July 2017 Updated playback specs

• A Tribe Called Quest - A Low End Theory (1991,LP) ★★★☆☆
• Chris Robinson Brotherhood - Barefoot in the Head (2017,LP) ★★★★☆
• Danny Gatton - 88 Elmira St. (1991,S) ★★☆☆☆
• Dread Zeppelin - Un-Led-Ed (1990,LP) ★★★★☆
• Various - True Romance OST (2017,LP) ★★★☆☆
• Chuck Berry - Chuck (2017,S) ★★☆☆☆
• Dennis Wilson - Bambu (The Caribou Sessions) (2017,LP) ★★★☆☆
• Pat Benatar - Crimes of Passion (1980,LP) ★★★★☆
• Elliott Smith - XO (1998,LP) ★★★☆☆
• Mick Jagger - She's the Boss (1985,LP) ★★★☆☆
• Lindsay Buckingham & Christine McVie - Self Titled (2017,LP) ★★★★☆
• Elton John - Madman Across the Water (1971,LP) ★★★★☆

12 Not much time for records this month...

Chuck's Rating Scale

• Classic / Essential (Best!) 4.4 to 5.0 ★★★★★
• Must Listen (Great) 3.4 to 4.3 ★★★★☆
• Worthy Effort (Maybe to Good) 2.4 to 3.3 ★★★☆☆
• Below Expectations (Bad) 1.4 to 2.3 ★★☆☆☆
• Avoid (Awful) 0 to 1.3 ★☆☆☆☆

Playback:

Vinyl

• VPI Scout JMW9 Tonearm w/Nordost Wiring, Ortofon 2M Black Cartridge
• Rogue Audio Cronus Magnum Integrated Tube Amp (KT-120 Tubes)
• Klipsch RF-3s, RC-3, RS-3s, KSW-15 Sub
• VPI 16.5 RCM
• Milty Zerostat3 Antistatic Gun

Digital

• Pioneer Elite BDP-62FD Blu-Ray/SACD/DVD Audio Player / Polk LSi M 703 Bookshelf
• PC AMD FX4300 Quad Core 3.8 GHz/12mb RAM / J River Media Center 22 / Maverick Audio TubeMagic D2 DAC / Cronus Magnum / Polk LSi M 703 Bookshelf

My initial impressions (and ratings) may change after repeated plays. Albums that grab my attention on the first listen are great, but many others take several listens to truly appreciate and ratings may be updated accordingly. My top rating for greatest hit compilations is four stars.

This list is chronological with the top album being the most recently played. Sound quality ratings are included for some releases, such as multichannel mixes and audiophile labels.

Vinyl is my preferred and typical method for playback, but I occasionally listen to SACD, DVD-Audio, Blu-ray and (less likely) Redbook CD. For titles I don't own, especially for exploration and discovery, Spotify and YouTube are my go-to online resources. Music streaming is noted with an 'S'. For music on the road with by CD, iPhone or iPad and Spotify, playback will be noted with an 'SR'. Sometimes for convenience I will stream music to my Amazon Echo, noted with an 'SE'.

Last month's listening log can be found below.

Older lists are saved in the archive folder.