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Oh my, oh my, indeed. This is a great transfer from analog tape to DSD256 from HDTT, released this past week. If you love classic jazz, you owe it to yourself to hear this transfer. It is simply outstanding. Somethin' Else, Cannonball Adderley, Miles Davis, Hank Jones, Sam Jones, Art Blakey. HDTT in Pure DSD256.... Read More »

Norman Varney of AV RoomService Ltd. has joined Positive Feedback as a Senior Technical Editor as of Issue 113. His expertise in his field of audio acoustics and experience in the field makes him a helpful voice in our creative community for the audio arts. As has been our wont from the beginning of PF,... Read More »

I have been awestruck by the musicianship of veteran Spanish pianist Josep Colom since I first heard one his recordings three years ago. He is truly magical. Always playing with deep sensitivity, but with an intellect's assessment of what is going on with the music. Whether Bach or Chopin or Mozart or Liszt or Beethoven... Read More »

When Bob Atiyeh sounds excited about some sonic improvement he's achieved, I pay attention. In this case it is Bob's announcement of a 15th Anniversary remastering of the famous Antonio Lysy At the Broad: Music From Argentina, a recording that has received rave reviews since its release on vinyl in 2010 and as an EP... Read More »

Kenneth Wilkinson, Kingsway Hall, and the Decca Tree—it all adds up to Audiophile Quality Big Band sound. I'm delighted to find yet another Kenneth Wilkinson recording to savor, this time in a luscious big band jazz recording that surprised me to find again. Leave it to Bob Witrak at High Definition Tape Transfers to uncover... Read More »

Live recordings from the 1958 and 1963 Newport Jazz Festivals are legendary. Other years are also amazing, but its 1958 and 1963 in which I've been living recently. Louis Armstrong, Teddy Wilson, Marian McPartland, Gerry Mulligan, Art Farmer, Coleman Hawkins, Clark Terry—oh, my! And in high resolution. This is sinful goodness, and I'm just loving... Read More »

The recordings by Ars Antiqua Austria continue to provide a rich treasure of musical enjoyment in our home. I group these next three recordings for no excellent musicology rationale, but simply because I enjoy the comparison of the all-instrumental works from a small rather hermetically sealed court (Graupner) and those with voice (Mayr) from a... Read More »

Ye Olde Editor in contemplation, pipe in hand, Happy Valley (portrait by John Robinson; image processing by David W. Robinson) Wolf Audio's Alpha 3SX with its iPhone-based control interface Time to say it again:  we are in the golden age of high-end audio. I cannot think of a single category of "performance audio" that isn't... Read More »

As I continue exploring the recordings by Ars Antiqua Austria, I am delighted by the richness of instrumentation brought to the works they've chosen to play. These performances are a sumptuous feast of timbre, harmony and dynamics, coupled with superb musicianship. All complemented by glorious sonics. Today, our discussion turns to their recordings of works... Read More »

I can't remember the exact date, around the late eighties, nor the exact model, but I used to own a Rotel integrated amp in my fledgling days of High-End audio. It served me well. Admittedly, back then my audio concerns were mostly of function over form. Did it have enough inputs? Does it have a... Read More »

The fine artistry of Ars Antiqua Austria illustrates the excellence of historically informed performance practice today. Fifty years ago, one would search in vain for this kind of performance quality. Today AAA demonstrates "top of the pile" standards for performance on period instruments. And they've been doing it since 1989. Franz Joseph Aumann, Chamber Music... Read More »

Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab, Ode Records – UD1S-030, Limited Edition, SuperVinyl, Box Set (adv. 2021, Dec. official 2022, Jan.), advanced promo #P004 of 10 000. Originally released on Ode Records – ODE SP 77009 (1971, Feb.) Ratings Global Appreciation: 9.6 - Music: A (9.4) - Recording: 9 - Remastering + Lacquer Cutting: 9.8 - Pressing: 9.8... Read More »

Sofia Gubaidulina, Three Orchestral Works. Vadim Repin, violin. Gewandhaus Orchestra, Andris Nelsons, conductor, DGG 486-1457. Andris Nelsons and ninety-one year old Russian modernist composer Sofia Gubaidulina go back a long way and they are paired here as they are frequently. She is a major voice in the contemporary music world without whom it is hard... Read More »

The highlight bout begins with King Resolution dancing in his corner taunting Bishop Musicality across the ring, both egged on by PR guys with stakes in the outcome. The handicappers lay odds on the King. Why? Because resolution trumps all in the audiophile arena. These bouts occur regularly in my sound room. While I love... Read More »

Acoustic Revive is a Japanese company that was set up in 1997, run by Mr. Ken Ishiguro-san. It specializes in connectors and anti-vibration products, but also offers innovative devices, most often the brainchildren of the University of Tokyo. We are testing one of the company's products that filter ground interference—the RGC-24K. The artificial ground, or—as... Read More »

Sondheim (arr. Stern), A Little Night Music: Suite. Opus Two (William Terwilliger, violin; Andrew Cooperstock, piano). Bridge 4010.  TT: 14.31 That's not a typo in the headnote: this issue clocks in at just under fifteen minutes. It's the classical-crossover equivalent of a pop EP—an "extended play" single—though it isn't actually being offered in that format. I heard... Read More »

Once upon a time the life of an audiophile was very simple. Take speaker cables, for example. At a meeting of The Audiophile Society in the 1980s, in front of a group of some 60 people, the featured guest presenter, a very prominent equipment modifier, proudly declared: "As far as I'm concerned, the only requirement... Read More »

Somewhere off shore, just west of Pillar Point Harbor in northern California, the 432 EVO High-End reference music server is riding a mammoth wave at Mavericks Beach. Championing the superiority of 432 Hz tuned music, via connection with the rhythms of Mother Earth, over today's 440 Hz standard, the surging swell is gaining momentum.  ... Read More »

What a pleasure it is to have this recording from 1994 of Nathaniel Rosen playing the complete Bach Suites for Solo Cello. Rosen brings his broad flowing strokes and lyricism to bear with delightful effect in these pieces brought back to us by John Marks and HDTT. Bach Suites for Solo Cello, Nathaniel Rosen, cello.... Read More »