Music in the Round #29

Music in the Round #29

Mar 25, 2008

For years, I have espoused the use of the same speakers (except subwoofer) in all positions for multichannel music. To have no speaker in the system contributing a different voice to the choir seems as intuitive as having the room acoustics not color the sound. Of course, this still doesn't guarantee perfect timbral match&mdash;positioning and room acoustics usually impose some unique characteristics under all but the most perfect and symmetrical conditions. You can hear tonal imbalances even between the left and right speakers of most <I>two</I>-channel systems simply by switching pink noise between them. On the other hand, there's no reason to superimpose on these unavoidable differences the additional imbalances inevitable with using different speakers in a multichannel array.

Department of Justice Clears Sirius/XM Merger

Department of Justice Clears Sirius/XM Merger

Mar 25, 2008

On March 24, the Department of Justice's Antitrust Division stated that, "after thorough and careful review" (<I>translation:</I> more than one year) Sirius Satellite Radio's $5 billion offer to purchase XM Satellite Radio "is not likely to harm consumers."

DIG!!!

DIG!!!

Mar 25, 2008

I still sometimes forget that the year is 2008. It'll take me a few more months to get used to it. No doubt about it, though: 2007 is old news. I can tell by the copyright dates on my new CDs. It's 2008. The birdies are making all sorts of happy racket outside my kitchen window; the high temperatures are creeping up, up, slowly up; Opening Day is less than a week away.

Showing Up at a Car Show with a Listening Room

Showing Up at a Car Show with a Listening Room

Mar 25, 2008

Visitors to the 2008 International Auto Show, currently taking place at NYC's Jacob Javits Convention Center, might discover something different at the Bentley display: a high-end audio listening room. Bentley Motors and Naim have teamed up for the <A HREF="http://stereophile.com/news/022108bentley/">"Naim For Bentley"</A> program, which will be offered as a sound package upgrade for all Bentley models by year's end.

Hi-Tech Mumbo Jumbo

Forums
General Rants 'n' Raves
Submitted by jazzfan on

It seems to me that we audiophiles bear an unfair burden when it comes to taking a beating for the outrageous claims of the manufacturers of various pieces of audio equipment, especially cables. While watching some of the NCAA basketball tournament this past weekend I saw plenty of commercials for lots of different high tech products, most of which filled with claims that make even the most fictional of the cable claims seem downright reasonable.

DACs that use AKM chips?

Forums
Digital Sources
Submitted by linden518 on

I was wondering if you guys know of any standalone DACs that use AKM (Asahi Kasei Microsystems) DAC chips. I know that PS1 uses it, & I like it a lot, and found out that SlimDevices Transporter uses AKM 4397 DAC. Since I already have a SB3, I wanted to see if getting a AKM-based DAC would get me close to the sound of the Transporter...

What's Happened To HALCRO ???

Forums
General Rants 'n' Raves
Submitted by drumguy48 on

Hi All, I decided yesterday to go and photograph the outside of the Halcro factory (about 2 miles from my home) to post on the gallery, but surprise, surprise, when I got there - All signs had been removed, gates open and just empty buildings!!!Is it just a relocation for financial reasons, or something more sinister???

In Heavy Rotation

Forums
The Great Beyond
Submitted by linden518 on

Let's get this snowball rolling! (Great idea, Stephen!)

Mitsuko Uchida - Beethoven Opus 101 & The Hammerklavier

Gerald Finley (J. Drake, piano) - Samuel Barber Songs

Pieter Wispelwey - Bach Cello Suites

Karl Bohm/Vienna - Bruckner 4 (Decca Legends)

Radu Lupu - Schubert Sonatas

Soile Isokoski (Segerstam/Helsinki) - Sibelius: Luonnotar Orch. Songs

Grand Valley State Univ - Steve Reich: Music for 18 Musicians

Solomon - Late Beethoven Sonatas

Kaija Saariaho: Complete Cello Works

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