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[Bryce_H]

One of the first DVD's I used to use was the opening sequency in Golden Eye as they are sneaking into the lab. It was one of the first disks to have good discrete surround/presence. I also used to use the lobby scene in The Matrix (actually I still use that one ) Music I use Pink Floyds DSOTM SACD.

 

[s002wjh]

CD
Eric Clapton (vocal and guitar)
The Eagles (guitar and drum)

DVD
Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring (DTS)
Master and Command (nice base)

 

[talannar]

CD's: Aslyn: Lemon Love
Eric Clapton: Unplugged
a classical CD belonging to my wife....she has to approve after all.

DVD's: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Master and Commander
The Italian Job (love those Mini's)

 

[majorloser]

What CDs/DVDs do you use to test out a system? Please list what each of your preferred discs is good at testing.

I use Digital Video Essentials to calibrate audio and video.

To test video I like to mix up a few movies:
Monsters, Inc. (color and resolution)
LOTR: Fellowship (scenes in the Shire for color)
DTS and Dolby demo disks
Saving Private Ryan DTS (opening scene on Omaha Beach)
Gladiator DTS (Unleash Hell scene)

To test out audio/speakers I like to listen to:
Sade (female vocals and bass)
Power Supply (woofer excursion test EXTREME)
Various Telarc CD's (classical)
Nora Jones (female vocals)
Pink Floyd- The Wall and DSOTM (just because I like them)
Eagles-HFO
Creed (for something different)

 

[jcPanny]

Listening Tests

For CD listing tests I would use a well mastered Jazz CD with smooth vocals such as Diana Krall.
In my DVD collection, the LOTR trilogy has the best audio quality and some good scenes for LFE.

 

[BobBart]

For subwoofer demos I use scenes from the dvds
Monster inc
lord of the rings
finding nemo
toy story 2

For surround sound mix I use
starwars phantom menace
matrix
gladiator

For music
tool-lateralus
blueman group

 

[shokhead]

DVD
U571
Incredibles
SPR

Music
BMG-DTS
Remastered import Grand Funk Railroad
Dondald Fagan Nightfly-DTS

 

[AFJumper03]

For movies I use the Balrog scene in Fellowship of the Ring, its got a wide range of sound there, from booming bass to soft dialoge.

For music I use the song "A Fair Judgement" By Opeth. This is espically good for a 5.1 set up that is turning two channel into 5.1 with a good reciever. The middle of the song with its acoustic guitair should feel haunting on good speakers and then it speeds up in other parts of the song to test the whole range of the speaker.

 

[tomd51]

Reference\Demo Material

Reference material is as follows:

DVDs:
Lord Of The Rings: Fellowship Of The Ring (DTS Extended Edition)
Balrog In The Mines Of Moria scene

Gladiator (DTS-ES)
Hell Unleashed scene

Master and Commmander (DTS)
Opening battle scene

Kill Bill, Volume 1 (DTS)
Fight scene with Vernita Green, aka Copperhead (Vivica A. Fox)

Saving Private Ryan (DTS)
Beach landing at Normandy scene

Music:
Santana: Supernatural (DVD-A)
(Da Le) Yaleo

Steely Dan: Two Against Nature (DVD-A)
Two Against Nature, Jack Of Speed

Donald Fagen: The Nightfly (DVD-A)
Maxine, The Nightfly, New Frontier, The Goodbye Look

Peter Gabriel: Play (DTS DVD)
Red Rain, In Your Eyes, Steam, Big Time

Dave Matthews Band: Crash (CD)
Lie In Our Graves, #41, Tripping Billies

Crystal Method: Vegas (CD)
Vapor Trail, High Roller

Juno Reactor: Beyond The Infinite (CD)
Guardian Angel

Juno Reactor: Samurai (EP CD)
Feel the Universe [Kox Box Remix]


Beethoven Symphony No. 9 (CD)
Molto vivace

Mozart: Amadeus: Original Soundtrack Recording (CD)
Symphony No.25 In GK.183

 

[Tritonman]

What CDs/DVDs do you use to test out a system? Please list what each of your preferred discs is good at testing.

For testing I like to use Saving Private Ryan with the beach scene. The total chaos of sound going around in that scene is enough to test practically every aspect of your system from the high end to the low end

For bass testing I like the use the Pod Race scene from the first Star Wars..the rumble of the pods is a good sub test on low end and prolonged rumble

The lobby scene in the Matrix. With all the bullets flying and the shell casings hitting the floor its a good test of midrange and high end.

Master & Commander. great movie for low end when the cannons fire away. Its also a great test on rear surround to eliminate directional rear ambience.

For audio i like to use Cafe Del Mar..just about any one of their cd's. They are primarily ambient style music which tends to be a nice mix of crisp high end and good solid low end. There are also many aspects of left to right fading for front soundstage testing

Also for audio I like to use Chemical Brothers cd's. The rock/techno beats they generate are a great testing agent for midbass/midrange and some nice low end sudden drops

 

[j_garcia]

Everything But The Girl - Walking Wounded Solid, fairly deep, clean bass. Good for checking out a sub, but has a lot of electronic sounds and female vocals so it works well for the overall system sound.

BT - Emotional Technology Very complex compositions that run the range. Well recorded. He likes to sneak in some very deep stuff (mid 20s?) when you least expect it

Fiona Apple - Tidal Great recording, sensuous, liquid female vocals, some nice punchy bass on quite a few tracks.

Dave Mathews Band - Crash Nice recording, good variety of instruments, plucky, upbeat stuff and deep clean male vocals.

Seal Both of his first two albums, which I believe are both called "Seal" for some reason. Smooth male vocals, nice basslines, some deep stuff here and there.

Patricia Barber - Cafe Blue I'm not entirely crazy about her vocals, but this Mobile Fidelity disc is amazingly well recorded. A ton of depth and detail. Available on SACD as well as redbook.

 

[chriscmore]

It's so easy to over-do the bass when enjoying the effects, so I first start with Sting's track 6 from The Soul Cages, "St. Augustine (I think - I just know it as '6')", and the lower notes of the guitar should still sound like a guitar, not a bass. Acoustic jazz is great, because the upright bass should sound natural and not overpowering across all notes. It really tests the level and even-ness of the bass response.

These test for sins of "commission," which to me are far worse than the sins of "omission." The latter is revealed by either missing notes or effects (not enough furniture shake, for example). But you can live with not having notes much more easily than listenening to fudged up ones.

Chris

 

[MarkMac]

I use the scene in Saving Private Ryan when the tank comes rumbling down the road. With my old 20-39PCi, that scene used to shake the room.

The sock incineration in Monsters, Inc. is a lot of fun, too.

 

[mike c]

I use the DTS demo discs. I have 3,4,5,7,8,9
specifically, Minority Report (which sounds better DTS-ES on these demo discs than my DTS version of the movie)
and U-571

and of course for BASS

I use an old school car audio CD called BASS 305

 

[rjh22]

Demo Discs

For music, Telarc's famous 1812 overture is good for obvious reasons. What canbe better than trying to show your system can handle a symphony, chorus, and cannons?

For movies, LOTR will always do for me. Some other good demos that I'm sure you all are awae of:
1) Finding Nemo - Darla tapping the fish tank
2) Monsters, Inc - sock detonation and Boo crying scenes

 

[ndsh]

My demos

Since I'm in the market, I've just put together my own CDR that covers all the genres that I'd listen to, but also expose different instrument/vocal ranges.

For overall impression / dynamic range / sensitivity it's got to be classical

Montreal Symphony recording of Mars from Holst's The Planets

For instrumentals

Oscar Peterson - Something's Coming (piano / double bass)
Led Zeppelin - Moby ****/Bonzo's Montreux remix (percussion / guitar)
Taxi - Government Street (really bluesy guitar)
Red Hot Chili Peppers - My Friends (guitar / bass)

Vocals

Norah Jones - Don't Know Why (really exposes high frequency response)
Holly Cole Trio - I Can See Clearly
Sarah McLachlan - Mercy

Tragically Hip - Grace, Too
Led Zeppelin - The Ocean

Hard Rocking big presence to finish up

Nickelback - Learn The Hard Way
David Coverdale / Jimmy Page - Waiting On You

 

[Berty52]

For me it's:
The Haunting DTS
Flight of the Phenix
Serenity

 

[agarwalro]

Now that people mention it, Flight of the Phoenix had my apartment dry walls shaking off the studs. I liked that so much that I bought the DVD. Played it for some friends the other day to OOhs and AAhs and Wows.

Cost of equipment: $3000.00
Cost of DVD: $10.00
Look on your friends faces: Priceless

Now imagen what I could do with a PB-12 Ultra...

 

[a/v moron]

CD's: Britney Spears - Baby one more Time (just kidding)
Elvis Costello - Best of (mix of all tyoes of sounds)
Guster - Lost & Gone Forever (all time fav)
Beck - Odelay (great sounding to me)

DVD's: Master & Commander (great bass)
Matrix (surround effects)

 

[nyf]

Music:
Buena Vista Social Club -- very diverse sounds, great recording, really shows stuff off
DJ Shadow: Endtroducing -- high fidelity samples, especially the deep drums, detailed soundstage
Grieg -- piano music is important to me and challenges systems. Grieg's work covers a huge range of dynamics and pitches.
Norah Jones: Don't Know Why -- those great vocals

Movies:
LOTR (especially battle scene in ROTK)
Lobby scene from The Matrix, just to give me an excuse to watch it a lot
Monster Inc's sock scene