[ The MusicWeb Message Board ]

CELEBRATING 43,000 Classical CD reviews on-line (Sept 2016); 21,000 page views each day.
Return to MusicWeb International

Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A Posted by Thornhill on December 8, 2017, 3:08 pm Yet again we have another hi-rez review without any disclosure of the reviewer's audio system. As Mr. Hutchinson notes, given that these recordings have appeared on CD multiple times — including 24/96 remasterings from only 10 years ago — the main question here is if improvements to the sound quality justify upgrading. Knowing the reviewer's audio system is absolutely essential. As I've mentioned here before and in emails to the editor, one benefit of the having these recordings in DTS-HD/Dolby TrueHD or SACD is that many A/V receivers will apply bass management in the "pure direct" mode so to utilize the subwoofer. With scores that have large orchestras, like "Elektra" and "Salome," that can make a significant difference, even with these analogue recordings. If the reviewer doesn't have a subwoofer they would not be able to comment on this aspect of the sound quality. And obviously, if they're listening on small bookshelf speakers or headphones, as opposed to large floor standing speakers, whatever other differences there are could be minimized. Why won't you just tell us what your audio system is?

Re: Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A Posted by Rob McKenzie on December 9, 2017, 11:13 pm, in reply to "Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A" Identical play-back equipment heard in multiple rooms may be expected to sound different, depending on the acoustics of each room. Of greater interest to me are the conditions under which listening tests are conducted. To produce unbiased results, the methodology must preclude the listener from being aware of which transfer or format they are listening to. Otherwise, the notion that 'the newest transfer or format must be the best' may colour the listener's reactions. Where two or more persons listen simultaneously, they should not discuss their reactions while the test is underway in order to avoid the risk of 'groupthink'. They should WRITE down their conclusions and then exchange their notes at the end of the test.

Re: Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A Posted by Ford on December 11, 2017, 1:46 am, in reply to "Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A" I would say that Music Web is not an audiophile review forum, as most items under review are standard redbook CDs or downloads. For audiophile reviews with a technical bias, one is better off looking to sites like Audiophile Audition, SA-CD.net, and Audiophile Review.

Re: Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A Posted by Thornhill on December 11, 2017, 2:10 pm, in reply to "Re: Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A" 1. They've chosen to do hi-rez reviews. 2. How does it benefit readers to not disclose a reviewer's audio system?

Re: Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A Posted by Ralph Moore on December 11, 2017, 3:04 pm, in reply to "Re: Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A" Edited by board administrator December 11, 2017, 3:09 pm I do a lot of reviews for MusicWeb and elsewhere but I rarely comment beyond some general observations regarding the quality of sound, for a variety of reasons. Beyond assuming that most recent recordings will be of at least satisfactory quality, just as "historic" recordings will have sonic drawbacks, I find that most readers in my experience are more interested in the aesthetic qualities of the recording rather than its technical aspects, even though, of course, the engineering must inevitably have some impact on the listener's enjoyment. Another factor is that just as aesthetic responses are very subjective, so are aural preferences in sound quality and, in any case, there is such a variety of set-ups and locations for audio equipment that to try to make definitive pronouncements on these things is often to give hostages to fortune. Speaking as an non-audiophile, I know that I listen to music on a range of different set-ups - through headphones, speakers, on my hi-fi, via my portable Bose Wave, through the laptop with earphones, in the car etc. but, in general, modern recordings remain highly enjoyable no matter what the medium, insofar as no audio system can ever approach the experience of the human ear listening live. I try to listen to the recordings I review several times in good sound on decent equipment whatever the set-up and will make a what i hope is a helpful comment if, for example, an historic recording has been especially well remastered or the producers have employed a particular ambience; this you may see from my reviews. Nonetheless, I most definitely think Ford is right that for more specific and technical feedback, MusicWeb is not the best platform. I also know that the moment I reveal what equipment I listen on, some audiophile will make some snide remark about its inadequacy; however, they are too often people who care more about sound than music - not that I accuse anyone participating in this string of such a crass attitude.

Re: Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A Posted by Thornhill on December 11, 2017, 5:11 pm, in reply to "Re: Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A" Des Hutchinson declared that his review would focus on the sound quality. Review summary: "There’s really nothing more that can be said about these legendary performances, but what about the sound?" The review then contains comparisons between the BD-A and previous CD versions. If the review is going to focus on sound quality, why won't you disclose the reviewer's system? How are readers served by withholding this information?

Re: Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A Posted by Paul Serotsky on December 12, 2017, 1:31 am, in reply to "Re: Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A" Maybe you should have a closer read of footnote [14] of Des's review. He gives some pretty sound (!) reasons for considering his equipment specs. irrelevant to his analysis. Quite honestly, if he says that he doesn't want to list his kit, then - other than hauling him in and applying the thumbscrews - I really don't think there's much anyone can do about it, is there? When all's said and done, he makes it quite clear that he isn't looking at what more might emerge if the playback system is progressively upgraded, but confining himself to well-controlled A/B comparisons (in which the fixed equipment "factor" effectively divides out). Finally, MusicWeb is just one of many excellent FREE sites run by dedicated amateurs. In such cases the visitor can only be grateful for what he does get, and - with all due respect - it really is quite rude for him to to demand more; after all, he isn't paying the piper, is he?

Re: Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A Posted by Thornhill on December 12, 2017, 2:35 pm, in reply to "Re: Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A" Who knew that transparency was such a controversial idea...

Re: Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A Posted by Paul Serotsky on December 12, 2017, 11:28 pm, in reply to "Re: Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A" It isn't, and, even after re-reading my post, I can't for the life of me see how I said, or even implied, otherwise. However, equally applicable to a review is the concept of "relevancy" - and, if you're going to insist on the inclusion of what the reviewer considers irrelevancies, where do you stop? Hopefully short of a detailed discussion of Kant's "Critique of Pure Reason", or the reviewer's weekly shopping list.

Re: Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A Posted by Thornhill on December 13, 2017, 2:19 pm, in reply to "Re: Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A" The review in question focused on the audio quality. It was the reviewer's intent to focus specifically on this and attempt to answer the question of if it worth upgrading to this new release if you already own it on CD — the summary of their review is: "There’s really nothing more that can be said about these legendary performances, but what about the sound?" Given the focus on audio quality I've asked to know what the specs of the reviewer's system. The request for that information has been denied. That is the bottom line. You're withholding relevant information. As a reader attempting to decide if I should upgrade to this release, how does having less information benefit me?

Re: Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A Posted by John Quinn on December 13, 2017, 7:56 pm, in reply to "Re: Des Hutchinson review of Solti/Strauss operas on BD-A" In the temporary absence of Len Mullenger I am standing in for him as Moderator of the Message Board. I have therefore seen all the messages that have formed part of this chain. To the best of my knowledge, having read both magazines regularly for many years, the reviewers who write for publications such as Gramophone and the now-defunct International Record Review never gave details of the equipment on which they auditioned recordings, nor were they asked to do so. There is no question whatsoever that “information has been denied”. Our reviewer has chosen not to enter into this discussion: such is his right. The issue appears to have been thoroughly aired and I believe it is time to declare the correspondence closed.

« Back to index