Audiophilepure

https://www.hifinews.com/content/aavik-i-188-integrated-amplifier

Though a beguiling example of an ultra-modern, high-end integrated, Aavik’s I-188 defies convention not just in its left-field circuitry, but in eschewing an onboard DAC, balanced inputs, etc. Instead, it’s a lean, mean machine with immense power, bank-vault construction and gorgeous looks where minimalism meets the future – a product poised in the vanguard of the ‘integrated amplifier renaissance’.

https://www.headfonia.com/noble-audio-osprey-review

The left faceplate carries Noble’s chrome logo, while the right side features a stylized chrome osprey emblem. The inner shell that comes into contact with the ear has a solid indigo finish, giving the Osprey a cleaner and more uniform look from the inside. I really like this two-tone approach, just as I did on the Rex5. The shell size is almost identical between Rex5 and Osprey, too.

The shell design follows the same ergonomic approach we have seen across Noble’s recent FoKus models. The chassis is not too large, and the shape is optimized to sit securely in the concha. The blue-colored metal nozzle is a nice touch, and it features Noble’s eccentric logo-shaped mesh on the sound outlet. The nozzle is adequately long, which helps with seal stability and tip grip.

https://www.hifinews.com/content/perlisten-a4t-loudspeaker

You don’t, then, need to feed this floorstander a hard-driving, bass-rich diet to appreciate its talents. Shostakovich’s Symphony No.1 in F Minor, from the Boston SO for Deutsche Grammophon [96kHz/24-bit], showed the A4t can sound sprightly and light on its feet despite the visual evidence to the contrary. It easily conveyed the fizz of pizzicato strings and the work’s staccato melodies, while shifts in both tone and weight were well handled. This was a performance of subtlety and precision… until the thrusting first crescendo of the ‘Allegretto’ saw orchestral drums conjured with real depth and dynamics. In a word? Tasty.

Hi-Fi News VerdictWhile aiming for a lower price point, Perlisten clearly has no desire to change the way it goes about designing its floorstanding loudspeakers – the A4t is once again a weighty yet controlled performer, with a focus on imaging precision and nuance. With the push to affordability, however, comes a softer and arguably more ‘crowd-pleasing’ sound. Put this on your list if you like to listen long… and loud.

https://www.stereophile.com/content/spl-performer-s900-power-amplifier

The SPL Performer s900 power amplifier will fit well in many systems. It is designed to drive almost any speaker, with a firm grip and authority. Its sound isn’t completely “neutral,” but it’s close—close enough to show a recording for what it is. No shade cast on great recordings, no lipstick painted on pigs.We’ll see what John Atkinson’s measurements reveal, but to me the s900 sounded like it met its specs: low distortion, high output power across a wide frequency range, plenty of headroom, the two channels superbly matched.At its price, the s900 competes in a crowded market, though it’s not overbuilt. Its engineers fit a lot of amplifier into a compact package with what seemed to be sensible heat management and layout that allows it to run dead-silent. Its looks are agreeable to my aesthetics: not fancy, not clunky—in fact it looks like what I think a power amp should be: a device which lets itself shine by what it’s not doing. It’s not acting as a sound effect, it’s not drawing attention through flakey behavior, it’s not crapping out when the music gets complex and loud. In my systems, the s900 was a solid force for musical good.

Due to the tiny size of the M0 Pura, I was expecting an anemic power delivery and loose bass control, as I’m used to with my old Apple iPod mini and nano.

I was delighted to report that the M0 Pura sounds very normal and contemporary, similar to other, larger DAPs or digital sources recently released.

Thanks to the decent output power and moderately rated output impedance, the M0 Pura sounds surprisingly powerful given its small size.

Though not the tightest I’ve heard, the bass is well-controlled and much more so than I expected. I hear a clean bass with only a slight thickening in the mid-bass, and it never muddies the sound, even at the maximum volume I listen to.

The midrange and the treble are very flat and extended. I hear no false warmth in the sound, which I’m very thankful for, as I don’t like sources that have warm and less resolved sound.