Recently, while doing some research, I discovered the existence of an album that in all my decades of obsessive record collecting I had never seen nor heard of. The album is called Red And Ernie (Decca DL 8298). Not to be confused with Burt and Ernie, Red and Ernie were music legends Red Foley (1910-1968)... Read More »
Black velvet, acoustic-dampening curtains cover the surrounding walls of the darkened 12' x 15 'x 8' Chesky Audio hotel room packed with guests seated in folding chairs this Saturday afternoon. Upfront, the celebrated owner of HD Tracks, David Chesky, 69—a wiry and energetic man with a New York accent, long curly locks, clad in a... Read More »
James Oscar Smith was an American jazz icon who helped popularize the Hammond B-3 organ, forging a link between jazz and 1960s Soul—or the "urbanization and commercialization of rhythm and blues in the 60s," (www.allmusic.com), and the Acoustic Sounds Series reissues from Verve/Universal Music Enterprises delivers his artistry with exceptional fidelity in their 180 gram... Read More »
We deeply believe in "development" and "progress." Especially in audio. On the other hand, we know that newer is not always better and that old technologies can surprise us. So what is the current situation: Is there progress or not, and if there is, what drives it, and how should we respond to it? Let's... Read More »
This article is part of an ongoing series examining electromagnetic field theory and its application to high-fidelity audio reproduction. The engineering framework described here has been developed, tested, and refined over thirty-three years of product development at Synergistic Research—and has been the subject of extensive public discussion on my personal Facebook page, where the physics,... Read More »
This was the line-up who was the first to play "electric" at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965. This caused quite a disturbance from the folk-purists in the crowd. Especially when members then backed up Dylan for his first electric performance. The Butterfield Blues Band album "East West" of 1966 is one of the earliest... Read More »
Being a music and audio person, I have some thoughts about how AI will relate to our listening consumption in an increasingly AI-laden era. Unlike much of the AI slop and other...stuff that now permeates the internet and social media, this article was written exclusively by a human, me, and the opinions expressed are strictly... Read More »
The latest JPLAY update introduces HQPlayer library integration, dynamic Smart Playlists, a brand-new History screen with calendar view, and a range of refinements based directly on community feedback. JPLAY announced the release of a major new update Ñ bringing one of the most-requested features in the app's recent history together with a number of new... Read More »
Strategic move positions North America’s leading high-end audio event for continued expansion SCHAUMBURG, Ill. (April 28, 2026) – Sound & Fury LLC today announced the acquisition of AXPONA (Audio Expo North America), the largest high-end audio event in North America. Since its inception, AXPONA has served audiophiles, manufacturers and music enthusiasts as a premier destination to experience... Read More »
I so often bring to you music in ultra-high resolution, but there are so many wonderful recordings not originally recorded in DXD or DSD256. I listen to many of these, but don't regularly write about them because my brief is to focus on the higher resolution recordings so readers can know that they are available.... Read More »
Events in St. Louis, Atlanta, and NY/NJ will include a special presentation by the SVS team, immersive home theater and HiFi system demos, Q&A sessions, and multiple giveaways. Youngstown, OH – April 23, 2026 - SVS proudly announces three more cities as part of its Sound R|Evolution Experience, with new events at dealer partner showrooms in... Read More »
I am frequently overwhelmed, in the most positive way imaginable, by the cornucopia of marvelous releases that appear. Such is the case today as I offer to you my thoughts on eight recent releases available at NativeDSD. They have made my heart sing these past few weeks. Santiago de Masarnau: Piano Works (Vol. 1-3), Claudia... Read More »
April 21, 2026 — Audio Research and Acora Acoustics are pleased to announce the appointment of David Schultz as a senior member of our sales organization, marking an exciting milestone in our continued global expansion. “Joining Audio Research and Acora Acoustics feels like a natural next step in my lifelong commitment to high-end audio,” said... Read More »
No one can deny that Linda Ronstadt has proved to be one of the most talented pop female singers, and has one of the best voices, and offers the most divers of vocal styles in history. She can make you cry and make you rock. Pure and soft, powerful and demanding. Ronstadt's vocal range spans... Read More »
AXPONA! The trade show where all the sounds and other spectaculars of the high-end audio community come together to listen, listen, and then listen some more with 12,546 attendees and 235 individual listening rooms this year. I'm pretty sure this is a record. So many products, distributors, and manufactures here that it really wouldn't be... Read More »
12,000+ attendees and 750+ brands from 50+ countries gathered in Schaumburg to experience AXPONA (Audio Expo North America) Schaumburg, IL (April 15, 2026) -- AXPONA (Audio Expo North America) officially marked its biggest year yet, drawing 12,546 music lovers to the Renaissance Schaumburg Convention Center—a 15% jump over 2025. This year's record-breaking crowd was characterized by a distinct... Read More »
Chrysalis Records continues their superb series of catalog reissues from legendary guitarist Robin Trower, with an expanded edition of his 1976 live album, Robin Trower Live! The new release has arrived as Robin Trower Live! 50th Anniversary Edition, and it documents a spectacular 1975 concert from Stockholm, Sweden, for the first time in its entirety.... Read More »
Today brings reviews of some HDTT releases I've been enjoying: three outstanding RCA Living Stereo and Mercury Living Presence albums; one of the great early Decca recordings; and two jazz releases in Pure DSD256 that have been on my Top of the Pile list since last year but just now reviewed. Richard Strauss, Elektra, Karl... Read More »
The Pacific Northwest's premier hi-fi and high-end audio concierge steps into a new chapter with a name that better reflects its mission, its people, and the experience at the heart of everything it does. VANCOUVER, WA -- Effective immediately -- Unveiled Audio has officially rebranded as Unveil Sound. The new name is accompanied by a new... Read More »
Over the past few weeks, my listening has been filled with enjoyable discoveries: four Pure DSD256 releases from Hunnia and Eudora (four!); another excellent LSO Live release with Gianandrea Noseda; a superb performance of Handel's Theodora; a fine new recording from Barry Diament on his Soundkeeper label—who has something to teach popular and folk music... Read More »
Boundless (World Premiere Recording), Julian Kytasty, Min Xiao-Fen. Anderson Audio New York 2026 (DXD 32-bit, Stereo) Edit Master Sourced HERE Some albums just jump out at you on first listen and demand attention. Thus it is with Anderson Audio's new release, Boundless by Min Xiao-Fen and Julian Kytasty. Boundless is a fascinatingly original cross-cultural duo... Read More »
Some of Positive Feedback's intrepid readers may have thought about writing audio reviews. Much like purified drinking water and soft fluffy toilet paper, there's always a pressing need for gifted Consumer Electronics (CE) industry writers. Many audiophiles believe they could work as professional audio reviewers. Some semi-geniuses imagine that they might even become brain surgeons... Read More »
Theodore Walton Denney III Founder, Lead Designer & CEO — Synergistic Research, Inc. This article is drawn from an ongoing series of public discussions on electromagnetic field theory and audio cable design, conducted on my personal Facebook page over the past several weeks. The exchanges documented here are real—quoted directly from public comments—and represent a... Read More »
The Doobie Brothers' self‑titled 1971 debut barely made a ripple in the record industry. Internally, the band and producer Ted Templeman knew they needed to level- up the songwriting, arrangements, and production to become big artists. Toulouse Street became their turning point. It's the album that effectively "invented" the Doobie Brothers' signature sound. 1972's... Read More »
Many of us know Robin Trower from his years with Procol Harum, but most became aware of the guitarist after he went solo and helped us fill the Hendrix void with his 1974 album Bridge of Sighs. Trower (born March 9, 1945, Catford, London) is one of the most identifiable British guitar stylists to emerge... Read More »
HDTT recently released three historically significant recordings: Maazel's 1964 recording of Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 2 'Little Russian'; the Van Cliburn-Fritz Reiner 1961 Brahms Concerto No. 2; and Harry Belafonte's The Midnight Special. I've also taken this opportunity to finally write up reviews of three Pure DSD256 albums that I included in last year's Pure DSD256... Read More »
A number of the LPs and CDs I own are by singers and instrumentalists whom I would call fifteen-minute artists. As you would expect, a fifteen-minute artist is a musician, a singer, or a band who I enjoy, but not for much longer than fifteen minutes. Some of them used to be thirty-minute artists, but... Read More »
As I described in the introduction to this column in Part 1 (HERE) I started this project of listening to all my records at least one more time and cataloging them, I realized that this was the second time I have actually done this. The first time in the late 1970s, I only had a... Read More »
Yarlung Records continues to celebrate its Twentieth Anniversary with another superb release from its analog master tape archives. In April 2025, we received the marvelous recording by David Fung, Evening Conversations, about which I wrote HERE. Now we have another release from Yarlung's archives that has only seen light of day as a CD: Ciaramella's... Read More »
A trove of truly wonderful recordings has appeared in the NativeDSD catalog over recent weeks. Here are eight that caught my immediate attention, with multiple turns in my listening queue. Each is a worthy addition to your music library and will reward over multiple listening sessions. Telemann Ino Cantata and Double Concertos, Ashley Solomon, Rachel... Read More »
Historians refer to Jimmy Wakely (1914-1982) as one of the last of the singing cowboys. Although he wasn't the very last, he was the last to sign with a major record label and produce a steady stream of records. He was, along with Gene Autry and Roy Rogers, one of Hollywood's greatest singing cowboys. His... Read More »
Spendor is an English company specializing in the production of loudspeakers, founded in 1968 by Spencer Hughes Its first product designed for independent operation was the BC1 model (1969), commissioned by the British Broadcasting Company, known as the BBC. We are testing a new version of floor-standing speakers from the "budget" A series, model A4.2.... Read More »
I've noted before that the offerings available in the HDTT catalog are a treasure house of the great recordings from the golden age of stereo. Yet again, Bob Witrak brings to us six new releases that further expand that marvelous library of great performances in some of the best sound quality in which these recordings... Read More »
We audiophiles are living the good life. Never before have we had so many outstanding reissue opportunities. These reissues continue to amaze as they have consistently provided what most audiophiles clearly yearn for. This includes excellent packaging, pressing, and sound quality along with some very interesting if not wonderful title selections. In the past, we... Read More »
Golden Age, Arias by Bizet, Delibes, Donizetti, Rossini, and Verdi. Erin Morley, soprano; Lawrence Brownlee, tenor; Munich Radio Orchestra/Ivan Repušić. Pentatone Music PTC 5187 400. TT: 62.53 Donizetti, La fille du r馮iment: Quoi! Vous m'aimez?...De cet aveu si tendre. Rossini: Le comte Ory, Ah, quel respect...Ce t駑駻aire qui croit nous plaire. Bizet Les p鹹heurs de perles: ﾀ cette... Read More »
A Premiere Acoustic Revive is a Japanese company founded in 1997 and run by Mr. Ken Ishiguro. It specializes in connection cables and anti-vibration products, but also offers innovative products, most of which are based on ideas developed by the University of Tokyo. We are testing the latest AC power strip, RTP-4EU Final. This is... Read More »
Ancient history, I know, but I grew up in a small rural town where I was indoctrinated by the music of Johnny Cash daily on AM radio. And even though my ten-year-old self soon had enough cash (pun intended) stuffed in my pocket to procure Johnny Cash At Folsom Prison—which would be my first LP... Read More »
