Stereophile May 2015

THERE ARE AS MANY OPINIONS AS THERE ARE EXPERTS THIS ISSUE: Why Pono’s gem of a portable player was given a thumbs down by the mainstream media. I write this in a Seattle coffee bar—my fight home to New York has been canceled due to a snowstorm. As I try to put down these thoughts, I’m listening to the high-resolution masters of the April issue’s “Recording of the Month,” Sasha Matson’s jazz opera Cooperstown, on my Pono player using Ultimate Ears UE18 in-ear monitors. I was in Seattle for Music Matters 10, held by retailer Definitive Audio, and this was my first road trip with the Pono since I reviewed it for the April issue. (Bruce Botnick and Charles Hansen comment on that review elsewhere in this issue.) I realize now that, in…

TAKE HEED! Unless marked otherwise, all letters to the magazine and its writers are assumed to be for possible publication. In the spirit of vigorous debate implied by the First Amendment, and unless we are requested not to, we publish correspondents’ e-mail addresses. Paul Rosenberg Editor: I wanted to pass on some sad news to the Stereophile community. Mondial Designs’ co-founder Paul Rosenberg passed away March 1, 2015. Paul brought joy, exuberance, and a lighthearted spirit to the audiophile community he loved. Paul is survived by his high-school sweetheart and wife, Lynda, and his three children, Reed, Zack, and Jenna. —Rafael Nevares rafaelnevares@gmail.com Sam, Wes, & Herb Editor: Crestfallen and gasping at pp.11 and 19 of your March 2015 issue—the losses of Sam Tellig and Wes Phillips—only to be resuscitated on pp.53–57 by Herb Reichert. Thank God for Herb.…

SUBMISSIONS: Those promoting audio-related seminars, shows, and meetings should e-mail the when, where, and who to JAtkinson@enthusiastnetwork.com at least eight weeks before the month of the event. The deadline for the July 2015 issue is April 20, 2015. UK: CHISWICK, WEST LONDON Paul Messenger Metropolis Studios, housed on several floors of a huge converted tram garage in Chiswick, West London, have become a popular location for hi-f– related events. I’ve written of my experiences there several times in the past few years; my latest visit was to attend the first actual hi-f show at Metropolis. Although Metropolis Studios lack enough demonstration rooms to run a traditional hi-f show, that restriction doesn’t apply to headphone demos. Prominent Southwest London dealer Unilet and partner Custom Cable (which incorporates a “headphones direct” operation) decided to put on…

ATTENTION ALL AUDIO SOCIETIES: We have a page on the Stereophile website devoted to you: www.stereophile.com/audiophilesocieties. If you’d like to have your audio-society information posted on the site, e-mail Chris Vogel at info@XLinkAudio.com. Please note that it is inappropriate for a retailer to promote a new product line in “Calendar” unless this is associated with a seminar or similar event. CALIFORNIA Saturday, May 2, 5–8pm: The Los Angeles & Orange County Audio Society will hold its monthly meeting at Brooks Berdan Ltd. (110 W. Olive Avenue, Monrovia). Sheila Berdan, her colleagues, and industry representatives will feature select premier audio components, as well as many audiophile records. Eastwind Import will be on hand to offer extraordinary CDs for sale. Enjoy the Ninth Annual Greatest Software Raffle Ever! Win LPs, CDs, and downloads from all…

INSIDER VIEWS ON EVERYTHING VINYL THIS ISSUE: Listening impressions of Ortofon’s MC A95 cartridge and Brinkmann’s Spyder turntable. It’s difficult to believe that more than five years have passed since Ortofon introduced its ground-breaking MC A90 moving-coil cartridge ($4200 when last available). The limited-edition MC A90, with its radically shaped body made of powdered stainless steel Selective Laser Melting (SLM), celebrated Ortofon’s 90th year in business. The MC A95 ($6500), celebrating their 95th year, retains the A90’s seductive shape, but the new body is built of powdered titanium, and thus is even more effectively self-damped. At High End Mässan 2015, an audio show held in Stockholm in early February, Ortofon designer Leif Johannson dropped onto a table, from the same height, two balls made of different rubbery materials. One bounced high. The other…

IN SEARCH OF THE EXCEPTIONAL THIS ISSUE: Desktop audio from Eclipse and 300B tube power from Raven Audio. At home, I have two different ways of listening to music—just as I have two different ways of cooking and washing the car and making coffee and getting dressed to go out. My first approach to listening is the one that takes the most time: It requires forethought and effort and, consciously or not, a certain amount of ritual—yet those things are enjoyable in and of themselves, and the end results are often more than merely satisfying. My other approach is the one I take when there’s a piece of music I’m intent on hearing right away, and I have a limited amount of time and no inclination toward effort. My record collection and my playback…