Ok, I'll try to explain what I mean here...
While I certainly don't have the highest-end system, it's ok and it frequently makes me very happy. I use Roon ROCK on an NUC into a NAD Masters Series M50.2 player/vault connected directly to a NAD Masters Series M32 digital integrated amp. That connects to a pair of CSS Criton 2TD-X towers with upgraded crossovers, which are supplemented by a pair of Taket Live supertweeters and Taket WHDpure "woofer hi-definitioners."
On the analog side, I have a heavily-modified Rega table into a Moon preamp with outboard linear power supply, which goes into a line input on the M32.
Cables are Hapa digital and Audio Art analog.
So...I LOVE the sound I get from well-recorded HD downloads (such as the Nagra 70th Anniversary 2xHD Jazz album and Nuvelle's digital offerings) and when listening to those I have no desire to upgrade any gear whatsoever. But I'm left wanting on many of the non-HD digital recordings I own.
Similarly, UHQR vinyl sounds awesome and inevitably takes me where I want to go, but run-of-the-mill vinyl is often meh.
Is some gear simply too unforgiving with mediocre recordings, and can better gear help me find happiness when the recording isn't great or the digital resolution is lower? Or does better gear inevitably result in dissatisfaction with undistinguished recordings and I would be better off just gradually replacing my entire library with HD music?
While I certainly don't have the highest-end system, it's ok and it frequently makes me very happy. I use Roon ROCK on an NUC into a NAD Masters Series M50.2 player/vault connected directly to a NAD Masters Series M32 digital integrated amp. That connects to a pair of CSS Criton 2TD-X towers with upgraded crossovers, which are supplemented by a pair of Taket Live supertweeters and Taket WHDpure "woofer hi-definitioners."
On the analog side, I have a heavily-modified Rega table into a Moon preamp with outboard linear power supply, which goes into a line input on the M32.
Cables are Hapa digital and Audio Art analog.
So...I LOVE the sound I get from well-recorded HD downloads (such as the Nagra 70th Anniversary 2xHD Jazz album and Nuvelle's digital offerings) and when listening to those I have no desire to upgrade any gear whatsoever. But I'm left wanting on many of the non-HD digital recordings I own.
Similarly, UHQR vinyl sounds awesome and inevitably takes me where I want to go, but run-of-the-mill vinyl is often meh.
Is some gear simply too unforgiving with mediocre recordings, and can better gear help me find happiness when the recording isn't great or the digital resolution is lower? Or does better gear inevitably result in dissatisfaction with undistinguished recordings and I would be better off just gradually replacing my entire library with HD music?