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The Continental Flying Spur was demonstrated in two varieties: The "regular" Flying Spur, which has 19" tires and a 48-valve, 552bhp W12 engine, and the "Speed," which put the Flying Spur on 20" rims, and a 600bhp version of that W12—and outfits it with Bentley's carbon/silicon carbide brakes.
While the Naim for Bentley system has a six-disc changer, I found its glove-box mounted iPod cradle awfully useful. It has the MFI (made for iPod) authentication chip, so all of your iPod's playlists, titles, and other metadata are displayed on the GPS touchscreen in the center of the console. All iPod functions can be controlled through the touchscreen, including scrolling though all selections or leaving a playlist for shuffle.
Adjusting the EQ for every 1km change in speed, the Dynamic EQ has over 300 settings. Other fun tricks include various EQ "modes," allowing the system to be voiced for the driver's position or for the rear right passenger's seat. ("Home James, and give me the sweet spot!")
You can also choose an "audiophile " mode that doesn't monkey with spatial reorientation—not that I reckon Bentley owners for hair-shirt audiophiles.
In July, I received an invitation from Bentley to participate in a "driving event" involving the 2009 model Continental Flying Spur and Continental Flying Spur Speed. How come? Because the 2009 Bentleys have the Naim For Bentley music system and, in addition to debuting it for the automotive press, Bentley wanted some hi-fi writers along for the, umm, ride.
Most name brand car audio systems are either constructed out of parts supplied by OEM divisions over in the automotive sector or utilize a few brand-specific parts such as drivers or DSP, but the Naim For Bentley project started…
Uncle Isaac is building a new house. When he asked me how he might go about getting music to play throughout several different rooms of his home, the first thing that came to mind was Sonos. (Of course, if it was my house, I'd have a different-colored turntable in each room: Colonel Mustard in the library, Professor Plum in the study, Mr. Green in the billiards room, Miss Scarlet in the kitchen (wink wink)….)
Last week, the dudes from Sonos stopped by the office to share their latest news. They were excited.
Sonos' Bundle 150 includes their new ZonePlayers (ZP 120 and ZP…
It’s appropriate that I’d be listening to Irma Thomas’ new R&B record, Simply Grand when I heard that Jerry Wexler had died.
To paraphrase what Edwin Stanton said about Lincoln (actually it’s his own revision of what he actually said), “Now, Atlantic Records belongs to the ages.” Neshui (1989), Tom Dowd (2002), Ahmet (2006) and now, Wexler, who died at age 91 at 3:45 this morning (Friday, August 15, 2008) are all gone. What an incredible creative vision this trio of unlikely collaborators had. At the risk of sounding maudlin and doomy, the music world will never again see the…
"Yeah, Ryan, we'll be right over after we watch a couple episodes of Curb."
Evening plans formed as Kimmy and I hung around my apartment. A usual night was in order: We'd head over to Ryan/Kyle/Alex/Julia's apartment, maybe play some Rock Band, and conclude the evening with beer and a game of Celebrities, which always proves to kick any other standard board game out of the water, including Scategories.
But before heading over, Kimmy and I just wanted to sit down and watch a couple episodes of our favorite show, Curb Your Enthusiasm. We got distracted though, as is always…
Fans of the Fiery Furnaces will be happy to know that the band is releasing a collection of live material. Charmingly titled Remember, the album brings together songs from the entire Fiery Furnaces catalog, digging way back to 2005 and even including tracks from last year's Widow City. With 51 tracks in all, Remember will be available as a triple-LP gatefold, and will include a coupon for free MP3 download. Pretty artwork, too.
I have a hard time with the Fiery Furnaces. I love them in bits and pieces. When they do speak to me, I am absolutely rapt by their blend of ingenuity,…
The music industry is responding to our recent enthusiasm for vinyl, reports the Los Angeles Times. Original Recordings Group, a small vinyl-only label, needed only 24 hours to sell 4000 copies of TV on the Radio's excellent Return To Cookie Mountain. The label is on the way to grossing their first million dollars, and expects to double its vinyl output in 2009. Meanwhile, Warner Bros. has increased their vinyl production from 2000 copies per title to up to 15,000 copies. Such increases, of course, have a dramatic impact on pressing plants. Record Technology Inc's average pressing…
Silently, unbeknownst to many out there (not that you should know—but the thoughts are on constant repeat in my head—thus I think the world knows):
I've been building a hi-fi system.
It started last summer with my Grado SR60s. Then I bought a Rega P-1 with the glass platter upgrade and blue felt mat. Then I came back to Stereophile for the summer of 2008. I first bought a Bellari VP129, that glorious piece of red circuitry.
Then there were a couple of Usher S-520s sitting in our review closet. After discussing it with their representative Stan…