Best Bass Demo Albums or Tracks

[Joe Whip]

Received the file today in 24/192 as I can’t play DXD. Superb sound, off the charts great sound. Totally three dimensional, you can hear all of the room, with a startling real drum kit sound, rock solid bass and crystal clear guitar sound.

 

[stehno]

An excellent bass demo. Especially cranked up a few notches.

 

[musicfirst1]

I find most kick drum recordings are lacking. Or perhaps it's my reproduction system. What are people's favorite recordings featuring the kick drum?

 

[Joe Whip]

The new Carmen Gomes Recording has very real sounding drums. it is available on CD on bandcamp. I have the high res download at 24/192 set for release on Sound Liaison on 11/13.

 

[stehno]

I find most kick drum recordings are lacking. Or perhaps it's my reproduction system. What are people's favorite recordings featuring the kick drum?

I don't think these are my favorite kick drums but they are a pleasure.

 

[Bruce B]

Has anyone suggested the Sheffield Drum record?

While I did the remastering of this album for Winston, I think among some of his best bass sounding CD's are the Chinese Drums and this CD of Michael Stearns - The Lost World, exhibited room shaking bass. That's what Winston wanted, that's how I made it sound!

https://www.allmusic.com/album/release/the-lost-world-mr0002946479

 

[oldvinyl]

I find most kick drum recordings are lacking. Or perhaps it's my reproduction system. What are people's favorite recordings featuring the kick drum?

I happen to like Oscar Peterson's album We Get Requests. I have the 45 rpm Verve reissue version. Ed Thigpen plays a constant bossa nova double kick on drum in The Girl From Ipanema. The drums are in the left channel, Ray Brown's bass is in the right channel, Oscar is right in the middle. This cut is revealing of recording and entire playback chain. The bass and drums are outside the speaker - off to the right for bass and off to the left for drums. It is hard to record for vinyl and hard for a system to get this kind of localization in the bass. The bass drum kicks should be taught and without overhang. It requires good room acoustics and interaction to get it to play tunefully.

Another great bass track on the same album is You Look Good to Me. Ray Brown starts with bowed bass, switched to regular jazz style plucked bass, then back to bowed bass at the end. It gives the full range and timbre of string bass.

Another album with lots of low bass energy is Herbie Hancock's Head Hunters. Chameleon has a bass line that drives the groove throughout the piece. There's lots of bass, drums and electronic instruments to test the depths of playback. And keep your toes tapping in the meantime. Watermelon Man also has lots of drums and low bass to groove to - er sorry, check out a stereo system's low end response.

Another favorite for bass is Camille Saint-Saëns Symphony No. 3 in C minor, Op. 78 (Organ Symphony), the Poco adagio section has sustained low notes in the organ. Any overhang, room interaction, speaker "doubling" will be noticable (especially at higher volumes). The Finale movement is a great tests since the entire orchestra is wailing full on and the organ is playing parts of the melody. It takes great equipment and setup to get the differentiation of instruments and lines, and also get the synthesis of the blended orchestral sound.

 

[Joe Whip]

great description of what to listen for in We Get Requests. plenty of little details too like both Oscar and Ray humming along to their playing and the occasional subtle talking between those two.

 

[24bit]

Lowest Bass ever recorded? It's really low, 27.5 hz!
And what an album! Just finished first listen through. It's supremely enjoyable.
CD is for sale via https://carmengomes.bandcamp.com/album/up-jumped-the-devil-discovering-the-music-of-robert-johnson-part-1

It's on the Sound Liaison Site in DXD, DSD Flac and Pcm now. And Joe Whip has written a very good review of the album. Very interesting reading. Thanks Joe, well done!

....."This is some of the best sounding drum sound I have ever heard on a recording. Very dynamic and not reserved. The sound of the double bass is full, rich and powerful where needed but with no hint of bloat. And the guitar.....It is clear and reverberant. Naturally, not with added reverb. Of course, the vocals are captured beautifully. Carmen is right there in front of you. This recording doesn’t take you to the recording studio. Even better, it brings the recording studio to your listening room. Very few studio recordings do this. The drums to the left, Carmen in the middle in front of the instruments and the bass just to the right of her and the guitar to the right side of the soundstage. The sound is totally three dimensional. You almost feel like you can reach out and touch everyone. The sound is totally open with natural decay and depth. It is stunning. It really is. No hyperbole."....Joe Whip

 

[Joe Whip]

Thank you!

 

[musicfirst1]

I'd like to pay for DxD verssions of some of these recordings but cant play them today. Is there any software that will down sample a DXD purchase offline to 24/192 (which I can play)?

 

[Blue58]

Lowest Bass ever recorded? It's really low, 27.5 khz!
And what an album! Just finished first listen through. It's supremely enjoyable.
CD is for sale via https://carmengomes.bandcamp.com/album/up-jumped-the-devil-discovering-the-music-of-robert-johnson-part-1

Listened to the DXD last night and it bored me silly. I suppose this is what happens when you move delta blues from Mississippi to Netherlands. Not a patch on Cowboy Junkies or Cassandra Wilson interpretations. Yes, it sounds very ‘real’ and sure to be a demo favourite at shows when they return. I’ll give it some more plays as it may grow on me.
cheers

 

[Kal Rubinson]

I'd like to pay for DxD verssions of some of these recordings but cant play them today. Is there any software that will down sample a DXD purchase offline to 24/192 (which I can play)?

Since DXD is really just PCM, any program/utility for audio down/upsampling (like SOX) can do it. Many will do it in real time with ease.

 

[christoph]

I'd like to pay for DxD verssions of some of these recordings but cant play them today. Is there any software that will down sample a DXD purchase offline to 24/192 (which I can play)?

Roon can downsample to 24/192 on the fly with ease

 

[musicfirst1]

Since DXD is really just PCM, any program/utility for audio down/upsampling (like SOX) can do it. Many will do it in real time with ease.

Does SoX have the best algorithms Kal, or should I just buy both the 24/176 and the 24/352?

 

[Kal Rubinson]

Does SoX have the best algorithms Kal, or should I just buy both the 24/176 and the 24/352?

SoX offers many algorithms so you can choose what you think is best. Frankly, it seems a waste of money to buy the 24/176.4 when downsampling is trivial. Can your player not downsample on the fly?

 

[Hi-FiGuy]

Listened to the DXD last night and it bored me silly.

Agreed! I have never been able to listen to one of her songs all the way through. I am not discounting the recordings or her ability it just seems so canned and cliché, her material does not move me in any way. How many excellent female vocal recordings does one need. I think audio shows have burned me out on that genre.

 

[Kal Rubinson]

It's an "audiophile recording." Odds are it will be boring.

 

[sbo6]

my speakers are -3db down at 7hz and -6db down at 3hz (on paper). so i do have the ability to do 10hz-20hz cleanly when it's on a recording. and i use active isolation on my amplifiers, preamps, and one turntable......so i can output low frequencies without the feedback causing havoc.

there is always Dafos, from Micky Hart......it sets the bar very high for vinyl. lot's of crazy low frequency stuff there.

but for digital Harry Connick Jr.----She, CD, track 7, "Joe Slam and the Spaceship"

10hz-15hz content. caution----you can cause stuff to blow at higher SPL's. if your system is up to it, you will feel it in your gut more than hear it.

View attachment 63077

My 5 - way system is flat to ~12Hz and ~3DB down to 10Hz (and that's with JLAs' low freq ELF <0). I'm digital only so no rumble issues, however, there's virtually no musical content at those low freq (pipe organ maybe?).

Also, thanks for the HC Jr pick, great example of quality - articulate bass. A good test IMO is - see if you can clearly discern between the bass guitar and bass drum (commonly on 1 and 3 with rock / blues). In most systems they sound as one instrument, one sound. I'm sure yours reproduces and delineates quite well.

 

[Ron Resnick]

there is always Dafos, from Micky Hart......it sets the bar very high for vinyl. lot's of crazy low frequency stuff there

Hi Mike,

Happy Sunday!

Which track on this album do you like best for low frequency system testing or bass-line discernment and nuance?