LATEST ADDITIONS

Most audio engineers split hairs. Eelco Grimm splits microseconds. His expertise in high-precision audio laid the groundwork for Grimm Audio, the Dutch venture he cofounded in 2004 with fellow electrical engineer Guido Tent. The company's master clocks and DACs, developed for both the pro audio and home hi-fi markets, combat tiny timing errors and jitter that can blight digital audio.

I'd been building and repairing tube amplifiers for a few years when my first Altec A5 Voice of the Theater speakers arrived. I bought them to help me evaluate the sound of low-powered triode amps—but whoa! The moment I turned that VOT system on, I heard from 30' away the sound of either a waterfall or a large AM radio tuned between stations . . . What's the best tube tester? A 107dB/watt speaker!

Rollin' With Leo is a treasure from bebop's past that's been reissued several times on CD and LP since 1980. This new version, with its freshened sound, proves again that Dexter Gordon's concise appraisal of Leo Parker was on the mark: "The Kid could play. Lots of bottoms."

This past Monday, July 21, drummer/composer Terri Lyne Carrington and harpist/composer Brandee Younger discussed their recently released albums, respectively We Insist 2025! (Candid) and Gadabout Season (Verve) at an event billed as Joy and Resistance, moderated by Dr. Guthrie Ramsey. The Doris Duke Center in New York City hosted the event, with a streaming audio system featuring Treble Clef Audio's TCA-M active floorstanding loudspeakers.

A century ago, pioneering psychiatrist Carl Jung had a wild encounter with the power of sound. "In a village on the way from Lake Albert to Rejaf in the Sudan we had a very exciting experience," Jung wrote in his book Memories, Dreams, Reflections. He goes on to describe his participation in a tribal drum and dance ritual. "Night had fallen ... when we heard drums and horn blasts. Soon some sixty men appeared, martially equipped with flashing lances, clubs, and swords."

Onkyo has introduced the C-30 CD player, the latest addition to its Icon Series of hi-fi components. The player features Onkyo’s proprietary Vector Linear Shaping Circuit (VLSC), designed to remove pulse noise from the signal path.

Ever since I became interested in—nay, obsessed with—high-quality music reproduction, my goal has been to attain the experience of being at a performance. Some audiophiles target the recreation of the event in their room—a "they are here" experience.