SoundStage! Audiophile Podcast

Speaker and Headphone Measurements Mash-Up - Misinformation | What Matters | Active vs. Passive | Listening

This week, SoundStage! Audiophile Podcast host Jorden Guth is joined by SoundStage! founder Doug Schneider and former SoundStage! Audiophile Podcast cohost Brent Butterworth to discuss the what, how, and why of speaker and headphone measurements. What measurements correlate with listening impressions? How do active and wireless products complicate measurements? And what’s the right balance of listening versus measuring when it comes to fully evaluating a product.
Sources:
"Is the miniDSP EARS the Death of Headphone Measurement? Or its Savior?" by Brent Butterworth: https://www.soundstagesolo.com/index.php/features/152-is-minidsp-ears-the-death-of-headphone-measurement-or-its-savior
SoundStage! Network speaker-measurements resource URL: www.SpeakerMeasurements.com 
Sean Olive on Tracy Chapman's "Fast Car": https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7084958885526065153/
Chapters:00:00:00 Announcement00:00:20 What we measure with transducers and why00:25:09 Musical interlude: "You Don't Really Exist" by Nim Sadot00:26:40 When measurements go wrong and why bass always wins01:04:01 Brent on the music that moves him

KEF’s Jack Oclee-Brown - Tangerine Waveguide | Blade Speakers | Uni-Q | Meta Materials | Lotus Cars | Aspirational Hi-Fi

This week, SoundStage! Audiophile Podcast host Jorden Guth is joined by Jack Oclee-Brown, VP of Technology at KEF, to discuss speaker design and engineering, the development of the Tangerine Waveguide, how electromechanical design and industrial design come together, KEF in cars, and more . . . 
Sources:
The Sweet Sound of KEF's Tangerine Waveguide: https://us.kef.com/blogs/news/the-sweet-sound-of-kef-s-tangerine-waveguide
"KEF Blade Loudspeakers" by Barry Jones: https://www.soundstageaustralia.com/index.php/reviews/516-kef-blade-loudspeakers
KEF x LOTUS Partnership: https://us.kef.com/pages/kef-lotus-partnership
Metamaterial Absorption Technology: https://us.kef.com/pages/metamaterial
Chapters:00:00:00 Announcement00:00:20 Design choices and how they matter00:20:22 Musical interlude: "Wanting You" by Jamison Dewlen00:21:34 The value of aspirational products00:42:11 The soundtrack to Jack’s life

James Hale on “Art+Tech” - Mixing Hi-Fi and Music | The Inspiration for… | Technology and Art

This week, SoundStage! Audiophile Podcast host Jorden Guth is joined by James Hale, author of SoundStage! Xperience’s popular “Art+Tech” column, to discuss his unique approach to hardware and music reviews, how the column came about, the value of today’s audio gear as compared with that of decades past, and how technology influences the creation and enjoyment of art. 
Sources:
"How Good Can the Focal Utopia Headphones Make Remarkable Recordings Sound?" by James Hale: https://www.soundstagexperience.com/index.php/features-menu/art-tech/1104-how-good-can-the-focal-utopia-headphones-make-remarkable-recordings-sound
"Battling Anxiety with Arcade Fire and the Rotel A12MKII Integrated Amplifier-DAC" by James Hale: https://www.soundstagexperience.com/index.php/features-menu/art-tech/1072-battling-anxiety-with-arcade-fire-and-the-rotel-a12mkii-integrated-amplifier-dac
http://jameshale.ca/music.html
https://downbeat.com/site/author/james-hale
Chapters:00:00:00 Announcement00:00:20 How SoundStage! founder Doug Schneider inspired “Art+Tech”00:22:56 Musical interlude: "My Bet" by RocknStock00:24:05 It’s about the music, silly!00:39:39 …except for opera

Music Maven Mark Waldrep Rolls with the Changes - High-Res Controversy | MQA Snow Job?

This week, SoundStage! Audiophile Podcast host Jorden Guth is joined by Dr. Mark Waldrep of AIX Records fame to discuss changes in the audiophile music marketplace over the years, as well as Mark’s controversial and ever-evolving views on high-resolution music recording and playback, as well as why he stopped mastering records altogether.
Sources:
"Audibility of a CD-Standard A/DA/A Loop Inserted into High-Resolution Audio Playback" by E. Brad Meyerand David R. Moran: https://secure.aes.org/forum/pubs/journal/?ID=2#:~:text=The%20test%20results%20show%20that,Authors%3A%20Meyer%2C%20E
"Researching HD-Audio: The Truth" by Mark Waldrep: https://www.realhd-audio.com/?p=6993
https://www.aixrecords.com/
https://www.itrax.com/
“Music and Audio: A User Guide to Better Sound: by Mark Waldrep: https://www.musicandaudioguide.com/
https://www.youtube.com/@markwaldrep5143
https://www.artistconnection.net/
Chapters:00:00:00 Announcement00:00:20 Does high-res matter?00:35:25 Musical interlude: "Concerto in Fm (Bach)" by Ohad Ben-Ari00:37:21 The most important component of your system00:41:45 Is MQA a snow job?00:48:54 The beauty of Bach

Bernie Grundman, the Music Master - Mastering Defined | Digital vs. Analog | Radio vs. Streaming

In this week’s episode, host Jorden Guth is joined by legendary mastering engineer Bernie Grundman to discuss what mastering is, what it isn’t, how mastering differs from remastering, and why vinyl sometimes sounds better than digital.
Sources:
“Art Pepper Meets the Rhythm Section” by Joseph Taylor: https://www.soundstageultra.com/index.php/features-menu/recording-of-the-month-menu/1175-art-pepper-art-pepper-meets-the-rhythm-section
"Is It Just Me, or Are CDs Too Loud?" by Joseph Taylor: https://www.soundstagehifi.com/index.php/feature-articles/on-music/944-is-it-just-me-or-are-cds-too-loud
"The Music Man" on the SoundStage! Audiophile Podcast: https://www.soundstage.life/e/the-music-man-joe-taylor-on-vinyl-and-cassettes-next-gen-audiophiles-curated-music-selections/
Chapters:00:00:00 Announcement00:00:20 What does a mastering engineer do? 00:20:25 Musical interlude: “Say No More” by Julian Hartwell00:22:49 Digital vs. analog and radio vs. streaming00:35:24 What music moves Bernie Grundman

What We Measure and Why - What Does(n’t) Matter | Signal-to-Noise Ratio | Competence | (Im)Perfect Volume Controls

In this week’s episode, host Jorden Guth is joined by SoundStage! founder Doug Schneider and electronics measurements specialist Diego Estan to discuss the publication’s measurement philosophy and methodology, and also get to the root of what the heck quadrature is and why you should have paid attention in physics class. Along the way, they discuss some of the best-measuring gear they’ve experienced, some of the most idiosyncratic, and how and why these measurements matter. They also talk about an important topic to Doug: volume-control accuracy, something that surprised Jorden. 
Sources:
“This is Why We Measure” by Dennis Burger: https://www.soundstageaccess.com/index.php/feature-articles/1240-this-is-why-we-measure
“Should You Buy More Amplifier or More Speaker Than You Need?” by Dennis Burger: https://www.soundstageaccess.com/index.php/feature-articles/1172-should-you-buy-more-amplifier-or-more-speaker-than-you-need
“NAD Masters M23 Stereo/Mono Amplifier Measurements” by Diego Estan: https://www.soundstagenetwork.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2912:nad-masters-m23-stereo-mono-amplifier-measurements&catid=97:amplifier-measurements&Itemid=154 
“Atoll Electronique IN200 Integrated Amplifier Measurements” by Diego Estan: https://www.soundstagenetwork.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2772:atoll-electronique-in200-signature-integrated-amplifier-measurements&catid=97:amplifier-measurements&Itemid=154 
“Is 'Trickle Up' Tech the Future of Hi-Fi?” by Dennis Burger:  https://www.soundstageaccess.com/index.php/feature-articles/1243-is-trickle-up-tech-the-future-of-hi-fi
Chapters:0:00 Announcement0:20 What we measure20:43 Musical interlude: “An Issue” by Lalinea21:52 How much do these measurements matter?1:03:59 Canadians rock!

Daryl Wilson: Growing Up and Into Wilson Audio - The Wilson Household | Building WATT/Puppy Speakers | North Star Measurements and Listening | Pink Floyd Fridays

This week, host Jorden Guth is joined by Wilson Audio CEO Daryl Wilson to talk about what it was like to grow up alongside the storied brand, which his father, David, and mother, Sheryl, founded; how his path through life led him back to the company; and how Wilson speakers are designed, built, and voiced differently from other loudspeakers.
Sources:
“The Great North American Loudspeaker Tour: Wilson Audio Specialties” by Jeff Fritz: https://www.soundstageultra.com/twbas/twbas_200908_wilson.htm
Wilson Audio Specialties WATT/Puppy 7 Loudspeakers review  by Jeff Fritz: https://soundstageultra.com/equipment/wilson_watt_puppy_7.htm
Wilson Audio website: https://www.wilsonaudio.com/
Chapters:0:00 Announcement0:20 Growing up on Wilson Audio 21:54 Musical interlude: “Vivaldi: The Four Seasons, Summer: 3. Presto” by the Dover Quartet22:18 Reference standards, the importance of time alignment, and the future of hi-fi47:28 Pink Floyd Fridays and guilty pleasures

Simaudio’s Étienne Gautier & the Art of Marketing Moon - Baumgartner Restoration | Taskmaster

Host Jorden Guth is trotting the globe this week and is tight on time, so he and producer Dennis Burger dug into the vaults to pull out an interview from last year with Simaudio’s marketing director Étienne Gautier. In this extended cut of the conversation, Dennis and Étienne discuss how the company’s marketing strategy is evolving and why Moon by Simaudio decided to sponsor the best art-restoration show on YouTube.
Sources:
“Moon by Simaudio Has Exited the Echo Chamber” by Dennis Burger: https://www.soundstageaccess.com/index.php/feature-articles/1201-moon-by-simaudio-has-exited-the-echo-chamber
"The Maverick" by Baumgartner Restoration: https://youtu.be/LV2eOu14fQM
Taskmaster on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Taskmaster
Hania Rani: https://haniarani.com/
Chapters:0:00 Announcement0:20 Why brand awareness matters 5:51 Musical Interlude I: "Jazz it Up" by Wesly Thomas6:18 In conversation with Simaudio’s Étienne Gautier23:45 Musical Interlude II: "Jazz it Up" by Wesly Thomas24:07 The importance of emotional connections