<B>THE SUBDUDES: <I>Miracle Mule</I></B><BR>
Back Porch 70876-18410-2-2 (CD). 2004. Subdudes, Freddy Koella, prods.; Warren Dewey, eng. AAD? TT: 52:13<BR>
Performance <B>*****</B><BR>
Sonics <B>***½</B>
Hilary Hahn must be a chameleon. At least, that's how it seemed at the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/news/010704ces">2004 Consumer Electronics Show</A>.
Usually, I review a component after it has impressed me at a show or in a store. Though this approach reduces the possibility of a bad review—I pre-select based on real experience—it does not minimize the possibility of disappointment. This makes me a sort of stand-in for the consumer who would like to take something home for a real shakeout, and only then decide to buy it or send it back.
As technology develops, things get more and more complicated. With every update of Windows, the program offers greater flexibility, but runs slower and makes greater demands on hardware. Automobiles have become so complex that only the most highly trained mechanics are able to fix even a minor malfunction. Surround-sound processors come with inch-thick owner's manuals.
After reading last week's vote question, reader Steve J. Martin said he'd like to ask readers to suggest musicians who deserve wider recognition. So let us know who should get more recognition and why.
Canadian music fans are breathing a collective sigh of relief in the wake of a ruling by a federal justice that sharing music over the Internet doesn't violate the nation's copyright laws.
From the January 1996 issue, Jonathan Scull listens closely to the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/amplificationreviews/196wavelength">Waveleng… Audio Cardinal XS monoblock amplifier</A>. Single-ended tube designs such as the Wavelength can inspire controversy within audiophile ranks, so Scull carefully sorts the plusses and minuses.
Long-time readers of <I>Stereophile</I>, with stacks of magazines stuffed in their closets, will be glad to hear that we are launching a <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/images/masterindex/index.html">Master Index</A> of past articles and publishing it free of charge online.
Our Delta L-1011 emerged from the cloud split-seconds before its wheels touched the waterlogged ground. "How much lower does the cloud cover have to be before they divert us to another city?" I asked Tom Norton. "About an inch," came the phlegmatic reply. (Ex-F4 pilot TJN categorizes any landing you can walk away from as "good.") But at least we had reached Atlanta, after a saga of air-traffic control problems, weather delays, and missed connections. (Does anyone remember taking a flight that <I>wasn't</I> full, <I>wasn't</I> late, and <I>wasn't</I> sweaty and stressful? Wasn't deregulation supposed to improve service by increasing the choices available to travelers?)