I have hit a phase where now I love classical music. All the cds I have sound, unfort, less than par. Does anyone know of any good classical music cds that sound like they are almost recorded with modern day technology? Really lookin for the great classics, like 1812 overture, but have had no luck going to any shops around my area.....they carry hardly any classical. Help would be great. I figured some of you SQ lovin guys have to hit up classical music once in a blue moon.

actually the marine corp band has an awesome recording of the 1812 overture. They use real cannons , so it puts a system through a work out

actually the marine corp band has an awesome recording of the 1812 overture. They use real cannons , so it puts a system through a work out

there's a site online where you can order the 1812, Jim will know it I'm sure

Ah, the time when you start to look at the label and recording techniques when shopping for music. I remember when those days started.

Classical music is a pretty broad genre, sort of like saying hey I like rock and roll now can someone recommend where I can buy some high quality recorded rock? i.e. there are a million options and they aren't very hard to find as classical listeners are usually about as anal retentive as any genre. It comes down to what you are looking for and how much you plan on getting into it.

If you're looking for the 1812, the Telarc version is kind of a standard

I know it's not the answer you're looking for, but the best-sounding classical music isn't recorded on modern equipment. In fact, most of it's not on CD at all...

Not fully the answer i am looking for, but hey, it is a start. And yep, when i typed this I didn't give full thought to just how many genre's of classical there really are. I think I am gonna leave my area and head up to a larger city, maybe one that actually has some decent cd shops or even audio shops in general (ie. sells stuff like pianos, etc.) as I would imagine they would sell some. Thanks for the input.

For CD's, labels like Mobile Fidelity Sound Labs, Sheffield Labs, Chesky Records, and others do a pretty good job usually.

What I meant by that is that some of the best-sounding recordings were made on big 2 and 4-track tape machines in the '50s and put on vinyl...the problem about recording large orchestral pieces now with digital equipment is that it costs a heck of a lot to hire all those union musicians and only sell a tiny amount of copies...where it's not very mainstream, it's hard to get a lot of recordings nowadays like that...

JimJ, thanks, that was exactly what I was pretty much lookin for, but at the time for some reason couldn't find words to expalin that.

i know what you mean by in the stage of listening to classical(but not classical for me), i have recently gotten into a bunch of different music...it used to be strictly rock and a little bit of rap, but recently i have gotten into some classical, a lot of jazz(armstrong, coltrane, davis, zappa, etc.) and even a bit of techno...lol

but if you're looking for good classical... i'd Suggest Holst-The Planets there are newer recorded CDs that you can find on the internet...maybe try and DL it first and check and see if it sounds like it is recorded in modern times

but if you're looking for good classical... i'd Suggest Holst-The Planets there are newer recorded CDs that you can find on the internet...maybe try and DL it first and check and see if it sounds like it is recorded in modern times

Telarc does a good job with The Planets, IIRC theirs is the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.

I can't remember which version the MoFi one is, but I had it before my hard drive crashed and it sounded pretty good as well. I hear amazing things about the Vienna Philharmonic's version, but that was done in the '60s for Decca and I'm not sure if it was ever put on little shiny disc...

but if you're looking for good classical... i'd Suggest Holst-The Planets there are newer recorded CDs that you can find on the internet...maybe try and DL it first and check and see if it sounds like it is recorded in modern times

Telarc does a good job with The Planets, IIRC theirs is the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.

I can't remember which version the MoFi one is, but I had it before my hard drive crashed and it sounded pretty good as well. I hear amazing things about the Vienna Philharmonic's version, but that was done in the '60s for Decca and I'm not sure if it was ever put on little shiny disc...

i have the Zubin Metha LA Philharmonic Orchestra's version in my iTunes, i am assuming that it's the same as what you are talking about, it sounds good to me(although my ears aren't trained as well as some other people's)

Mars, The Bringer of War is an awsome track from The Planet

Yo Jim u got any more High Quality record label recommendations? I'm checking into Telarc and they seem pretty rock solid. :-D Hook us up with some more labels,groups, etc. with that quality classical digital music.

http://www.classicrecs.com/ - Classic Records, I only have experience with their 200g vinyl but they have a lot of 24/96 CD releases...

The best way to find labels like this is to pick up a copy of Stereophile or The Absolute Sound, every month they always have either reviews of CD's from audiophile-type labels or ads from them...

I must only be half way there; close as I get is Metallica S&M and Dream Theater, maybe Yes-Drama (Drama from before my time but for some reason really like it). I can appreciate it but lack the down time for it. Do have some odd stuff, like Glen Miller and the Ink Spots (so old the quality is really bad unfortunately). Just found an 80s rock comp CD I been listening to and it is amazing in the differences of quality and production between the songs...ok not amazing as it sucks, but very noticeable. One of the downsides of listening to good equipment.