March - April 2019 Archives - Positive Feedback

AXPONA 2019, Photo Essay Part 4

Carol Clark — Mon, 22 Apr 2019 17:03:45 +0000

Continuing on with our coverage of AXPONA 2019. All images by Dave Clark, along with some added commentary. Distinctive Stereo, German Physiks, Mojo Audio. A lineup of AVM Audio USA products. First turntable for AVM called the Rotation. Very cool, it lights up blue and shines through the platter. ELAC had two rooms, both equally... Read More »

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AXPONA 2019, Photo Essay Part 3

Carol Clark — Sun, 21 Apr 2019 18:46:53 +0000

Continuing on with our coverage of AXPONA 2019. All images by Dave Clark, along with some added commentary. Another engaging room, Bel Canto e1X DAC / Control preamplifier, $6500, and e1X amplifier, $6000. Audiovector SR 3 Avantgarde Arreté, $9999. AudioQuest Niagara 1000 power filter. HRS Audio stand. High Water Sound. Horning Hybrid Systems Eufrodite Ellipse... Read More »

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AXPONA 2019, Photo Essay Part 2

Carol Clark — Sat, 20 Apr 2019 19:14:51 +0000

Continuing on with our coverage of AXPONA 2019. All images by Dave Clark, along with some added commentary. Source Systems Limited, Esprit Audio, fidata IO Data Devices, Lumin Music by Pixel Magic Systems. M2TECH. Jim Clark Stereo, located in central Illinois, interesting to us as Dave's brother is named Jim. They featured Bob Carver, Mytek,... Read More »

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Aerosmith: Deuces are Wild featuring 1More Triple Driver In-Ear Headphones

Adam Goldfine — Sat, 20 Apr 2019 15:36:40 +0000

Photo by Katarina Benzova A few weeks ago I received an unassuming enough looking email from Cameron Black of the PR firm Noyd Communications, asking me if I would like to experience a unique VIP on-stage experience for the Aerosmith: Deuces Are Wild concert at the MGM Park hotel's Park Theater in Las Vegas. Wait... Read More »

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My AXPONA Adventures: Music (and Laughter) is the Best Medicine

Gary L Beard — Fri, 19 Apr 2019 21:38:57 +0000

Dateline: April, 2019 Renaissance Schaumburg Hotel and Convention Center. Schaumburg, Illinois Welcome back my Friends, to the show that (hopefully) never ends! (Apologies ELP.) I arrived at the 10th annual AXPONA on Thursday afternoon. The Renaissance Convention Center was a buzzing audio-hive of controlled chaos. Crates and boxes were everywhere. Audio systems taking shape, tweaking started.... Read More »

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AXPONA 2019, Photo Essay Part 1

Carol Clark — Fri, 19 Apr 2019 18:58:54 +0000

AXPONA is a big show. Big as in massive. Big as in I don't know how someone can cover almost 200 rooms in three days. I'm sure one could find many places online that offer in-depth reviews of individual rooms, but you won't find that here, for the most part. Here you will find a... Read More »

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AXPONA 2019 - My Favorite Rooms

Robert S. Youman — Wed, 17 Apr 2019 19:18:03 +0000

Bottom line. AXPONA 2019 was a blast! I have not seen any numbers just yet, but I feel like AXPONA 2019 was very well attended and will be considered another big success story. I was only able to participate on Friday and Saturday, but many friends and contacts in the Industry seemed very pleased by... Read More »

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The New Apartment Lounge Streaming Magic: The Superb AURALiC ARIES G1 Wireless Streaming Transporter

Maurice Jeffries — Tue, 16 Apr 2019 15:58:48 +0000

Digital Marches On Back in Issue 96 (HERE), Managing Editor Dave Clark put the AURALiC ARIES G2 Streaming Transporter ($3999) through its paces, praising that unit for its relative ease-of-use and naturally unforced, but also superbly detailed, sound. More recently, Alex Brinkman, AURALiC North America's Marketing Director, reached out to see if I wanted to... Read More »

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Synergistic Research Active Ground Block SE

Malcolm J. Gomes — Wed, 10 Apr 2019 15:20:10 +0000

One of the many reasons why I love the audiophile hobby so much is that it always affords me so many avenues to learn something new and interesting. For example, take the need to "ground" all your audio components. On the surface, grounding may seem like a boring concept. However, if you dig beneath the... Read More »

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A Return to Denver (RMAF)

Brian Moura — Wed, 10 Apr 2019 14:48:31 +0000

From Tents and Pods to a Remodeled Hotel Two years ago, I made the trek to Denver's Marriott Tech Center Hotel to attend the 2016 edition of the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest (RMAF). It was an unusual event as the hotel was under construction and much of the show was held in tents and pods... Read More »

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Benchmark Media Systems LA4 Line Amplifier

Gary L Beard — Tue, 09 Apr 2019 19:54:24 +0000

The LA4 Line Amplifier is a linestage preamp introduced by Benchmark Media Systems in 2018. Priced at a very competitive $2495 USD, the small, squarish LA4 comes securely packaged, and includes a power cord, 12V trigger cable, and a manual complete with test reports. The review LA4 was furnished with the optional remote (add... Read More »

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Doshi Audio Phono Stage V3.0 - The Curious Incident of the Phono Stage and the Listener

Marshall Nack — Tue, 09 Apr 2019 01:05:22 +0000

'Twas the week before Christmas when Nick Doshi and Anthony Chiarella dropped by bringing seasonal cheer in the form of the Doshi Phono Stage V3.0. While it was warming up, I took the opportunity to bring them up to speed on my current configuration: all CH Precision components, including the CH P1 phono stage. Nick... Read More »

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In Search of a Perfect Song, The Soft Moon Edition

Carol Clark — Mon, 08 Apr 2019 20:14:16 +0000

There are times when I think the iPod in my car can read my mind. I have it perpetually set to shuffle all songs. It's old, and sometimes it doesn't do a very good job of shuffling, not to mention the fact that because we take that car on trips there is a lot of... Read More »

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The New Apartment Lounge: Silnote Audio's Enticing Poseidon Signature II Master Reference Speaker Cable

Maurice Jeffries — Mon, 08 Apr 2019 17:38:18 +0000

The Persistence of Myth If you've followed this hobby long enough, you've no doubt heard the oft-repeated barb that "all audio cables sound the same." In my estimation there is no more misleading or unsubstantiated audio shibboleth, one embraced widely by legions of the "all components sound the same brigade," than this misguided trope. Sadly,... Read More »

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Previews of Digital and Other Very Interesting Things Too

Lawrence Blair — Mon, 08 Apr 2019 16:26:45 +0000

Most anyone that knows me well knows that analog playback has been my chosen lifestyle for the last two decades in that, as an "industry professional" I imported and distributed high performance / high mass turntables, tonearms, phono cartridges, and associated electronics for some 14 years, established the Thorens TD-124 restoration model for North America,... Read More »

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Jensen Transformers' MC-2RR ISO-MAX Moving Coil Phono Cartridge Step-Up Transformer

Robert H. Levi — Sat, 06 Apr 2019 23:37:33 +0000

Though more and more phono stages contain moving coil facilities, many do not. From McIntosh to Sony, preamps are available with only moving magnet amplification. Most preamps that have MC on board, have only one input. If you own two tables with MC cartridges on board, you have to plug and unplug to enjoy the... Read More »

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Impressions: From an Editor’s Notebook - Merrill Audio Element 118, Pneupods, and Focal Sphear Earphones

David W. Robinson — Sat, 06 Apr 2019 15:17:46 +0000

Ye Olde Editor in action at RMAF 2015 (photograph by Jeff Day) Three things for you… As AXPONA 2019 is looming next week, I have three items that I need to write about briefly before I hit that trail to Chicago. These will be short and to the point…not everything needs to be War and... Read More »

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PureAudioProject Trio15 Speaker System

Pete Davey — Fri, 05 Apr 2019 00:10:51 +0000

I've had the honor of having experienced the PureAudioProject "Trio" system for a while now, and it is one of the most eye-opening experiences I have in a long time. I have reviewed lots of speaker systems as well as other ancillary systems, but none of them have captured the essence of the music like... Read More »

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An Interview with Luis Fernandes of Finite Elemente

Wojciech Pacuła — Thu, 04 Apr 2019 15:38:51 +0000

The Finite Elemente Method (FEM) is a numerical method for solving problems of engineering and mathematical physics. Typical problem areas of interest include structural analysis, heat transfer, fluid flow, mass transport and electromagnetic potential. The analytical solution of these problems generally requires the solution to boundary value problems for partial differential equations. Wikipedia.org Mr Luis Fernandes, the current CEO of the German company called Finite... Read More »

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Finite Elemente Ceraball and Cerabase Classic Anti-vibration Feet

Wojciech Pacuła — Thu, 04 Apr 2019 15:12:21 +0000

This time we got for a review the anti-vibration feet of the German company Finite Elemente, Ceraball and Cerabase Classic models. This brand is one of the precursors among specialized firms fighting against unwanted vibrations, which with these products returns to the market after a few years absence. We published an interview with the current... Read More »

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My Ultimate Mono Experience: the Hana SL Cartridge and the ModWright PH 9.0 Phono Stage - Part 2

Wayne Goins — Thu, 04 Apr 2019 00:24:23 +0000

Hey, Positive People! When we last spoke on March 9 in Issue 102 (HERE), I ended the article saying that being so inspired by the sound of the Modwright P9.0 preamp, it led me to purchase quite a few fun vinyl items for discussion in this Part II of Mono-mania! I have a complete mono-ready... Read More »

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The Old Outweighs the New in Youth Fountain's Freshman Release

Peter R. Clark — Sun, 31 Mar 2019 20:32:38 +0000

Youth Fountain (formerly Bedroom Talk) is a 2-piece emotional pop-punk outfit from Vancouver. After a long time, the band has finally released their first full-length. And I'll be the first to say, it may have not been worth the wait. Letters to Our Former Selves is a collection of 12 songs, comprised of five new... Read More »

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iFi AC iPurifier - Helping Improve Your Playback Experience by Reducing AC Power Noise

Tom Gibbs — Sat, 30 Mar 2019 16:22:26 +0000

At my old place, I had a plethora of audio-related problems, not the least of which was with AC power. An early 80s house, it was reasonably well built, but almost everything in the home was contractor grade, and not everything employed the best construction practices. I first noticed I had an issue when my... Read More »

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Grado Labs GR 10e In-Ear Monitors

Robert H. Levi — Thu, 28 Mar 2019 22:56:13 +0000

Just when you would figure John Grado would take some time off with his vivacious wife and spend time at their pied-à-terre in Paris, (if they have one, they should go there!), Grado's new and improved creations keep rolling in. With the improvements wrought by balanced armatures to IEM's and a few other engineering tweaks, the improved... Read More »

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Impressions: The HeadAmp Blue Hawaii Electrostatic Special Edition Headphone Amp & MrSpeakers VOCE Electrostatic Headphones

David W. Robinson — Wed, 27 Mar 2019 23:25:17 +0000

Yon Olde Editor (portrait by John Robinson) A prologue: of memories, music, and dreams… To start: An extended and quite famous passage from Proust. Just read it, it will do you good. Many years had elapsed during which nothing of Combray, save what was comprised in the theatre and the drama of my going to... Read More »

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