LATEST ADDITIONS

Studying the universal concept of "touch transference." That's professor talk for cooties.

Much to my surprise, I've actually tasted a few that made the list&mdash;a few of the cheapest, of course. And I'm not at all sure that <I>Forbes</I> is correct that Sazerac 18-year-old is the most expensive rye at $55. I believe that Old Potrero at $90/bottle has that honor.

Who taught us the facts of life? Jim Enderby's <I>A Guinea Pig's History of Biology</I> argues that it was close observation of just a few species.

It's not often that you get a chance to have extensive discussions with the horse's mouth, but we recently had that opportunity. Since July of this year there has been extensive discussion in the audio community, particularly the high-end segment, of Larry Greenhill's <A HREF="http://bruce.coppola.name/audio/Greenhill.pdf">article on speaker cable listening tests</A> in the August, 1983 issue of <I>Stereo Review</I> (footnote 1). From recent talks with author Greenhill we've learned that the most interesting story was <I>not</I> in <I>Stereo Review</I>; instead it can be found in the varying reactions from different quarters, and what they say about the high-end industry in general.

<I>McIntosh: "...for the love of music..."</I><BR>by Ken Kessler. McIntosh Laboratory, Inc., 2006. $150.00. Hardcover, 12" by 12" by 1.25", 315 pp. ISBN 0-9787236-0-0.<BR>Available from McIntosh dealers and <A HREF="http://www.mcintoshlabs.com">McIntosh Laboratory</A>, Inc., 2 Chambers Street, Binghamton, NY 13903. Tel: (800) 538-6576.

Many pundits in our industry say that CD is under threat from <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/asweseeit/164">Super Audio CD</A>, <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/asweseeit/270">DVD-Audio</A&gt;, and dual-layer CD/DVD technologies. Conflicting stories abound, and even though I'm supposed to be well-informed, I've found some of them hard to sort out! For example, Michael Fremer, concluding a fine review of the $7500 Bow Technologies ZZ-Eight integrated CD player in August, compared its notable 16-bit/44.1kHz achievement with a DVD-based disc originally mastered at 24/96kHz and replayed on an inexpensive DVD player. He found the Bow wanting in some respects. What is the world coming to?

Sometimes it's just a flimsy sheet of paper; other times it can be a mini book about audio. Which manufacturer provides its customers with the best owner's manual?