lasting quality FOR HOUSES WITH CHARACTER

THE BEST HOMES ARE COMFORTABLE AND PERSONAL. A SUCCESSFUL RENOVATION DOES UPDATES WITH SENSITIVITY.

Lyngdorf Audio MXA-8400

8-CHANNEL POWER AMPLIFIER

curtains to carpets

TRADITIONALLY, window drapery was the most significant and costly use of fabric.

RABBIT HOLES

The spirit of Rush ever lingers

GRAMOPHONE DREAMS

Jamming with cans

Stenheim Alumine Two.Five

LOUDSPEAKER

Amphion Krypton3X

LOUDSPEAKER

Fezz Equinox

D/A PROCESSOR

FROM CARRIAGE HOUSE TO A RESIDENCE

On Boston's North Shore, a historic estate building becomes a home.

house & garden details

A HOUSE BUILT OF related components speaks eloquently. When you understand the architectural style, whatever you add will look “as though it’s always been there.”

A Four-Cent Cigar and the Tyranny of Better

Edward Mott Robinson, a Quaker tycoon from whaling-era Massachusetts, would turn down fine cigars. He preferred the cheap kind. “I smoke four-cent cigars, and I like them,” he declared.¹ “If I were to smoke better ones, I might lose my taste for the cheap ones that I now find quite satisfactory.”

Staying true to the passion

Steve Jain, cofounder and managing director of Fidelity Imports, has been busy since launching the company six years ago in the Philadelphia area.

FOLLOW-UP

Following Kalman Rubinson’s review and John Atkinson's testing, which were published in the April 2025 issue, the Charcoal Black Technics SC-CX700 streaming amplified speaker system was shipped to me.1 I checked out some of the features Kal described, dug into the underlying tech with Technics's Bill Voss, and spent a few dozen hours listening, especially to the system's phono circuit.

A new vinyl perception of the Doors, all-analog

For Warner Music Group, the Doors have been a deep vein of music gold. Their albums have never been out of print, and the catalog has enjoyed regular reissues for decades. Each new version of the Doors' first six albums sells well enough to prompt another trip to the vaults.

Songs of Innocence and Experience

Much of the coverage of the passing of Marianne Faithfull has focused on her private life rather than her music. That is understandable—yet it's also regrettable because it misses the important fact that for 60 years, Faithfull produced an impressive catalog of music, releasing 21 solo studio albums plus collaborations, compilations, and live recordings.

TIMELESS 1920s COLONIAL REVIVAL

A suite of rooms is outfitted by a history- inspired company celebrating 50 years.

A NAUTICAL COTTAGE BATH

A tranquil new bathroom uses color and texture for seaside appeal.

Boulder 1151

MONOBLOCK POWER AMPLIFIER

flooring

FLOORS ADD CHARACTER to a house and should be considered early on during design or renovation.

FURNISHING A MIDWEST FOURSQUARE

With well-proportioned rooms and period details, a familiar house type shines again.

MANUFACTURERS' COMMENTS

ANY CLOD CAN HAVE THE FACTS; HAVING OPINIONS IS AN ART

wall & floor tiles

TILE IS, OF COURSE, found throughout the house, not just in the kitchen and bath.

lighting+ hardware

ELECTRIC-ERA lighting comes in all styles, from traditional reproductions of antique fixtures to whimsical new forms and space-age interpretations.

On cables

Underpinning a discussion about the merits of potentially costly specialist audio cables is an obvious question: Why do we need them? Doesn't almost all wire conduct audio signals with negligible distortion and very little loss of power?

a transitional HOUSE IN ST. LOUIS

From the Romanesque arch on the exterior to the staircase and mantels inside, this welcoming house boasts beautiful details. Today’s owners have been excellent stewards of all the original Victorian elements while decorating with a nod to American Arts & Crafts design. Chief among their accomplishments has been the painstaking refurbishing of all the oak paneling, stairs, and mantels.

kitchens & revivalbaths

HOW TO DESIGN a kitchen that will still look good and function well in 20 years? Rely on timeless materials.

BRILLIANT CORNERS

What was old is new again

furniture & decorative accessories

ONLY A VERY SMALL NICHE of old-house owners will create true period rooms.

walls & ceilings

WHATEVER THE PERIOD, once you have discovered the decorated walltime-honored paint techniques and printed papers, embossed surfaces, ornamental plaster, carved wood, white walls may come to feel like the absence of finish.

SPIN DOCTOR

The Garrard 301 in a new light