Stephen Mejias

After we lifted the big Vivid Giya onto a rotating platter, JA got under the hood and connected the speaker cables to his test amp. JA loves it when speaker terminals are hidden beneath a speaker. For a larger view, visit our">http://forum.stereophile.com/photopost/showphoto.php/photo/2217/passwor… Gallery.

The Wilson MAXX 3, showered under the red light for the feature shot on page 67 of our September 2009 issue.

Under the soft blue light: Grails' most awesome Interpretations of Three Psychedelic Rock Songs from around the World goes for the ride of its life on the massive SME 20/12 turntable.

On Saturday, March 3rd, during an unusually warm and sunny afternoon in Jersey City, the Audio Doctor held an open house to introduce new products from Unison Research. Our hosts for the event were Dave and Paula Lalin of the Audio Doctor and Colleen Cardas and Marc Phillips of Colleen Cardas Imports (CCI), the exclusive US distributor for Unison Research and Opera Loudspeakers.

Before listening, Lalin invited us into the kitchen for some delicious food and drink. “This is a party!” he said. After I stuffed my face with meatballs, chicken wings, chips, and cookies, we headed into my favorite of Lalin’s four listening rooms&#151a medium-sized room at one corner of his beautiful Victorian home, packed with hi-fi gear, and home to “The Rack.”

There, Colleen Cardas introduced herself and told us the story of how she and her business partner, Marc Phillips, the Vinyl Anachronist, became involved with Unison Research and Opera.

“Are these things on?”

When I first met Josh Ray at a hi-fi show several years ago, I was impressed by his desire to bring high-end audio to a larger audience&#151an endeavor that I can easily appreciate. At the time, Josh sat atop the masthead of the forward-thinking audio review website, Sonic Flare. Along with Danny Kaey and a small cast of writers, Josh made Sonic Flare a fun and interesting web destination. But while SF’s reviews were consistently informative, I always wondered if Josh’s interests were more aligned with promoting the overall idea and allure of high-end audio.

Today, Danny Kaey has assumed full responsibility for Sonic Flare, while Josh Ray turns his attention to a new endeavor: Urban Fidelity, a loudspeaker company aimed at bringing hi-fi to a new generation of listeners. Josh sees an opportunity:

Congrats to Josh Ray and Urban Fidelity for reaching their Kickstarter goal. With the funding necessary to get off and running, Urban Fidelity seems poised to make a big debut at this year’s Rocky Mountain Audiofest. In pictures, they're gorgeous, but I can’t wait to find out how these speakers really look and sound.

But at just $399/pair ($299/pair, if purchased before August 8), they seem like a bargain: floorstanding loudspeakers, made in the US, featuring several unique designs by independent artists.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this.