I'm sure all of us have certain recordings we use to setup or tune our systems. Something we know like the back of our hand, to do speaker placement for best imaging and bass, or now with me and the new Line Magnetic 845, to try my hand/ear at tube rolling.  This Columbia recording from 1975 is not an audiophile recording by any means, it's only a Masterworks, not a Columbia 3 or 6 eye, nothing collectible. Yet with Copland himself conducting, it captures the mood of the pieces like few recordings have. Several things I listen for:  first off is that the pieces should have a bounce to them, a lilt, if you will.  Side 1 is movie music for the film The Red Pony, commissioned in 1948. It needs​

  Among the many new classical pianists out there today, here's one who's at the top of my listening pile...Federico Colli, a thirty-something Italian. Once I heard a bit of him on Tidal, I grabbed everything on cd I could, of course to rip it to my Aurender streamers.  My internet here is too volatile for continual Tidal use, so one does what one can.  Anyway, his performance of the Bach/Busoni Chaconne is one for when you want to shake up the house. And his Pictures at an Exhibition, a piece originally for piano that I never tire of, is given quite a human touch.  Reminds me of the time I heard Gina Bachauer play the last two movements as a kid.  Spellbinding.  So check him out, if you're into classical piano. 
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  here's a chart of what Leben makes these days....there is a new version of the CS600, the CS600X. The original is still being made until parts/tube supplies are spent, the X version is also in production as we type/read.  The Original is still the $6495 it has been for years, the X version is $6995. It does have different tube types, and I confess I haven't heard one yet. I'm sure it'll be every bit as good as the original, I'm thinking maybe a bit better, like the new Line Magnetic lineup?  I'm still keeping my original, it's a benchmark of wonderfulness in an integrated, still to these ears one of the handful of great integrateds anywhere in the world. It has bettered so many amps that folks have brought in here to do that oh oh comparison- Prima Luna, McIntosh, Vinnie Rossi, Rogue, VAC, Sim Moon- they've all been shown to be what they are, each good in their own way, yet not a world contender. As Walter Brennan used to say, not a brag, just a fact. I know, I know, fighting words....never be offended by what happens at the Haven, just take it as a learning lesson, as I have as hobbyist. 
  Now there is a fella up there on the chart I've not had the acquaintance of yet, the CS 1000P, the big amp, using KT120s.  Mostly because I'm not a fan of the big tube sound. I know there's speakers out there that need that much power to sing, and why Mr. Hyodo is selling such a sweet beast. But that's not the Haven sound, per se.  I do have Ayre for when I need the current, for Vandersteens, etc.  Or now the Riviera, that can drive my diesel tractor if it dips down again in the negative degrees. I can only wait to get my hands/ears on the Riviera separates...I did have the CS660 amp, which used EL34's.  Now that is one amp the Haven could get behind in a heart beat. And luckily I get to hear one locally every now and then. Sadly, Mr Hyodo discontinued it without a similar replacement.  That coupled with the RX28 pre/phono would be one of those magic combos. Production is full tilt on all the above models, and they can accommodate nothing else. I would love to see a lower wattage amp back in production, even a SET!  If that would happen I'd probably close up the shop and lock the doors and turn off the phone....pizza delivery and a steady diet of new vinyl from the post people. Alas, only a pipe dream...like a step up transformer. Yours truly has even written several times about the transformer to Mr. Leben. No luck. Not even my charms can get in the way of current production. As most of you have seen, I use the Leben 30 phono stage quite often, and usually in conjunction with the Auditorium T2 Hommage step up. The 30 has one of the prettiest sounds on the planet.  It's not the largest of sound stages, like an Audio Research REF or Pass, yet what it does for $2695 still places it in the top tier. It can allow one to splurge on a great step up, and you'll never have to look over your shoulder for something better. 
  So who knows, maybe someday the CS1000P....I'm thinking coupled with the Vandersteen Treos or a pair of those DeVore Gibbon X's we might all sit here and cry.  

  I've been noticing different perspectives with snow on the ground, how a tree is shaped, angles of flower beds in the yard, pools of water that normally remain hidden.  No less with hifi here, if a speaker's sides are plumb, if they're top is level. The snow b

   Ok, so the holidays are over, everyone's licking their wounds over their wallet and credit card expenditures. So thinking ahead to what might be your next purchase for the new year, or later in the year,  more than likely, top of the list should be a good record cleaner.  Not just the average ho hum type like the VPI's (although the 16.5 is the affordable industry standard), Clearaudio, or Okki Nokki, and their ilk. We're talking a great one. One that doesn't recontaminate the record by using a reusable dirty arm wand, no matter how much one rinses it to try and clean it.  No, we're talking the one, the only, the original record cleaning machine, the Keith Monks RCM from England.  If you have a sizable record collection, you owe it to yourself to finally get something that will bring the most out of your valuable records. And I do mean valuable. Check Discogs for prices, you'll be surprised at how much the market has jumped up on some of your 80's gems.  Clean copies of classic rock are commanding some pretty high prices as well.  You simply haven't heard your records to their utmost if they've not been cleaned on either the Keith Monks machines, or another fav that the Haven is most fortunate to have,  the KL Audio ultrasonic machine. The KL Audio cleans like none other, and gives a different sonic splendor than the Keith Monks. I'm often hard-pressed to decide which I like best.  There is a quality of cleanliness that each uniquely give, and luckily I don't have to choose.  What I generally do is use the Keith Monks first, which releases the stamper polymers, and then give it a spin in the KL.  If you need to be convinced, please bring several records over and we'll do a before and after test.  But as my friend Tony says, bring your diaper along, you'll be amazed at what these two units can do.    Schedule a visit, it only takes a matter of minutes to make one a believer of the clean. 
  As to you digital only folks, I have something for you to put on your shopping list as well....it's not here yet, so we'll reveal soon.  After all, it's only the second week of January. Give yourself plenty of time to heal your holiday wounds......
  Keith Monks and KL Audio...only the best from Stereo Haven.  And we're very happy to announce that Keith Monks has a US distributor finally, so parts will be stocked for easy access, etc.  I get many people calling for parts for their 40 something year old machines.  A testimony to value!

  Always sounds like a James Bond flick when one adds the Q to the name.  I usually just call them Tellurium.  Anyway, the demo cables came and stayed for some time, and today they went on to the next dealer in the chain for evaluation.  The 'stayed for some time' is important, since I loved them enough to order a loom of several levels, mainly the Black II and Silver Diamonds.  The Black II are quite reasonably priced, and very very good.  A 3M pr of speaker cable is $450.  The Silver Diamonds are reference level great, and accordingly are for a 3M pr of speaker cable $6900.  So they fit nicely in between my beloved green Auditorium A23 at 3M pr of speaker cable $1180.   Other various cable types are on order as we type/read.  Their digital XLR (AES) was extremely good, as were the various RCA's I tried.  So look for these in the near future.  And prepare to be amazed.  I know, more cables....yet getting the correct cable in your system is of the utmost importance.  Can make or break, we always say around the Haven. 

  Hopefully my new pair of Yonnas will be here by the end of January.  I ordered the American Walnut finish on the left. In the middle is the American Cherry, and on the right we have the European Ash. 
  The back of the speaker is spruce, and looks like this
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