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Saturday, August 23, 2025

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: Written by: Jason Thorpe; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 November 2024

It’s getting tense here at Thorpe Manor. As I begin writing this editorial on October 15, I’m getting set to cover Audio Video Show 2024, which starts on October 25, on location in Warsaw. It seems like just yesterday I was counting down three weeks until departure, which felt like plenty of time to get my editorial finished, wrap up a review, and pack at my leisure.

: Written by: Jason Thorpe; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 October 2024

I’ve lived in the same house for 25 years. I’ve owned my motorcycle from new in 2007, and I bought the one before that new in 1990. Once I find something I like, I keep it longer than I should. Perhaps it’s inertia, or maybe it’s because I make shrewd buying decisions. Either way, I don’t let go easily.

: Written by: Jason Thorpe; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 September 2024

My family loves Ottawa, Ontario, which is about a four-hour drive from our home in Toronto. Marcia has had a long love affair with Ottawa, stemming back to her late-teenage years when she had friends who went to the city’s Carleton University. Ottawa is Canada’s capital city, and as such it’s loaded with huge stone buildings, both brutal and elegant in equal measure. There are tons of museums and galleries, most notably the National Gallery, which we often visit when we’re there.

: Written by: Jason Thorpe; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 August 2024

For me, sitting down and writing a formal article requires a generalized sense of structure and a setting of stability. I’ve had neither for the past couple of months and it’s harshing my mellow.

: Written by: Jason Thorpe; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 July 2024

Ian, Andrew, and I were standing around at the dog park, chatting as we do each morning. Three boomer-adjacent white males, keeping one eye on the dogs to make sure they weren’t eating things they shouldn’t, although this was more my concern; my dog’s an idiot and will eat anything, including mud and dog shit.

: Written by: Jason Thorpe; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 June 2024

Show coverage is hard work, but sometimes we make it harder on ourselves.

This year marked my second visit to the High End audio show, which was held May 9–12 in the ginormous Munich Order Center (MOC) in Munich, Germany. This is one of the largest audio shows in the world, and by many accounts, the most important. Coming anywhere close to seeing the whole thing in the four days it’s open requires an Olympian effort. Last year, Doug Schneider and I attempted to cover the show on our own. While we went balls-out to do so, in the end, we felt that it would be a good idea to rope in another writer so we could do better justice to this massive exhibition.

: Written by: Jason Thorpe; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 May 2024

It’s a failing of mine. I’m impatient. And even at this stage of my reviewing career, I’m still excited when I receive new gear. Combined, those two traits are a recipe for disaster.

: Written by: Jason Thorpe; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 April 2024

Van Halen’s first album is the greatest debut record of all time. Some may well not agree with this.

: Written by: Jason Thorpe; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 March 2024

I swore to myself that it would never come to this. I promised myself I wouldn’t become a curmudgeon.

: Written by: Jason Thorpe; Category: Opinion; Created: 01 February 2024

If you haven’t already, please nip over to SoundStage! Access and read Dennis Burger’s January editorial, where he explains that he’s a simple guy who would be happiest with a simple (albeit high-quality) system. However, as a reviewer, he needs a bunch of gear hanging around so that he can evaluate separates such as DACs, amps, and speakers. Then check out Dennis’s podcast on the same subject.