Tabla de contenidos para March 2023 en The Absolute Sound

In this issue's Letters column, reader Henry Kleeman expresses concern over the magazine's policy regarding long-term equipment loans from manufacturers to reviewers. He writes: “I have always thought that the ‘extended loan’ of high-end gear to reviewers is the dirty litde secret of the audio-reviewing community. I'm hard -pressed to understand how it doesn't create, at the very least, an appearance of a conflict of interest. If Company B has graciously given a reviewer its new state-of-the-art, half-million-dollar, ultimate speaker on an ‘extended loan,’ how does that reviewer then approach a review of Company B's new $50,000 speaker?” I fully understand Mr. Kleeman's perception that a reviewer would feel beholden to a manufacturer who has lent him an expensive piece of equipment (though I'm not as clear about how buying…

DESKTOP LOUDSPEAKERS Vanatoo Transparent One Encore $599 Small, powered, Chromecastand Bluetooth-enabled speakers like the Vanatoo Transparent One Encores aren't going to replace a traditional hi-fi setup in a mid-sized or larger room, but on the desktop or in a small space they're worth serious consideration, with enough deep bass, midrange clarity, and sparkle in the treble to make them highly enjoyable. Drew Kalbach, 302 Audioengine HD6/HDP6A $699/$399 Comfortable on a desk or shelf, flanking a flat panel, or out in the room on a pair of stands, the powered, DACequipped, Bluetooth-enabled HD6 loudspeaker is a near-complete audio system. It only needs a source as humble as a smartphone to get it up and running. Sonically, this two-way has a forgiving signature in the treble range, and an ear-coddling midrange with…

Like archeologists digging up the precious remains of Tutankhamun's tomb, a few hearty jazz enthusiasts and record company reps have in recent years been unearthing hidden treasures that have sat idle for decades. Tapes of jazz performances have been stored in closets, basements, and attics. They might have been board tapes made by a nightclub's sound engineer, or they might have documented concerts made by state-run radio stations in Europe. Sometimes they are bootleg recordings made surreptitiously by fans in the audience with their trusty tape recorders balancing precariously on their laps. Of course, these archival tapes—found in closets, attics, and basements—invariably have to be baked, given the uncertain shelf life of magnetic tape. Deals are struck with estates, participants are tracked down and paid and, inevitably, the vinyl products…

Beethoven: String Quartets (Complete). Budapest String Quartet. Sony. The stereo cycle of Beethoven's quartets that my generation, an old one now, grew up on has at last been released in high-resolution audio by Sony and issued on SACD in Japan and DSD 64 download in the U.S. The original recordings were produced between 1958 and 1961 by Howard Scott and the young (then in his early 20s) and wonderfully capable Thomas Z. Shepard; they've been remastered to the usual exquisite standard by Andreas K. Meyer. The entire cycle was recorded in the same place—Columbia's 30th Street Studio in New York City—at a time when the members of the group, by then all Russian Jews, had been playing together for nearly 30 years. Their approach, which today would be considered oldschool,…

Email the Editor: rharley@nextscreen.com or: TAS, 2500 McHale Ct., Ste. A, Austin, Texas 73758 Betrayed, Indeed I read with great interest your editonal about manufacturers believing that you [Robert Harley], Jonathan Valin, or any other reviewer in your magazine would intentionally downplay their product just because they have noticed said reviewer's previous appreciation and enjoyment of another company's product [From the Editor, “How Could He Betray Us?” in Issue 334]. I look forward every month to new reviews of every type of product—products, by the way, that get better every year. I especially get a thrill out of the (very) occasional “I bought the review sample” endings. No, Mr. Harley, if anyone should feel betrayed it should be you, your entire team, and perhaps your readers, as well. It is very…

Weyes Blood: And in the Darkness, Hearts Aglow. Sub Pop. Three years ago, Weyes Blood introduced us to her ongoing musical trilogy with its exposition, Titanic Rising. A slightly psychedelic tour of languid chamber-pop tracks peppered with slide guitar flourishes, the record set the stage for singer-songwriter Natalie Mering's next move. With her new release, And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow, Mering is engulfed in Act II, grappling with loneliness and futility in an isolated world. Her text weaves around grandiose orchestral textures, tapestries of vocal harmonies, and easygoing folk-rock accompaniments. While Titanic Rising questioned the nature of relationships, this album finds Mering reaching out desperately for them. Her plaintive, resonant melody on the opening track embodies the yearning to truly be known by another. “God Turn Me Into A…

Back Page Michael Levy, Alta Audio “Everyone has the same goal: to advance the state of the art in music reproduction.” What ignited your interest in the high end? Did it come from the music side or the electronics side? My love of music started at a very young age. I barely remember any formal lessons, but listening to music was more of a passion than an interest. As a teenager, I gave up convincing myself to play an instrument. Not because I didn't possess great musical abilities, which I didn't, but because I have such great respect for artists who are blessed with the talent to play well. It was around this time that I turned my attention to high-end audio. My love of high-end audio came from the…

Makaya McCraven: In These Times. International Anthem/Nonesuch. The opening to Makaya McCraven's In These Times stops you in your tracks, tugging you into his “polytemporal compositions.” A minimal motif churns underneath a spoken-word introduction, which eventually blooms into a rich blanket of glistening instrumentation ranging from vibraphone to every member of the string family. The motif is interspersed throughout this title track, hinting at a technique McCraven draws upon for the remainder of the record. The drummer/producer is known to blur notions of genre, synthesizing, and crossing amongst established categories of jazz, folk, hiphop, and modern composition to conjure an unchartered path. In These Times is no exception, a stunning work that ebbs and flows seamlessly through passages of bustle and contemplation, melodic gestures or rhythmic patterns threading through each…