Digital Sources: dCS Paganini SACD/CD transport & Rossini DAC & Scarlatti clock & Vivaldi DAC & Network Bridge; Mytek HiFi Brooklyn DAC; Oppo Digital UDP-205 universal BD player; Intel NUC7i7BNH with 8GB RAM, 128GB SSD, running Roon; Apple MacBook Pro computer with Intel i7, SSD, 8GB RAM; iPad Pro, external hard drives, USB sticks.
Power Amplifiers: Pass Laboratories XA200.8 monoblocks.
Loudspeakers: Wilson Audio Specialties Alexia.
Cables: Digital: AudioQuest Diamond (FireWire, Ethernet), Nordost Odin 1 & Odin 2 &…
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Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I measured the Aurender A10 with my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 "As We See It"), using the Audio Precision's optical digital outputs, and data stored on the A10's internal hard disk and sourced from a NAS on my network. The serial number of the sample I'd been sent for measurement was ASA4A0096A10, its system software was v.5.10.16, and the Conductor app running on my iPad mini was v.2.8.6 (1730).
The optical inputs accepted data sampled up to 96kHz, the internal drive and the network connection files sampled at up to 384kHz. The…
Recently, I opened a package and there was a pair of records that feature Elvis Presley's voice singing over a new rhythm track and new orchestral accompaniment played by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. Both are huge hits in the UK and the US, having sold over a million copies each. My eyes instinctively narrowed. A cynical smile curled across my lips. "Gimmick" I dissed with a whisper.
But wait! Much as elitist music fans like to get snobby and disparage anything that sells, sometimes you just have to open your ears, hold your nose, stifle the facetiousness and just listen. Everything…
If the holidays are a time for fantasy, what better way to celebrate than with the first complete recording of David Del Tredici's (b. 1937) absolutely fantastic fantasy, Child Alice for soprano and orchestra? Based on the "Alice" adventures of Lewis Carroll—Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and the sequel, Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found (1871)—the first part of Child Alice, entitled In Memory of a Summer Day, won the 1980 Pulitzer Prize in Music, and helped solidify the then 43 year-old composer's position as the foremost exponent of the Neo-Romantic movement in music…
Maybe it's a Noo Yawk thing, but while most discussions of Christmas music revolve around what's the best Christmas song, the finest expression of Christmas music lies in a Christmas album, and that of course would be A Christmas Gift for You From Phil Spector, the crowning achievement of Wall of Sound creator turned convicted murderer, Phil Spector. While cuts like The Ronettes' "Be My Baby" or Ike and Tina Turner's "River Deep-Mountain High" are justifiably famous, it may be the Christmas record that will eventually become Spector's most influential and likable legacy.
It's natural to…
L–R: NoHo Sound's Chris Petranis, Alex Roy, taxidermy bear, & Ron Kain
In an industry constantly perplexed by the absence of youth, diversity, and appreciation for the hobby, three audiophiles set out to revolutionize the industry with the opening of a new hi-fi shop in New York City that is anything but ordinary. NoHo Sound & Stereo (NoHo Sound for short) is located in a swanky loft in the lower Manhattan district NoHo—open seven days a week, by appointment only, with a second location in Chelsea. They offer: Analog Domain, Audio Research, Aurender, Box Furniture, Croft Acoustics…
In February 2017, Bryston announced the latest upgrade of their Digital Player, introduced in 2011 as the BDP-1 ($2195), and upgraded in 2013 to the BDP-2, with a faster Atom N450 processor. The new BDP-3 Digital Player ($3495) comes equipped with an even faster Intel Quad-core processor; a Bryston-manufactured integrated audio device (IAD) in place of a third-party sound card; a custom Intel Celeron motherboard; a bigger power supply; and two additional USB ports, for a total of eight—three of which use the faster USB 3.0 protocol. Two USB 3.0 ports run on an entirely separate USB bus,…
Sidebar: Specifications
Description: Roon Ready digital music-file player running modified Linux operating system with USB 3.0 pots and optional 500GB drive. File formats accepted: AIFF, FLAC, WAV, MP3, M4A, OGG, DSD. Word depths supported: up to 32 bits. Sample rates supported: 44.1–384kHz PCM and DSD128.
Dimensions: 17" (435mm) or 19" (490mm) with rack ears W by 2.75" (70mm) H by 11" (280mm) D. Weight: 12 lbs (5.44kg) net, 15.2 lbs (6.9kg) shipping.
Finishes: Black, Silver.
Price: $3495; WiFi Accessory Kit costs $80. Approximate number of dealers: approximately 80. Warranty…
The company appears to be long gone, but throughout the 1970s, virtually every Sunday, there was an ad in the New York Times Magazine for a manufacturer of whole-house music systems—I recollect the name as Bolton, but that gets no hits on Google, so perhaps I've misremembered—with a headline that went something like: "ENJOY MOZART IN THE DINING ROOM, BEETHOVEN IN THE LIVING ROOM, AND THE ROLLING STONES IN THE CHILDREN'S ROOM." I remember wondering even then, as a distinctly unworldly teenager in upstate New York: Who in God's name would want such a thing? Why squirt background music…
Of course, that was only one of many highlights of my stay. I played Irving Berlin's upright Steinway. I read from some of his books. (He evidently enjoyed history, political biographies, and early sci-fi.) I sat in his easy chair and gazed out the enormous picture window at the cascading waters of the Beaver Kill tributary that runs through the Berlin estate.
The Beaver Kill—a 44-mile-long river that cuts a swath from one side of the Catskills to the other—was the ostensible main attraction of our visit last summer. It is to fly-fishing enthusiasts in the Northeastern states as St.…