Bob James. If you had told me years ago that Bob James of 70s "light" jazz fame was still recording new music in 2018, I'd probably have nodded and said, sure, though I would have wagered that the music would likely be silly place holder stuff, pay the bills sort of at thing. Turns out... Read More »
NAGRA is a company-institution. Both figuratively and literally. As I shall try to show you, it's a unique example of combining the elements of professional and home audio as well as music. The fact that the company was founded by Stefan Kudelski, a man from Poland, only emphasizes its uniqueness in my eyes. Here's the... Read More »
Stefan Kudelski with Nagra III tape recorder A view from our hotel's window towards Geneva Lake. A view from our hotel's window towards Alps on the French side of the Geneva Lake. As you can see we were expected in Nagra. Nagra team plus truly yours: Matthieau Latour (Audio Division Director), Wojciech Pacuła (me), Pascal... Read More »
Ye Olde Editor: a portrait by John Robinson Numbers. I don't usually get too hung up on round numbers and anniversary metrics…they happen all the time. But as we get ready to launch our next issue and go into 2019, I wanted to stand up, take a stretch, and note two things that are at... Read More »
A turntable is an area of engineering art balancing on the border between mechanics and electronics. This time, we will take a closer look at the product unique even among the best turntables: TechDAS Air Force III Premium Turntable Heavy, massive, compact, with a platter moving around on a thin film of air, with a vacuum... Read More »
The Positive Feedback 100th Issue Milestone calls for a Musical Celebration in DSD! 100th PF Issue 100 DSD Albums 100 Hours | 20% OFF First of all, we would like to extend our warmest congratulations to our friend David W. Robinson of Positive Feedback, what an achievement—one hundred issues! David has been a NativeDSD supporter... Read More »
Yarlung Records, YAR77215, gold substrate CD pressed in Germany. Also available in Single, Double, and Quad DSD download formats, stereo/multichannel Organ Builder and Technician: Manuel Rosales Recording Engineers: Bob Attiyeh & Arian Jansen Microphone Technician: David Bock Vacuum Tube Microphones: Ancona Audio Microphone Preamplification: Elliot Midwood Stereo Mastering Engineers: Steve Hoffman & Bob Attiyeh Surround Sound Mastering... Read More »
How times have changed! Just a decade ago tape enthusiasts literally grabbed any title they could get their hands on just to have something, anything, to play on their machines. Many of those tapes, in retrospect, were pretty darn bad. Jump ahead a decade and there is such a glut of tapes on the market... Read More »
Trio Archè, BOSSI Piano Trios. Marco Enrico Bossi (1861-1925). BOSSI Piano Trios No. 1 in D minor, Op. 107; No. 2 in D, Op. 123. Brilliant Classics 95581. TT: 66.29. The music of those nineteenth-century Italian composers who didn't write operas is generally well-crafted and colorful. Yet, despite the occasional attempt to stoke interest—a collection of music... Read More »
St. Etienne, France. – October 30, 2018 – Focal, a recognized leader on the global stage for high fidelity products, today unveils Utopia M, the latest in high-end reference car audio from Focal. In 2005, the Utopia Be line was developed using Focal’s best high-fidelity loudspeakers, revolutionizing the brand’s Car Audio line. Today, Focal introduces... Read More »
Planar Magnetic Speakers | DAC/AMP/DSP | Room Correction Dragonfire | Fire Breathing Audio The Dragonfire Acoustics Mini Dragon DAC/AMP/DSP Speaker System is a technological breakthrough in full-range two-channel nearfield listening. The sophisticated DSP-controlled planar magnetic speakers deliver an astonishingly vivid, dynamic, full-range sound with one of the available subwoofer options. The Mini Dragon System is... Read More »
Remarkable Performance and Unique Features Showcased in Sleek, Battery-Powered Unit Southport, UK, October 25, 2018 – iFi audio, a leading designer/manufacturer of high performance personal audio products, today announced the xCAN, a portable headphone amplifier powerful enough to drive even power-hungry headphones. Though iFi’s latest pocket wonder is primarily designed to be used with smartphones... Read More »
Austria | October 26, 2018 - Ayon Audio, the award winning Austrian vacuum tube manufacturer unveils the New Ayon Audio Triton III GEN 4. Pure Class A operation integrated and stereo amplifier. Operation in Pentode & Triode mode that delivers a Pure Class A signal, no signal loss at any demand. Intelligent auto-bias and tube... Read More »
A truly groundbreaking high-fidelity earphone designed for audiophiles and hi-res audio. Mixing from our palate of audio technologies, a sonic masterpiece emerged. By incorporating our many individual acoustic technologies into Solaris we were able to create an exceptional earphone. Solaris is a hybrid design, blending the best of the balanced armature performance with the physicality... Read More »
SSP-332 Hybrid Amplifier and SA-32 Hybrid Preamplifier Bring Classic German Design and Performance to Real-World Price Points GRAND RAPIDS, MI, October 29, 2018 – Vincent Audio, a designer and manufacturer of elegant audiophile-grade stereo and multichannel components, now offers a pair of advanced two-channel components that reflect the company’s dedication to classic design and astonishing performance.... Read More »
The people behind Toronto Audio Fest (TAF) are Sarah Tremblay, Michel Plante and Ben Scarcelli. Sarah and Michel are the ones that organizes the Montreal Audio Fest and Ben partnered with them for TAF bringing his valuable knowledge of the Ontario Market. The TAF venue was The Westin Toronto Airport Hotel, which is conveniently located... Read More »
Inspired by our history the HW-40 pays tribute to 40 years of engineering, technology, and development. Brief History (Excerpts from the VPI Book) In the late 70’s Harry Weisfeld started creating accessory components for his Audiophile hobby. Coming from an Electrical Engineering background he was always fascinated with Direct Drive turntables and how he can... Read More »
E.A.T Vacuum Tubes are painstakingly handcrafted within a former Tesla factory in the Czech Republic (Lake Grove, NY) October 22nd, 2018 – VANA, Ltd. (www.vanaltd.com), the North American distributor for fine audio products is now the North American distributor for European Audio Team’s (E.A.T) line of vacuum tubes made in the Czech Republic. E.A.T. is dedicated... Read More »
Hear Stereo and Surround DSD recordings from NativeDSD.com and Channels Classics played through Mytek DSD/MQA DACs at the Innovative Audio in Manhattan, this Saturday Oct 20, from 1 pm to 6pm Dear Music Fan Mytek, Innovative Audio A/V Showrooms and NativeDSD.com invite you for a Saturday afternoon of beautiful sounding stereo and surround DSD music (up to DSD256) played on the highest... Read More »
Continuing on with our coverage... In this report, all photos by Dave Clark, words by Carol Clark, except those in parentheses, which are by Dave Clark who will do his best to be nice. Pangea Audio Octet. Pangea Audio won a PF Writer's Choice Award in 2017 for their Vulcan rack. They also showed speaker... Read More »
Continuing on with our coverage... In this report, all photos by Dave Clark, words by Carol Clark, except those in parentheses, which are by Dave Clark who will do his best to be nice. Wavelength Audio, Vaughn Loudspeakers. Vaughn, plasma tweeter loudspeakers. Also in the Wavelength Audio and Vaughn room. On Saturday, Dave moderated a... Read More »
Simaudio’s new MOON 390 all-in-one network player offers a complete high-end listening solution. Featuring a DAC, preamplifier, headphone amplifier, phono stage and network streaming capability the MOON 390 is a truly flexible music system. Simply connect it to a power amplifier or active loudspeakers to hear an exceptional audio performance. Simaudio has built upon its... Read More »
BALLSTON SPA, New York – October 18, 2018 – Luxman, famous for their extensive line of top-rated audiophile components catering to discerning music lovers, introduces their latest reference-class audiophile interconnect and speaker cables. The new 15000 Series builds upon the already well-established 10000 Series of audiophile cables and incorporates the latest in reference-grade materials and... Read More »
Thursday, October 18th Shanghai Jazz with the Adrian Cunningham Trio 7pm Nov 15,16,17,18 : Suncoast Jazz Festival with Professor Cunningham and his old School New CD "Jazz Legacy" ALBERTO PIBIRI: piano PAUL GILL: bass PAUL WELLS: drums ADRIAN CUNNINGHAM: tenor saxophone & clarinet, DAVE STRYKER: guitar Special Guest Vocalists SHEILA JORDAN JAY CLAYTON MIRIAM WAK Alberto is a tremendously talented... Read More »
Continuing on with our coverage... In this report, all photos by Dave Clark, words by Carol Clark, except those in parentheses, which are by Dave Clark who will do his best to be nice. Auralic with YG Acoustic loudspeakers. (Loved the sound here.) Auralic Leo GX. Auralic Aries G2. Ryan Speakers with Cardas Audio and... Read More »
Sunny War, With the Sun. ORG Music ORGM-1041, LP $15.89 at Amazon.com. I have this really bad habit of judging albums by their covers. Something gets sent to me in the mail, I glance at it, maybe open it up and look at the liner notes and then I place it in the rotation according to what... Read More »
Continuing on with our coverage... In this report, all photos by Dave Clark, words by Carol Clark, except those in parentheses, which are by Dave Clark who will do his best to be nice. Nordost, CH Precision, YG Acoustics, VPI Industries, and dCS. Philip O'Hanlon with On a Higher Note once again had a fabulous sounding... Read More »
The Rocky Mountain Audio Fest celebrated its fifteenth year this October in Denver! At the press and exhibitor mixer on Thursday night, Marjorie Baumert announced that next year the show is moving. The new location, The Gaylord Rockies, is closer to the airport and features 1500 rooms, eight restaurants, and many other amenities. For 2019,... Read More »
Aaron Diehl's 2013 CD The Bespoke Man's Narrative, his début on Mack Avenue Records, fell like a thunderclap upon the jazz landscape, reaching No. 1 on the JazzWeek Jazz Chart. Something about the advance publicity must have caught my eye or ear, because I asked for a pre-release press copy of the CD. Upon playing it, I was so gobsmacked... Read More »
Arvo Pärt. Mullova - Järvi. Onyx 4201. Darf ich..., Fratres, Passacaglia, Tabula rosa, I Ludus, II Silentium, Spiegel im Speigel] I have never been drawn to the extremely popular and to be fair much admired Estonian contemporary composer, Arvo Pärt. I have found his music an example of the dictum that less may be less. It... Read More »
Photo credit: Geoff Zagarola of La Naranja eBay auctions. I find it hard to believe that 2018 marks the 30th anniversary of the recording session for Arturo Delmoni's legendary 1988 Water Lily solo-violin recital. Recorded at night in a monastery chapel, Delmoni's compelling performances combine thrilling technique with thought-provoking musical insights. This minimalist-audiophile, two channels from two... Read More »
With great honour and pleasure we announce that Pro-Ject has partnered again with The Universal Music Group and The Beatles to bring out another Beatles themed turntable. The White album was the most anticipated Beatles record of all. Released November 22nd,1968 it contained hits like “Dear Prudence”, “Back in the USSR” or “While My Guitar... Read More »
An active-passive two-channel speaker array sporting advanced connectivity via WiFi, Bluetooth, line level and more, marries up with a 200-watt (50 watts x 4) amplifier, powerful 192KHz/24-bit DAC and precisely tuned digital crossover, to bring audiophile sound quality to the wireless smart speaker category for the first time. Youngstown, Ohio – October 3, 2018 –... Read More »
SVS Prime Wireless SoundBase brings immersive sound, high-resolution wireless audio streaming, powerful amplification, and future-facing connectivity and control to conventional speakers. Or, with its line level output, it converts any two-channel stereo system or AV receiver into a smart wireless audio zone fit for the most discerning audiophiles. Youngstown, Ohio – October 3, 2018 –... Read More »
At 290grams ETHER 2 Shatters the 300gram Weight Barrier, Making it the Lightest Top-of-the-Line Headphone San Diego Ca, October 2, 2018 – MrSpeakers® is pleased to announce ETHER® 2, our new flagship planar magnetic open-back headphone. ETHER 2 is a completely new design, featuring a new motor engineered around our TrueFlowTM technology, an all-new driver with a 70%... Read More »
Product Demonstrations, Turntable Seminars, Special Offers, CANJAM, Live Performances, and More! Denver CO, October 2018: Nordost is very excited to be taking part in the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest this year, October 5–7 at the Denver Marriott Tech Center. This year Nordost’s Humboldt Peak room is going to be showcasing a stellar system featuring components from CH Precision, DCS, and VPI,... Read More »
Alta Audio is a loudspeaker company started by veteran designer Mike Levy to build the speakers he always dreamed of. We're pleased to be exhibiting at the 15th Annual Rocky Mountain Audio Fest in Room 7021 of the Denver Marriott Tech Center, October 5-7. Alta will be demonstrating both the Celesta FRM-2 (Full Range Monitor, MSRP $14,999/pair) and the small stand-mounted Io (MSRP $3495/pair), shown above. Celestas provide the dynamic... Read More »
