The HiFi Five Podcast

The HiFi Five Episode 42:  Truths About Cables
Guests:
Matthew Bond -- Founder and Designer, Matthew Bond Audio; formerly Founder and Designer at Tara Labs
Galen Gareis -- Designer at Iconoclast Cables; formerly Principal Engineer at Belden Wire & Cable
 Ralph Karsten -- Founder and Designer of Atma-Sphere tube and solid-state electronics
William Low -- Founder and Chief Designer of Audioquest
Eric Neff -- Reviewer for HiFi+ Magazine
This is the most candid and insightful discussion about cables every recorded!
Topics:

A $25 interconnect vs. a $250,000 one, a 10,000-to-1 price gap. Where does the extra money stop buying better sound?
Expectation bias is real. So how does someone who sells cables justify sighted listening over blind testing?
Can everything that matters sonically about a cable be measured objectively, or do the measurements miss things we can hear?
How much of the sound of a cable is attributable to the electrical characteristics of the two components the cable is connecting? 
How should an audiophile go about selecting cables?
Where does diminishing returns set in on cables?
The "full loom":  real engineering or just a way to sell you more cable?
What's the biggest myth audiophiles believe about cables?

This is the most actionable, answer-packed discussion about set-up issues and conundrums we all face ever recorded!

Guests:
Frank Doris --  Editor, Copper Magazine; Senior Associate Editor, Positive FeedbackPeter Noerbaek -- Founder and Designer, PBN Audio

Lee Scoggins -- Reviewer, Positive Feedback
Norman Varney -- Founder, A/V RoomService

Topics:
What are the most common setup mistakes audiophiles make?
Can measurements really tell you where to put your speakers and listening chair -or do you ultimately have to trust your ears?
What do you do when bass problems simply won’t go away? TubeTraps, subwoofer swarm, digital EQ or active bass?
Process for selecting cables.
What if your system sounds edgy and fatiguing around 4–5 kHz? How do you figure out what’s actually causing it?
Should your equipment rack be between the speakers—or along a side wall? Can its location actually change the sound?
Speakers spikes or no spikes?  Component footers?

The HiFi Five Episode 40:  Are HiFi Influencers Breaking the Rules?
This episode shines a bright line on many questionable practices in the industry, and proposes a remedy.

Guests:
Frank Doris --  Editor of Copper Magazine, Senior Associate Editor at Positive Feedback
Mike Powell -- OCD HiFi Guy and founder of the audio brand Verastarr and online dealer 11Stereo
Stu McCreary -- attorney and Senior Associate Editor and legal counsel for Positive-Feedback
David Robinson -- Founder, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Positive Feedback

Topics:
Are some YouTube, magazine and influencer reviews really paid endorsements in disguise?
If a reviewer, YouTuber or influential audiophile gets free gear, an accommodation price or a huge discount, should you be told?  What about the “ordinary hobbyist” who gets a sweetheart deal because a manufacturer expects him/her to talk about the product online?
When does a long-term “review loan” stop being a loan and become compensation? And what if the reviewer eventually sells the gear and keeps -- or shares -- the profit?
What are the Federal Trade Commission rules already requiring reviewers, influencers and audio companies disclose some of their business relationships?
Should the industry adopt the disclosure rule proposed by Ron in the episode?

The HiFi Five Episode 39:  Is Vinyl All That?
Guests:
Jefferson Douglas -- CEO of Tubelandia Music
Mike Lavigne -- audiophile hobbyist
Amadeus Meitner -- Managing Director, EMM Labs and Meitner
Doug Schneider -- founder of SoundStage!

Topics:
Which is the best sounding format, and what does best sounding mean?
When great vinyl beats state-of-the-art digital, what are we really hearing -- the format, better mastering, or better gear?
If master tape is the ultimate reference, which gets closer: vinyl or digital?
If an LP was recorded, mixed or mastered digitally, what exactly do you gain by playing it on vinyl? Can mastering digital onto vinyl actually make it sound better?
Where does another $25,000 buy you more sonic improvement -- vinyl or digital?
Twenty years from now, will vinyl still be a reference-quality format -- or mainly a collectible experience while digital becomes the unquestioned reference?

The HiFi Five Episode 38:  Buying Used Components and Repairs

Guests:
Morrison Agen -- Hardcore HiFi, a dealer and component repair and restoration business 
Jay Caceres -- Jay’s Audio Lab, a dealer in used components 
Peter Glenn -- Director of Quality Assurance at The Music Room, a dealer in used components
Jim Yager -- audiophile hobbyist

Topics:
Is buying used actually the smartest way to build a great high-end audio system?
What high-end components are safest to buy used -- and which are the biggest gamble?
What components are easiest to resell -- and which ones can you get stuck with?
Are used high-end audio prices getting ridiculous -- or are today’s prices actually justified?
How big does the used discount have to be before you’re willing to give up the security of a factory warranty?
What actually breaks more often:  relatively new high-end components or vintage gear -- and are tubes or solid state easier to keep running?
How does Jay’s Audio Lab and The Music Room determine their buying prices and their selling prices?