The Greystones is not far from where I live.
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The Greystones is not far from where I live.
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Except for pub gigs I must have been lucky because most of them I've been to the sound was pretty good. I think the main difference is volume and dynamics. At a Clapton gig back in '86 my mate turned to me as they kicked off the first tune and shouted 'I don't think I can take it if it is going to be this loud.' It was ludicrous, my ears were ringing for 3 days afterwards. It was so loud it was actually disorientating but it was a clean sound.
If you could get that concert on CD what equipment would I need to get even close to replicating that level of clean volume? Of course the dynamics and sound pressure level could be done but you would need a big room and very big speakers and very powerful amps - kilowatts. And no neighbours nearby. Some people do run such systems domestically.
But I think when people say they want a 'live' sound they don't mean loudness and dynamics. I think they mean that they want a bit of 'bite' to the sound. I'm talking rock or pop music here, classical or any totally acoustic music is another ballgame. I think we would all agree that the sound of a live rock band will have that bite.
But what about when the band go in the studio an record and album? Do they aim to replicate their live sound? Mostly, no. And ironically when they do the sound quality of the album tends to get criticised for being poor - 'Definitely Maybe' by Oasis being a classic example. Their first attempt was a typical polished studio effort which they rejected because they sounded like 'fucking Dire Straits'.
So they started again and attempted to get more of their live sound onto the record. Result: roundly slagged off by audiophiles for being a shit recording. These same audiophiles who are chasing a 'live sound'.
So they want a live sound but they don't want the recording to deliver that. They want the recording perfectly clean with bell-like clarity. Then they use underpowered amplifiers that will be clipping half the time with a load of harmonic distortion and speakers that have no low bass (so they sound fast) and a big hump in the midrange so they have 'presence'.
Any less than perfect recording will then sound unlistenable but really clean recordings like Dire Straits, Blue Nile etc will sound 'live' and still be listenable Cue many years of complaining about poor recording quality, bad production, cloth eared engineers and so on. And having the equipment dictate your music choices.
Fact is most recordings are not of live performances and are not recorded or produced to sound like live performances. They are recorded and produced to sound good when you play them back on your hi-fi. That's what the supposedly cloth-eared engineers are aiming for. And 99.99% of the time they achieve it. So why have a system that tries to turn them into something they are not supposed to be?
Current Lash Up:
TEAC VRDS 701T > Sony TAE1000ESD > Krell KSA50S > JM Labs Focal Electra 926.
Mana Acoustics Racks / Bright Star IsoNodes Decoupling >> Allo DigiOne Player >> Pedja Rogic's Audial Model S DAC + Pioneer PL-71 turntable / Vista Audio phono-1 mk II / Denon PCL-5 headshell / Reson Reca >> LFD DLS >> LFD PA2M (SE) >> Royd RR3s.
I really enjoy listening to live recordings on my system. You get a sense of the venue and its acoustics and the audience reaction to the performance. I think it does very much depend on the genre of music though, jazz, folk, classical and acoustic stuff working particularly well.
Live recordings i particularly enjoy are; Katie Melua live in Berlin, Nils Lofgren acoustic live, Alice in chains live at the majestic theatre and Diana Krall live in Paris.
Lots of good stuff on you tube too one of my favourites is a US radio station called KEXP who have a couple of studios that they film live performances in, they get a real eclectic mix of acts in, they also shoot some Euro acts in Iceland.
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Mana Acoustics Racks / Bright Star IsoNodes Decoupling >> Allo DigiOne Player >> Pedja Rogic's Audial Model S DAC + Pioneer PL-71 turntable / Vista Audio phono-1 mk II / Denon PCL-5 headshell / Reson Reca >> LFD DLS >> LFD PA2M (SE) >> Royd RR3s.
I've attended over a thousand gigs during the last 40 years and for me this is by far the best musical experience possible.
I'd have a band playing in my lounge every night of the week if I could
Chord Mojo / Sennheiser HD600
Ive done a load of festivals in the past but not many straight up gigs other than the odd local band down the pub. I’m planning to get out and listen to a lot more live music now though. Trouble is persuading my mates to come along as my tastes are a bit weird to most of them these days. I have managed to persuade them all to go to Union chapel in November for an annual meet up in London event we usually have to see the Delines though.
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