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If you're a baby boomer (OK, Boomer!) or one of their children, you no doubt have a strong familiarity of the works of jazz pianist Vince Guaraldi. Or at least, you know him through osmosis, via his compositions for the many Charlie Brown and Peanuts television specials and movies that have aired almost incessantly since... Read More »

Back in the early nineties, I worked at my day job with a guy, Tim, who was following his dream, trying to make it as a guitarist moonlighting in a local Atlanta rock band. He was a wickedly gifted guitar player, and his band had often gone head to head against another local band, Mr.... Read More »

2020 marks the 20th anniversary of progressive / hardcore / metalcore / technical deathcore band Between the Buried and Me, and Craft Recordings follows up on the excellent reissue of the band's first album with a remixed / remastered LP reissue of their sophomore effort, 2003's The Silent Circus. The myriad changes to the band's... Read More »

Formed in 2000 from the remnants of a handful of Raleigh, North Carolina bands, Between the Buried and Me was principally the brainchild of guitarist Paul Waggoner and vocalist Tommy Rogers. And while the group has gone through a number of personnel changes, the band's current incarnation features not only Waggoner and Rogers, but also... 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 »

Jump back in time to May 2016; Beth and I are going through probably the most difficult period of transition in our lives together. We'd just sold our house of thirty years, and our closing date was rapidly approaching. And we were in a mad scramble to move all our belongings into multiple storage units.... Read More »

Here's the last installment of my show coverage for the Florida Audio Expo. You can see Part 1 HERE, Part 2 HERE, and Part 3 HERE. An absolute semi-truckload of VAC, Esoteric, and Kronos equipment was on display in this monstrous room! The room was filled with people, who where absolutely digging the sound coming... Read More »

Here's the current installment of my ongoing show coverage for the Florida Audio Expo. You can see Part 1 HERE and Part 2 HERE. Jerry Stoeckigt elaborates on the Eikon Audio Image 1 System specifics. Eikon Audio/Aurrender The $25K Eikon Image 1 System is the brainchild of Gayle Sanders of Martin Logan fame. In no... Read More »

I didn't attend the 2019 Florida Audio Expo, but was told many times over that there were nearly double the number of rooms this year over 2019. There were 65 manufacturer and dealer rooms displaying this year, along with one hallway display. And show organizer Sue Toscano corrected the overgenerous estimates I'd been given from... Read More »

The Florida Audio Expo is currently underway, February 7-9, 2020, at the Embassy Suites Hotel located near the airport in Tampa, Florida. Though the show didn't actually start until Friday morning, there was a meet and greet in the main lobby that took place on Thursday evening, February 6. My wife Beth and I arrived... Read More »

When the opportunity came up to review the new Magneplanar LRS (Little Ribbon Speakers), even though I had thirty-plus years of experience with Maggies, I viewed the review possibility as something of a lark. Yes, there was a lot of buzz about the LRS, and yes, I was really pretty stoked to hear the latest... Read More »

Streaming digital media is the future of music playback; I've been playing about with it now for roughly five years, often with USB sources directly connected to my stereo. But it's become apparent to me over the last few years that Ethernet streaming with my Sonore UltraRendu is vastly superior to a direct USB connection.... Read More »

The new Magneplanar LRS Loudspeakers are touted by Magnepan in very much the same way as the MMGs were for years: the most inexpensive way you can get a taste of Magnepan's high-end offerings. I can't argue with that; at $650 per pair, they're a remarkable bargain—there's nothing else out there close to the price... Read More »

I've had a really good relationship with Norman Varney from AV RoomService for a couple of years now; his company manufactures a variety of products that are aimed at reducing airborne and other vibrational noises in your listening room. He also is heavily involved in custom listening and audiovisual room design and construction; his level... Read More »

The Magneplanar LRS with stock stands attached 1973: William Michael Albert Broad sat at his desk at the Worthing High School for Boys with a particularly nasty scowl on his face. He'd just been handed his report card for the term, on which his chemistry teacher had scrawled the word "idle" across the unusually low... Read More »

I've owned a number of decent headphones over the course of my life as an audiophile, and I always generally have a couple of pairs on hand. Mostly for listening when my wife, Beth, has control of the television and has landed on HGTV or some insanely sick horror flick that I could care less... Read More »

I've owned a pair of Zu Audio Omens—the Dirty Weekend (DW) variety—for over five years now. Zu builds high-efficiency loudspeakers that employ 10-inch full range drivers and compression tweeters, with many of their models approaching 97dB per 1 watt input. During operation, the 10-inch drivers, which are custom-manufactured for Zu by Eminence in Kentucky, run... Read More »

Since Adrian Lebena reached out to me three years ago with the offer to review Sonore's first product, the microRendu, a Sonore streamer has been in my system ever since. The microRendu was amazing—especially when paired with Sonore's Signature Linear Power Supply. It took my streaming experience—which previously had been restricted to bandwidth-limited and feature-limited... Read More »

Vibrations. They occur in every aspect of the listening room environment, whether that room is dedicated to the listening experience, or just happens to be your living room—or any other room where your audio equipment resides, for that matter. The problem is—even when you think you've taken the greatest precautions to prevent spurious vibrations from... Read More »