Showing posts with label leben hi-fi. Show all posts
Showing posts with label leben hi-fi. Show all posts

Saturday, August 28, 2010

Interview with Peter Selesnick of Venice Audio

I just finished an interview with Peter Selesnick of Venice Audio for an upcoming installment of the Vinyl Anachronist column, which will appear in the next issue of Perfect Sound Forever. Peter is by trade a British director of photography (DP, as they say in the film industry), and he decided to start Venice Audio in his spare time. As you can see from the photos above, Venice Audio offers a very beautiful way to audition and buy some of the best equipment in the world such as Naim, Harbeth, Leben, Well Tempered and much, much more.

I talked with Peter about what it takes to open up a high-end store in the 21st century, when most electronic purchases are done on the Internet by people who are searching for the lowest price and not the best advice. He offered some excellent insights into how he chooses product lines, how he auditions equipment and how he hopes to capture the attention of younger generations and turn them onto the joys of listening to two-channel analog-based audio systems!

He also talks about some of my favorite components such as the Harbeth 40.1 loudspeakers (my favorite speakers in the world), the Well Tempered Amadeus turntable (which uses a golf ball damped in silicon fluid in its tonearm assembly) and the entire line of Naim electronics (my favorite audio brand in the world).

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Back at Whetstone Audio...


I just spent another Saturday afternoon with Brian DiFrank, owner of Whetstone Audio here in Austin. I must be a lucky charm for him, because just as I arrived a customer was leaving with a newly-purchased Leben CS-300 integrated amplifier. Brian's customary reply in such situations is, "Hoo-ray...Whetstone Audio gets to stay open for another month!"

I wound up staying for a while and listening to a strange variety of music...everything from Tubeway Army to Scott Walker. I wound up purchasing an almost mint LP copy of Scott Walker's Tilt from Brian. I took it home and was surprised at just how accessible it is, especially compared to Scott's last album, The Drift. In fact, I really, really enjoyed it! Be warned, however, that later Scott Walker is not for the faint of heart. It's the perfect music for getting everyone out of your house when the party is over.