Long interconnects and short speaker cables versus the opposite. Howard Popeck expresses a view

My opinion is consistent and contrary to the prevailing view. These days I use long speakers cables and short interconnects. This is because as far as I can tell, based on my own experiences and the writings of others with genuine expertise most modern power amps have a better ability to drive a complex load […]

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MUSICAL FIDELITY: The amplifier designer hall of fame?

Editor McCauley in conversation with Howard Popeck in 2008 Can we return to the mercurial Mr. Michaelson at some point today? Possibly. Possibly ….. not. Depends on what your questions are. Some matters are strictly off limits. He is though a bit of a hero for me frankly. (HP makes direct eye contact as if […]

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GOOD: What is a good recording and does ‘good’ = appropriate?

I recently received a private email asking me “what exactly is a good recording?” Great question and here’s what’s interesting: we all know a great or poor recording the moment we hear one. At one of my recent demonstrations I was demonstrating a decent transport and DAC through the customer’s much loved and really rather […]

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SCAPEGOAT: It’s not the recording process itself that is to blame. It’s …..

INTRO: The catalyst for this discussion is both the on-air and off-air discussions between the Lost Immortals team on our FM (streaming too) Sunday show @ 17:00 GMT. Our radio station control room is very far from hi-fi; more like no-fi. Cheap as chips speakers, bygone era headphones and so on. And yet, and yet […]

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UNCERTAINTY: I am 100% certain about why it’s not sensible to be 100% certain – writes Howard Popeck

Occasionally I get a call or email from a potential customer with a problem and he’s “100% sure” it cannot be this or it cannot be that causing it. This causes a smile here; but not an attitude of condescension. Why? Because I used to be like that and as you’ll see below still am […]

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Howard Popeck asks: How important is the absence of UK servicing on top audiophile gear?

Let me set the scene. One of the reasons I gave up representing STAX equipment, at the time I was the global #1 for the brand was not, as is sometimes reported, the unreliability of the Omega-2 earspeakers and certain batches of the 717, but that on a number of occasions, the defective items had […]

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Is this the dissonance between the music makers and the audiophile?

There is another group of “audiophiles” in this world . They are the musicians ,artists , sound engineers, producers , ect … who do not spend a lifetime agonizing over which kinda of copper to use between amps and speakers .They are also looking for absolute “truth” to what they are hearing . no colorations. […]

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UNDERSTANDING: Balancing EQ and ketchup

PS AUDIO / Paul McGowan In just about every commercial recording studio in the world, (and most every recording you hear) the practice of EQ’ing is commonplace: correcting problems like unwanted background noise, microphone imbalances, and other anomalies that affect the clarity and quality of sound. Unfortunately, like ketchup, salt, pepper, and other condiments, it […]

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HELIUS DESIGNS: in conversation with Howard Popeck – part two

Geoffrey ….. When it comes to listening to what you’ve designed, do you worry that you can find yourself liking something which is actually wrong? How do you keep yourself on track? In the context of tonearms it’s difficult to imagine what I could do to make it sound ‘wrong’. This part of the system […]

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ALBARRY: “… my system today is a Trio LO7D t/table,dynavector 10X5 cartridge Spectral DMC 12 pre amp, Albarry M408 power amps”

Hello chaps I’m new to the forum and not very good with computers but I do have a love of music and Hi-Fi ,I’ve been hooked since the 70s and I have worked in the industry in various positions over the years mainly with Bespoke Audio Stockport. my system today is a Trio LO7D t/table,dynavector […]

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OBLIVION: Howard Popeck wonders if the makers that focus on building products they want to own doomed to oblivion?

I’ve eaten at many restaurants and for this post I’ll focus in Indian ones because I know these best. In some I’m confronted by what seems to be hundreds of options and in others somewhat fewer. I’m working on impressions here; I have no inclination to count the options! In my experience the more choices […]

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