The audio quality on these tapes is extremely mediocre. The lecturer's voice, remote and grainy, must be painstakingly picked out from the louder background noises of laughter, coughing, and snuffling by a constant vigilance. Horns blare and hogs growl over Manly Hall's sparse witticisms, creating a frustrating experience for the listener. But after listening to this mess for a few minutes, you can learn how to squint your ears just so. Then Mr. Hall's words acquire the lustre of true gold. THis is the first Intro to Alchemy I have been able to understand intuitively without feeling vaguely cheated and put-on. The lecturer has a systematic, psychologically plausible set of interpretations, and establishes extensive interconnections between european alchemy and mystical endeavors from Masonry to Psychoanalysis. Thoroughly worth the earache.