Reflections

Reflections


  • Early Reflections 101: The First 10 Milliseconds That Make-or-Break Stereo Imaging

    Kevin Fielding offers a step-by-step guide to taming first reflections and giving you the best soundstage you’ve ever had.

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  • Supercars on Gravel Roads: Are You Wasting Your Sound Systemโ€™s Potential?

    Would you drive a Formula 1 racing car on a gravel road? Not if you could help it, right? Because on a gravel road, you know that an F1 car canโ€™t reveal its potential. Yet, this is exactly what many audiophiles do when they play their high-end audio system in an untreated room.

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  • Paul McCartney’s Unexpected Japanese Detour โ€” From Wings to Jail Wings

    January 16, 2025, marks the 45th anniversary of a moment that shook rock โ€˜nโ€™ roll to its core and almost put Paul McCartney behind bars for seven years. The worldโ€™s most famous bassistโ€”Beatle, hitmaker, and knight-to-beโ€”was arrested at Tokyoโ€™s Narita International Airport for smuggling nearly half a pound of marijuana. What couldโ€™ve been just another…

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  • Is Your Sound System Sick? Make It Better With โ€œSonic Triageโ€

    Improving sound quality requires prioritizing fixes based on their impactโ€”what Kevin Fielding dubs “sonic triage.” Speaker placement, time alignment, and managing reflections top the “emergency” list, while bass management and fine-tuning DSP take precedence later. Read on for the full breakdown.

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  • Lost in Transmission: How Signal Loss Robs Your System of Great Sound

    Signal loss impacts imaging, clarity, and bassโ€”but itโ€™s fixable. Discover 10 yearsโ€™ worth of tips for unlocking your systemโ€™s potential.

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  • Titanicโ€™s Musicians Knew

    Writer B. Jan Montanaโ€™s childhood awe of the Titanicโ€™s selfless musicians sparks lifelong reflections on life, mortality, and religion, ultimately embracing joy over rigid dogma.

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  • Are We On the Cusp of a DSP (Digital Signal Processing) Audio Revolution? Part 1

    Mike Harkins explores the rise of DSP in high-end audio, questioning its role in shaping the future as more audiophile brands adopt it to optimize room acoustics and enhance sound reproduction.

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  • The ABCs of Audio: Exploring the Hi-Fi Lexicon

    Welcome to โ€œThe ABCs of Audio: Hi-Fi Lexicon,โ€ your ultimate guide to understanding the fundamental terms and concepts in high-fidelity audio. Whether youโ€™re a complete beginner or looking to expand your knowledge, this article breaks down complex audio jargon into simple explanations. We use two levels of simplicity: In the following sections, weโ€™ll cover essential…

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  • Analyzing a Stereoโ€™s Frequency Response and Decay Times

    Many of us use our listening rooms as a place to escape the world and its problems, so that we may decompress and recharge our batteries. One thing I, as an audiophile, discovered is that the better the sound quality in my room, the more Iโ€™ve been able to connect emotionally with my music. That…

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  • The Cosmic Dawn: Revisiting Bowie’s “The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars”

    David Bowieโ€™s The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars is often seen as a turning point not just in his career, but in the landscape of rock music itself. Released on June 16, 1972, this album introduced the world to Ziggy Stardust, an androgynous, bisexual alien rock star. But the…

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  • Ten Albums to Get You Started on Your Classical Music Journey, Part 2

    “The sound quality is simply mind-blowing. Go to track 10 of the first disc, turn up the volume, and close your eyes…”

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  • Bose Before Noise: The Amar Bose Story

    In the heart of Philadelphia, amid the echoes of American history, Amar Gopal Boseโ€™s journey into the world of sound and acoustics began on November 2, 1929. His childhood was a tapestry woven with threads of intellectual curiosity, inspired by his father, an Indian freedom fighter, and his mother, with her French and German heritage.…

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  • Echoes of Apollo: The Music of Ancient Greece

    Introduction: The Soul of Greek Culture In the heart of ancient Greece, music was the very pulse of society, intricately woven into the fabric of daily life and imbued with a significance that went far beyond mere entertainment. This deep integration of music in Greek culture manifested in various dimensions, from the sacred echoes in…

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  • Black Sabbath’s Debut Album

    On a cold February day in 1970, the world was introduced to what would become the cornerstone of heavy metal: Black Sabbathโ€™s self-titled debut album. Born in the industrial heartland of Birmingham, the albumโ€™s raw power and dark themes resonated with a generation yearning for something more profound than the prevailing pop and rock sounds.…

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  • The International Sweethearts’ Story

    In an era marked by stark racial divides and rigid gender roles, the International Sweethearts of Rhythm emerged as an audacious symphony of defiance and unity. Formed in the late 1930s, this all-women Swing orchestra not only challenged the prevailing societal norms but also painted a canvas of cultural diversity that was rare for its…

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