Audeze Sine headphones measurements can be found by clicking this link.
September 2016
Most new headphones are just permutations of past designs. Not the Audeze Sines. They’ve got two genuinely unusual, perhaps even unique, features. First, they’re an on-ear design with planar-magnetic drivers -- the first ever of this type, Audeze claims. Second, they’re available with analog and digital cables.
September 2016
The Criterion Collection 63
Format: Blu-ray
Overall Enjoyment
Picture Quality
Sound Quality
Extras
Carnival of Souls isn’t one of the black-and-white classics Criterion is known for. It’s a cult indie film that became a horror favorite when Roger Ebert re-screened and reviewed it in 1989, 27 years after its initial release. But considering its history, singular locations, and magnificent camera work, it’s one of the best editions that Criterion has produced. Its many secrets and wonders are revealed through insightful commentaries and a generous set of extras.
September 2016
In-wall and in-ceiling speakers get no respect. In fact, they barely even get any attention. I rarely think about them, but last week I was twice reminded what an important part of the audio industry these speakers represent. My first reminder came when I made my arrangements to attend the CEDIA Expo in Dallas in September, which I’II be covering for SoundStage! Global. CEDIA focuses on custom-installed media systems, of which in-wall and in-ceiling speakers are often an important part. My second came when I was asked to run measurements on and give a listen to a prototype pair of in-ceiling speakers.
September 2016
Thanks largely to Google’s Cast system, Wi-Fi speakers are rapidly replacing Bluetooth models. Wi-Fi units use your wireless network to transmit sound, and since they’re not subject to the data-transfer limitations of Bluetooth transmission, they have the capability to provide better performance. The Grace Digital CastDock X2 is rated to handle music files up to 24-bit/192kHz resolution.
Sennheiser HD 630VB headphones measurements can be found by clicking this link.
September 2016
There can be no doubt that Sennheiser is one of, if not the, best-known headphone brands. The company offers models for every conceivable application, ranging in price from under $20 to the flagship HD 800S ($1699.95 USD). Sennheiser is also one of the few brands that is both familiar to the mass market and respected by audio engineers and audiophiles the world over.
September 2016
Cellar Live 020116
Format: CD
Musical Performance
Sound Quality
Overall Enjoyment
By definition, improvised music lives in the moment, and jazz, the musical genre most closely associated with improvisation, is an art form obsessed with constant innovation. It is unusual for jazz to look backward, but two nostalgic trends -- both related to trumpeter Miles Davis -- broke with tradition and were surprisingly long-lived.
Optoma NuForce HEM8 earphones measurements can be found by clicking this link.
August 2016
How many drivers do earphones really need? I’ve heard models with as many as eight per ear. I’ve also heard excellent earphones that have just one driver per ear. With their HEM earphone models, Optoma NuForce lets you decide. You can get the single-driver HEM2s ($119 USD), the two-driver HEM4s ($299), the three-driver HEM6s ($399), or the four-driver HEM8s ($499). All share the same enclosure shape and features. When NuForce asked which I wanted to review, I opted for the top-of-the-line HEM8s.
August 2016
The Criterion Collection 819
Format: Blu-ray
Overall Enjoyment
Picture Quality
Sound Quality
Extras
It’s likely that Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941), the first film based on Harry Segall’s 1938 play Heaven Can Wait, is probably less well known to contemporary audiences than Warren Beatty’s 1978 remake, which reverted to the play’s title. Then there’s film director Ernst Lubitsch’s Heaven Can Wait (1943), which was based on an entirely different play by Leslie Bush-Fekete and was the reason the 1941 film bore a different title.
August 2016
Recently, while working on an article that sought to pick the best of a bunch of wireless speakers, I was struck by a question put to one of the article’s writers by a manufacturer’s PR rep: “Why wasn’t our speaker chosen?”
August 2016
Lately, it seems, I’ve reviewed nothing but over-ear headphones, which have become lightweight enough to be serious contenders in the portable-headphone market. Still, on-ear cans have some features that appeal more to people on the go; because they block out fewer external sounds, they let you have birds with your Bach -- and they’re safer to wear when you’re out and about. Wearing over-ear ’phones, you can get so wrapped up in the music that you can’t hear that quiet car approaching from the rear. On-ear models can also be cooler and more comfortable to wear over long periods.
August 2016
As anyone who has recently visited an Apple Store can tell you, iPhone protection is big business -- a high-quality phone case can easily cost $50 to $70. Another big iPhone-related business is headphones -- something that an iPhone owner checking out the Bose, Beats, or B&W options at that same Apple store can readily confirm. The argument in favor of a good case is easy to make -- fixing a broken iPhone can be startlingly expensive (yet another iPhone-related business). But what good, ultimately, are pricey headphones if the sound delivered by your iPhone’s headphone output is, at best, mediocre?
August 2016
Blue Note Records 002505102
Format: CD
Musical Performance
Sound Quality
Overall Enjoyment
How you know guitarist Nels Cline might vary. You might know him as the leader of the archly named Nels Cline Singers -- a trio that includes no vocalists -- from his sonically expressive improvisational collaborations with a wide range of artists from Sonic Youth guitarist Thurston Moore to action painter Norton Wisdom, or as a member of the rock band Wilco. In almost every setting, he is a disruptor: slashing shards of noise across a pleasant tonal environment here, cranking the volume there. Inspired by sources as diverse as Jimi Hendrix and Andrew Hill, Cline has extraordinarily open ears and a deep set of technical skills.
July 2016
The speaker designed for desktop use is a category that seems to be in flux. A few companies specialize in desktop designs -- Audioengine comes to mind -- but most mainstream speaker makers have either missed the boat or taken a pass on the opportunity to make a statement in this category.
July 2016
The Criterion Collection 810
Format: Blu-ray
Overall Enjoyment
Picture Quality
Sound Quality
Extras
In a Lonely Place (1950) contains one of film noir’s most often quoted speeches: “I was born when she kissed me. I died when she left me. I lived a few weeks while she loved me.”
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