Original version published Feb 20, 2015. Revised after stumbling onto Positive Feedback's Carol Clark's recent post, My Journey into Audio Pandora, Carol Clark (image by David Clark, Positive Feedback) It looked like Carol recently had a similar experience as I did in 2015 that "left [her] stewing." We have been friends with Dave and Carol... Read More »
Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab reissue MFSL 2-479 (Sept. 2017). Originally released on Atlantic – SD-8227 (Aug. 1969). Category: soul, southern soul, R&B, blues, black gospel and spiritual roots, churchy. Format: Vinyl (2x180 gram LPs at 45 rpm). Rating Global Appreciation: 9.6 Music: A+ (9.5) Recording: 9.3 Remastering + Lacquer Cutting: 9.7 Pressing: 10 Packaging: above... Read More »
SAINT-SAËNS: Cello Concerto No. 1 in A minor; LALO: Cello Concerto in D minor; MILHAUD: Cello Concerto No. 1, Op. 136; OFFENBACH: Les larmes de Jacqueline; MASSENET: Thaïs: Méditation. Hee-Young Lim, cello; London Symphony Orchestra/Scott Yoo. Sony Classical S80425C. TT: 75.40 The Korean cellist Hee-Young Lim has a lot to offer. Her tone is dark and full-bodied,... Read More »
The first product to feature McIntosh’s new advanced DA2 Digital Audio Module Binghamton, NY – July 10, 2019 – McIntosh, the global leader in prestigious home entertainment and ultimate-quality audio for 70 years, is proud to announce the C53 Preamplifier. The C53 Preamplifier is ready to serve in a home audio system for many years... Read More »
The three multi-use models are the company’s finest loudspeakers to date Lake Forest, CA – July 10, 2019 – Pro Audio Technology (PRO), the leading supplier of high-output loudspeakers and DSP loudspeaker controllers, announces two new series of loudspeakers consisting of three new models – S-12sm, SR-12ai, and SR-212ai – providing uncompromised sound for residential theater, commercial... Read More »
In 2012, the original AudioQuest DragonFly thoroughly disrupted the DAC market. For so many casual enthusiasts who had never previously considered the possibility of improving their digital-audio experience, DragonFly was nothing short of a revelation. Meanwhile, even the most experienced audiophiles were compelled to reexamine long-held notions of what a DAC could and should be. Stereophile’s... Read More »
Roger Skoff writes about everybody'd favorite controversial product While the debate continues on the internet over whether different cables sound different, those of us with the ears and listening skills to hear it and the systems and listening environments of sufficient resolution to show it know that it's not just different cables that sound different,... Read More »
I heard an interesting theory last year at the California Audio Show. Basically, I was informed that women aren't audiophiles because they're not wired that way. It seems boys spend time with their fathers working on cars, taking things apart and putting them back together, and are thus programmed to be gear heads. Girls, on... Read More »
Founded in 2010 by Pat Hickman, Whammerdyne Heavy Industries is an amalgamation of technical skill-sets united by a common passion for hi-end audio, based in Wilsonville, OR. With many years of combined experience in hi-end audio, electronics engineering, and CNC fabrication, the team set out to build the ultimate single-ended stereo amplifiers. The year 2019... Read More »
Qobuz, the Hi-Res streaming and download hybrid service, is teaming up with AudioQuest to give customers a taste of the best music streaming and sound with the newest generation of AudioQuest's groundbreaking DragonFly DAC line, the Dragonfly Cobalt. Upgrading Hi-Res listening from iPhones and other devices to full 24-bit, the new DragonFly comes loaded with... Read More »
BERNARDSVILLE, New Jersey, USA – Finally there is a good alternative for the purist of Reel to Reel Tape playback. Merrill Audio PURE Tape Head Preamp provides a superior Tape Head Preamp that brings out the full dynamics of Reel to Reel Tape, with the details and immediacy of the live recording. Merrill Audio is... Read More »
Self-portrait, 2017 In medias res… From time to time, I shake out my ongoing audio journal, and comment on some products and items that have accumulated over the past few months. Nothing too lengthy or intense, but quick thoughts and bullet points indicative of fine audio designs/products that I think our readers should be aware... Read More »
In this installment of the New Apartment Lounge, Maurice Jeffries takes a long hard listen to the stunning Mola Mola amp/preamp suite, an almost affordable turntable from Kronos Audio, and some smooth-sounding new cables from Kubala-Sosna Research LLC. With a fresh set of ears and new insights, he also revisits an old and trusted friend.... Read More »
Twenty questions with an audiophile who is also an artist. For this Audiophiles as Artists, we feature Chris Morris. What's your background? I grew up on a farm in eastern Colorado. No town or major population to speak of, lots of time to myself and explore the world around me. It was a very typical... Read More »
There’s nothing quite like listening to music with a great pair of headphones. But sharing your tunes with friends while you listen just doesn’t work. Thanks to a new innovation called VERTO Headphones, all that’s about to change. See at http://kck.st/2WTNCTN VERTO Headphones are the most versatile headphones ever made. Their innovation gives users complete freedom... Read More »
Accell’s ProUltra Supreme cable features an HDMI Ethernet Channel supporting the latest AV technology with HDR FREMONT, Calif. – July 1, 2019 – Accell, a provider of innovative Powramid power products and enhanced connectivity solutions, today announced the release of its new ProUltra® Supreme High Speed HDMI 8K Cable. With an MSRP starting at $19.99, the ProUltra Supreme... Read More »
I'm a music lover. I am an audiophile. I'm an electronics technician. I am an acoustician, a sound engineer. I am a philologist with a PhD. I am a reader. I am a journalist, a specialist journalist, let's add. I am each of them individually and all at the same time. Such thoughts come to... Read More »
Destination Sound Group (“DSG”), the North American Distributors of LampizatOr and Final Touch Audio) is proud to announce our newest partnership with Audionec from France as we introduce the revolutionary new “Evo” speaker line. Audionec has designed a proprietary full-range driver from 200hz to 25khz. No traditional driver compares when recreating the feel and sense... Read More »
Concluding our video interview series from Munich 2019, courtesy of NativeDSD.com, here are the final three interviews from that event. Many thanks to Jared, Jonas, and Floor of NativeDSD for sharing this series with the readers of Positive Feedback worldwide. Dr. David W. Robinson Grimm Audio presents the MU1 Eelco Grimm introduces the MU1 music player... Read More »
Time for cables Cables are one of the elements that constitute an audio system. It is neither more, nor less important than the remaining ones, but it is still approached with suspicion and from a distance by many engineers and music lovers. However, those who have already gone through this stage—St. Thomas's stage—do not need... Read More »
I grew up listening to records. These days we call then LPs or vinyl, but I will still think of them as records. My first record player was a toy, but eventually I graduated to an all-in-one system that was a receiver with the turntable on top, and speakers attached to the sides. In those... Read More »
Common Wave Audio is the most recent audio store to open in the greater Los Angeles area. Owned and run by Wes Katzir, this store, or better yet consider it to be a destination, is simply an amazing place to visit. Not your typical audio store, Common Wave is more about being a "place" to... Read More »
The MOON 700i v2 integrated stereo amplifier and 780D v2 streaming DAC MOON has added two outstanding new products to its class-leading range of audiophile electronics. Designed to offer performance way beyond their price, both the 700i v2 integrated stereo amplifier and 780D v2 streaming DAC will permanently alter listeners’ expectations of audio quality. The... Read More »
Continuing our coverage of T.H.E. Show, photos by Dave Clark, words by me, additional words by Dave as noted. Arion Audio, The Apollo System loudspeaker. Arion Audio LS-200 Line-stage, HS-500 amplifier. Chang Lightspeed powerline filters. Wilf Audio Systems Alpha 3 music servr. JPS Labs cables. EMM Labs DA2 Dac. Stillpoints rack. Arion Audio subwoofer. Computer... Read More »
Continuing our coverage of T.H.E. Show, photos by Dave Clark, words by me, additional words by Dave as noted. Sanders Sound System. This room insisted, "No pictures!" Okay... Esoteric: Grandioso P1X transport, Grandioso D1X monoblock DAC, N-03T network audio transport, Grandioso G1 rubidium master clock, Grandioso C1 preamplifier, Grandioso S1 amplifier. Von Schweikert Audio Endeavor... Read More »
Continuing our coverage of T.H.E. Show, photos by Dave Clark, words by me, additional words by Dave as noted. Klaus Bunge of Odyssey Audio with Magnan Cables, Symphonic Line, VPI. Klaus had a lot to say regarding the system. Blue Light Audio / The Audio Association. Evolution Acoustics EXACT Series loudspeakers. Wave Kinetics NVS Turntable... Read More »
Last year on Christmas Eve, while I was in the midst of preparing our annual prime rib feast, I got a message from a friend telling me that T.H.E. Show was moving to Long Beach, CA in 2019. What? At long last an audio show in my back yard? Too good to be true! As... Read More »
Qobuz, the certified Hi-Res streaming and download service, has been named the official streaming platform of CanJam SoCal 2019. Taking place on June 22-23 at the Orange County Irvine Marriott, CanJam is the world’s premier headphone audio show, featuring a wide array of the world's most innovative headphone and personal/portable audio brands. Qobuz, which launched in the US in... Read More »
Studio Electric Loudspeakers announces the release of their new F2 floor standing speaker. Building on the success of their well-regarded M4 monitor and larger FS1, the F2 is the company’s attempt to redefine what can be achieved in an under $10K floor standing speaker. According to veteran designer David MacPherson, “Our monitors have been praised as a “new reference” by reviewers and by owners.... Read More »
Every once in while an artist comes along who rocks my musical apple cart, challenges my perceptions, and reignites my excitement about a given genre. Listening to the Yuko Mabuchi Trio (Live) Vol. 1 and 2 release had this effect on me. I love it when this happens, and I love sharing these newfound gems... Read More »
Back to the Midwest-SR In late January 2019, over the MLK holiday weekend no less, I ventured north by northwest from Florida to the wilds of exurban Indiana to pay my close audio bud, Greg Weaver, a long-overdue visit. I made a similar trek a year earlier to hear his then reference setup, namely Audionet's... Read More »
"A dozen of his favorite drummers were me." Hal Blaine Listening and the Art of Drumming… I remember, over the course of an extended sit down with Jim Hall back in the day, for a JazzTimes cover story, how off-putting this master guitarist found what he characterized to be a track meet mentality he sometimes... Read More »
To close out my reflections on AXPONA 2019, I am publishing my photographic portraits from AXPONA 2019…the faces and moments seen, and created. Many of these were published several at a time at Facebook immediately after the event, as mementos. Now they are available all at once, given in no particular order...a photo book of... Read More »
Here is the final installment of my Audio Oasis! Awards from AXPONA 2019. A major event; a major set of articles reflecting upon the awards that I gave. Daedalus Audio/Vacuum Tube Amplification/LampizatOr/WyWires In the Daedalus Audio/VAC/LampizatOr/WyWires room…great beauty here! Lou Hinkley, Fred Ainsley, Kevin Hayes, and Alex Svetinsky were making beautiful music in Room 496,... Read More »
CE Week Takes Over Jacob K. Javits Center, June 12-13 Qobuz, the certified Hi-Res hybrid streaming and download service, has been named the official Hi-Res streaming service of CE Week. Taking place June 12th and 13th at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in NYC, CE Week showcases the best in innovation and emerging trends... Read More »
Users can now stream in true 24-bit / 192 kHz, certified Hi-Res on their Yamaha devices in the United States Qobuz, the world’s first and only certified Hi-Res streaming service, is now available in full 24-bit / 192 kHz Hi-Res on select current-model Yamaha home audio products in the United States. With the Yamaha MusicCast... Read More »
Continuing my long march through AXPONA 2019, here's Part the Fourth of my Audio Oasis! Awards. The Audio Company/Von Schweikert Audio/Valve Amplification Company/MasterBuilt Audio/Critical Mass Systems/Aurender/Esoteric Lukasz Fikus of LampizatOr taking it easy with the VSA Ultra 11 and VAC amplification: a portrait Once again at AXPONA 2019, Von Schweikert Audio linked up with VAC,... Read More »
