Each year, while proofing the data which makes up the Stereophile Buyer’s Guide, I come across new and interesting components. At this point in the proofing process, we’re deep into the analog gear, which of course comprises my favorite section of the book. So, while the task can be tedious and draining, it’s fun to discover new products. Here are just a couple that have caught my eye:
Today Klipsch announced the launch of their new Synergy Series loudspeakers. If recent reviews by Wes Phillips (of the $20,000/pair P-39F) and Erick Lichte (of the $4000/pair P-17B) can offer any indication of what to expect from this new Synergy line, we are in for a treat.
The September 2010 issue of Stereophile is now on newsstands. The cover shows an extreme close-up of the Audio Research VSi60 integrated amplifier, highlighting its beautiful tubes. I was very impressed by this amplifier’s looks, as well as what I (perhaps fancifully) perceived to be its contributions to a very fine systemat the 2009 SSI, so I was happy to learn we’d be featuring the VSi60 on our cover.
The move is going fairly well. I’m almost completely settled in. I didn’t feel like waiting for the movers, so I just moved myself. Because all Source Interlink employees at 261 Madison Avenue will now be on a single floor, some people lost their private offices. While some are now sharing offices, I took a cubicle. So I no longer have a view onto sunny decks, no redbrick walls, no green trees; the only thing I can see from my seat is a gray cloth partition.
Audyssey, a company specializing in room equalization technologies (ask Kal), has launched a sweepstakes for fans of high-quality sound. There are some cool prizes, including a Marantz NR1601 slimline home theater receiver and an 8GB iPod Touch. To participate, become a fan of Audyssey on Facebook and fill out a short questionnaire. For complete details, click here.
I’m so much more impressed by good, affordable systems than I am by those costing tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars. I find it difficult to concentrate on music when I’m overwhelmed by the high prices of the gear delivering it. Price should never be the most impressive aspect of hi-fi.
For just a few days now I’ve been receiving mysterious e-mails from “Jazz on the Tube.” At first I wondered if they were spam, and I was afraid to click on the links inside. But they all seemed harmless enough: A few kind and thoughtful words, a passion for jazz, a hand held out in friendship, a smile. So I clicked the link and was taken to a simple page with a narrow, white field against a black border and a YouTube video at the center.
Just like me, Belle and Sebastian write about love. The band’s new album is due out here in the States on October 12. It will be mine. You can listen to a clip on the Matablog. The song, “I Want the World to Stop,” sounds just as dark and groovy and infectious as you might imagine. I’ve listened to it about 69 times already.
The October issue of Stereophile shipped to press yesterday afternoon. (Hallelujah.) We are already deep into the November issue, while our new editorial assistant, Ariel Bitran, is tackling the 2011 Buyer’s Guide. In addition to all of that, and on top of the regular stuff, the entire office is in the process of moving onto the 6th floor of our 261 Madison Avenue location. Construction crews are tearing down walls and building new cubicles, painters are turning white and gray into blue and cream, movers are carrying tables and desks up flights of stairs. My office is cramped with boxes, but this time they’re moving boxes.
Sort of like a drunk wandering around the East Village in search of companionship or something, I stumbled upon this outstanding article by Stereophile’s former senior contributing editor, Jonathan Scull. The piece, “All Sales Are Vinyl,” which appeared in the December 1997 issue of The Atlantic Monthly, takes the reader on a brisk tour of Greenwich Village record shops. Though many of the shops mentioned are long gone, others such as A-1, the Jazz Record Center, Academy Records, and Other Music are still going strong, and Jonathan’s writing is at its best. Not only does he capture the joy of the vinyl hunt, he illuminates this unreal city, and does so with his unique, charming withis comic timing is brilliant.
Well, I just got off the phone with Steve Daniels of The Sound Organisation, US importer for Rega, and while I don’t have a ton of information on Rega’s new RP-1 turntable, I do have some good news:
And look who’s back: It’s Ariel Bitran! Ariel worked as our part-time editorial intern, enabling us to complete the 2008, 2009, and 2010 editions of the Stereophile Buyer’s Guide, before departing for a full-time gig with Mini-Circuits.
On Tuesday, September 14thtwo days before my 33rd birthdayAnti- Records will release Grinderman 2, the second studio album from Nick Cave’s heathen child, Grinderman. And we are in for a treat. The review will appear in our October issue, but I’ll just let you know now: The album is violent, powerful, horrifying, and hilarious.