Adams Options

[ChristianeSparkle]

I have to admit, I can't quite make out the difference between both in the recording. But they sound so beautiful! A reminder of why I love the Euph

[John Morgan]

Well, at the risk of picking the wrong one, I think I preferred horn B. It was warmer and more mellow than A, although the difference was pretty subtle. I reserve the right to change my mind once I know which horn is which.

[John Morgan]

They are both very nice horns. You probably have a favorite or think you do. What would be a really good test is to be blindfolded, then have your wife or someone hand you the horn to play the excerpts. And put on light weight gloves. This way, you have a better chance of not putting any bias into your performance. If you are leaning toward one over the other, it is hard not to try to play the one you are leaning towards just a little better. At least, I have found that true for me. You just want it to sound better.

[RickF]

I’m with Christiane as I can’t tell any difference.

[daniel76309]

Well, at the risk of picking the wrong one, I think I preferred horn B. It was warmer and more mellow than A, although the difference was pretty subtle. I reserve the right to change my mind once I know which horn is which.

That is what I heard also. Especially in the "Brisk Young Sailor", Horn A sounded very much like a bassoon to me--not that that is a bad thing, just unexpected, and of course I am sure it sounds much different live than on computer speakers. Both were played very well of course and both sound nice, but I would pick horn B based on the recording.



I realize that this may not be a popular opinion, and nobody asked, but I still have to say that I prefer shiny, and I don't get why the trend is toward dull finishes on horns. To me it just looks like it isn't finished yet, or that they forgot to polish it at the factory.

[franz]

They both sound very good and, even if they seems to sound the same, I have a slight preference for the horn B: it has a warmer shade.

[davewerden]

I appreciate all the input so far! For the time being I'm going to remain a little quiet on the actual choice, partly because I'm not sure yet.

My motivation is to see if there is an option that as good as, or better than, the sterling bell, because that bell is easier to damage in transport. But greater sturdiness is not enough to get me to switch if I don't like the sound as well.

[guidocorona]

Hi David, talking about a "blind test"... My JAWS screen reading software can't detect the links to the videos at all... Could you post the raw URLs, or standard links using HTML anchor tags or input/button tags? I know that JAWS would detect those and let me open them.

Thanks, Guido

[mbrooke]

I like the B sound better. It seems a bit more mellow. Although, it may be my imagination, but there also seems to be a slight difference in the piano tone in the two recordings, with the B piano being a bit more mellow.

Mike

[davewerden]

Hi David, talking about a "blind test"... My JAWS screen reading software can't detect the links to the videos at all... Could you post the raw URLs, or standard links using HTML anchor tags or input/button tags? I know that JAWS would detect those and let me open them.

For anyone having trouble with the embedded video, here is the link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DlM1lC6moKw

I'll try to remember to include both in the future.

[davewerden]

...it may be my imagination, but there also seems to be a slight difference in the piano tone in the two recordings, with the B piano being a bit more mellow.

The mic position and piano position did not change between takes, but Sara may have played slightly differently between takes. The A/B order is the way we played them, so perhaps she was more relaxed on the B take, having just played through the same excerpt once.

[bbocaner]

B does sound slightly darker to me, I'm not sure yet if that's good or not. I think perhaps some of the detail is getting swallowed up in the room based on the way it was mic'd.

[DutchEupho]

It’s a bit difficult to hear differences between the 2.
I’d say B is a bit warmer, more mellow.

[guidocorona]

Thank you so much David for the URL... Worked perfectly!


Playing the clip on my laptop's internal speakers, the difference between the two horns was not terribly in evidence....

So I connected my HP Zbook to the stereo system via USB... And while both horns do sound great, my better half and I quickly developed a preference for Mr. B. Here are some of our joint mumblings....

** B speaks more easily and attacks are crisper.
* B is more nimble/agile.
* B has a more open tone, and simultaneously sound sweeter.
* B is grander and more resonant.
* B sounds more expressive, nuanced, emotionally intense, and lyrical.
* When pushed, B actually seems to yield greater carrying power.

Saluti, Guido

PS. If anyone were curious, my active audio chain consisted of a Rowland Aeris DAC feeding a pair of Rowland M535 bridged amplifiers into Vienna Acoustics Die Muzik speakers. Power cords are Cardas Clear XL, balanced interconnects are Cardas Clear Reflection, and the USB cord is generic.

[Sara Hood]

I too am joining the horn B bandwagon. The two sounded the same to me until Beauty and the Beast. Then horn B sound was a little deeper and a bit more like singing. And it kept those advantageous qualities into the final number. And by "deeper" I am not referring to lowness of pitch or frequency. Rather to tone quality. There was just a bit more to it in the bottom, and it was slightly nicer/more desirable to my ears.

Another thing I liked was how horn B handled the sudden jump down to the lower range for a single, short note (happened a few times in the last piece). It sounded like it should, and like it came out of almost nowhere with little effort. Which I know actually takes some skill to pull off. On horn A, those same notes sounded like something of a "blat" and somewhat landed on with something heavy. Could this difference have come more from the player and their technique? Possibly. I know when I have a note that sounds "landed on" like that, it is usually more me than the horn. And sometimes that is the desired sound. This time, I am not familiar enough with the piece to say whether it was desirable or not. And I don't know if Dave was trying to adjust how those particular notes came out (musician's technique). Whatever made the difference, I noticed the better result from horn B.

All this being said, I wonder if there is some bias or disadvantage that horn A is getting from going first. If the horns were switched in their order of being played, unbeknownst to this listening public, and more samples played, whether we would still be able to tell which horn was which and still maintain our choice as to which sound was preferable. Hmmm....

Or if we are just contributing to analysis paralysis for Dave (lighthearted joking)....
- Sara