Testing Regimen and Listening Tests
Testing Regimen
Test System Speakers
- Fronts/Rears: Axiom M2 V3 Bookshelf
- Center: VP 100 V3
- Sub: Axiom EP 125
- Headphones: Sennheiser HD595
Cables
- Interconnects: JPS Ultra Conductor
- Speaker Cables: JPS Ultra Conductor
- S/Pdif: JPS Ultra Conductor
Receiver
- Sony STR- DE 975
Notes on listening tests: It is very difficult to describe sound quality and considering we all use different playback systems, the listening tests are just meant to give the reader a general idea of what we heard during testing. We generally use a new audio source for a while before actually doing any analytical testing and listening. As we feel this is the best way to get a sense of what the product really offers and it also ensures any issues or anomalies with the hardware/software will become apparent.
Listening Tests Music
- Software: Album Player V5.3e, Foobar V1.1.16
- Output Plugins: JPlay and ASIO
- Test Track Format: FLAC
Artist: Filter Album: Title of Record Track: Take a Picture
The ZXR produces an excellent soundstage that is wide and deep. The track came out exceptionally layered, with no mushing or blurriness, the separation in very impressive. All aspects have their own space in the soundstage. Bass, acoustic guitar and vocals are all prominent in the reproduction but not blurred together. The ZXR also produces and excellent bass response that is warm and balanced, not overblown or edgy. I actually heard a couple aspects in the song that seemed new, a layered effect with the vocals, impressive as I don’t remember hearing it quite that way before.
Artist: AC/DC Album: Who made Who Tracks: Whole Album
The ZXR allowed the tubish old school sound of Angus Young guitar to come through with excellent power. The bass was just balanced and pumping with no bottoming out. The soundstage was very large and deep allowing us to become immersed in some classic rock. We originally intended to just listen to the first couple fo songs but we couldn’t seem to turn it off and instead ended up just turning it up!
The ZXR just rocked this song, big time.
Artist: The Black Crowes Album: Croweology Song: She Talks to Angels:
This acoustic version just blew me away on this card; the ZXR pumped out excellent imaging, positioning the listener right in front of the band, balanced, and warm sound staging. The track sounded very deep and layered on the test gear. The ZXR produced a very warm, clear sound that had my foot was tapping in no time…
Artist: Judas Priest
Album: The Best of Judas Priest
Title: Touch of Evil
Gotta love 80’s metal to test out new gear, some products produce that warm tube sound and some make the track cold and lifeless. The ZXR had the neighbors hating us during the review; as we instinctively kept turning up the volume. As with our other test tracks, the soundstage was large, layered and full of life. No trace of noise or distortion could be heard even when driving the cards outputs at full level.
Artist: Andrés Segovia Album: The Segovia Collection Track: Leyenda
For a change of pace, I decided to dig into my classical collection. As far as classical guitar is concerned this guy can get some amazing sound out of that box. We figured he might be able to show us more of what the ZXR was capable of. The card allowed the more subtle aspects of the guitar to come through. The soundstage was very impressive aiding in producing a very authentic performance. The woodiness of the guitar and crispness of the string attack could be heard. We listened to this track twice to enjoy it a second time!
Final notes on music testing, the ZXR brought all the test tracks to life. Presentation was entirely clean, clear with zero noise in the signal. The ZXR packs some new processing in the form of the SX Pro Studio routines. As with any DSP we found modest amounts to offer the best results. The SBX surround and Crystalizer could be used to “envelope” and enhance the music. Although we are more of purists in the Guru3D Audio Lab, we found the right amount of DSP could be quite enjoyable.
