Elite Audiophiles Gather in San Francisco
By Special Guest Blogger, James Forte
Two of “my favorite things” are music and coffee. Elite Audio Systems offered them both in an inviting and collegial atmosphere this past Saturday. The event, jointly sponsored with BAAS was attended by perhaps twenty-five mostly BAAS members to discuss all issues audiophile. Neil Gader from the Absolute Sound was the cordial guest speaker and we all carried on for the entire afternoon. Many thanks to our new intrepid leader Alón for promoting this and to Elite Audio Systems owner Michael Woods for being a great host and well-tempered moderator.
Think about how many periodicals you subscribe to and which ones you most look forward to arriving in your mail box or computer. I know the answer for me is hands down The Absolute Sound and Stereophile. Maybe I have a problem, but then if you’re reading this, so do you. OK so now, how often do you wish you could speak directly with the writers and reviewers, either to thank them or take them to task for what they’re presenting. Well, we all had a full afternoon to hear about the predilections, trials and tribulations of this veteran reviewer over his long career, and to question him on the many issues we all obsess about. Add some java juice to the mix and it made for two great afternoon sessions.
Neil took us back to the very early and formative days of TAS and its founder Harry Pearson. (Did you know that Harry was a prolific environmental reporter prior to starting TAS?) Do you remember back when the mag had no advertisements? Neil took us back through some of the early designs and equipment. Neil shared with us the challenges he and his colleagues face as reviewers in a difficult industry. He discussed how each reviewer brings to their work their own skill sets, preferences and listening environments that often dictate what and how they review. He shared how they work to stay “fresh” and keep up with the demands made on them by their readers, manufacturers and the magazine itself.
Other topics and questions covered included recording references, generational and demographic issues facing the industry, the vagaries of the recording industry and consumer preferences. During intermission, we were treated to some music through the Genesis 2.2 loud speaker being featured at Elite Audio. Genesis CEO, Gary Koh was on hand to share his insights about the recording industry. It was interesting to learn that some recording studios, making multi format releases have been putting their best productions on vinyl.
As the coffee buzz wore off, we all agreed the event or something like it was deserving of an encore. Thanks again to Alón for putting this party together. He whispered to me what was in the works for the next BAAS event. So if a little bird were to “tweet” to you about what it is, promise you won’t tell. The little birdie goes tweet-tweet-tweet… Sounds like…;-)
Thanks to all,
James Forte