Paul's Posts

It's been a long slog getting here but, at Octave, we're finally launching vinyl. I am over the top excited. As some of you may know, there are only a... Read more...

Measure once, cut twice

Sorry for the opening humor. Measurements are essential. Without them, we could never design products. Especially speakers with their complex crossover and cabinet interactions. Sometimes you have to do what... Read more...

More mud

A few days ago I wrote a blog post about impedance. It seems to have stirred more mud than cleared the waters. Might as well go for broke. This post... Read more...

It's all in the translation

For most people, amplification of the musical signal means just that. Taking the original signal as generated by the source and making that signal bigger. Only, that's not what happens.... Read more...

Low to high or the opposite?

Impedance can often be a tough to understand subject. Is it better to have high or low? What's the difference between the two in practical terms? For those with a... Read more...

Passing the test

50 years ago in the dark ages of my past, I was determined to learn how circuits worked and what made amplifiers tick. Working full time as a disc jockey... Read more...

Audiophile Day

Every single day of the year there are multiple celebrations of every imaginable topic. In fact, this month there are more celebrations than there are days in the year. And,... Read more...

Keyboard warriors

"The pen is mightier than the sword" was first written by novelist and playwright Edward Bulwer-Lytton in 1839, in his historical play Cardinal Richelieu. It's still true today though no... Read more...

Greener pastures

I think our memories tend to smooth out problems and give us a false sense of the past and its supposed greener pastures. Often, those pastures are colored a rich... Read more...

DeoxIT or Zinfandel

"DeoxIT or Zinfandel - the struggle is real" -- Sameer Verma c. 2021 When reader Sameer sent me a note about his struggles with upgrading and tweaking vs. simply sitting... Read more...

Generalities

While reading through the comments section of this blog I stopped at one standout. "I prefer the sound of speakers from across the pond." Generalities. We tend to group our... Read more...

Enhanced or held back?

If we make a change for the better to our room or equipment, one that gets us closer to the music, was it achieved by a fundamental change or by... Read more...

Op amps vs. chips

I wince when people equate op-amps with chips. An op-amp describes a topology, not a chip. Yes, the op-amp topology is often built onto a silicon wafer, but we should... Read more...

Tech talk

I am most comfortable in the company of engineers. It's more than just camaraderie. To non-engineering folk, our conversations might sound like a different language what with all the terminology... Read more...

Things worth remembering

I've managed to live approximately 26,800 days so far. That seems like a lot of days and yet my memory of all that's transpired in that lifetime of days numbers... Read more...

Holding back

While over the weekend I had the pleasure of spending time in Music Room Two and the IRS auditioning some new Octave releases. The producer and audio engineer, Scott, had... Read more...

Simplicity

Conventional wisdom would have us believe best results are obtained via simple solutions. The simpler the solution the better and cleaner the outcome. I find simple solutions are often the most difficult to accept and inevitably the hardest to find. How many times have you gone round and round in search of a solution only to finally land on what, after the merry-go-round of effort, seems suddenly obvious? A DC blocking capacitor is a heck of a lot simpler than a complex DC servo-eliminating circuit. When a magician saws a... Read more...

The bark fix

In a recent post, The Bark Syndrome, I identified a problem that is difficult to pinpoint its source. Barking voices. You've no doubt experienced on multiple recordings the bark of... Read more...

The Bark Syndrome

When working within a complex system like that of a modern two-channel stereo, one of the most difficult tasks turns out to be accurate finger pointing. Identifying a specific culprit... Read more...

Swept away

I find it ironic that our goal as audiophiles is to forget the equipment and be swept away by the music. But, of course, that's the only goal that makes... Read more...

Country/Region

Country/Region