LATEST ADDITIONS

Let's talk cable dressing. Make mine vinaigrette! (And you thought I'd go for French . . . ) Cable dressing is actually a rather delicate issue that requires a certain leap of faith. The concept is so simple that even I can explain the science to you. But the leap occurs when you realize how the positioning of cables and interconnect can make a real difference in the sound of your system. In spite of this, I've seen power cords and interconnects tangled up in a hopeless mess at the back of some pretty serious components.

How can a reviewer possibly put a value on a loudspeaker as costly as the Wilson Audio Specialties X-1/Grand SLAMM? When he reviewed Wilson's WATT 3/Puppy 2 system ($12,900-$16,000/pair, depending on finish) a few years back (footnote 1), John Atkinson said that it was "one of the more expensive loudspeakers around." The Grand SLAMM costs almost five times as much!

<B>EMMYLOU HARRIS: <I>Spyboy</I></B><BR> Eminent EM-25001-2 (CD). 1998. Emmylou Harris, prod.; Buddy Miller, prod., eng.; Dean Norman, Doug Dawson, engs. AAD? TT: 67:07<BR> Performance <B>****?</B><BR> Sonics <B>****?</B>

As this is filed, there are only a couple of days until the end of the year, but still plenty of time to get these predictions under the interconnect. You can find part one <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/news/10054/">here</A&gt;, and part two <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/news/10064/">here</A&gt;.

We are saddened to learn of the passing, on December 13, of audio writer Ann Turner. Ann, who was diagnosed earlier in the year as suffering from clear cell carcinoma, was a stalwart of high-end audio magazine <I>The Abso!ute Sound</I>---Editor Harry Pearson tells me he used to refer to her as "the Aquarian War God," a phrase she liked. She was also the inspiration and the driving force behind that publication's web site, <A HREF="http://www.theabsolutesound.com"><I>The Abso!ute Sound</I></A>.

Time to yank out the old oxygen-free crystal interconnects and gaze into audio's future for 1999. Now that www.stereophile.com has a year under its online belt, we should be able to read the sonic omens with greater resolution, or at least confine our mistakes to minor stumbles. First, we'll see how our <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/news/10067/">prognostications for 1998</A> panned out, and spin them a little to tune in 1999. We'll add reader predictions at the bottom. Got your own predictions? <A HREF="mailto:jiverson@stereophile.com">Send 'em in</A>!

J. Gordon Holt, founder not only of <I>Stereophile</I> but also of high-end audio journalism as we know it, reveals all in a comprehensive interview with writer Steven Stone: <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com//interviews/66/">35 Years and Just Getting Started</A>.