It was an audacious demonstration. For the launch of Aerial's 20T loudspeaker at the end of 2002, Aerial's head honcho and designer, <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/interviews/467">Michael Kelly</A>, had arranged to compare the speakers reproducing the recorded sound of virtuoso violinist Arturo Delmoni with the <A HREF="http://forum.stereophile.com/photopost/showphoto.php/photo/467">real thing</A>. The setting was the ornate dining room of one of Newport, Rhode Island's many mansions, and, given the inevitable differences&#151;due to the facts that a violin has a very different radiation pattern from a loudspeaker and thus excites the room differently, and that the recording inevitably gives the listener a double dose of the room's acoustic&#151;the demo was successful. There was much subsequent argy-bargying between <I>Stereophile</I>'s reviewers about who would review the Aerial 20T, but it was Michael Fremer who eventually <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/floorloudspeakers/404aerial">wrote about it</A> in April 2004.

It was an audacious demonstration. For the launch of Aerial's 20T loudspeaker at the end of 2002, Aerial's head honcho and designer, <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/interviews/467">Michael Kelly</A>, had arranged to compare the speakers reproducing the recorded sound of virtuoso violinist Arturo Delmoni with the <A HREF="http://forum.stereophile.com/photopost/showphoto.php/photo/467">real thing</A>. The setting was the ornate dining room of one of Newport, Rhode Island's many mansions, and, given the inevitable differences&#151;due to the facts that a violin has a very different radiation pattern from a loudspeaker and thus excites the room differently, and that the recording inevitably gives the listener a double dose of the room's acoustic&#151;the demo was successful. There was much subsequent argy-bargying between <I>Stereophile</I>'s reviewers about who would review the Aerial 20T, but it was Michael Fremer who eventually <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/floorloudspeakers/404aerial">wrote about it</A> in April 2004.

It was an audacious demonstration. For the launch of Aerial's 20T loudspeaker at the end of 2002, Aerial's head honcho and designer, <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/interviews/467">Michael Kelly</A>, had arranged to compare the speakers reproducing the recorded sound of virtuoso violinist Arturo Delmoni with the <A HREF="http://forum.stereophile.com/photopost/showphoto.php/photo/467">real thing</A>. The setting was the ornate dining room of one of Newport, Rhode Island's many mansions, and, given the inevitable differences&#151;due to the facts that a violin has a very different radiation pattern from a loudspeaker and thus excites the room differently, and that the recording inevitably gives the listener a double dose of the room's acoustic&#151;the demo was successful. There was much subsequent argy-bargying between <I>Stereophile</I>'s reviewers about who would review the Aerial 20T, but it was Michael Fremer who eventually <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/floorloudspeakers/404aerial">wrote about it</A> in April 2004.

Every now and then an affordable product comes along that's so good, even wealthy shoppers want it. Past examples in domestic audio include the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/turntables/184rega">Rega RB300</A> tonearm, the original Quicksilver Mono amplifier, the Grace F9E phono cartridge&#151;even Sony's unwitting CD player, the original <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/cdplayers/708play">PlayStation</A&gt;. Based on word of mouth alone, one might add the HRT Music Streamer+ to that lauded list.

Every now and then an affordable product comes along that's so good, even wealthy shoppers want it. Past examples in domestic audio include the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/turntables/184rega">Rega RB300</A> tonearm, the original Quicksilver Mono amplifier, the Grace F9E phono cartridge&#151;even Sony's unwitting CD player, the original <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/cdplayers/708play">PlayStation</A&gt;. Based on word of mouth alone, one might add the HRT Music Streamer+ to that lauded list.

Every now and then an affordable product comes along that's so good, even wealthy shoppers want it. Past examples in domestic audio include the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/turntables/184rega">Rega RB300</A> tonearm, the original Quicksilver Mono amplifier, the Grace F9E phono cartridge&#151;even Sony's unwitting CD player, the original <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/cdplayers/708play">PlayStation</A&gt;. Based on word of mouth alone, one might add the HRT Music Streamer+ to that lauded list.

Every now and then an affordable product comes along that's so good, even wealthy shoppers want it. Past examples in domestic audio include the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/turntables/184rega">Rega RB300</A> tonearm, the original Quicksilver Mono amplifier, the Grace F9E phono cartridge&#151;even Sony's unwitting CD player, the original <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/cdplayers/708play">PlayStation</A&gt;. Based on word of mouth alone, one might add the HRT Music Streamer+ to that lauded list.

Every now and then an affordable product comes along that's so good, even wealthy shoppers want it. Past examples in domestic audio include the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/turntables/184rega">Rega RB300</A> tonearm, the original Quicksilver Mono amplifier, the Grace F9E phono cartridge&#151;even Sony's unwitting CD player, the original <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/cdplayers/708play">PlayStation</A&gt;. Based on word of mouth alone, one might add the HRT Music Streamer+ to that lauded list.

<B>Jim O'Rourke: <I>The Visitor</I></B><BR>
Drag City DC375CD (CD). 2009. Jim O'Rourke, prod., eng. AAD? TT: 38:03<BR>
Performance ****<BR>
Sonics ****

"Check it out." Music editor Robert Baird handed me a CD. "He's 70 years old, it's his 13th album, he got Don Was to produce it, and it's his best yet."