ARTICLES
CÄBS: The Four-Step Vinyl Ritual You Didn’t Know You Needed
So, what's CÄBS all about? It's four simple steps that will help to elevate your vinyl listening experience. Whether you're dusting off some records you bought at a yard sale or opening a brand new record, you'll be all set if you can remember CÄBS. Let's run...
Darwin Cables: An Evolution in Sound
There’s a lot of vitriol to be found on the various audio forums and Facebook groups out there when it comes to high-end audio equipment. There’s one word that tends to immediately lead to arguments. Cables. I get it - cables are meant to do one thing - transfer the...
A New Turn for U-Turn
I enjoy reviewing turntables. I’ve been fascinated by them since I was a child. A turntable is like an old friend. Friends change over the years. Some you bond with. You might move on, but when you reconnect, it feels like no time has passed despite the changes. If...
Let’s Look at the Galion TS A75
Well, this was a facepalm moment. I reviewed Galion’s Voyager Transmission Line speakers a few weeks back—quite the name, huh? At the end of that review, I mentioned wanting to pair them with the Galion TS A75 amplifier. So, I reached out to Thomas, who kindly sent...
The Silent Symphony: Life After a Solar Flare
I’m going to date myself here, but there’s a scene in the 1985 film Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome where a lost tribe of children called “The Waiting Ones” refers to “The Sonic.” What exactly was the “sonic”? It was a record. There is no electricity in Mad Max’s dystopian...
The Record Doctor VI and X
I always knew the importance of keeping records clean. When I was younger, I used a record “brush” to sweep the dust away before lowering the stylus. As I grew older, that habit remained, but I realized that wasn’t enough. It may have been because I was buying more...
The Galion TS-120 Integrated Amp
I’ve always been fascinated by tube amps. That fascination became an obsession when I purchased the Galion TS120 Standard Edition. Galion also sells a “Special Edition” or “SE,” which I’ll get to. The look of TS120, while aesthetically pleasing, was secondary to me....
Vinyl In A Digital World
I like the convenience of a drive-through when I want a hamburger on the spur of the moment. I’m usually on the go and rushing to the next thing in those moments. Digital streaming reminds me of those moments. By no means does this extend to everyone who prefers a set...
Not So Fast, Ms. Eilish
“It’s so wasteful, and it’s irritating to me that we’re still at a point where you care that much about your numbers and you care that much about making money — and it’s all your favorite artists doing that shit.” That quote comes from a recent interview Billboard...
What We Hear
I recently created a video on my YouTube channel that addresses the argument in some audio circles around digital and analog sources. I specifically focused on whether it was a bad practice to press a vinyl record from a digital source. I do not have an issue with...
“Vinyl Record” or just “Record”?
I use the terms “vinyl records” and “records” interchangeably on both my YouTube channel and in my writing, and I will occasionally receive a comment or inquiry from a viewer or reader as to why. Sometimes, viewers or readers will deliver the question more as a...
Judas Priest’s “Invincible Shield”: Repaving the Metal Highway
When I first sat down to listen to Judas Priest’s Invincible Shield, I had to remind myself that it’s 2024. The anticipation equaled two other moments related to a JP record - when I bought Screaming for Vengeance in 1982 and Angel of Retribution in 2005 (which marked...
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