Julian Hirsch: 1922–2003
Julian Hirsch, the man who personified the state of audio criticism for nearly half a century, died on November 24 after a long illness.
LATEST ADDITIONS
Continue Reading »
Retail Bouncing Back?
Retail may be bouncing back. Best Buy, North America's number one electronics chain, reported an 18% gain in total sales for its third quarter ended November 29. The Richfield, MN–based operation posted $6.03 billion in total sales, with same-store sales up 8.6%.
Music Notes
Bronfmans bid Vivendi <I>adieu</I>: On Wednesday, December 3, Edgar M. Bronfman and his son Edgar Bronfman, Jr. officially resigned from Vivendi Universal's board of directors. The move followed an announcement by Time Warner that it would accept a $2.6 billion offer for its Warner Music Group (WMG) from an investment group led by the younger Bronfman.
The Price is Not Right
CD prices have been a sore spot for many music lovers. Our own <A HREF="http://cgi.stereophile.com/cgi-bin/showvote.cgi?242">online polls</A> indicate that <I>Stereophile</I> readers think CDs cost too much (most think they should be under $10), while <I>Stereophile</I> editor John Atkinson has <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/asweseeit/578/">pointed out</A> that for smaller labels, the economics of CD production only work when the prices are kept higher.
Added to the Archives This Week
Paul Bolin says that the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/amplificationreviews/1103bat">Balanced Audio Technology VK-51SE line preamplifier</A> "made a profound impression on me at the 2003 Consumer Electronics Show." Once in his very own listening lair, did the BAT continue to impress? PB tells all.
Recording of April 1993: A Meeting by the River
<B>RY COODER/VISHWA BHATT: <I>A Meeting by the River</I></B><BR>
Water Lily Acoustics WLA-CS-29-CD (CD only; LP available eventually). Kavichandran Alexander, prod., eng. AAD. TT: 39:48</FONT>
Manley Laboratories Stingray integrated amplifier
There's an aesthetic dimension to the Manley Laboratories Stingray that transcends high-end audio and borders on modern sculpture—not unlike the E.A.R. V20, which I auditioned in the October issue. Still, the Stingray is by no means an exercise in gimmickry. Form has clearly followed function at every step in the design process, the ultimate goal of which was to fashion a vacuum-tube integrated amplifier with real-world power that defined the outer limits of high-end performance in a functional, affordable, bare-bones package...with a touch of style.
Arcam FMJ A22 integrated amplifier
Have you ever gone into a high-end audio emporium dressed not to the nines, but more like the threes or fours, and been ignored by the shop's staff because they've sized you up as being too low-budget? Even though you were carrying a high-powered, fully equipped, state-of-the-art wallet in that fanny pack, they assumed the opposite and shunned you.
Balanced Audio Technology VK-51SE line preamplifier
Rudyard Kipling said that "never the twain shall meet." He was speaking of East and West, but in the world of audio, his adage has most often been applied to what has been the traditional chasm between the sounds of tubes and solid-state. Tube advocates thump the tub for the timbral and spatial glow, the absence of harsh, odd-order harmonic distortions, the harmonic completeness and holistic spatiality that only fire bottles can provide. Solid-state advocates point out the superiority of their preferred gear in terms of bass depth, power and control, low noise, and ultimate detail resolution. That chasm between the characteristic sounds of tube and transistor has narrowed appreciably in the latest generations of gear, as each type of circuit has become capable of embodying some of the other's trademark characteristics. But between the camps, friendly competition continues.
Will SACD or DVD-Audio survive in the marketplace over the next five years? Why or why not?
Audio pundits get to speculate all day long about high-rez audio. But tell us what you think: will either SACD or DVD-Audio make it? Why or why not?