July - August 2020 Archives - Positive Feedback

Live Streaming in the Time of Covid-19 - Part 2

Marshall Nack — Thu, 27 Aug 2020 18:43:13 +0000

Fred Hersch's hands frozen in transmission What are the Options? On a late summer day in August, I reflect on how little has changed since last I wrote. Cultural institutions remain shuttered as mandated, while trying to stay relevant by improvising online teasers. They initially responded to the Covid-19 lockdown with live streams via the... Read More »

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David Elias - The Art of Listening

David Elias — Tue, 18 Aug 2020 20:19:36 +0000

Comparing Native DSD64 and DSD256 Releases by Tom Jung of DMP I was graciously asked by Brian Moura at NativeDSD.com to listen to and critique some of their newest Native DSD releases which come from Tom Jung at DMP. The releases were provided as both DSD64 and DSD256 masters for download and comparison. I listened to the... Read More »

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Mye Sound Mye Stands for Magnepans

Michael Corsentino — Sun, 16 Aug 2020 18:17:47 +0000

As a new owner of Magnepan 3.7i I've discovered quite a few things about these much loved and storied planar magnetic speakers. Hearing them at shows and showrooms is one thing, but listening to them create their magic in your own home is where the rubber truly meets the road. I'm happy to report that... Read More »

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Whats in a Name? The McIntosh Labs C2700 Preamplifier

Gregory Petan — Tue, 11 Aug 2020 19:50:39 +0000

How does one define the word-brand? It's a question I've been working on answering while helping to create a new sustainable women's clothing line with my wife. Is it a catchy name? A slick logo? The overall look and feel of the product(s)? The advertising / marketing message? Yes, in part all these elements bolster... Read More »

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AudioQuest Dragon Power Cords

Marshall Nack — Sat, 08 Aug 2020 19:14:53 +0000

I am awaiting delivery in today's post of five AudioQuest Dragon power cords with mixed emotions. The unease is not about them; it is because I'm leery of rocking the boat presently anchored in the placid oasis of audio synergy, where all parts are working and everything important to me in playback is present. From... Read More »

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Cooking Cables with PTFE - a Tour of Straight Wire, Inc. and an AV Cable Factory

Juan C. Ayllon — Sat, 08 Aug 2020 16:15:32 +0000

Steven Hill, president of Straight Wire, Inc. (photo courtesy of Spencer Burke) "Many of our customers are engineers," says Steven Hill, 63, owner of Straight Wire, Inc., a straight-shooting, cigar-chomping graduate of University of Pennsylvania's Wharton Business School, former CPA, and 37-year veteran in the audio industry. Mr. Hill has no time for nonsense or... Read More »

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AGD Andante Preamplifier and Vivace Monoblocks

Editors at Positive Feedback — Fri, 07 Aug 2020 19:12:48 +0000

AGD's Andante and Vivace will transport you to the musical venue. Review By Rick Becker With this article, Positive Feedback continues its content-sharing relationship with Enjoy the Music. Rick Becker shares his thoughts on the AGD Andante Preamplifier and Vivace Monoblocks. Dr. David W. Robinson, Editor-in-Chief It is always an honor when a manufacturer asks me to review... Read More »

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Between the Buried and Me: The Silent Circus Remix/Remaster

Tom Gibbs — Thu, 06 Aug 2020 20:42:03 +0000

2020 marks the 20th anniversary of progressive / hardcore / metalcore / technical deathcore band Between the Buried and Me, and Craft Recordings follows up on the excellent reissue of the band's first album with a remixed / remastered LP reissue of their sophomore effort, 2003's The Silent Circus. The myriad changes to the band's... Read More »

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JCAT Signature USB Cable

Dave Clark — Wed, 05 Aug 2020 20:10:03 +0000

Alright, so the JCAT Signature USB cable is one of the better USB cables I have heard, and fits right into my group of favorites in terms of being across the board excellent. And while I have a lot of cables here, I have not heard all that is out there—nor do I have any... Read More »

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The Akitika GT-102 Power Amplifier

John Zurek — Mon, 03 Aug 2020 18:15:07 +0000

The last decade summers at my place have been hotter than ever before. At 6300 feet, what used to be two weeks of high temps has turned into 10 weeks of even higher temps. I know this is just a Chinese hoax, but damn, the heat my tube monoblocks generate is just too much for... Read More »

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Bricasti Design MDx Board Update - Keeping Digital Customers Future Ready

Michael Zisserson — Mon, 03 Aug 2020 17:28:47 +0000

Bricasti Design is still keeping their promise of offering future-ready solutions to their existing customers. From my experience, the investment in their award-winning M1 DAC has now paid for itself three times over, thanks to these updates, that are all offered for a reasonable price. The latest update is the most sonically significant in the... Read More »

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Ear Wax: Roger Skoff Writes about the Weird, the Wonderful, and the Simply Unknown

Roger Skoff — Mon, 03 Aug 2020 00:20:33 +0000

Many a long year ago, there was (really; truly; I kid you not!) an audiophile product called EarWax™. Apparently following the same logic that came up with the idea for "board wax" (used on surfboards to make the board and its rider glide more smoothly across the waves), a dab of this stuff was to... Read More »

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The iFi PowerStation AC Line Conditioner

Bruce Kinch — Thu, 30 Jul 2020 16:55:22 +0000

Go back some 50 years, and the American audio scene involved an assortment of acronyms from around New England: off the top of my head, AR, ADS, APT, CSW, DBX, EAW, EPI, KLH, and NEAR come to mind, with the BAS (Boston Audio Society) and MIT providing cross-pollination. Oh, and there was one nasty four... Read More »

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Impressions: The Wave Kinetics NVS Turntable, Durand Tosca Tonearm, and DS Audio DS Master 1 Optical Cartridge and EQ/Phono Amp with the DS Audio ION-001

David W. Robinson — Mon, 27 Jul 2020 22:52:25 +0000

At RMAF, evening cigars, Denver, CO, 2019 (photograph by Scott Hull; image processing by David W. Robinson) When you do a lot of audio reviewing and show-going over several decades, as I have, you get to see and hear a lot of gear and recordings. Some are good; some are bad; some are ugly. Like... Read More »

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Aidas Audio Gala Gold LE MC Phono Cartridge

Robert H. Levi — Sat, 25 Jul 2020 21:38:03 +0000

When it comes to turntables, I have to admit that my top MC reference remains the Aidas Mammoth Gold. It is the benchmark by which I compare all comparable MC cartridges. It lacks nothing I can hear and is listenable to the maximum. The Gala Gold LE is their limited-edition cartridge in honor of the... Read More »

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Latin Jazz Listening Party

Victor Chavira — Fri, 24 Jul 2020 21:05:55 +0000

If you have the good fortune to have a smart TV connected to your stereo and are a fan of the genre, then I encourage you to participate in this Latin Jazz listening party. These are not cell phone audience recordings, but professional productions with good sound. Grab a favorite beverage, a dance partner hopefully,... Read More »

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LSA HP-1 Headphones

Sam Rosen — Tue, 21 Jul 2020 23:41:56 +0000

In the audio world, a dealer relationship is still fairly common. As more businesses go online, dealers are adapting and making their products available online as well. Some manufacturers are even starting to forgo dealers and have started selling direct to their customers. The result, when done well, is more performance per dollar. This is... Read More »

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I-O Data Soundgenic HDL-RAS2T Music Server/Audio File Transport

Wojciech Pacuła — Tue, 21 Jul 2020 17:16:47 +0000

I-O DATA was founded in 1976 in the Japanese city of Kanazawa. I-O Data is one of the largest manufacturers of computer peripherals in this country. In 2016, an offspring brand called Fidata was founded within company, whose audio files transports / music servers are intended for the "premium consumer market." In 2019, they decided... Read More »

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Notes of an Amateur: Gardiner's Monteverdi Choir; Christian Wolff; Péteris Vasks

Bob Neill — Mon, 20 Jul 2020 22:54:15 +0000

…all descriptions of music are quite worthless & rather unpleasant; they are apt to be hysterical & to say things the people will be ashamed of having said afterwards. V. Woolf, Diary. Vigilate. English Polyphony in Dangerous Times. Monterverdi Choir, John Elliot Gardiner. Soli Deo Gloria SDG 720. It isn't often we get to... Read More »

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Live Streaming in the Time of Covid-19 with AudioQuest DragonFly USB DAC

Marshall Nack — Thu, 16 Jul 2020 20:53:02 +0000

We are now four months into New York State's pandemic lock-down. The days pass, every one feels like a Saturday. There's nothing on my calendar except a couple of repeating Zoom sessions—all our entertainments have been zapped. (I know: if that's the worst of it, I shouldn't complain.) The free time hangs heavy; you adjust... Read More »

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Don't Pass, Go! The Pass Labs XA30.8 Amplifier

Larry Cox — Thu, 16 Jul 2020 20:43:27 +0000

During the initial days of my shelter in place, I stepped outside for a walk, only to find a short monolith in the middle of my driveway. It was a hulking, brown box, and obviously delivered by truck. No knock on the door, no ring of the bell... just something I discovered in my driveway—not... Read More »

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David Elias - The Art of Listening

David Elias — Wed, 15 Jul 2020 22:23:18 +0000

Bach vs Beck…is it all just Nature's Noise? I am listening to both Bach then Beck on Spotify and noticed they had a similar 5 million listening audience for the month. What else do these guys have in common? To start they both wrote music for infinite audiences. This is something Beck no doubt always... Read More »

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Goldmund Mimesis 37S NextGen Analog Preamplifier and Telos 280 Stereo Analog Power Amplifier: Never Say Never

Myles B. Astor — Wed, 15 Jul 2020 21:28:44 +0000

I was once upon a time in a galaxy far, far way, an unabashed, dyed-in-the-wool tube lover. The mere mention of solid-state electronics sent my upper lip into involuntary quivering. Still, it was important to separate my job as an audio reviewer from my personal preferences. Over the years, products from Levinson, Rowland, Cello, PASS,... Read More »

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LTA MZ3 Preamplifier

Sam Rosen — Wed, 15 Jul 2020 20:54:03 +0000

For those who have read my other reviews on Positive Feedback, one thing that is probably apparent, is my love of tubes. I find that tubes bring a sense of space and realism that is rare in solid state amplifiers. Now tubes are not perfect, they have their drawbacks. For example, if you are using... Read More »

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Sexy Blue Tubes, Part 2, The Sophia Electric EL34-ST and KT88-ST Vacuum Tubes!

Jeff Day — Sun, 12 Jul 2020 18:54:41 +0000

It has been quite some time since my last article for Positive Feedback about the Sophia Electric vacuum tubes developed and offered by Sue and Richard in McLean, Virginia. It was all the way back in August of 2017 that I wrote about the Sophia Electric EL34-ST (photo below) and Aqua 274B vacuum tubes (HERE),... Read More »

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