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I think it's fairly well-known in the high-end community that people tend to like what they like, and they tend to like different sounding systems. Many people like severely colored systems, but they like their kind of severely colored system and they don't like the kind of system their friend likes. Horn speaker people like... Read More »

When Dr. David, Ye Olde Editor at PF, invited me to write some music reviews with a principal focus on DXD and DSD256, I don't think he expected I might start with these particular albums from High Definition Tape Transfers. But, honestly, I just have to start with these wonderful recordings from the earliest days... Read More »

Part 4 – So what does the new system sound like and what are we listening to? Fair warning: my focus is on classical music with a smattering of jazz and acoustic. So, my comments about sources and music and what we're excited about will lean heavily in this direction. In earlier parts of this... Read More »

Part 3 - In which we get down in the weeds: the files, the library and how this all gets lashed together… "Nobody knows everything, nobody has everything [i.e., tools, equipment], but if you're lucky enough to add friendship to your life, you have so many more opportunities for joy and accomplishment and satisfaction." Scott... Read More »

Part 2 – In which this (now former) vinylholic seeks his solution for moving to an all-digital world, with headphones… [Please understand that this is simply the story of a personal journey. It is shared in hopes that it may help others faced with a similar transition in their listening environments. This is not intended... Read More »

PF Central…River City and up the Hill…has finally made the investment and switchover to solar power.  (Photograph and image processing by Ye Olde Editor) High-end audio does draw electricity. In some cases (e.g., Pure Class A electronics in particular), a lot of power. Summertime listening also puts a load on air conditioning, while leaving key... Read More »

Many a long year ago, there was (really; truly; I kid you not!) an audiophile product called EarWax™. Apparently following the same logic that came up with the idea for "board wax" (used on surfboards to make the board and its rider glide more smoothly across the waves), a dab of this stuff was to... Read More »

We are now four months into New York State's pandemic lock-down. The days pass, every one feels like a Saturday. There's nothing on my calendar except a couple of repeating Zoom sessions—all our entertainments have been zapped. (I know: if that's the worst of it, I shouldn't complain.) The free time hangs heavy; you adjust... Read More »

While he was in quarantine from the terrible plague that was raging in London, Shakespeare wrote King Lear. That is a hard act to follow. I don't think I am going to manage writing anything nearly so significant while stuck here in quarantine. I have spent a lot of time talking to friends in the... Read More »

Nelson Pass:  a portrait. Sea Ranch, CA, 2018. (Photograph and image processing by David W. Robinson) This piece was originally presented at the 2019 Burning Amp Festival but was hampered by problems with the projection system. It has been rewritten for Positive Feedback.... Introduction I don't need to tell you that audiophiles tend to be... Read More »

The very first time as a teenager I laid eyes on my brother's new DynaKit amp, I knew inside that I'd found one of my life's true callings. I've always loved everything about audio gear; the look, the feel, the smell—but ultimately, the sound it's capable of producing. And I can honestly say, for the... Read More »

Roger Skoff writes about cost and value in high-end audio Roger Skoff, a portrait. LAOC Audio Society Gala, 2018 (photograph and image processing by David W. Robinson) Note to our readers:  Roger Skoff has been writing essays about high-end audio for years at Positive Feedback. Roger was formerly the founder and CEO of XLO Cables,... Read More »

We are living in strange and terrible times. It is the Golden Age of Audio right now, but that Golden Age has been swallowed up by the COVID-19 pandemic so suddenly that it is hard to remember just a few months ago, when 2020 looked like it would be a very good year for fine... Read More »

For the uncompromising audiophile on the go:  The Ampex Rollman

Life is hard and filled with sorrow. And sometimes you don't see it coming. Two real woes for high-end audio are at hand. What their outcomes may be, or how they may affect audiophiles worldwide, are yet to be seen. Woe Number One I received a phone call and an email recently from a colleague... Read More »

Chip and Roger at the LAOC Audio Society Gala Banquet, December, 2019 (photograph and image processing by David W. Robinson) Roger Skoff finally proves that cables work and tells at least part of the reason why. For at least the last thirty years (that I know of), audiophiles have been divided into four—if not necessarily... Read More »

This post excerpt comes in part from an email response to my friend Harold in the Netherlands. He was curious about our discussion related to my early MP3 work as an online musician through the '90s into 2000s, and how and why my MP3s could have sounded so good back then to literally everyone who... Read More »

Roger Skoff tells how to increase your enjoyment and get better sound out of your system. Chip Moore and Roger Skoff at the LAOC Audio Society Gala, 2019 (photograph and image processing by David W. Robinson) Do you know the difference between hearing and listening? Both involve the same sounds, from the same sources; both... Read More »

Roger Skoff writes about getting the most from our audio hobby. Many years ago, Stereophile, to get a better handle on its marketing, had a study done to find out who and how many its readers were. One of the (then-surprising) things that study turned-up was the fact that almost all (well more than 90%)... Read More »