Paul McGowan writes: Music servers are little more than computers in fancy boxes. So, what’s stopping us from simply buying a computer, installing some software and building our own media server at far lower prices than what we might pay a high-end audio company? Not too much, actually, but it turns out that won’t be […]
Month: October 2019
Found 175 results
All of these reissues were so critically acclaimed upon their release some 10 years back. And most have been sold out for a long time.Now they’re back and better than ever! Think these classic CCR songs sounded better than ever on Analogue Productions’ recent LP reissues? Well, you’re right of course. Or at least you […]
Paul McGowan writes: A recent post explained a bit about how a switch mode power supply works – it uses a simply electronic switch to chop up the incoming AC into smaller, faster bits so we can use a much smaller power transformer working more efficiently than a giant beast like those you find in […]
We are told ….. The four-and-a-half hour show, broadcast on January 8, ‘95, was a Seattle scenester’s delight, featuring live sets from Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Mudhoney, The Fastbacks, and Mad Season, a spoken word piece from Nirvana’s Krist Novoselic, tracks from ex-Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl’s ‘upcoming solo album’ (at least that was how it was […]
We often joke around PS Audio’s halls that CODE is a four-letter word—especially when there’s a bug. In fact, we use other four-letter words not appropriate for these pages to describe uncooperating code. But, as much as we tongue-in-cheek bash-software code, we also have a deep appreciation for its power as well as its pervasiveness in […]
Paul McGowan writes: I was mentioning to a reader yesterday that one of the reasons I am so convinced a subwoofer is a critical component in a reference sound system is the ability it offers me to hear the subway rumbling below Carnegie Hall in some of the early recordings. “Why in the world would […]
And I really liked it – even on a car stereo! A professional (i.e, not by me) review HERE Reviews by buyers HERE Get a new copy at low cost HERE
Paul McGowan: There are two types of engineering directions if we take a broad stroke view: forward and reverse. Forward engineering might look like engineering a new product from a simple idea from scratch. Reverse engineering would look like the opposite: start with something that already works and take it apart to figure out how […]
We are told: 1. Paint an 8 2. Grinnin’ 3. If It Ever Stops Raining 4. Wyoming & Me 5. Predictable 6. Never Forget This Song 7. Life Vest 8. Another Roadside Tragedy 9. My Heart’s Killing Me 10. Peace Anyway Disc: 2 1. A Conspiracy 2. Evil Eye 3. Cursed Diamond 4. London […]
What if you had just received your brand new P20 Power Plant, opened its packing box with high expectations of seeing your beautiful new product, but instead found something else: A small package you are asked to open first. Before you unseal the mysterious letter-sized envelope you notice there’s something lumpy inside and now your […]
I am using Rega Planar 3 / Arcam Solo Mini / Clearaudio Nano Phonostage / B&W 686. This provides me with hours of pleasure and entertainment. However, it’s starting to attract some unwanted attention from my young children. My system resides on a two tier Apollo hi-fi stand but this is open and ideally I […]
Paul McGowan writes: Just because you observe something doesn’t mean you understand how to measure and repeat it. We get confused a lot between the observations we make, the measurements we use to try and quantify those observations and the conclusions we draw from it all. For example, when a listener observes a change in […]
‘Part hip vaudeville and part musical inspiration… His arrangements were imaginative embellishments of full-blown ideas… Among the freshest things to be heard in jazz-rock’ – New York Times, August 1968 Classic summer 1968 performance Remastered sound Background notes / photos included First time on Vinyl 2x 180g Vinyl w/ insert in sleeve This superb set […]
Paul McGowan writes ….. There are plenty of terms that don’t seem to fit together: literal interpretation, out like a light, self-help group, and my all time favorite, open secret. That said, let me add another: hearing aids for high-end audio. While the two terms together might be a head scratcher, there’s good news ahead. […]
Paul McGowan writes: In yesterday’s post we we lamented the shift away from the neighborhood dealer who provided our advice, information, opinions and service. There are a number of reasons why this has taken place and one we’ve not yet touched upon is how we access information and form opinions today – it’s most certainly […]
The news of Jack Bruce and Robin Trower performing live for the first time spread like wildfire. For more than 40 years the legendary Cream bassist and singer and the immensely talented guitarist of Procol Harum made history in the Rock ‘n’ Roll business. It was in the early 80s when they first collaborated, releasing […]
Podcast is a linguistic blend of two words: iPod and broadcast. It was first coined by British technologist Ben Hammersley and it’s since become somewhat of a household name in the same way tissues became Kleenex. I have found myself rather addicted to these informative and entertaining means of consuming words. My favorites are NPR’s […]
Gentlemen. I have recently upgraded my Goldring 1042 moving magnet (MM) cartridge to a MC and was originally considering Denon DL-103R or Audio-Technica AT-OC9ML/II. After deeper investigation into Arm Effective Mass and Resonant Frequency due reports that the Denon only being suitable for med to high mass arms I found that my Roksan Tabriz (standard […]
Paul McGowan: My note about being open to trying out a preamp between the DAC and power amp brought a lot of attention and many great suggestions. One of the repeated suggestions is to simply stick a buffer stage at the output of the DAC and play the system with and without the buffer. While […]
Following on from its award winning Family box set Once Upon A Time, Snapper Music has created a new box of wonder on its Madfish imprint guaranteed to reinvigorate the reputation of one of the 1970s most underrated and ageless Rock bands. I’m Walking, Complete Streetwalkers 1974-77 is a gloriously packaged 15 CD collection of Streetwalkers entire […]
We are told: The icon of the punk movement, poet and exceptional artist Patti Smith was rarely on stage, that’s why the breath-taking concerts of the legendarymusician were huge highlights.On stage there is just power, music and those messages of Mrs Patti Smith, which made this Rock’n’Roll Queen to a preacher: not more gentle, butcalmer […]
Our engineering director, Matt, has been working for the past few months on new code for the DirectStream Memory Player. DMP. He came to me with an interim version that works quite well. Perfect? No, it has some ways to go. Still, we thought it appropriate to share with DMP owners. I announced the DMP […]
Steve Guttenberg writes: Before multitasking, sound was a big deal, so it was easier to be blown away by it. CNET’s Geoff Morrison used the above image from a Maxell tape ad in his “Music multitasking: How ‘background’ listening enhances life” blog post a few weeks ago, and that image really took me back. Maxell’s […]
Kate & Anna McGarrigle, live at the University of Toronto, Canada on 29th May 1982 On this May 29, 1982 CBC broadcast of a Toronto concert, Kate and Anna McGarrigle presented highlights of their first two critically acclaimed albums, as well six songs from their most recent LP, Love Over and Over. The eclectic folk […]