The sound
I've used the word "stunned" so frequently in my reviews that I dare not use it again, lest its meaning be blunted. "Gobsmacked," a descriptor oft invoked by one of my mentors, John Atkinson, is a viable alternative, but it, too, is more than a bit overused by audiophiles. Yet "surprised" is inadequate to convey my reaction when I began auditioning the Varèse Transport. I was amazed to hear what I heard and astonished to feel what I felt.
Which doesn't mean that there weren't false starts. I began with a track Scott often chooses—one which we could play on CD and…