The photo is of Pear Audio Analogue's new $5995 tubed Reference Preamplifier with built in MM phono section available in a variety of wood fascias but a separate tubed MM phono pre-amp is also available for $4500.
Seeing these Pear Audio Blue turntables in the Audio Skies room produced both surprise and familiarity. Surprise because it was a three-turntable line I'd neither seen nor heard of and familiarity because certain design elements looked like they had been lifted from the late Tom Fletcher of Nottingham Analogue fame.
There's still time to order online this double LP set curated with love by Lee's granddaughter Holly Foster Wells—or if your local vinyl emporium has a copy—pick it up "live". The 22 song compilation of course includes ten tracks from Lee's Christmas album Christmas Carousel (1960), but it also features songs from her earlier Decca catalog along with from the Disney animated classic "Lady and the Tramp", and a pair of duets with Bing Crosby. Six of the album's songs were written or co-written by Lee.
San Francisco based Pelotone has been named the new American Koetsu cartridge distributor. The company will also handle all Koetsu re-tipping. Shown is the $10,950 Koetsu Azul. Mounted on a top of the Pro-Ject line Signature turntable, driving Doshi electronics and a pair of Wilson Alexia speakers, the Azul produced some of the sweetest, yet most detailed sound heard at RMAF 2013.
This is an easy call. Art Pepper at a productive time in his career musically and otherwise, recorded with vivid clarity at Contemporary Studios and delivered to the listener as a double 45rpm LP. You’ll be convinced Pepper’s standing between your speakers playing lithe alto sax lines that exude the delicacy of Paul Desmond and the muscular force of John Coltrane.
Cynics tired of the RHCP’s act say they’re running on fumes. Yes, well then what accounts for the remarkable success of this album, packed with the band’s usual rap/rock/funk mix? That’s an easy question to answer. It’s reliably hard, funky, powerful, spare and big. It goes down easy but still engages.
During the 1960s, Dual, Elac/Benjamin-Miracord and Perpetuum Exner were Germany's leading turntable manufacturers and the brands best known to Americans. PE was probably the least well-distributed and more exotic of the three.
Silly me! I thought all Hans Zimmer lifted for The Gladiator soundtrack were bits and pieces of Holst's "The Planets". Everyone does that so no offense, but after playing this reissue I heard from where came the best parts of The Gladiator soundtrack. Surely this was on the CD player when Zimmer created his track. Don't get me wrong, it's still a masterful soundtrack and filled with sonic and musical jolts, but here's from where it originated.