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Wednesday, May 21, 2025

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: Written by: Jeff Fritz; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 December 2012

Jeff Fritz I made the transition from a living/listening room to a dedicated listening room in late 2005 and early 2006. The move was made primarily due to the increasing mobility of my daughter, who was then one year old, and my realization that no review sample would be safe from her ever-more-curious fingers. Of course, as any audiophile worth his salt would do, I took the opportunity to upgrade the sound of my audio system and, while I was at it, give it a vastly better acoustic environment -- one designed by Terry Montlick, of Terry Montlick Labs.

By the time the new room -- the Music Vault -- was completed in early 2006, I’d reported on the entire project in a series of articles on Ultra Audio, beginning the previous September: “Building the Music Vault -- Part One,” “Part Two,” and “Part Three.” The Vault then remained unchanged for six years -- until this past spring, when I put the finishing touches on The World’s Best Audio System 2012, my third cost-no-object dream-system project for the SoundStage! Network, extensively written about on SoundStage! Global. Each of the two changes I made was designed to improve the performance of the Vault. First, the polycylindrical diffusors that line the room’s walls were further damped by being stuffed and put under tension with fiberglass insulation, then capped with panels of 2"-thick polyethylene. The purpose of this was to damp their large surface areas and thereby reduce any resonances that might occur.

: Written by: Peter Roth; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 November 2012

Peter Roth Far too many audiophiles get worked up posing and defending arguments about what is the absolute best high-fidelity equipment extant. I suspect that the loudest voices are not particularly objective, tied as they often are to the validation of their own purchases. Check out the blogs -- it can be crazy out there.

Calm down, people. High-performance audio can and should elicit passion, but that passion needs to be grounded in common sense, balance, and a systems-oriented approach. I’ll let you in on a little secret: There is no “best” out there, at least in any absolute or blanket sense.

: Written by: Jeff Fritz; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 October 2012

KEF R500 Last month I wrote about the super products that I’d buy without hesitation. Those wallet-busting components ranged from $15,000 to $165,000 USD -- not chump change to anyone I know. But put them in your listening room and you’ll be rewarded with the best sound that money can presently buy. But even when their prices are set aside, they aren’t the most practical audio components. Each Magico Q7 loudspeaker weighs 750 pounds, and the Gryphon Mephisto amplifier isn’t exactly light at 250 pounds.

Thank goodness you can get great sound without having to spend huge sums of money and/or housing a multi-ton system.

So assuming that cost is an object -- as it is for most of us -- here are some of the products I’d buy today. It might surprise you to see just how little compromise you need to make in high-value, high-end audio gear. These products aren’t necessarily cheap, but each offers huge value within its product genre; and their prices fall below -- sometimes far below -- those listed in last month’s column.

: Written by: Jeff Fritz; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 September 2012

Jeff Fritz The longer I review high-end audio gear -- I’ve been doing it going on 15 years now -- the less inclined I am to buy it. You’d think it would be the opposite. After all, I’m exposed to an endless supply of the best products available. Do I cherry-pick review samples for myself? Of course. Being the editor-in-chief of the SoundStage! Network has its privileges, and I regularly exercise them when it comes to selecting products for my own use. It helps to have at my disposal the Music Vault listening room, a sonically neutral lab in which to audition the best components extant. So, yes, I get the best stuff, and it’s a blast to do this “job.” (I should also mention that I see my fair share of mediocre products, and the occasional real dog that doesn’t deserve the time it would take to pan it. But that’s another story for another time.)

: Written by: Jeff Fritz; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 August 2012

Objectivist or Subjectivist? The July/August issue of Positive Feedback Online includes an article by Teresa Goodwin titled "Why I’m a Subjectivist." She begins by proclaiming, "In our world of music enjoyment there are subjectivists and objectivists. I’m a subjectivist." Her definitions are thus: "Objectivists believe in a dictatorial unyielding totalitarianism of science over human interaction with music. Subjectivists believe in total freedom to enjoy music however one chooses, without any scientific validation."

: Written by: Jeff Fritz; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 July 2012

It was December of 2006. I’d flown into New York’s LaGuardia Airport from Wilmington, North Carolina, and got stuck there for what seemed like days (but was actually only half a day). I was on my way to visit Andrew Payor, of Rockport Technologies, in Rockport, Maine, who would give me a tour of his facilities. I would then listen to his current line of loudspeakers. I would then have the most pivotal experience of my audiophile life.

: Written by: Simeon Sandiford; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 June 2012

An enticing prelude

Simeon Sandiford For me, The World’s Best Audio System 2012 began when I met Howard Gladstone, president and CEO of Plitron Manufacturing, parent company of Torus Power, who was responsible for supplying power-conditioning equipment for the megasystem. We became instant friends, exchanging pleasantries as we traveled for 20 minutes in the courtesy shuttle from ILM airport to the Holiday Inn in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina.

: Written by: Peter Roth; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 May 2012

TWBAS 2012 At this point, The World’s Best Audio System 2012 has been well documented. Nevertheless, having just spent three jam-packed days flying from Los Angeles to North Carolina and back for a engaging and engrossing Saturday “happening,” I’m happy to share some of my impressions.

Commitment. On reflection, I remain amazed by the sheer amount of effort expended by everyone involved to make TWBAS 2012 such a success. Following his decision to have another go at assembling an all-hands-on-deck supersystem, Jeff Fritz spent countless hours researching leads, contemplating complementary components, and balancing the already available against the potential of cutting-edge opportunities still in process. And that was just the beginning.

: Written by: Jeff Fritz; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 April 2012

TWBAS 2012 Well, as I write this, it’s not really over -- we’re still about 12 days out from the start of The World’s Best Audio System 2012, which takes place March 30-31. But if you’re reading this on April 1, then the event is over, as it finished up just last night. Whew! You can read all about it and see all the photos on www.SoundStageGlobal.com. I’m hoping that all went smoothly, of course, and that the sound in my Music Vault listening room set new standards for the high-fidelity playback of music recordings. That is/was, after all, the ultimate goal of the entire exercise. But a lot of things would have had to come together to make that happen, and the variables and pitfalls are many.

: Written by: Jeff Fritz; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 March 2012

By now you know which components comprise TWBAS 2012, which means it’s time for me to tell you why I chose them. This is the potentially controversial part -- the part where you learn about my decision-making process, and what differentiates these products from the pack.

But before I tell you why I chose each particular product, I should tell you what criteria I based my choices on. You’ve likely already figured this out, but I did not hear even one of them beforehand -- many were still in the R&D phase when I chose them. I don’t suggest you buy your state-of-the-art stereo system this way, but the unknown is part of what makes TWBAS 2012 so exciting -- like diving from the top of a skyscraper in a wingsuit.