LATEST ADDITIONS

Listening #18

Art Dudley Jun 19, 2004

A grainy film is said to exist that proves the viability of a mechanical antigravity device. The inventor, a native of Syracuse, New York named Harry W. Bull (footnote 1) placed his so-called "bootstrap machine" on a bathroom scale, focused a borrowed home movie camera on the dial, powered up the machine, and watched as the numbers spun backward. This event, and the development work that led to it, were the basis for a series of articles—and a subsequent exchange of heated letters—in Popular Science magazine. The year was 1935.

Tube Preamp Reviews

Fosgate Audionics FAP V1 surround processor-preamplifier

Kalman Rubinson Jun 19, 2004

When PR guy Adam Sohmer first told me about the Fosgate Audionics FAP V1, I thought that the impressive-looking device would be the first all-tube preamp-processor—heck, the first tube anything—in my multichannel system. Then I looked closer at the user's manual I'd downloaded from Fosgate's website. Hmmm. No Dolby Digital, no DTS—just Dolby Pro Logic. Of course, the FAP V1 is Jim Fosgate's signature expression of Dolby Pro Logic, and I guess that counts for something. But the more I thought about it, the more interesting a prospect the FAP V1 seemed.

Subwoofer Reviews

Velodyne Digital Drive DD-18 powered subwoofer

Larry Greenhill Jun 19, 2004

It's common to read ads for new audio hardware that crow about "revolutionary" breakthroughs in sound performance, and that's how Velodyne crowed about their new Digital Drive DD-18, servo-controlled, powered 18" subwoofer. The ads suggested that the DD-18 can be digitally equalized to one's room with a resultant in-room frequency response of 20-200Hz, ±3dB.

News

Krell Gets Tough

Jon Iverson Jun 14, 2004

Consumers prefer to get a good deal, and dealers like to maintain a healthy profit margin. Somewhere in the relationship is a perfect balance, where buyers get a legitimate product for the best price while dealers make enough money to ensure that the customer can be supported properly.

News

Added to the Archives This Week

Stereophile Staff Jun 14, 2004

"No company has done more to vigorously fly the audio tricolor as has Focal-JMlab," declares Paul Bolin, who visits the Focal factory and then reviews the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/loudspeakerreviews/604focal">Focal-JMlab Nova Utopia Be loudspeaker</A>. PB adds, "One thing about the Utopia line has not changed: the exquisite level of finish." But what about the sound?

News

Ray Charles 1930-2004

Barry Willis Jun 14, 2004

All of us at Stereophile were saddened by the death of Ray Charles. The giant of music passed away Thursday, June 10 at his home in Beverly Hills, surrounded by friends and family. He was 73.

News

Music Notes

Barry Willis Jun 14, 2004

Artists' audit rights: The California Assembly is scheduled to vote Tuesday, June 15 on a revised bill that would give recording artists the right to audit companies to ensure proper royalty payments. The bill would also give them the right to hire auditors on a contingency fee basis, and to initiate group audits, a provision that could make audits a class action issue. The proposed legislation is the result of talks between the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA), and several state legislators, in particular State Senator Kevin Murray (D-Culver City), a longtime advocate for accounting reform in the recording industry.

Vote

Do typical audio preamps have enough inputs for you?

Wilbur Pan Jun 13, 2004

Reader Wilbur Pan has discovered that most audio preamps have a paltry four pairs of inputs. He comments, "I don't think that I am asking too much out of a component that may cost over $2000 to provide me with an adequate number of inputs." Have you found that preamps have enough inputs for your needs?

Recording of the Month

Recording of June 2004: J.S. Bach: The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I

David Patrick Stearns Jun 13, 2004

J.S. BACH: The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I 
Till Fellner, piano 
ECM 1853/54 (2 CDs). 2004. Manfred Eicher, prod.; Markus Heiland, eng. DDD. TT: 116:58 
Performance ***** 
Sonics *****

Floor Loudspeaker Reviews

Audio Physic Kronos loudspeaker

Michael Fremer Jun 13, 2004

Thirty-one flavors may work for an ice-cream chain, but a speaker manufacturer who sets out to please every sonic palate ends up with a serious identity crisis, pleasing no-one. From its inception in 1985, Audio Physic, based in Brilon, Germany, has been an event-oriented speaker company. Founder and original chief designer Joachim Gerhard focused much of his attention on providing listeners with the sensation of "live" by emphasizing coherent three-dimensional imaging and soundstaging—though not to the exclusion of timbral accuracy. Except for the Medea, based on a Manger driver (a fascinating design nonetheless), every Audio Physic speaker I've heard has fulfilled the company's mission statement.