May - June 2020
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Audio Discourse
A Missive from the Recording Industry Regarding Covid-19
While he was in quarantine from the terrible plague that was raging in London, Shakespeare wrote King Lear. That is a hard act to follow. I don't think...
Albert Von Schweikert: In Memoriam
Albert Von Schweikert, March 13, 1945 – May 29, 2020. Founder and Chief Designer: Von Schweikert Research/Von Schweikert Audio Though born in South...
A Fern & Roby Rack and a Bevy of Olympia Record Crates
So how many of you reading this are getting so tired of the same old "staying at home, and man do I need to mix things up?" state of mind? Well, count...
The Square and Exponential Laws
Nelson Pass: a portrait. Sea Ranch, CA, 2018. (Photograph and image processing by David W. Robinson) This piece was originally presented at the 2019...
More Fun in the New World of High Fidelity
The very first time as a teenager I laid eyes on my brother's new DynaKit amp, I knew inside that I'd found one of my life's true callings. I've always...
Martin DeWulf of Bound for Sound Magazine Has Passed Away
Yet more sad news: I've received the belated word today that Marty DeWulf, editor and publisher of Bound for Sound, another well-known high-end audio...
Hardware Reviews
Quicky: Block Audio's New C-Lock Power Connection Guard
(Tw)eek! It’s a Useful Product: The Block Audio C-Lock! Block audio is new to me, but if websites are worth a thousand words, then this audio...
Meze 99 Classics Headphones
A little over a year ago I was making my way through the headphone hall at AXPONA 2019, and spotted the Meze Audio booth. I wasn't familiar with Meze,...
icOn4 Autoformer Based Passive Preamplifier
I am sure I do not speak for everyone, but personally, I rarely find myself turning up the volume on any of my preamplifiers past 50%. I also find that...
Cardas Clear Beyond: What's In A Name?
When I first relocated to NYC from Chicago in 1994, I was deep in the boil of my audio obsession. The timing of my move couldn't have been better. I...
Audience Hidden Treasure HDAC Outlet
Garbage in, garbage out—health-conscious individuals focused on nutrition will nod their heads knowingly. This same aphorism applies to high-end...
A Pair of Tweaks from Nordost QVIBE and QKOIL
By far, the cheapest items in Nordost's line of QRT Audio Enhancers are the QVIBE2 AC Line Harmonizer (MSRP $349.99) and QKOIL1 AC Enhancer (MSRP...
Interviews
Trond Gjellum Brings Prog To Electronica
Electrond, photo by Trond Gjellum. Used with permission Trond Gjellum is a Norwegian multi-instrumentalist best known for his work as the leader and...
Music - SuperSonic Recordings
Top 500 SuperSonic List - Part 20
This is an ongoing project by Claude Lemaire of Soundevaluations 136. Sonny Rollins, The Bridge. RCA – LSP-2527 (1962), Classic Records –...
Top 500 SuperSonic List - Part 19
In this Covid 19 pandemic, where many have suggested songs with either soothing or suggestive lyrics to wade through this difficult period, I chose...
Music Reviews
Notes of an Amateur: Music@Menlo, Haydn Concertos, Vivaldi Cello...
Music@Menlo Live, 2019 (available at https://musicatmenlo.org/live/) Year in, year out the Music@Menlo music education program issues its Music@Menlo...
Between the Buried and Me - 20th Anniversary Remix/Remaster
Formed in 2000 from the remnants of a handful of Raleigh, North Carolina bands, Between the Buried and Me was principally the brainchild of guitarist...
Weserbergland's Am Ende Der Welt
Am Ende der Welt. Photo by Per-Einar Einarsen - Used with permission Weserbergland is a project led by Norwegian composer Ketil Vestrum Einarsen. He's...
"Brahms for Two?" - Hungarian Dances
BRAHMS: Hungarian Dances, WoO 1; Waltzes, Op. 39. Marco Schiavo and Sergio Marchegiani, pianists. Decca 481 7812. TT: 71.20. Downloads:...
O Brother, "HERE" Art Thou
O Brother, Where Art Thou. A twenty-year old movie soundtrack, with music written a century ago, is once again relevant today. What a World It is gray...
New Old Stock - Articles from Our Days in Print
The Von Schweikert Research VR-4 Loudspeakers
From Positive Feedback magazine in print, Vol. 5, No. 6, Summer, 1995 The prospect of doing the first review of a new loudspeaker from the hands of...
Cary Audio 306/200 CD Player
This article, as reviewed by Ed Morawski and Dave Clark originally ran in Issue 2, August/September 2002, so while we call this section "New Old Stock...
Our Friends at High Fidelity
First Press CD - Or How to Find the Best Sounding CD Pressing
"First Press" ("1st Press") is a term used to describe LP releases. It is used to describe the earliest editions of a given title. This is a difficult...
Show Reports
Florida Audio Expo 2020: Better the Second Time Around, Part 2
Vaughn Loudspeaker's Zinfandel 9-0 Compact Line Array, with their bespoke plasma tweeters and line array mid-bass driver configuration, sounded...
