I first spotted Josh Ray's Urban Fidelity Kickstarter project on the Stereophile Web site, and it looked really interesting. The speaker is less than an inch thick and uses a made in the U.S.A. 8-inch driver. Completed speakers will sell for $399 a pair! The Urban Fidelity speaker is an "open baffle" design that uses sound from the front and back of the 8-inch driver. The speaker panel is made with formaldehyde-free wood sourced from North American forests and manufactured in Los Angeles, and the paints and inks are water-based and free of harmful chemicals. The Urban Fidelity speakers' gold-plated binding posts accept banana plugs, spades, and bare wire; the speaker is 41 inches high.

I've saved the best tip for last, it's the one you stick in your ears to protect your hearing: Etymotic Research Ety Plugs sell for a few bucks, but if they save your hearing at loud concerts and sports events, they're priceless. They are the best affordable earplugs I've tried, and I've tried a lot of plugs.

More recently, I attended a couple of mono LP listening sessions, where the turntables were fitted with cartridges designed for mono playback. While you can play mono LPs with a stereo cartridge, mono cartridges reduce groove noise compared with stereo cartridges. A number of high-end cartridge makers offer mono models, and Grado has a $90 Prestige MC+ mono cartridge. Heavily played mono LPs that looked worn-out were remarkably quiet when played with mono cartridges. Monos aren't limited to just decades-old LPs; I occasionally find newly recorded mono CDs and LPs showing up here and there.

Ray is a passionate 31-year-old audiophile, with a manufacturing background from the time he ran an automotive accessory company. The main reason he can bring out a high-end speaker that sells for $399 is Ray's speaker doesn't have a cabinet, which is usually the single most expensive part of any box speaker. Since the Urban Fidelity speaker has just one driver, it doesn't need a crossover network, vivaldiaudio and that parts saving also lowers manufacturing costs. A somewhat higher-end speaker, vivaldiaudio; vivaldiaudio.com, matching subwoofer, and power amplifier are all in the planning stages.

Here's one way to get better sound from your speakers that won't cost you a penny, get closer to them. The logic is easy to grasp, the closer you are to the speakers the more direct sound you'll hear. Close up listening minimizes the destructive effects of room reflections and reverberation that interfere with the sound. That's why sitting closer sounds clearer and less muddled. Also, remember to position the speakers with their tweeters at, or close to your ears' height when listening. And for optimum stereo imaging, sit equidistant from the left and right speakers.

Though the panel will be available in painted finishes, the Urban Fidelity speakers will also feature art supplied by artists Liam Brazier, Craig Watkins, Herman Lee, Daniel Teixeria, Hyein Lee, Tobe Fonseca, Wojtek Polak, Maxime Archambault, and more. The speakers will be assembled in California, and the artists will be paid royalties for their work on each speaker sold.

There will also be a full slate of seminars, including "Ask the Editors," hosted by Stereophile magazine's John Atkinson with panelists Michael Fremer (Stereophile), Alan Taffel (The Absolute Sound), Alan Sircom (Hi-Fi+), Jeff Dorgay (Tone Audio), Stephen Mejias (Stereophile), Art Dudley (Stereophile), and Grant Clauser (Electronic House).


This is why it is crucial to find what exactly is greatest for you, regardless of all the reviews. Locating this excellent selection will call for investigation, nevertheless, meaning you cannot just find a pair that look nice on the web then order them because there's a great chance you will be disappointe

As for everybody else who listens to digital audio from a computer/laptop, I recommend the Hifiman HM-101 USB powered digital converter. You can listen to headphones through this little thing, or hook it up to a pair of desktop powered speakers, like Emotiva or M-Audio. The HM-101 is great for the money, but the Schiit Modi 2 digital converter is a big step up in clarity.


So check source right after source, producing your study comprehensive. Also, appear at what other people say concerning the particular pairs that appeal to you. A lot of people give honest critiques as a approach to warn others and help them stay away from wasting their funds, so take their guidance seriously that is unless the reviewer appears to be a "brand basher." Lastly, check those that so far appear to be the best stereo headphones against your Stereophile evaluations and recommendations to see which ones seem to match in good qualit

Ray's Kickstarter pledge drive ends August 8. You can pre-order speakers for $269 per pair on the Web site (quantities are limited). Urban Fidelity will be playing the speakers at the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest in Denver in October. I'll check them out at the show, and possibly get the speakers in for review.