Octave Records proudly offers The Art of HiFi series. Each recording in this series showcases a different aspect of high-quality audio reproduction. All recordings are carefully crafted collections – all done at Octave Studios in Boulder, Colorado. CEO Paul McGowan was the recording and mixing engineer and captured all 6 albums in Pure DSD 256 Stereo. 

All recordings are carefully crafted collections. Recorded at Octave Studios in Boulder, Colorado. PS Audio and Octave Records CEO Paul McGowan was the recording and mixing engineer on each album. Mastering was done by DSD Pioneer Gus Skinas from the Super Audio Center. Recording all 6 albums in Pure DSD 256 Stereo.

Octave Records was launched by PS Audio founder Paul McGowan and is designed to highlight state of the art DSD audio with the top musicians and talent in the Boulder, Colorado area. They also specialize in Stereo and 5 Channel Surround Sound Pure DSD recordings.

Because of Octave Records’ uncompromising performance standards, it is not possible to use off-the-shelf-recording, mixing, and mastering equipment. They had to build their own from the ground up.

A word from Paul McGowan: “Native DSD has been one of our favorites since the beginning of Octave Records. Their unwavering support for DSD is an inspiration to anyone who truly loves the purity and emotional connection that only DSD can offer.”

The Art of HiFi bundle includes 6 albums:

• The Art of Hi-Fi Vol. 1: Bass
• The Art of Hi-Fi Vol. 2: Soundstage
• The Art of Hi-Fi Vol. 3: Percussion
• The Art of Hi-Fi Vol. 4: Strings
• The Art of Hi-Fi Vol. 5: Woodwinds
• The Art Of HiFi Vol. 6: Guitars

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Ideally, your speakers should ‘disappear’ and the musicians should seem like they’re right there in the room with you, with a distinct presence and in a space that can sound larger than your listening room.
– Paul McGowan

The Art of HiFi: Soundstage is a true state-of-the-art reference disc created to test and show off your system’s amazing soundstage. From deep and wide to beyond the walls of the room, Soundstage presents 11 stunning tracks of great music, each hand-crafted to reproduce a breathtaking three-dimensional image. This is a must-have Octave recording by Paul McGown, Terri McGowan, Jessica Carson and Mastering Engineer Gus Skinas. Recorded live and in the studio in Pure DSD 256 Stereo.

The Art of HiFi: Soundstage was recorded in Pure DSD 256 Stereo at multiple live venues as well as at Octave Studios with the goal of capturing sound in a variety of spaces. Whiskey by Boulder’s own bluegrass quartet, Jake Leg, appears twice on the album, once at Octave Studios and once at the Dairy Arts Center in Boulder, CO.

As you compare and contrast the two recordings, you not only hear the difference in the room sound, but you’ll be able to detect a difference in tempo as the band responds to the energy of a live audience.

Octave’s Director and leader of Clandestine Amigo, Jessica Carson, creates an a cappella experience at the Octave studio by singing seven vocal parts to Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah. By singing each part at a different distance from the microphone and engineer, Paul McGowan’s, addition of reverb, a deep and wide soundstage is created using studio magic.

First Congregational Church UCC in Boulder has a natural reverb that is perfect for the Duo Azure performance of Italian piece, Diporti di Euterpe, Op. 7, No. 4: Lamento. Dr. Jessica Nilles Kressin and Russian soprano Ekaterina Kotcherguina, give a soft and beautiful performance on piano and vocals, you can almost feel the snowy Sunday afternoon.

Soundstage begins and ends with a bang as the footfalls of dancer Salli Gutierrez transport us to an old platform stage at an intimate venue. With live performances from Octave’s own, Gabriel Mervine, and up-and-comers Enmanuel Alexander and Sturtz, this album showcases a variety of artists, genres and soundstages.

Steve Mullins & Salli Gutierrez (Track 1, 11)
Jeremy Mohney (Track 2)
Gabriel Mervine (Track 3)
Sturtz (Track 4)
Jessica Carson (Track 5)
Longmont Symphony Orchestra String Quartet (Track 6)
Duo Azure (Track 7)
Emmanuel Alexander (Track 8)
Jake Leg (Track 9, 10)

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