Music talk Thread

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AWvsCBsteeeerike3
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Re: Music talk Thread

Post by AWvsCBsteeeerike3 »

pioneer98 wrote:
March 22 21, 2:46 pm
This article explained really well the difference between vinyl and digital formats.

Basically, streaming really sucks due to compression. That's obvious even to my crappy ears. CD's are a big step up from streaming, but there is still a difference between CD's and vinyl. This article explains that really well. I think you'd need pretty good ears to hear the difference though (better ears than mine). The explanation blew my mind. CD's get sampled at 44KHz, which is fast enough to resolve all frequencies within human hearing range. The highest we can hear is about 20kHz. To resolve that frequency, you'd need to sample at >2X that frequency. So they picked 2X 20kHz, plus a 10% margin of error. Problem is, our ears can't resolve frequencies higher than 20kHz, but our neurons are capable of resolving *information* much faster than even 44kHz. In fact, we can tell when a sound hits one ear before the other (that's one way we can tell what direction a sound is coming from). That's on the order of 2 to 3 microseconds. So our brains are capable of resolving information from our ears every 2 to 3 microseconds, but a CD is only sampled once every 22 microseconds (1/44000 seconds). So there is still a tiny stair step squareness to the sound of a CD player that some people can detect.

TL;DR - You'd have to increase the sampling rate of a CD player by about 10X to make it impossible for any human to be able to tell the difference between a CD and a record.

Is Vinyl Better Than Digital?
Neil Young was a famous rock musician in the 1970s, specializing in live performance and weird acoustic spaces, like the echo-filled iron sawdust burner I once camped in as a kid. In a recent interview for The New York Times Magazine, he claimed that digital compression technology — CD, MP3, streaming — undermines human dignity. Of the thousands of comments in response, many readers denounced him as emotional, anti-scientific, a Luddite and even partly deaf. But might Young know something the rest of us don’t?

Put another way, if a sensitive, world-acclaimed innovator denounces his industry and its technology for undermining human dignity and brain function, something big is up. Who could be more qualified than a world expert — with loads of experience and no incentive to fib — to call the alarm about widespread technological damage?

Young isn’t the first to denounce digital and acclaim analog. Legions of self-proclaimed audiophiles have lamented the loss of vinyl LPs since digital CDs first appeared in the 1970s. Likewise, legions of people who grew up talking for hours on old-fashioned analog telephones hate talking on digital cellphones now. For decades, there has been a deep-set conflict between those who claim analog has some ineffable “presence” missing in digital versus those with technical know-how who can explain how analog and digital actually work. In essence, the producers of digital tech claim it is flawless, while the most sensitive consumers claim it is awful. They can’t both be right.
I have nothing to add other than it is truly amazing the depth of information available in so many subjects that are glossed over and/or completely ignored in today's society. Thanks for the information/background on the topic. I find it very interesting.

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heyzeus
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Re: Music talk Thread

Post by heyzeus »

This 1995 review of Radiohead's "The Bends" is pretty hilarious.

https://web.archive.org/web/20151016233 ... -radiohead
Radiohead

The Bends (Capitol) (STAR)

Along with Beck's "Loser," Radiohead's smash single "Creep" made up a sort of low self-esteem hit parade for disaffected pop fans. Lacking that dubious appeal, there's little on the British group's second record to suggest they'll be more than one-hit wonders. Thom Yorke's ethereal vocals and woebegone melodies are tuneful enough, but too self-absorbed to be catchy. The sweeping, extravagant choruses and Seattle wanna-be guitar parts are similarly heavy-handed and excessive: the clumsy, unpleasant guitar scorch of "Bones" and "My Iron Lung" are particularly cringe-inducing. If the band had dispensed with the grandiose dramatic effects, songs like "The Bends" and "Black Star" could have been catchy little rockers. Instead, Radiohead's overwrought, pompous music makes them sound like alternative rock`s answer to the Moody Blues.

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thrill
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Re: Music talk Thread

Post by thrill »

Dude listened to Fake Plastic Trees and High and Dry and decided there were no hits.

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Smith Corks One
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Re: Music talk Thread

Post by Smith Corks One »

And it’s not like “The Bends” kind of sucked but then they got better. I mean they did continue to improve, but that entire album is [expletive] awesome.

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Re: Music talk Thread

Post by Michael »

The Bends is the quintessential non-Seattle grunge album.

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BottenFieldofDreams
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Re: Music talk Thread

Post by BottenFieldofDreams »

Might be a decent review, with different details, of Pablo Honey. Inasmuch as any review of Radiohead that doesn't include cosmic hyperbole could be acceptable. I think takes like "this album transcends what it means to be a human" weren't required or you were risking the fury of TRUE music fans until OK Computer, but The Bends is great.

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heyzeus
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Re: Music talk Thread

Post by heyzeus »

I was like 16 years old and picked up the Bends from a used cd shop soley from hearing High and Dry on the radio, and knowing of them as "that band that did Creep," which I didn't like all that much. And even my half-formed-brain child self was blown away by the sonic force of The Bends.

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Big Amoco Sign
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Re: Music talk Thread

Post by Big Amoco Sign »

heyzeus wrote:
April 1 21, 12:28 pm
I was like 16 years old and picked up the Bends from a used cd shop soley from hearing High and Dry on the radio, and knowing of them as "that band that did Creep," which I didn't like all that much. And even my half-formed-brain child self was blown away by the sonic force of The Bends.
Picked up The Bends in 2000 at Slackers in O'Fallon MO near Mexico Rd and Highway K. Strictly because the album art looked cool to me. Have been a hardcore fan since. Met them backstage once by pure luck. That album review is really good. Sounds like a lot of the misfires Pitchfork has published over the years.

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go birds
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Re: Music talk Thread

Post by go birds »

i'm sure i've (or someone here has) already mentioned him, but Shakey Graves is sooooo good.

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IMADreamer
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Re: Music talk Thread

Post by IMADreamer »

In the last year I've taken a step back from music a little. I used to always have music on in the shop or where ever I was but music got a little stale for me. I had a long day yesterday and my wife had dinner with her friends last night so when I came home I got a quick shower and sat on the couch. I just laid back, turned on the stereo and put Dark Side of the Moon on. It was like hearing it for the first time again. I just closed my eyes and got lost in it. I'm pretty sure it lit my fire again.

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