July - August 2016 Archives - Positive Feedback

E.A.R. 834 Integrated Amplifier

Editors at Positive Feedback — Mon, 08 May 2017 18:41:02 +0000

This article, by Dave Clark, Larry Cox, Francisco Duran, and Roger McNichols, originally ran when audioMUSINGS was in print - Issue 4, 1998. Let's see, a 50-watt integrated amplifier for $3600 (okay, $3595). I'd be the first to agree that this seems like a lot of money, but in all reality (audiophile "reality," that is) this... Read More »

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John Marks: A Summer Sunday's Afternoon at Tanglewood with the Boston Symphony Orchestra

John Marks — Wed, 24 Aug 2016 20:27:39 +0000

[The Boston Symphony Orchestra has been entangled with Tanglewood for decades. This outdoor setting of historical (for America) lineage has seen more than its share of great orchestral works over the years, thus affirming the blessing of the original benefaction given by the Tappan family back in 1936. John Marks, editor and writer at The Tannhauser... Read More »

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Violectric V281 Amp

Smit Patel — Tue, 16 Aug 2016 04:41:12 +0000

Headed by Fried Reim, Violectric specialises in a wide number of reputable amplifiers which have caught the attention of many in the avid world of personal audio such as the Violectric V281 Amp under review here. Being the trademark and product line of German firm Lake People, the company develops and manufactures products for exhibition,... Read More »

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From the Positive Feedback Archives (1993): A Vintage Bruce Walker Cartoon!

David W. Robinson — Sun, 14 Aug 2016 21:44:08 +0000

Oh damn!! There goes my new dedicated power supply!

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John Marks Music Video: Matt Monro, “On Days Like These” from The Italian Job (1969)

John Marks — Sat, 13 Aug 2016 22:32:48 +0000

Late '60s let's-make-lots-of-money British mainstream studio action flick here (The Italian Job), generally well regarded for the acting and the action. John Marks of The Tannhauser Gate (http://www.thetannhausergate.com) discards the husk of the film and enjoys the fruit of the opening credits theme song by Matt Monro. As always, his choices and commentary are a... Read More »

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John Marks' Vault Treasures: Blossom Dearie, Verve “Jazz Masters” 51

John Marks — Thu, 11 Aug 2016 20:12:11 +0000

In this week's "Vault Treasures," our trusty musical guide John Marks shares with us a jazzic voice that I was not familiar with: Blossom Margrete Dearie, AKA "Blossom Dearie." Last week's brief essay covered Julie London, a person of real renown; but this week's "Blossom Dearie" is likely to provoke a "Say what?!" even from... Read More »

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Fritz Carrera BE Loudspeakers

Francisco Duran — Tue, 09 Aug 2016 17:23:09 +0000

The drivers on the new Fritz Carrera BE Loudspeakers have been used in one combination or another in more than a few speaker designs to varying degrees of success, and usually costing many times more than the new Fritz design. I say this because I have heard a number of these speakers. Most of these speakers... Read More »

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From the Kipnis Studios: The View from the Top (Digital Amplifier Company DAC DAC) - Part 1 (HS = High Spec)

Jeremy Kipnis — Tue, 09 Aug 2016 17:06:04 +0000

"On a cost vs. sound quality basis (alone), Digital Amplifier Company DAC DAC may be the best digital to analog converter to come along in 3 decades; all the way back to the extremely costly & extraordinary $12,000 Stax DAC-X1t Vacuum Tube Output Reference D/A Processor (1989)!" Introduction There are an extremely wide range of choices... Read More »

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John Marks: Anne Sophie von Otter Music Video

John Marks — Sat, 06 Aug 2016 22:44:54 +0000

John Marks is a lover of fine music videos. In our generation, a major new blessing has been the marriage of high-quality audio with high-quality video to provide us with both the sights and sounds of major performers presenting us with their artistry. It started with videotape and NTSC resolution, but progressed to DVD, and... Read More »

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Ortofon Cadenza Red

John Hoffman — Wed, 03 Aug 2016 03:08:35 +0000

Several years ago I had the pleasure of an extended visit of the Ortofon Cadenza Bronze in my system. The Bronze is a remarkable cartridge in every facet, and it was with no small regret when my acquaintance with it ended. Then Last year Ortofon USA was kind enough to send the Quintet Bronze my... Read More »

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Audio Ramblings - The Vandersteen Audio Quatro Wood CT Loudspeakers

Dave Clark — Fri, 29 Jul 2016 01:40:29 +0000

A couple of years ago (wow, make that like 3 years and you can read it HERE) I had the pleasure of reviewing the Vandersteen Audio Quatro Wood loudspeakers here in our home. Yeah, we both fell head over heels for the speakers with the review being as positive as one could ever expect. Shortcomings?... Read More »

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Marc Phillips on the Music: The Avalanches – 'Wildflower' on LP

Marc Phillips — Wed, 27 Jul 2016 22:39:21 +0000

The Avalanches, Wildflower Astralwerks 2547900289 $19.99 for the two LP set "Is that serious music?" I remember my first wife asking me that question back in 1989 when I brought home Pixies' Doolittle and gave it an inaugural spin. I'd gotten all the way to the eighth song on the album, "Mr. Grieves," to the part where... Read More »

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High End Audio in the Age of Uncertainty Part 2: The Wonderful Magneplanar 1.7i Loudspeakers

Maurice Jeffries — Tue, 26 Jul 2016 22:29:57 +0000

First Impressions As I reported in Part 1 of this installment, I first encountered the Maggie 1.7 loudspeakers (recently upgraded to its current 1.7i iteration) during a brief audition at Audible Elegance, a respected Cincinnati area retailer, about two and a half years ago. What I heard during that brief listening session left me... Read More »

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John Marks' Vault Treasures: Julie London, 'Time for Love: The Best of Julie London'

John Marks — Tue, 26 Jul 2016 18:44:54 +0000

In this week's cross-published installment of "Vault Treasures" from his site, The Tannhauser Gate (http://www.thetannhausergate.com), John Marks shifts his attention to one of the lesser-known (today) singers of the 1950s, Julie London. Her story is a Hollywood-classic "I was discovered while doing something pretty mundane, and then I became a star." But her natural singing ability, unschooled... Read More »

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The Higher End: The Passing of Winston Ma

David W. Robinson — Tue, 26 Jul 2016 08:24:46 +0000

David W. Robinson, with John Tucker Winston Ma at his garden: A portrait. Bellevue, WA, 2001. There seem to be a number of passings in 2016 already. Sure, that's always true, statistically. But this has already been a bad year for notable music figures dying…David Bowie, Prince, Natalie Cole, Glenn Frey, John Berry, Merle Haggard,... Read More »

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Chord DAVE, Part 2: The Interview With Rob Watts

Dirk Sommer — Sun, 24 Jul 2016 23:45:26 +0000

Introduction: Interviews to listen to... For the English version of the second and third parts of the review on the Chord DAVE, we have come up with something new: You can listen to Rob Watts' comments on the individual pages of his presentation, and Mr. Roland Dietl's and my intermediate questions. Roland Dietl (left) and... Read More »

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Audiomat D1 Transport

Paul Candy — Sat, 23 Jul 2016 01:22:07 +0000

You have not accidentally stumbled into the archives of PF. The subject of today's review is indeed a $9000 CD transport and the year is 2016 not 1996. Why would anyone buy such a thing now that CD is on the wane? Audiomat resides on a very short list of audio marquees that offer to... Read More »

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Klaus Florian Vogt: Helden

Stephen Francis Vasta — Fri, 22 Jul 2016 18:12:26 +0000

It's refreshing not to have to cringe at a "new" singer's technical flaws, as I find myself doing more and more. Klaus Florian Vogt, in a program is mostly drawn from the Heldentenor (heroic tenor) repertoire, offers a clear, compact tone, a reliable legato, and some interpretive smarts. Vogt's actual instrument sounds, as recorded, more... Read More »

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John Marks' Vault Treasures: Frank Sinatra, 'Where Are You?'

John Marks — Thu, 21 Jul 2016 18:35:24 +0000

This week, John Marks touches on one of the truly great popular singers of the 20th Century, Frank Sinatra. Where Are You? comes to us from the later 1950s, and shows Sinatra maturing in his mastery. It also shows us just how great the recording arts had already progressed by this time. With his "Vault Treasures"... Read More »

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Tales from the Dungeon, Part 1

Tom Gibbs — Thu, 21 Jul 2016 09:27:52 +0000

"The more things change, the more they remain the same." - Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr What a load of crap! Sometimes, when things change, they seriously change, and things are nowhere nearly the same as they were! What I'm referring to here is my personal situation, where, in the space of a couple of months, we bought... Read More »

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Morrical on the Hardware: Wall Audio Opus 88 Stereo Preamplifier

Brad Morrical — Tue, 19 Jul 2016 00:40:57 +0000

Introduction Wall Audio is a brand that is not well known to many people, even in the audiophile world, but Andreas Wall has been designing and building high end products for more than 30 years. However, he has a very good reputation for his products in the German speaking world and has garnered numerous very... Read More »

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Stage III Triton Power Cord

Marshall Nack — Tue, 19 Jul 2016 06:29:29 +0000

You know how you can tell in 10 seconds if a component has it? Alas, it doesn't happen all that often—the good ones are few and far between. Just like the players in this industry—those who know real sound are few and far between. Most think it is synonymous with the Audiophile Report Card, the... Read More »

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Impressions: From an Editor’s Notebook

David W. Robinson — Sun, 17 Jul 2016 22:44:36 +0000

In which our hero meditates… Some plaudits where plaudits are due I have several items that have been accumulating in my notebook for a couple of months now. One was a notion for a full review that didn't need to be done, since another PF reviewer (Marshall Nack) did the main lifting; the others were candidates for... Read More »

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John Marks' New Music: Sergey Schepkin: J. S. Bach: The Six Partitas, BWV 825-830

John Marks — Fri, 15 Jul 2016 21:56:34 +0000

For this week's "New Music" selection, John Marks shares with us Sergey Schepkin's Bach: The Six Partitas. I agree completely with John when he writes "Familiarity with at least some of Bach's masterworks is a matter of core Cultural Literacy..." Amen! Think of it as a matter of "cultural critical mass"...the truly worthy things that you... Read More »

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Jane Ira Bloom’s 'Early Americans'

Marc Phillips — Fri, 15 Jul 2016 20:15:45 +0000

"Carmine said one boy, here are two!" – Larry London, The Freshman I'm not sure why I started hearing the late Maximillian Schell's heavily accented voice in my head the first time I listened to Jane Ira Bloom's new CD, Early Americans. I suspect it had something to do with reviewing Todd Hunter's Eat, Drink,... Read More »

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