News

In his recent review of the Thiel CS1.6 loudspeaker, John Atkinson pointed out that while expensive speakers "do indeed provide great sound for the tens of thousands of dollars they demand from their owners, they are out of reach of the majority of audiophiles." Ever the populist, JA tackles this reasonably priced Thiel to see how it measures up to the big boys.

Robert J. Reina admits he "had mixed feelings about reviewing the $189/pair" Paradigm Atom v.3 loudspeaker. After all, notes RJR, "I'm not impressed with $200/pair speakers that sound like $400/pair models with attenuated bass reproduction." And then he met the Atoms.

Richard Lehnert sorts through a pile of discs searching for the definitive performance and recording of Tannhäuser: Wagner's "problem" opera. Why this particular opera? As RL points out, "throughout most of the 19th century, Tannhäuser was Wagner's most popular work." The article offers alternatives to Daniel Barenboim's disastrous new recording of the opera, reviewed in the October 2002 Stereophile.

What if they gave a format war and nobody came? In his "As We See It" from September 2002, "Format War? What Format War?," Jon Iverson examines the current state of hi-rez audio and seeks some answers from the big players.

Finally, the next installment in our "Recording of the Month" series for the online archives: September 2002: Beethoven & Mendelssohn: Violin Concertos. David Patrick Stearns finds that it's still possible for violinist Joshua Bell to make a serious recording.