Here are two recent CDs, released by ABC International Records, featuring the Burwen Bobcat mastering, done under supervision, by none other than the legendary Mark Levinson.

I got this two CDs recently and all I can is this, amongst all the high resolution mastering system employed ABC in the past, including JVC's K2 and HD Mastering, the Burwen Bobcat mastering system is by far the most natural sounding! It's very close to analog reproduction(based on comparisons with my own, very humble analog rig). In fact, ABC's 180gsm audiophile vinyl realeases are also mastered using the Burwen Bobcat system.

Of the two CDs the one on the left tittled, "The Soul of Analog is Back" is a compilation of various tracks, some available previously on the K2 Sampler and the HD series CDs. I happened to have those too and therefore, can make meaningful comparisons that support my conclusion above.

The other CD on the right titled, "From Mark Levinson" is a selection of favourite songs recorded by Mark Levinson, the man himself! Track no.2, 23rd Psalm, even features his ex-mother in law's voice, Shane Cattrall[if that last name sounds familiar, it's because she's Kim Cattrall(of Sex and the City fame)'s mother, ah..... Mark Levinson is indeed a very, very lucky man!]. He qoutes that Shane Cattrall "has a beautiful speaking voice". I agree with Mark, based on what I heard on the CD. All other tracks has a mixture of Jazz, Classical, and of course, great vocal recordings. I like the man's selection!

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connecting ipod to my ARC preamp - so simple

meridian Vs Ipod

if you haven't owned an ipod before, you would never understand how the entire world goes gaga over it.

out of the blue, my friend ringo brought his ipod to my house and said he wanted to connect it to my system and gauge the sound. since having this wonderful gadget, he has downloaded (using apple lossless conversion) most of his cd collections onto it and marveled at the convenience of playing music whenever and wherever he wants. he even connected the ipod to his av system once and the sound is very decent. so he wanted to know how would it sound like if connected to a high-resolution system like mine, which is ultimately revealing of any less-than-good sources.

with the ipod-ready monster interconnect (with a pin on one end and two rca plugs on the other), connection (to my preamp) is a breeze.

the sound is amazingly clean! well, it is a bit thin and threadbare and lacking of meat but it is definitely passable. it reminds me a lot of my experience when i used my brother's marantz CD63KI signature cd player on my system, in place of my meridian.(no offence to CD63 users. it is but a very basic and elementary cd player). it also lacks the pace and rhythm. but everything is very pleasant. more than enough to please newbies who are new to the hobby. it is also an exciting way to lure the newbies into this hobby, wouldn't you agree?

the lossless format is still in its infancy. give it another 3-5 years, it is bound to mature. also with better DAC (digital to analogue convertor) chip in the ipod, we are promised of a bright future. those who claimed that the lossless format is already high fidelity are kidding themselves. you may think it is ok when played in a entry-level system but once heard it in a mid-to-high end system, all the flaws are there to be heard. but to me, it is more a crime of omission rather than commission. i heard no digital glare and harshness.

steve job is truly a genious. like the cliche goes, the future of ipod is so bright that you have to wear shades :-) hand me the rayben, please.

ipod integration to hi-fi is key

while persuading cheeky yong, the intellectual hifi reviewer for the once-famous and once-indispensable perfect pitch publication (a pull-out of the sun newspaper) to come out from "retirement" to write for av xpress, we discussed many issues concerning the fall of hifi (and high-end audio) and the rise of the ipod generation.

cheeky said if he was to write, he would concentrate on thought-provoking issues such as "is it possible to make ipod, MP3, MP4 high-fidelity?", "for hi-fi to revive and survive, it must cater to the needs of the ipod generation" etc etc.

thought-provoking indeed. many of you would have realized that people who play high-end audio are mostly financially stable men over 40 years-old and frankly with most of them above 50 years-old. it is an ageing community and a miserably tiny one no less. practically, no 30 year-olds or under 30 year-olds today can afford high-end, save for a few blessed ones like my fellow blogger here. which means, there won't be newcomers to this hobby in the near future. can you imagine what would happen in 20 years' time? we dare not even look into our crystal ball and predict what would happen but some things are for sure - the ipods would stay and probably evolve into a high-res media; that music lovers would go for convenience, portability and volume of songs one can carry; that music lovers would look for integration of their ipods with analog devices such as tube amps.... the future is indeed colourful!

the worst of times is also the best of times. the faster the audio industry embrace this eventual outcome the better. what would happen to high-end audio then? i think high-end audio would be so niche and exclusive that that it would remain the purview of the rich and famous, more for the reason of status symbol than anything else.

with that exciting outlook, i am awaiting the return of cheeky yong with bated breath.