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Meridian 508.24 CD player ($2995, reviewed by Wes Phillips, Vol.21 No.5, May 1998 Review)
Z-Systems RDP-1 digital preamplifier/equalizer ($5000, reviewed by Kalman Rubinson, Vol.21 No.7, July 1998 Review)

Finalists (in alphabetical order):
Audio Research CD2 CD player ($3495; reviewed by Wes Phillips, Vol.21 No.4, April 1998 Review)
Balanced Audio Technology VK-D5 CD player ($4500; reviewed by Jonathan Scull & John Atkinson, Vol.21 No.5, May 1998 Review)
Bow Technology ZZ-Eight CD player ($7500; reviewed by Michael Fremer, Vol.21…

Simon Yorke Designs Series 7 Analogue Disc Transcription System ($10,000; reviewed by Michael Fremer, Vol.21 No.6, June 1998 Review)

Finalists (in alphabetical order):
Graham 2.0 tonearm ($2250–$3000, depending on options; reviewed by Michael Fremer, Vol.21 No.2, February 1998 Review)
Grado The Reference phono cartridge ($1200; reviewed by Michael Fremer, Vol.21 No.3, March 1998)
Koetsu Urushi phono cartridge ($4000; reviewed by Michael Fremer, Vol.21 No.10, October 1998 Review)
Lyra Parnassus D.C.t phono cartridge ($3495; reviewed by Michael…

Sennheiser HD600 headphones ($449.95; reviewed by Sam Tellig & Wes Phillips, Vol.21 No.2, February 1998 Review)

Finalists (in alphabetical order):
Black Diamond Racing Cones & Shelves (Cones, $20 each; Shelves, $440–$875; reviewed by Jonathan Scull, Vol.21 No.6, June 1998)
Grado Reference Series RS-1 headphones ($695; reviewed by Sam Tellig, Vol.21 No.2, February 1998 Review)
Nordost Blue Heaven loudspeaker cables ($399/2m pair; reviewed by Brian Damkroger, Vol.21 No.6, June 1998)
Philips CDR880 CD-R/CD-RW recorder ($649; reviewed by…

Creek 4330R integrated amplifier ($595, $495 without remote control; reviewed by Sam Tellig, Vol.20 No.11, November 1997; Wes Phillips, Vol.21 No.8, August 1998)

Finalists (in alphabetical order):
California Audio Labs Gamma D/A processor ($195; reviewed by Muse Kastanovich, Vol.19 No.11, November 1996; Robert J. Reina, Vol.20 No.5, May 1997, and Vol.21 No.1, January 1998)
LFD Mistral integrated amplifier ($1095; reviewed by Sam Tellig, Vol.21 No.9, September 1998)
Mission 731i loudspeaker ($299/pair; reviewed by Robert J. Reina, Vol.21 No.4…

Conrad-Johnson ART preamplifier

Finalists (in alphabetical order):
Audio Artistry Beethoven loudspeaker
Cary Audio Design CAD-805C monoblock power amplifier
JMlab Utopia loudspeaker
Krell FPB 250M monoblock power amplifier
Mark Levinson No.33H monoblock power amplifier
Meridian 508.24 CD player
Revel Ultima Gem loudspeaker
Sonic Frontiers Processor 3/Transport 3
Thiel CS6 loudspeaker
VTL MB-1250 monoblock power amplifier
Z-Systems RDP-1 digital preamplifier/equalizer

Conrad-Johnson's ART preamplifier…

If there's one aspect of the high-end obsession that perplexes "civilians," it's the fact that our preamplifiers and amplifiers don't have tone controls, let alone that flashing-light focus of the mid-fi rack system, a graphic equalizer. I have a confession to make: I once owned an equalizer. In addition, my first amplifier, a Kenwood integrated that I bought in 1969, sported tone controls; my first high-end preamplifier, a Lecson AC-1, also did so; and I used those controls!

But as my musical and sonic tastes…

The two-chassis Boulder 2108 phono preamplifier may be very expensive—it costs $52,000—but it is one of the best-measuring phono preamplifiers I have encountered. Check those measurements out…

I was planning to ignore the big three oh oh—my 300th Analog Corner column—and go about my normal business of covering an assortment of new analog gear and accessories. There's an abundance of those today, 25 years after the publication of my first column. Back then, there was far less to write about: Vinyl was on life support and headed for the obsolete-music-format trash heap atop a pile of Elcasets and 8-track tapes.

As I commenced writing that more conventional column, second thoughts took hold. Three hundred is just a number, but it's…

When the Los Angeles Times ran an editorial extolling CDs' excellence, I sent a letter, which was published, opining that I hoped the paper knew more about diplomacy and economics than it did about good sound. I was on the warpath.

After 6 years at The Absolute Sound, I quit in 1995—a hilarious story best told in a different venue. John Atkinson offered me a job at Stereophile and accepted my…

Issue 54 of The Absolute Sound, cover-dated July/August 1988, had arrived in my mailbox. I had been warned that this issue contained a report from Stereophile's third hi-fi show, which had been held in Santa Monica the previous April. Although it wasn't listed in the issue's table of contents, I found the show report on page 186, written by Michael Fremer, who was listed on the magazine's masthead as "Senior Editor: Pop Mix."

I first met Michael at the…