Stephen Mejias

Funny thing about carting a $1600 amplifier down these New York City streets during the evening rush: People just don't give a crap; they'll run you over. No problem. In fact, I was almost shown to that great, big listening room in the sky by an SUV (with Jersey plates, of course) just outside Herald Square. And try getting a $1600 CD player through the PATH station turnstiles; there's no special "Hi-Fi Entrance" down there. You're left to your own devices. I employed the lift and twirl method, but only after realizing that the push and shove method wasn't going to work.

In any case, I made it.

It wasn't until I got the units home — after the bumpy ten minute walk from the Grove Street station and up my three flights of wobbly stairs — that I realized I'd need some interconnects to actually make the things work. Duh. They looked so pretty, too, just sitting there, all quiet but teeming with watts and dynamics and stuff. Such a tease.

I shot an e-mail out to JA.

To: Atkinson, John
From: Mejias, Stephen

Yo JA! I want to hook up the Musical Fidelity pieces this weekend, but I'm guessing I'll need some interconnects. If you have any interconnects just hanging out at your place, would you be able to bring them in for me, please?

And JA got right back to me.

To: Mejias, Stephen
From: Atkinson, John

Will do so, Stephen.

Cool, right?

Next morning, JA actually came in with two different sets of interconnects: one cheap pair and one more expensive.

I held them up in the air, taking note of their many differences, question marks dancing in my eyes.

"The cheap pair," JA explained, "are not shielded. So, if they hum, it means..."

JA paused. I waited, anxiously hanging on to the silence.

If they hum, it means...?
It means...?

"Well," he continued, "if they hum, it means they don't know the words to the song."