Metaxas Marquis headphone amplifier review
February 8, 2019 Comments Off on Metaxas Marquis headphone amplifier review
“The Marquis provides enough power for full-size cans such as HD800S, which has 300 OHM value. Having only a single ended output should not be a negative matter, since it sounds better than most amplifiers that offer 4 pin XLR balanced outputs
Aforementioned above, the Marquis can be also used as a preamplifier. A set of quality RCA outputs is a good option for audio lovers who also own a stereo system including a power amplifier or active speakers.”
EMM Labs MTRX2 Mono Amplifiers $85,000 Review
February 7, 2019 Comments Off on EMM Labs MTRX2 Mono Amplifiers $85,000 Review
“A recent discovery I’ve made through Tidal is the singer Chlara’s Evo Sessions (24/96 FLAC/MQA, Evolution Media/Tidal). It’s a very spare, pure-sounding recording of, I believe, only acoustic instruments. Chlara does a beautiful job on track 9, Cat Stevens’s “Wild World” — mostly because of her earnest and achingly sweet voice, which is pristinely recorded and placed solidly at center stage. Such a recording shows exactly why the MTRX2 can be considered a gentle giant. Sitting on the floor, a pair of them are imposing — some might even think them brutish because of their big, boxy looks. But powering the Revel Ultima2 Salon2s, they reproduced Chlara’s voice with the utmost delicacy and refinement. The sound had an airy, light quality you wouldn’t necessarily expect from such big solid-state mono amps — at least if you’re an old-school thinker who believes that high power and high refinement can’t coexist. Yet her voice also had a sense of urgency — I could feel even her subtlest inflections of note and word, as if she were singing to me in real life. This was even more apparent with “This Love,” which has a livelier, jazzier feel. I don’t like the song nearly as much as “Wild World,” but the EMMs and Revels reproduced her voice with such immediacy and purity that I could only sit and listen, and not criticize — I was captivated by how realistically and natural Chlara sounded.
Having heard that quality of reproduction of a woman’s voice, I turned to a male singer: Adam Cohen, and his album We Go Home (16/44.1 WAV, Cooking Vinyl). I played the entire album straight through, so engrossed was I with what was coming out of the Salon2s. Immediately afterward, what popped to mind was how well Cohen’s voice had been conveyed — the EMMs’ velvet-smooth sound and sky-high resolution made it sound so authentic. The next thing that came to mind was that I knew, deep down, that it was this sound’s inherent rightness that had compelled me to listen to the entire album and not think of skipping to another track or album. What rightness in music reproduction means exactly is difficult or impossible to put into words. It’s easier to say that it’s something you experience, and that you know it when you hear it — not unlike looking at a great painting and having the image take your breath away, but without being able to explain exactly why.”
Why Sony Is Launching a Hi-Res Streaming Service in Japan
February 7, 2019 Comments Off on Why Sony Is Launching a Hi-Res Streaming Service in Japan
“Sony Music Entertainment Japan — which is under the Sony Corporation umbrella but operates independently from the U.S.-based Sony Music Entertainment — will offer subscriptions to Mora Qualitas for 1,980 Yen ($17.50) a month starting in early 2019 as a streaming component to its existing high-res music download store called Mora. The new service will run off of Rhapsody’s “Powered by Napster” platform, which provides systems, tools and APIs and will deliver lossless music at 24-bit/44.1-96khz (high-resolution) and 16-bit/44.1khz (CD quality). While global industry leader Spotify launched in Japan in 2016, Sony and Rhapsody executives say they expect Mora Qualitas to appeal to a different class of consumer: diehard music fans who want a deeper, richer experience than the norm.”
Focal Elegia $900 Review
February 7, 2019 Comments Off on Focal Elegia $900 Review
“Switching over to the A&K SR15 and its Quad-core CPU, Cirrus Logic Dual-DAC CS43198 and MasterHIFI chipsets the difference between the iPhone and the SR15’s DAC/amp and processing power was immediately laid bare. Bass weight and impact, dynamic response, transient speed, midrange detail, upper frequency extension, decay off notes, spatial separation of instruments – all of these improved by an order of magnitude. Hope’s playing on “Adagio for Violin…” suddenly seemed to come to life with timbral and tonal color through the Elegia where before things lacked similar punch and just as importantly – real depth to the sound stage, shedding it’s 3D compression that was nascent on the iPhone. High-res PCM or DSD (DSD to PCM conversion on-the-fly) files I listened to through the &norma added further to the little DAP’s impact, showing off the Focal’s transparency to source and its ability to easily translate differences in DAC, file type or codec-processing capabilities.
Moving over to the MacBook Air using Roon through the Naim DAC-V1 which is packed with a 40-bit SHARC DSP chipset, single-ended Class-A head amp and 24/384 synchronous USB input, the Elegia took the change-up in stride and gave me even more of what I was hearing through the SR15 with further perceived dynamic range at frequency extremes (coming across as deeper, more fleshed-out bass and more air around instruments and vocals reaching into the upper registers). Through the Naim the Elegia further cemented its ability to deliver emotional playback without a hint of digital artifice: something that became increasingly noticeable as I climbed the price/performance ladder during this review and the headphones delivered exactly what they were being fed from each distinct source. Where the SR15 had a slightly brighter treble-region presentation and leaner, more forward spatial imaging, the V1 added midrange pop and heft.”
MTI100 Integrated Turntable $6,500
February 6, 2019 Comments Off on MTI100 Integrated Turntable $6,500
Power, volume and input selection can be controlled by either the included remote or via two knobs on the unit. An illuminated McIntosh logo is located in the top glass panel, while a classic McIntosh-styled die cast aluminum name badge adorns the front of the chassis. Orders for the MTI100 can now be placed with Authorized McIntosh dealers with shipping expected to begin in January 2019. Suggested retail price (VAT, shipping and any customs duties related to current standards of individual countries are excluded): $6,500 USD.
Revel Ultima 2 Speaker Series Review
February 6, 2019 Comments Off on Revel Ultima 2 Speaker Series Review
64Audio A6t $1299 Review
February 5, 2019 Comments Off on 64Audio A6t $1299 Review
“Amongst the sea of sub-$2000 do-all in-ears in the market today, 64Audio’s A6t emerges as a true cut above – thriving on youthful zing, tonal finesse and an outstandingly solid midrange. While it boasts a similar liveliness as its peers, a unique physicality accompanies its rhythmic drive. Instruments are not only fun to listen to, but they’re tangible as well. Although it may lack the effortlessness and transparency of 64Audio’s monstrous flagships, the technology that’s trickled down onto the A6t ensures admirable performance at a fraction of the cost. With 3D-Fit and apex, you have yourselves one heck of a package. Whether on the go, on stage or behind the desk, the A6t unfailingly delivers punchy, accurate and refined audio. It may not necessarily be 64Audio’s poster child, but I smell a clear best-seller for years to come.”
Meet David and his very tall speakers
February 5, 2019 Comments Off on Meet David and his very tall speakers
Fluance RT84 turntable Review
February 5, 2019 Comments Off on Fluance RT84 turntable Review
“The RT84 would be a fine choice for your first turntable, or a nice upgrade over your first budget or hand me down turntable from your parents or relatives. You’ll be sure to notice how much quieter and clear all of your LPs and singles sound. Better yet when your music isn’t competing with the sound of clicks, pops, and other noises it sounds better. The RT84 frees the music from the LPs grooves, so you hear deeper into your tunes.
If the Fluance RT84’s price puts it out of reach, no worries, their RT81 at $249 is still an outstanding ‘table, a great way to dip into the wonderful world of analog audio, try it, you’ll like it.”
Audiophilepure 
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