almost to the 7520, although it seemed that the mids were slightly more forward than the 7520. The bass was still very nice and textured like on the 7520. Highs about similar as well.
 
Comfort wise it's definitely a step up from a stock 7520, but I can't say anything about longer listening sessions, only spent about 10 mins with them.
 
Those were my quick impressions of the Z7.

 

[john57]

Starfly
 
Thanks for your report and since I was only able to go the the RMAF on Friday. Sony did not have the Z7 on that day and will not tell me more. Your impression sort of matches my guess on the SQ of the  Z7 Thanks.

 

[StudioSound]

If it's handled correctly, there shouldn't be a difference between 44.1kHz sampling and 192kHz or anything else.
Most humans cannot hear above 20kHz, few adults can hear anywhere close to 20kHz.
A 44.1kHz track can perfectly reproduce all signals up to 20kHz.

Most microphones aren't even capturing anything high enough in frequency to require 192kHz sampling.
If the signal is not properly bandlimited though, there is the potential for aliasing in a 44.1kHz file which would not be present at a higher sample rate.

There is also theoretically ringing with 44.1kHz sampling but it should be at such a low level that it is completely inaudible with music.
Another issue is that trying to reproduce frequencies outside of the audible range can actually result in greater distortion within the audible range, which is actually one reason to avoid it or filter it out.

16-bit vs 24-bit is a similar story. Under most conditions, a properly dithered 16-bit file should sound identical to a 24-bit one.
At very loud volumes there is potentially a little hiss in the background with 16-bit tracks that won't be there with 24-bit.
If the dithering is not performed correctly though, there can be a noticeable difference between 16 and 24-bit aside from the noise floor, since the 16-bit file may have more distortion than 24-bit.


All else being equal, I will take the "HD" version of a track if it's the master, since I know that everything on my end will reproduce it correctly.
I simply prefer this because I don't know whether the 16/44 or 24/44 version of the track was produced correctly or not.
I would not pay a significant premium for the HD version of a track though.

 

[Soundsgoodtome]

  So today I was at RMAF/Can-Jam and I got to listen to the new Sony Z7, which also uses LCP drivers just like the 7520, except these are 70mm and aluminium coated. The sound is really good, similar almost to the 7520, although it seemed that the mids were slightly more forward than the 7520. The bass was still very nice and textured like on the 7520. Highs about similar as well.
 
Comfort wise it's definitely a step up from a stock 7520, but I can't say anything about longer listening sessions, only spent about 10 mins with them.
 
Those were my quick impressions of the Z7.

 
Considering novelty, SQ, build, etc would you say the Z7 is worth 2x the price? I know that's a highly subjective question but you know what I'm asking.

 

[starfly]

   
Considering novelty, SQ, build, etc would you say the Z7 is worth 2x the price? I know that's a highly subjective question but you know what I'm asking.

I would need to spend more time with them to make a statement like that. 10 mins at a noisy trade show isn't the best place to really get to know a new piece of audio gear. I would need to listen to it for a few hours in a quiet and relaxed environment. But if you already have the 7520, maybe not worth the upgrade as the 7520 are very very very good headphones, especially considering the price.

 

[Brazenways]

Starfly, from a fellow 7520'er, thanks for sharing your experiences with the new Sony phones. Still can't wait to hear them myself.

 

[Soundsgoodtome]

  I would need to spend more time with them to make a statement like that. 10 mins at a noisy trade show isn't the best place to really get to know a new piece of audio gear. I would need to listen to it for a few hours in a quiet and relaxed environment. But if you already have the 7520, maybe not worth the upgrade as the 7520 are very very very good headphones, especially considering the price.

That was my thinking. Really to get a significant upgrade from the 7520 IMO would be to go to orthomagnetic (HE560 or similar) or jump up to an HD800.

 

[john57]

  I would need to spend more time with them to make a statement like that. 10 mins at a noisy trade show isn't the best place to really get to know a new piece of audio gear. I would need to listen to it for a few hours in a quiet and relaxed environment. But if you already have the 7520, maybe not worth the upgrade as the 7520 are very very very good headphones, especially considering the price.

That is the impression I am getting from you and since I have the 7520 which is very very good in its right. It seems that the Z7 shares alot with the "house sound" of the 7520. I think it just makes more sense trying the HE-560 which is not bad but I ended up with the Alpha Prime which is in a different league from anything that Sony has to offer. Even though the Alpha Prime cost more it does everything more right than any other headphone I have tried. You can read more in the Alpha Prime impression thread for more details. I will still keep the 7520 which is still a good headphone but I am glad in a way that the Z7 was a no show on Friday at RMAF forcing me to explore more and I ended up with the Alpha Prime with its wonderful soundstage presentation.

 

[starfly]

  That is the impression I am getting from you and since I have the 7520 which is very very good in its right. It seems that the Z7 shares alot with the "house sound" of the 7520. I think it just makes more sense trying the HE-560 which is not bad but I ended up with the Alpha Prime which is in a different league from anything that Sony has to offer. Even though the Alpha Prime cost more it does everything more right than any other headphone I have tried. You can read more in the Alpha Prime impression thread for more details. I will still keep the 7520 which is still a good headphone but I am glad in a way that the Z7 was a no show on Friday at RMAF forcing me to explore more and I ended up with the Alpha Prime with its wonderful soundstage presentation.

Yeah, I actually gave the HE-560 a good listen myself and was blown away by how good it sounded. A really great headphone throughout the whole frequency range. It did nothing wrong for me. Either way, if I get another full-size can, it'll probably be an open can, not a closed one. And the HE-560 is definitely on my list for that. They were also super comfortable.
 
The Alpha Prime I also listened to, but I didn't give it a very detailed listening session as I was a bit distracted and unfocused while listening to them.