BBC R4 'Today' on Audio Quality

Thanks Graeme. 

Be interesting to hear your report on the program. In my neck of the woods, what you might call Audiophile cafes are common.

Plenty of coffee shops have a proper mid range seperates system (occasionally floorstanders) and the owners extensive collection of music. There's even one in Nishi Shinjuku I happened upon with an LP12 and a massive jazz vinyl collection. Plus they make decent cheesecake.

Yes, I tried to listen to it too but my lovely wife wouldn't shut up!!  will try and listen again later. I think there was a comment on how music is mostly listened  via compressed files these days and how these folk were missing out...

Well, I only really caught up with this part way through and didn't get all the details, but there seemed to be the suggestion that the origin of the New York trend of LP listening sessions on very high level audio equipment was derived from Japanese experience. See also Murakami for jazz LP listening - in the running book, possibly.

Clive

I listened to it and felt it was a none story - it seemed to convey that most good quality recordings had to be some sort of innocuous  jazz ... and to me that couldn't be further from the truth.. and just seems to reinforce a stereotype ..

The bit about mp3 is hardly news - we kind of learnt this in the late 90s when they became fashionable - and at that time it was a vast improvement on ATRAC that many were listening to compressed portable minidisc players with .. and before that portable cassette players some of which were shocking poor... even some of the portable CD players were painful to listen to in my experience and left you cold - I embraced MP3 when it arrived - it was a big step forward - we forget that. Its just now a new generation is discovering other formats again such as vinyl which are at their highest sales for many many years - that to me is the real story that would be interesting to hear more about - and I am sure many of the record players used by these new customers will have a USB cartridge ADCs that plug  into a computer and will sound far from stellar - but these will still be seen as attractive as its 'new'

Simon-in-Suffolk posted:

I listened to it and felt it was a none story .....

The days of 'all killer no filler' are behind us in medialand.

C.

Simon-in-Suffolk posted:

I listened to it and felt it was a none story - it seemed to convey that most good quality recordings had to be some sort of innocuous  jazz ... and to me that couldn't be further from the truth.. and just seems to reinforce a stereotype ..

The bit about mp3 is hardly news - we kind of learnt this in the late 90s when they became fashionable - and at that time it was a vast improvement on ATRAC that many were listening to compressed portable minidisc players with .. and before that portable cassette players some of which were shocking poor... even some of the portable CD players were painful to listen to in my experience and left you cold - I embraced MP3 when it arrived - it was a big step forward - we forget that. Its just now a new generation is dsivoerino other formats again such as vinyl - that to me is the real story that would be interesting in - and I am sure many of the record players used by these new customers will have a USB cartridge ADCs that plugs into a computer and will sound far from stellar - but there will still be seen as attractive..

 

I hate to say it, but where I am, with a few friends that listen to only classical being the exception, audiophile = 100% jazz. 

I've not observed that stereotype to hold up in the UK or the US.

Not good report from a journalistic point of view,  it covered nothing,  almost like a sampler/trailer,  I feel they might have another 30 or more minutes in the can for a more indepth piece.  

Also I would guess that people who go to clubs, cafe's & bars to listen to 'hi-fi' would be most liable to be jazz enthusiasts in some form or other rather than other genre.

Mike-B posted:

Not good report from a journalistic point of view,  it covered nothing,  almost like a sampler/trailer,  I feel they might have another 30 or more minutes in the can for a more indepth piece.  

Also I would guess that people who go to clubs, cafe's & bars to listen to 'hi-fi' would be most liable to be jazz enthusiasts in some form or other rather than other genre.

True. I like Rush. Not sure if I can sip cocoa with a blueberry tart and watch the traffic go by while listening to the 2112 Overture though.

Check out Gearbox records who hold regular Jazz (sorry) Kissatens at their mastering facility near Kings Cross London. Whiskey and an all analogue valve system by Audio Note. Apparently it originates in Japan from a tradition of cafes playing music on high end systems.

Simon-in-Suffolk posted:

It seemed to convey that most good quality recordings had to be some sort of innocuous  jazz ...

Obviously never been to a hi-fi show then Simon?

I believe (from 3rd hand) that Colleen ‘Cosmo’ Murphy was on this piece?

All I shall say is this -- 18 months ago I went to the Frankie Goes To Hollywood 30th Anniversary event at SARM studios in London, hosted by her with her big hifi system (valves, horn speakers etc). Trevor Horn was there, Steve Lipsom etc

There was a playback of the album. 

Which would have been nice had it not been for the horrendous mains earth loop hum which was there all through the playback, from the active subwoofers which had been bolted into the system.

I suggested to her afterwards that this wasnt good. She said it was what it did. Uhhuh.

Which placed her and her efforts firmly into the "enthusiastic amateur" category. I am sure she is very good at self publicity. Nuff said.

Jon

Richard 2000 posted:

Check out Gearbox records who hold regular Jazz (sorry) Kissatens at their mastering facility near Kings Cross London. Whiskey and an all analogue valve system by Audio Note. Apparently it originates in Japan from a tradition of cafes playing music on high end systems.

I sadly had to miss the open house event just before Christmas.  Did anybody here go along?

However, I consoled myself with the three Gearbox LPs I got from Father Christmas...