Listening #119

Listening #119

Nov 14, 2012
Apart from a 2004 column in which I made cruel fun of the angriest (footnote 1) complaints I'd received to that point—an entertaining if lazy template I hope to re-use before long—I've done little to acknowledge the mail I receive every week, most of it thoughtful and positive. I'm especially grateful for the nice letters I get every time I write about vintage audio, as I did in Stereophile's August issue ("Five vintage loudspeakers you should hear before you die"): The art of music is best served by an open-minded approach to playback gear, and I'm encouraged to think that some Stereophile readers actually understand that.

Center Stage: Guitarist Albert Lee in surround sound

Center Stage: Guitarist Albert Lee in surround sound

Nov 13, 2012
Humble, unprepossessing, modest are not words normally associated with lead guitarists, or lead singers, or lead anything. But Albert Lee, the Fender Telecaster devotee, has, by all accounts, always been refreshingly down to earth. The other unusual quality about Lee is that he's an English guitarist who, in country music, can hold his own against any American player.

The Solti Ring Remastered...Again

The Solti Ring Remastered...Again

Nov 13, 2012 First Published:Jan 01, 1998
A few conductors have perhaps equaled Georg Solti in their conducting of Richard Wagner's baton-breaking Der Ring des Nibelungen—Karl Böhm, Daniel Barenboim, Herbert Keilberth, and Reginald Goodall have all had coherent visions of the work which they were able to translate effectively to disc. But no one has ever equaled what Solti, producer John Culshaw, and what looks increasingly like a hitherto unsuspected golden age of Wagner singers, together accomplished: what is still the recording art's crowning achievement.

A Basshead's Delight: The V-Moda Crossfade M-100

A Basshead's Delight: The V-Moda Crossfade M-100

Nov 13, 2012
This story originally appeared at InnerFidelity.com

Steve Guttenberg and I have gone back and forth on whether measurements are useful to consumers, but we both agree that the measurements don't tell you whether it's a good headphone or a great one. The V-Moda M-100 doesn't measure great, but that sure as heck doesn't mean they don't sound great.

I'll untangle all those double negatives in the article.

A Much Belated CMJ Report

A Much Belated CMJ Report

Nov 12, 2012
CMJ in New York City is a clusterfuck. Too many bands billed at each venue for them to handle with ease in one night. Too many shows to choose from all within a 2-block radius with about fifty bands you have never heard of and only nine you have. And too many people who are there for the “CMJ” experience rather than to witness the bands. Nevertheless, this CMJ was a good one.

For the Live Music Junkie: Concert Vault

For the Live Music Junkie: Concert Vault

Nov 12, 2012
Bill Graham: holocaust survivor, legendary concert promoter, and all-around badass.
Photo by Mark Sarfati

Please. One more hit. Just one. That’s all I need. Another song, another act. It won’t hurt. It can’t hurt. I promise this will be the last place we go. Four hours later, we wake up on a subway train in Brownsville, Brooklyn.

Live music can be a dangerous thing. The thrills of a live show, the blending lightshow, the stomach-shaking bass, the spit and the sweat, are irreplaceable, but the life of the live music junkie can drain one’s energy and bank account. Fortunately, thanks to the folks at Concert Vault, you can get your live music fix on daily basis for just $2.99 a month.

Chord Launches the DSX1000 Network Player

Chord Launches the DSX1000 Network Player

Nov 12, 2012
Rather than debut its new $13,000 DSX1000 Network Music Player in the UK, where the company is based, Chord founder and chief scientist, John Franks (above), traveled to Mountain View, CA on November 8 for the unveiling. The site was the spacious, extremely attractive Northern California showroom of Audio High, one of the high-end dealers in the US that display Chord's top-end Reference products.
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