Fellow photography enthusiast and world traveler, Danny Bar, sent me some absolutely awesome photos of his recent trip to Vietnam and Georgia, which really makes me want to get out on travel and shoot some photos. Danny shot all of the photos below using his Leica M9 and the new Leica Summilux 35/1.4 II ASPH. I... Read More »

Fellow Tannoy Westminster Royal enthusiast David King recently contacted me to tell me about his positive results when upgrading the internal wiring connectors, driver connecting plugs, binding posts, and speaker support system of his Tannoy Westminster Royal HE loudspeakers. David has written a paper detailing his modifications, and has graciously agreed to share what he... Read More »

Today’s Fresh Catch is the Bill Evans Trio’s in Helsinki 1970 on DVD. Like The Oslo Concerts DVD, you will not want to miss this DVD, which is available from Amazon.com for just $18.99 USD. Speaking of The Oslo Concerts be sure to read Laurie Verchomin's response to that post here for a link to... Read More »

I've got a couple of articles I'm working on now for Positive Feedback Online, but soon as they're done I'm going to start writing a long-term report about what it's been like living with my Tannoy Westminster Royal Special Edition loudspeakers over the past year or so. It turns out that Jim Smith recently purchased... Read More »

I just wrapped up a review for Positive Feedback Online about Jim Smith's Reference DVD Set of Get Better Sound on setting up high-performance audio & video systems that I mentioned in Today's Fresh Catch awhile back. The review just appeared in the January/February Issue 59 here. If you've been reading my writing for a... Read More »

I just got the November 2011 issue of Stereophile and all you fellow Leben CS300 & RS30EQ fans out there will be pleased to know that Art Dudley reviewed the pair and really liked them. In the November issue Art writes a mini-survey that compares three nice tube integrated amps: the aforementioned Leben gear, the... Read More »

I thought you'd enjoying seeing this photo Don Garber (Fi) sent me of an integrated 300B stereo amplifier prototype that Don built "for Gideon Schwartz of Audio Arts which he's taking out to RMAF to pair with the Voxativ speakers. He has a team that's going to be producing it. How close to the original... Read More »

Those of you who read my book review at Positive Feedback Online of Jim Smith's Get Better Sound know that I hold Jim and his talents in the highest regard. Jim's book is a must have, and in the review I said: "I highly recommend Get Better Sound by Jim Smith, and I think it... Read More »

You know how life just goes along and you think nothing is ever going to change, and then something totally unanticipated happens that resets everything? Well, this Saturday evening I had one of those precedence setting events that caught me completely by surprise, and rewrote the book about what I thought I knew about ...... Read More »

Well, it's been a nice past week of music listening and Hi-Fi Tom-foolery here at Jeff's Place: vintage vinyl, new remastered vinyl, playing with Acoustic Revive accessories, listening to the prototype Sablon Audio Panatella interconnects, listening again to the Leben CS660P amplifier and Leben RS-100 (not the 'U') preamplifier, listening to a variety of 300B... Read More »

I've been listening to a prototype version of the Panatela interconnect, designed by Mark Coles for Sablon Audio, for a while now. I'll tell you what, it's a honey of an IC! The stealth-white clad prototype can be seen in the photo above plugged into my VPI Classic turntable and Auditorium 23 step-up transformer. While... Read More »

After hitting it out of the ballpark with The Robusto, Mark Coles has been busy in his laboratory designing a second AC power cord for the Sablon Audio lineup, the Gran Corona, which has just been announced as being available in a press release from Mark: "As promised a few weeks back, I'm delighted to... Read More »

If you're like me you've watched in horror the devastating result of Friday's earthquake and resulting tsunami on the nation of Japan. The first thing I thought about upon hearing the news was the safety of Mr. Yoshi Hontani (Leben & Acoustic Revive exporter), Mr. Ken Ishiguro (Acoustic Revive), and Mr. Taku Hyodo (Leben), and... Read More »

My buddy Ron stopped by with three amplifiers from his collection for an afternoon of listening fun & games. The first one we listened to was Ron's vintage Harmon-Kardon Citation II that he fully restored - but not 'hot-rodded' - using Jim McShane's parts offerings. The vintage Harmon-Kardon Citation II sounded warm, rich, eminently musical,... Read More »

Stereophile has been my favorite audio rag for a long time. They have the best Editor in audio (John Atkinson), the best writers (too many to name), and provide the most balanced coverage of the audio hobby in all its forms of any print magazine I’m aware of. Stereophile gets it. As a bonus, Stereophile... Read More »

Yoshi Hontani, the Leben and Acoustic Revive exporter in Japan, is a kindred spirit to yours truly. Yoshi San enjoys fine music, audio, and photography, and I was delighted when I received an e-mail sharing some photos he took of the Japanese Fall during a recent hike he and his family went on in Nara.... Read More »

Over time I have found friends - which includes you dear readers - to be a rich source of good recommendations for music. This time the recommendation comes from my globe-trotting friend, Rebecca, who told me about the Rodrigo y Gabriela 11:11 CD while we were traveling through Turkey. Rodrigo Sánchez and Gabriela Quintero are... Read More »

The Sablon Audio 'The Robusto' power cord is today's fresh catch, and believe me, it serves up some fine listening. More often than not, it’s through the ‘audio underground’ that I get tips about new or relatively unknown Hi-Fi products that really deliver the musical experience in spades, for it is from the underground’s deep... Read More »

I really enjoy hearing from all of you. Every once in a while something really amazing comes to light among the music lovers that stop in for a visit, and this time it's Chris' post about his Tannoys (and more!) that really blew my mind. Chris and I have traded a couple e-mails, and Chris... Read More »

I get a lot of good ideas from friends sharing tips about music and Hi-Fi with me, and this musical & audio sharing is what makes the 'audio underground' so fun and inspiring. Vintage Garrard 301 turntables and Sony Playstation SCPH-1001s come to mind as examples of past tips that provided a lot of enjoyment... Read More »

Frank - a fellow member of the Westminster Guild - and I have been having a fun discussion over e-mail that was quite interesting, and I asked Frank if I might share part of it with you for your edification. The gist of it? Having fun with music and Hi-Fi gear, along with some really... Read More »

I've been getting a number of inquiries about the new 'Woody' tonearm from Pete Riggle Engineering, so I thought I'd post this e-mail with photos (note the cool vintage Garrard 301 and Thorens TD124 turntables - drool) from Pete telling about his new String-Theory Woody Tonearm. I haven't yet seen or heard Pete's new tonearm... Read More »

Cool guys Stephaen (6Moons) and Pete (Pete Riggle Audio) stopped by this morning for a little coffee and music listening. Stephaen brought along the Pass Labs' solid-state INT-30A integrated amplifier that he is writing an article about for 6Moons. The INT-30A is a 30-watt integrated based on the Pass Labs' XA30.5 stereo amplifier, and like... Read More »