When I arranged to review the Bryston 28B-SST monoblock power amplifier, I wanted to be certain that the 1kW amplifier wouldn't be starved for current. Bryston advised me that Plitron, who manufacture the 28B-SST's toroidal transformer, also make Power Isolation Units (PIUs), under the brand name Torus Power. Torus explained that its PIUs combine surge suppression with massive toroidal transformers to provide AC power conditioning and protection from voltage surges.

I had planned to feature a few intriguing new products I saw at CEDIA's Expo 2007 held last September in Denver, but I did that on the <I>Stereophile</I> <A HREF="http://blog.stereophile.com/cedia2007">website</A&gt;. Instead, I'll just tell you about the only big audio trend I saw there: HDMI.

I had planned to feature a few intriguing new products I saw at CEDIA's Expo 2007 held last September in Denver, but I did that on the <I>Stereophile</I> <A HREF="http://blog.stereophile.com/cedia2007">website</A&gt;. Instead, I'll just tell you about the only big audio trend I saw there: HDMI.

I had planned to feature a few intriguing new products I saw at CEDIA's Expo 2007 held last September in Denver, but I did that on the <I>Stereophile</I> <A HREF="http://blog.stereophile.com/cedia2007">website</A&gt;. Instead, I'll just tell you about the only big audio trend I saw there: HDMI.

I had planned to feature a few intriguing new products I saw at CEDIA's Expo 2007 held last September in Denver, but I did that on the <I>Stereophile</I> <A HREF="http://blog.stereophile.com/cedia2007">website</A&gt;. Instead, I'll just tell you about the only big audio trend I saw there: HDMI.

Jaki Byard’s <I>Sunshine of My Soul</I> (High Note) has come to my attention a bit late, otherwise it would have made my Top 10 list at the end of last year. Yet another long-lost concert-tape dug out of the vaults, it takes us to San Francisco’s Keystone Korner in June 1978, where Byard is flying barrel-rolls solo. Byard—who died in 1999 at 77, gunned down on his doorstep for still-unknown reasons—was a pianist both virtuosic and rowdy. His left hand is rock-solid, his right hand fleet with fury. Imagine Willie “The Lion” Smith pressure-cooked by Mingus (Byard played in Mingus’ band through most of the ‘60s), and you get some idea. He was a teacher to Jason Moran and Fred Hersch, two of today’s most versatile jazz pianists, and you can hear much of his influence in their work as well, especially Moran when he cruises through stride licks.