Miles Elzinga Posted July 24, 2014 Share Posted July 24, 2014 Could someone really break down the differences of the 3 versions. Realistically I'm not gonna get the symphony version as it's too expensive (although I would like to know that irc is), but Amarra and Amarra HiFi are within my price range. I've demoed both and the only difference I can tell for my purposes is cache and playlist mode, neither of which I really use. But before I make my purchase I have a few questions. Is there a sound quality difference between the standard and HiFi versions? What benefit does playlist mode add? Is it worth paying extra for the standard version? I did a bunch of searching and just couldn't find clear answers to my questions. I hope someone can help! Thanks! Link to comment
Musicophile Posted July 24, 2014 Share Posted July 24, 2014 I found a minor, but noticeable sound quality difference between the two, and like to be able to use playlist mode for gapless playback (and more bug free operation, which Itunes integrated mode doesn't always guarantee. Other than that, if you don't use the EQ, you may as well stay with Hifi for the moment. Check out my blog at musicophilesblog.com - From Keith Jarrett to Johannes Brahms Link to comment
Miles Elzinga Posted July 28, 2014 Author Share Posted July 28, 2014 I found a minor, but noticeable sound quality difference between the two, and like to be able to use playlist mode for gapless playback (and more bug free operation, which Itunes integrated mode doesn't always guarantee. Other than that, if you don't use the EQ, you may as well stay with Hifi for the moment. I typically use the iTunes built in EQ. Gapless would be nice though, especially since I listen to a lot of concept albums and the delay can be kind of annoying. Link to comment
Musicophile Posted July 28, 2014 Share Posted July 28, 2014 I typically use the iTunes built in EQ. Gapless would be nice though, especially since I listen to a lot of concept albums and the delay can be kind of annoying. Well, as preload works only when it wants to, playlist mode, while inconvenient, is the way to go for gapless. Check out my blog at musicophilesblog.com - From Keith Jarrett to Johannes Brahms Link to comment
Miles Elzinga Posted July 31, 2014 Author Share Posted July 31, 2014 Well, as preload works only when it wants to, playlist mode, while inconvenient, is the way to go for gapless. Thanks for the input. In your opinion, is the standard version, only considering sound quality, worth the price difference from the HiFi? Link to comment
Musicophile Posted July 31, 2014 Share Posted July 31, 2014 Thanks for the input. In your opinion, is the standard version, only considering sound quality, worth the price difference from the HiFi? Hard to say. The difference is not huge, and unfortunately on my system even 3.0 is still buggy. Nevertheless, the sound quality has something magical about it, so I keep returning to the software more than it deserves from a user friendliness perspective. So I suppose I got my money's worth out of it in one way. But if you're not sure, I'd start with Hifi, see if you're happy, and you can always upgrade later. Check out my blog at musicophilesblog.com - From Keith Jarrett to Johannes Brahms Link to comment
Musicophile Posted July 31, 2014 Share Posted July 31, 2014 Hard to say. The difference is not huge, and unfortunately on my system even 3.0 is still buggy. Nevertheless, the sound quality has something magical about it, so I keep returning to the software more than it deserves from a user friendliness perspective. So I suppose I got my money's worth out of it in one way. But if you're not sure, I'd start with Hifi, see if you're happy, and you can always upgrade later. So, instead of just relying on memory, I went back to my existing 2.6 Hifi license and compared it on a handful of tracks to 3.0 "regular". I can confirm my judgment above, the difference is not huge. However, "regular" just does more of the "je ne sais quoi" that differentiates it from all other players, and makes the sound so attractive. We already had endless debates on this forum what it is that sets Amarra's SQ apart from everything else, including my regular favorite, Audirvana+ (I'm even a beta tester of the new 2.0 app). I still can't put my finger on it, but what Amarra has is some incremental "smoothness". Probably the best analogy is this I just came up with (©).... The shiny ball is Audirvana, resolving, you can see everything reflected in the details, sparkling. Amarra is the matt ball, softer, warmer, "organic". Which one is better? No idea. I like both (co-incidentally, we have a mix of shiny and matte balls on our Christmas tree as well). So after all this rambling: if you like the sound of Amarra, and want "more" of it, get regular. Otherwise just dip the foot in the water and get Hifi. It all depends obviously also on the rest of your system, which you haven't shared. Check out my blog at musicophilesblog.com - From Keith Jarrett to Johannes Brahms Link to comment
AnotherSpin Posted July 31, 2014 Share Posted July 31, 2014 Probably the best analogy is this I just came up with (©).... [ATTACH=CONFIG]13869[/ATTACH] The shiny ball is Audirvana, resolving, you can see everything reflected in the details, sparkling. Amarra is the matt ball, softer, warmer, "organic". In my setup analogy will be perfectly opposite - clean, transparent, detailed sound of Amarra Symphony 3.0 with iRC and blurred (call it "matte', if you like) sound of A+. Link to comment
Musicophile Posted July 31, 2014 Share Posted July 31, 2014 In my setup analogy will be perfectly opposite - clean, transparent, detailed sound of Amarra Symphony 3.0 with iRC and blurred (call it "matte', if you like) sound of A+. Interesting... So to Miles Elzinga: YMMV! Check out my blog at musicophilesblog.com - From Keith Jarrett to Johannes Brahms Link to comment
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