Wayne Shorter is arguably the world's greatest living jazz composer, one of the…
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Wayne Shorter is 85. His mind moves at warp speed, a million miles from Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, who rescued him from Newark, New Jersey—or the Miles Davis's second great quintet, for which the saxophonist wrote the compositions that would establish his genius. Shorter's constellation of classic Blue Note recordings from 1964–67—Night Dreamer, JuJu, The All Seeing Eye, ETC, The Soothsayer, Adam's Apple, Speak No Evil, Schizophrenia—is now but a dim cluster of stars in his ever-expanding musical galaxy.
Friday December 14, at 3pm and 6pm, Fidelis (460 Amherst Street, Nashua, NH 03063) are presenting "An Afternoon with Michael Fremer" (above). Saturday, December 15, 11am–3pm, House of Stereo (8780 Perimeter Park Ct #100, Jacksonville, FL 32216) are hosting their 2019 KEF Product Launch event.
The Fidelis "Afternoon with Michael Fremer," Stereophile senior editor and editor of AnalogPlanet.com, has two sessions, at 3pm and 6pm. "Music Lovers Rejoice!: says Fidelis. There will be door prizes, a raffle, refreshments, and hors d'oeuvres, plus a ticket for a free microbrew next door. There is…
I needed one black tiddledywink (not provided) to use Dr. Feickert Analogue's three-speed, two-motor, two-armboard Blackbird turntable. The tiddledywink was for covering the Blackbird's painfully bright power-on LED so that it didn't blind me when I cued up a record. The first night, in my dark listening room, this tiny indicator sprayed the wall behind and the ceiling above with more light than a bright-emitting 845 vacuum tube.
When I push one of the Blackbird's three speed buttons, to select 78, 45, or 331/3rpm, the annoying light goes out—but I then have to move the tiddledywink to…
To me, the Koetsu Rosewood Signature Platinum felt extraordinarily natural, sophisticated, and correct. Most important, Koetsu's best rosewood-bodied cartridge made me feel good about the records I own. Once you go Koetsu . . .
My Sonic Lab Ultra Eminent Ex cartridge
One quiet midsummer morning, sunlight was penetrating the slots of my bamboo shades, casting thin ribbons of light across my room—a magic Koetsu black-disc morning. I'd just finished dreaming through both sides of the Reynaldo Hahn LP with the Koetsu in the Feickert Blackbird when suddenly I got the urge to switch from…
Sidebar: Contacts
Dr. Feickert Analogue, Stegenbachstrasse 25b, 79232 March-Buchheim, Germany. Tel: (49) 76-65-94-13-718. Fax: (49) 76-65-94-13-725. Web: www.feickert.org
Koetsu, Web: www.koetsuaudio.com
My Sonic Lab, Web: www.mysonic lab.com.
US distributor for all: MoFi Distribution. Web: www.mofidistribution.com
My Russian neighbor's blind grandfather, Vlad, has very discriminating ears—but only when I tell him what to listen for. If I don't, he just bitches about my choice of music. And he refuses to listen to "weak" American orchestras.
Not surprisingly, Vlad worships Mikhail Glinka. "Herb! Play Russlan and Ludmilla!" When he asks for "Pyotr Ilyich," I groan and quietly put the vodka back in the freezer.
A week ago, after an intense back-and-forth about Stravinsky, Leonard Bernstein, Sergei Diaghilev, and the Ballets Russes, I persuaded Vlad to perform a blind comparison of two fairly…
Through the Pass XA25, Bernstein conducting the NYP in The Rite of Spring (24/96 FLAC, Sony Classical/Qobuz) sounded marginally less sweet and supple, more stern, more like Gergiev's interpretation. There were less subtle gradations of tone in the strings. less tasty textured harmonics. But dang! The XA25 really made Stravinsky dance. It forced me to feel the orchestra's rising and falling energy. Musical-poetical moods were transmitted less by the beauty of observed sounds than by sensations of vibrating energy. The Pass XA25 presents the energy of music with an Olga Korbut–like athleticism…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Class-AB1 stereo tubed integrated amplifier. Tube complement: two 6922 (input buffer/preamp), two 6SN7 (pre-driver/phase inverter), four KT150 (output operated in push-pull Ultralinear mode). Inputs: 4 pairs single-ended (RCA). Outputs: 1 pair line-level subwoofer (RCA), 2 pairs five-way speaker binding posts, ¼" headphone jack. Power output: 100Wpc into 8 ohms (20dBW). Maximum gain: 34dB. Frequency response: 19Hz–23kHz, ±0.5dB. Input impedance: 100k ohms. Sensitivity: 450mV RMS.
Dimensions: 17.25" (440mm) W by 7.8" (200mm) H by 16" (405mm) D.…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog Sources: Dr. Feickert Analogue Blackbird turntable with Jelco KT-850L tonearm, AMG Giro G9 turntable & 9W Turbo tonearm, Linn Sondek LP12 Hercules turntable with SME M2-9 tonearm; AMG Teatro, EMT TSD 75, Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue, Hana SL, Koetsu Rosewood Standard & Signature Platinum, My Sonic Lab Ultra Eminent Ex cartridges.
Digital Sources: Mac mini computer running Audirvana+ 3.2; JVC X-Z1010 CD player (transport only); HoloAudio Spring "Kitsuné Tuned Edition" Level 3, Mytek Brooklyn, Schiit Audio Yggdrasil Analog 2 DACs.
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Sidebar 3: Measurements
I measured the Cary SLI-100 amplifier using my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 "As We See It"). Before doing so, I installed all the tubes, following the guide in the excellent manual, and checked the bias current for the KT150 output tubes. Each channel measured close to the recommended 75mA. I ran a 1kHz tone through the amplifier at 1Wpc into 8 ohms, then rechecked the bias before starting the testing. I checked the bias currents several times while performing the measurements, but neither channel had drifted by more than a few milliamps. I…