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SCHMIDT: Symphony No. 2 in E flat. STRAUSS: Dreaming by the Fireside (Symphonic interlude from Intermezzo). Vienna Philharmonic/Semyon Bychkov. Sony Classics 88985355522.  TT: 55.14 Downloads: amazon.com (mp3); hdmusic.pw (FLAC); highresaudio.com (not available in U.S.); myopenmp3.com (mp3); prestoclassical.co.uk (FLAC, mp3); primephonic.com (WAV, FLAC; not available in U.S.) The composer Franz Schmidt, while renowned in his native Vienna during his... Read More »

Mozart, Violin Sonatas, Nos. 5, 6, 7, 28, 35; Variations in G minor; Sonata in B flat Major, 570. Alina Ibragimova, violin. Cédric Tieberghien, piano. Hyperion CDA 68175. (2 CDS for price of one). Alina Ibragimova plays Mozart as if he is at the center of her repertoire. He suits her refined tone and willingness... Read More »

In my Issue 96 product preview, I raved about several exceptional components currently in my review queue, not the least of which was Bakoon International's sensational little DAC-21. Although relatively new to my reference set-up, it quickly became apparent that the DAC-21's sonic performance would require a wholesale reassessment of what affordable outboard DACs can... Read More »

The Grado RS1 headphones: a classic! (Photograph by clothfairy via Flicker; Creative Commons license is at https://www.flickr.com/photos/7403543@N04/2250991856. Used in accord with that license. No changes were made to this image; use of this image does not imply endorsement by the photographer.) Twenty-three years ago, in a city far, far away, I purchased the most expensive, mahogany headphones... Read More »

I'll start off by describing my experience with reel-to-reel, which spans several decades. In 1979, I acquired a Pioneer RTR deck from my brother-in-law—he had no idea how to use it, and I believe we just traded some stuff back and forth. It worked almost flawlessly, although one of the channels had a habit of... Read More »

Quietly Musical That was my initial thought when I listened to the Pass Labs XP-17 Phonostage for the first time. Yes, quiet and musical, is an apt description. But there must be more. After all, this is not some run-of-the-mill update. This is a new product in the Pass line. That does not happen all... Read More »

The word Titan brings a whole lot of imagery to mind for most people. Titan Missile; the king of all intercontinental ballistic missiles. Capable of delivering multiple nuclear warheads to other continents within a matter of minutes. Clash of the Titans; Gods at war using their giant minions to battle. It invokes the image of... Read More »

This is an ongoing project by Claude Lemaire of Soundevaluations. 56. Borodin, Symphony no.2 / Rimsky-Korsakoff – Capriccio Espagnole The London Symphony Orchestra, Jean Martinon. RCA Victor Red Seal – LSC-2298 ­(1959), Classic Records – LSC-2298 (1996?), 180g, Living Stereo series, Genre: classical, orchestral, romantic. Tightly led and influenced by Mily Balakirev, Alexander Borodin—the eldest of 'The Five'—along... Read More »

Roger Skoff writes about a basic split in our hobby I admit it; I don't own a smartphone. And for driving instructions, I have to go to my home computer. I've also never owned an Amazon "Kindle" or any other such device, and I don't intend to. Does that make me a Luddite? Maybe, but... Read More »

Regular readers of High Fidelity remember, I hope, the texts from two and three years ago, which served (me and the editor-in-chief of HF, Wojciech Pacula) to present the best albums of mainstream music (read HERE). However, we did not write about the discs, that were the best music of 2017 "in our opinion", but about those... Read More »

This article, as reviewed by Carol Clark, Victor Chavira, and Larry Cox, originally ran when audioMusings was in print. Issue 11, 2000 I awaited the arrival of the Audio Aero Prima CD player with great anticipation. Like my five-year-old Audio Electronics CD1, the Prima is a highly modified Phillips unit with a variable tube output stage. However, that... Read More »

I have been a very happy owner and user of the Aries Network Streamer/Renderer from AURALiC for a good number of years (HERE). In its use, the Aries "rendered" our music, make that files, as well as I could ever imagine—pace, resolution, dynamics, extension, clean, articulate, palpable, and so on, and so on, and so... Read More »

It's patently clear after countless years of reviewing that cables can—and often do—make or break the sound of better audio systems. Enter the Skogrand Beethoven speaker cables originally reviewed in Issue 75 of Positive Feedback (HERE). In the end—even with my patience being tested by the Beethoven's long burn-in time—the speaker cables truly excelled when... Read More »

The missing tweeter I've had the same pair of YG Anat speakers going on seven years. That's the longest I've owned any reference component by far. And still the Anats' give no cause to go out looking. They do everything well. If I notice a performance shortfall, it won't be the speakers I'm looking at.... Read More »

The information regarding the design of the Siltech Triple Crown Power AC Cable provided by Siltech seem to be simple and few: Unique 7 heavy core S8 mono crystal silver conductors, Stabilized air core insulation, Spatial balanced for perfect EMC canceling behavior over an extreme frequency range, Ultra-stable operation even under high current demand, Bending the... Read More »

Periodic Audio makes a terrific set of inner ear monitors at very reasonable price points. Roger Skoff and I awarded their Be IEMs an Alfie Award at the LA Audio Show. And let’s be honest, the whole theme of a periodic table of elements is quite clever.

If you’ve ever been into high fidelity gear from the United Kingdom then you’ve heard that phrase bandied about as a descriptor for British Isle-built sound. I love the images it conjures up in one’s imagination: Gust-driven rain pelting against a window partially concealed by thick Hunter Green velvet curtains, lots of built-in wooden shelves stocked with books, CDs, and LPs…

It was sun tan lotion, and fresh rain… no wait, tropical flowers. Errr, maybe a whiff of roasting meat on a BBQ mixed in too?
This is what greeted my nose upon disembarking from the plane that had just landed in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Nelson Pass formed his first audio company with a friend while studying physics at the University of California-Davis in the early 1970s. He went on to co-found Threshold Electronics and design the well-regarded Adcom GFA-555 amplifier.