The Absolute Sound March 2023

In this issue's Letters column, reader Henry Kleeman expresses concern over the magazine's policy regarding long-term equipment loans from manufacturers to reviewers. He writes: “I have always thought that the ‘extended loan’ of high-end gear to reviewers is the dirty litde secret of the audio-reviewing community. I'm hard -pressed to understand how it doesn't create, at the very least, an appearance of a conflict of interest. If Company B has graciously given a reviewer its new state-of-the-art, half-million-dollar, ultimate speaker on an ‘extended loan,’ how does that reviewer then approach a review of Company B's new $50,000 speaker?” I fully understand Mr. Kleeman's perception that a reviewer would feel beholden to a manufacturer who has lent him an expensive piece of equipment (though I'm not as clear about how buying such…

Email the Editor: rharley@nextscreen.com or: TAS, 2500 McHale Ct., Ste. A, Austin, Texas 73758 Betrayed, Indeed I read with great interest your editonal about manufacturers believing that you [Robert Harley], Jonathan Valin, or any other reviewer in your magazine would intentionally downplay their product just because they have noticed said reviewer's previous appreciation and enjoyment of another company's product [From the Editor, “How Could He Betray Us?” in Issue 334]. I look forward every month to new reviews of every type of product—products, by the way, that get better every year. I especially get a thrill out of the (very) occasional “I bought the review sample” endings. No, Mr. Harley, if anyone should feel betrayed it should be you, your entire team, and perhaps your readers, as well. It is very clear that…

If you're looking for more great high-end audio content, check out The Absolute Sound's new YouTube video channel. Our channel is chock-full of videos (more than 100 and counting) that cover everything from a nostalgic look at classic audio products to reviews of the latest components. We've got behind-the-scenes factory tours, show reports, audio-basics tutorials, product reviews, and designer interviews. Last November I visited Shunyata Research with Charles Kinder, The Absolute Sound's new full-time videographer. Charles captured my factory tour and sit-down interview with Shunyata founder Caelin Gabriel, as well as documenting Shunyata's production process and the people behind the company. The professionally produced 35-minute video gives you a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at this innovative company. We've also got product reviews, primarily of lower to midpriced components that are stunning overachievers. TAS…

DESKTOP LOUDSPEAKERS Vanatoo Transparent One Encore $599 Small, powered, Chromecastand Bluetooth-enabled speakers like the Vanatoo Transparent One Encores aren't going to replace a traditional hi-fi setup in a mid-sized or larger room, but on the desktop or in a small space they're worth serious consideration, with enough deep bass, midrange clarity, and sparkle in the treble to make them highly enjoyable. Drew Kalbach, 302 Audioengine HD6/HDP6A $699/$399 Comfortable on a desk or shelf, flanking a flat panel, or out in the room on a pair of stands, the powered, DACequipped, Bluetooth-enabled HD6 loudspeaker is a near-complete audio system. It only needs a source as humble as a smartphone to get it up and running. Sonically, this two-way has a forgiving signature in the treble range, and an ear-coddling midrange with a warmer, slightly darker voice that…

Editor's Note: In December of 1956 Carl Perkins’ smash hit “Blue Suede Shoes” still had legs; and despite a devastating setback in April of that year, when he and his brothers were injured in a car crash en route to New York City to appear for the first time on national television as guests on The Ed Sullivan Show, he had resumed playing to raucous crowds again, even as he was preparing for planned early-December recording sessions at Memphis’ Sun studio. His first post-crash sessions, in April, had produced two promising new numbers in “Honey Don't” and “Dixie Fried” but these late-year sessions would be unlike any other Carl had ever experienced, thanks to Sun founder Sam Phillips adding a new musician to the Perkins ensemble in the form of…

Leonard Bernstein, the greatest Mahler conductor of his generation and one of the greatest in history, is the only conductor to have recorded three complete cycles of the composer's symphonies. His first, for CBS/Sony, also the first period, was completed in 1968; his second, for Deutsche Grammophon, was completed in the late 80s (the third cycle, on film, is outside the purview of this review). Both have long since achieved classic status, reissued numerous times in different packagings reviewed so often it's unnecessary to parse them for thumbnail recommendations. When Sony remastered the CBS cycle for a vinyl edition in 2017, the occasion was to celebrate the centennial of the conductor's birth in 1918. This new release from DG marks the first appearance of all its Bernstein Mahler symphonies on…