The Altec Song Thread

[Steve Mac]

Things that probably sound good on anything...but especially good if you got a bada$$ Altec system.

Some artists are recorded better than others. It's a shame some artists were recorded so poorly. It's a treasure when a great artist is recorded well.

Lately here's some of the songs that just take me down...great artists, great recordings...that take on an entirely new dimension when a well tuned, well cranked altec system is hittin' on all cylinders. I chose these because the artists are great, the recordings are great and I'm sure I could never hear these songs as intended without the right system...an altec system:
Right Place, Wrong Time - Dr. John
(the guitar just screams thru altec horns)
Rock On - David Essex
(wasn't a big fan of this song when it came out...but it's not until you hear it on a system that does bass right that the genius of the song becomes apparent...if you ain't sure what compression is...listen to this...it is a clinic in cranking compression for effect)
Kalimba - Sergio Mendes
(this is a newer, more modern version of what everyone remebers him for...but this is better than that...Hot Brazilian women singing in unison...hot hot hot...and powerful)
Kiss from a Rose - Seal
(You can't hear the synth pads the way they were intended on the radio...a big mid bass system conveys this in spades...it's like hearing it for the first time)
Queen - Another One Bites the Dust
(get out of town...what appears simple is not when you sit down and hear it cranked)
Chick Corea - The Great Pumpkin Waltz
(sick playing and a powerful piano that just builds and builds)
Gipsy Kings - Bamboleo
(when you hear the crispness of multiple guitars and percussion you gotta dance...)
Van Halen - Finish What Ya Started
(You can't hear the attack and power of electric guitars without compression drivers on horns...preferably Altec)
The Dolphins - Caravan
(electric be bop...the tightest I've ever heard...beautifully recorded)

[GM]

Well, of course there's the Altec demo record as well as the Marantz demo CD and surprisingly enough, the original B@S3 901 demo record if you can find it. More recently, probably any Brian Bromberg CD since every one I've auditioned has been excellently recorded, especially WOOD for those who like sitting near the bass player.

The list goes on and on...........

GM

<font color="#FFFFFF" size="1">[ July 18, 2008 01:13 PM: Message edited by: GM ]</font>

[Todd W. White]

The soundtrack from "Star Trek: The Motion Picture", which was probably mixed on 604's, sounds great on any Altec system, and absolutely stunning on GPA's 604-8H-II's in 9 cubic foot boxes.

[GM]

Good one! Ditto the theme from Exodus.

GM

<font color="#FFFFFF" size="1">[ July 18, 2008 01:16 PM: Message edited by: GM ]</font>

[GM]

<font color="#FFFFFF" size="1">[ July 18, 2008 01:12 PM: Message edited by: GM ]</font>

[Mike Gibson]

For those who like fingerstyle guitar Mark Knopfler's 5:15AM is stunning when you hear it loud & clean.

[Tom Brennan]

Throw on the Ben Hur DVD and play the overture, prologue and credits. This is real Altec music, big time. The horn fanfare after the shepard blows the ram's horn will give you shivers.

In 1959 when I was 10 years old my father took me downtown to see the roadshow of Ben Hur, when I heard the mighty blasts of the overture was when I became (though I didn't know it then) an Altec lover.

Music is by Miklos Rozsa.

[bfish]

Also sprach Zarathustra by the Berlin Philharmonic

or...

Abbey Road (all of it)

or...

I think it would be easier to list what fails to impress...

[bowtie427ss]

A few of my favorite for showing off Altecs:

Brian Setzer Orchestra- cover of Benny Goodman's "sing sing sing with a swing"

Dire Straits- "Communique"......... the whole album

JJ Cale- several tracks from several albums, Cale has a very unique philosophy and technique for the final mix whereby he tends to pull vocal/solo levels down rather than highlight them in an effort to draw the listener "into" the music, Altecs seem to serve his intentions well.

ELP- "From the Beginning" ......... classic acoustic guitargasm.

Deep Purple- "Maybe I'm a Leo" and "Lazy" from the Machine Head album,......... this is an amazing "vintage" recording that can still give me goose bumps every time i play it.

One of the most outstanding characteristics of the Altec systems for me has always been their ability to faithfully and dramatically reproduce well mic'd vocals, acoustic instruments, and drums.

[Steve Mac]

Originally posted by GM:
Well, of course there's the Altec demo record as well as the Marantz demo CD and surprisingly enough, the original B@S3 901 demo record if you can find it. More recently, probably any Brian Bromberg CD since every one I've auditioned has been excellently recorded, especially WOOD for those who like sitting near the bass player.

The list goes on and on...........

GM

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I dunno why I'm laughing but I shoulda known that GM would reference demo records.