Only two tracks to test your system, forever!


If you could only use two tracks/songs for the rest of your life whenever you wanted to test a change to your system, what would they be?

128x128gladmo

Because I’m non-conformist:

 

- Baaba Maal, Mansour Seck, Djam Leelii (space, middle to hi end)

- Ry Cooder, Ali Farka Toure - Talking Timbuktu (overall)

- The Doors - Roadhouse Blues (bass)

- Richard and Mimi Farina - Joy Going Round My Brain (vocal and harmonica duet details)

- Paul Robeson - Deep River (THAT voice!)

- The Moody Blues - Tuesday Afternoon (atmosphere)

- The Moody Blues - Thinking is the best way to travel (special effects)

- Fennel - Hi-Fi A La Espanola on Mercury Living Presence (that Mercury sound)

- Max Roach with Abbey Lincoln - We Insist (abbey’s voice, the snare)

- Mahler - 5th - von Karajan (Adagietto, the cellos)

- Bruce Springsteen - American Skin (separation of the 4 voices, crowd ambiance)

- Led Zeppelin - The Battle of Evermore (For the interplay between Robert Plant’s and Sandy Denny’s voices)

- Tito Puente - Ran Kan Kan - the 12” 45rpm version (for slam)

- Laura Nyro - Tom Cat Goodbye (quiet and dynamics)

A$AP Rocky -- L$D

Chance The Rapper -- Summer Friends

Bonus Track: Yosi Horikawa -- Bubbles

Alternate Selection: Brian Bromberg -- The Saga Of Harrison Crabfeathers

Lease-breaker Special: deadmau5 -- Raise Your Weapon

Little Girl With Guitar: Ana Popovic -- Navajo Moon

This thread for me confirms easily the worst thing about audiophiles: their taste in music. Of course the answers are going to be middle-of-the-road audiophile-approved pap like Patricia Barber and Diana Krall. And yes, let's not forget Flight of the Snoring Hippo and the Eagles' live version of Hotel California (now in quadrilliophenia on a special pixiedust-infused disc so you can buy the precious recording for the twelfth time).

Your 20-year-old self would hate what you've become. Tell me I'm wrong.

@passthedutchie People are sharing songs they find well suited to critical listening and testing system changes. I don't think most people are looking for a round of applause and acceptance. Neither are most of us interested in injecting judgementalism into the thread.

A recording of my son singing and playing guitar is the ultimate test

Bruce Colburn and Rob Wasserman live - any song