What are you listening to?

Number two for this morning.
A "notorious" Living Stereo with Reiner and Respighi. (The Debussy was not part of the original, just added as encore for the CD re-issues.)
Thousands of the first released originals were sent back to RCA because the dynamic range, especially of the last track, was not to handle by most of the turntables of the time and named unplayable. End of story: The remaining still living Living Stereos from that pressing are among the most wanted and high priced classical albums ever.
To stay here: Even many "modern" digital setups will reach borders. 😉


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Next challenge for the new part of the stereo.
Again hard to find a drawer for this band. And quite sure it will take more than one session for many to find a way in. For my purposes "Physical Education" is chosen. It must deliver clarity and separation of drums and guitar. The synth overtones in higher frequencies that come in around 1:06 mark are also remarkable.

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Time for a farewell..
Last listening sessions lead to the decision to send the indeed brilliant WiiM Pro to the reserve bench. The better is the enemy of the good.
The discussed (technical) themes will no longer be mine.
If I stumble over an exceptional good new release I will still post it here.
This one is the album which was the last step to new shores. Not "my music", but the tremendous vocals will challenge every stereo.
Take care @ all

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So i was skimming through older stuff, Peter Schickele, was interesting. My dad and i would share finds and tease each other. The looks i got...
 

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Garland Jeffreys live album Rock & Roll Adult from 1981. Here he was supported by The Rumour.

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Achim1812 said:
Time for a farewell..
Last listening sessions lead to the decision to send the indeed brilliant WiiM Pro to the reserve bench. The better is the enemy of the good.
The discussed (technical) themes will no longer be mine.
If I stumble over an exceptional good new release I will still post it here.
This one is the album which was the last step to new shores. Not "my music", but the tremendous vocals will challenge every stereo.
Take care @ all

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Pray tell what are you using instead of the Pro?
 
d6jg said:
Pray tell what are you using instead of the Pro?
Click to expand...
An iFi Neo Stream, good morning. If I were a Pep or Kloppo I would likely say, it is not a decision against one player but for another one.
 
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@Brantome
Thank you for the 🙁. (Hope I have interpreted it right.)
It was only meant for the technical only WiiM related questions where I will keep my fingers fixed.
The important and more general questions like "Is there enough remaining lifetime and is this lifetime worth to anytime experience Qobuz Connect or Spotify HiFi?" will for sure get one or another comment. Thats a threat!
 
Achim1812 said:
An iFi Neo Stream, good morning. If I were a Pep or Kloppo I would likely say, it is not a decision against one player but for another on
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Presumably this is a DAC upgrade that happens to include a Roon Ready streamer - hence the retirement of the WiiM?
 
This seems to be the ultimate (at least a very good) release of the album. Sounds even better than my (re-issue) old vinyl, shame I have to confess that 😉 No idea if the order of the songs is the correct one. It is long ago I saw the film.

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d6jg said:
Presumably this is a DAC upgrade that happens to include a Roon Ready streamer - hence the retirement of the WiiM?
Click to expand...
More the complete package. My (very own and sometimes derided 😉) view where the importance of a DAC has to be placed in the whole chain is not touched. Every other part of the chain first to improve, the DAC then.
Also I have to mention that a few parameters will stay as long as I do not experience significant better. So Roon makes all the implementation issues obsolete for me. For internet streaming Qobuz and with the stored files on my harddisks it is my go to.
Always subjective and all this "audiophile" bla bla is not mine the first impression was all is where it has to be. And slightly more...adult. No better word found. Feeling only.
A few things also made the decision more easy.
It is in my eyes a more attractive piece of furniture. Small, shiny and solid metal. Forget that, nothing to do with the sound of course. (A nice to have for my special situation is that I can place it vertical)
The M12 ethernet is also a big advantage due to the fact I am still part of the company's network. Me and the hardware 😉
One not so good detail for me is that there is no headphone socket on the front, only a 4,4 Pentaconn balanced out at the rear. Inconvenient for a headphone obsessed like me, but not so important.
Even with my still very basic setup, which will be replaced around middle of the month when the last move truck will arrive, it is an audible improvement. If it was not the slightly higher price was not to justify.
All the features including the great variety of connections on rear and front are still to discover.
Last but important. I got the item for testing purposes. Testing in usability and giving my opinions for the sound. As an "educated and experienced listener". But even if my fee for that would not be the item itself, which it is, I would hold it.
Again, the WiiM related to its price tag is a brilliant piece of technic! But there is nearly always an improvement possible.
Sorry for the long and likely boring sermon 😉
 
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Well, after spending the evening setting up the new Pro Plus and then ripping & tagging five more Alice Cooper CDs to the server, tonight (I ripped & tagged the other five yesterday.) I decided to spin this up, since it was one of Jeff's last albums. It has horrible reviews, guess I'll see.

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Brown Sound said:
Well, after spending the evening setting up the new Pro Plus and then ripping & tagging five more Alice Cooper CDs to the server, tonight (I ripped & tagged the other five yesterday.) I decided to spin this up, since it was one of Jeff's last albums. It has horrible reviews, guess I'll see.

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No reason for 🙁 I will stay nerving here. But no longer in threads affecting WiiM only things 😉
 
Achim1812 said:
No reason for 🙁 I will stay nerving here. But no longer in threads affecting WiiM only things 😉
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Well, glad you like the iFi NEO Stream, sir. I just got the Pro Plus to add to my iFi NEO iDSD DAC, in place of an old Chromecast Audio. I know I could have probably gotten the regular Pro, but I wanted the most current hardware for the WiiM box. It all seems to work great and is much easier to use due to having an actual interface for the streams. Here are a few photos.

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Brown Sound said:
Well, glad you like the iFi NEO Stream, sir. I just got the Pro Plus to add to my iFi NEO iDSD DAC, in place of an old Chromecast Audio. I know I could have probably gotten the regular Pro, but I wanted the most current hardware for the WiiM box. It all seems to work great and is much easier to use due to having an actual interface for the streams. Here are a few photos.

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It all quite sure has to do with my only spartan needs for a streamer.
No radio, no cast, no multi-room. Our actual multi-room is a Sonos Era in the kitchen 😉
Only Qobuz and stored files. Everything at his best with Roon.
 
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