Audiophilepure

My ears were trained years ago, late at night, in dark recording studios. I listened to thousands of hours of music, through the iconic Yamaha NS-10 studio monitors. The NS-10s were legendary in their transparency. No musical sin could hide from these speakers. None. If there was a problem, the NS-10 would reveal it. The Pass Labs X260.8 monoblock amplifiers remind me of these speakers.

If you love power, grace, transparency, and (if you move your equipment around a lot) occasional back pain; I highly recommend you demo a pair of the Pass Labs X260.8 monoblock amplifiers or any of the Pass Labs .8 series amplifiers. You will not be disappointed. Highly recommended!

On a challenging piece, such as the “Intolerance” track from The Mighty Wurlitzer: Music for Movie Palace Organs (New World Records 80227), the NuPrime was able to nicely capture the tonal complexity of a four-manual, 34-rank Wurlitzer Special that was built in 1928 for the Fisher Brothers (of auto-body fame). Here, but not with the Fleetwood DeVille, I was a bit disappointed with its limited macrodynamic reach. I expected more from an amp that is said to generate instantaneous power in excess of 360W into 3 ohms. It sounded like it was just stopping short of fully scaling dynamic peaks. For a better perspective, I switched over to a recent acquisition of mine, the SMc Audio DNA-1/GT-21 Ultra. This Class AB amplifier represents a complete overhaul of the venerable DNA-1 and incorporates Steve McCormack’s latest circuit refinements and tweaks. On the Omega, the GT-21 Ultra was just crushing it with stupendous bass slam and macrodynamics that reached Olympian heights. It also became clear that the GT-21 Ultra offered better image focus, and as a result, more incisive spatial resolution. However, the NuPrime did have an edge in terms of soundstage dimensionality. Both amps resolved low-level detail exceedingly well, though the edge goes to the GT-21 Ultra.

Just as driving a high-performance electric car requires a few slight tweaks on the driver’s part to accommodate and genuinely understand how an electric car performs, we are at a point where listeners are starting to shift their perceptions about how recorded music sounds through amplification. All of which means this amplifier is very likely the Tesla Model S Plaid of the audio world!

On the face of it, the fact the Aavik Acoustics I-180, I-280 and I-580 look similar and share a similar essential performance would make it seem that the big boy is a poor proposition. However, the proof is in the listening, and this is one of the best Class D amps out there, and one of the best amps irrespective of amp design. While understandably at its best in the sublime company of its Ansuz and Børresen peers, it’s both a remarkable performer and a perfect gateway into the company’s ethos… and probably many products from these companies.

However, this single unit can act as the centralized brain of a stereo system when used as a preamplifier, but it’s also a brain that can be attached to a network, which greatly expands the capability of a typical preamplifier. I enjoyed the quality and convenience of the Naim Uniti Atom HE so much I am considering selling off older components to fund the purchase of one.

The Naim Uniti Atom HE is expensive but extremely versatile. Its appearance, construction, and materials befit what you pay for it. You can extend it with essentially any kind of source, whether analog or digital, and you can attach it to a network, whether wired or wireless. It is scalable, because you can attach other components in the Naim Uniti line to it, and you can update its operating system. The Naim App is a joy to use, it sounds great with headphones, and it can act as the control center for almost any kind of audio system. Recommended

https://www.hifinews.com/content/paravicini-312-preamp-and-m100a-monoblocks

Hand on heart, I have to say that the departure of the 312 – which I adored to pieces – caused me a greater sense of loss than the M100As, but their absence, too, causes a lingering wistfulness. Quite what has happened, I don’t know. I suspect it’s like being reminded of one’s youth as one enters one’s decline; the temptation is quite clearly the hi-fi equivalent of those sad fiftysomethings who run out and buy Harley-Davidsons or Ducatis the instant they realise that they can no longer keep it up all night without the aid of scaffolding.

So maybe the 312/M100A is a young man’s plaything, because it is most surely an invitation to bang your head, listen loud, and leave the session drenched in sweat. This is the most butch combination I’ve heard in a long, long time. Alanis Morissette fans need not apply.

https://www.stereophile.com/content/gryphon-apex-stereo-power-amplifier

I don’t think I’ve ever used the old audiophile acronym PRaT (pace, rhythm, and timing), so I’ll use it now, in my final Stereophile review: The Apex Stereo amp has PRaT, but the Apex–Commander combo has it in spades. The Apex Stereo amp, alone and combined with the Commander preamp, seems to up the pace of everything, as if your turntable is running fast, while simultaneously digging further down into each musical instant, making each gesture live longer, with precise attack, generous sustain, and long decay. The amp simultaneously speeds things up and slows things down. A neat trick. That’s the long and the short of it.