COPPER

A PS Audio Publication

Issue 90 • Free Online Magazine

Issue 90 Opening Salvo

Happy Landings!

Happy Landings!

Welcome to Copper #90!

By the time you read these, the 50th anniversary of the moon landing will have come and gone, and my landing in Oakland for the California Audio Show will also have come and gone. Next issue I'll bring some of the highlights from the show. I'm afraid I don't have anything to say about the moon landing that hasn't been said a million times before.

In this issue: Dan Schwartz looks at how we all shine on; Richard Murison notes some observations from his most recent trip to the UK; Jay Jay French expresses his appreciation for the Dave Clark Five; Roy Hall visits a totally unglamorous place, for once; Anne E. Johnson’s Off the Charts brings us hidden gems from Spandau Ballet; Woody Woodward continues his in-depth piece on Django Reinhardt with Act 4; Anne’s Something Old/Something New looks at recent recordings of works by Guillaume de Machaut. I examine the perils of overabundance of music in The Audio Cynic, and in Vintage Whine, we look at the short-lived '70s high-end brand, Quintessence. You may not know the brand, but it's a very interesting story.

I'm happy to bring you the first Revolutions Per Minute column from J.I. Agnew; this piece starts with the basics of record-making.

Remember Ken Fritz, who told us all about how he built an enormous listening room and five channels of mammoth speakers, all from scratch? Well, Ken needed a turntable to complete his system---and it probably won't surprise you that he devoted just as much attention to the 'table as he did to everything else. This amazing story will take a few installments to tell. We've got Part 1 in this issue.

Copper #90 wraps up with Charles Rodrigues as the life of the partyand a distinctive Parting Shot from our friend Rich Isaacs.

Finally, a sad note: music and audio industry veteran Jeremy Kipnis passed away recently in a drowning accident. Jeremy was the son of keyboardist/music critic Igor Kipnis, and grandson of the legendary operatic basso Alexander Kipnis. Jeremy was also a contributor to Copper, having written "Records as Time Machines", which appeared in Copper #76, and was reprinted by the German magazine Fidelity in their English-language edition. Jeremy and I had been in touch recently regarding an article he was writing for us about his grandfather, and I'm sorry that we won't be seeing that.

The greater loss, of course, is that of Jeremy himself. He was unique: talented, knowledgeable, and passionate, and yet--- a total goofball, with the energy and enthusiasm of a tweenager.

He will be missed by many---including me.

Leebs.

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#234 A Life in High-End Audio: The Roy Hall Interview, Part One by Frank Doris Sep 07, 2026 #234 Jason Greenlaw Offers His Personal Perspective on Jazz Guitar in Vantage Point by Frank Doris Sep 07, 2026 #234 Transcendent Phoenix: Lucina Yue Brings the Ancient Konghou Into Modern Times by Frank Doris Sep 07, 2026 #234 We Must All Follow Our Bliss by B. Jan Montana Sep 07, 2026 #234 How to Play in a Rock Band, 27: Leveling Up by Frank Doris Sep 07, 2026 #234 Ross Valory: Traveling Into New Musical Territory With All of the Above by Ray Chelstowski Sep 07, 2026 #234 Singer/Songwriter John David Schrader: On the Need to Create by Joe Caplan Sep 07, 2026 #234 The People Who Make Audio Happen: More From T.H.E. Show SoCal 2026 by Harris Fogel Sep 07, 2026 #234 The Vinyl Beat Digs Into the Gadget Box by Rudy Radelic Sep 07, 2026 #234 The Rolling Stones: Foreign Tongues Spoken Loud by Wayne Robins Sep 07, 2026 #234 Musical Moments by Rich Isaacs Sep 07, 2026 #234 Rags for Solo Piano and a Dog: David Chesky's Ragtime Music for the Modern Age by Frankly Speaking Sep 07, 2026 #234 HIGH END 2026, Vienna: Here to Stay by Carsten Barnbeck Sep 07, 2026 #234 From The Audiophile’s Guide: The Two Main Types of Loudpeakers – Box and Panel by Paul McGowan Sep 07, 2026 #234 Letting it Slide by Frank Doris Sep 07, 2026 #234 PS Audio in the News by PS Audio Staff Sep 07, 2026 #234 Long Playing by Peter Xeni Sep 07, 2026 #234 La Mer by B. Jan Montana Sep 07, 2026 #233 A Report From The Total Hi-Fi Experience Show SoCal 2026 by B. Jan Montana Aug 03, 2026 #233 Bluegrass Meets Country, Folk, Jazz and More in All That We Carried by The Squid City Slingers by Frank Doris Aug 03, 2026 #233 Corey Glover and One Tribe Nation: A Variegated Musical Collective by Ray Chelstowski Aug 03, 2026 #233 Excursions with Clive: The Late Clive Davis, A Personal History by Wayne Robins Aug 03, 2026 #233 AI, Art, and Music: A Conversation With Synthography Art by Joe Caplan Aug 03, 2026 #233 New American Symphonies: A Rediscovered Gem and a Vital Contemporary Work by Frank Doris Aug 03, 2026 #233 The Vinyl Beat: Genesis, the Dave Clark Five, Antonio Carlos Jobim and More by Rudy Radelic Aug 03, 2026 #233 How to Play in a Rock Band, 26: When It's Time to Record Your Music by Frank Doris Aug 03, 2026 #233 More From T.H.E. Show 2026, and the People Who Made it Happen by Harris Fogel Aug 03, 2026 #233 Underappreciated Artists, Part Three: Icehouse by Rich Isaacs Aug 03, 2026 #233 The Surprisingly Rich and Varied Music of Somalia by Steve Kindig Aug 03, 2026 #233 A Remarkable Discographic Legacy: The LP Recordings of the Basel Symphony Orchestra by Stephan Haberthür Aug 03, 2026 #233 From The Audiophile’s Guide: The Importance of Loudspeakers by Paul McGowan Aug 03, 2026 #233 From Swimming Pool to New Listening Room: A Conversation with Norman Varney of AV RoomService by Gilles Laferrière Aug 03, 2026 #233 PS Audio in the News by PS Audio Staff Aug 03, 2026 #233 Audio Jewelry by Peter Xeni Aug 03, 2026 #233 Enrich Your Life by Frank Doris Aug 03, 2026 #233 The Searcher by James Schrimpf Aug 03, 2026 #232 What came first: Art or Music? A Conversation With Artist Jose Acosta by Joe Caplan Jul 06, 2026 #232 Blow By Blow: The Jeff Beck Story: An Insightful Book About a Guitar Icon by Ray Chelstowski Jul 06, 2026 #232 Creed Over Camaraderie? by B. Jan Montana Jul 06, 2026 #232 Chronicles of a Sound Pilgrim at the 2026 Montreal Audiofest by Hugues Morin Jul 06, 2026 #232 The Vinyl Beat: Summer Grooves by Rudy Radelic Jul 06, 2026 #232 Hibbing Hillbilly Dylan's Acoustic Rock by Wayne Robins Jul 06, 2026 #232 Quad Quads and Plasmatronics Tweeters: An Extraordinary System Comes to Life by Frank Doris Jul 06, 2026 #232 In Praise of Live Music, Once Again by Ted Shafran Jul 06, 2026 #232 Allnic Audio’s L-9000 Preamplifier: Design and Engineering Innovation by Howard Kneller Jul 06, 2026 #232 “Best Of” Lists and Rage Bait: Enough Already by Frank Doris Jul 06, 2026 #232 Quick Takes: Bud Shank, Paulo Almeida, Jakob Dreyer, Tim Eriksen and Peter Irvine by Frank Doris Jul 06, 2026

Happy Landings!

Happy Landings!

Welcome to Copper #90!

By the time you read these, the 50th anniversary of the moon landing will have come and gone, and my landing in Oakland for the California Audio Show will also have come and gone. Next issue I'll bring some of the highlights from the show. I'm afraid I don't have anything to say about the moon landing that hasn't been said a million times before.

In this issue: Dan Schwartz looks at how we all shine on; Richard Murison notes some observations from his most recent trip to the UK; Jay Jay French expresses his appreciation for the Dave Clark Five; Roy Hall visits a totally unglamorous place, for once; Anne E. Johnson’s Off the Charts brings us hidden gems from Spandau Ballet; Woody Woodward continues his in-depth piece on Django Reinhardt with Act 4; Anne’s Something Old/Something New looks at recent recordings of works by Guillaume de Machaut. I examine the perils of overabundance of music in The Audio Cynic, and in Vintage Whine, we look at the short-lived '70s high-end brand, Quintessence. You may not know the brand, but it's a very interesting story.

I'm happy to bring you the first Revolutions Per Minute column from J.I. Agnew; this piece starts with the basics of record-making.

Remember Ken Fritz, who told us all about how he built an enormous listening room and five channels of mammoth speakers, all from scratch? Well, Ken needed a turntable to complete his system---and it probably won't surprise you that he devoted just as much attention to the 'table as he did to everything else. This amazing story will take a few installments to tell. We've got Part 1 in this issue.

Copper #90 wraps up with Charles Rodrigues as the life of the partyand a distinctive Parting Shot from our friend Rich Isaacs.

Finally, a sad note: music and audio industry veteran Jeremy Kipnis passed away recently in a drowning accident. Jeremy was the son of keyboardist/music critic Igor Kipnis, and grandson of the legendary operatic basso Alexander Kipnis. Jeremy was also a contributor to Copper, having written "Records as Time Machines", which appeared in Copper #76, and was reprinted by the German magazine Fidelity in their English-language edition. Jeremy and I had been in touch recently regarding an article he was writing for us about his grandfather, and I'm sorry that we won't be seeing that.

The greater loss, of course, is that of Jeremy himself. He was unique: talented, knowledgeable, and passionate, and yet--- a total goofball, with the energy and enthusiasm of a tweenager.

He will be missed by many---including me.

Leebs.

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