From the desk of Paul McGowan

Paul's Posts

Notes on music, gear, and the long pursuit of better sound. New most mornings.

Paul's Posts

More from Paul

  1. Active vs. passiveFor decades, the audiophile orthodoxy said linear (passive) power supplies sound better and switch-mode supplies were for laptops and cell phones. But times and technologies change... Active vs. passive
  2. Point of viewA musician on stage hears the music from inside the band. The rest of us hear it from out in the audience. The two perspectives sound... Point of view
  3. Holy Grilles!Speaker grilles aren't acoustically neutral. They were designed to do an aesthetic job, and the question of whether to leave them on or take them off... Holy Grilles!
  4. Winners and losersThe biggest single variable in your audio system isn't your gear. It's the room you put it in. Change the room and you change everything. We've... Winners and losers
  5. Stop the theft!Soundstage isn't built in the DAC. It's already in the recording — the DAC's only job is to get out of its own way. A stereo... Stop the theft!
  6. Dynamics!A system that compresses dynamics (and most do to some extent) doesn't just reduce loudness contrast — it removes the emotional impact from the music itself.... Dynamics!
  7. Power tweakBefore you change a single piece of gear, get your speaker placement right — it makes more difference than almost any equipment upgrade you can make.... Power tweak
  8. In the beginningThe power cord is the first link between the wall and your music, and treating it as an afterthought is a mistake. I've heard the pushback... In the beginning
  9. The latestEvery few years a new semiconductor technology arrives with impressive specifications and a lot of enthusiasm behind it, and the question we always ask is the... The latest
  10. On or off?Tubes are a consumable, and how you manage them changes how long they last and how they sound. The question of whether to leave a tube... On or off?
  11. Burning upThe idea that audio components need hours of use before settling into their best sound is one of the most debated topics in our community —... Burning up
  12. Taming the beastGetting low frequencies right in a listening room is one of the more challenging parts of building a great system — and one of the most... Taming the beast
  13. Becoming a Better ListenerListening is a skill — and like any skill, it develops with practice, but only if you know what to practice. Most of us in the... Becoming a Better Listener