Paul McGowan: If you Google “NAS” you’ll see that the first block of entries is for the rapper Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, better known as NAS. And if you look down the list Google offers you’ll find what we’re interested in. Hint: it stores music we listen to on our high-end audio systems. A […]
Paul McGowan
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Paul McGowan writes: I’ve heard it said more than once. “Vinyl has soul. Digital does not.” I can relate to what’s being expressed in that statement and I don’t disagree. If we think of soul not as an immortal entity but rather as the essence or embodiment of a certain quality—as in the soul of […]
Paul McGowan ……….. Having a big system like we do in Music Room One sometimes is a lot of responsibility and pressure to both maintain it and worry about how it is sounding. As a reference system, it really needs to be constantly kept up and over time I hear more and more of its […]
Paul McGowan writes: There are many great mysteries in the world: how the pyramids were built, the Easter Island Moai, why whatever hair I lose on my head seems to pop up somewhere else, and I am sure there are plenty more. There are two great mysteries in audio that are currently bugging me and, […]
Reader Mark Laufer sent me an interesting letter that I want to share with you. He brings up some excellent points: ones we will be exploring in future posts. “I always am amazed when reviewers talk about two things: one is “true to the recording” and the other is “true to the live performance.” They […]
Some of the best bookshelf speakers on the market tell you not to place them on bookshelves! Absurd! Why is that and are there any truly good 2-0way bookshelf speakers to be had? Find out the whys and wherefores from PS Audio CEO Paul McGowan. Watch Now
Paul McGowan writes: Most of us like the sound of vacuum tubes on an amplifier’s input: sweet, rich, full-bodied, musical. An equal number aren’t too happy about their downsides: heat, microphonics, size, and the 300-pound gorilla—their ephemeral lifespan. Which is why most customers rejoiced when we began to leverage a solid state equivalent, the FET. […]
Paul McGowan: There are not many subwoofers out there that have servos running them and that’s a shame. A servo is like a little microphone placed right on the woofer that listens to what the woofer is doing, compares that with what it should be doing and then makes corrections to get it perfect. Woofers […]
Paul McGowan writes ….. I admit it. I am obsessed with high-end audio. How about you? Is yours a passion for music? Perhaps live sounding performances in your home at the touch of a finger or the drop of a needle? What floats your boat about high-end audio? And why am I asking all these […]
Paul McGowan ….. In nearly every venue there’s a sweet spot: somewhere that maximizes the intended experience. In a live concert, it may be the center, row three. Or perhaps the left side of the orchestra if you like the fuller, richer sound of the cellos and bass. In a movie theater it could be […]
Paul McGowan writes: Printed circuit boards, those thin copper strips laminated to fiberglass, paper, or ceramic plates routing complex electrical signals are common today. It wasn’t always so. PCBs, as they are known, poked their collective heads out of infancy in the late 1950s after being invented by an Australian engineer, Paul Eisler, in 1936. […]
Paul McGowan: Can we ever hope to achieve a two-channel experience with music so real as to fool ourselves into believing there is an actual musician playing in front of us? I mean sure we can close our eyes and imagine a live event is happening, but in all the years I have never actually […]
This post doesn’t really have anything to do with either broccoli or opera. What it does have to do with is expanding your musical horizons. When I was growing up I hated broccoli; gave me a gag reflex. Now I love everything about it. My tastes haven’t changed, rather my field of acceptance has expanded. […]
Paul McGowan writes ….. Before we get started on today’s subject I wanted to offer an apology as well as an explanation about the hats. I love these hats and wear mine proudly. I’ve been approached three times now, asking just what an audiophile is and the conversation is always a pleasure. Those of you that […]
Paul McGowan: Fear Of Missing Out. Yes, there’s a new acronym in town and one that seems to be applicable here at CES. Today’s my last day in Las Vegas at the Consumer Electronics Show and just about every manufacturer I speak to asks me the same question: “Why is everyone so anxious about DSD […]
Paul McGowan Can Class D amplifiers ever sound as good or even exceed the performance and sound quality of more traditional Class A/B or Class A amplifiers. Find out when Paul launches into this controversial subject. Watch Now ▸
Paul McGowan ….. Ever wonder how moving a loudspeaker a mere matter of inches can make a big difference in imaging? Here’s an experiment for you to play with so you can see. Try toeing in your left and right speakers 1 inch and you’ll discover the center image and the soundstage will change dramatically. […]
Paul McGowan writes: Just because you can’t measure something doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. 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 […]
Paul McGowan: I struggled with how to write this because the subject’s rather complicated and in the end decided to keep it simple. Heck, it’s Sunday after all and we’re supposed to be taking a day off. Yesterday we covered analog volume controls and how they, by virtue of adding something into the signal path, […]
Paul McGowan …… Does the mere fact there are $100K plus turntables and $250K plus power amplifiers available as serious products, featured and reviewed by the magazines, hurt or help the high-end? Of course an argument can be made for both sides – mine would be it hurts the high-end. Why? Because it turns many […]
Forgive me for using the term “soul” because I don’t mean it in a disrespectful or religious manner – but for lack of a better term – I mean a life of its own. I think we all agree machines have personalities and they invoke feelings and emotions in us and for many they can […]
Paul McGowan writes: People don’t change, but circumstances do. It’s always interesting to me when I hear someone wring their hands and point out that people aren’t the way they used to be. They’ve changed. I think typical of what you might hear is something like this: They no longer appreciate good music. They’re perfectly […]