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Article: JRiver Mac vs JRiver Windows Sound Quality Comparison


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I don't want the comments here to devolve into the "bits-is-bits" crowd versus everyone else--mitcho and everyone endured enough of that after his null-testing between JRiver and JPlay last year.

 

But I do have a question about a sonically meaningful (to me and many others) feature of a number of the players: Integer Mode.

I am quite certain that programs such as Amarra, Audirvana, and Pure Music would all pass the same bit-perfect null-tests as performed here--without Integer Mode turned on. But turn Integer Mode on and the music becomes (at least in my system) vastly more real. And I bet a given player could even be compared to itself (Integer Mode on/off) and pass these null tests.

So what is really going on?

I plan to give JRiver Mac a listen, but I'll be pretty shocked if can rival a highly evolved player like Audirvana Plus 1.4.6. I wish the two could integrate the way A+ does with iTunes.

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SuperDad - JRMC doesn't need to integrate with iTunes, and there are substantial advantages :

 

Sorry if I was not clear. What I want is for JMRC and A+ to integrate so that I might be able to leave iTunes behind. Perhaps that won't be necessary once I hear JRMC by itself. But I don't think JRiver supports Integer Mode, and I know they did not license the iZotope SRC engine. These are features of A+ that I can not life without.

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When you say amarra (which in my comparison easily bests pure music, and an earlier version of A+) sounds vastly better in integr mode -- how did you do that? I have , I think, no ability on my lion Mac mini to play amarra in integer mode .

 

I don't want to hijack this thread with other topics, but I can confirm for you that Audirvana Plus (since about version 1.4; but you must audition 1.4.6 it is fantastic) does indeed support integer mode in with Mountain Lion. Not only that, but unlike Pure Music, A+ permits integer mode to be active even when the upsampling engine (iZotope, much better than Core Audio's engine) is active. Try it out!

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  • 2 weeks later...
Agreed.....as there's so many functions in a complex waveform, our brains couldn't possibly interpret their electrical waveforms in a comprehensive way no less recreate them through audible memory for comparison.

 

 

Bulls**t! I don't need a panel of people or an ABX switch to tell me that the differences I hear are real. My system is resolving enough and my experience in the pursuit of musical reality is more than plenty to be able to make decisions about "better 1?", "better 2?" It can be s/w players, upsampling filter settings, a resistor type, a capacitor type, a particular mastering of a recording, operating system versions, or whether the draperies should be open or closed a few more inches.

 

All of these constant long threads about if people can hear this or that change have become so tiring. Frankly I think those who doubt the ability of the human ear either: a) don't have a system--or room acoustic--evolved enough to resolve what are admittedly sometimes subtle changes; b) don't have enough of a connection to the feeling that well performed/recorded music can evoke; or c) are not listening at all and are just arguing based on what they think/wish should be perfect theory.

 

How do I reach the above conclusions? Easy. I just listen. With my ears, my heart, and my experience. It is not that hard--at least for me as I have been doing this my whole life. I am not an audio engineer (though I am close with many), I not a musician (though I have lived and been lifelong friends with several), I am just deeply connected to a wide range of music and to the pursuit of a truly accurate and moving recreation of it in my home.

 

I hope others here will ignore the rhetoric and listen for themselves. I have listened to most all of the software players and there is, to my ears and my mind, no denying that there are real and significant differences between them. Someday, someone will find a way to measure those differences, but now and always, I will use the only instrument that counts, my ears.

 

Peace,

ALEX

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Yep, though I'm a bit more diplomatic about this issue.

 

Well I had had a bit more than usual to drink when I wrote that last night. Not that I didn't mean every word.

 

 

All of this, and more, along with the fact that few, if any, companies who produce audiophile class components make a full range of products that we can use end-to-end.

 

I guess I am fortunate in that regard (take a look at my profile). I was a partner in Hovland Company since the '80s, and we produced some amazingly true-to-the-music gear which has been praised worldwide. The thing about it is, customers partnered our preamps and amps with many other brands of sources and speakers--and the musical values and qualities did still shine through. To bring it closer to this forum, I liken it to the fact that so many people here have all reported hearing the same tremendous improvement when Audirvana released 1.4.6. It was great before, then it took another leap (with the same bits!) and everyone was blown away.

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(Sorry if this ends up as a triple post. Replying to a comment in an article does not seem to be working for me today.)

 

Wow, that was too easy. You started with the vinyl. 100% certain of that. Sorry, but IMO it was a mediocre recording.

 

Also, hello Steve. Glad you enjoyed an early Hovland preamp for a while. We evolved the product a great deal over the years, and the HP200-i was/is a far more accurate yet still very musically engaging preamp.

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Okay, I just now realized I was a jerk for perhaps spoiling the test for others. Sorry about that. Guess I should have just sent "mitchco" a private message with my conclusion. And sorry to have complained about the recording. I'm sure I would have enjoyed it more had it been more that 74 seconds long!

 

OT: Just downloaded the 24/96 of Joni Mitchell's "For the Roses"--very nice edition of an album I know well from my younger years. Always a favorite. Speaking of favorites, I think I finally found a version of Bill Evans' "Everybody Digs Bill Evans" to top the JVC XRCD2 edition: Its the "Keepnews Collection" version. I was expecting to be disappointed (so many remastering have missed the mark for me lately), but I was pleasantly surprised at the balance and impact--without loss of emotional intonation. About as close to the original vinyl as I have come with this--and of course the CD has better bass.

 

Regards.

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Hi mitchco: I see you are back in the thread. On Wednesday I took your vinyl-rip versus CD test and answered promptly with regards to what I heard. Will you be confirming for all which was which? You called BS (I guess to the idea that it is easy to tell differences by ear) and I told you it took but an instant for me to determine which was the vinyl (entirely by ear).

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  • 3 weeks later...

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