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My own. My love. My precious.

Photo: Kelsey Ohira

May 12, 2014. The day it all began. Three major events happened in my life on May the 12th:

1. My violent hatred towards the USPS was born.
2. I spent the most I ever have, till this very day, on a yellow cab (footnote 1).
3. A divine pair of Technics SL1200 Mk.II turntables entered my life.

Well, they didn't exactly enter my life, per se. They were left on my (then) doorstep in West Harlem, which may give you some insight on #1. More on that later. I need to calm myself. (Sips Earl Grey vehemently in straightjacket.)

By this point in…

Recording of July 2016: <I>American Tunes</I>

Allen Toussaint: American Tunes
Nonesuch 554644 (CD). 2016. Joe Henry, prod.; Ryan Freeman,, eng.; Wesley Seidman, Monique Eveleyin, asst engs. ADD? TT: 49:31
Performance ****½
Sonics ****½

David Bowie, Glenn Frey, Phife Dawg, Merle Haggard, Dan Hicks, Ernestine Anderson, Lonnie Mack, Maurice White, Blowfly, Otis Clay, Steve Young, George Martin, Keith Emerson, Henry McCullough, Prince. Was there a genre or subgenre of music that did not grieve in the closing months of 2015 through spring 2016—a period that must rank among the most devastating ever for the loss of important…

What If They Gave a CES and Nobody Came?

Last January, in Las Vegas, a record 170,000 people attended the 2016 Consumer Electronics Show. Most of them neither saw nor heard a trace of high-end audio gear. Not only was all mention of what CES calls "high performance audio" absent from the show's official Attendee Guide, but the hallways of the Venetian Tower, which in past CESes were filled with high-end manufacturers, dealers, and distributors, were anything but crowded.

Given the steady decline, in recent years, in CES attendance by high-end audio distributors and dealers, many observers were not surprised by the decreased…

The Meze 99 Classics Headphones Sweepstakes

According to the company:

What is it that discards the superfluous, the gimmicky, the flashy, the questionable, the overly fragile, the misplaced? The obvious answer would be time. And this is also the riddle of good design: very few objects achieve such a rarefied consistency of qualities. This is our aim with the Meze 99 Classics, the anti-fragility of a classic, with a sound on par with the design. Pure, natural sound in a timeless body.

Click here for more info.…

Dealer Events in Maryland Thursday and Washington State Friday

Thursday, June 16, 6–9pm: Gramophone will celebrate the Grand Opening of their Gaithersburg showroom (8513 Grovemont Circle, Gaithersburg) with an evening of wonderful music, delicious food, and world-class audio/video systems, while on Friday, June 17, 6–9pm: Gig Harbor Audio (3019 Judson Street, Suite D, Gig Harbor) and J-Corder (5800 Soundview Drive, D-101, Gig Harbor) will host a "Tactile Psychoacoustics" listening party.

Participating brands at the Gramophone event will include AudioQuest, Bowers & Wilkins, McIntosh, Lutron, Sony, and many more. For additional information and to…

Zu Audio Soul Supreme loudspeaker

My lifestyle consultant warned me not to review Zu Audio's Soul Supreme loudspeaker ($4500/pair).

"Why not?" I asked. "They're exciting and super-enjoyable."

"Zu speakers are not mainstream," he explained. "People either love them or hate them. They're for music lovers, not audiophiles."

"That's not true!" I whined like a disappointed child. "They play Nina Simone and Aretha Franklin with spooky soul and natural tone! They play big classical orchestras—especially with trumpets and timpani—with radical ease and full-tilt momentum! And . . . and . . . they project large…

Zu Audio Soul Supreme loudspeaker Page 2

I was cheerfully surprised by how similar the First Watt J2 and Line Magnetic LM-518IA sounded driving the Soul Supremes. Both delivered an easy-flowing, articulate musicality that let me relax and slip into the music. Both did rhythm and momentum as well as the best amplifiers I know. Both demonstrated extraordinary tonal character. Both danced wildly and jammed into the mosh pits. Both did candlelit seduction. The biggest difference I could feel was not in how each amp sounded or played music, but in how each had its own special way of controlling the speakers and establishing the music's…

Pass Labs HPA-1 headphone amplifier

When Pass Labs is mentioned, it's natural to think of its founder, iconic engineer Nelson Pass. But Nelson heads a team of engineers at the California company: Their XP-30 preamplifier, which I enthusiastically reviewed in April 2013, was designed by Wayne Colburn; and the subject of this review, the HPA-1 headphone amplifier, is the first Pass Labs product designed by Jam Somasundram, former director of engineering for Cary Audio. Somasundram joined Pass Labs in July 2013; he spent a year working on the HPA-1, which was shown at the 2015 Consumer Electronics Show, in Las Vegas, but not…

Zu Audio Soul Supreme loudspeaker Specifications

Sidebar 1: Specifications

Description: Two-way loudspeaker with "Zu-Griewe" acoustic woofer loading. Drive-units: Radian 850 compression-driver tweeter with 3" diaphragm and 2" throat (12–20kHz); Zu103ND/G1-16 10.3" woofer (full-range, unfiltered). Frequency response: 35Hz–20kHz, ±3dB. Sensitivity: 97dB/2.83V/m. Nominal impedance: 16 ohms.
Dimensions: 37.7" (965mm) H by 12" (308mm) W by 12" (308mm) D. Weight: 70.4 lbs (32kg).
Finishes: Ghost Black Maple, Sangria Maple, Blond Maple, American Walnut, Gloss (most colors).
Serial numbers of units reviewed: 0220 Mk.1 (Rev.A1).…

Pass Labs HPA-1 headphone amplifier Specifications

Sidebar 1: Specifications

Description: Solid-state headphone amplifier/line preamplifier. Analog inputs: 2 unbalanced (RCA). Analog outputs: 1 pair unbalanced (RCA), 1 locking ¼" headphone jack. Maximum output power: 3500mW into 20 ohms, 200mW into 300 ohms. Frequency range: 10Hz–100kHz. Voltage gain: 8dB. Input impedance: 50k ohms. Output impedance: <2 ohms, headphones. Signal/noise and channel separation: not specified. THD+N: <0.005% at 1V output. Power consumption: 6W.
Dimensions: 11" (280mm) W by 4.5" (115mm) H by 12.9" (330mm) D. Weight: 14 lbs (6.35kg).
Serial number…