Zero Distortion: Tango Time

bonzo75

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I do like melodic music. This George Winton December is a feel good easy listening contemporary piano. All songs in the album are beautiful. The quality of recording is similar to Keith Jarrett Koln Concert. The clarity is excellent, dynamic range is superb and the tone in high is liquid and sweet. A good record to have and enjoy with wifie. This Pachelbel Kanon reminds me of a Korean series.

View attachment 53230


I don't remember your office having an elevator Tang, only steps?
 
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jeff1225

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Those albums litter all the record stores here. I got bored with them.

Windham Hill sold a tremendous amount of records during the 80's. While the music is dated, the recording are excellent. George Winston and Shadowfax are my two favorites on the label.
 

Tango

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Those albums litter all the record stores here. I got bored with them.

I don't remember your office having an elevator Tang, only steps?

First, it is not an elevator music Ked. It is a common wedding song that played superbly by Winston :D. Every songs in this album are very pleasant. Perceiving this very well recorded piano album as trash is a bit pretentious to me my friend. I also have a piano album with Sakamoto's Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence which you probably get nausea hearing the same melody repeating twenty times in a song. But I like to listen to it with my wife every once in a while.

Tang ;)
 

NorthStar

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Windham Hill sold a tremendous amount of records during the 80's. While the music is dated, the recording are excellent. George Winston and Shadowfax are my two favorites on the label.

Plus the transparent colored albums look cool.

* Good humor sense bunch here. ....Elevator music. :D
 

Tango

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Small problem buying old Russian records. Often when they came I did not know what the heck they were. The prints are in Russian. This one is a live recording of Liszt piano by Emile Gilels. It contains Hungarian Rhapsodies, Rhapsody Espagnole and La Campagnella. The label is Melodiya C-10- 15235-6. It is a great performance with great live ambient. With Russian old live recordings, there is a house sound. Once you listen alot of them you hear them you know they are Russian. The clarity, energy, dynamic range and immediacy make this live recording worth keeping. Costed only €16. On average, I threw away about 60% of the Russian vinyls I bought.

B30C90CD-824C-4AE2-8993-331B27601B19.jpeg

 

Folsom

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Tang the piano sounds good on that one. It’s still definitely on horns, but matches better with them. It seems to be beneficial to that key.

Sometimes I find Russian stuff. I too cannot read ANY of it, so, take home, listen, drop off at thrift store later is the usual process. But on occasion there is a keeper.
 

Tango

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Tang the piano sounds good on that one. It’s still definitely on horns, but matches better with them. It seems to be beneficial to that key.

Sometimes I find Russian stuff. I too cannot read ANY of it, so, take home, listen, drop off at thrift store later is the usual process. But on occasion there is a keeper.
Yes. I think horns give much better projected energy, attacks, immediacy which make the overall listening experience very "lively." They could lack behind excellent cones on staging, instrument separation and delineation in symphony. On jazz and chamber they rule imo.

Tang :)
 

bonzo75

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It’s still definitely on horns, but matches better with them. It seems to be beneficial to that key.

What attributes are you referring to
 

XV-1

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I don't remember your office having an elevator Tang, only steps?

LOL. I have a few Windham Hill records - I agree :) I need to get rid of hem to someone who appreciates elevators ;)
 
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Tango

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LOL. I have a few Windham Hill records - I agree :) I need to get rid of hem to someone who appreciates elevators ;)
Send them to me Shane.

Tang:)
 
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Folsom

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What attributes are you referring to

Tang did decent description. But really that key has just the right amount of body with piano. It compliments the timbre and texture.

Deep piano sounds ok but not exactly right, the force is there but body is a little too slim. It limits a bit if nuance when you have a blooming-fillingout piano sound, getting lots of projection. Dynamic speakers work better for that low stuff, but then most of them lack the rest of the stuff that makes it sound alive.
 

bonzo75

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Tang did decent description. But really that key has just the right amount of body with piano. It compliments the timbre and texture.

Deep piano sounds ok but not exactly right, the force is there but body is a little too slim. It limits a bit if nuance when you have a blooming-fillingout piano sound, getting lots of projection. Dynamic speakers work better for that low stuff, but then most of them lack the rest of the stuff that makes it sound alive.

I thought you were referring to the deep piano/slim body. That is because Tang has to integrate back the bass he has lost. There are horns with two 18 inch sensitive drivers in each speaker for Midbass and bass that will flow out the deep piano like water through a tap... So it is not about horns, but of particular implementation of horns.

You can always add more bass but where dynamic drivers usually (not always) lose it is in the multiple crossovers

Piano on the first speaker made

Piano on a cone I like
 
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Tango

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Tang did decent description. But really that key has just the right amount of body with piano. It compliments the timbre and texture.

Deep piano sounds ok but not exactly right, the force is there but body is a little too slim. It limits a bit if nuance when you have a blooming-fillingout piano sound, getting lots of projection. Dynamic speakers work better for that low stuff, but then most of them lack the rest of the stuff that makes it sound alive.
You can argue all day with Bonzo on piano sound. He has been telling me for a few weeks already about how the piano should sound :D. But my preference on piano tone seems similar to yours when blooming-bass fillingout piano sound is not my best cup of tea. But that is how they could be in real. Really, I think there are various tone of real life piano. I might play an album and a listener might think that piano does not sound right, but actually that is how the tone of piano from that particular recording. So when we are questioning if a system has the right tone of piano, we really need to play the same pressing of the same music. Sometime I argue with Bonzo until I have to buy the damn record so to make sure we were on the same basis. The fact I switch off my subs doesn't really change significantly the tone of a piano. I know well what I lost in no subs. But I will get those back and more ;).

Tang
 

bonzo75

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Tang, could you also do the same recording from 1m away instead of 5? Will be interesting to see what happens
 

Folsom

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Yes, only someone who listens to the stereo a lot knows when something is the recording, or the stereo. That makes it challenging to introduce someone to a stereo, who ends up criticizing your non-mofi records that are amazing in many ways but maybe not something they are use to from modern stuff.
 

the sound of Tao

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Small problem buying old Russian records. Often when they came I did not know what the heck they were. The prints are in Russian. This one is a live recording of Liszt piano by Emile Gilels. It contains Hungarian Rhapsodies, Rhapsody Espagnole and La Campagnella. The label is Melodiya C-10- 15235-6. It is a great performance with great live ambient. With Russian old live recordings, there is a house sound. Once you listen alot of them you hear them you know they are Russian. The clarity, energy, dynamic range and immediacy make this live recording worth keeping. Costed only €16. On average, I threw away about 60% of the Russian vinyls I bought.

View attachment 53284

Thank you Tang, that was just lovely... inspiring in fact... I will likely go on a bit of an Emile Gilel-fest tonight after hearing that. The playing and the sound both seem wonderful.
Tao
 

Tango

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Thank you Tang, that was just lovely... inspiring in fact... I will likely go on a bit of an Emile Gilel-fest tonight after hearing that. The playing and the sound both seem wonderful.
Tao
Thanks to you too Tao. I also bought all Daniil Trifonov on vinyls after your posted his video. He is very electric.

Tang
 
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the sound of Tao

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Yes, Trifonov is absolutely electric... there is so much marvellous piano music out there available to enjoy and fantastic to discover more... and also concert piano sounds awesome on the horns :) love it.
 

Tango

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If you are a fan of Mendelssohn piano I would like to suggest an interpretation by Reine Gianoli. Her version is quite different from what you might have heard. She together with Milan Horvat the conductor of Vienna State Opera Orchestra slow down the rhythm in a very smooth interesting way. Her piano somehow sounds sweet with great flow. The pressing I have has both Concerto 1&2. I actually like the less exciting Concerto 2 equally as 1. This is a record from Westminster Hi-Fi USA not UK. The UK pressing of this label could be better. Less than $30 I paid.

49CD4B04-1C81-4280-99FD-AD7D8A209EBF.jpeg

When I recorded the video I moved to the left and right of my speakers. The piano and orchestra still held their presence regardless where I stand.

 

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