Account
Make the record
Listen to the record
Where to start
A Meze Empyrean II resting on a turntable beside a spinning record with an orange label, its silver cable across the plinth

Everything in the shop

Headphones, records, cables and recording gear, on one page.
Close up of the black ribbed cup of a Meze headphone, lit low from one side

The condition scale

One standard for used headphones, instruments, amps and drums.
Read
How we work
Come in
Close up of the brass yoke against the walnut cup of a Meze 99 Classics

How we listen

What we listen for, and what a measurement will not tell you.
A Meze Empyrean II lying on crumpled black fabric, lit from one side, its cable running out of the frame

The listening room

Third floor at 215 E. Lewis Street in Livingston, by appointment.
Headphones
Amps, DACs and in ears
The Best Headphones Around $300

The HD 600 or the HD 650 is the whole question at this money.
The Best Desktop Amps and DACs Around $150

Five desktop amps and DACs around $150.

Cart

Your cart is empty

Continue shopping

Where to start

Buying guidesHeadphonesAmps & DACsCustom headphone cablesGradoMeze AudioGrace DesignRecords
Someone sitting on the floor in front of a record collection, pulling a sleeve out to look at it

Liner Notes

A letter when there is something worth saying. What came through the room, what we made of it, and what is worth hearing. No schedule, and nothing sent to fill a slot.

On Starting With the Right Turntable The latest letter, September 25, 2026 On Starting With the Right TurntableMost people who get a first turntable wrong did not spend too little. They bought for specs they will not use, features that add steps, and a deck they had to learn before they could play a record. The right first turntable works, tracks well, and does not fight you. The U-Turn Orbit Plus sits...Read the letter

Every letter, from the first

Sonic Temple repeating pattern, tone on tone line drawings of audio equipment

Get the next one

Your address goes nowhere else, and one click takes you off the list.

While you wait

All of it
How I Listen, and What a Measurement Will Not Tell You
Start here
How I Listen, and What a Measurement Will Not Tell You

Who is doing the listening, what happens before anything gets recommended, why nothing here gets a score, and the limits of a measurement.

Learn: Record grades
Records
What a Record Grade Actually Tells You

A grade describes the object, not the sound. What the Goldmine scale covers, what it leaves out, why a sight grade and a play grade are two different claims, and what comes off with a cleaning vers...

The Best Headphones Around $300
Headphones
The Best Headphones Around $300

The HD 600 or the HD 650 is the whole question at this money, and the answer depends on which listener you are, not on which headphone is better.

 All of it