Michell Apollo/Muse MM/MC phono preamp Review
October 6, 2025 Comments Off on Michell Apollo/Muse MM/MC phono preamp Review
https://www.hifinews.com/content/michell-apollomuse-mmmc-phono-preamp
Here’s the thing: during my audition of the Apollo I didn’t find one LP that came even close to unsettling its even-handed performance. This phono amp has an uncanny knack of finding the beauty buried in the murky depths of poor recordings, while affecting an ease in capturing absolutely everything to be found in higher-quality pressings.
Seldom have I heard the soft but insistent electronic percussion effects in Lanterns on the Lake’s ‘Lungs Quicken’ [Gracious Tide, Take Me Home; Bella Union BELLAV300] remain quite so prominent. Usually they are something that you hear and then tend to gloss over, but the Apollo refused to let this happen. It will have you rapt, relishing every detail within a recording, while never relaxing its grip on the overall musical message.
BEST Way to soundproof a Room – Before & After Sound Test!
October 6, 2025 Comments Off on BEST Way to soundproof a Room – Before & After Sound Test!
World Premiere Review! Audionet Mach Linestage And Schrödinger Monoblock Amplifier $108,100/pair Review
October 3, 2025 Comments Off on World Premiere Review! Audionet Mach Linestage And Schrödinger Monoblock Amplifier $108,100/pair Review
Here, the floating panel chassis design allows for maximum air flow, offering abundant cooling for the circuit boards and establishing stable air currents throughout. It also employs magnetically and capacitively optimized circuitry, using no ferro-magnetic materials, and implements galvanic isolation by using optical coupling.
The Schrödinger uses the Audionet Ultra Linear Amplifier technology to manage real-time linearization of distortions, is DC coupled, and its massive, gold-plated copper rails deliver the signal to the speaker terminals without loss. It uses two separate power supplies, one for device control and detection, and a second to monitor zero-crossing of mains power, the crucial point where the mains power alternating current signal transitions through the zero voltage level, from positive to negative or vice versa.
Nordost Qbase Reference AC Distribution Unit Review
October 3, 2025 Comments Off on Nordost Qbase Reference AC Distribution Unit Review
What may appear as a simple song structure often presents a far greater challenge for power delivery, exposing hidden complexities that lesser technical solutions blur. This is exactly where a premium power distributor distinguishes itself, and the QBASE Reference never faltered; its power delivery was pure, uncolored, and seemingly limitless, responding instantaneously to shifts in dynamics — swinging with off-beat syncopations, locking into precise rhythmic grids, and melting seamlessly into hypnotic, butter-smooth cadences when called for.
Nordost’s flagship power distributor introduced an unprecedented level of clarity and separation. Instruments and voices emerged with greater individuality and presence, each with its own distinct aura, while the overall presentation retained a fluid, organic togetherness — a high-level summing of inertia, motion, and flow.
Unlike many power distributors, whether entry-level or cost-no-object, the QBASE Reference rises above common limitations. It embodies a Zen-like balance, yet unleashes thunderous sonic energy with absolute authority when called upon — an equilibrium many aspire to, but few ever achieve.
PS Audio Stellar DAC $2199 Review
October 2, 2025 Comments Off on PS Audio Stellar DAC $2199 Review
As much as I enjoyed playing around with filters to endlessly unravel music threads in hopes of discovering something new about old chestnuts, the Stellar DAC is not really made for such interrogations. This is a beautiful sounding DAC, by design. Playing Sasha Matson’s newest album, Fillmore Street, proved to be a splendid way to put the Stellar DAC to the test. This album is full of interesting twists and turns in composition, timing, and melodic themes. Flawlessly recorded, the title track opens the album to give you a taste of what’s to come—orchestral energy with competing instruments propelling the ascending melody line to create tension that ultimately resolves in a languorous swoon reminiscent of Gershwin. The Stellar DAC does an exceptional job of capturing the breadth and dimension of the orchestra, but more importantly, the tone and texture of the instruments sings naturally and without distracting emphasis. I played many, many other artists from a variety of genres, but the overall balance and tonal fulsomeness was sustained in excellent fashion.
Pathos Inpol Remix MkII $5895 Review
October 2, 2025 Comments Off on Pathos Inpol Remix MkII $5895 Review
https://www.whathifi.com/hi-fi/stereo-amplifiers/pathos-inpol-remix-mkii
This surprising low-end heft comes to the fore when we play Bob Marley’s Exodus. Bass is relatively taut and tuneful, underpinning the rest of the performance in a seamless manner. As we work through our music collection, it turns out that the Pathos is able to tick most boxes.
Tonally, it is smooth but has enough bite in its otherwise sweet top-end to satisfy. There is delicacy at those high frequencies that makes most non-valve alternatives sound a little mechanical and tonally grey in comparison.
This is one of the few valve/transistor hybrid amplifiers we’ve heard where we do feel like we are hearing the best of both technologies, yet the result remains cohesive and balanced.
Audiophilepure 
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