The Occasional Podcast
Join us in an audio-centric exploration of high fidelity listening. Gear talk, recommendations, interviews and plenty of interesting insights into high-end and personal audio, manufacturing and the people that make up the pastime. Our discussions primarily focus on music, music production, HiFi, audiophile speakers, headphones, amplifiers, turntables (record players), tubes, CD players, digital streaming, DAC and other digital sources.
Episodes
An interview with Peter Ledermann of Soundsmith. Peter has a very long history of research and development in audio. From his time at IBM to amps to turntable cartridges, Peter has long sought to educate and enlighten the twisting technicalities of HiFi. In this interview we chat about why audio is sometimes pros, cons and compromise. It is an evolution that attempts to help to solve a host of problems, while sometimes creating new...
This episode is a collection of interviews that help explore the idea of measurements as they relate to high fidelity audio reproduction from an audio product designer's perspective. Some of the most predominant makers of HiFi gear share their thoughts on measurements, discussing the usefulness, limitations, and greater impact on the market. Includes interviews with Peter Qvortrup of Audio Note UK, Andrew Jones of MoFi, Nelson Pass...
Our recommendations for the top 10 best sounding Turntable Carts from the past 12 months. Marc and Brian run down their best turntable cartridges for record players available to buy today. Released in conjunction with the pt.AUDIO Buyer's Guide Summer 2025. You can check out all the "best of" gear from every HiFi category here: https://pt.audio/category/audio-gear-reviews/buyers-guide/ In this epsiode we also discuss the pros and c...
Our recommendations for the top 10 best sounding turntables from the past 12 months. Marc and Brian run down their best turntable picks from 2025. Released in conjunction with the pt.AUDIO Summer Buyer's Guide. You can check out all the "best of" gear from every HiFi category here: https://pt.audio/category/audio-gear-reviews/buyers-guide/
Video coverage: https://www.youtube.com/@PT-Audio
Season 12 Merch is now available!
An interview with Vince Burzzese of Totem Acoustic. Vince has been developing speakers for many years, and his longtime brand Totem Acoustic has carved out its audience in the HiFi realm since 1987. We sit down with him to chat about his design philosophy, audio journey, and more in this very unique interview. Vince is a rare Canadian designer based out of Montreal, Quebec. His goals and mission in audio are made clear and help pro...
An intervew with Director of Acoustic Design at IAG, Peter Comeau. Peter helps manage the sound design for IAG brands, including Wharfedale, Mission, Quad, Castle and Audiolab. We chat him up and discuss his outlook on listening, reproducing sound and more. Peter gives his take on several audiophile myths, including how far a speaker should really be placed from a wall for the best bass response. He also sheds a little more light o...
Our recommendations for the top 10 best sounding integrated amplifiers from the past 12 months. Marc and Brian run down their best amp picks from cheapest to most expensive. Released in conjunction with the pt.AUDIO Buyer's Guide Summer 2025. You can check out all the "best of" gear from every HiFi category here: https://pt.audio/category/audio-gear-reviews/buyers-guide/
Video coverage: https://www.youtube.com/@PT-Audio
Season 12 M...
An interview with Kevin Hayes Of VAC. The KT88 and the 300b tube are some of the most popular options for HiFi amplification. But what are the differences and why do some amp designers choose one over the other? Kevin explains the situation and also discusses Class A, if amplifiers "warm up", and if tubes sound better in the pre amp or power amp. A very educational and inspirational interview with a tube designer that has been in t...
Andrew Jones of MoFi Electronics joins the 5-timers club with us this week on The Occasional Podcast. Recorded at AXPONA 2025, this episode tackles the finer talking points of loudspeaker bass design, as well as all the new interesting bits on Mr. Jones upcoming MoFi Electronics flagship floorstander, the Sourcepoint V10. Andrew Jones has a long history with high fidelity design, working for speaker brands like KEF, TAD, Pioneer an...
Live from Chicago, IL - The cast and crew from PartTimeAudiophile's coverage of AXPONA 2025 weigh in. Held April 11-13 in the Schaumburg Convention Center, this episode reports back on all the showroom highlights and the latest hifi product releases from the largest high fidelity audio event in North America. Best of show, standout gear and plenty of weekend observations. Special thanks to Marc Phillips and Graig Neville.
Our picks for the top 10 best sounding speakers from the past 12 months. Marc and Brian rundown their best speaker picks from cheapest to most expensive. In preparation for the upcoming AXPONA show in Chicago, the pt.AUDIO staff presents some of the best speaker listens since the last show. Much has been updated, revealed and redeemed.
Also don't forget to check out the show sponsor of this episode: Tidal Audio and The Voice That I...
Ever sit at your 9 to 5 and wonder what it would be like to venture out on your own, in your favorite hobby? This is exactly what Zach Mehrbach of ZMF headphones did until he kicked off what turned out to be one of the most successful micro-brands in the headphone space. In this episode we explore some of the growing pains of a small business in personal audio, hunting wood, Steve Jobs and going from a metaphoric "David" to "Goliat...
Our Season 12 opener is with David Chesky of Chesky Records and The Audiophile Society. Along with creating the high resolution music download service HDTracks.com, David is a composer, Jazz pianist and founder of both the label Chesky Records and a new venture with a focus on 3D sound called the Audiophile Society. In this episode he discusses life as a musician, creator and composer with audiophile pursuits. A great listen for an...
An interview with Drew Baird Of Moon-Audio.com. Drew joins the Season 11 finale with tons of unique insights into the current state of the CD - and some of his observations might actually surprise you. In this episode we explore the impacts of physical media on the current audiophile landscape, system matching, the eventual takeover of AI and more. An excellent learning/conversional piece about the current state of HiFi and what to...
A huge show with an interview of Nicholas Niespodziani from Yacht Rock Revue! The term "Yacht Rock" is turning out to be quite the hot button topic for audiophiles. With the release of the HBO doc Yacht Rock: A DOCKUMENTARY and Donald Fagan's white hot response to the idea, it has quickly become apparent that not everyone is in love with the term that has caused a massive resurgence in interest from LA-based soft rock bands from th...
Marc and Brian take on pt.AUDIO's coverage of the Florida Audio Expo in Tampa, held February 21-23. This episode reports back on all the showroom highlights and the latest hifi product releases from the Q1 event. Best of show, standout gear and plenty of weekend observations. From warding off gators in the hotel parking lot to 8 foot tall flat panel speakers, this episode tells you everything you need to know about the first big au...
An interview with Michael Trei of Stereophile Magazine. Michael joins the show to chat about his historic run with HiFi. In addition to reviews and a regular column with Stereophile, Michael has held nearly every possible position for a real high fidelity enthusiast. This includes (but not limited to) writer, reviewer, distributor, retail sales and even turntable setup-er. His knowledge of the analog spinning disc is deep, and he s...
Due to the sucess of our episode on The Anatomy Of An Amplifier With Jason Stoddard, we decided to take a deep dive into headphones with the same format. This week we are joined again by none other than Zach Mehrbach of ZMF headphones. Zach walks us through the "how to" and "know how" of every part that makes up a headphone, from connector to cable to headband - and everything in between. This includes things to look out for in a q...
An Interview With Herb Reichert Of Stereophile Magazine. We met up with Herb at another audio show last year and really got a chance to pick his brain about HiFi, life and even the growing AI trend as it relates to music and art. Herb is one of the great writers for Stereophile and isn't afraid to tackle anything from headphones to the high-end when it comes to his art. There was such an interesting crew the came up from the East C...
Our 2025 Buyer's Guide For Audiophiles. Marc and Brian go over some of the best and brightest audio products reviewed and heard for the upcoming year. Broken out into several HiFi categories, the buyer's guide provides some insight into the season's best audiophile products along with some general banter and tips for the hobby. See the full guide in written form at PT.Audio.
Don’t forget to check out our merch for Season 11. The 80...
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