Paul's Posts

In our world of high-end audio there's a debate as old as time: what's more important, the source or the loudspeaker? This question is akin to the classic conundrum of the... Read more...

VU Meters

I have always been curious about our passion for VU meters on the front panel of power amplifiers. Companies like McIntosh have made their mark on our industry by making... Read more...

The shield

Back in the days where swords and knives were the weapons of choice, a shield was an awfully effective way of staying alive. It protected you from getting skewered by... Read more...

When is it right?

On a couple of recent Octave Records recordings I have been experimenting a bit with the drum kit. On a typical session where there are drums, my preferred microphone setup... Read more...

Predatory plumbing

A bit of a warning. Today's post is long, it's a rant, and it's not about audio. It's about predators. Feel free to skip it. For the past several months... Read more...

Careful what you wish for

In the "glory days" of HiFi, between the 1980s and 90s, HiFi manufacturers were in a fierce competition to produce audio equipment with the lowest possible THD, a measure of performance... Read more...

Resonating

Resonance is a phenomenon that occurs when a system is driven at its natural frequency, causing it to oscillate with greater amplitude. Some examples might include the ringing of a bell, hitting... Read more...

Enhancement

When we say a new piece of audio kit enhances the performance of the system do we mean it in the literal sense of the word? "An increase or improvement... Read more...

Reverbs and subwoofers

I received a recent note from Lucas in Brazil and I wanted to first share it with you. "I've just discovered the Octave Records now and I'm really impressed as... Read more...

Better parts

In yesterday's post we discussed the practice of bypassing capacitors for better sonic performance. Today, let's touch on the idea of parts quality. When you invest in a piece of... Read more...

Bypassing caps

It is standard practice today to add in parallel a small film capacitor across a much larger value electrolytic cap. That practice is called bypassing and doing so improves the... Read more...

Stereo width

At Octave Records, I've been working on honing my recording chops. The resulting tracks have each taken a noticeable leap up in you-are-there presence as well as soundstage width and... Read more...

The kitchen sink

One sure fire way to build a world class HiFi system is to throw the kitchen sink at it: everything, from cables to tweaks to room treatment. And while this... Read more...

Blissful ignorance

Ever notice how you can be so enamored with the sound of some equipment that you completely ignore obvious flaws until someone points them out to you? I like to think... Read more...

Open vs. closed

You've probably heard the engineering terms open loop versus closed loop. It might be a bit of a mystery as to what we're referring to so, if you're curious, I'll... Read more...

Kaizen

Kaizen is a Japanese word that embodies much of what we in high-end audio are focused on. Slow, steady improvements over time. Rooted in the Japanese words "kai," meaning change, and... Read more...

Bangs and bucks

I suppose the term biggest bang for the buck comes from the gun or explosives industry, but wherever it came from it's often what we're hoping for. Maximizing our investment in... Read more...

Adapting

We're an adaptive species. Given enough time we can get used to just about anything. When I walk into a room playing music, sometimes the audio quality is so far... Read more...

THD vs. IM

When we look at audio specs we typically see distortion as a goal to keep as low as possible. After all, distortion is the opposite of perfection. But there are... Read more...

Old practices

Does anyone bi-amp anymore? For the longest time, many of us were obsessed with the synergistic benefits of assigning different quality power amplifiers to the tweeter and the woofer. It... Read more...

Purchase or Audition Locally