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Two Days in August: Stereophile's First Jazz Recording The Musicians

The Musicians
Jerome Harris (Taylor acoustic bass guitar, composer, leader) is also an accomplished guitarist who has played with Sonny Rollins and, most recently, drummer Jack DeJohnette. He has recorded many records as a session musician and bandmember. Jerome Harris' albums as leader include Algorithms (Minor Music), In Passing (Muse), and his tribute to Eric Dolphy, Hidden in Plain View (New World/Countercurrents).

For the Rendezvous sessions, Harris decided to concentrate on his acoustic bass guitar, a Taylor AB-1. "I've become fascinated by the instrument," he explained…

Two Days in August: Stereophile's First Jazz Recording Rendezvous

Rendezvous
Jerome Harris Quintet Plays Jazz / STPH013-2

Jerome Harris (acoustic bass guitar), Marty Ehrlich (alto sax), Arthur Baron (trombone), Steve Nelson (vibraphone), Billy Drummond (drums)

1. Decision Point 11:03
2. Sway Low 7:37
3. The Mooche 8:07
4. Cool Pursuit 7:03
5. Followthrough 9:12
6. Only Then 6:35
7. Hand By Hand 10:21
Total Playing Time: 60:30

All selections by Jerome Harris (Chocowinity Sounds), except "The Mooche," by Duke Ellington & Irving Mills, published by Duke Ellington Music. All selections are ASCAP.

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Two Days in August: Stereophile's First Jazz Recording Gear List

Gear List
Recording equipment: two Shure SM-81 ½" cardioid microphones (vibraphone); two Brüel & Kjaer 4006 ½" omnidirectional microphones (sax/trombone); two Brüel & Kjaer 4011 ½" cardioid microphones (main drum pickup); Shure Beta 57A dynamic cardioid microphone (snare drum); AKG D112 dynamic hypercardioid microphone (kick drum); AKG D190E dynamic cardioid (bass guitar cabinet); Cardas 300B, Canare, Beyerdynamic, and AudioQuest Lapis balanced microphone cables; Millennia Media HV-3B microphone preamplifiers (drums & vibes); Bryston BMP-2 microphone preamplifier (snare…

NHT SB-3 loudspeaker

I first met NHT co-founder Ken Kantor in 1975 when we were both undergraduates at MIT. Kantor was sponsoring an extracurricular class entitled "Musical Ideas." The concept was to stick a dozen or so musicians in a classroom for free improvisation and hope to create music à la Miles Davis' Bitches Brew. The result was a mess; although talented guitarist Kantor meant well, there was no common vision or consistency of musical talent. Nevertheless, I had a blast trying to simulate a tamboura drone with a Hohner Clavinet, phase shifter, and volume pedal.

I ran into Kantor at a Consumer…

NHT SB-3 loudspeaker Page 2

The SB-3's midrange and high-frequency strengths combined to make it an excellent reproducer of solo piano. On Two Hours with Thelonious Monk (Riverside 460/461), recorded live in Europe in the early '60s, Monk leaves his trio for one tune to do a touching, breathtaking solo rendition of "Body and Soul." Through the SB-3, Monk's upper-register right-hand figures were pristine, detailed, and dynamic, but without any unnatural edge.

Bass reproduction was remarkable on several fronts. Midbass reproduction was a touch warm and ripe but did not sound colored; this character was uniform…

NHT SB-3 loudspeaker Specifications

Sidebar 1: Specifications

Description: Two-way, sealed-box stand-mounted loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" metal-dome, neodymium-magnet tweeter; 6.5" polypropylene-cone woofer. Crossover frequency: 2.4kHz. Frequency response: 39Hz-22kHz, ±3dB. Sensitivity: 86dB/W/m. Nominal impedance: 8 ohms. Recommended amplification: 15-175W.
Dimensions: 13" H by 8" W by 10" D. Weight: 16 lbs.
Finish: gloss black.
Serial numbers of units reviewed: 004197 & 8.
Price: $600/pair. Last Stand speaker stands, $200/pair. Approximate number of dealers: 500.
Manufacturer: NHT, 527 Stone Road,…

NHT SB-3 loudspeaker Associated Equipment

Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment

Analog sources: VPI TNT IV turntable, Immedia tonearm, Koetsu Urushi cartridge; Rega Planar 3 turntable, Syrinx PU-3 tonearm, Clearaudio Aurum Beta S cartridge.
Digital sources: California Audio Labs Icon Mk.II Power Boss, Creek CD53 Mk.II CD players.
Preamplification: Vendetta Research SCP-2D phono stage, Audible Illusions Modulus L1 line stage.
Power amplifier: Audio Research VT100 Mk.II.
Integrated amplifiers: Creek 5350SE, JoLida JD-101A.
Loudspeakers: Paradigm Atom, Polk RT25i, JMlab Chorus 706, Alán Petite.
Cables: Interconnect: MIT…

NHT SB-3 loudspeaker Measurements

Sidebar 3: Measurements

I didn't find the NHT SB-3 to be as sensitive as the specification claims: my estimate of its B-weighted sensitivity was around the same as the similarly sized LS3/5A, at 82.5dB/2.83V/m. Fig.1 reveals that the speaker is easy to drive in the upper midrange and above, where its impedance remains above 8 ohms. However, in the lower midrange the impedance drops to 4 ohms, with a somewhat demanding combination of 42 degrees capacitive phase angle and 5.7 ohms magnitude evident at 81Hz.

Fig.1 NHT SB-3, electrical impedance (solid) and phase (dashed). (…

Revel Home Theater (SGHT Review)

Revel. Interesting name for a new speaker company. The most apt definition of the word from my old dictionary is "to take much pleasure; delight." Or perhaps those who chose the name were intrigued by the wordplay they could make with "revel-ation."

No matter; it's a name that sticks in the mind. And with the management skill of Sandy Berlin (formerly head honcho at Madrigal Audio Labs), the design experience and talent of Kevin Voecks (formerly with Snell Acoustics), and the financial backing and facilities of Harman International Industries (a conglomerate consisting of JBL, Infinity,…

Revel Home Theater (SGHT Review) Page 2

Our review samples sported a classy gloss-black finish with dark rosewood side panels. The gloss-black finish caused no light-reflection problems, but it costs an extra $3100 for the three front speakers and a single subwoofer. The curved grille on the Gems (and the other models) is held in place by the wood end panels, and it is not easily removable; you have to take the panels off to do so. I left the grilles in place on all the Revel speakers throughout my listening tests. I was a little concerned that the front corners of the side panels, which extend past the plane of the front baffle,…