Nor was the situation aided by promotional e-mails lecturing us on…
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There are shows that raise our expectations and there are shows from which greatness is not expected. And after October 26, when the organizers of the New York Audio Show, taking place at the Rye Hilton in Westchester County this weekend, announced that they were capping the number of exhibitors at 30—imagine Mike Huckabee or Hillary Clinton announcing a limit on corporate donations—this event slipped into the latter. No amount of positive, industry-healthy attitude on the part of myself or anyone else can shiny that up.
We make our beginnings in the manner of our endings; so it was on Saturday morning, when I headed back to the Rye Brook Hilton's Maple Room, where Friday evening Michael Lavorgna, Steve Guttenberg, and I had spun ripping yarns of shipping labels and galley proofs on the high seas of audio reviewing. (Yarr.) I was there to hear a presentation called Great Sound: Beyond the Gear: Life and Technology: A Compromise—a title with more colons than a lower-GI specialist sees in a week!—by an audio engineer/designer/producer/acoustical consultant named Stuart Allyn. I was running a minute or two late…
Tuesday, November 10, 6–9pm: To celebrate the US dealer premiere of AudioQuest's Niagara 7000 Low-Z Power Noise-Dissipation System, Ultra Fidelis (7125 West North Avenue, Wauwatosa) will host an evening of music, hi-fi, and technology. Special guest Garth Powell, AudioQuest's Director of Power Products, will be on hand to provide a detailed discussion on AC power technology and demonstrate the Niagara 7000 (above).
Other featured gear will include Vandersteen 5A Carbon loudspeakers, amplification and electronics from Audio Research and Moon by Simaudio, stands and isolation devices from…
It’s all about the power of the mix, in this case a mix of two voices. There have been times when the pairing of Gillian Welch and Dave Rawlings has been a bit too funereal for my tastes. As the one time managing editor of Stereophile’s Guide to Home Theater Michael Metzger once blurted out during a quiet moment at a Welch show, “Who died? I didn’t know I was going to a funeral!” A number of murderous glances warmed his cheeks. Yet later in the show, when the pair upped the tempo to something approaching a spirited ballad, there was a collective exhale even among the Welch cultists followed…
The day after I met manufacturer/industrial artist David Stanavich, it dawned on me why I was so taken with his Waxrax record racks: These sturdy, stylish, steel-and-aluminum structures resemble the shelving in my elementary school's library, ca 1960. If I could, I'd fill my home with multiples of the Waxrax LP-V3 tower seen here (LP capacity: 550). But at approximately $4000 per unit, depending on finish and options, this Brooklyn-built rack is too pricey. (To store 550 LPs for $4k works out to over $7 per record—which is more than many records themselves are worth.) Another item for my When…
The word flagship takes on new meaning when the product in question is literally the size of a small boat; so it is with MartinLogan's 75"-tall, 385lb Neolith loudspeaker ($79,995/pair), which combines electrostatic and dynamic transducers in a high-tech phenolic frame. Appropriately enough, the Neolith's appearance at the Rye Brook Hilton took place in one of the two largest rooms reserved for the New York show. (One day after the show, I'm still not sure if those are sound-enhancing accessories, objets d'art, or dinner plates on the wall behind the Neoliths: There exist some questions that…
Yet another towering figure in the music world is gone, as Allen Toussaint died on Monday of a heart attack in Madrid, Spain at age 77. For many years the centerpiece around which much of New Orleans music revolved, he was the last in a long line of New Orleans piano professors that also includes Professor Longhair, Huey “Piano” Smith, Fats Domino and Smiley Lewis, to name just a few. Toussaint was related to the Neville clan in NOLA via his mother who was a Neville. In the late 1950s, he began his career as a protégé of the great Dave Bartholomew, who at 94, survives him. Before 1960, he’d…
Manhattan dealer Innovative Audio Video Showrooms (150 East 58th Street) is celebrating its recent renovation with three “VIP” events: Thursday, November 12, 6–9pm; Friday November 13, 4–7pm; and Saturday, November 14 12–6pm. Special presentations will feature Peter McGrath of Wilson Audio Specialties, Ryan Donaher of Meridian Audio, Dr. Edgar Choueiri of Theoretica/BACCH-SP, and Bill McKiegan of D'Agostino Master Audio Systems.
To reserve a seat, please email rsvp@iavny.com or call (212) 634-4444.
Chicago dealer Musical Artisans will host their winter open-house event on Saturday, November 14, from 6:30–9:30pm, featuring the North American premiere of four exciting products. Ulrik Madsen, President and lead engineer at Argento Audio and Organic Audio will present the official introduction of the new Organic Reference cable line, and the world premiere of the FMR Extreme Edition interconnects. Irv Gross, Vice President of Sales at Constellation Audio will present the Virgo III preamplifier and all-new Centaur II amplifier in their first appearance at a US dealer. Allan Moulton, US…
When we first heard rumors that Shure Brothers was about to unleash something called "trackability" on the audio world, our reaction was mainly one of indifference. We already had loudspeakers with listenability, tape recorders with portability, and amplifiers with stability and dependability. Trackability, we figured, was just another clever sales gimmick; a catchy word that the advertising department had thought up to describe what everyone wanted in a pickup.
How wrong we were! Trackability is a catchy word, but it also describes the most meaningful pickup measurement that's come along…