COPPER

A PS Audio Publication

Issue 218 • Free Online Magazine

Issue 218 Opening Salvo

Table of Contents – Issue 218

Table of Contents – Issue 218

“Thank you for the days / Those endless days, those sacred days you gave me
I'm thinking of the days / I won't forget a single day, believe me” – The Kinks, Days

In this issue: We have two reports on the AXPONA 2025 audio show, from myself and Rudy Radelic. Octave Records gets funky with Protostar by the Black Hole Boogie Band. I get a rare opportunity to hear the legendary Hill Plasmatronics loudspeakers. Paul McGowan offers advice on optimizing the listening room in The Audiophile’s Guide book series. Wayne Robins sees a new generation discovering the Beatles and “Strawberry Fields Forever.” Ray Chelstowski talks with legendary rocker Don Felder.

B. Jan Montana sees that when Zeus is dead, Chaos reigns. Peter Xeni has a look at 50 years of the Melbourne Audio Club, one of the world’s oldest audio societies. Our colleagues at FIDELITY magazine visit turntable and cartridge manufacturer Clearaudio, and a PMA Magazine writer…quits audio? My series on playing in a rock band goes to some extremes outdoors. PS Audio introduces their new top-of-the-line PMG Signature Series. Ken Kessler won’t quit in his pursuit of vintage Revox reel-to-reel decks. We round out the issue with channel surfing, a monolithic loudspeaker, and mind games.


Click here for information on how to post comments in Copper.

Contributors to This Issue:
Carsten Barnbeck, Ray Chelstowski, Frank Doris, Ken Kessler, Jonson Lee, Paul McGowan, B. Jan Montana, Rudy Radelic, Wayne Robins, James Schrimpf, Peter Xeni

Logo Design:
Susan Schwartz-Christian, from a concept by Bob D’Amico

Editor:
Frank Doris

Publisher:
Paul McGowan

Post-publication Nitpicker:
Rich Isaacs

Advertising Sales:
No one. We are free from advertising and subscribing to Copper is free.

Copper’s Comments Policy:
Copper’s comments sections are moderated. While we encourage thoughtful and spirited discussion, please be civil.

The editor and Copper’s editorial staff reserve the right to delete comments according to our discretion. This includes: political commentary; posts that are abusive, insulting, demeaning or defamatory; posts that are in violation of someone’s privacy; comments that violate the use of copyrighted information; posts that contain personal information; and comments that contain links to suspect websites (phishing sites or those that contain viruses and so on). Spam will be blocked or deleted. Thanks for your consideration.

– FD

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#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 #232 My Impressions of AXPONA 2026, Part 2 by Frank Doris Jul 06, 2026 #232 How to Play in a Rock Band, 25: Encounters With Famous Musicians, Part Three by Frank Doris Jul 06, 2026 #232 Budgets, and Systems From Small to Outrageous by Paul McGowan Jul 06, 2026 #232 PS Audio in the News by PS Audio Staff Jul 06, 2026 #232 Hand It Over by Frank Doris Jul 06, 2026 #232 Difference of Opinion by Peter Xeni Jul 06, 2026 #232 Wabi-sabi Tree by James Schrimpf Jul 06, 2026 #231 Piano Prodigy Jude Kofie Releases His Debut Album On Octave Records by Frank Doris Jun 01, 2026 #231 Underappreciated Artists, Part Two: City Boy by Rich Isaacs Jun 01, 2026 #231 Music and the Art of Creation: Talking With Saxophonist Rob Scheps by Joe Caplan Jun 01, 2026 #231 How to Play in a Rock Band, 24: Further Adventures at the 2026 Montauk Music Festival by Frank Doris Jun 01, 2026 #231 Courtney Barnett: Creature of Habit by Wayne Robins Jun 01, 2026 #231 Angine de Poitrine: Interstellar Guitar Rock Saviors Headed for Late-Night TV Pop Stardom? by Mark Lepage Jun 01, 2026 #231 My Impressions of AXPONA 2026, Part One by Frank Doris Jun 01, 2026 #231 2026 La Jolla Concours d'Elegance: Another Aesthetic Feast by B. Jan Montana Jun 01, 2026 #231 Country Music Icon Jo Dee Messina’s Bridges: A New Beginning by Ray Chelstowski Jun 01, 2026 #231 The Luxury Dispatch Hosts a Video Podcast With Ken Kessler by Ken Kessler Jun 01, 2026 #231 The Vinyl Beat: Tracking in the Motor City by Rudy Radelic Jun 01, 2026

Table of Contents – Issue 218

Table of Contents – Issue 218

“Thank you for the days / Those endless days, those sacred days you gave me
I'm thinking of the days / I won't forget a single day, believe me” – The Kinks, Days

In this issue: We have two reports on the AXPONA 2025 audio show, from myself and Rudy Radelic. Octave Records gets funky with Protostar by the Black Hole Boogie Band. I get a rare opportunity to hear the legendary Hill Plasmatronics loudspeakers. Paul McGowan offers advice on optimizing the listening room in The Audiophile’s Guide book series. Wayne Robins sees a new generation discovering the Beatles and “Strawberry Fields Forever.” Ray Chelstowski talks with legendary rocker Don Felder.

B. Jan Montana sees that when Zeus is dead, Chaos reigns. Peter Xeni has a look at 50 years of the Melbourne Audio Club, one of the world’s oldest audio societies. Our colleagues at FIDELITY magazine visit turntable and cartridge manufacturer Clearaudio, and a PMA Magazine writer…quits audio? My series on playing in a rock band goes to some extremes outdoors. PS Audio introduces their new top-of-the-line PMG Signature Series. Ken Kessler won’t quit in his pursuit of vintage Revox reel-to-reel decks. We round out the issue with channel surfing, a monolithic loudspeaker, and mind games.


Click here for information on how to post comments in Copper.

Contributors to This Issue:
Carsten Barnbeck, Ray Chelstowski, Frank Doris, Ken Kessler, Jonson Lee, Paul McGowan, B. Jan Montana, Rudy Radelic, Wayne Robins, James Schrimpf, Peter Xeni

Logo Design:
Susan Schwartz-Christian, from a concept by Bob D’Amico

Editor:
Frank Doris

Publisher:
Paul McGowan

Post-publication Nitpicker:
Rich Isaacs

Advertising Sales:
No one. We are free from advertising and subscribing to Copper is free.

Copper’s Comments Policy:
Copper’s comments sections are moderated. While we encourage thoughtful and spirited discussion, please be civil.

The editor and Copper’s editorial staff reserve the right to delete comments according to our discretion. This includes: political commentary; posts that are abusive, insulting, demeaning or defamatory; posts that are in violation of someone’s privacy; comments that violate the use of copyrighted information; posts that contain personal information; and comments that contain links to suspect websites (phishing sites or those that contain viruses and so on). Spam will be blocked or deleted. Thanks for your consideration.

– FD

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