Did music evolve in the same way and for the same reason?

Paul McGowan writes:  There’s increasing evidence that rhymes, poems, meter and cadence in stories were created not because they are beautiful but because they helped us keep the words straight before the advent of written language.  It is how our civilization kept important lessons, histories, messages and stories intact without writing anything down. Imagine any […]

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…… but not all products lend themselves to online sales.

Paul McGowan writes: My son Scott bought a really cool watch online for his girlfriend’s birthday.  He took it to a watch repair shop to have the band adjusted and got scolded for buying online. “Shame on you”.  This admonishment despite the fact the watch repair shop didn’t carry the brand bought and had no […]

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What happens in a vacuum?

Paul McGowan writes: Vacuums suck (sorry, just couldn’t resist the joke)…but it’s not too far from wrong. It’s really the problem behind the classic AB test method: replace one piece of gear with another to form a value judgment. We all do it, but is it as definitive as we might hope? The answer has a […]

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PS AUDIO: Dedicated lines

Paul McGowan: With all the great power products on the market today it’s easy to forget that we still benefit from the basics – like dedicated power lines. A dedicated power line is simply a separate power circuit and wire dedicated specifically to your audio system.  The key point is that nothing else is on […]

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Jittered?

Paul McGowan writes: Probably time to cut back on the coffee. But if your jitter problems relate to your digital audio system then there’s hope. Jitter is all about timing. Digital audio depends heavily on an accurate clock. That clock meters out precise intervals, like a musical metronome, and the quality of your music depends […]

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PS Audio: I think the answer is simple because the quest for better performance in our audio and music systems is an ongoing one that is similar to peeling an onion

  Paul McGowan writes: In the process of answering the many comments I receive (which are much appreciated) one was made that really struck home.  Here is the comment from frequent contributor Mark Fisher that was made after I wrote “it’s amazing what it has done for the system.” “This seems to happen every time […]

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