Al ( @almarg ) passed away peacefully yesterday evening, September 14th, 2020.
Margaret, Al's wife, was by his side most of the afternoon.
Both she and Al, as well as Al's family, were deeply touched by the outpouring of respect and appreciation for Al from members who, via written word, shared so very much in the 'Update on Audiogon Member Almarg' thread.
Margaret extends her thanks, gratitude and appreciation to all members. She treasures each and every post.
So sorry, I missed the post (chemo and a hospital stay) We have lost a gentleman, but the family endures. We must trust he is in a better place. Adrian 🇦🇺
Al will be missed, when members argued that I was incorrect on some audio issues, Almarg would always take the time to prove and explain that I was correct, RIP my friend, best regards to the family and God bless you all.
My goodness that’s sad. Not to sound too selfish but we’ve lost a great member and a great resource of information. A gentleman. I wish his family well.
I have been taking a break from audio and this site for over a year now and today I log on and see this. Just when I thought this year couldn’t get any worse we lose one of the truest and finest of gentleman. Rest In Peace Al, you will truly be missed.
A recent anecdote... that's quintessentially Al, in so many ways. And an audiophile through and through to the very end...
From Margaret:
"Among all the other ways Al had positive contributions to make, perhaps, is that he was the first hospice patient at Yale to figure out how to pipe in music audio into the 4 Supportive Care Unit rooms."
I have nothing to add to the already voluminous outpouring of love and support, but I wanted to be added to the list. I always read every post Al put up that I saw. He was the most trusted to give it to you "straight".
So sad... Al was the epitome of class... always there to share his fact based knowledge without being pushy or judgmental. His voice will be greatly missed in this forum. My sincere condolences to his family. We need more Al's in this world!!!
I just learned of AL’s passing today........AS a member over the last 15 years AL was a pillar that you could lean heavily on for superior advice on all things audio! I am super bummed out to hear he passed away. Audiogon has lost one of its finest members and he will be missed by all who knew him. AL kept everyone in check on the forums, because if you started talking any BULLSHIT you knew you might see a post from AL explaining in great detail how it really was! Man I am so sad to hear this news RIP AL!
"Among all the other ways Al had positive contributions to make, perhaps, is that he was the first hospice patient at Yale to figure out how to pipe in music audio into the 4 Supportive Care Unit rooms."
That's a lovely anecdote. It's good to hear that for Al, just like it does for the rest of us, access to music remained a priority.
I wouldn't be surprised if he was also trying to figure out the best way to do it without incurring too many sonic compromises.
We audiophiles can't help it, we just seem to be wired that way.
Saddened to hear of Als passing. My aloha and condolences to his wife and family. As a newbie to this forum 10 years ago, I had much to learn after being away from audio for decades. Al was always patient, precise, kind and fabulously helpful in explaining simple and complicated concepts. He had patience and kindness that came thru in every post. I learned more than just about audio from him as he showed how to act in a community and how to be generous all the time. May he rest in peace.
cd183, thank you for reposting Margaret's message. That is yet another example of Al's mind at work alway's looking for positive helpful improvements for all. We can bet he made sure that hospital grade outlets were in place to start.
Sad day. I just found out about Al. Almarg was always so helpful to everyone here. In many ways, he was the one we’d all go to for highly technical questions. He was an incredibly great addition to Audiogon and his absence will be felt. My condolences to his Family and Godspeed Almarg. You will be missed here
It's Al and his helpfulness all the way, even during his last days, he's still trying to get things done on the hi-fi front for others. I will truly miss him in Agon. Deeply sadden Raymond
Just saw this sad news. Almarg was the most knowledgeable gentleman, always willing to go to great lengths to help us all. When he entered the thread we all would take notice, and be prepared to read His writings carefully- and often times more than once, lol. He would be summoned in to get to the bottom of difficult situations in a way that was most respectful and nonchalant. Condolences to his family and God Bless.
Looking through the threads today, I am thinking of how not only was Al the smartest person in the room, but how he would gently steer the erroneous person back towards the answer with grace and patience. Al is very missed.
I don’t come here nearly as often as before and just happened to see this thread. It surprised me and gave me a chill. So sorry to hear about Al. I didn't know him, but he helped me many times with email advice on equipment and electronics. Always a gentleman and always willing to help a stranger. Just a very good person. He was also one of the most knowledgeable audiophiles that I have come across. I hope he is resting with the angels now. The forums and the audio world lost a prince of man.
Yes, from his interaction on this forum, he was one individual I truly wished I had the opportunity to know personally. Have learned much more from him than just audio.
He was always so nice to me, but his nature was to be nice to everybody. People like that, I meet in my life from time to time, give me example and correct my behavior. Without him this forum suddenly makes much less sense to me with bunch of people arguing while nobody has authority - at least to me. I'm thinking often about quitting.
What more can I say that's already been said? Rest in peace Al. The forums will never be the same without him. When it came to getting the best and most factual knowledge on so many things he was ALWAYS the number one guy I listened to. Number one.
I just found out a week ago that my dear friend Al has crossed over and I am devastated. From my first day as an electrical engineer I met Al and we became fast friends. Soon after, Margaret and Al came to dinner at our home and it was his first taste of high-end audio. We continued our families friendship for over 37 years until I moved to Florida and lost touch. There are no words that I can use to describe my relationship with Al except to be soft spoken, always grateful, absolutely brilliant on any subject that he had knowledge of and the truest of gentleman and devoted husband to Margaret.
Many of you may not know that Al was an excellent cook, wine enthusiast, long distance runner and massive collector of radios big and small. He and Margaret loved music deeply and passionately. And, judging by the outpouring of condolences, you sensed his essence as well.
Dearest Margaret,
My wish for you is that you have or will celebrate Al’s life for all of the wonderful things he did and an incredibly special man he especially to you. You were an unbelievable couple in the truest sense of the meaning.
These past 5 months for me have been shocking, so I can appreciate how you must feel.
I can't remember a previous time when 5 people I knew have all died so close together.
Rather shockingly, the closest of them was still comparitively young. I have no idea when I will be able to accept his passing.
The regrets seem to be endless. They come and go swapping places with sadness and numbness.
These are difficult times all over and I'm sure there must be a lot of people hurting right now.
It's important that forum members like Al are remembered by his many friends here. Ultimately it's the memories that remain, and amongst the ongoing hullabaloo, and fight to keep your head above water, they will remain worth preserving.
From my first day as an electrical engineer I met Al and we became fast friends.
Yes very knowledgeable miss him dearly, we used to get on so well, off line also, even though we were in different hemispheres. He was a bit softer on the ones claiming BS here than I, but it was a good one two combo
@stimpy1226 Neil, I forwarded your post to Margaret. Here is her response:
"Please let him know, if you can reach him, that I agree with him that we had a wonderful life together and I remember so many lovely family events we shared with his two great boys – only wonderful memories of his system!!!"
If you would like to connect with Margaret directly, please PM me and I'll pass on her contact info.
Thank you for that lovely story about your friendship with Al, whose presence in this forum is as much missed today as it was treasured during his time with us.
It was really nice to learn a few new things about him. We will not look upon his like again.
I'm out of here at times, sometimes for long periods. Upon return, noticed Almarg posts disappeared, didn't know he had passed. He was always one I respected, both for his knowledge and his steady and kind demeanor. He also treated novices with respect, no question too simple or stupid, very graceful!
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