STOW, OH, May 6, 2026 — Audio-Technica is expanding its acclaimed VM95 Series lineup with the introduction of the AT-VM95EBK Dual Moving Magnet Cartridge and the AT-VM95EBK/H Headshell/Cartridge Combo Kit. Featuring the same high-performance design as the popular AT-VM95E and AT-VM95E/H models, these products join the pre-existing AT-VMN95EBK stylus in a refined black finish for a cohesive, polished look.The AT-VM95EBK brings the proven VM95 Series engineering into a... Read More

Press Release: UberLight™ Launches “The Light Behind Great Listening”[Toronto, Canada] – Reliable Corporation is proud to announce the launch of “The Light Behind Great Listening”, a new global campaign for the UberLight™ Frame, the premium task light designed specifically for vinyl enthusiasts and high-end audio systems. Over the next six months, Reliable will partner with some of the most respected brands in the audio industry, including SME, Thorens, Clearaudio,... Read More

"Best sounding Pet Sounds ever released" proclaims the hype sticker on the just-released Definitive Sound Series One-Step Pet Sounds mono reissue. It's my claim and I'm sticking with it, more convinced than ever now that I've heard the final pressing, which for some reasons sounds even more transparent and detailed than the test pressings. Well, that's why those are called "test pressings."Producer Tom "grover" Biery... Read More

For several decades, JS Audio has been a leading purveyor of stereo equipment in the Washington, DC area. The JS refers to the late Joe Stromick, who originally founded the store and was an impassioned and unforgettable figure. It is now owned and run by an intrepid band of brothers—David, Steven and Jason Kennedy—who regularly hold events featuring new gear. This Saturday they invited their customers to a new one that held a special promise.It featured Daryl Wilson,... Read More

Kaiser Chiefs took the stage at Leeds Festival on August 30th, 2009, before embarking on a two-year hiatus. The indie rock quintet had remained together since 1997 under the name Runston Parva, later shortened to Parva, and spent a year recording an album for Mantra Recordings that went unreleased before the label folded. Not satisfied with their repertoire and direction, Parva was no more, and they forged a new beginning as Kaiser Chiefs in 2003. The stigmatization... Read More

With algorithms’ tendency to rinse-and-repeat ad nauseam and the crushing mediocrity of the current pop landscape, it’s no wonder our culture can’t get enough of nostalgia. All the biggest pop acts right now are referencing somebody or something, right up to the Coachella stage.

The vinyl faithful show up in large numbers when Chad Kassem comes to town to play records at an audio store. They know they are in for good music, good sound and inimitable Chad stories. ZZ Top's Tres Hombres just released as a UHQR will be a highlight but Chad will be bringing a whole lot of other records to Dallas' Audio Concepts on May 16th, including some probably not yet released and he'll be playing those too.I participated in one of these Chad... Read More

Is this limited edition SL-1200GME the grand statement end-of-the-line for the venerable 1200 series Technics first introduced in 1972? Yes, based on what you'll find on the Technics website, which doesn't mean the company will discontinue manufacturing other SL models. This one, appropriately limited to 1200 units in silver (and 1210 in black) is the final expression for the 1200 series, which is ending due to the "discontinuation of externally sourced... Read More

I’ve always thought of Sonic Youth as the Grateful Dead for insufferable people.

Hi, it’s me, I’m insufferable people!

Southport, UK, April 30th, 2026– iFi audio unveils the ZEN Air Phono 2, the latest evolution of their entry-level phono stage. A growing audience is eager to experience the joys of classic vinyl listening, and they deserve to hear it as intended. The ZEN Air Phono 2 provides a drastically improved listening experience compared to the built-in phono stages of record players and amplifiers, offering an ultra-low noise floor for enhanced detail, and a precise RIAA EQ for... Read More

Los Angeles, CA (April 16, 2026)—Craft Recordings continues its year-long centennial celebration of one of the 20th century’s most important cultural icons—trumpeter, bandleader, and composer Miles Davis—with a brand-new box set, Miles ’56: The Prestige Recordings. Building upon Craft’s GRAMMY® Award-winning Miles ‘55 release, this latest collection focuses on Davis’ 1956 sessions for Prestige Records, which resulted in such landmark albums as Cookin’, Relaxin’,... Read More

Reference Recordings is one of the premier audiophile labels that regularly records classical music by contemporary artists in new performances. This Mahler Fifth is the second release in the label's exciting new partnership with the Grand Teton Music Festival. Formats are streaming at several resolutions, hybrid SACD/CD multi-channel and stereo.

Back in the ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s, when I was a dealer, I set up hundreds of turntables. I had my process down. A little patience, a familiar record, our Shure C/PEK3 tester tied to an oscilloscope, a CBS test album, and a few careful nudges, and listen to the results.Fast forward to this decade, and I have taken a greater interest in devices that aid my vision as I age, especially those that help me see up close. I still do a lot of upgrade work, modifications, and... Read More

The final Axpona 2026 video covers some loudspeakers and more. The more includes a few turntables, a R2R tape recorder, some cables and the usual show entertainment. Loudspeakers covered include new ones from Ø Audio, Bricasti, Dynaudio, Alvalos, ELAC, Magico, MJ Acoustics, ATC, Western Acoustics, Franco Serblin, and others.Ø Audio YMIRATC EL50 In an earlier video I covered the new Acora Acoustics MRC 5.2 and the circa $60K MRC 5.2D featuring a diamond vapor... Read More

It’s not much more than 20 pages deep into Brian Cullman’s memoir when we find him squinting through the enormous pressure of auditioning in the poorly lit apartment of Elektra publicist Danny Fields. He’s been dragged here by friend and soon to be renowned rock writer Lillian Roxon. But before he begins, the would-be singer-songwriter notices a notionally dressed Edie Sedgwick in the corner and an unconscious version of Jim Morrison asleep on the couch. Fields seems to like what he hears despite the fact that he has one ear pressed to the phone in order to console “Leonard Cohen about Nico.”

During their active years, Children of Bodom could be considered one of the most influential bands in the Metal communities. A couple of years back, the early and most influential Children Of Bodom albums were released, remastered done on analog master tape by none other than Anssi Kippo, the recording engineer who recorded many of the band's impactful albums during the late 90s and early 2000s and who has moved heavily into analog recording in his studio since... Read More

Never in my life would I be voluntarily awake at 4:30 in the morning for any reason whatsoever. This is a core principle of myself that holds true.

Or, it held true until this year's Record Store Day festivities.

One of the challenges for any young musician wanting to carve out a niche in the classical music world, but in particular the recorded music market, is finding a way to stand out not just from the current crop of artists competing for punters’ hard earned cash, but from the many legacy musicians whose benchmark recordings are still easily available in one form or another.It really doesn’t matter how good you are, you’ve got to find an angle. Especially if you want to... Read More