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Album Reviews
Hot House: The Complete Jazz at Massey Hall Recordings Receives Ultimate 70th Anniversary 180g 3LP Restoration of Complete 1953 Performance by The Quintet in Toronto, Including the Original Tapes Without Charles Mingus’ Bass Overdubs
Mark Smotroff  |  Jan 05, 2024  |  2 comments

The May 15, 1953 performance at Massey Hall in Toronto by The Quintet, five of the most important mid-century change agents who transformed jazz music as we know it today — Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus, Bud Powell, and Max Roach — is incredible on so many levels. Celebrating that historic concert’s 70th anniversary, Craft Recordings have issued a 180g 3LP package called Hot House: The Complete Jazz at Massey Hall Recordings, and it may well be the final word on this iconic moment in music history when five titans of jazz performed on the same stage together for the first and only time. Read Mark Smotroff’s review to see why the expanded Hot House belongs in your collection and on your turntable. . .

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Analog Gear News
Groovetracer Subplatters
Mike Mettler  |  Jan 04, 2024  |  9 comments

Happy 2024, everyone! We here at AnalogPlanet central hope you all had a great holiday season, and are ready to tackle a new year ahead that is sure to be met with many great gear and LP options for us all to peruse, review, discuss, and share together. In the meantime, I want to look into something that was mentioned briefly in passing in a story we posted back in December — Groovetracer subplatters. Read on to see more about Groovetracer’s way-cool subplatter options, as well as their other accessories of interest. . .

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FeaturesThe Gruvy Awards
The Gruvy Awards: AnalogPlanet Selects the Best Reviewed Products of 2023
Mike Mettler  |  Jan 03, 2024  |  4 comments

The Gruvy Awards are back yet again! An annual event, The Gruvys are given to the best products AnalogPlanet reviewed in the most recent calendar year. This time around, the Gruvys honor the gear we tested in 2023 and subsequently found to possess a combination of high build quality, exceptional sonics, and in the case of less expensive gear, provide great value for the money. Read on to see what products made the 2023 AP Gruvy Awards cut. . .

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AAA VinylAlbum ReviewsFeaturesShort Cuts
AnalogPlanet’s Top LPs of 2023
Mike Mettler,  |  Dec 30, 2023  |  21 comments

Looks like another year has gone by with a seemingly endless release-cycle parade consisting of scores of brand-new LPs from both known artists and untested newcomers alike, along with a myriad of archival vinyl reissues and overstuffed box sets galore — a good number of them presented in the much-preferred AAA form to boot. With the calendar set to turn over to 2024 any day now, that means it’s high time to assess the best of what we’ve heard on wax during the past 12 months. Read on to see AP editor Mike Mettler and chief LP reviewer Mark Smotroff’s respective lists of the top archival and new LP releases of 2023. . .

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AAA VinylAlbum Reviews
The White Stripes’ Heavy-Hitting 2003 Album Elephant Delivers Hard-Rock Power and Unbridled Glory in Its New, Mightily Impressive AAA 200g 2LP 45rpm UHQR Analogue Productions Edition
Mark Smotroff  |  Dec 28, 2023  |  5 comments

The inherent quality of Jack White’s songwriting and production skills ultimately elevated The White Stripes’ much-celebrated April 2003 LP Elephant to the next level — and Analogue Productions’ new AAA 200g 45rpm 2LP version takes it even higher. Read Mark Smotroff’s review to see why Elephant sets yet another benchmark in the ever-expanding UHQR series. . .

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Phono Preamp Reviews
Marchand Electronics LN112 MC Phono Preamp
Ken Micallef  |  Dec 27, 2023  |  10 comments

Built and manufactured by Dr. Phil Marchand of Rochester, New York, the Marchand Electronics LN112 moving coil (MC) tube phono preamp is a compact unit with a big, tube-generated sound. Read Ken Micallef’s review to find out just how musical sounding the LN112 is, and how it stacks up in its price class. . .

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Analog Gear News
Jorge Paez’s RYTM Turntable
Mike Mettler  |  Dec 26, 2023  |  4 comments

There’s nothing like looking at aspirational gear during the holidays, and we just came upon a cool new prototype turntable that’s sure to turn some heads — and maybe (well, eventually) even some ears too. Said cool piece of gear is the RYTM turntable, courtesy of industrial designer Jorge Paez. Read on to see what Paez has come up with for the minimalist but quite sleek RYTM ’table. . .

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AAA VinylAlbum Reviews
Round Robin Review: Your Ears Can’t Go Wrong With UMe’s Stellar AAA 180g 45rpm 2LP Set or the AAA 180g 45rpm-and-33 1/3rpm Combo 3LP Limited Edition Honoring the 50th Anniversary of Frank Zappa’s Over-Nite Sensation
Mike Mettler, ,  |  Dec 22, 2023  |  6 comments

That’s right folks, don’t touch that dial — it’s another tag-team album review, just in time for that last-minute holiday push. This time around, AP editor Mike Mettler, along with ace reviewers Mark Smotroff and Ken Micallef, are combining forces to proffer a three-man review of the new 50th anniversary 180g AAA 2LP 45rpm edition of Frank Zappa’s top-shelf September 1973 release, Over-Nite Sensation, an album all three of us regard with great affinity. We also review the limited-edition 3LP version of ONS too, which contains an extra LP of bonus tracks. Read on to see how this Zappa-loving triumvirate of Mike, Mark, and Ken get reety-awrighty with their analysis of a stone-cold classic LP in its new 45rpm incarnation. . .

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Analog Gear News
Gold Note T-5 Turntable
Mike Mettler  |  Dec 21, 2023  |  2 comments

Still thinking about getting a new turntable for the holidays? Gold Note may have just what you need. Read on to see all the features and specs for the Italian manufacturer’s latest, the quite classy and affordable T-5 turntable. . .

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Interviews
The Black Crowes Confirm That Finding the Original Quarter-Inch Master Tapes Inspired How the New 180g 4LP 30th Anniversary Box Set Commemorating Their 1992 Album The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion Was Able to Take Flight on Vinyl
Mike Mettler  |  Dec 19, 2023  |  3 comments

Even though they initially took flight in the burgeoning digital age as the calendar turned to the 1990s, The Black Crowes have always had an analog-centric mindset. During a recent Zoom interview with AP editor Mike Mettler, Black Crowes lead vocalist Chris Robinson and lead guitarist/vocalist Rich Robinson, alongside producer George Drakoulias, all came together to discuss how finding the original quarter-inch master unlocked the Southern Harmony vinyl collection, which vintage turntables both Brothers Robinson swear by, and why sequencing the album for vinyl playback was always of primary consideration. . .

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