It is DEVO!
De-evolution of technology. They used to hang mics carefully positioned in the studio… now everything is digital into Pro-Tools… need reverb? Plug in. Need that analog sound? Plug in.
Peace
Bruce in Philly
Recording technology has always been far ahead of playback.
And remains so.
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Pink Floyd. Welcome to the machine has highs, lows imaging and separation all in one track
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Multitrack recording
One Microphone recording
https://www.soundliaison.com/
Another superb review of one the ''One Microphone" recordings from the little Amsterdam boutigue label;
www.soundliaison.com
''Carmen Gomes: Don’t You Cry (Sound Liaison) Redbook CD at carmengomes.bandcamp.com
'‘Many musicians can play jazz and blues, but few can sing the blues with total conviction and emotional authenticity.
Dutch singer-songwriter Carmen Gomes is one of those few.
A father from the Mediterranean region endowed Carmen Gomes not only with a Spanish-sounding name, but by her own description, with a Mediterranean temperament. At the margins of the culture, the world’s differences meet; for Carmen Gomes, the language that gave her freedom of expression was not her native Dutch, but English; and the mode that encouraged her creativity was American jazz and blues. With a dozen previous albums in her catalogue, this accomplished singer, songwriter, teacher and vocal coach distills more than two decades of live performance and recording experience into “Don’t You Cry”, an hour of compelling jazz vocal music.
The selection and sequencing of the songs tells the story of a woman’s growing recognition that she must throw off the chains of love—false illusions, fears and insecurities—before she can find a more honest way of loving. From the opening “Unchain My Heart”, a 1963 hit for Ray Charles, through two songs associated with the great Nina Simone, “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” and Simone’s own assertion of female sensuality “Do I Move You”, with stops along the way in the Deep South of the songwriter’s imagination (Ira and George Gershwin’s “Summertime”) and the historical reality (“How Long”, credited to Leroy Carr, originally written by blueswoman Ida Cox), the listener finally arrives at Gomes’ original “As I Do.” It’s a one-hour trip from the depths of love’s oppression to the renewed hope for a relationship between equal partners, cast in the languorous mode of sultry jazz singing and subtle instrumental accompaniment.
Gomes’ stylistic technique extends past the conventions of behind-the-beat phrasing. Listen to how she teases out the syllables, as if the lyrics themselves were musical notes, not just words on a page. On “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood”, she prolongs the vowel sounds through several shades of inflection. With her flawless pitch, the effect is entrancing. You might hear echoes of Billie Holliday, but her vocal sound has developed well beyond imitation to distinctive individuality.
The ensemble Carmen Gomes, Inc. is more than a singer and a backing group. Bassist Peter Bjørnild, whose session notes are posted on the Sound Liaison website, produced the record and arranged the songs in collaboration with Gomes, guitarist Folker Tettero and drummer Bert Kamsteeg. Tettero plays an archtop semi-hollow body guitar that has a warm timbre; his stylistic ears are well-tuned to blues idiom, especially the minor-key blues of the mid-1960s. Kamsteeg uses brushes throughout, and keeps superb time without ever overpowering the singer or other players. In bassist Peter Bjørnild, Gomes has found the deep instrumental ‘voice’ that complements her vocals, the glove that perfectly fits the hand. Their musical partnership is longstanding, and the trust that only years can bring is clearly in evidence.
The decision to record with a single-point stereo microphone came about after the group had already finished a recording session done with conventional multi-mic technique. The late delivery of a Josephson C700S stereo microphone prompted a test recording of a single tune; an afterwards, engineer and label co-owner Frans Rond was so convinced that the sound qualities of that track should be heard on a full recording, he reconvened two more sessions that consisted of the group’s working repertoire, done almost entirely in single takes. Those sessions were recorded at MCO Studio 2, Hilversum, The Netherlands, on 26 October and 15 December 2018, in DXD 352.8 kHz. As Bjørnild explains:
“With only one mic… mixing was no longer possible. We would have to make the complete sound stage right there by carefully moving each instrument closer or further away, as well as left and right, in relationship to the microphone.”
With an engineer of the capabilities of Frans Rond, mixing is no longer needed. The careful placement of the musicians and the control of group balance makes “Don’t You Cry” one of the best-sounding “live in the room” audiophile recordings I’ve heard.
Not surprisingly, site listeners awarded “Don’t You Cry” NativeDSD Vocal Album of the Year for 2019. I eagerly await the next release from Carmen Gomes Inc. ‘’
Mark Werlin, HRAudio
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Has anyone used one of these Speaker or System Set Up recordings to optimise their systems? I have the Sheffield A2TB Test Disk and was looking at the Native DSD site for one of the disks in the post above this and came upon this: https://www.nativedsd.com/albums/2XHDFT1095-audiophile-speaker-setup and am wondering as I am returning my borrowed Klipsch RF7-III’s and have purchased Focal 948’s and want to maximise the sound. And then do I need a good microphone and software to analyse the system or can I use my aging and hardly golden ears? Thanks in advance, Jim
OK Chorale on this has an exceptionally well recorded piano (Abbey Road Studio 2) with well spaced out notes.
This has superbly recorded marimba, vibraphone, xylophone, xylo-marimba and drums. Linn’s recordings are amongst the very best.
Fine violin recording by Hyperion
One of the cleanest vocal recordings, again on Linn
Classical oud duo from the master, if your system is overly bright this will put you in an asylum.
Similar lines, great for tone
Brass
Woodwind
Multi-part vocals, two award winning discs with some crossover, both brilliant sound, Hyperion and Linn again.
6 Likes
The little label from Amsterdam keeps getting great reviews. This time for their excellent sampler;
THE VISUAL SOUND
Gary Galo from audioxpress wrote a highly detailed review that is well worth reading.
Recording Review: Taking a Listen to Sound Liaison’s DXD Music Sampler
The Verdict
There are some audio enthusiasts who claim that high-resolution digital recordings offer no audible improvement over conventional Red Book CDs. I could not disagree more, but what about 96 kHz vs. DXD at 352.8 kHz? I found the 96 kHz files to be excellent, but by comparison the 352.8 kHz originals have a bit more air and space in the sound, even with my OPPO player down-sampling them to 176.4 kHz. The DSD comparisons are interesting. I found the DSD files to be a bit “warmer” but I could not help wondering if there’s some sort of euphonic coloration going in the conversion process. At times, I felt that the DSD files had a slightly larger and more precise stereo image. That may seem strange, but I can only report what I heard. It’s possible that my reactions to the warmth and the imaging are due to the simpler analog filtering in DSD playback.
Sound Liason’s DXD sampler, The Visual Sound, offers some of the most realistic sounding recordings I’ve heard, in enjoyable selections performed by excellent musicians. Most of the music on this sampler is decidedly laid-back, and audiophiles looking for an in-your-face sonic spectacular will likely miss the point. For engineer Frans de Rond and the excellent musicians heard on these recordings, it’s all about subtlety and refinement. Musically perceptive listeners will appreciate the efforts of all involved in making these fine recordings. aX
This article was originally published in audioXpress, August 2020.
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And they keep getting better and better;
This one is just 2 instruments and 1 microphone with (3 capsules);
https://www.soundliaison.com/
I love the result of recording with the 3 capsule Josephson C700S microphone. It ensures
perfect imaging, great sense of depth, superior realism and complete phase coherence.
There is in my opinion a no better tool for optimising speaker placement and finding the optimal listening position than a One Microphone recording done with the 700s.
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If you’re looking for a tool to evaluate changes, the PS Audio “Audiophile’s Guide” is made for the purpose. In addition to your favorite recordings, this should be in your toolbox.
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Contrarian tool for evaluation…
A bad DDD recording of pop music… from the 80s… blech. Or maybe an 80s CD of 60s pop.
Why? The high frequencies of these tend to be harsh… these recordings/CDs are a reality for those of us who like this music… I do… so… a DAC that can do the translation without making my ears bleed… now that is an accomplishment.
BTW I owned the Junior, and now the Senior and while these DACs make all music sound better for me, the Junior was nicer sounding on these bad recordings… I kinda miss that Junior.
Peace
Bruce in Philly
I have always taken the approach to listen to music you like to listen. I have a few things in my rotation that I build my system towards.
I know whenever I go to a dealer they tend to want to put on certain music. I always tell them that is OK but unless it is something I like to listen to, it isn’t a value to me. For example I don’t listen to Classical music so using Classical for evaluation doesn’t provide me any benefit.
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I often use:
Buster Williams - Griot Liberte
Espen Eriksen Trio - Never Ending Journey
Joel Ross - KingMaker
Muddy Waters - Folk Singer
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Today I used the following:
Stream:
Fire Orchestra - Arrival
CD:
Hugh Ragin Revelation
Keith Jarret Trio Changeless
Go Organic Orchestra In The Garden
Music For Bass Clarinets
Jennifer Warnes Famous Blue Raincoat
Krzystof Penderecki/Jonny Greenwood Popcorn Superhet Receive
Bach 6 Concertos Trevor Pinnock
I wouldn’t dare claim any of these to be audiophile, well, maybe Famous Blue Raincoat.
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What version do you have: DXD ?bit or ???DSD ?
I have the DXD.
How many bit: ?bit.
For bass level, and ability to manage low frequencies, I enjoy this album. Especially the track Be no evil (the team of tubas appear after the piano introduction).
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Another test for low bass, even extra deep. Try this smooth Ciacona. The full effect of the pedal sound will be heard only on the best hifi systems. One of the best organ recording I know (among thousands).
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An impressive test for dynamics. The Pines of Rome and The Fountains of Rome are both well known showpieces, and here is one of the best recordings. Especially for dynamics : the level contrast between the evanescent strings in Fontana di Valle Giulia all’ alba and the roaring Fontana di Trevi al meriggio is breathtaking.
This 1983 recording pushes the boundaries of CD media and for volume range is sounding like a SACD. An ordeal for loudspeakers : the climax with organ in Pini presso una catacomba, and of course Pini della Via Appia which is a trial for clarity during the huge crescendo, beaten by percussion and saturated with screaming brass. For Pines, Fritz Reiner and his Chicago legion (RCA) are a serious contestant, especially on the SACD medium.
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