Oh boy! This was one of my most eagerly anticipated auditions. At my first demonstration of an OLS loudspeaker system several years ago, I was bowled over not only by the demo, but also by the idea that OLS's Kharma line was topped by the $1,000,000 Grand Enigma system!
What makes a phono cartridge worth $3500 or $4000? Pride of ownership? Snob appeal? Sound? Tracking ability? Exotic materials? Styling? Labor cost for skilled artisans? Special ether? Cool wooden box? All of the above?
Small enough to fit in a shoebox, these little darlings from England almost manage to redefine the state of the art in very compact monitor design (footnote 1). Here's a speaker that isn't as neutral as the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/standloudspeakers/361">BBC LS3/5a</A> compact monitor, but that does manage to equal or exceed that venerable design in most respects.
Billy Preston, the keyboard player, singer, and songwriter frequently credited as "the fifth Beatle," died June 6 in Scottsdale, AZ from respiratory complications from improperly treated pericarditas he experienced in an LA hospital visit on November 21, 2005.
On June 6, as we traveled back from <A HREF="http://blog.stereophile.com/he2006/">HE 2006</A>, we received near simultaneous press releases from Genesis Advanced Technologies and Arnie Nudell describing the same event.
Love,<br>
Remember when we first met — standing at the bar, admiring <a href="http://blog.stereophile.com/stephenmejias/121905thejukebox/">the jukebox's warm glow</a>? How I somehow got around to telling you about that <a href="http://www.stereophile.com/turntables/106con/index.html">$90,000 turntable</a>? It almost seems silly now. The small talk of first meetings often does, I suppose, seem silly. But not ours. Nothing "silly" about it. And nothing small. I don't know what made me think I should mention it — this silly turntable — but, a day later, you'd call and leave a message saying you'd like to hear more. "Fascinating," was the word you used.
Myrna Blyth has a sweet reminiscence of the Beatles on the occasion of Sir Paul's 64th birthday.
This article from <I>Technology Review</I> discusses a device marketed by Northstar Neuroscience that uses electric stimulation of the cerebral cortex to "enhance the brain's natural neuroplasty"—the ability of the brain to "reorganize" itself to effect repairs.
Or maybe it's birds. But don't Mistress Bagheera put the purr into <I>purrty</I>?