While scrolling through the music library I got stuck on Paul Rodgers' Muddy Water Blues. The version of "Hoochie Coochie Man" may not be a sonic revelation, but it's a lot of fun: The subtle use of reverberation, the fat bass drum, and the sumptuous arrangement don't distract me from the energetic groove in the least. Top-class happy-go-lucky music - especially when the PowerSwitch is handling the distribution of the data. The bass drum has now got a richer punch and the guitars have lost somewhat of their aggressive conduct. The SOtM, however, reveals the rather dense instrumentation to be slightly finer structured, while the sound engineer's toying around with the reverb is a bit easier to track. Anyway, with the Ansuz this song gives me much more enjoyment.

Finally, I treat myself to Wagner's "The Ride of the Valkyries" from the album The Symphonic Ring with the Duisburg Philharmonics, conducted by Jonathan Darlington. Like all recordings of the Living Concert Series, this one also convinces with a good spatial imaging, gripping dynamics and brilliant timbres. The Ansuz bestows them a touch more warmth, the depiction of the instrumental groups on the now somewhat deeper stage comes off even more vivid and the orchestra not only appears to be larger, but also more energetic. Excellent! At this extremely high level, the differences are of course not of the dramatic kind, but is there any audiophile who wouldn't strive for the - sometimes crucial - nuances?