The Audio Note Ongaku 211 SET Integrated Amplifier $168,630 Review

October 14, 2026 § Leave a comment

The Ongaku’s materials and components can be summarized as follows: the choice of the best available new-old-stock (NOS), or new stock, vacuum tubes in the circuit for each particular application. The custom-made silver wire used in the circuits and transformers that lets more musical information through. The custom-made silver foil signal capacitors that do the same. The custom-made silver-wired transformers with cores made from exotic materials that provide more low-level details, color, and texture from the music signal. The Black Gate electrolytic capacitors used in strategic locations that enhance dynamic range, bass definition, clarity and detail, and sonic smoothness. The use of “tone king” non-magnetic silver tantalum resistors that deliver improved tone, increased texture, a darker background, and a greater sense of immediacy. 

Audio Desk Systeme’s Premium “Silent Core One” Vinyl Cleaner

October 14, 2026 § Leave a comment

That instantaneous collapse focuses all that kinetic energy into a microscopic point, creating a high-speed liquid “micro-jet” moving at incredibly high speeds, along with intense, localized heat and pressure. And because the bubbles are smaller than the thickness of a human hair, roughly 75 to 100 microns, they can reach directly into the grooves, harmlessly blasting away embedded dust, mold, oils, release agents, and any other debris, a feat no brush or vacuum pad can begin to match!

The Sonic Results
The experience of hearing ultrasonically cleaned records that I’d had in my care for decades, ones I had cleaned with any number of earlier methods, was revelatory, as the sonic transformation was consistent and unmistakable. The noise floor was dramatically diminished, surface noise all but vanished, and what emerged from that newfound quietness was just as startling.

B&W 804 d5 Review

October 14, 2026 § Leave a comment

Audiophile Who Loves Music – Alsyvox, Berning and More

October 14, 2026 § Leave a comment

Rockport Technologies Lynx loudspeaker $94,000 Review

October 13, 2026 § Leave a comment

https://www.stereophile.com/content/rockport-technologies-lynx-loudspeaker

The midrange and tweeter are the same drivers used in the Lyra. During the installation visit, Zimmer handed me a domed sample of the spread-tow carbon-fiber sandwich composite (footnote 2) used for Rockport’s woofer and midrange cones. It was astonishingly light—the 6″ midrange cone weighs less than 8gm, a little over a quarter ounce—but stiff enough that I imagined I could put my full weight on the piece without flexing or breaking it. Rockport’s aim is to combine very low moving mass with enough rigidity to prevent bending and resonance within and beyond the driver’s passband. Once a cone flexes, it no longer moves as a single piston; different parts of its surface move out of phase, creating resonances that can store and release energy after the signal has changed.The Lynx tweeter’s waveguide raises sensitivity by roughly 6dB through part of the lower treble, reduces the required dome excursion, and controls dispersion so that the tweeter’s off-axis output better matches that of the larger midrange near the crossover. It also improves acoustic loading, increasing dynamic capability where the wavelengths are longer and the handoff is most demanding. The aim is coherence through the crossover without drawing attention to the tweeter. That distinction carries into Payor’s view of resolution. He dislikes the idea that a revealing speaker must sound clinical.

Octave Audio • V 70 SE Integrated Amplifier $8250 Review

October 13, 2026 § Leave a comment

https://www.theaudiobeat.com/equipment/octave_v_70_se.htm

In the time I had the Octave V 70 SE, it was powered up for at least six hours every day. During that time, it didn’t hiccup, belch, or lose tube bias. It always remained exceptionally quiet and never got too warm to the touch. I never doubted its reliability and eagerly looked forward to my listening sessions. Sound-wise, there was nothing not to like. All the appropriate boxes in the audiophile lexicon were checked. I was finally able to put aside thoughts of the equipment used to bring the music to life. Instead, I could devote my attention to the music itself. Powering my EgglestonWorks Emma EVO speakers (6-ohm load, 88dB sensitivity), it never ran out of steam and, if pushed, would drive them to disco levels. It also cared not what genre of music I played — it handled all of them with poise and musicality.

I did have a few functional nits to pick with the V 70 SE, however. I wish there was an easier way to see the level indicator of the volume knob. Sitting in my listening seat, I could not tell what position the volume was in. I ended up putting a piece of black tape on it so I could tell where it was positioned. Similarly, it was difficult to tell which of the inputs was selected because the lettering on the input selector knob was so small. I would also have liked to have seen input selection available on the remote control, since I have gotten lazy over time and would just as soon not have to get off my butt to change sources. Lastly, changing the driver tubes appeared to be a challenging task, since only the very top of those tubes were visible, protruding from the chassis, leaving no easy way to grasp them for their removal and/or replacement.

CanJam Shanghai 2026 Preview

October 13, 2026 § Leave a comment

WHITE BRIDGE M2 VINYL FLATTENER REVIEW

October 13, 2026 § Leave a comment

iBasso DX340 MAX Ti $3699 Review

October 12, 2026 § Leave a comment

To achieve that, iBasso has switched the digital power supply from a 6200mAh, 3.8V (single pack) to a 2 × 3200mAh cells in parallel (4.35V, effectively 6400mAh) configuration.

The analog side has also changed to two 3200mAh cells in series (8.4V) from the older four 900mAh cells (8.4V) setup. 

Add to that, the DX340 MAX Ti 12V DC-IN will bypass the battery and enhance the voltage swing and amplification output capability, something that the older DX320 MAX Ti equivalent was never designed to do.

Rated battery life on the digital side is 17.5 hours, which is a modest increase on paper over the DX320 MAX Ti’s 17-hour rating. However, real-world numbers are excellent with modest use scenarios up to 15 hours, and slightly lower on extended multitasking.

Analog battery life will differ slightly. It is not the same as the digital always-on drain; it will only noticeably drain when in use, so expect the digital side to run out before the analog, especially if you keep the unit powered up.

AudioQuest PowerQuest 707 Power Conditioner $1599 Review

October 12, 2026 § Leave a comment

Imagine a photo you’ve taken of a landscape blanketed in a light fog. From your view, objects’ colors are more and more desaturated the farther they sit from the lens, the deeper they sit within the image. The edges are softer, details are blurred, and the image depth is flattened somewhat. And, while our favorite components are often well-designed, and with particular focus around the power supply circuits, this noise remains. It colors what we hear through our loudspeakers and headphones. By removing the fog, we reveal the objects in their full color; their shapes stand out in bold relief, and image depth and scale expand. This, combined with the decompression of the overall image and the PQ-707’s ability to deliver additional current on demand, makes for a more engaging experience. Timing is everything. Music, like humans, only exists in time. To recreate (or approximate) the flow of any one performance, our systems require clean, stable power. To my ears, this heightened dynamic expression is the most remarkable and desirable result of installing a product like this in my system. It is not only about the big swings; it’s the smallest transients that bring music reproduction to life. The PowerQuest 707 (or perhaps another here that better meets your needs) should be on your list for audition.