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Bach. St. John Passion. Monteverdi Choir, English Baroque Soloists. John Eliot Gardiner, Deutsche Gramophone 486 1822. 2 CDs, 1 Blue Ray DVD.  Is John Eliot Gardiner’s Bach definitive or 'just' English? Fair question. For me, his take on Bach in the cantatas and masses is the standard. Watching the DVD and listening to the CD’s... Read More »

Dr. David enjoying a fine cigar on the deck of Louis Desjardins' home in Montreal, Canada, 2022. (Photograph by Bill Parish; image processing by Robinson) Just last weekend I returned from a three-day trip to Montreal, Canada. I was there to visit Louis Desjardins of Kronos, creator of the extraordinary Discovery Turntable system. This included... Read More »

From Poland, a passive pre with solid-state output. Review By Ric Mancuso With this article, Positive Feedback continues its content-sharing relationship with Enjoy the Music where Ric Mancuso shares his thoughts on the Soundastic Reference Stereo Integrated Amplifier. Dr. David W. Robinson, Editor-in-Chief     Lyrics from the song "The Sound of Music" from the same title as... Read More »

There are few times in my life where I have been truly speechless when it came to audio equipment. I still remember the first time it happened. I searched high and low for a pair of Anthony Gallo Reference 3.1s. I had never heard the speaker, but I had read enough to know that if... Read More »

Each Zion weighs nearly 75 pounds As I sat in my listening room with the lights dimmed, I began to take a journey. My journey started with the Red Hot Chili Peppers' Unlimited Love, and I then found myself listening to Mark Knopfler's Down the Road Wherever. After awhile I ventured onto St Vincent's MasSeduction, with a short... Read More »

Maya Fridman's album, Reið (translated as "Journey"), is an album of such emotional complexity and depth of meaning that it requires multiple listening sessions to begin to absorb. I've long savored its complexity and the soundscapes Maya creates within it. The album is tremendously rewarding; it compels one's full attention.  REIÐ, Maya Fridman. TRPTK 2019... Read More »

As I've commented before, Bob Witrak's High Definition Tape Transfers catalog is like walking into a treasure house of wonderful recordings, some classics, some little known, some new. I regularly discover recordings that I'm delighted to add to my music library. Unfortunately, a separate article on each recording I would recommend is just not practical.... Read More »

Ye Olde Editor, a moment. Happy Valley, OR, 2018 (Photograph by John Robinson; image processing by YOE) Continuing my brief notes on Gold Note from last month, and progressing onwards in their designs, here's the June installment of what's up with this impressive audio company. Combining audio-technical achievements with a fine sense of design aesthetics,... Read More »

"See Joe...no problem! Sell the kid...get the upgrade!"

In Part 1 of this review, I had a great time listening to the awesome but temporarily incomplete Gingko VCS Toolkit, and I was looking forward to receiving the Cloud22 Bases to complete the review. When the bases did arrive I was intrigued to find that Vinh Vu also sent me the new Cloud22 wool... Read More »

It used to be that great things were invented by one great man. Edison, Morse, Tesla, Bell, McCormick, Whitney, Fulton, and countless others all—at least until they became established—worked alone, or with just an assistant or two, to bring their wonders to the world. In most fields, that no longer seems possible. Maybe it's because,... Read More »

A superb reissue of Mingus' The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady from HDTT in DSD256 that retains all the natural rawness and energy that makes this album special. This is a must have acquisition for any jazz library. The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady by Charles Mingus. HDTT 1963, 2022 (DSD256, DXD) HERE... Read More »

James Gaffigan and the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra deliver a very fine Prokofiev symphonies cycle. Collectively, these performances present a consistent and insightful look into Prokofiev's symphonic music, all exceedingly well executed. And all are recorded in the finest, most natural, sound quality one can find. The Symphonies of Sergei Prokofiev, James Gaffigan, Netherlands Radio... Read More »

Ye Olde Editor, contemplating on a high deck in Tiberias, Sea of Galilee, Israel, 2022. (Portrait by John Robinson; image processing by Ye Olde Etc.) Just yesterday Positive Feedback posted notice of the launch of an audiophile standards group: the Association of International Audiophile Publications. The formation of this new high-end audio association took most of... Read More »

The brilliant late audiophile, J. Gordon Holt, once wrote that if the purchaser of a fine system was torn between buying a great pair of speakers or a great amp, one should choose a great amp and a good pair of speakers that fit your basic needs. He commented that he had heard numerous systems... Read More »

A thoroughly engaging and well-spent hour with this delightfully articulate guitarist. Enno Voorhorst is a master of subtle grace, dynamic drive, and brilliant technique. But, he never allows his huge technique to overshadow his musically compelling communication of nuance and emotion. 840 - Enno Voorhorst, guitar. Cobra Records 2022 (Pure DSD256). HERE In this album,... Read More »

I was on the sidewalk in front of our house in San Luis Obispo. In 1952 it must've been a very quiet place, otherwise it's hard for me now, looking back, to understand why my mother let me go out by myself. I was only four. But she was very pregnant at the time, and... Read More »

This is an ongoing project by Claude Lemaire of Soundevaluations 191. Red Hot Chili Peppers, Unlimited Love. Warner Records – 093624874720 – 093624880653 (2022), (2x33 1/3 rpm). Genre: alternative rock, funk rock. First things first, even though this is the band's twelfth studio album, this is only the third 'Chili Peppers LP in my collection—the other two... Read More »

When the Monet power cables from Crystal Cable were offered for review, first thing I went online for a look-see. The photos suggested a slimmed down cable with no surplus parts, nothing more than the elemental hardware required for the task at hand. The Monet is the thinnest power cables in the new Art series... Read More »