All right, so I am a digital file playback guy and I admit it. My confession. I apologize and please forgive me for my regressions in audio… digital as opposed to analog. Oh screw that... digital is right fine, just different. For sure we buy as many LPs as we can, but truth is we... Read More »
Top-of-the-Line 9.1.6 Fully-Featured AV Processor Features 4K UHD Video Management and Easy Expansion to 24 Channels of Object-Oriented Surround Sound SAN DIEGO, CA, August 22, 2018—Emotiva Audio Corporation, the company that continually proves high-end audio doesn’t have be high-priced, today announced that its new flagship AV processor, RMC-1 (SRP: $4,999), will ship to dealers and... Read More »
"Laid Back is a masterpiece! Gregg's greatest solo album and I'd be shocked by anyone disagreeing with that!" - Alan Paul, author of One Way Out: The Inside History of the Allman Brothers Band. "Laid Back is probably the finest record Capricorn released in the post-Duane Allman era." - Scott Freeman, author of Midnight Rider:... Read More »
The California Audio Show 2018. This year was the eighth annual installment of this show. Dave and I attended the first two, 2010 in Emeryville, and 2011 in Burlingame. The venue this year was the Oakland Airport Hilton. Sponsored by Constantine Soo of Dagogo, this show was small and easy to navigate. There are fairly... Read More »
Alright, so as part of our trip up to the California Audio Show (see Malachi's and Kirsten's show reports HERE and HERE) Carol and I decided to add in a visit to Sonoma wine country as well as a visit to Mono Lake way over on the 395. As part of the trip up to... Read More »
Carrie Ellyn Fisher, January 19, 1959 - August 4, 2018. Carrie Ellyn Skokut Fisher of Reston, VA, born on January 19, 1959 in Garfield Heights, Ohio, to the late Margaret Skokut and the late Miller Skokut, passed away at age 59 on August 4, 2018 in Reston, Virginia. Carrie graduated from Independence High School in... Read More »
Radio Free Chip The French have a phrase for it. The bastards have a phrase for everything and they are always right. To say goodbye is to die a little. Raymond Chandler, The Long Goodbye It’s always too damn soon to say goodbye. I have always believed...well, postulated in any event, the notion that when... Read More »
Light in the Attic Records LITA169, colored LP $22, LP $20, CD $12, available at lightintheattic.net "Lee Hazlewood wasn't a cowboy, but he sure played the part. He never took LSD but made some far-out, psychedelic records, and he sure as shit didn't surf…but he had a brief yet prolific output of surf music. The... Read More »
Ye Olde Editor, Happy Valley, Oregon, 2018. Portrait by John Robinson. Playback Designs has returned again…with a vengeance! Their Dream Series of digital audio designs debut here at PF River City with their MPS-8. Part one of my impressions is here…read on for my take on what Andreas Koch and company have achieved. The powerful... Read More »
Ah, Montreal We finally made it! An excursion to Kronos Audio in Montreal had been planned last year, but, due to one thing or another, it never happened. Lynn and I were again vacationing nearby, attending the Ottawa Chamberfest (13 years and counting!). One full day is always given to "New Music Now" programming. This... Read More »
Daria Deborah Winters Who: WOMEN IN JAZZ - DEBORAH WINTERS AND DARIA A benefit concert for Marin Cultural Association When: Sat. August 25th Time: 8pm -10pm Where: Marin Center Showcase Theater 10 Avenue of the Flags, San Rafael, CA Tix/info: https://tickets.marincenter.org/eventperformances.asp?evt=259 Phone: 415-473-6800 $35 advance / $40 door
Come a little closer. I want to tell you a secret. Are you ready? I don't go to stereo shows to listen to stereos. It's true! Maybe once, in the dim mists of my retreating youth, I went to these things hoping to listen to stereos. Now, though? I don't want to listen to stereos.... Read More »
I have a lot of affection for the California Audio Show. It's an easy drive down from the Oregon Coast, and some of my most enjoyable show experiences have been here—the smaller size makes it easier to see everything and experience it in-depth, and make connections with the folks from the industry who've become friends.... Read More »
Tampa, Florida - August 2018 The Florida Audio Expo is excited to announce its inaugural show. This show will be held on Friday February 8th through Sunday February 10th, 2019 at the Embassy Suites by Hilton Tampa Airport Westshore. The new southeast show seeks to give music lovers the chance to personally audition some of the... Read More »
菅野沖彦 This is the name that is synonymous with the highest sound quality in Japan. Known for his extremely good hearing, exceptionally warm personality and an amazing collection of vinyl records, he has been one of the most important journalists working for the Stereo Sound magazine. This is his story and the story of his... Read More »
I wanted, I really wanted to start this text somehow differently, to escape from the memories from the review of the Chopin MkIV by Struss Amplifiers, but I gave up—though never I had an amplifier from this company, our paths have been crossing in one way or another for some time. For the last time we... Read More »
Arbors Records ARCD 19463, CD $10, available at https://arborsrecords.com/collections/frontpage/products/tom-hook-62 "Where were you in '62?" The number 62 always gets my attention. That's because I was born in 1962, and any mention of that year and the events that occurred instantly gets embedded in my memory, everything from Marilyn Monroe's death the day before I was... Read More »
If you're wondering why I enjoy having John Marks' erudite commentary (editor of The Tannhauser Gate) here at PF so much, puzzle no more, my friend! His latest essay is full of delights for music fans, and also for those who admire the work of Stanley Kubrick. Read and learn! Dr. David W. Robinson, Ye Olde Editor Trio... Read More »
26 July 2018 Building on eight successful years of hi-fi rack design and manufacturing, SGR Audio is excited to announce that its newly engineered and impressively expanded lineup of sonically clarifying equipment racks are now available in the USA. “Our new hi-fi equipment racks are a seamless blend of innovative engineering, compelling performance and luxurious aesthetics,”... Read More »
Furutech Co. Ltd. • Tokyo, Japan, manufacturer of ultra-refined analog, digital, video cable and accessories, introduces the new ASB-1 Antistatic Brush for LPs, CDs, projector lenses and TV screens. NEW and IMPROVED Out with the old, in with the new - ASB-1 - an excellent upgrade on Furutech’s SK-III brush. ASB-1 is a static eliminating... Read More »
Here's the latest from John Marks of The Tannhauser Gate blog site. His work is always a delight to re-publish here at Positive Feedback...this time is no exception. Enjoy! Dr. David W. Robinson, Ye Olde Editor The Internet radio station I listen to most often is Bavarian Radio's Classical channel. To get to it, click HERE and scroll down to... Read More »
Audirvana Plus, the hi-fi software player acclaimed worldwide, now comes to PC users. The audiophile music player is now available with its new interface for Windows 10. Paris, July 19, 2018—Audirvana, maker of Audirvana Plus, the reference hi-fi audio player first made for Mac users, announces the commercial release of the highly anticipated Windows 10 version.... Read More »
Munich 2018, or "What the hell was that?!" Fair warning: This is not going to be a standard show report, whatever that is. There are plenty of audio scribes, showgoers, bloggers, and videographers running around high-end audio shows these days. There are tons of articles, postings, discussions, YouTube videos, bloggo-blather, and camera dumps going on,... Read More »
ORG Records ORGM-2114, LP $20, special limited edition green or white $25, available at orgmusic.com We music lovers and collectors know the feeling of missing out on a particular band or performer for a big chunk of our lives, only to say, "Why haven't I discovered this until now?" I can think of dozens of... Read More »
This was a fun project. The original genesis was realized from dozens of emails from various readers over the last twelve months in response to some of my most recent hardware reviews. When trying to explain a point or what they were hearing in their own system, the references were often a track from one... Read More »
Vinyl Reviews - New online publication dedicated to all aspects of the analog life, including professional reviews from amazing music writers, user reviews, feature profiles, and purchase recommendations July 11, 2018 - Puget Sound, WA VinylReviews.com, an exciting NEW publication dedicated to reviews of vinyl quality and analog culture, announces its launch. Founded by Intervention Records CEO... Read More »
This past April Dave and I went to CanJam SoCal in downtown Los Angeles. It was a great show, and even though the venue was huge, it was easy to navigate. One of the first exhibitors we came across was Sonarworks. According to their website, they are "on a mission to ensure everybody hears music... Read More »
ORLANDO, FL, July 9, 2018 — Clarus®, the high-end audio cable brand that is a “sister” company to Tributaries A/V cables, is introducing a nine part series of consumer-informational videos: “Interviews with Jay Victor Cable engineer” that explain, in a straightforward manner, the intricate processes that are behind the development of their Clarus Crimson and... Read More »
DETROIT, MI – July 9, 2018 - Shinola has partnered with Barefoot Sound, a leading manufacturer of professional audio recording monitors, to create our first bookshelf speaker system with Bluetooth® technology. This introduction marks the first time Barefoot Sound has ventured out of the studio and mixing landscape. Thomas Barefoot designs speaker systems that are embraced by... Read More »
GRAND RAPIDS, MI, July 6, 2018 – Pangea Audio, developer and manufacturer of high performance, high value audio accessories, will soon deliver a new step-up phono cable that offers a demonstrable difference in sonic output when used with the majority of currently available turntables, no matter if they are reference-quality or entry level. The Pangea Premier... 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. That journey found... Read More »
Audiophiles can save big on Focal’s reference open-backed over-ear headphones and Questyle’s high-res portable digital audio player until August 31 Focal Utopia Focal’s Utopia headphones provide absolute acoustic purity offering striking realism, neutrality, dynamics, and clarity As a world first, Utopia features the only full range and fully open back loudspeaker, built within a pair... Read More »
Another contribution from John Marks of the blog site The Tannhauser Gate. This one brief, and controversial in some musical quarters. Nonetheless, this is John's point of view, and this section of Positive Feedback is entitled, "Audio Discourse." Therefore, read on... Dr. David W. Robinson, Ye Olde Editor My post about Gidon Kremer & Co.'s chamber-orchestra version of... Read More »
Electrifying Recording Breaks New Ground in Orchestral Music Featured Performances by Jofre, Violinist Michael Guttman and The Grammy-Winning Orpheus Chamber Orchestra There’s a reason we remember the trailblazers, those who accomplished something first. They’re the daring ones, the people who defy convention. Composer and master bandoneón player JP Jofre joins the ranks of those who have ventured... Read More »
This is an ongoing project by Claude Lemaire of Soundevaluations 66. Babe Ruth, First Base. Harvest, EMI – SHSP 4022 (UK) (1972), 33 1/3 rpm. Genre: hard rock, heavy prog artistic rock, funky-based grooves, Spanish overtones Named after America's most famous baseball player, British band Babe Ruth reaped its biggest success in Canada—particularly in Québec—with "The Mexican", melding Spanish... Read More »
Experience Stereo Bliss with this 450 Watt Stereo Amplifierthat features a 66% Increase in Dynamic Headroom Binghamton, NY – July 2, 2018 – McIntosh, the global leader in prestigious home entertainment and ultimate-quality audio for over 65 years, is proud to announce the MC462 Quad Balanced Power Amplifier. Experience stereo bliss with the new MC462... Read More »
Image courtesy of Accustic Arts A bloody busy year so far, with much more to go. One of the projects that I took on very early in 2018...with some hesitation, I confess, due to the workload that was already building...was an offer to hear the Accustic Arts Tube Preamp II Mk2 and Mono II Monoblock... Read More »
