How Did He Make It As A Professional Classical Pianist? Vikingur Olafsson is a professional classical pianist. He’s 37 and at the top of his game. It took him a while to get there. It’s an interesting path. If you’re a great pro athlete, stats usually make it clear that you’re a stand out. At 18 Bryce Harper hit 22 homeruns and…

You know I love to chide the rags. Stereophile’s Oct 2021 issue lists 478 recommended products. Yowza! Most of these are indeed fine products. Here’s a word of warning though. Please be sure you read this while lying down in bed. If not, you’ll likely fall over and sustain a concussion as you read some of the ridiculous pricing and foolish rankings/omissions….

Only I can answer this question. Because the question is “How much sub do I need?” I’m a music lover. I listen to music in 2.1, stereo with a subwoofer. I don’t want the sub to intrude into the rest of the music and muddy it up. My system is in the second floor loft of my house, which is a wooden…

What about bi-amping? When does it make sense to run two amps instead of one? Let’s massage the topic! The theory behind bi-amping is, it is better to run one amp for the mid & tweeter array and another for the woofers- as opposed to having one amp drive the whole tower and have to fight its way through a bigger crossover…

Bryston Mini A ($1665 per pair) vs Kef LS50 Meta ($1500 per pair) I hear you have roughly $2k to spend on some stand mount speakers. Of course they will sound better on stands than they will on a bookshelf. You want to hear the music the speaker is intended to deliver, not the extra ringing and rumble of your etergere. Let’s…

What exactly is an audiophile? When we read about this topic, the term is typically skewed negative. The implication is that audio hobbyists who spend foolishly- are audiophiles. Nope. That isn’t an accurate definition. Target missed. An audiophile is someone who loves music, first and foremost. When he listens to his system, he pays 100% of his attention to how it sounds….

Lyric Hi-Fi in NYC has closed. Perhaps you read the article written on p.122 of the May 2021 Stereophile? The writer was a former employee. He comments on the store selling MIT speaker cable for $12k in 1998. A month later they brought in NBS which sold for $22k. The writer says he learned to sell hi-fi by saying, “this is good,…

I just read a review in Stereophile. They highly recommend a new power cleaner upper for you. The Everest conditioner by Shunyata runs just $8000. The power cord that connects it to the wall is a paltry $3250. Power cords to connect your source, to your preamp and power amp are almost throw ins at $2000 each = $6k. All in with…

There’s no shortage of opinions on the topic of how to put together a great sounding hi-fi system. Why should you listen to us? We Make It Work Our gear has to sound good and be reliable. We have to support the sales we make. This differentiates us from magazine guys or forum contributors. When you have to make something work right,…

Bryston A3 Speakers, $3270 Per Pair (37.5h, 9.25w, 15d, 53 lbs, 87 dB, 6 ohms, Walnut, Black, Boston Cherry) Bryston’s A3 speakers are absolutely PRODIGIOUS! These are speakers with a small footprint, yet they have major league power. They’re made in Canada. The warranty… is only 20 years. Virtually everyone else quits supporting parts for its speakers at the ten year mark….

Bryston BR-20 Preamp/DAC $6995 (4.5h, 17w, 13.5d) Bryston’s new state of the art preamp/DAC has been dubbed “BR” to honor Bryston’s Brian Russell, who died in 2020. Brian was Bryston’s outgoing national sales manager for 45+ years. Bryston honors Brian with this designation. All Bryston preamps up to now have been dubbed BP. The $6995 price tag DOES include Bryston’s new BR-20i…

Bryston BR-20 Preamp/DAC $6800 Bryston’s new state of the art preamp/DAC has been dubbed “BR” to honor Bryston’s Brian Russell, who died in 2020. Brian was Bryston’s outgoing national sales manager for 45+ years. Bryston honors Brian with this designation. All Bryston preamps up to now have been dubbed BP. The $6k price tag DOES include Bryston’s new BR-20 remote. Don’t chuckle….

Nobody says more, in less time, than Chopin. Nobody understood the piano better. Nobody is a better architect of music for this magnificent instrument, which provides a full orchestra of colors. Chopin has dozens of pieces that are short, yet they’re fully formed and mature. As I learned to play several of these through the tutelage of my eminently patient teacher, Marlene…

Let’s suppose for a moment that you’re very happy with your music system. You spent time and money selecting everything you have. You’re pleased with each piece and like it as a system. Are you DONE? Of course not! I’m only slightly being a wise guy. It is very rare that we encounter a customer that has a complete, modern system. There…

Marantz 30 Series Package Oh boy, oh boy, oh BOY! Marantz created an iconic 30 Series of gear in the 1970s. With a tip of that hat to those products, HOT off the presses is a NEW 30 SERIES of gear that is so smartly designed that I know you’re going to be as impressed as I am. This gear comes from…

Bryston BHA-1 Headphone Amp $2695 (2.75h, 17w, 12.25d, black or silver) Bryston’s BHA-1 does for headphones, what huge, Bryston monoblock amps do for speakers. Not only is BHA-1 stone cold quiet, but it makes any headphones start and stop like lightning. The speed and control of BHA-1 is as good as it gets. What you’ll find is, even modest headphones benefit from…