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Does Steely Dan sound bright to you?

This is going to sound like a somewhat random question but I’m wondering how many of you find Steely Dan’s recordings to sound a bit bright. I’m particularly thinking of Gaucho, and Aja but some other recent recordings, too, such as Fagen’s Nightfly.

My typical media include streaming (CD and HD quality) and CD’s. I have not played my old vinyl because I’m presently without a turntable.

At first I thought it was my system and it was driving me a little bit mental; eventually, I decided it wasn't my stuff, it was their stuff. Because most other recordings on the same system with no other changes don’t typically have the brightness of Steely Dan.

Whether or not you’re a fan (I am) Steely Dan has often been a go-to for testing out equipment, so I imagine there will be experiences people have had about this.

P.S. Any other recordings which, for you are unnaturally bright?


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Showing 1 response by benjaminc

benjaminc
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This thread piqued my curiosity, as I have always considered Gaucho and Aja to be well recorded old school rock albums!

I'm listening on headphones (Tidal Connect -> Allo Digione Signature -> Simaudio 300D DAC -> SPL Phonitor 2 -> Audeze LCD-3 and Sennheiser HD800S), so I don't know how it translates to speakers.

On Babylon Sisters, both headphone sets sound very well balanced. And usually the HD800S is pretty unforgiving of bright recordings, so your findings are quite surprising to me!

I don't have any answers, but I just wanted to share my experience!
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