Paul's Posts

Texture is what tells us how something feels—not just what it sounds like. When I listen to a bowed double bass, I want to hear the friction of the bow,... Read more...

Toe to toe

One inch makes a difference in quite a number of respects, especially in loudspeakers. The angle of your speakers—whether they point straight ahead or aim directly at your ears—controls far... Read more...

Chasing air

High frequencies give us space. But it’s the air around the notes that gives us presence. Years ago, I was auditioning tweeters for a loudspeaker design, and one candidate stood... Read more...

Your Listening Chair Belongs in the Wrong Place

Move it forward three inches. Most people position their listening chair where it feels comfortable in the room—against the back wall, centered between the speakers, maybe with a nice view... Read more...

Timbre

Timbre is what lets us tell a violin from a flute, even if they’re playing the same note. I remember the first time I sat down in the old Music... Read more...

The couch

Furniture is acoustic treatment. Every object in your listening room affects the sound, whether you planned it that way or not. Your couch absorbs midrange and treble. That glass coffee... Read more...

Triangles

Geometry matters more than you think. Your listening setup should form a triangle—left speaker, right speaker, and your seat. If your speakers are ten feet apart, you should sit about... Read more...

The 4-foot rule

Your speakers need breathing room. I've walked into countless living rooms where beautiful speakers sit pressed against the wall like furniture. The owners wonder why their system sounds flat and... Read more...

Pauses

Music isn’t just made of notes—it’s made of pauses. In live performance, silence sets the stage for impact. The decay of a piano note, the hush before a symphonic climax,... Read more...

The quiet moments

Silence is part of the music. In all my years of listening, designing, and tweaking systems, one of the most profound realizations I've had is this: the space between notes—the... Read more...

Shyness

The best speakers are the ones you forget are there. We spend so much time comparing specs, materials, designs. But when a speaker is truly right, it stops calling attention... Read more...

Voodoo

As I have pointed out over the past few days, measurement and perception don’t always walk hand in hand. It’s tempting to believe the oscilloscope or AP over your own... Read more...

The power of wrong

The best engineering lesson comes wrapped in failure. I used to cringe when someone proved me wrong. Now I get excited. Being wrong, especially in audio, means I’m about to... Read more...

Stories

We understand the world not as it is, but as the story we tell ourselves about it. These stories explain to us how everything works and how we fit in.... Read more...

Lively

A lively system engages us. It’s not about volume. It’s about pace, timing, and dynamics that feel natural. Liveliness is what makes your foot tap. When it’s missing, music feels... Read more...

Too much

More detail isn’t always better. We’ve all heard systems that sound hyper-detailed: every pick on a guitar string, every lip smack from a vocalist, every squeak of a chair. It’s... Read more...

It's show time!

Flying in to New Jersey yesterday morning to setup the Aspen FR20s and PMG equipment stack at the New York Audio Show, I had forgotten just how pretty this part... Read more...

Depth

Depth in a soundstage isn’t recorded as a measurement—it’s created as an illusion. What makes some recordings feel like they stretch back beyond the speakers, while others sound flat against... Read more...

Patience

A turntable only sounds as good as its setup. Vinyl is uniquely rewarding, but it’s also unforgiving. If the cartridge isn’t aligned properly, if tracking force is off, or if... Read more...

Sing

Some rooms just sound better than others. I’ve walked into empty living rooms where a stereo system almost sets itself up. You drop the speakers down, sit in the middle,... Read more...

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