Digital sources: Oppo Digital UDP-105 universal disc player, Baetis Prodigy-X PC-based music server running JRiver Media Center v27 and Roon, Pink Faun 2.16x Linux-based music server running Roon, Mytek Brooklyn, exaSound e38 Mark II, and Okto DAC8 PRO D/A processors. QNAP TVS-873 NAS.
Preamplifiers: Parasound P7, Coleman Audio 7.1SW Balanced Surround Switcher.
Power amplifiers: Benchmark AHB2, Classé Sigma Mono.
Loudspeakers: Revel Ultima2 Studio (L/C/R), Revel Performa3 f206 (SL/SR), 2 × JL Audio f110v2 and 1 × JL Audio e110 subwoofers.
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Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I measured the Volumio Primo with my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 "As We See It"). I used test-tone WAV and AIFF files on a USB stick inserted into one of the four USB Type A ports on the Primo's rear. I selected the appropriate directory on that stick with the Volumio Settings page that appeared on my iPad mini after I logged on to the Volumio Wi-Fi network. The Primo is specified as being able to decode PCM data with sample rates up to 768kHz. I don't have any test tones encoded at that sample rate, but the Primo worked correctly with…
As I was doing a final edit on this column, I received very sad news from Leif Johannsen, the chief officer of acoustics and technology for cartridge manufacturer Ortofon A/S: Kim Petersen, described by Johannsen as his "right hand and new cartridge design and listening partner" and the company's "top cartridge expert," passed away suddenly at age 52. Mr. Petersen had worked all of his adult life at Ortofon (30 years), and, according to Johannsen, "knew everything about our cartridges, how they are/were produced, and all of the equipment used" in their manufacture. Johannsen added, "He was a…
On a practical level, this development allowed Ortofon to use a lightweight, precision-molded, high-strength, high-rigidity, nonmagnetic armature that doesn't alter the magnetic field as it moves. That, combined with ultrapure oxygen-free copper coils, is said to produce "perfect," uncompromised electric reproduction of the armature's physical movement. The efficient system also means significant voltage output is possible using a minimum number of coil turns—which, of course, reduces the system's mass.
The design achieves greater vibrational control using an improved WRD (wide-range…
Why is there so much separation between the professional audio and audiophile worlds? Is that separation by design, or even necessity? Is it naïve to believe that more crossover could benefit both sides?
On the surface, audiophiles and recording engineers appear to have much in common. Both groups have a deep interest in the conveyance of music's core emotional message. Audio engineers are—or should be—expert in creating the sounds that audiophiles want to hear. They—the engineers—probably spend more time listening intently (though differently) than all but the most zealous audiophiles.…
It says something about the power of music that some individuals fading into dementia can still recognize the music they knew earlier in their lives. Not to denigrate new music, or music one hasn't heard before, but our mental jukeboxes award top chart numbers to music that we have lived with over time. Those DJs making their playlists in our brain are the toughest of critics. They don't care what anyone else might think, "Close to You" is staying in the rotation. Music and memory are linked.
Music and place are linked as well. Stuck at home for the long, claustrophobic months of 2020, I…
Make More Noise! Women in Independent Music UK 1977–1987
Various artists. Various producers.
Cherry Red Records. CRCDBOX99. 4CD set and book.
Music *****
Sonics ***
Various artists. Various producers.
Cherry Red Records. CRCDBOX99. 4CD set and book.
Music *****
Sonics ***
The title of this set—4 CDs and a book—comes from British suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst's call to arms for women to fight for their rights: "You have to make more noise than anybody else," said Pankhurst, who died in 1928.
The first words you hear on Disc One of Make More Noise! are sung by Poly Styrene of X-Ray Spex, who was born almost 100 years after Pankhurst and died a decade ago, in 2011: "Some…
Many bands continue to play the straight-ahead rock styles associated with punk. The A-Heads, the Expelled, and Vice Squad are examples. From there, it's a short distance to heavy metal; the all-female rock band Girlschool took that step. "Take It All Away" is one of several songs in the collection that was a pleasant surprise to me. I tend to react to the words "heavy metal" with eyes rolling and a grimace, but this is a fine track. It's time for me to listen to more Girlschool, I think. Like all good compilations, MMN broadens one's horizons.
What hooked me then, when these bands were…
Sidebar: Sonics
How does Make More Noise sound? It sounds like it should sound, or as near as it could come without ticks and pops.
This music ranges from the late analog era through the early CD era—from five years before the first commercial CDs were released, in 1982, to five years after. Some tracks sound good; a few aren't very good at all. It's all pretty flat and in-your-face. You wouldn't mistake any of it for perfectionist audio.
This is primitive music, in the best sense, much of it made and recorded with a DIY aesthetic. It's not supposed to sound polished, and…
Nick Cave: Idiot Prayer: Nick Cave Alone at Alexandra Palace
Bad Seed Limited B08GV91Y6Q (LP). 2020. Dom Monks, Cave, prods.; Matt Coulton, eng.
Performance *****
Sonics ****
Bad Seed Limited B08GV91Y6Q (LP). 2020. Dom Monks, Cave, prods.; Matt Coulton, eng.
Performance *****
Sonics ****
This double album, and the accompanying film, were recorded at Alexandra Palace in June 2020, when London was in full lockdown. Ally Pally, as it's affectionately known, sits in grandeur atop a hill, looking out over glorious panoramic views of the city—now deserted because of a fear of a microbe. It was a scene repeated across the world, as everywhere fell silent.
This sense of isolation is…