Archives: Hi-Fi

Blog No. 14: An LS3/5a For the Ages

Consider this a Public Service: you are being warned, before the release date of June/July 2019, of a run of only 50 pairs of speakers guaranteed to become collectors’ items. Falcon Acoustics’ Jerry Bloomfield told me they’re making the finest … Continue reading

Anachrophile Special: Acoustic Research – A Day In the Life

Frank Sinatra and Frank Bruno have had comebacks, so why not a hi-fi company? Witness the return to form of one of the industry’s original leaders. by Ken Kessler Euthanasia has been the preferred practice when it comes to dealing … Continue reading

Blog No. 10: CES 2016 After the Fact

  While CES reports always burst with new hardware, they only indicate productivity. What they do not convey is the mood of the event, nor how it is a litmus test of the health of the hi-fi industry. Some reporters … Continue reading

Blog No 9: The Calm Before the Storm

My silence of late is due to too much travel (“Awwwww, poor baby …”) but I should add much of it has to do with the crush of hi-fi shows, clustered in the autumn. And I only managed three.   … Continue reading

Theta Carmen DVD Player

Bless Theta’s sense of humour. By naming one player ‘Miles’ and another ‘Pearl’, the company showed how to appeal to a wide cross-section of customers and music tastes. The former could have been named for, say, Miles Davis or Buddy … Continue reading

The Jadis System: A Load of Orchestras

When a company’s catalogue includes – typically – a £16,000 pre-amp and a £9000 CD player, well…is it any surprise that the brand is perceived as ‘expensive’? Jadis, the legendary French valvistes, have been fighting this image, the past few … Continue reading

Garrott Decca Cartridge

  I had honestly intended to kickoff the actual buying exercises with items decidedly down-market in price. Alas, the post and transatlantic communication are against me, so I’m going to start you on the road to second-hand bliss with a … Continue reading

Natural Born Kessler (No. 1): The Paul Klipsch Biography

Pretend just for a moment that you’re a civilian, not a savvy audiophile. What exactly would you know about the following?: Single-ended triodes. SACD. Cable directionality. Speaker spikes. VTA. The answer is … precisely nothing. We function in a self-contained … Continue reading

Mondo Audio: Digital Standards, ARA and AAHEA

  Consumer Electronics Shows might rightly be all about new products ready for the shops, but an aspect that’s rarely covered in the hi-fi magazines is the industry manoeuvring. Whether or not it means anything to you if you don’t … Continue reading

Blog 2: 18 October 2014 – A Weekend In Paris

In case anyone thinks I’m making this up, the Festival Son et Image taking place this weekend in Paris is a seriously busy show … like in the old days. As this is a blog and not a show report … Continue reading