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The Doobie Brothers' self‑titled 1971 debut barely made a ripple in the record industry. Internally, the band and producer Ted Templeman knew they needed to level- up the songwriting, arrangements, and production to become big artists. Toulouse Street became their turning point. It's the album that effectively "invented" the Doobie Brothers' signature sound.   1972's... 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 »

Many of us know Robin Trower from his years with Procol Harum, but most became aware of the guitarist after he went solo and helped us fill the Hendrix void with his 1974 album Bridge of Sighs. Trower (born March 9, 1945, Catford, London) is one of the most identifiable British guitar stylists to emerge... Read More »

HDTT recently released three historically significant recordings: Maazel's 1964 recording of Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 2 'Little Russian'; the Van Cliburn-Fritz Reiner 1961 Brahms Concerto No. 2; and Harry Belafonte's The Midnight Special. I've also taken this opportunity to finally write up reviews of three Pure DSD256 albums that I included in last year's Pure DSD256... Read More »

A number of the LPs and CDs I own are by singers and instrumentalists whom I would call fifteen-minute artists. As you would expect, a fifteen-minute artist is a musician, a singer, or a band who I enjoy, but not for much longer than fifteen minutes. Some of them used to be thirty-minute artists, but... Read More »

As I described in the introduction to this column in Part 1 (HERE) I started this project of listening to all my records at least one more time and cataloging them, I realized that this was the second time I have actually done this. The first time in the late 1970s, I only had a... Read More »

Yarlung Records continues to celebrate its Twentieth Anniversary with another superb release from its analog master tape archives. In April 2025, we received the marvelous recording by David Fung, Evening Conversations, about which I wrote HERE.  Now we have another release from Yarlung's archives that has only seen light of day as a CD: Ciaramella's... Read More »

A trove of truly wonderful recordings has appeared in the NativeDSD catalog over recent weeks. Here are eight that caught my immediate attention, with multiple turns in my listening queue. Each is a worthy addition to your music library and will reward over multiple listening sessions. Telemann Ino Cantata and Double Concertos, Ashley Solomon, Rachel... Read More »

This is the second installment of what was to be my three-part review of the upgrades I made last year to my system. There is no denying that the Carnegie by Odeon is a world-class speaker, and it sure better be for the price. No denying the exceptional build quality, including fit and finish of... Read More »

When we think of what the Greeks have given to the world, what comes to mind? Socrates? Hipparchus? Aerodynamics? Algebra? The Equinox and Solstice? Thales' theorem? The list goes on and on. But how about high-end audio equipment? Well, yes! In this case I'm referring to the TSI-300 Integrated Amplifier from TLA ("True Life Audio") from... Read More »

Ever the creative genius and music lover, award winning Holger Stein continues to develop new effective ways to improve listening in the home. SteinMusic has released four new devices of which I have received and evaluated three. They lower the noise floor and enhance the music overall. They are as follows: The Ground Cube Signature... Read More »

Historians refer to Jimmy Wakely (1914-1982) as one of the last of the singing cowboys. Although he wasn't the very last, he was the last to sign with a major record label and produce a steady stream of records. He was, along with Gene Autry and Roy Rogers, one of Hollywood's greatest singing cowboys. His... Read More »

Back in 2023 I reviewed (HERE) the innovative Gravity One record weight from turntable/tonearm manufacturer Origin Live (along with their "Upgrade" platter mat and Cartridge Enabler head-shell isolator). All available to any vinyl fiend for use with any brand turntable, arm, or cartridge. Sure, they were prototyped and developed on Origin Live's own gear, but... Read More »

I did some serious catching up with Public relations maven Sue Toscano¹ during the 2025 Florida International Audio Expo; talking with her is an absolute joy, and her zeal for the projects and brands she represents is nearly irrepressible. Shortly after FLAX, Sue reached out to inform me about a webinar scheduled for mid-March, where... Read More »

When I reviewed the Marantz NA6006 network audio player back in 2021 (HERE), I was fairly new to streaming. I still am. It's an occasional source at best, and vinyl LPs occupy the vast majority of my home listening time. That Marantz had replaced my departed Rega Apollo CD player after I realized I was... Read More »

When Dr. David Robinson reached out to me mid-year 2025 with a review opportunity available for a pair of SVS Ultra Evolution Tower loudspeakers, my curiosity was truly piqued. Yes, SVS Sound are beyond doubt the high-performance subwoofer gurus, but their forays into full-range loudspeakers for me were an unknown. However, a quick online peek... Read More »

I've noted before that the offerings available in the HDTT catalog are a treasure house of the great recordings from the golden age of stereo. Yet again, Bob Witrak brings to us six new releases that further expand that marvelous library of great performances in some of the best sound quality in which these recordings... Read More »

For over 30 years, I've enjoyed reviewing audio accessories—or "tweaks"—including power line conditioners, record cleaning machines and fluids, vinyl storage solutions, vibration isolation devices and cable burn-in devices. Even developing an inexpensive "tweak" for air bearing tonearms that significantly improved their sound. One thing, however, that differentiates today's from yesteryear's "tweaks" is cost. "Tweaks" were... Read More »

Wadax is a Spanish audio company founded in 2006 by Javier Guadalajara based on his father Angel Guadalajara's many years of research into music reproduction, which led to the development of unique technologies such as the musIC chip for correcting errors in digital systems. We are testing its basic, yet high-end, SACD/file player, the Tudio... Read More »