Music For One Apartment and Six Drummers
So <I>that's</I> why my apartment is always a mess when I get home!
LATEST ADDITIONS
Continue Reading »
You Had Better Stop and Think Before You Think, Think!
While we're thinking about thinking, think about this: Recent research confirms that animals have language, experience complex emotions, and can apply abstract reasoning—including the assimilation of previously acquired information—to problem solving. So why do we think we're so special?
Confirmation Bias
My buddy John Atkinson likes to say that what makes science work is <I>not</I> simply the measurement of observed phenomena, but the scientist's refusal to believe those measurements. I once asked him if he'd teach me to do audio measurements and he said no, "because you'd <I>believe</I> the measurements—a good scientist knows the measurements are trying to lie to him."
If you could send one piece of equipment off in a capsule through space to represent the best audio has to offer, what would it be?
Audio companies have created thousands and thousands of audio products in the last several decades. But if you could send just one piece of equipment off in a capsule through space to represent the best audio has to offer, what would it be?
EICO HF-81 integrated amplifier
If you spotted an EICO HF-81 at the local Goodwill, you'd think nothing of this plain-Jane integrated amplifier in its nondescript gray case. But if you kept on walking, you would have passed up one of the best-kept audio secrets of all time. The HF-81 hails from hi-fi's pioneer days, before chromed chassis and slick Mac transformers. It isn't ultracool-looking, like early Marantz or McIntosh gear. It doesn't have the nostalgia factor of a Fisher. It's not a supercheap eBay steal like a Stromberg-Carlson or a Heathkit. So what's the deal?
Musical Fidelity X-Rayv3 CD player
Larger than a stocking stuffer, Musical Fidelity's X-Ray<SUP>v3</SUP> CD player is nevertheless quite compact and would be very nice to find under the Christmas tree.
Listening #42
"A few of us felt that we were the proverbial voices in the wilderness for a long time." So writes Gary Jacobson, whose <A HREF="http://www.quadesl.org">Quad ESL website</A>, is my favorite of the many good ones out there.
The Fifth Element #36
Were I trying to make a living by giving piano recitals, David Stanhope's new CD, <I>A Virtuoso Recital</I> (Tall Poppies TP184), just might tempt me to wash down a fistful of pills with a bottle of Scotch. The saving grace being that Stanhope seems to have enough things to occupy himself with in his native Australia. The risk of his showing up in New York City and playing a recital, thereby giving a lot of people existential crises and sleepless nights, seems remote.
Has the RIAA Changed Its Lawsuit Strategy?
In an article published on June 28 on the website <I>Slyck.com</I>, a popular site dedicated to news and activism surrounding P2P networks, writer Thomas Mennecke contends that the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has <A HREF="http://www.slyck.com/news.php?story=1237 ">retooled </A> its "strategy of launching a continuous barrage of monthly lawsuits aimed at approximately 750 individuals," a policy that has resulted in more than 18,000 suits since it was instituted three years ago.
Bob Stuart Talks About Active Loudspeakers
Bob Stuart, chairman and co-founder of Meridian, will deliver a lecture on active loudspeakers to the UK Section of the Audio Engineering Society in London on Tuesday, July 11. Although Bob has been a champion of active speakers for 30 years, he has, surprisingly, delivered only one previous paper on the subject, at the AES UK Conference earlier this year. In this lecture he will expand on that presentation and be able to discuss the topic more fully with the audience.