What's your "go to song" to test bass in your rig?

Cut and pasted from a couple of other threads (my postings).

"This World Has Music" by the Average White Band. Alan Gorie's bass playing shows up what the bass response of the speakers is like, both in terms of depth and speed. Then, when the saxophone solo comes in, you can really judge how smooth the midrange is. I think the sax is one of the hardest instruments to reproduce, since it can easily sound raspy on some speakers. I use all the time to see if I'm going to like a pair of speakers. When the saxophone solo comes in, if it sounds rough and raucous (even at low volumes sometimes) then I know I won't like the speaker. At the same time in the sax solo, you'll hear Robbie McIntosh's bass drum sounding like machine gun fire, some speakers (and amps) can blur this in the mix. This is good test of timing of the bass response of the speakers.

Lee.
 
One of the qualities that make a saxophone so intriguing is that every musician manages to get their own tonality in their sound. This is easy to hear when comparing artists such as Paul Desmond and Charlie Parker. They both play Alto Saxophones but sound very different. Bird's tone always sounds sugar sweet to me. Desmond's tone sounds a bit mellower with a lot of lower undertones. Kenny G. when playing any Saxophone has always sounded to me like he's constipated.

Just my opinion.:)
 
JoeESP9 said:
One of the qualities that make a saxophone so intriguing is that every musician manages to get their own tonality in their sound. This is easy to hear when comparing artists such as Paul Desmond and Charlie Parker. They both play Alto Saxophones but sound very different. Bird's tone always sounds sugar sweet to me. Desmond's tone sounds a bit mellower with a lot of lower undertones. Kenny G. when playing any Saxophone has always sounded to me like he's constipated.

Just my opinion.:)
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That's true... and the sax is probably one of the best examples of this. In jazz music though, I'm always impressed by just how much all kinds of instrumentalists are able to both blend with the music they're playing and still have a really individual voice. Drums, an instrument that a lot of folks probably think of as just providing a foundation and not so much an individual voice on their own, at least in the context of jazz music can have very individual personalities. I can hear recordings that I've never heard before and immediately identify the drummer...
 
I agree. It's easy to tell Lenny White from Billy Cobham. Jack DeJohnette often sounds like two drummers (Red and Orange from John Abercrombie, Timeless). Buddy Rich was another example. His stick work was phenomenal. His foot skills not as good.
 
JoeESP9 said:
One of the qualities that make a saxophone so intriguing is that every musician manages to get their own tonality in their sound. This is easy to hear when comparing artists such as Paul Desmond and Charlie Parker. They both play Alto Saxophones but sound very different. Bird's tone always sounds sugar sweet to me. Desmond's tone sounds a bit mellower with a lot of lower undertones. Kenny G. when playing any Saxophone has always sounded to me like he's constipated.
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I find Desmond's breathy alto tone to be one of the most readily identifiable sounds in all of jazz.

I also concur on Kenny G.'s tone.
 
RunOutGroove said:
Cool... I'm always on the hunt for old LPs so I'll add that to my list!
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"Flat Earth" is particularly noteworthy, because it flies somewhat out of TD's normal style. (I think we need to start a Thomas Dolby thread.)

But back on topic . . . did I mention Tramaine Hawkins' "Fall Down?" Primarily a gospel singer, but that song has some deep bass right after the long intro.
 
Never, ever use Billie Eielish" Where do we go when we sleep"CD. The bass and built-in distortion are enough to make you think something **** the bed
 
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Not a fan of the Silly Eyelash. For anything. Wish she'd simply just evaporate, and take that dipsh*t producer with her..........
 
justjed2 said:
Not a fan of the Silly Eyelash. For anything. Wish she'd simply just evaporate, and take that dipsh*t producer with her..........
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Who was it that said, "Bad press is better than no press?" Now, I'll have to "Google" Billie Eielish to know who ya'll are talking about. :confused:
 
Artie said:
Who was it that said, "Bad press is better than no press?" Now, I'll have to "Google" Billie Eielish to know who ya'll are talking about. :confused:
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She's a little breathy, but I like a couple of her songs. Ocean Eyes, Bad Boy are good, and You Should See Me In A Crown is great. Love that song. Cool video too.
 
Earlier, I touted modern hi-res (e.g., Blu-ray's DTS-HD MA 5.1) recordings of classical music that involves pipe organ, double bass, bass drum, and Mahler hammer as examples of deep bass that occurs naturally in classical music (i.e., NOT involving electronically produced sound.)

If you want examples of relatively deep bass involving the human voice, I suggest that you consider the following performances that feature an oktavist. Enjoy:


 
I don't test bass in my speakers because that's not my priority, but Starliner by Mt. Wolf is a good track. Hard hitting percussion from mid to low bass.
 
You know what I forgot all about? I think I've only referred to it once in the many threads on this topic that I've responded to, and I don't know why I've been neglecting its mention:

The low synth tones in "Tubular Bells Part I". You know, the prelude to the part where Viv Stanshall introduces the "instruments" one at a time? That'll rattle your windows. I was listening to it on headphones the other night and my ears are still vibrating.
 
noogies said:
The low synth tones in "Tubular Bells Part I". You know, the prelude to the part where Viv Stanshall introduces the "instruments" one at a time?
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It's a good one, mentioned in post #18, along with just about anything from Mike Oldfield. I remember when Tubular Bells came out, and with it's association to "The Exorcist', it was just too much for some people.
I've had at least one copy, either on tape, CD, or vinyl, ever since. Haven't actually listened to it in a long time, tho, probably almost a week, now....
 
justjed2 said:
Not a fan of the Silly Eyelash. For anything. Wish she'd simply just evaporate, and take that dipsh*t producer with her..........
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Thats somewhat harsh, in my opinion...I would like to hear her cover some older classics in a "Julie London-type" mood. I'll bet she would do well...but agree, but her recently released stuff is really not for "us"...;)
 
Caution: play this at a reduced volume to see if your speakers start jumping out of their boxes, or if the woofers will bottom out:

then turn it up to 10 and hold on to your molars.
 
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