July - August 2022 Archives - Positive Feedback

The Sony LSPX-S3 Glass Surround Speaker: Modesty's Beguiling Musical Eros

Jim Merod — Sun, 14 Aug 2022 03:12:27 +0000

Jim Merod: a self-portrait. Sony's LSPX-S3 glass sound speaker can be regarded as a leaner, no less enjoyable sonic anomaly which the paradigm-setting Harmon Kardon three-unit stereo playback device, a decade or so back, brought the convenience of music's joyful digital miniaturization. This inexpensive, highly-compatible audio triumph depends not so much on Bluetooth flexibility, but... Read More »

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Four Superb Recordings from Eudora Records in Pure DSD256

Rushton Paul — Sat, 13 Aug 2022 17:58:13 +0000

You may have gathered that I greatly enjoy the marvelous recordings released by Gonzalo Noqué on his Eudora Records label. Recently I've been thoroughly engaged by four utterly delightful albums which I describe below in greater detail. As with virtually all releases from Eudora, these are in Pure DSD256, the sound is utterly transparent, and... Read More »

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From an Editor's Notebook, Very Briefly: More on Gold Note…the XS-85 Reference Loudspeaker

David W. Robinson — Sun, 07 Aug 2022 22:06:55 +0000

Dr. David contemplating the mysteries of Life. Happy Valley, OR, 2018 (Photograph by John Robinson; image processing by Ye Olde Editor) Last month's reflection upon the good things happening at Gold Note in Italy concentrated on some of their key people, as profiled on their YouTube channel. It was good stuff, people being the most... Read More »

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The Audeze CRBN Headphones, Part Two: The Measurements

Bob Katz — Sun, 07 Aug 2022 22:04:23 +0000

Sensitivity First, I measured the sensitivity of the Audeze CRBN, comparing it to the Stax 007. My headphone measurement instrument is the Mini DSP "Ears," which is far from a standard. However, using my ACO Pacific SPL calibrator, I was able to calibrate the Mini DSP for SPL at 1kHz within about a dB, I... Read More »

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From an Editor's Notebook: A Trip to Montreal and Kronos Audio, a Photo Essay

David W. Robinson — Sat, 06 Aug 2022 04:53:43 +0000

E-in-C Robinson photographing at the Kronos factory, Montreal, 2022 (photograph by Bill Parish; image processing by Robinson) If you've been following my comments since last February, you're well aware of the fact that I have been repeatedly stating my extremely pleased astonishment at Louis Desjardins' Discovery Turntable System. So have others in our creative community.... Read More »

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The Bruckner Symphonies with Jaap van Zweden

Rushton Paul — Fri, 05 Aug 2022 22:55:36 +0000

The Bruckner symphonies cycle from Jaap van Zweden and the North Netherlands Radio Philharmonic, as recorded by Bert van der Wolf, is a superb accomplishment. It deserves a home in the music libraries of all music lovers—particularly those of us who value Bruckner. Bruckner Symphonies Nos. 1, 3, 6, and 8, Jaap van Zweden, The... Read More »

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Snake Oil and Voodoo: Roger Skoff Writes About the Stranger Aspects of Our Hobby

Roger Skoff — Fri, 05 Aug 2022 22:52:50 +0000

As you probably know, I'm not just a writer and a long-time audiophile (I and my friends call ourselves "HiFi Crazies"), but a manufacturer of High-End audio cables, originally XLO, now RSX. As such, to some of our HiFi brethren, that automatically makes me and anything I might say suspect. They insist—often based more on... Read More »

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Pacific Audio Fest, Part Three

Carol Clark — Fri, 05 Aug 2022 16:33:57 +0000

Continuing our coverage of the Pacific Audio Fest. Please keep in mind that at any show you are not listening to a speaker, amp, or whatever... but a system in a hotel room playing whatever music that is playing at the time. Whether something you like or don't, something well recorded or not. So yeah.... Read More »

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The Bargain Class A Usher R-1.5 Stereo Amplifier - A High Performer at Any Price!

Juan C. Ayllon — Thu, 04 Aug 2022 19:21:47 +0000

The Usher R-1.5 stereo amplifier is built like a tank. Its utilitarian industrial design bears a striking resemblance to the Threshold 300 Stasis designed by audio guru Nelson Pass, which should come as no surprise. In 1972 Usher Audio's owner and head engineer Lien-Shui Tsai built the first Usher R-1.5 amplifier as a copy of... Read More »

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Pacific Audio Fest, Part Two

Carol Clark — Thu, 04 Aug 2022 19:07:38 +0000

Continuing on with our coverage of the Pacific Audio Fest. ModWright, Seattle Hi-Fi, SME, Revel, Cardas Audio. Images below. Pictured below is Dan's new Analog Bridge. It adds a tube quality to any solid-state device. As always, we had a great time catching up with Kristin Vittitoe and Dan Wright. Daedalus Audio, LampizatOr, WyWires, VAC.... Read More »

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Pacific Audio Fest, Part One

Carol Clark — Thu, 04 Aug 2022 18:38:31 +0000

The inaugural Pacific Audio Fest, July 29 - 30, 2022, in Seattle, Washington was a lot of fun. For many attendees it was the first time out among audio friends since 2019. A good time was had by all, and there seemed to be a fair amount of foot traffic. Dave and I managed to... Read More »

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What's a Journalist For?

Wojciech Pacuła — Wed, 03 Aug 2022 17:25:06 +0000

At the 18th High Fidelity Anniversary In the past, before I started to work as a journalist, I heard several times from one of the audio distributors that audio magazines were "leeches" and "parasites." He said it deadly serious and pissed off. Which did not prevent him from partying, having fun, laughing and joking with... Read More »

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Octave Records - In Pursuit of Studio Recording Excellence

Rushton Paul — Wed, 03 Aug 2022 17:09:11 +0000

Hurray for those obsessed by the pursuit of sonic excellence! Octave Records, founded by Paul McGowan of PS Audio, is an exemplar of compulsion for audio excellence in studio recorded music. And they are giving us much to celebrate. Octave Records was founded in 2019 in Boulder, Colorado, as a subsidiary of PS Audio. It... Read More »

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Top 500 SuperSonic List - Part 32

Claude Lemaire — Wed, 03 Aug 2022 16:26:12 +0000

Five Shades of "Gray" This is an ongoing project by Claude Lemaire of Soundevaluations 196. Gerald Wilson Big Band, Moment of Truth. Pacific Jazz – ST-61-LA549-G (1962), Blue Note Tone Poet Series – B0033487-01 (2022), 33 1/3 rpm. Genre: latin jazz, big band swing, blues, ballads, soul-jazz. Until recently Mississippi-born Gerald Wilson had totally passed under my... Read More »

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Audience aR12-T4 Power Conditioner

Marshall Nack — Wed, 03 Aug 2022 16:11:31 +0000

It was around the midpoint of my Hi-end audio journey when I heard my first passive power distributor and I can still recall the shock. At this time—I'm talking decades ago—the Hi-End embraced the philosophy less is more. Virtue lay in the fewest electronic devices and the shortest signal paths. Minimalism ruled. The goal of... Read More »

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Saturday Night In San Francisco: A Forty-Two-Year-Old Triumph

Greg Weaver — Sat, 30 Jul 2022 08:18:41 +0000

I can’t imagine that there are too many readers of this journal who will not be familiar with, or at least aware of, the renowned 1981 landmark guitar trio release, Friday Night in San Francisco. Treasured by music lovers and audiophiles alike, jazz author and critic Walter Kolosky has proclaimed it “…the most influential of... Read More »

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Judy Garland at Carnegie Hall, 1961, in DSD256 from HDTT

Rushton Paul — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 19:45:21 +0000

Some recordings are highlights of our music culture and are loved by generations. Judy Garland at Carnegie Hall, 1961, is such a recording. It is a remarkable tribute to a great artist performing at the top of her game. And, in this newly restored and remastered release from HDTT, it sounds better than it ever... Read More »

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From the Copper Mine: Audio Art in NYC – Devon Turnbull's Listening Exhibition

Editors at Positive Feedback — Tue, 26 Jul 2022 19:41:26 +0000

Written by Tom Methans While browsing around Steve Guttenberg's The Audiophiliac channel on YouTube, I came across several videos featuring Devon Turnbull, a multi-talented audio engineer and former clothing and graphic designer and graffiti artist, who now runs a small audio company in Brooklyn called Ojas (Devon's original graffiti pen name pronounced with the same "j" as in jazz... Read More »

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From the Copper Mine: A Loudspeaker Company Grows in Brooklyn - DeVore Fidelity

Editors at Positive Feedback — Mon, 25 Jul 2022 23:47:28 +0000

As a reminder to Positive Feedback readers, PF has some very fine content-sharing relationships with a handful of fine audiophile publications. Among this fraternity of online magazines is Copper Magazine, the journal of PS Audio, Paul McGowan's audiophile company. Frank Doris is the current Editor there, and is a good friend, respected due to his many years in... Read More »

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Swiss with a Flourish! The Merason frerot DAC

Larry Cox — Thu, 21 Jul 2022 22:06:20 +0000

Together in Bits and Pieces. First Bit. The least expensive way to get great sound out of your system is to "cheat." Don't buy new gear, buy really well recorded music. The sound your system exhibited with pedestrian recordings will now sound much better, because the source is literally better. This is no joke. Sure,... Read More »

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Pass Labs X260.8 Monoblock Amplifiers

Editors at Positive Feedback — Wed, 20 Jul 2022 15:29:27 +0000

Prestigious power, glorious grace, and terrific transparency. Review By Dwayne Carter With this article, Positive Feedback continues its content-sharing relationship with Enjoy the Music where Dwayne Carter shares his thoughts on the Pass Labs X260.8 Monoblock Amplifier. Dr. David W. Robinson, Editor-in-Chief Pass Laboratories, Inc., is a name that most audiophiles utter, after describing a product that comes... Read More »

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More Intriguing Music From Eric Vloeimans

Rushton Paul — Wed, 20 Jul 2022 08:01:22 +0000

Eric Vloeimans' music-making has captured me. I admit it happily. His innovative, cheerful explorations are refreshing, fun, interesting, and challenging, all at a go. No ruts here, no plodding along roads well-traveled by others. Listening to one of his albums is like finding fresh horizons. Oliver's Cinema, Eric Vloeimans, Tuur Florizoone, Jörg Brinkmann. Buzz, Northstar... Read More »

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Audioquest Niagara at CS Mastering: A Review with Download Links

Dirk Sommer — Tue, 19 Jul 2022 00:48:53 +0000

Dirk Sommer, Birgit Hammer (photography). This review is quite unusual: Audioquest's "LowZ/Noise-Dissipation" mains power technology, implemented in cables and power conditioners, which has recently received the Statement in High Fidelity award, has to show in the CSM mastering studio whether it has there just as positive an influence on the sound as in a HiFi... Read More »

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Impressions – A Study in Synergy, Part the First: Dohmann Audio Helix Two Mk2 Turntable, Schröder CB-11 Tonearm, Phasemation PP-2000 MC cartridge, & the Gold Note PH-1000 Phono Stage with PSU-1250 Power Supply

David W. Robinson — Sun, 17 Jul 2022 22:55:03 +0000

Ye Olde Editor, 2022: a portrait in Ink Outline (photograph by John Robinson; image processing by Ye Olde himself). A Study in Synergy There's that word again. As defined online by Oxford Languages, synergy is "the interaction or cooperation of two or more organizations, substances, or other agents to produce a combined effect greater... Read More »

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Saturday Night in San Francisco on 180 gram LP and SACD from Impex Records

Tom Gibbs — Sun, 17 Jul 2022 15:25:48 +0000

In the mid-seventies, Al Di Meola was a young, hotshot jazz fusion guitarist with Chick Corea and Return to Forever. But he'd also developed a deep understanding of Latin music, and had a special love for flamenco guitar. During a European tour with RTF, Di Meola heard of a legendary Spanish flamenco guitarist, Paco De... Read More »

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