FEBRUARY 2001
SURVEY OF THE AUDIO & HOME THEATER PRINT PRESS
[Presented in cooperation with L.A. AUDIO FILE. If you can't find any of these magazines at your local audio salon or newsstand, complete details will be found here in our Audio Bibliography.]
ULTIMATE AUDIO = Their Winter 2001 issue features their Product of the Year, which is the Martin-Logan Prodigy speaker, as well as their Recordings of the Year. Coverage of the Milan and London Hi-Fi Shows shares with reviews of the Helikon MC cartridge from Lyra and SME's Model 10 turntable. SACD is in the spotlight with reviews of the Marantz Reference SA-1 player and 4 SACDs. Top mastering engineer Bob Ludwig is interviewed in the first of a two-part series. Other components this quarter: Nagra tube amps, Muse Model 9 Signature DVD player, Legend Audio Starlet Integrated Amp, Aloia PSAT 11.01 Preamp, CTC Blowtorch Preamp, Quad 989 Electrostatic speakers, Avantgarde Acoustic DUO 2.0 Horn Speakers, Sound Application CF-X, Hovland HP-100 Preamp.
HI-FI NEWS = The January and February issues of this UK mag were received within a few days of one another. The January covers the British-made mini-system from Sugden, the Muse Model 9 player, Pro-Ject turntable, Densen CD player, and a group test of six of the best mini monitor speakers (they liked the Elac CL 310I Jet best). Peter Comeau is interviewed on stance that the NXT panels can really be made to deliver high end sound. Barry Fox's opinion page states that "DVD-Audio will almost certainly flop..." A watchmaker's classic home system is profiled - it consists of many turntables, ReVox open reel decks and the original Quad speakers.
HI-FI NEWS for February has top amps from Creek, Cyrus, Exposure, Marantz, Naim and Shearne on the cover. An audio system with Krell five channel amp and Wilson Audio speakers answers whether it is possible to deliver both home theater and stereo from the same system. Arcam's Diva DVD player, Wavac's integrated tube amp and Gale's turntable are reviewed, "Hot 100" is their one-stop guide to the best hi-fi equipment. The System Setup section this month is a couple living with giant Avantgarde Duo horn speakers, a Platine Verdier turntable and no CD player. Other components: B&W CDM7NT speakers, VPI HW-17 LP cleaning machine, Spendor sub, Technics SLPS7 CD player, Magnum Dynalab MD102 tuner.
THE SENSIBLE SOUND = The Jan/Feb 01 issue sports a cover feature on the Best CDs of 2000, which they cleverly title Recordings To Live For! Other features stories: The Best Speakers Money Can't Buy, Little Pup - Big Woof, CDs on a DVD Player. The Velodyne HGS-10 Sub is reviewed, as well as three different models of the wonderful Waveform loudspeakers - which company very unfortunately just went out of business. Each software reviewer on the staff lists their favorite CD picks and explains in detail why they picked them. (Lots of their favorites are our favorites too.)
AUDIO IDEAS GUIDE = Recently received from Canada is their A/V Almanac for 2001, a special directory issue similar to what AUDIO magazine used to do every October. Over 5000 current products are profiled with specs and prices. Also reviewed this issue: PSB Alpha Intro budget HT speakers, Energy's Veritas v2.2 three-way bookshelf speakers, the dCS Delius & Purcell upsampling processor DACs (definitely NOT budget), and home theater surround processors from Myryad and Sunfire.
BOUND FOR SOUND = Issue #131 of the no-advertising newsletter, dated January, opens with Publisher Martin DeWulf commenting on reactions to his last article on Where Have All the High End Companies Gone? Also a warning about using some surface applications such as Auric Illuminator on SACDs from a certain pressing plant. (They can be made instantly unplayable.) Reviews this month: RBH Sound SE-1266 speakers, Innersound Eros speakers, Machina Dynamica Isolation Platform, Khama Ceramique 3 speakers, Joule Electra VAMP Integrated Amp, Coincident Speaker Technology Millennium speakers.
SCHWANN INSIDE = for February has soprano Renee Fleming on the cover, with a story about this star in the ascendant. Albert Roussel is a featured composer with several recommended CDs, ace jazz trumpet player Dave Douglas is profiled, plus the top-selling CD reissues released in connection with the Ken Burns JAZZ PBS series.
INTERNATIONAL RECORD REVIEW = The January issue received last week has a cover story on pianist "Martha Argerich, a transcendental artist." A new boxed CD set of Leonard Bernstein live performances with the New York Philharmonic is reviewed, and the many recordings of works by now 83-year-old French composer Henri Dutilleux are discussed. The UK pub's Audio section seems to be growing, with review this time of: NAD RDS Tuner, Soundstyle AV rack, Linn's Sizmik disturbance sub, Onkyo CD Recorder, AVI Neutron III speaker, Cyrus CD7 CD player, Monitor Audio Silver 8i speakers.
- John Sunier