LATEST ADDITIONS

Nicole Glover: Memories, Dreams, Reflections; Randy Ingram: Aries Dance; Eric McPherson: Double Bass Quartet.

Jeff Tweedy: Twilight Override; Big Thief: Double Infinity; Blood Orange: Essex Honey; Tedeschi Trucks Band and Leon Russell: Mad Dogs & Englishmen Revisited, Live at Lockn'.

When it comes to phonography, I'm not terribly picky, but I do have preferences. I maintain my records well because I prefer to play clean records, with minimal pops, clicks, and crackle to distract me. I like a phono cartridge that tracks average platters perfectly and difficult sides at least very well.

Get ready, analog lovers—RTM, the leader in premium reel-to-reel tapes, blank cassettes, and pro-grade recording accessories, is giving you the chance to win big. We’re excited to announce a sweepstakes where one lucky winner will receive $750 worth of Recording the Masters reels—winner’s choice! Whether you’re a studio engineer, musician, or dedicated audiophile, RTM’s advanced magnetic tape technology delivers the high-fidelity, durable sound you rely on for recording, mastering, and archiving. Now’s your chance to stock up on the best in modern analog.

The very first Nu-Vista product was a preamplifier dubbed the Nu-Vista PRE. Launched in 1997, it was the second audio product to utilize nuvistors, small, metal-clad vacuum tubes introduced in 1959 to compete with bipolar-junction transistors. The first power amplifier to utilize nuvistors was the ovoid Nu-Vista 300.

Today I'll be describing an "acorn" DAC, the least-expensive yet. LAiV Audio's new µDAC is small, costs just $994 ($1049 as of January 1 2026), and is dancing at the same party as the high-intensity, high-priced DACs. It offers listeners a unique perspective on what quality digital can sound like.

While I was coming to grips with this month's review subject, the idler drive Garrard 301 Advanced, I began to think about the various methods that have been used to spin turntable platters over the years. Since the transition a century ago from wind-up clockwork to electric motors, there have basically been three ways to spin a turntable platter...