Audiophilepure

High frequency radio interference (RFI) noise that radio signals, switching power supplies, and Wi-Fi systems inherently create is everywhere. Through a poorly grounded TT’s tonearm, this high frequency noise can—and will—lower the sound quality of your vinyl rig. And yes… we’re talking about micro sonic details that only audiophiles could possibly worry about. Then again, if you’re seriously into vinyl, why not do everything possible to properly ground your turntable? I mean, dinosaurs didn’t ground their turntables properly and look what happened to them. Despite what the Jurassic Park™ movie franchise would have you believe, the last time I checked, dinosaurs were extinct.

Set-up and Installation

As I stated in the intro, the PhonoARAY is easy to install. First take it out of its box and gently loosen the two set screws on the bottom of the black aluminium cylinder. Second, place the aluminium bullet on a flat surface and install the supplied Chord Clearway® earth cable to it. Third, screw the other side of the Clearway earth cable to the grounding post on your phono-stage. Last, attach the grounding wire coming off of your turntable’s phono cable to the PhonoARAY. And voila… that’s it. That’s all it takes to install a superior grounding solution for your turntable.

And FiiO clearly paid attention to the details this time. On the side of my AKM version sits a discreet VERITA logo, while both headphone outputs, 3.5mm and 4.4mm, are outlined by a golden ring. Even the power button got a makeover, now surrounded by a backlit ring. Small things, but the kind that make a device feel special, right?

Sadly, the volume wheel of the M15S didn’t make the cut. In its place, you get classic physical buttons on the edge, like the M33 R2R. A bit sad, I’ll admit, but they still did the job well, with the D.MODE and HOLD switches sitting right next to the playback controls.

The most important thing about an IEM, to me, is its sound quality and performance. I am sure most people agree. So, in this segment we will focus on Zencarb’s strengths and weaknesses regarding its sound.

During my review-time of the past weeks, I mainly used the Zencarb with my Astell&Kern SP3000M and the SP4000T on the go, while reaching for my Lotoo PAW Gold Touch 2 and my LAiV Crescendo Verse in the office and at home.

Zencarb is a well-balanced IEM with a tilt towards lows and highs. Bass has good body, density and impact, while the midrange is held mostly neutral in positioning and weight. Treble, however, is an area where I can see some conflicts, as it is brighter and forward placed in the signature. In technicalities Zencarb will find its fans, as it provides a revealing and detailed nature. Instead of smoothing over harsh edges, Zencarb presents music with rawness, which can sound unapologetic.

https://www.soundstagehifi.com/index.php/equipment-reviews/2126-nad-masters-m33-v2-streaming-integrated-amplifier

I am not sure how much the new ES9039PRO DAC with MQA QRONO processing has to do with the V2’s performance, but another example of how well digital recordings were resolved was in the outright command of Madonna’s “Express Yourself,” from The Immaculate Collection (16/44.1 FLAC, Sire). I used to think that this was a great-sounding track, with the percussion and synth imaging and bouncing around the sides of the room. But as I acquired progressively better components over the years, I came to realize that the QSound-processed mix was a little blurry, even though it imaged crazily to the sides of the speakers. Such was the case with the V2. While the soundstage was insanely huge and extended well outside of the speakers, each element of the mix was slightly indistinct and vaguely placed, and the whole effect was just a little bit phasey. But when I switched to “Express Yourself (Remix Edit) [2022 Remaster]” from Finally Enough Love: 50 Number Ones (24/88.2 FLAC, Warner Records / Tidal), the aural images were drawn with razor-sharp outlines and the bass was much tighter and deeper. While the soundstage collapsed to a space mostly contained between the speakers, it was like everything just snapped into focus and became more dynamic. With the V2, these differences between the two mixes of the song were laid bare.