FiiO E10K-TC And K3 USB DAC Headphone Amplifier $75 Review
March 24, 2022 Comments Off on FiiO E10K-TC And K3 USB DAC Headphone Amplifier $75 Review
The mids were pure and lacking sibilance and the highs were sweet. Both rendered an amazingly wide soundstage with well-defined instruments. I was especially impressed with the dynamics I experienced using the E10K and K3. Transients were quite sharp and the subtleties of individual instruments came through. Both of these devices are very musical in their presentation. Could I dig as deep into the music as I can with my system at home? No. But what I did experience was amazing, considering I was streaming on a laptop.
I really appreciated using both the E10K and K3 at my school to listen to streaming music. It’s incredibly astounding that FiiO is able to get so much great sound out of such small packages. I would highly recommend either of these devices for playing music off a laptop, as I did. I fully intend on using them in the future to explore more music.
Focal Aria K2 906 Loudspeakers $2398 Review
March 23, 2022 Comments Off on Focal Aria K2 906 Loudspeakers $2398 Review
https://www.soundstagehifi.com/index.php/equipment-reviews/1659-focal-aria-k2-906-loudspeakers
I then turned to a track I often use to evaluate speaker transparency, which relates to the clarity of a speaker and how well it projects sound without calling attention to itself. Colin James’s “National Steel,” from National Steel (16/44.1 FLAC, Warner Music Canada), is a well-recorded, minimalist track that is an excellent test for this attribute. The tune opens with two guitars, one centered at the back of the stage, the other off to the left and closer to the front. On this track, I like to focus on the reverberation of the strings during the attacks and decays, to see if the sounds remain focused in space, or if subtle cabinet resonances “link” the aural image back to the speaker, muddying the sound and hindering the illusion of realism. I can say without hesitation that the Focals did not disappoint in this category. They placed the guitar plucks authoritatively, with attacks and decays confined to well-defined aural bubbles that hung in free space—it sounded very real indeed.
Audeze LCD-5 Planar Magnetic Headphone Review
March 23, 2022 Comments Off on Audeze LCD-5 Planar Magnetic Headphone Review
I can see some listeners maybe even finding the headphone right on the edge of too-detailed, but I didn’t think this was the case. I loved how much texture these headphones draw out of every frequency range and every genre of music. It’s addictive, though it does speak more to the analytical, gear-loving side of my brain than some dynamic headphones, which seem to focus my attention more on spatial qualities or a softer presentation. The LCD-5 won’t hide any warts in your recordings.
Soundstage on the very best DACs and amps gave me a sense of height, width and immersion in recordings that was novel for me. I tried some VR, Ambisonics and Dolby content on these and had to pick my jaw off the floor. The LCD-5’s extreme resolving, dynamic and spatial characteristics make it ideally suited to immersive audio experiences which are not merely impressive or enjoyable, but which seemed to erase any hint of gimmick and substitute it for reality. Well-heeled gaming nuts and immersive audio pros may find the LCD-5 a revelatory listen.
My Vinyl Room – 2022 channel update
March 23, 2022 Comments Off on My Vinyl Room – 2022 channel update
NOBLE AUDIO FOKUS PRO REVIEW
March 22, 2022 Comments Off on NOBLE AUDIO FOKUS PRO REVIEW
This is the most impressive side of the FoKus Pro. I don’t know if it’s the configuration or wizard’s magic, the unit has a really solid technical foundation and it should be a reference for future TWS earphones. The soundstage feels wide and relatively deep. The positioning of the instruments feels accurate and the separation is impressive. The PRaT is solid, the unit has good attack and decay, handles congestion with ease, and does not feel claustrophobic with any genre. The tonal balance is quite good too if you don’t mind EQ’ing the bass response a couple of decibels. The FoKus Pro is the most capable TWS that I’ve listened to, period. In fact, I was starting to lose hope in the development of wireless earphones. Thanks to Noble, I now am reminded that much better products can be launched into this industry and I am once again looking forward to the future.
JL Audio Gotham V2 Review
March 22, 2022 Comments Off on JL Audio Gotham V2 Review
https://stereo-magazine.com/review/jl-audio-gotham-v2-review
The Superbass mission should succeed. We STEREO editors have long been convinced of the value of high-quality subwoofer support thanks to such, admittedly rather rare experiences. There remains much more than “just” the bass as a benefit, the whole sonic picture becomes more relaxed, more natural and confident, audibly larger and wider, because the human brain immediately perceives through the lower frequencies and more clean energy in the lower registers that this has to be a large room; the sense of space is much more obvious. Otherwise sometimes sharp hissing sounds are softened. If you take the subwoofer out of the playback chain after the best possible measurement, room EQ and thus ideal integration and a few tracks you have heard, you are horrified at how much is suddenly missing.
JL Audio‘s flagship Gotham V2 stands as a technology leader, as “Formula One”, which is supposed to – and can – show what is possible in the lower layers in terms of outstanding quality. It masters both the depth down to below 20 Hertz and the ultimate precision with virtuosity – and not least thanks to the 4.5 kilowatt amplifier power and efficiency, it is a master of volume, which makes it an absolute reference for both music and cinema beyond our test experience. It thus eludes, for obvious reasons, its assessability by moving into the “high-end extreme”. It doesn’t get any better. Wow!
PS Audio FR30 loudspeaker installation number 2
March 22, 2022 Comments Off on PS Audio FR30 loudspeaker installation number 2
JBL 4309 Loudspeaker Review
March 21, 2022 Comments Off on JBL 4309 Loudspeaker Review
https://www.hifinews.com/content/jbl-4309-loudspeaker
In absolute terms – and here we’re talking about speakers both much larger and considerably pricier – these little JBLs do give away something in terms of rib-tickling weight, but then what would you expect with their dinky 165mm mid/bass drivers? What they do well, however, is cover their tracks with a sound so well-integrated and balanced that their sins of omission are easily overlooked, especially in smaller spaces where they shift more than enough air to turn on the thrills. And all this while delivering fine detail and bite in the midband and treble. Also, for the record, having tried them with the treble turned up and down, I returned to the default setting for the best balance of attack and sweetness.
And yes, my friend, they can certainly rock, as was proved with I Don’t Live Here Anymore, the big-production latest set from The War On Drugs [Atlantic SEL 2-666913]. There’s just so much going on here, and yet JBL’s 4309s do a great job of revealing the detail in the dense, retro-tinged mixes while still keeping the music moving along smartly. ’80s sound meets ’70s-styled speakers? Perfect!
Sennheiser IE 900 universal fit in-ear monitors
March 21, 2022 Comments Off on Sennheiser IE 900 universal fit in-ear monitors
The same recording allows the IE 900 to showcase their talents where a smooth, even and utterly convincing description of the frequency range is concerned. Not many groups manage to make modern instrumentation sound as antiquated, whiskery and woody as The Band, and the Sennheisers are almost gratuitously detailed from the top of the frequency range to the bottom. Bass is full-figured but fleet of foot, with plenty of substance but next-to-nothing by way of overhang – control is absolute. At the opposite end, there’s absolutely as much bit and shine to treble sounds as is acceptable – but though they periodically threaten to spill over i
Audiophilepure 
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