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Black velvet, acoustic-dampening curtains cover the surrounding walls of the darkened 12' x 15 'x 8' Chesky Audio hotel room packed with guests seated in folding chairs this Saturday afternoon. Upfront, the celebrated owner of HD Tracks, David Chesky, 69—a wiry and energetic man with a New York accent, long curly locks, clad in a... Read More »

James Oscar Smith was an American jazz icon who helped popularize the Hammond B-3 organ, forging a link between jazz and 1960s Soul—or the "urbanization and commercialization of rhythm and blues in the 60s," (www.allmusic.com), and the Acoustic Sounds Series reissues from Verve/Universal Music Enterprises delivers his artistry with exceptional fidelity in their 180 gram... Read More »

  Recently while purchasing vinyl at a record store, I mentioned that I would be reviewing the Dr. Feickert Analogue Woodpecker turntable. "Never heard of it," the proprietor said.  Fair enough.  Despite the fact that the US HiFi turntable market was valued at .6 Billion US dollars in 2024 and is projected to reach $1.4... Read More »

Do you own a vintage turntable with a drive motor on the decline? Or do you have a contemporary turntable that could use a performance upgrade without breaking the bank? As the owner of a vintage Micro Seiki BL-91 turntable, I decided to find out what the impact of enlisting a cutting edge external motor... Read More »

"The album was meticulously recorded with the best technology of its day and has always sounded good, but it has never sounded this good on vinyl," wrote Jeff Elbel of Mobile Fidelity Sound Labs Ultra Disc One-Step reissue of Stevie Nicks' Bella Donna record. "This prestige-format release benefits from the label's best mastering and highest-tier pressing process.... Read More »

I was recently discussing vinyl playback with a friend and audio equipment designer when he first suggested it.  "You should really look at the Dynavector XX-2A," he effused, claiming that it had excellent detail retrieval, treble extension, bass, dynamics, and an overall balance and presentation that compared favorably with many moving coil cartridges that sold... Read More »

Let's assume that, like many into hi-fi, you're extremely busy and prefer a minimalist aesthetic, reference-level sound, and low-fuss gear. In that case, the Sonore Signature Rendu SE Deluxe network music player may be the music player for you.  When I first spotted the Sonore Signature Rendu SE Deluxe, it was featured in a high-end... Read More »

Sometimes, the most improbable juxtaposition of musical styles, sounds, and textures just works and, when spotlit in breathtaking clarity, as with Mobile Fidelity's Platinum Ultra Disc One-Step version of Miles Davis's Bitches Brew, it's brilliant.  When I was a child, my mother cooked and served our meals at home. Occasionally, some spillover occurred between the... Read More »

The Pass Labs HPA-1c (photo by Juan C. Ayllon) If you don't already own one, you've probably seen them on the equipment racks of high profile audio reviewers: rugged and utilitarian, a milled metal block with an oversized volume knob that sounds sumptuous. For the past two years, I've been enjoying the lush delivery of... Read More »

Backdrop loudspeaker drivers image courtesy of ATC Like a surgeon's scalpel, the ATC SCM40A loudspeaker is a serious instrument, deftly cutting through sinew, fat, and bone to the heart of music with surgical precision and clarity. A three-way floor-standing model at just under 40 inches tall, it is unobtrusive and remains at the top of... Read More »

It seems a lifetime ago. For my side hustle as a mobile DJ, I honed my beat-matching and mixing skills with a pair of Technics 1200 turntables at home to apply on the road with a Pioneer CMX-3000 Dual DJ CD player, but after I married Belle in 2011, I sold my gear, reinvested the... Read More »

Image backdrop by Aubrey "Po" Powell, courtesy of Reddit.com In the 1970s, engineer and entrepreneur Billy Woodman ran a tidy business designing loudspeaker drivers and building them in his factory in England, supplying drivers OEM to audio manufacturers like Proac in the consumer market and clients like Yamaha in the pro audio realm. So says... Read More »

Brad Lunde, at right, talks with a photographer based out of Los Angeles the ATC suite at this year's AXPONA (photo by Juan C. Ayllon) Brad Lunde is in Room 1534 at Audio Expo North America (AXPONA) held at the Schaumburg Renaissance Hotel to expedite the introduction of ATC's brand new SCM20 ASL h, a... Read More »

The impressive PS Audio room, boasting their latest, continues to be a crowd-pleasing fixture at AXPONA Despite current concerns regarding U.S. tariffs, this year's edition of AXPONA (Audio Expo North America) proved to be triumphant, bigger and better than its predecessors, boasting over 200 listening spaces on 12 floors representing over 700 global manufacturers, distributors,... Read More »

I first heard about their ceramic headshell last year when I was updating my turntable setup with a vintage Micro Seiki BL-91 turntable and a GrooveMaster 3 tonearm. "Ceramics? Isn't that what they use in pottery and fine china?" I thought. Nevertheless, Jam Somasundram, a friend and turntable specialist, insisted I try Korf Audio's HS-A02... Read More »

The Goldring Ethos SE Moving Coil Cartridge sports a capital G on its body's front like the "S" on Superman's chest—or the G on the University of Georgia football helmet of Herschel Walker—to which I see a passing similarity.  Going into his first game in 1980, he was a fourth-string running back—unexceptional, merely fitting in... Read More »

The Pass Labs X150.8 Stereo Amplifier, seen up front atop a 1/4" steel plate on A/V RoomService EVP Equipment Vibration Protectors. In the back to the left is one of my reference Usher Audio ML-802 Loudspeakers.  As a longtime Chicagoland resident and audio enthusiast, the Pass Labs X150.8 conjures Scottie Pippen's impact on the 1991-1998... Read More »

Good headphones immerse you in an aural cocoon, delivering remarkable soundscapes that allow you to escape the noise and stress of daily life. Whether I was listening to Steely Dan tapes with their low-grade hiss on an AM/FM radio cassette player over Koss "Stereophones" back in 1979 at my college dorm room, or savoring a... Read More »

My eyes welled with tears staring at a glorious reproduction of Edgar Degas' painting, The Orchestra at the Opera, in a massive book in the reference section of the University of California, Riverside Library. As an art student in 1990, I was overwhelmed by the virtuosity, draftsmanship, rhythmic composition, and sheer beauty of a bassoonist—captured... Read More »