Freedom Isn't Just Another Word
John Flahive answered the phone one evening. On the other end of the line was a stranger, George Martorano calling from prison. That call changed both their lives.
Wes Phillips
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Did you convert your system to multichannel audio? Has it stuck with you? Why or why not?
During the SACD and DVD-Audio heyday, multichannel audio was finding new converts. Did you convert? Has it stuck with you? Why or why not?
Focal Electra 1037 Be loudspeaker
With the introduction of the 1000 Be series in 2005, Focal slipped its exclusive, high-performance beryllium tweeter out of the stuffy-looking Utopia series and into a sleeker, more stylish, more modern form.
AAD Reference Silver-1 loudspeaker
<I>Bookshelf loudspeaker</I>. The phrase may be common usage, but I really dislike describing small speakers as "bookshelf" models. Place a pair of high-performance minis on a bookshelf against the wall and you destroy much of the sound quality for which you've paid. Yet place the same speakers on good stands well away from room boundaries, and while it could be argued that their footprint is no smaller than a conventional tower speaker, with the best designs you'll get true high-end sound, particularly regarding the accuracy of midrange reproduction and the stability of stereo imaging.
Life, Love, and The Big Ahh
A fellow member of the Bay Area Audiophile Society recently forwarded to me a link to Wikipedia's entry for audiophile. It's a horror. Even before the page defines the word, it begins with a large question mark, circled in green, and the warning, "This article or section may contain original research or unverified claims. Please help Wikipedia by adding references."
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Recording of July 2007: The Third Quartet
<B>JOHN ABERCROMBIE: <I>The Third Quartet</I></B><BR>
John Abercrombie, electric & acoustic guitar; Mark Feldman, violin; Marc Johnson, bass; Joey Baron, drums<BR>
ECM 1993 (CD). 2007. Manfred Eicher, prod.; James Farber, eng. DDD. TT: 59:45<BR>
Performance ****½<BR>
Sonics ****½
Last-Minute Reprieve for Web Radio
Things looked grim for Internet radio late last week. On July 11, the DC Circuit Court of Appeals declined to delay the <A HREF="http://stereophile.com/news/031907internet/">increase</A> in digital performance royalties the Copyright Royalty Board imposed last March. The new fees were scheduled to go into effect on July 15, retroactive to the beginning of 2006.
Tweeter Acquired for $38 Million
Tweeter Home Entertainment Group, Inc., whch declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy on <A HREF="http://stereophile.com/news/061807chapter11/">June 11</A>, accepted a $38 million bid for a "going concern" acquisition from Schultze Asset Management, a firm specializing in "distressed positions."
Bridges to Babylon
Stadium rock is my idea of the inner circle of Hell. I hate crowds. I have zero interest in the rich and famous. And I've never been much of a Rolling Stones fan. Give me a choice, and I'll take Weslia Whitfield at the Plush Room 10 times out of 10: a cushy seat, some witty companions, a little Irving Berlin and Cole Porter. Heavenly.
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