I just saw a YouTube video headlined "DON'T PUT RECORD WEIGHTS ON YOUR TURNTABLE!" This is the kind of nonsense in circulation online and sadly, some people take it seriously. Turntable misinformation runs rampant on the Internet, on YouTube, on Reddit, you nammit. You’ll read or see assertions like, “It’s pretty basic: spin a platter at the correct speed, have a “needle” mounted on a tonearm tracking the record and that’s just about it. Spending more... Read More

Dream Theater was in an interesting position within the progressive metal landscape at the turn of the 2010s. They were deemed legends, having won artistic liberation instead of caving into commercial demands by the record label, and they still had the spark for exploring fresh musical ground. Their 25th anniversary in 2010 honed in on how far the group had come from playing in rehearsal halls at Berklee College of Music to their hometown arena, New York’s Madison... Read More

Audio Group Denmark's Chief Designer Michael Børresen recently introduced a new line of "more affordable" Aavik phono preamps—the R-x88 series. The three models are the Aavik R-188: € 15.000, Aavik R-288: € 20.000, and Aavik R-588: € 25.000 (prices in Euros for now and vary by region)."Crafted in Denmark, Engineered for Musical Truth. Aavik proudly introduces the new R-x88 phono stage series, a culmination of decades of engineering innovation and... Read More

Over the last 50 years, enough has been written about Pink Floyd’s Wish You Were Here that I have nothing to add about the original album other than that it’s easily my favorite Pink Floyd album and was the first vinyl LP I ever bought. It’s carefully textured but not too indulgent and meandering, and the lyrics hit the sweet spot between universality and specificity. Never before or after would the band so perfectly achieve this balance, as the earlier stuff can be... Read More

It’s been a while since I reviewed what Deutsche Grammophon and Emil Berliner were up to with their Original Source series. I’m happy to report that not only is their program still going strong, but they have also dipped into the catalog of their subsidiary Archiv Produktion, which is something I’m very excited about. This fall we saw four new releases from the acclaimed series, and before we get ready for all the titles that 2026 will bring, I thought I would recap... Read More

At some point in her 2010 acceptance speech at the National Book Awards, a tearful Patti Smith told those assembled that she hoped:

“Please, no matter how far we advance technologically, please don’t abandon the book. There is nothing in our material world more beautiful than the book.”

And while there was no one in the audience to stand up and say, “What about the 7” single?”, apparently the applause was thunderous.

Getting directly to the point: File #1 is the Gray/Hoffman 2002 version and File #2 is the UHQR. To me, on my system, File #2 wins in every way, especially in terms of natural transients and instrumental "delicacy", as well as a more honest straight forward EQ, with File #1 having a warmth "bump". But tastes and systems vary. There's no right or wrong. But honestly I was surprised by how many listeners preferred File #1 and I always wonder how... Read More

Grafting lyrics onto instrumental classical music has a rich history of success in the pop world. Most listeners happily hum Elvis and Perry Como tunes like "It's Now Or Never" and "Hot Diggity, Dog Diggity..." not having a clue about from where they originated. "Jazzed up" versions of popular songs are a well worn path down which many jazz arrangers and singers go. Here, jazz singer Tessa Souter does something far more audacious,... Read More

Despite the dozen years between 2002's break-up masterpiece Sea Change and 2014's Morning Phase, the musical gap between the two albums seemed in many ways minimal. Beck seemed to be revisiting his past. On the opener "Morning" he sings "Can we start it all over again?" On "Say Goodbye" he sings "cause these are the words we use to say goodbye". No wonder the album disappointed many fans expecting something new since... Read More

Decades have passed since I've owned a turntable equipped with a dust cover. It seems the more expensive the turntable the less likely it is to come with one. I don't miss having it. Instead, I use an old record that's been cleaned. Of course it fits perfectly over the platter preventing dust from settling on it. The rest of the turntable is easily wiped clean with a microfiber cloth.Anyone who's visited here knows I do not have a cleaning person... Read More

In his somewhat sparse annotation accompanying this four record set, annotator Professor Sean Wilentz wisely doesn't attempt to explain how Robert Zimmerman became Bob Dylan, which was a good call since the more you dig, the more inexplicable it becomes. Even Dylan, when Ed Bradley interviewed him about his autobiographical book "Chronicles, Volume One" for the television news feature show formerly known as "60 Minutes", admitted he... Read More

Over the last 5 years, advanced technology has found its way into the high end audio world through two specific breakthroughs, which has not only advanced the goals of better audio but has challenged designers to adjust their thinking about introducing new products that contain this advanced technology.Specifically, I'm referring to the optical phono cartridge and all its associated specialty preamps and GaN cell based class D amplifiers and preamps. Many readers... Read More

Circumstances surrounding KISS and Casablanca Records in mid-1975 were dire. The group’s first three albums (KISS, Hotter Than Hell, Dressed to Kill) sold in horrific quantities and didn’t contain a hit single to break the group into the mainstream buying public. Having lost distribution from Warner Brothers, president Neil Bogart resorted to borrowing money from, as described by Gene Simmons, ‘people with vowels at the end of their last name,’ to keep the label... Read More

Cartridge knowledgeable audiophiles, which means everyone reading this, will think twice noting two of the RM-Hayate moving coil cartridge’s spec points: output voltage a generous 0.45mV (1kHz 3.45cm/Sec), internal impedance a low 1.75 Ohms. That is a highly unusual pair. Generous output usually requires more coil turns. More coil turns means higher internal impedance; low internal impedance means few coil turns yet here’s a moving coil cartridge with generous output... Read More

When I traveled by train to Kyiv earlier this month as part of a small group invited by the Transatlantic Dialogue Center, I stocked up on a headlamp, power bank for my iPhone and various other sundries in anticipation of blackouts and nights in a bomb shelter. While blackouts up to 16 hours have become routine thanks to incessant Russian bombings (many buildings have their own diesel generators) that have targeted the Ukrainian energy sector, I was surprised to... Read More

Here's an audio comparison between the 2002 double 45 released by Analogue Productions mastered by Kevin Gray and Steve Hoffman, and cut by KG at AcousTech Mastering and plated and pressed at RTI and the current UHQR cut by Bernie Grundman and plated and pressed at QRP.The cartridge was the MUTECH RM-Hayate MC ($7500) mounted on the SAT CF1-12 tonearm ($ don't ask), mounted on the Wilson-Benesch Prime Meridian turntable ($$ don't ask), feeding a voltage... Read More

Dark Tranquillity’s hometown Gothenburg in Sweden is probably best known in the musical world as the birthplace of a particular Metal subgenre: Melodic Death Metal. Often called the “Gothenburg Sound”, it adapted the harshness of old-school Death Metal and combined it with more melodic approaches from 80s Heavy Metal bands.The band itself was founded in 1989 under the name Septic Broiler, which was changed to the current band name in 1990. The Gallery is Dark... Read More

Art Pepper’s music is not typically described as an acquired taste. For many, his melodic cool jazz compositions and brilliant alto sax solos are some of the most easily accessible jazz recordings that emerged in the second half of the twentieth century. Yet, Pepper’s playing is the opposite of smooth jazz. It is emotional heartfelt stuff from the school of hard knocks. One reading of his autobiography “Straight Life” will convince you of that.Born in southern... Read More

When you flip over a new vinyl copy of 25-year-old pianist Caelan Cardello’s 2025 debut album, Chapter One — his first studio release following 2023’s Rufus Reid Presents Caelan Cardello, recorded live at the 40-seat West Side showroom Klavierhaus NYC — you encounter an intriguing caveat.Despite being executive produced by Michael Fremer — audiophile leader and Tracking Angle editor-in-chief — and despite a no-corners-cut production chain that includes Duke Markos as... Read More

Blue Note announced these three new titles that can be made public today and a bunch that have to wait a while: Jan. 23: Julian Lage - Scenes from Above, Jan. 30: Joel Ross - Gospel Music, Feb. 6: Ron Carter & Ricky Dillard - Sweet, Sweet Spirit. The first two will have immediate vinyl releases. The Ron Carter coming on vinyl "down the road".Julian Lage Scenes From Above Guitar virtuoso Julian Lage returns with his 5th Blue Note release, Scenes From... Read More

Los Angeles – December 17, 2026 – Verve Label Group and UMe, the centralized global catalog division of Universal Music Group (UMG), are thrilled to announce the 2026 continuation of their acclaimed Acoustic Sounds Series, their audiophile vinyl reissue program presenting definitive editions of essential albums from the Verve and Impulse! Records catalogs. The 2026 slate places a special spotlight on landmark Impulse! Records sessions and classic Verve titles spanning... Read More