That answer always surprises, and sometimes disappoints: "You listen to MP3s?"
The response is moderately tempered when I add that I use good in-ear monitors (IEMs)either Westone ES50s (ca $995) or Jerry Harvey Audio Laylas (ca $2725), both with eartips made from molds of my ear canals.
Why the move? Suave Kajko, President of TAVES, cites several reasons: the venue wanted to literally double the price for the large rooms; the Best Western hotel was the source of many complaints from exhibitors, and, in any case, is scheduled for demolition, and the show was bursting at the seams in terms of space (they didn't have enough space for booth exhibitors).
In writing reviews for Stereophile, I face a challenge. Whether I'm evaluating an audio component, a recording, or a live performance, I'm confronted by the fact that, when all is said and done, no one fully understands why or how the sound of a particular component, composition, or artist can affect us as powerfully as so many of them do. How and why music and sound moves us remains, fundamentally, a mystery.
While cities like New York, Detroit, and Philly all get more press for their jazz history and connections, Pittsburgh has a rich history as the birthplace of many notable swing and bebop jazz players. Bassist Ray Brown, drummers Art Blakey and Jeff "Tain" Watts, tenor saxman Stanley Turrentine, trumpeter Roy Eldridge, and the one and only Billy Strayhorn, famed collaborator of Duke Ellington and composer of "Take The 'A' Train," all came from The Burgh.
Thus was it fitting that, at the end of the Rocky Mountain International HiFi Press Awards (RIHPA) on the first night of the show, Gabi Rijnveld of Crystal Cable (left above) presented show organizer Marjorie Baumert (right) with a crystal rose pendant in honor of her dedication to the industry members and consumers who make high-end audio what it is.
And this Sunday, just when I thought I was done being dragged, I get this mad call from an out-of-breath Jason Victor Serinus, saying, "Herb! Get your ass up to room 1125 (the Parasound-Tekton room). The sound is amazing, and you must listen to this speaker. Hurry up!"
