ZMF Atrium Headphone Review
July 12, 2022 Comments Off on ZMF Atrium Headphone Review
The perfect ZMF sound may lie somewhere in between the imaginary combination of the Atrium and the Verite, but the two share far more similarities than they do differences. For those looking for their first $2k+ headphone, make sure you check out Atrium if you have the opportunity. For those looking to add to their collection of high end headphones, the Atrium is a must have. It brings something different to the fold. Maybe a little something more than a dynamic driver is willing to give, and definitely something different than a planar can. In the end, it’s not attempting to be either, and why should it? The bespoke nature of the exterior echoes the subtlety of the sound quality. Natural, well constructed and reliable. An outstanding fit for a wide variety of listening rigs. Well done.
Consonance Wax Engine and Charisma Eco £1,895 Review
July 12, 2022 Comments Off on Consonance Wax Engine and Charisma Eco £1,895 Review
Consonance Wax Engine and Charisma Eco
For the money, this package is a bargain. While it offers a modest discount on the individual elements if bought separately, the overall end product is one whose performance far outweighs the sum of the separate parts. There’s a synergy which not only retrieves an awful lot of information from the groove in terms of sound quality, but it also does that indefinable thing of engaging with the listener and really ‘making music’.
Think about it. A more than half-decent MC cartridge, a superbly capable finely engineered pick-up arm, and a turntable which has the pedigree of an exceptionally fine centre bearing coupled with a high quality motor on a robust non-resonant chassis.
It really is punching above its weight in terms of ‘bang for buck’, and quite honestly, there are a few other arm/deck/cartridge combinations out there which might need to look nervously at their own price points because this pairing is a serious contender in the sub-£2,000 stakes. Performance-wise, it really should be priced a fair bit higher. From my experience it deserves a hearty recommendation, and I encourage you all to seek one out and really give it a fair test; I’m sure you won’t be disappointed.
JBL HDI-3800 Review
July 11, 2022 Comments Off on JBL HDI-3800 Review
JBL HDI-3800
I also played a lot of vinyl through these speakers and that always worked well, Lou Donaldson on Blue Note was full of energy and groove, the JBLs revealing the character of the recording as well as the brilliance of the performance with ease. The Enleum AMP-23R amplifier that I enjoyed so much last year happened to be in the system at the same time and while it doesn’t have enough power to deliver the full bass potential of the JBLs it did deliver some inspiring tunes. The emphasis on the musical message came through as well as it did on smaller speakers and voices sounded superb, the combo proving very good for exploring new music by bringing out the best in a wide variety of material. Even dub sounded good with this amp, the emphasis on tunefulness over power making even the heaviest mixes easy to enjoy at sensible levels.
Aavik U180, U280, and U580 integrated amplifiers Review
July 11, 2022 Comments Off on Aavik U180, U280, and U580 integrated amplifiers Review
The Pascal UMAC power amp module was easy to spot and I was pleased to see such a neatly laid-out preamplifier board. There’s an XMOS input receiver and a PCM1792 DAC chip. Mounted on the power amp module’s heatsink are three full-width PCBs full of Tesla coils that together take up roughly a third of the U-580’s internal volume, and as we will see, not without reason. What I could not find, at first glance, was the preamp’s power supply. I assumed that it could be powered from the Pascal module’s integrated power supply but that was not the case. Then, I noticed that the incoming mains power cable led to the preamp/DAC PCB where it was split off to the power amp module. And then I saw it: underneath a wide flex cable was a positively tiny switched power supply brick. It’s common practice to use either a linear power supply or a custom-built switched supply for analog sections but Aavik does not tend to do things in a conventional manner.
Avantgarde Acoustic TRIO G3 Installation
July 9, 2022 Comments Off on Avantgarde Acoustic TRIO G3 Installation
https://www.monoandstereo.com/2022/06/avantgarde-acoustic-trio-g3-installation.html
The new Avantgarde Acoustic TRIO G3 with the new Space horns has arrived at HiFi-Studio Wittmann. Ready for demonstration, either fully active with the new iTRON power amplifier technology or partially active with the Octave 300B Jubilee tube mono power amps.
MEZE AUDIO LIRIC HEADPHONES $2000 REVIEW
July 9, 2022 Comments Off on MEZE AUDIO LIRIC HEADPHONES $2000 REVIEW
The Meze LIRIC comes across as neutral. On tracks I know very well I could not sense any form of frequency shaping toward warmth or coolness. Ideally, that’s what I want in high-quality headphones. Let the music and the recording speak for themselves.
When I compared the headphones to some more expensive products I had, the Liric’s held their own. Headphones at the same or a similar price sounded just a cut below the quality of the Liric’s, and some less expensive headphones, like the Apple EarPods, could not complete either in bass or smooth high frequencies.
None of the headphones I had on hand could compete on comfort due to the light weight of the LIRIC headphones, although I found some of the foam pads on competing headphones a little softer against my ears, exerting less pressure. That’s not to say the Meze LIRIC is uncomfortable. Far from it.
Dynaudio Confidence 60 Loudspeakers $50,000 Review
July 8, 2022 Comments Off on Dynaudio Confidence 60 Loudspeakers $50,000 Review
https://www.soundstageultra.com/index.php/equipment-menu/1111-dynaudio-confidence-60-loudspeakers
Dynaudio’s new Confidence 60 loudspeaker represents a monumental leap forward compared to its predecessors. Its cabinet, fit and finish, and array of newly designed drivers absolutely exude quality, and the skilled engineering and attention to detail intrinsic in each of these features translate into sound that can best be described as seductive. While I would have liked just a hint more top-end sparkle and resolution, once I had this pair properly set up, the Confidence 60s’ uncanny ability to disappear in a room, sound good at both high and low volume levels, and reproduce bass with convincing authority kept me hunting for different music to listen to for hours on end. If that’s not the definition of a captivating loudspeaker, I don’t know what is.
Audiophilepure 
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