September - October 2019
Audio Discourse
Impressions: My Audio Oasis! Awards for RMAF 2019, Part the...
David W. Robinson: Self-Portrait, Variation 3, Happy Valley, OR, 2019 Wilson Audio & VTL As usual of late, the Wilson Audio/VTL room did not...
Impressions: My Audio Oasis! Awards for RMAF 2019, Part the...
Ye Olde Editor at RMAF back in 2015 (photograph by Jeff Day) Introduction: RMAF at a major new site After a hiatus of three years (2016-2018), during...
The Duelund-Altec Project – Dare to Dream!
This particular feature article for Positive Feedback isn't your typical audio review, but rather is intended to be a fun and inspirational "dare to...
George Benson: "The Other Side of Abbey Road"
John Marks of The Tannhauser Gate shares his reflections on the 50th Anniversary of the release of The Beatles masterpiece album, Abbey Road, by...
Genesis Advanced Technologies Event at Distinctive Stereo
Gary L. Koh, Chief Designer and CEO of Genesis Advanced Technologies, was the principal speaker at an event held on Saturday, September 14, 2019, at...
Rick Beato: A Musical and Audio Analysis of Boston's "More Than...
...in which my good audio friend John Marks, Head Honcho of The Tannhauser Gate, continues his series of essays on a creative thread within rock music,...
Olympic Glory…Sonus faber’s Olympica Nova Loudspeakers
The last event I attended at the World of McIntosh (WOM) Townhouse in SOHO NYC featured the debut of Sonus faber's Reference Aida 2. After about 10...
Lawrence Listens to Some K2 HD Music
I seem to have gotten onto this bandwagon a bit late, but on the bandwagon I am. K2 HD remastering is a new technique (c. 2014) that the Japanese have...
Miles Davis, "It Could Happen to You": a poem
Fred Astaire & Miles Davis, a poem by Jim Merod It Could Happen To You, as Miles knew, growing up affluent near East St. Louis, his father's horse...
Boston: "More Than a Feeling" (Reveries, Part 2)
Yon goode fellow John Marks continues his reflections on our recent musical past that he began in his just-published essay, "Walk Away Renée," to be...
How We Listen
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...
Audio Ramblings and the SOtM sNH-10G Switch
For those of us who are pushing things in terms of what can we accomplish with playing our music back via files within some networked system, well…...
The Left Banke, "(Just) Walk Away Renée" (Reveries, Part 1)
He's back! Good friend and brother John Marks...the Big Kahuna of The Tannhauser Gate...strikes a note in my heart by plucking at a favorite song of...
Thom Mackris: exaSound DACs
This guest article is by Thom Mackris, head honcho at Galibier Design. PF Senior Associate Editor Lynn Olson shared it with me right after Thom...
Impressions: Final Thoughts on the Merrill Audio Element 118
David W. Robinson: a portrait by John Robinson The Merrill Audio Element 118. Why that name? Simple, says Merrill Wettasinghe, the designer: ...
15 years Later - High Fidelity's 15th Anniversary
I'm a music lover. I am an audiophile. I'm an electronics technician. I am an acoustician, a sound engineer. I am a philologist with a PhD. I am a...
Hardware Reviews
The Power of Tubes: Manley Neo-Classic 250W Monoblocks
For those who have been around audio for a while, Manley Labs has been an industry stalwart for a long time. Headed by EveAnna Manley they produce...
Paradox Pulse Amplifiers
"If you want the finest amplifiers money can buy here is your chance. The Paradox Pulse mono amplifier uses only the finest of parts throughout...
KRONOS Audio SSCPS Takes You Higher
Just looking at the SSCPS, you can tell Louis Desjardins knows a thing or two about materials design. But don't get him started—unless you've got a...
Akiko Audio Corelli Power Conditioner
It was around 5 year ago that I learned a valuable lesson; never discount the validity of an audio tweak even, if it does not seem to have any apparent...
Bakoon International AMP-13R
They say a lot of things about small packages. "Good things come in small packages." There is a certain wisdom in that statement. Of course it rarely...
Acapella Audio Arts: the Sphäron Excalibur
Three years ago, while visiting Acapella's showroom in Duisburg, I experienced that a Poseydon could bring you closer to the dynamics of a concert...
Stacore CLD Footers; A Universal, Rigid Audio Equipment Footer
In the beginning I was the tweakaholic. I spent much time fooling around with and writing about all manner of audio accessories, searching for the...
Focal Utopia, Abyss Phi CC, and the Hifiman Susvara - Three End...
I started my audiophile journey in 2011 with the purchase of a Sennheiser HD 600 and a Yulong D100 headphone AMP/DAC combo. The total cost for that...
Centrance Cerene dB Transparent Reference Headphones
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...
The Neoteric Listener - The Audio Research VSi75 Stereo...
It was I who killed punk rock in the Listening Room with the Record Player. Well, kill might be too strong a word, defanged it might be closer to the...
McIntosh RS200 Wireless Loudspeaker System
If you are an audiophile, and have been in the hobby for more than the last five nanoseconds, then you know McIntosh. Easily one of the stalwarts of...
LampizatOr Amber III Hi-Res DAC
Review By Dave Hanson With this article, Positive Feedback continues its content-sharing relationship with Enjoy the Music. Dave Hanson shares his...
The Gudebrod Audio 3T12V Tube Preamplifier Strikes a Nice
Arlington Heights, IL - The music swirled about the room like wine in a sommelier's mouth. I'd first heard them in a packed Arlington Room at the...
Hagerman Audio Labs Tuba Headphone Amplifier [UPDATED]
The Hagerman Audio Labs Tuba Headphone Amp (image by Bob Levi) About 12 years ago I reviewed the Hagerman Trumpet, a very fine all-tube phono stage,...
Serving Up the Straight Wire Expressivo AG and Serenade 3 - A...
Audio cables act as passive filters, affecting the performance of a high fidelity speaker system for better or worse, depending on interactions with...
ampsandsound Leeloo Mono Tube Amplifiers: Superior Single-Ended...
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...
Grado Labs GH4 Limited Edition Headphones: A Must Own!
The Grado Labs GH4 in place at Chez Levi (photograph by Bob Levi) The GH4 is Grado's second foray into creating headphones using Norwegian pine, upping...
The AudioQuest Niagara 5000 and the PS Audio P20 DirectStream...
Let's face it, AC line power is the bedrock of every audio system. Not only is this singularly common commodity a fundamentally important component,...
Reimagining Net Neutrality: The Mola Mola Kaluga Class D Mono...
The Unbearable Joy of Thinking Outside the Box Now that GTT Audio & Video head Bill Parish and I are finally back on friendly terms (heck, he even...
A Black Diamond - The ATC 50SE Loudspeakers
I enjoyed hearing ATC's 40A (then $12,999) speaker four years ago; enough so I was tempted to buy them (see HERE for the review). They had a fuller...
The Neoteric Listener - The Butcher Block Acoustics Rigidrack 3...
I don't suppose I'm alone in admiring those who can really work with their hands. Years ago, while serving a semester-long sentence in woodshop, I...
Schiit Ragnarok 2 Integrated
With a firm desire for innovation and iterative design, Schiit are a company which have taken the world of high-end personal audio by storm one product...
Nordost QPOINT Resonance Synchronizer
I am sometimes ashamed of how little we know about audio, how little we understand about it. We fly to the Moon, we are getting ready to fly to Mars,...
Audio Research Reference Phono 3 - One Smart Phono Stage
Phono preamplifiers come in all shapes and sizes and with varying amounts of user adjustability and convenience. The ARC Ref 3 phono preamplifier is...
Linear Tube Audio's Microzotl Preamplifier and ZOTL40 Reference...
Prologue: A Berning Desire Many years ago, I purchased a boxy little bespoke headphone amp for my Sennheiser HD600's called a MicroZOTL. Built by a...
ampsandsound Suolo Monos: An And Game Amplifier in a Boutique...
I tend to jump into things blindly, especially when it comes to this hobby. Most of the amps, headphones, and speakers that I am interested in are not...
Backert Labs Rhumba Extreme 1.3 Preamplifier: A Neutral...
Review By Dean Cacioppo With this article, Positive Feedback continues its content-sharing relationship with Enjoy the Music. Dean Cacioppo shares...
Pure Audio Lotus DAC5
Pure Audio are a Taiwanese audio company with years of audio design experience under their belt. Despite not being famous amongst audio circles, the...
Keces Audio P8 Linear Power Supply and BP-2400 Balanced...
Keces Audio (stylized KECES) is a high end audio audio manufacturer based out of Taiwan. They curate several different components, mostly focused...
Hack-a-Rack: An Equipment Stand for Audiophiles on a Budget from...
Yes, V-TEE-I. That is not a typo. VTI is not from New Jersey; they don't make turntables (although they support them nicely); as far as I know, the...
The Neoteric Listener - The Nola Boxer S3 Bookshelf Loudspeakers
In 2010, I declared, "If you're looking for a pair of standmount monitor speakers and you have about $1500 to spend, buy the Nola Boxers." The quality...
The New Apartment Lounge - It's Raining Wires: The Stunning...
The Unbearable Simplicity of Good Design At the start of the summer, I waxed enthusiastic about the arrival of a boatload of new goodies that have made...
Göbel Lacorde Statement XLR Interconnects
I've bailed from the Hi-fi shows. The combination of expense plus the effort to produce a timely report (which could be intense) had become onerous. Of...
Advanced Optical Streaming with the Sonore Signature Rendu SE...
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...
AV RoomService Low Density EVPs: Now Providing Superior...
Vibrations. They occur in every aspect of the listening room environment, whether that room is dedicated to the listening experience, or just happens...
Interviews
The Editors Series 27 - Marc Phillips of the Occasional Magazine
THE EDITORS is a cycle of interviews with audio magazine editors from all over the world—both those in charge of printed publications, as well as...
Audiophiles as Artists - Adam Goldfine
Twenty questions with an audiophile who is also an artist. For this Audiophiles as Artists, we feature Adam Goldfine who also writes for PF. What's...
Jeff's Place
Jeff checking in ... the Duelund-Altec Project, musical chairs...
The Duelund-Altec Project is really something special, a lot of fun, and it's definitely not your typical audio project or review, but rather is.... . . Read More »
Music - SuperSonic Recordings
Top 500 SuperSonic List - Part 15
This is an ongoing project by Claude Lemaire of Soundevaluations 111. Count Basie, Live at the Sands (Before Frank). MoFi – MFSL 2-401 (2013),...
Top 500 SuperSonic List - Part 14
This is an ongoing project by Claude Lemaire of Soundevaluations 106. Bill Berry and His Ellington All-Stars, For Duke. M&K RealTime Records –...
Music Reviews
IMPEX Records Legrand Jazz - A Wonderful New 45 RPM LP Reissue
Legrand Jazz, Michel Legrand. IMPEX Records. I'm very much falling in love with 45 RPM LPs. I'm also very much falling in love with IMPEX Records and...
Song Review: Syrinx by +Ingelrii+
If you frequent Positive-Feedback, you may have noticed my lengthy interview with Ketil Vestrum Einarsen, who was recently described by Jacob Holm-Lupo...
Notes of an Amateur: Monteverdi, Bach, Henze, and Richard
Monteverdi, L'incoronazione di Poppea. Les Ars Florissants, Willam Christie. Harmonia Mundi 8902622.24 3 CD's, 1 DVD. This new release of Monteverdi's...
Joachim Raff: Music for Piano (and Orchestra)
RAFF: Ode au printemps, Op. 76*; Piano Concerto in C minor, Op. 185; Caprice on Themes from König Alfred, Op. 65, No. 2. Tra Nguyen, piano; *Prague...
Kaitai Teki Kokan
Masayuki Takayanagi and Abe Kaoru, Kaitai Teki Kokan. Premiere: 1970 | Sound Creators Inc. SCi - 10101. Reissue: 2018 | Craftman Records...
More Treasures From IMPEX Records - New Vinyl Releases From...
Abey Fonn and the entire team at IMPEX Records continue to impress and delight. Though we have only just passed the halfway point for the year 2019,...
Our Friends at HIFI Statement
SPL Phonitor xe Headphoneamp with DAC
Hersteller von professionellen Audiogeräten haben es traditionell schwer in der HiFi-Szene. Warum weiß ich eigentlich auch nicht so recht,.... . . Read More »
Mytek Brooklyn Digital Amp
Auf der diesjährigen High-End stellte ich beim Plausch mit den Kollegen des amerikanisch/polnischen Herstellers Mytek fest, dass der Brooklyn AMP noch.... . . Read More »
Vision Ears Erlkönig In-Earphone
Was reitet nun jemanden, der normalerweise mit einer abgefahrenen Röhrenanlage und Feldspulenlautsprechern hört, sich diese Stöpsel – Originalton.... . . Read More »
Boulder 508 Phono Preamp
Als die Highendscouts Daniel Gottschalk und Frank Pietersen berichteten, dass sie den Vertrieb der High-End-Elektronik von Boulder übernommen haben.... . . Read More »
Our Friends at High Fidelity
Cambridge Audio AXC35 Compact Disc Player
CAMBRIDGE AUDIO is a British company specializing in audio and audio-video electronic components, whose distinctive feature is a particularly good...
Krakow Sonic Society Meeting 120 - Adam Czerwinski and AC
A tape, a test pressing, an LP "The most expensive music format (in the world)" as exemplified by records produced by the AC Records label. A lot has...
15 years Later - High Fidelity's 15th Anniversary
I'm a music lover. I am an audiophile. I'm an electronics technician. I am an acoustician, a sound engineer. I am a philologist with a PhD. I am a...
Our Friends at Part-Time Audiophile
PureAudioProject 5th Anniversary, and Classic15 Launch Party at...
It all started with a facebook chat between Ze’ev Schlik (the founder of PureAudioProject) where he was personally inviting me to attend the.... . . Read More »
Synergistic Research Galileo SX Phono
For your consideration: Synergistic Research Galileo SX Phono cable. But first, let me tell you about my great audio day today. In my quest to lose.... . . Read More »
Jeff Williams, Bloom | The Vinyl Anachronist
Jeff Williams and his new album Bloom makes me rethink all of those reviews where I discuss the idea of the drummer-as-leader in jazz, and how that.... . . Read More »
Show Reports
RMAF 2019 Photo Essay Part 6
Continuing on with our coverage of RMAF 2019. All photos by Dave Clark, text by Carol Clark. This music lover loves Qobuz! Head Space! We visited the...
RMAF 2019 Photo Essay Part 5
Continuing on with our coverage of RMAF 2019. All photos by Dave Clark, text by Carol Clark. Lumin AMP, Vivid Audio Giya G2, Lumin T-2 network music...
RMAF 2019 Photo Essay Part 4
Continuing on with our coverage of RMAF 2019. All photos by Dave Clark, text by Carol Clark. Well Pleased AV, a standout room at the show. Featuring...
RMAF 2019 Part 2 and Further Reflections
Herb Reichert and Lynn Olson at RMAF 2015 (photograph and image processing by David W. Robinson) As my readers know, my usual beat is high-efficiency...
RMAF 2019 Photo Essay Part 3
Continuing on with our coverage of RMAF 2019. All photos by Dave Clark, text by Carol Clark. Liked this! Klipsch room. The first Klipsch room. A second...
RMAF 2019 Photo Essay Part 2
Continuing on with our coverage of RMAF 2019. All photos by Dave Clark, text by Carol Clark. Uh, these sealed the deal on how good things could be at...
RMAF 2019 Photo Essay Part 1
The sixteenth annual Rocky Mountain Audio Fest kicked off a month early, and in a new location: The Gaylord Rockies. As with any audio show, there were...
Instant RMAF 2019 Show Impressions
Gaylord Hotel and Convention Center, Denver, CO, 2019 (photograph and image processing by David W. Robinson) My God, this place is HUGE! The main...
Lone Star Audio Fest 2019
At times Lone Star Audio Fest seems like "Old Reliable." While other Hi-Fi shows struggle to survive or move upmarket pricing startups and enthusiasts...
