Vivid Audio Introduces Giya Cu Loudspeakers

KEF Debuts New Finishes for Blade One Meta and Blade Two Meta

Sennheiser Drops HDB 630 Wireless Headphones

Sponsored: Radiant Acoustics Clarity 6.2 | Technology Introduction

PSB BP7 Subwoofer Unveiled

Apple AirPods Pro 3: First Impressions

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Stand Loudspeaker Reviews Budget Component Reviews

Pioneer SP-BS22-LR loudspeaker

Robert J. Reina Jul 02, 2013

I often receive letters from Stereophile readers. I've even gotten a few letters from female readers, one an attractive young lover of tube gear who sent me a picture of herself and [sigh] her boyfriend. But most are from people who are either thanking me for a specific review that resulted in a purchase and a satisfied buyer, or are suggesting products they'd like me to review. I frequently take the advice of writers of this second category; in fact, two of the inexpensive speakers I'll review in the next year were recommended by readers.

Stand Loudspeaker Reviews Budget Component Reviews

Music Hall Marimba loudspeaker

Stephen Mejias Jul 02, 2013

Late last year, when I first heard of the Music Hall Marimba, I was happily surprised: One of my favorite hi-fi manufacturers had finally introduced its first and (so far) only loudspeakerand it was seriously affordable at $349/pair. I wanted to review the Marimbas right away, but grumpy old Sam Tellig beat me to them.

Art Dudley Listening

Listening #127

Art Dudley Jul 01, 2013

The closest I've come to airing my thoughts about live vs recorded music was in the "As We See It" of the December 2005 Stereophile, "Resistance Is Futile," in which I put as many miles between the two as I could. I described live performances as works of art that exist only at the time and place of their making, variables from which their ultimate impact can never be separated; and music recordings as works of art in their own right, albeit ones that require a great deal more from the listener in order to succeed to their fullest. People respond more positively to live music not because it sounds more real, but because they understand, consciously or not, that any performance is a once-in-a-lifetime event.

Sweepstakes

Focal Spirit One Mobile Headphones Sweepstakes

Jon Iverson Jul 01, 2013

Register to win a set of Focal Spirit One Mobile Headphones (MSRP $279.00) we are giving away.

According to the company:

The result of 33-years of creating exacting sound in the finest homes, the most demanding sound studios and the most luxurious automobiles, multi-patent recipient Focal offers you their Spirit One portable stereo headphone - your sonic sanctuary in todays hectic noisy environment. Whether you commute across country in a plane, or just across town a few train station stops away, our Spirit One will comfortably immerse you inside the very heart of your musical experience.

[This Sweepstakes is now closed.]

Stephen Mejias

Payday Albums: 6/28/13

Stephen Mejias Jun 28, 2013

It’s been just over a month since my last Payday Albums post, but it feels much longer than that. I had been trying to spend less money on records, so that I could actually spend more time listening to the records that stood quietly on my shelves. A valiant endeavor, if I do say so myself, but one that didn’t really work out as intended: Instead of spending money on records, I spent money on books. I almost posted a Payday Books list, but I figured the grumpy old audiophiles would stone me for reading.

Floor Loudspeaker Reviews Audacious Audio

YG Acoustics Sonja 1.3 loudspeaker

John Atkinson Jun 25, 2013

The advertisements run by Colorado manufacturer YG Acoustics in 2008, when it launched its flagship loudspeaker model, the Anat Reference II Professional, unequivocally claimed it to be "The best loudspeaker on Earth. Period." They caused a stir. The YGA speaker cost $107,000/pair at the time of Wes Phillips's review in the March 2009 issue. Wes didn't disagree with the claim, concluding that, "Like my pappy used to say, it ain't braggin' if you can actually do it."

Sweepstakes

Crossno Gets Lucky

Ariel Bitran Jun 25, 2013

Peter Crossno of Salt Lake City, Utah is the lucky winner of Stereophile.com's Westone 4R in-ear monitor sweepstakes. He says, "They sound phenomenal." Look at that smile!

We're happy to make you happy Peter. Thank you for your participation!

Interviews

Jim Anderson: The Educated Ear

Robert Baird Jun 25, 2013

Tune those young ears, Mr. Anderson! After a 30-year career in audio engineering that's seen his name appear in the credits of over 1700 albums, Jim Anderson, who won the 2013 Grammy for Best Surround Sound Album, for his remastering of Patricia Barber's Modern Cool, thinks education is the key to stemming the tide of degraded sound that threatens to swallow the recorded-music industry. Anderson, who's taught for a decade in New York University's Clive Davis Department of Recorded Music, starts his students early.

Stephen Mejias

Yeah Yeah Yeahs: "Despair"

Stephen Mejias Jun 24, 2013

Simple, beautiful, majestic: The video for Yeah Yeah Yeahs "Despair," the second single from their recently released Mosquito, has the band on top of the Empire State Building, rocking joyously as the sun rises over the unreal city.

As We See It

Too Many Audio Shows?

John Atkinson Jun 24, 2013

In the wrap-up of his coverage of the 2013 Salon Son & Image show in Montreal, which took place at the end of March, Robert Deutsch asked if there were too many audio shows. The Chicago AXPONA show was held two weeks before SSI, the second New York Audio Show followed less than three weeks later. In May, there was the humongous High End 2013, in Munich, followed two weeks later by the third T.H.E. Show Newport Beach, followed by: the Capital AudioFest, in Washington, DC (July 2628); the fourth California Audio Show, in the Bay Area (August 811); the tenth Rocky Mountain Audio Fest (October 1113); and TAVES in Toronto (November 13).

While this is no more shows than took place in 2011 or 2012, many exhibitors, manufacturers and distributors alike, to whom I talked at the spring events felt that the high-end audio industry is suffering from an overload of audio shows.