One of the reasons I wrote The Audiophile’s Guide was to help fix the biggest problem in high-end audio systems. The one most of us take for granted, yet never master. Setup. Sure, we all know the basics: approximately where to place the speakers, how to connect the kit, how to tame a lousy room. But basics […]
Month: February 2022
Found 587 results
Marty Paule writes: Highly opinionated and fiercely independent in his views about pro sound, Bob Heil builds mics and possesses a professional resume to back up his often out-of-the-box attitude. And speaking of boxes, it was Bob who invented one of the most memorable guitar effects of all time: the Heil Talk Box that made […]
Bundle includes two limited edtion live radio broadcasts, as follows: The Record Plant ’73 by Nick Gravenites and Blue Gravy featuring Paul Butterfield Nick “Gravy” Gravenites the acknowledged link and catylst between the sixties white blues boy scene of Chicago and the burgeoning acid/hippy happenings of San Francisco has a remarkable and imposing […]
Hi, and thanks for stopping here. Re the post below, we’d really, really like to know what you think. Have you got time to leave a comment? Thank you. Howard Popeck / Features Editor *************** We spotted this recently and we thought we’d throw this out there for discussion. “I’m not diagnosed OCD but I […]
Since LPs are built around older technology do they actually sound best when played on the same vintage equipment as they were originally designed for? Watch Now
Following the past few day’s posts about amplifier efficiency, Class AB biasing, and Class A biasing, let’s wrap our little mini-series up with another topology most of us have not heard of, adaptive biasing. The promise of adaptive biasing is a best of both worlds scenario: the efficiency of a Class AB circuit with the performance of a […]
Editor-in-chief Neil McCauley in conversation with Howard Popeck: Only one of the designers we’ve discussed so far, and only superficially at that, were valve-men. Why is that? Partly ‘cos I’m intolerant of the hassles associated with valves. Bear in mind I’m talking about this from a retail perspective. This isn’t a comment … not […]
Dorian Lynskey writes: Thirty years ago this month, Dire Straits released their fifth album, Brothers in Arms. En route to becoming one of the best-selling albums of all time, it revolutionised the music industry. For the first time, an album sold more on compact disc than on vinyl and passed the 1m mark. Three years […]
From 1998
It has been said that the simplest and most effective means of getting a perfect stereo recording is to plunk down a pair of stereo microphones and press the record button. The fact this is rarely done suggests there’s likely more to the story than simplistic views. In fact, the vast majority of recordings—especially the […]
I’m wondering what people think is a good vintage preamp? I have a Mcintosh C40 in my office and I like that, although I don’t think it qualifies as vintage (c. ’92-’98). Downstairs I am building a more vintage system for the “pool room” (unfinished corner of my basement where the pool table is…the stereo […]
The entire original US TV and KLOL-FM, KWN-FM and MTV Broadcasts Covering live performances from The Beacon Theater (1974), The Summit (1976), The Forum (1980) and Burbank (1994). Professionally re-mastered with background liners and rare archival photos. This 7-disc set presents four historic broadcast performances by one of America’s most successful and best-loved bands, at […]
From the archives: Audiophiles are a fastidious bunch. They’re audio perfectionists who are constantly on the prowl for the latest gear to appease their ears. What sounds “fine” to one person, sounds like fingernails down chalkboards to an audiophile. But there are few audiophiles who could claim they have a way to enjoy high quality […]
https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/jul/18/bill-frisell-trio-review-jazz-cafe-london
Si Hawkins: Just a few minutes into a perfectly good-natured chat with Justin Currie, I suddenly feel the need to make an embarrassing, tone-altering admission. Currie was, and soon will be again, the lead singer of Del Amitri, a band seemingly destined never to be hip, and an easy target for those of us who […]
Thomas Conrad (Stereophile) writes ….. I don’t remember the year, but I remember the moment when I first became intensely curious about Roy DuNann. It must have been about 1975, right after I moved to Seattle. I bought a Sonny Rollins LP called Way Out West, took it home, cued it up on my Thorens […]
Howard Popeck: Recent very positive experiences with the Benchmark DAC-1 pre and the Manley Steelhead have caused me to re-evaluate the necessity of preamps. On only very rare occasions have I ever heard a consistent and noticeable sonic improvement (predominantly bass depth and control, ambience and extreme top end detail) achieved by the inclusion of […]
Three years in the making an Official box set of rarities and unheard material. It also documents the bands transition from RnB stalwarts in the beginning into the Pop world and ultimately on to more experimental sounds and lastly to become a type of blueprint for what was to become Led Zeppelin. Features the most […]
Fiona Maddocks writes ….. Stravinsky’s Violin Concerto remains puzzlingly underplayed, a neoclassical masterpiece dating from 1931. The composer worried that, as a non-violinist, he wasn’t equipped to write idiomatically. It’s certainly fiercely hard, opening with big, strident chords and exploiting the instrument’s staccato brilliance. The inner movements, Arias I and II, are more song-like, mysterious […]