Pandora "Can" Sound Great

[willland]

I was just relaxing in my bedroom listening to streamed Pandora(wired) on my Integra DTM-40.4 stereo receiver and Klipsch Heresy II rig, and was taken back by the recording of "Love Song" by Adele.

 

The imaging was insane with the first acoustic guitar intro on the left side while soon after accompanied by a second acoustic guitar on the right.  The intro is about 21 seconds long and it leads in to spot on center vocals from Adele.

 

With the right gear, with the right speakers, with the right recording, Pandora can sound awesome even at 128Kbps.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjJUxczKAYE

 

Bill

Edited September 27, 2014 by willland

[dtel]

I agree, and it's only going to get better, I use the free version, but would pay if there was just a little better bit rate as they do now for businesses.

[joessportster]

I agree without a comparison medium it can sound good, However the SQ will become abysmal if you play the same song in lossless format.............I often use Pandora for background music and find it acceptable in that regard

 

side note I love Adele, That gruff bluesy voice is awesome..................reminds me of Melissa Etheridge, Stevie Knicks, etc...

[willland]

I agree without a comparison medium it can sound good, However the SQ will become abysmal if you play the same song in lossless format..

 

Very true.

 

I love Adele, That gruff bluesy voice is awesome..................reminds me of Melissa Etheridge, Stevie Knicks, etc...

 

Those artists indeed but with considerably more vocal range.

 

Bill 

[willland]

.I often use Pandora for background music and find it acceptable in that regard

 

And I also use it primarily for casual listening but something about this song(and a few others) captured my attention.  Maybe the not too complex arrangement where a higher resolution recording may not be necessary to pick up the little nuances like fingers dragging on the frets or breathing between lines. 

 

Bill

Edited September 27, 2014 by willland

[joessportster]

I often play adele 21 and it has become one of my favorites to chill out to,  The whole album is very pleasing (I typically find only a couple or 3 songs per album I like)

[derrickdj1]

I use Pandora and love it.  Somethings I prefer on flac but, I can't say I don't enjoy the streaming music as much.  Plus the unlimited varieties of music on Pandora makes my music shopping a little easier.

Edited September 29, 2014 by derrickdj1

[Khorn4]

willand -  you are right Pandora can sound pretty good. I would never even think of playing my iPod or iphone over my system through my K-horns.

The sound would be bright and harsh. But i found a neat little docking station  Teac DS-H01. Has a built in DAC and can also be used as a transport.

 

I can not believe the sound! It's pretty dog gone good. I forget I'm listening to mp3 over K-horns of all things! Pandora, Spotify just as good!

[Jim]

Try Sade and Barry White on it, not bad either

[twk123]

willand -  you are right Pandora can sound pretty good. I would never even think of playing my iPod or iphone over my system through my K-horns.

The sound would be bright and harsh. But i found a neat little docking station  Teac DS-H01. Has a built in DAC and can also be used as a transport.

 

I can not believe the sound! It's pretty dog gone good. I forget I'm listening to mp3 over K-horns of all things! Pandora, Spotify just as good!

 

Klipsch speakers are the epitome of 'garbage in garbage out', especially with digital music. I have heard good things about the Teac DACs. I use a similar tube DAC called the Aune T1 and its amazing how 'alive' it makes music from Spotify sound. If I try to listen to music through my iPod jack or even my Xbox I have to turn it off after 3 min due to ear fatigue.