Lovin' the LP: my first weekend with PerspeX

Longtime S&V readers know how much your humble Editor-In-Chief loves vinyl. But my old turntable was, well, old, and the more I listened to my LPs, the more I realized I had to bite the bullet and get a new 'table. I never enter new-gear purchase modes lightly, so, after months of research, a few sort-of clandestine listening sessions at CES, and some persuasive expert advice, I decided to go with the Pro-Ject 6 PerspeX turntable and a Sumiko Blackbird cartridge. 

And I am sooooo glad I did.

I had to wait one weekend longer that I wanted to before I could devote the proper time to set the 'table up properly. I got the 'table itself set and level on a wood table out of the line of fire of my speakers and subwoofer on Saturday and installed the cartridge and adjusted the tonearm on Sunday. I, of course, took meticulous care in optimizing tracking force, antiskating, overhang, zenith, azimuth, and the arm's VTA (vertical tracking angle). As soon as I was satisfied with my adjustments, I connected the PerspeX to my receiver's phono stage and got down to putting needle to platter. . . .

"YYZ": Heroic Guitarist or "Guitar Hero"?

My older son, Paul, is kinda bummed that he wasn't able to go with me to Rush's American tour finale last night at Madison Square Garden. Seems he was especially eager to hear "YYZ."

That would be "YYZ" as made famous by Guitar Hero II, the videogame that includes a cover of the classic instrumental, with the billing: "YYZ" as made famous by Rush. Y'see, Paul doesn't think he's even heard the original track. After all, it was released on Moving Pictures way back in 1981 — eight years before Paul himself was, um, released. (And folks, that's a helluva long time in "By-Tor and the Snow Dog" years.)

Bach to the Future

"It's easy to play any musical instrument: all you have to do is touch the right key at the right time and the instrument will play itself." —Johann Sebastian Bach
The bust at left resides in the onsite S&V soundroom (we've got an offsite facility as well). I spent the past day in there absorbing and re-absorbing the 5.1 mix on the MVI of Rush's Snakes & Arrows, which will be posted on the main site at the top of next week. Right now I'm at 1,700 words and I haven't even gotten to the documentary and the other extras yet. (We're nothing but thorough here at S&V...)

BTW, at first post, I had initially ID'ed the bust as our man Ludwig van Beethoven, but eagle-eyed Ken Richardson gently reminded me that it weren't him — it be Bach. Egad, my bad. (Cue Beethoven's Ninth. Er, rather, make that a Brandenburg Concerto. Fugue-in' A!)

Anyway, gotta get back to it. What say you, Johann, old chap? "Bring me a bowl of coffee before I turn into a goat." Uh, okay. Maybe later.... do you take decaf? —Mike Mettler

Rush Rattles PNC

Saw the second of three Rush shows I'm gonna catch on the 2007 tour last night at the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, NJ. Had on (naturally) a Porcupine Tree shirt and promptly sweated through it in the 90+degree heat. Ugh.

Our seats were in the absolute last row of the "terrace," but at least they were dead-center. Sound was MUCH better than at the Jones Beach gig last Monday, and there was one song change to the set list: "Distant Early Warning" replaced "Summertime Blues" near the end of the second set. Nice. My wife and I have an inside joke about one of the words in this song — which appears in another Rush song in a different context — so it was a welcome surprise addition to the proceedings. (Yes, my wife is cool enough not only to like Rush and go to all the shows with me, but to actually know the lyrics.)

Rush Takes Jones Beach

Saw my boys Rush at the Jones Beach Theater on Long Island last night. (Oh, sorry, NIKON at Jones Beach Theater.) The Toronto trio were in fine form, despite the typical “windy” Jones Beach acoustics. That’s the price you pay for being at an outdoor venue that’s on the water. Thought about that a lot when they played “The Way the Wind Blows” during the second set...

Snakes & Arrows on Vinyl: It's Here!

The 180-HQ vinyl version of of Rush's Snakes & Arrows arrived on my doorstep yesterday. Yee-hah! Can't wait to do a listening session.