Loaded with Delicacy and Detail: The Fi 46 Monoblock
Don Garber's Fi 46 monoblocks, in "test mule" form.
Stephen Mejias
The Retro-Futuristic World of High-End Audio
The Peachtree Audio MusicBox
In “Old-School Hi-Fi in Search of the New New Thing,” Hal Espen visits the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest and ponders the inherent dilemma of hi-fi.
How can a decidedly old-fashioned hobby move forward in an increasingly newfangled world?
In “Old-School Hi-Fi in Search of the New New Thing,” Hal Espen visits the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest and ponders the inherent dilemma of hi-fi.
How can a decidedly old-fashioned hobby move forward in an increasingly newfangled world?
Outside the listening rooms, the story of this year's Rocky Mountain Audio Fest traced the mood-swings and anxieties that buoy and beset the retro-futuristic world of high-end audio.
Saturday Night at the Monkeyhaus, Part III
DeVore Fidelity Gibbons, in cherry and bamboo and rosewood cabinets, in all shapes and sizes and states of life. Some of these little sweethearts may never see the light of day, while others may wind up in the home of some happy music lover.
Saturday Night at the Monkeyhaus, Part II
The self-titled album by Guano Padano, released earlier this year by Important Records, is a joy. The band, an Italian three-piece (Alessandro Stefana, Zeno de Rossi, and Danilo Gallo), is joined by Alessandro Alessandroni (whistler, best known for his work in Ennio Morricone’s soundtracks), Gary Lucas (Captain Beefheart/Jeff Buckley guitarist), Chris Speed (clarinet player with Tim Berne, Uri Caine, and John Zorn), and Italian singer, Bobby Solo, who does a fine rendition of Hank Williams’ “Ramblin’ Man.” Awesome album; great sound, too.
Saturday Night at the Monkeyhaus, Part I
On Saturday, November 6, John DeVore of DeVore">http://www.devorefidelity.com/">DeVore Fidelity hosted a Monkeyhaus">http://www.monkeyhaus.net/">Monkeyhaus Listening Party at his Brooklyn Navy Yard factory. If not for the pictures, a selection of which I’ll post over the next three days, I might not remember the event at all—not because the party was forgettable, but because we had so much fun.
Monkeyhaus: Colorado Springs
Rob of Colorado Springs writes:
Back to Life, Back to Reality
Puerto Rico was wonderful, as always. We stayed at a place called Bello">http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p145641">Bello Horizonte, a comfortable home away from home, hidden atop a palm-covered hill in the sandy town of Rincon, where every road leads to the ocean. (I highly recommend it. The house sleeps six in three bedrooms, has two bathrooms, a wide-open patio with two hammocks, a very fine grill, washer and dryer, and a pool that looks down the hill and onto the nearby beaches. Full disclosure: My aunt rents the house; so, yeah, I want you to go there and give my aunt your money.) Our days were spent by the pool or on the beach (or at the bar on the beach), relaxing and laughing. My favorite moment was walking into the glittering, blue-green sea, with a six-pack of Coronas in one hand and a coconut in the other.
The Post-Show Blues
Photo: John Atkinson
Drinking Rum
I’ll be up by 3am tomorrow morning, on my way to JFK International Airport to board an early flight to Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. Once in Aguadilla, we will rent a small car and drive a few miles to my aunt’s guest house, which is situated atop a lovely little hill in the great beach town of Rincon. I will spend the next five days there, drinking rum and thinking about nothing in particular.
Inside Box Number One
Inside Box Number One: Sumiko’s new Okki">http://www.sumikoaudio.net/okki_nokki/idx_products.htm">Okki Nokki record cleaning machine ($549)!