Recently added articles from Sensible Sound:
Red faced rich again.(RAMBLINGS)(Oppo DV-980H DVD player)(Brief article)
Apr 01, 2008 ... In his review of the Oppo DV-980H in the January 2008 issue of Stereophile, Kalman Robinson identified some AV receivers as incompatible when playing SACD discs over the HDMI link because the subwoofer (0.1) channel is inactive. I did not check for activity in the subwoofer channel and ...
The audiophile who cried wolf.(RAMBLINGS)(Brief article)
Apr 01, 2008 ... A long time ago, an audiophile descended from the forest to warn that preamps could alter the sound of a Hi Fi even if they measured very well. The wise men of the village who belonged to the Audio Engineering Society (AES) debunked the claim and the villagers were happy. A little later ...
CES 2008.(RAMBLINGS)(Consumer Electronics Show)(Brief article)
Apr 01, 2008 ... As far as I could tell, little changed from 2007. Major companies like JBL, Infinity, Onkyo and Yamaha skipped the show entirely preferring to show at CEDIA. The press corps must have multiplied ten-fold with all the internet websites and bloggers. As a result, the high-end music rooms ...
Acoustisoft MP-B-USB Kit ($425): www.acoustisoft.com.(AUDITIONS)(Product/service evaluation)
Apr 01, 2008 ... High quality room measurements are now easier with the Acoustisoft MP-B-USB Kit. I recommended the Acoustisoft (also know as ETF Acoustic) RPlusD software in Issue 113 but did not discuss options for microphones and soundcards. Doug Plumb has long recommended the Radio Shack ...
Audio-Technica ATH-A700 Headphones ($299): www.audio-technica.com.(AUDITIONS)(Product/service evaluation)
Apr 01, 2008 ... Headphones, headphones .... Everybody uses them in some fashion but nobody wants to give you some help in choosing them. There are, of course, several types: over the ear and on the ear, either open or closed back types, and the kind used mostly for mobile applications, ear buds and ...
SVS SCS-01 satellite speakers & SB12-plus subwoofer.(Product/service evaluation)
Apr 01, 2008; Ferstler, Howard ... Manufacturer: SV Sound International LLC, 6420 Belmont Ave., Liberty, OH 44420; (877) 626-5623; www.svsound.com Prices: (factory direct): satellites: $350 per pair (black or white vinyl); black-vinyl finished sub: $699 (maple, oak, or rosenut: $749; piano gloss black: $799) ...
KEF reference model 205/2.(speaker)(Product/service evaluation)
Apr 01, 2008; Strauss, Glenn Oliver ... Manufacturer: KEF America, 10 Timber Lane, Marlboro, NJ 07746; (732) 683 2356; www.kef.com Price: $12,000/pair Source: Manufacturer loan The Design KEF is one of the most distinguished names in audio, with roots extending back to its founding ...
Onkyo TXSR 705 and TXSR 805 AV receivers.(Product/service evaluation)
Apr 01, 2008; Rich, David A. ... Manufacturer: Onkyo USA, 18 Park Way, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458; 201/785-2600; www.us.onkyo.com Prices: $900 / $1100 Source: Manufacturer Loan I am not listing all the features, I/O connections, and specifications to save space. The complete ...
NHT classic four loudspeakers.(Product/service evaluation)
Apr 01, 2008; Strauss, Glenn Oliver ... Manufacturer: NHT, 6400 Goodyear Road, Benicia, CA 94510; 1-800-NHT-9993; www.nhthifi.com Price: $1,800/pair Source: Manufacturer loan While this is my first review of NHT products, their speakers are actually well-known to me. When Ken Kantor was chief ...
More jazz than not.(THE MUSIC)(Sound recording review)
Apr 01, 2008 ... Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 5 "Emperor"; Piano Sonata No. 28 Helene Grimaud, piano/Staatskapelle Dresden/Vladimir Jurowski (Deutsche Grammophon B0009840-02) This new recording of the "Emperor" Concerto arrived not long after I had completed my comparisons of two recordings of ...
Double Double.(THE MUSIC)
Apr 01, 2008 ... For this issue, Tom Lyle and I have decided enter the 21st century and try something a bit different from what we normally do. Rather than compare two CD releases of the same composition, we are comparing a commercial CD release to a release downloaded and burned to a CD. The Deutsche ...
Vinylla fudge.(THE MUSIC)(Sound recording review)
Apr 01, 2008 ... Sonic Youth The Destroyed Room, b-sides and rarities (Goofin' Records goo-012) It seems as if for this issue's column I'm returning to some old favorites once again. It's not my fault: they keep releasing records, and I keep acquiring them. This time out, Sonic Youth releases ...
Carousel corner.(THE MUSIC)(Sound recording review)
Apr 01, 2008 ... A large portion of this issue's column is devoted to Rhino's new and spectacular "Nuggets" compilation, Love Is the Song We Sing, San Francisco Nuggets 1965-1970, a, well, loving look at the explosion of indigenous bands and their novel approach to rock'n'roll in the greater Bay Area ...
Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 5; Piano Sonata No. 28.(Sound recording review)
Apr 01, 2008; Puccio, John ... Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 5; Piano Sonata No. 28. Helene Grimaud, piano; Vladimir Jurowski, Dresden Staatskapelle. DG B0009840-02. The booklet note describes Ms. Grimaud as "among the most sagacious of today's keyboard artists- a philosopher at the concert grand." It goes ...
Beethoven: The 9 Symphonies.(Sound recording review)
Apr 01, 2008; Puccio, John ... Beethoven: The 9 Symphonies. Eugen Jochum, Concertgebouw Orchestra. Philips Original Masters 475 8147. Some years ago, I overheard the manager of a classical record store telling a customer that he thought Eugen Jochum and Karl Bohm were mere "kapellmeisters," routine ...
Bruckner: Symphony No. 4 "Romantic".(Sound recording review)
Apr 01, 2008; Puccio, John ... Bruckner: Symphony No. 4 "Romantic." Gunter Wand, Munich Philharmonic Orchestra. Profil PHO6046. Profil may make me think twice about live recordings. I usually don't care for them; they're too often vague and distant, with a plethora of audience noises in the background. But ...
Debussy: Orchestral Works, Volumes I and II.(Sound recording review)
Apr 01, 2008; Puccio, John ... Debussy: Orchestral Works, Volumes I and II. Jean Martinon, Orchestre National de I'ORTF. EM10946 3 65235 and 0946 3 6524040 (both two-disc sets). I mean, who else would you want to hear playing Debussy? Jean Martinon was always the best in the business in French repertoire, and ...
English Tone Pictures: Bax, Delius, and Ireland.(Sound recording review)
Apr 01, 2008; Puccio, John ... English Tone Pictures: Bax, Delius, and Ireland: Sir John Barbirolli, London Symphony Orchestra and Halle Orchestra. EMI 0946 3 79984 2 7. I mean, who would rather having conducting English pastoral music than Sir John Barbirolli? Well, maybe Sir Thomas Beecham or Sir Adrian ...
Grooving Classics: A String & Percussion Fest!(Sound recording review)
Apr 01, 2008; Puccio, John ... Grooving Classics: A String & Percussion Fest! Harold Farberman, Colorado String Quartet and the Ethos Percussion Group. FIM XR24 044. This is an odd one. Sonically, the disc sounds better than almost anything you'll find on CD, no surprise considering it is a newly recorded ...
Krommer and Spohr: Clarinet Concertos.(Sound recording review)(Brief article)
Apr 01, 2008; Puccio, John ... Krommer and Spohr: Clarinet Concertos. Sabine Meyer and Julian Bliss, clarinets; Kenneth Sillito, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields. EMI Classics 0946 3 79786 2 7. Things begin in the lightest possible mood with Franz Krommer's Concerto for Two Clarinets (1815). The opening ...