January - February 2018 Archives - Positive Feedback

Audio Ramblings - The Acoustic Research AR-H1 Headphones

Dave Clark — Sun, 18 Feb 2018 21:44:43 +0000

One of the fun things to do at RMAF is to hit the headphone exhibits and see what is going on in terms of new phones, amps, and DACs. One of the booths that caught our attention was that of Acoustic Research. We sat and listened to what they had on display—the new-ish AR-H1 headphones... Read More »

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Impressions: The Blues Masters at Acoustic Sounds, Salina, KS, 2017, a Photo Essay, Part 3 of 3

David W. Robinson — Sun, 18 Feb 2018 17:04:53 +0000

David W. Robinson, Happy Valley, OR, 2015 (photograph by John Robinson) "For photography is a way to capture the moment – not just any moment, but the important one, this one moment out of all time when your subject is revealed to the fullest – that moment of perfection which comes once and is not... Read More »

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Impressions: The Blues Masters at Acoustic Sounds, Salina, KS, 2017, a Photo Essay, Part 2 of 3

David W. Robinson — Thu, 15 Feb 2018 23:54:24 +0000

David W. Robinson, Icicle Creek, Leavenworth, WA, 2012 (photograph by Lila Ritsema) "Anything that excites me for any reason, I will photograph; not searching for unusual subject matter, but making the commonplace unusual." Edward Weston To say again: As I mentioned back in November in Issue 94 when I published the front-end about my trip... Read More »

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Impressions: The Blues Masters at Acoustic Sounds, Salina, KS, 2017, a Photo Essay, Part 1 of 3

David W. Robinson — Thu, 15 Feb 2018 03:32:10 +0000

David W. Robinson, RMAF 2015 (photograph by Jeff Day) As I mentioned back in November in Issue 94 when I published the front-end about my trip to visit Chad Kassem's Blues Masters concert in Salina, KS, my attention would not be concentrating on yet another dull event report. The world doesn't need any more of... Read More »

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ESS 252 Dynamic Headphones and ESS 422H Heil AMT/Moving Coil Hybrid Headphones: A World Premier Review!

Robert H. Levi — Mon, 12 Feb 2018 23:12:18 +0000

Ever want to be the conductor of a world class symphony orchestra? Got a desire to enjoy a performance of a stellar big band and ease on to the Duke's piano bench during a Columbia recording session? Maybe you would like to take a chair during the performance of a Beethoven piano trio? Then just... Read More »

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Press Testing: Albert Grantowski on Sound, Audio, and Life

Barry Grant — Thu, 08 Feb 2018 22:44:57 +0000

"Om, Om, Om..." Dr. Johnson's chanting workshop at the Chicago ZenSonic Center was nearly over. I opened my eyes and noticed the guy next to me was standing several inches off the floor. Eager to learn how he had developed his practice, I waited by the exit to introduce myself. I was gobsmacked to discover... Read More »

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NAMM Show 2018 Part 1: What It Means, and Why Go?

Cookie Marenco — Wed, 07 Feb 2018 20:51:28 +0000

What the NAMM show means to high-end audio and why go? Starting out 2018 at the CES [Cookie Marenco is President of Blue Coast Records and Downloads NOW!] Cookie Marenco of Blue Coast Records For an audio engineer or someone in the music industry, January was and is a month filled with conventions you don't... Read More »

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Goodies from Gold Note - the Gold Note PH-10 Phono Stage

Larry Cox — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 18:15:02 +0000

Gold Note of Italy are makers of bland black boxes for audio with a low functionality quotient. Not. I've had Gold Note's PH-10 phono stage in for review, and wow it's nice to look at. It's a distinctly elegant design with a clear attention to detail, aesthetic, and functionality. My sample arrived in black, but... Read More »

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Top 500 SuperSonic List - Part 6

Claude Lemaire — Mon, 05 Feb 2018 17:04:41 +0000

This is an ongoing project by Claude Lemaire of Soundevaluations. 51. MFSB, Love Is the Message. Philadelphia International Records – KZ 32707 (1973), 33 1/3 rpm. Genre: Philly soul, disco, smooth jazz After nearly 45 years—wherein the world holds its breath under the genuine threat of eroding freedoms, and escalating nuclear war—MFSB's message still rings true and maybe... Read More »

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1More Quad Driver In-Ear Headphones

Editors at Positive Feedback — Mon, 05 Feb 2018 16:49:02 +0000

The following review is from our guest contributor, Sarah Grant. Sarah is a dear friend, as well as a music, coffee, and beer lover. Plus she is cool. This review might have an especially affirmative character to it but I have a deeply personal relationship with this product after months of use. And although I am... Read More »

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Pianist Hyperion Knight to Perform in Providence RI February 25, 2018

John Marks — Mon, 05 Feb 2018 16:38:35 +0000

Audio by Jerry Bruck, Posthorn Recordings NYC; video and editing by John Marks John Marks will return to his former avocation of concert impressario, and present audiophile-fave-rave pianist Hyperion Knight in a program of Bach, Beethoven, and Gershwin at the First Baptist Church in America, in Providence (RI) on Sunday, February 25, at 2:00 PM. The recital will be open... Read More »

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Levi's Quickies - Townshend, EAT, and Stax

Robert H. Levi — Mon, 05 Feb 2018 16:30:36 +0000

F1 Fractal™ Interconnect by Townshend Audio On the heels of the ridiculously superb (passive) Allegri+ preamplifier (HERE), with its secret sauce…fractal wire…comes the introduction to America of Townshend F1 Fractal Interconnects. (There are speaker cables also, but I did not have them for review.) The interconnects are extremely exotic looking and terminated in excellent shielded... Read More »

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Holt Hill Audio Cionnsaile Monitors

John Hoffman — Sat, 03 Feb 2018 17:55:39 +0000

As the science of astronomy moves forward, many of the ideas about how the universe has formed continues to evolve. The accepted theory used to be that galaxies formed from gas clouds and star clusters coming together. Over time gravity gathered enough material together to form the various galaxies in the universe. Only lately has... Read More »

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The Luminous Audio Technology Axiom II Passive Preamplifier, with Walker Mod and Remote Volume Control

Tom Gibbs — Thu, 01 Feb 2018 18:30:22 +0000

About five years ago, I'd just gotten an HRT Streamer HD DAC with balanced outputs, and had also just upgraded my system amps to a pair of Emotiva XPA-1Ls. The Emotivas were (and still are!!) capable of fully-differential, balanced Class A operation, and I was itching for a balanced preamplifier to help me enter what... Read More »

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Unique Innovation Technology Perfect Music Purifier Speaker Cables Premier Review

Robert H. Levi — Sun, 28 Jan 2018 00:32:17 +0000

Under the leadership of the brilliant Mitch Ko, President and Chief Designer of UIT Products, comes the long awaited PMP Speaker Cables. In both single-wire and bi-wire configurations, pricing is not the same type of truly super-attractive deal of the UIT interconnects—being in the $2500 - $3000 range—but the complexity of the speaker cable, silver... Read More »

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Impressions: van den Hul’s The Extender

David W. Robinson — Sun, 28 Jan 2018 00:27:37 +0000

The van den Hul Extender in place on top of the Evolution Acoustics MM2 Loudspeaker From time to time I've roiled the tempestuous waters of high-end audio…rough enough already, without additional help from me…with favorable observations about my experiences with various system-enhancing components. Lord knows, I've patiently endured the shouting so-called "objectivists," who assert that... Read More »

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SVS SB16-Ultra Subwoofer

Pete Davey — Tue, 23 Jan 2018 23:51:11 +0000

You know the phrase "size matters", I'm sure you've heard it before. Does it matter with a speaker? If you're attempting to reproduce low frequencies, you bet it does. Most of the time I've had subwoofers not larger than 10". I was always under the impression that if you go too large, that you would... Read More »

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Mad Scientist Audio's Graphene Products

Will Wright — Tue, 23 Jan 2018 19:31:32 +0000

The wind is in from Africa and last night I couldn't sleep. I laid there instead contemplating the review of the Mad Scientist Audio Flexible Carbon Fiber/Graphene balanced interconnects I was preparing. For those not familiar with Mad Scientist Audio, they came on the scene circa 2013, based out of New Zealand and run by... Read More »

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Notes of an Amateur: Brooklyn Rider Play the String Quartets of Philip Glass; Elias Quartet Play Beethoven.

Bob Neill — Thu, 18 Jan 2018 16:41:22 +0000

Brooklyn Rider plays Philip Glass; String Quartets Nos. 1-5. 2 CDs. Orange Mountain 0074. I didn't get the string quartets of Philip Glass at all until I began to hear them as informed by dance—all kinds of dance. The opening work on the album, Suite from Bent (1997), adapted for string quartet by the Brooklyn... Read More »

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The Reel Deal: Setting The Standard! Prokofiev, Lt. Kije and Stravinsky, Song of the Nightingale

Myles B. Astor — Fri, 12 Jan 2018 17:19:47 +0000

Prokofiev: Lt. Kije (recorded in 1957); Stravinsky: Song of the Nightingale (recorded in 1956), Fritz Reiner (conductor), Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Producer: Richard Mohr; Engineer: Lewis Layton. Acoustic Sounds/RCA Living Stereo Ultra Tape, 15-ips, 2-track, reel-to-reel tape, LSC 2150. Price: $450. Fritz Reiner and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra's performance of Prokofiev's Lt. Kije paired with Stravinsky's The Song... Read More »

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CES 2018 Show Report by Raoul Duke

Editors at Positive Feedback — Wed, 10 Jan 2018 23:13:05 +0000

We were on our way to Las Vegas, to the CES show. The desert night was chilly and the road was dark with no movement outside except the occasional fencepost whipping by. My attorney held up a huge orange pill. "You should try this," he said, "It's the same pill that killed Elvis." It must... Read More »

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Phillips on the Music: Zeitlin & Marsh's Expedition

Marc Phillips — Wed, 10 Jan 2018 00:45:14 +0000

Denny Zeitlin & George Marsh's Expedition. (Sunnyside Communication SSC1487. CD $12.98. http://sunnysidezone.com/album/expedition) The first time I listened to Expedition from pianist Denny Zeitlin and percussionist George Marsh, I didn't think of it as a collection of improvisations between two longtime collaborators. I imagined a more traditional jazz ensemble, one with a traditional rhythm section, even though their... Read More »

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Winter Road Trip: Getting to Know Audionet's Max Monoblock Amps, the Stunning GamuT Zodiac Loudspeakers, and Other Goodies Chez Greg Weaver

Maurice Jeffries — Tue, 09 Jan 2018 18:01:28 +0000

Goin' Back to Indiana A few weeks ago, I boarded from Orlando a packed United Airlines flight bound for Chicago's O'Hare Airport, the first leg in a trip that would take me to Goshen, Indiana, the home of my good friend Greg Weaver. Many of you will know Greg through his work here at PF,... Read More »

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Silverline Minuet Grand Loudspeakers

Michael Wechsberg — Tue, 09 Jan 2018 17:48:11 +0000

One of the better rooms I heard at the 2017 Los Angeles Audio Show featured the Silverline Audio Minuet Grand speakers. These relatively small, two-way stand-mount speakers were putting out a big, big sound that was dynamic and engaging when I came by. Unfortunately, I didn't have much time to spend in this room, but... Read More »

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Journeys in Audio Subjectivism - Part Nine: Audible Illusions Modulus L3A Preamplifier

Robert Schryer — Mon, 08 Jan 2018 22:29:28 +0000

$42,790 worth of preamp sound for $4695? Part Un – Genesis: "Horn-type speakers almost ruined my hearing," said Audible Illusions' head honcho, Arthur Ferris, of his bygone love affair with JBLs and Altecs. "One night I was playing a record of Frederick Fennell's Band Marches," said Ferris. "On one of the cuts there was a... Read More »

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