Stuff 04 : Princeton Record Exchange

By happy serendipity, Princeton has one of the best sources of new and used BVDs - Black Vinyl Discs - anywhere.

Princeton Record Exchange.

In fact, the BVD sales sector is one of the few that is increasing its percentage of the music media market.

What is it about records in these days of Blu-Ray and music downloads? I've blogged elsewhere on why I still cling onto this apparently outmoded, yet rather satisfying medium, so I won't bore you now.

However, I am now a contributor to PREX's blog where I intend to write about the Music I Like and the means of delivering it.

Perversely, my first contribution is about a CD, but hey! It was more about genre than the medium itself.

So if you have the inclination, take a look. If you've been referred here from PREX's blog, welcome.

Thanks for taking the time.

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*10.04.2008 : NYT article

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*See my hifi / media index here.

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HiFi 06 : Marantz CD5001

I like hifi, but those mega-buck systems generally leave me cold. I mean, the music is the message, isn't it?

Okay, I know a system has to be good enough to convey the nuance, subtlety and dynamics of the sound so that the music can be appreciated, but many high-end systems seem to me to have more in common with a SUV rather than a Prius ... Yes, you could say Maserati rather than an Aztec, but high-end systems rarely strike me as masterpieces of Italian engineering, rather more like a blinged-out hummer.

Until recently, the single disc CD player was a dying breed. Like the record turntable before it, it was in turn being superseded by the latest multi-format disc players with a price point up in the stratosphere.

However, I'm glad to say, that like the record turntable, the basic CD player is also making a comeback, presumably as people discover that the latest and biggest home-entertainment rigs do not reproduce music as well as a modest dedicated stereo system can.

For my system I have chosen a Marantz CD5001. It has everything I want, digital output, head-amp and most importantly, a great sound. Plenty of bangs per buck.

I have it connected to the Sansui AU-317 via QED Silver Spirals - hmmm ... exotic hifi connectors ... there's another topic - which seems to work well as far as I can tell through my Sennheiser HD580s.

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*See my hifi / media index here.

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