Audio Unleashed

“The Microsoft of Really Cheap Turntables”

We’re on Patreon now! Find us at https://www.patreon.com/AudioUnleashedThis week, Brent and Dennis ponder whether our objective measurement techniques are keeping up with the sorts of audio gear people are actually buying, talk more trash about Spotify, and dig into the pros and cons of single-driver speakers.  
 
Buy-now links for products mentioned herein (As Amazon Associates, we may earn a small cut from qualifying purchases):
 
📚 The Loop: How Technology Is Creating a World Without Choices and How to Fight Back by Jacob Ward: https://amzn.to/4cyzSET
 
📚 Budget Travel For Dummies by Geoffrey Morrison: https://amzn.to/3uiIPlp
 
📚Sound Reproduction: The Acoustics and Psychoacoustics of Loudspeakers and Rooms by Floyd Toole: https://amzn.to/3ZlTLtE
 
📚Loudspeaker Design Cookbook 8th Edition: Volume 1 by Vance Dickason: https://amzn.to/42pdwk0
 
Further Reading: 
“New Ways to Measure Noise Cancelling, Transparency, and Other Modes in Headphones and Earphones” by Brent Butterworth: https://audioxpress.com/article/new-ways-to-measure-noise-cancelling-transparency-and-other-modes-in-headphones-and-earphones
“We're changing our scoring” by Christian Thomas: https://www.soundguys.com/were-changing-our-scoring-103635/
“Why I Finally Quit Spotify” by Kyle Chayka: https://www.newyorker.com/culture/infinite-scroll/why-i-finally-quit-spotify
“Why Crossoverless Single-Driver Speakers Are (Mostly) Crap! (Ep:84)” by soundstagenetwork: https://youtu.be/Uc7dtawhSVg?si=HLOhQknvyXbh-fE3
GR Research LGK 2.0 Speaker Review (A Joke): https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/gr-research-lgk-2-0-speaker-review-a-joke.34783/
“Voxativ Ampeggio 2024 loudspeaker Measurements” by John Atkinson: https://www.stereophile.com/content/voxativ-ampeggio-2024-loudspeaker-measurements

“I Bought My Lightsaber; Now I’m a Jedi!”

We’re on Patreon now! Find us at https://www.patreon.com/AudioUnleashedApologies for the sound quality this week. We had some back-end technical issues and had to rely on our compressed cloud backup audio stream for editing. With that said, the conversation is one we hope you dig. We start by digging into the reader mailbag to address comments in support of and opposed to our take on the ASR v. GR-Research kerfuffle. Next up, we dig into why Sonos felt it needed to send out an apology letter to its customers,  then discuss a cool episode of Your Morning Coffee that breaks down how algorithms and pay structures affect what music we hear.
Buy-now links for products mentioned herein (As Amazon Associates, we may earn a small cut from qualifying purchases):
📚 Budget Travel For Dummies by Geoffrey Morrison: https://amzn.to/3uiIPlp
 
📚Sound Reproduction: The Acoustics and Psychoacoustics of Loudspeakers and Rooms by Floyd Toole: https://amzn.to/3ZlTLtE
 
📚Loudspeaker Design Cookbook 8th Edition: Volume 1 by Vance Dickason: https://amzn.to/42pdwk0
 
Further Reading: 
Audio Unleashed Ep. 32: “But... the Nakamichi Dragon!”: https://youtu.be/4_1NoCl_uzw?si=Sj_0ohv0Dnn69BLG
“What the HECK was Revel Thinking?! Revel Performa M22 Upgrades!” by GR-Research: https://youtu.be/JH1DrkqHatQ?si=4NLBuHevAogzefcJ
“Does a ‘high end’ name equal high end performance? Revel M106” by GR-Research: https://youtu.be/liNKOnNinSs?si=1aDAbEnTqvMiiHpC
“Sonos Apologizes for Widely Criticized App Redesign, Provides Progress Update” by Juli Clover: https://www.macrumors.com/2024/07/25/sonos-app-update-apology/
“The Best Multiroom Wireless Speaker System” by Dennis Burger: https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/sonos-player/
YMC Special - Will Page's “A Case For Completion” by Your Morning Coffee: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ymc-special-will-pages-a-case-for-completion/id1529809478?i=1000662736677

“But... the Nakamichi Dragon!”

We’re on Patreon now! Find us at https://www.patreon.com/AudioUnleashedBuy-now links for products mentioned herein (As Amazon Associates, we may earn a small cut from qualifying purchases):
📚 Budget Travel For Dummies by Geoffrey Morrison: https://amzn.to/3uiIPlp
📚Sound Reproduction: The Acoustics and Psychoacoustics of Loudspeakers and Rooms by Floyd Toole: https://amzn.to/3ZlTLtE
📚Loudspeaker Design Cookbook 8th Edition: Volume 1 by Vance Dickason: https://amzn.to/42pdwk0
This week, Brent and Dennis respond to ASR’s criticism of Danny Ritchie, discuss whether or not you should get a portable cassette deck, and wonder if the rumors about Bluetooth’s death are greatly exaggerated.
Further Reading: 
“Danny Richie's latest…” on Audio Science Review: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/danny-richies-latest.38223/page-4#post-2021834
“New Portable Cassette Players Transport You Back to the ’80s. But Do You Really Want to Go There?” by Brent Butterworth and Arriana Vasquez: https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-portable-cassette-players/
“Bluetooth is Dead and You Should Be Happy About It!” by cheapaudioman: https://youtu.be/B6dp7Uvc0Fs?si=SjcPgJJQwH2_xgQB

“We’re Just Giving Ted Denney Free Ideas”

We’re on Patreon now! Find us at https://www.patreon.com/AudioUnleashedBuy-now links for products mentioned herein (As Amazon Associates, we may earn a small cut from qualifying purchases):
📚 Budget Travel For Dummies by Geoffrey Morrison: https://amzn.to/3uiIPlp
📚Sound Reproduction: The Acoustics and Psychoacoustics of Loudspeakers and Rooms by Floyd Toole: https://amzn.to/3ZlTLtE
📚Loudspeaker Design Cookbook 8th Edition: Volume 1 by Vance Dickason: https://amzn.to/42pdwk0
This week, Brent and Dennis ponder how long it should actually take to evaluate a product under review, speculate on what’s going on with Tidal, and weigh in on why some people say music sucks so much these days.And for Patrons: Stereophile did blind testing?! How’d that go?
Further Reading: 
“HiFi Thoughts: How Much Time Is Enough Time to Write a Meaningful Review?” by Michael Lavorgna: https://twitteringmachines.com/hifi-thoughts-how-much-time-is-enough-time-to-write-a-meaningful-review/
“End of an era: Tidal to drop last remaining MQA tracks” by Ben Patterson: https://www.techhive.com/article/2370126/tidal-to-drop-last-remaining-mqa-tracks.html
“So long, Samsung: Tidal drops support for Samsung TVs” by Ben Patterson: https://www.techhive.com/article/2377017/tidal-drops-support-for-samsung-tvs.html
“The Real Reason Why Music Is Getting Worse” by Rick Beato: https://youtu.be/1bZ0OSEViyo?si=dNMs9Bitjb33VSC1
“Blind Listening” by John Atkinson, Will Hammond: https://www.stereophile.com/features/113/index.html

“I'm Not a Redneck; I'm a Hillbilly!”

We’re on Patreon now! Find us at https://www.patreon.com/AudioUnleashedThis week, Brent and Dennis talk about Jabra blowing out of the True Wireless earphone market with two last hurrahs, Passion for Sound redefining what it means to be an audiophile reviewer, and Lenbrook teaming up with HDTracks to start a new MQA-centric streaming service. 
Buy-now links for products mentioned herein (As Amazon Associates, we may earn a small cut from qualifying purchases):
 
📚 Budget Travel For Dummies by Geoffrey Morrison: https://amzn.to/3uiIPlp
 
📚Sound Reproduction: The Acoustics and Psychoacoustics of Loudspeakers and Rooms by Floyd Toole: https://amzn.to/3ZlTLtE
 
📚Loudspeaker Design Cookbook 8th Edition: Volume 1 by Vance Dickason: https://amzn.to/42pdwk0
 
Further Reading: 
“GN Group Announces Surprising Decision to Exit True Wireless Earbuds Consumer Space” by Joao Martins: https://audioxpress.com/news/gn-group-announces-surprising-decision-to-exit-true-wireless-earbuds-consumer-space
“Jabra Unveils Elite 8 Active and Elite 10 Generation 2 True Wireless Earbuds” by Joao Martins: https://audioxpress.com/news/jabra-unveils-elite-8-active-and-elite-10-generation-2-true-wireless-earbuds
“Why I'm quitting being an audiophile reviewer” by Passion for Sound: https://youtu.be/P0beuLLYR5c?si=WlR9G0O4rBH28s09
“FLAC or MQA? ‘Yes!’ says HDTracks & Lenbrook’s new streaming service” by John Darko: https://darko.audio/2024/06/flac-or-mqa-yes-says-hdtracks-lenbrooks-new-streaming-service/

“A Nixon-in-China Kind of Thing”

We’re on Patreon now! Find us at https://www.patreon.com/AudioUnleashedThis week, Brent and Dennis talk about the flaming dumpster fire that is Spotify, get straight to the heart of what a “Speaker Improver” actually improves, and ponder the age-old question: When do DACs stop burning in?
And for Patrons: a virtual tour of High End Munich 2024.
Buy-now links for products mentioned herein (As Amazon Associates, we may earn a small cut from qualifying purchases):
📚 Budget Travel For Dummies by Geoffrey Morrison: https://amzn.to/3uiIPlp
📚Sound Reproduction: The Acoustics and Psychoacoustics of Loudspeakers and Rooms by Floyd Toole: https://amzn.to/3ZlTLtE
📚Loudspeaker Design Cookbook 8th Edition: Volume 1 by Vance Dickason: https://amzn.to/42pdwk0
Further Reading: 
“Spotify Is Not Offering Refunds After It Bricks ‘The Car Thing’” by Collin Woodard: https://jalopnik.com/spotify-is-not-offering-refunds-after-it-bricks-the-car-1851499512
“Spotify says it will refund Car Thing purchases” by Will Shanklin: https://www.engadget.com/spotify-now-says-it-will-refund-car-thing-purchases-193001487.html?guccounter=1
“Spotify raises prices on premium plans to boost profits” by Wendy Lee: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/spotify-raises-prices-premium-plans-162702081.html?fr=sycsrp_catchall
“Spotify's Phony War On Bots” by Benn Jordan: https://youtu.be/kVY7-Ti77UQ?si=EMKay-FMnVHz6dxT
“The Problem with Music” by Steve Albini: https://thebaffler.com/salvos/the-problem-with-music
“Ted Gioia on AI's Threat To Music” by Rick Beato: https://youtu.be/ibMd_Jx9daw?si=LKqRpAn8_InPxliv
“Akiko Audio Speaker Improver” by Malcolm J. Gomes: https://positive-feedback.com/reviews/hardware-reviews/akiko-audio-speaker-improver/
“Burn in for DACs” by Paul McGowan, PS Audio: https://youtu.be/LYtBuoaYwNY?si=lJFIqbbr793cFNXo
 

“Harry Pearson = Jesus!”

We’re on Patreon now! Find us at https://www.patreon.com/AudioUnleashedThis week, Brent and Dennis ponder whether Class D can really live up to the performance of Class A and Class AB amps, talk about testing USB cables and why they aren’t in Singapore, and deconstruct a new manifesto by John Darko.
And for Patrons: Which company has ruined its own cred with a disastrous software update? 
Buy-now links for products mentioned herein (As Amazon Associates, we may earn a small cut from qualifying purchases):
📚 Budget Travel For Dummies by Geoffrey Morrison: https://amzn.to/3uiIPlp
📚Sound Reproduction: The Acoustics and Psychoacoustics of Loudspeakers and Rooms by Floyd Toole: https://amzn.to/3ZlTLtE
📚Loudspeaker Design Cookbook 8th Edition: Volume 1 by Vance Dickason: https://amzn.to/42pdwk0
Further Reading: 
“Is Class-D Amplification Now Better than Class-A/B and Class-A?” by Robert Schryer: https://pmamagazine.org/is-class-d-amplification-now-better-than-class-a-b-and-class-a/
Lachlan does another blind test of USB cables, nobody can tell the difference, chooses to discount the results and prefer his magic USB cables” by u/blorg: reddit.com/r/audiophile/comments/1crkiz3/lachlan_does_another_blind_test_of_usb_cables/?share_id=iyNIc119UUqLVBbEe5qIB
“The Music-First Audiophile Manifesto” by John Darko: https://darko.audio/2024/05/the-music-first-audiophile-manifesto/
PDF grab of Darko homepage, May 13, 2024: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1jIrdTzbJbKgKaVtjq7MsPfuYpGH5j0woY4ZF53Gj2Wg/edit?usp=sharing

“One Hillbilly Shootin’ at Another’n”

We’re on Patreon now! Find us at https://www.patreon.com/AudioUnleashedThis week, Brent and Dennis dig into a blog post by John Siau of Benchmark Audio about audiophile snake oil, deconstruct Jorge Sadurni's Spherical Dual loudspeakers, and weigh in on a Facebook feud about whether diminishing returns are even a thing. 
Buy-now links for products mentioned herein (As Amazon Associates, we may earn a small cut from qualifying purchases):
📚 Budget Travel For Dummies by Geoffrey Morrison: https://amzn.to/3uiIPlp
📚Sound Reproduction: The Acoustics and Psychoacoustics of Loudspeakers and Rooms by Floyd Toole: https://amzn.to/3ZlTLtE
📚Loudspeaker Design Cookbook 8th Edition: Volume 1 by Vance Dickason: https://amzn.to/42pdwk0
Further Reading: 
“Audiophile Snake Oil” by John Siau: https://benchmarkmedia.com/blogs/application_notes/audiophile-snake-oil
“Sadurni Acoustics with Wolf Systems and House of Stereo” by Jason Victor Serinus: https://www.stereophile.com/content/sadurni-acoustics-wolf-systems-and-house-stereo
“The Magico M9 & The Myth of the Law of Diminishing Returns” by The Absolute Sound: https://youtu.be/uqm9P8HSq08?si=v-n_Ryq3P1nvFmsg
“If DAC Chips Perform Perfectly Then Why Don’t All DACs Sound the Same?” by Jerry Del Colliano: https://futureaudiophile.com/if-dac-chips-perform-perfectly-then-why-dont-all-dacs-sound-the-same/

“A More Tragic Supervillain Backstory”

We’re on Patreon now! Find us at https://www.patreon.com/AudioUnleashedY’all have been waiting for it! We’re here to deliver. This week, we dig into the Tekton Design/Erin’s Audio Corner/ASR hullabaloo in the way that only Audio Unleashed can. Is Tekton founder Eric Alexander the real victim here? With that done, we dig into an article about a guy you’ve never heard of who’s out-streaming most artists you have. What does this mean? Is it an AI thing? And in our third segment, we try to figure out what the heck the Gryphon Audio PowerZone 3 power strip thingy even is.
Buy-now links for products mentioned herein (As Amazon Associates, we may earn a small cut from qualifying purchases):
📚 Budget Travel For Dummies by Geoffrey Morrison: https://amzn.to/3uiIPlp
📚Sound Reproduction: The Acoustics and Psychoacoustics of Loudspeakers and Rooms by Floyd Toole: https://amzn.to/3ZlTLtE
📚Loudspeaker Design Cookbook 8th Edition: Volume 1 by Vance Dickason: https://amzn.to/42pdwk0
Further Reading: 
“Tekton Troubadour Review: Take 2” by Erin’s Audio Corner: https://youtu.be/ItAwcW-3Kv4?si=TQpkTjBegdT3nds-
“The Legal Risks of Being an Audio Reviewer” by Audioholics: https://youtu.be/V-1A68sdGMQ?si=aE2IVYtJdY9J_hyH
“Tekton Design Impact Monitor loudspeaker” by Herb Reichert: https://www.stereophile.com/content/tekton-design-impact-monitor-loudspeaker
“The History of Tekton Design's Patented Tweeter Array” by Tekton Design: https://youtu.be/8GFnarjmG1c?si=SINzoSm49gheX70f
Patent US9247339B2: https://patents.google.com/patent/US9247339B2/en
“The Rise of the Anonymous Music Star” by Ted Gioia: https://www.honest-broker.com/p/the-rise-of-the-anonymous-music-star
“PowerZone by GRYPHON DEBUTS AT AXPONA” by TAS Staff: https://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/powerzone-by-gryphon-debuts-at-axpona/
Quantum Acoustics: https://www.quantumacoustics.net/theory

“You need cable-lifters, for sure”

We’re on Patreon now! Find us at https://www.patreon.com/AudioUnleashedHey fam! A lot of you have expressed your eagerness to hear us cover the Erin’s Audio Corner/Tekton kerfuffle and Eric Alexander’s resulting and wholly unnecessary self-immolation. Sadly, we’d already recorded the tracks for this one before that all played out! Hopefully you still dig what we’ve got for you this week. 
First up: A deep dive into the concept of “everything between the Romex and the amp.” Next: Our reaction to John DeVore of DeVore Fidelity’s appearance on The Occasional Podcast from back in November. Then we check out Your Morning Coffee’s new AI-generated theme song and discuss what the heck this all means.
Buy-now links for products mentioned herein (As Amazon Associates, we may earn a small cut from qualifying purchases):
📚 Budget Travel For Dummies by Geoffrey Morrison: https://amzn.to/3uiIPlp
📚Sound Reproduction: The Acoustics and Psychoacoustics of Loudspeakers and Rooms by Floyd Toole: https://amzn.to/3ZlTLtE
📚Loudspeaker Design Cookbook 8th Edition: Volume 1 by Vance Dickason: https://amzn.to/42pdwk0
 
Further Reading: 
“SHOCKING! Tellurium Q Black II power cable review” by Passion for Sound: https://youtu.be/ztLQxC_hIjE?si=Q1wuSCyUwZcIZWRA
“Russ Andrews BMU 3000 Mk II Review” by Andrew 'Harry' Harrison: https://hifiplus.com/articles/russ-andrews-bmu-3000-mk-ii-balanced-mains-transformer/
“Do Power Cables Make a Difference? The Results Surprised Me - Blind Testing the Audioquest NRG-Z3” by cheapaudioman: https://youtu.be/im1aKrc3A6E?si=haqjAkYadn3ycI_2
“Furman Elite-15 DMi and Elite-20 PFi Power Conditioners Review” by Steve Munz: https://www.audioholics.com/power-conditioner-reviews/furman-elite-15-dmi-and-elite-20-pfi-power-conditioners
“John DeVore Of DeVORE FIDELITY Returns!” by The Occasional Podcast: https://theoccasionalpodcast.libsyn.com/john-devore-of-devore-fidelity-returns
Your Morning Coffee Episode 190: https://yourmorningcoffeepodcast.libsyn.com/episode-190