
“There’s a Friggin’ Capybara!”
From Audio Unleashed by Brent Butterworth & Dennis Burger
May 27, 2026 · 1h 1m · Episode 80
About this episode
Brent and Dennis discuss audio criticism, the songwriting of Billy Joel, and the latest trends in speaker technology, including field coils and new personal audio products.
We’re on Patreon! Find us at https://www.patreon.com/AudioUnleashedThis week, Brent and Dennis kick things off by considering whether lack of cred is as big a problem with audio critics as it is for music critics, and debate whether or not Billy Joel is one of our greatest songwriters, even though both of them would happily pay to never hear “Uptown Girl” again. Then they dig deep into the latest retro revival sweeping through the speaker industry: field coils. Are electromagnets better for inner detail than permanent magnets? What do they do to microdynamics? We report; you decide. And wrapping up the conversation for most listeners, they riff on the announcements of two radically different personal audio products: a $7500 “quad-brid” IEM from Campfire and an adorable little headphone amp and DAC from Fosi. 💿 “The Audiophile Society's Speaker Test and System Optimization Album”: https://theaudiophilesociety.com/collections/albums/products/the-audiophile-societys-speaker-test-and-system-optimization-album. Use code AudioUnleashed25 for 25% off. 📖 Get your copy of the 4th edition of Floyd Toole’s legendary book, Sound Reproduction: The Acoustics and Psychoacoustics of…
People in this episode
Hosts: Brent Butterworth, Dennis Burger
Topics covered
- audio criticism
- music songwriting
- speaker technology
- field coils
- personal audio products
- retro revival
Keywords
- audio critics
- Billy Joel
- field coils
- speaker industry
- personal audio
- headphone amp
- DAC
Sponsors
The Audiophile Society, Routledge
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Campfire, Fosi, The Audiophile Society
Books & works: Sound Reproduction: The Acoustics and Psychoacoustics of Loudspeakers, Rooms and Headphones
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