[LAU] How bad is mp3/ogg

[Hartmut Noack]

Am 12.10.2011 21:45, schrieb Fons Adriaensen:
> On Wed, Oct 12, 2011 at 09:09:37PM +0200, Jostein Chr. Andersen wrote:
>
>> On Wednesday 12 October 2011 17.09.13 Fons Adriaensen wrote:
>> ...
>>>
>>> Tonight I'm recording 5 violins made by Guadagnini (about 1 M Euro
>>> each), for a listening test about the violins. Could provide some
>>> interesting test material for an encoding ABX test...
>>
>> Lucky you..  :-)
>
> To make this clear, I don't get 1 M Euro for each one I record...
> :-(  It's just the insurance value of the instruments.
>
> BTW, 'gaudagnini' means 'little gains' or 'little profits' :-)
>
> I'll try to get permission to make some of this available
> for mp3/ogg testing.

I am quite sure, that this could make some extremely listenable 
differences also.

Sergiu Celibidache refused to allow *any* recordings of the music he 
played with several top-grade orchestras whenever he could. He thought, 
that music cannot be conserved and he also found all microphones 
in-aedequate.

I tend to think, that such reservations have to do with the way, music 
is made fit for the market. If a recording is really "HiFi" in the sense 
of the word, it does not only spoil the expectations of most listeners, 
it is hard to reproduce with average equipment also. Thus such 
recordings are no products that can be sold to everybody easily.

Some younger drummers and guitar-players I recorded have made a long 
face when they heard their playing for the first time reproduced by my 
nearfield-monitors. They simply where disappointed, that my 8"-Speakers 
did not sound "the same as powerful" as their 4x12"-stack or their 24" 
bass-drum. Its physics -- baby ;-)

I think to make recordings is a form of art in its own: HiFi is just a 
concept, that can act as a guideline if this is wanted but in the end it 
is plain impossible to make a recording that is a valid replacement of 
music played live. And if one goes for it as far as possible, the result 
may sound quite strange to people that are used to recordings that sound 
"good" even from their laptop-speakers. The horizon of sound that fits 
the latter requirement can be reproduced by OGG or MP3 quite well I guess...

best regards
HZN

>
> Ciao,
>