Gramophone Dreams #16: Sony & AudioQuest headphones
May 23, 2017
As much as I delight in pagan dreams of sweetly perfumed garden nymphs, I'm embarrassed to admit that my mind also drifts in pleasant reveries whenever I hear the words research and development in the same sentence. I am by nature a greasy gearhead. The idea of taking well-considered steps of engineering to analyze and possibly improve the operation of any electrical or mechanical system never fails to get my imaginative juices flowing. This is why I've spent decades fascinated by perfectionist audio: I like watching and participating in its edgy, eccentric evolution.
Those two words, from Shakespeare's Hamlet, express an entire philosophy of life in one of the shortest sentences possible. The quotation may not be familiar, but the concept certainly iscontemporary equivalents, each with its own inflections of meaning, include: Shit happens. Let the game come to you. Keep calm and carry on. (I hate that one.) Paul McCartney wrote something similar, and only slightly less concise, in a late Beatles song.
Sonoma Acoustics Model One Electrostatic Headphone and Amplifier System
May 23, 2017
This story originally appeared at InnerFidelity.com
One hell of a story here. Interesting roots in a buncha places. I'm going to power through it with pics and links if you're interested in a deeper dive. Here we go!
E.S.P., recorded over three sessions in January 1965, marked a major turning point in the music of Miles Davis...Mobile Fidelity's 45rpm two-disc vinyl reissuemastered from the original ¼-inch, 15ips, two-track tapes by Krieg Wunderlichcaptures the sound's bloom and detail with more warmth and detail than any previous pressing, including Columbia's original.
Last week, I embarked on a nearly three-hour public transportation trek from Queens to Cliffwood, NJ to take a tour of turntable and tonearm manufacturer VPI Industries, with Mat Weisfeld as my host. During the tour, I got to meet every member of the VPI family, learn about each step of the process, and get a firsthand look at a couple of unreleased products!