January - February 2017 Archives - Positive Feedback

McIntosh MC352 Amplifier

Editors at Positive Feedback — Mon, 08 May 2017 21:19:16 +0000

This article, by Victor Chavira, Larry Cox, and Dave Clark, originally ran when audioMUSINGS was in print - Issue 15, 2001 McIntosh Audio Labs is a classic American company. Since 1949, McIntosh has remained true to its design aesthetic: bullet proof build, black glass, chrome, and big blue meters. The MC352 is their 350 watt stereo power... Read More »

The post McIntosh MC352 Amplifier appeared first on Positive Feedback.

Duevel Venus Loudspeakers

Paul Candy — Fri, 17 Feb 2017 20:52:27 +0000

The Venus is the third Duevel speaker I have reviewed and sits directly in the middle of their lineup. Since I have heard at one time or another all of Duevel's models, the Venus just might offer the biggest bang for the asking price. Let's find out. As with all Duevel speakers, the Venus is... Read More »

The post Duevel Venus Loudspeakers appeared first on Positive Feedback.

Abraham Lincoln, a True Opera Lover (Really!)

John Marks — Thu, 16 Feb 2017 06:09:57 +0000

Our audio compadre John Marks herein rightly brings to our attention Abraham Lincoln's deep affection for opera and the stage. He was assassinated, after all, at Ford's Theater in April of 1865, much to the grief and anger of the narrow-minded pietists and pharisees of his generation. Lincoln considered the theater and opera to be... Read More »

The post Abraham Lincoln, a True Opera Lover (Really!) appeared first on Positive Feedback.

The Wild Wacky World of Bruce Walker - Cartoons with an Edge!

Bruce Walker — Mon, 13 Feb 2017 20:32:12 +0000

"Man, it was easy! Five acres of solar panels, and I killed it!!"

The post The Wild Wacky World of Bruce Walker - Cartoons with an Edge! appeared first on Positive Feedback.

Grace Design m920 and the Steinway and Sons Office Systems - Part 4

John Marks — Fri, 10 Feb 2017 00:02:19 +0000

John Marks' final installment about his recommended Steinway and Sons office system is below. He focuses on the Grace Design m920 DAC as the digital heart of the system. Read on for his summary. And remember that John's blog site, The Tannhauser Gate (http://www.thetannhausergate.com) is a fine place for audio commentary and music/video reviews! Recommended. Dr. David... Read More »

The post Grace Design m920 and the Steinway and Sons Office Systems - Part 4 appeared first on Positive Feedback.

Music Interface Technologies ACC169 Speaker Interface and Oracle MA-X SHD XLR Interconnects

Gregory Petan — Tue, 07 Feb 2017 20:24:03 +0000

Music Interface Technologies (MIT) products have had a place in my system on and off over the last twenty years. From the MI-850 Tri-wire designed for my long lost and loved Avalon Radian speakers to the subject of this review, the ACC169 Speaker Interface and the Oracle MA-X SHD XLR Interconnects. In that time I... Read More »

The post Music Interface Technologies ACC169 Speaker Interface and Oracle MA-X SHD XLR Interconnects appeared first on Positive Feedback.

Wilson Audio Alexx Loudspeakers

Danny Kaey — Tue, 07 Feb 2017 20:08:20 +0000

Wilson Audio Alexx Loudspeakers Every once in awhile (though frankly, more frequently than I care for), I chuckle, nay, swing my arms and hands in protest at the uninformed nonsense I hear on otherwise fine and decent radio shows like Leo Laporte and his part time sidekick Scott Wilkinson of AVSforums, a highly respected audio... Read More »

The post Wilson Audio Alexx Loudspeakers appeared first on Positive Feedback.

Connections, Connections: Steinway and Sons Office Systems and AudioQuest - Part 3

John Marks — Tue, 07 Feb 2017 07:22:59 +0000

In part three of this series, John Marks introduces cables to his small office audio system recommendations. While John has his own Esperanto Audio line of reference audio cables, he concentrates on Audioquest's very good price-t0-performance cables. This is shaping up to be a very pleasant office/desktop system; I appreciate the useful advice contained in... Read More »

The post Connections, Connections: Steinway and Sons Office Systems and AudioQuest - Part 3 appeared first on Positive Feedback.

A Fantastic Little Stereo System - Part 2

John Marks — Sat, 04 Feb 2017 22:50:38 +0000

Parasound's Zamp v.3 stereo amplifier One of my favorite lines from the original Star Trek TV series (and please, nobody forget that Alexander Courage's theme music borrowed heavily from Mahler's symphonies 1 and 7) was something like: I bet five Quatloos on the feisty newcomer! Well, Parasound's Zamp v.3 is hardly a newcomer, but, it's... Read More »

The post A Fantastic Little Stereo System - Part 2 appeared first on Positive Feedback.

Impressions: The Gryphon Audio Kalliope 8x DSD DAC

David W. Robinson — Sat, 04 Feb 2017 05:54:14 +0000

The Gryphon Audio Kalliope DSD DAC upon arrival here… (Photograph and image processing by Robinson) The world of DSD DACs has certainly exploded over the past four years, going from a relative "we happy few" to over 400 models to choose from. The price points vary wildly…from $189 all the way out to multiple tens... Read More »

The post Impressions: The Gryphon Audio Kalliope 8x DSD DAC appeared first on Positive Feedback.

Notes on the Gryphon Audio Kalliope DSD DAC by Flemming Rasmussen

Editors at Positive Feedback — Sat, 04 Feb 2017 05:53:39 +0000

Flemming Rasmussen of Gryphon Audio Gryphon was never the adopter of technology for the sake of technology on its own, we always found it intriguing and followed it closely, but our experiments remained in the lab for the right timing. Right timing? Gryphon made it first appearance 30 years ago with a revolutionary HEADAMP, taking... Read More »

The post Notes on the Gryphon Audio Kalliope DSD DAC by Flemming Rasmussen appeared first on Positive Feedback.

A Fantastic Little Stereo System - Part 1

John Marks — Thu, 02 Feb 2017 20:34:48 +0000

John Marks gives us a recommendation for a stereo system that offers a great deal of musical satisfaction with a small footprint and at a more reasonable price point. This four-part series will explore his thoughts on this package. May it serve you well! Dr. David W. Robinson, Ye Olde Editor Photo of Eric Feidner... Read More »

The post A Fantastic Little Stereo System - Part 1 appeared first on Positive Feedback.

America's Premier Composer Maria Schneider at Soka University 2/21/17

Jim Merod — Wed, 01 Feb 2017 09:40:25 +0000

Maria Schneider (photograph courtesy of Soka University) Maria Schneider is an unrivaled American composer in the grand tradition of Vivaldi, Bach, Mozart, Schubert, Chopin and Ellington, a transcendent lineage that defines western musical maturity. A once undiscovered orchid, Maria's risen to a plateau of melodic delight and aesthetic delicacy without equal, an achievement accrued in... Read More »

The post America's Premier Composer Maria Schneider at Soka University 2/21/17 appeared first on Positive Feedback.

Arthur Lipner's Two Hands, One Heart on CD

Marc Phillips — Tue, 31 Jan 2017 01:15:55 +0000

Back in the '80s, when I was in college, I tried very hard to get into jazz. Many of my music-loving friends had already discovered it, and they constantly told me that if I found the right entry point I would totally dig it. I tried and I tried but I just couldn't find the... Read More »

The post Arthur Lipner's Two Hands, One Heart on CD appeared first on Positive Feedback.

Before She Became Princess Leia

Jim Merod — Tue, 31 Jan 2017 08:42:49 +0000

Finishing graduate study at Stanford, 1970-72, I was Director of Admissions at the The Athenian School, a small and innovative prep school on Mt. Diablo in the Bay Area. It was funded by the Ford Foundation as a tribute to Dyke Brown, its longtime Vice President, a going away present supporting educational objectives he'd championed... Read More »

The post Before She Became Princess Leia appeared first on Positive Feedback.

Acoustical Systems The Palladian Cartridge

Dirk Sommer — Tue, 31 Jan 2017 06:59:48 +0000

Acoustical Systems' tonearm Aquilar, as well as the top-of-the-range model Axiom, are characterized by the UNI-DIN geometry newly developed by Dietrich Brakemeier. The analogue specialists from Bavaria have not yet invented a new generator principle, but with The Palladian Cartridge they thoroughly demonstrate how far one can get sonically with the ingenious combination of already... Read More »

The post Acoustical Systems The Palladian Cartridge appeared first on Positive Feedback.

Audio Ramblings - The Luminist Revision Neptune Cables from Purist Audio Design

Dave Clark — Mon, 30 Jan 2017 07:49:33 +0000

Cables, cables, cables. What are we supposed to do? Yeah, there are those who feel that regardless of what one hears, they can't be hearing what they are hearing, because, well you can't hear that as cables done correctly do nothing... to the sound. That is, cables cannot make a difference as long as they... Read More »

The post Audio Ramblings - The Luminist Revision Neptune Cables from Purist Audio Design appeared first on Positive Feedback.

CH Precision P1 Phono Stage

Marshall Nack — Sun, 29 Jan 2017 08:45:33 +0000

Empiricism vs. Theory What was my biggest discovery last year? Bass traps. I installed them in the left and right front corners behind the speakers, as recommended. Having done my homework, I knew what to expect: low-end response would be smoother and tighter, clarity would increase, and some dampening would occur. The treble also would... Read More »

The post CH Precision P1 Phono Stage appeared first on Positive Feedback.

The First Watt F7 Power Amplifier - Simply Sublime

Gary L Beard — Sun, 29 Jan 2017 00:33:38 +0000

When I first requested an opportunity to write about the next new First Watt amplifier, I was candid with Nelson Pass that it was possible my Von Schweikert Audio VR-35 Deluxe loudspeakers and passive Bent Audio AVC-1 linestage might not be a good match for any First Watt amplifier. Several months later, I received a note... Read More »

The post The First Watt F7 Power Amplifier - Simply Sublime appeared first on Positive Feedback.

The Acoustic Revive RPC-1 Power Supply Conditioner: Power to the People!

Jeff Day — Sun, 22 Jan 2017 07:08:02 +0000

Acoustic Revive RPC-1 Power Supply Conditioner The intrigue usually starts with a message from Yoshi-san or Elia-san from the MuSon Project in Osaka, Japan, who export Japanese audio exotica to The World. Every time I get a message from Messrs. Hontani I get pretty excited, because long experience has taught me that with their extremely... Read More »

The post The Acoustic Revive RPC-1 Power Supply Conditioner: Power to the People! appeared first on Positive Feedback.

Göbel High-End Lacorde Statement USB, Ethernet, and Digital XLR Cables

Dirk Sommer — Fri, 20 Jan 2017 19:05:17 +0000

I really couldn't resist the splendid speaker and interconnect cables from Göbel Audio. To be on the safe side I therefore listened only briefly to the power cables, but exchanged them before I got used to it. However, the most recent digital cables I cannot hide from you—and really don't want to—despite this being a... Read More »

The post Göbel High-End Lacorde Statement USB, Ethernet, and Digital XLR Cables appeared first on Positive Feedback.

Merrill Audio's Christine Preamplifier

Marshall Nack — Sat, 14 Jan 2017 21:07:12 +0000

Merrill Wettasinghe with his Merrill Audio Christine Preamplifier at Nack Labs When you think about it, the room is arguably your most important component. I am well aware of the sound of mine, a 12' W x 8' H x 32' L living room. I had a choice: setup on the long wall for soundstage width,... Read More »

The post Merrill Audio's Christine Preamplifier appeared first on Positive Feedback.

Vamos on the Music: The National, 'Trouble Will Find Me'

Michael Vamos — Fri, 13 Jan 2017 22:13:48 +0000

The National's sixth album, Trouble Will Find Me, continues the Brooklyn-based band's streak of melancholy mellow, indie rock. It's reminiscent of the rhythms and monotone vocals of Joy Division and with the suffer-in-silence-like lyrics of The Smiths. "Don't Swallow The Cap" and "Graceless" are dead ringers for Joy Division songs. Singer Matt Berninger and band... Read More »

The post Vamos on the Music: The National, 'Trouble Will Find Me' appeared first on Positive Feedback.

Magico S5 Mk. 2 Loudspeakers: A New Classic

Myles B. Astor — Wed, 11 Jan 2017 21:10:30 +0000

Speakers—out of all the components in the audio chain— have seen the biggest advancements in performance over the last couple of years. Cabinet design. Driver design. Enclosure and driver materials. Computerized speaker design and crossover modelling. In house machining and construction. These factors and a few more have gone a long way to elevating high-end... Read More »

The post Magico S5 Mk. 2 Loudspeakers: A New Classic appeared first on Positive Feedback.

Sophia Electric Magik Box

Francisco Duran — Mon, 09 Jan 2017 19:58:03 +0000

Positive Feedback has reviewed a number of products from Sophia Electric. Way back in Issue 8 of audioMusings hardware reviews, I was fortunate enough to review their "Baby" tube amplifier. Recently, I reviewed their gorgeous Coke Bottle KT-88 ST tubes. The subject of this review is the Sophia Electric Magik Box. If any component in... Read More »

The post Sophia Electric Magik Box appeared first on Positive Feedback.