Mytek HiFi Manhattan II D/A preamplifier-headphone amplifier $5995 Review
August 18, 2017 Comments Off on Mytek HiFi Manhattan II D/A preamplifier-headphone amplifier $5995 Review
” Who knows? MQA may disappear in a few years. All I know is that Camille Thurman’s new MQA-encoded CD, Inside the Moment (Chesky JD397), is the most lifelike, 3D-sounding recording I’ve ever heard. Featuring the tenor sax and voice of Thurman—with guitarist Mark Whitfield, bassist Ben Allison, and drummer Billy Drummond—this binaural recording of a concert at Rockwood Music Hall, on New York’s Lower East Side, is outstanding among audiophile recordings because, all the way through, the band, the audience, and the listener at home all sound and feel as if they’re in the same room. Plucked double bass, brushed and struck drums, and audience applause were all so hauntingly real that it was distracting. As I listened through headphones with my eyes closed, the air that vibrated around Chesky’s binaural B&K dummy head as this concert was recorded felt as if it was vibrating around my head. The Rockwood audience was next to and behind me. In front of me, the band was tangibly present. The intensity of this experience of virtual reality compels me to ask: If you were contemplating the purchase of a new DAC, why would you not want it to include MQA processing?”
CAYIN IDAC-6 & IHA $999 EACH – REVIEW
August 16, 2017 Comments Off on CAYIN IDAC-6 & IHA $999 EACH – REVIEW
“It may lack some of the micro detail prowess of the ESS flavored DACs but if you want something a little punchier then the iDAC-6 will give you that. A good example is the voicing when switching from the Oppo Sonica DAC to the iDAC-6 using the iHA-6 amp. I get a more euphoric but slightly edgier and less refined timbre with the iDAC-6. Technically, the Sonica is thus the more accurate for my money but the iDAC-6 is the more engaging and dynamic of the two for vocals so I tend to get more personal pleasure from the iDAC-6 performance with the right amp pairing.”
Essence HDACC $500 Review
August 16, 2017 Comments Off on Essence HDACC $500 Review
” Using the HD800 from the HDACC with ohm setting to 300-ohms the difference was palatable also. With the Flac recording via USB Katherine’s vocals fell back a bit into the orchestra and lost a little in body. Switching back to the disk via HDMI immediately the vocals sounded more accurate and life like. Instrumental positioning was not as flat allowing for better spacing and generally an airier feel to the recording.”
AUNE S6 BALANCED t 599$ REVIEW
August 4, 2017 Comments Off on AUNE S6 BALANCED t 599$ REVIEW
“The S6 reveals layers in the stereo image, and gobs of positional detail. You float within the music. It is mildly warm, but more detailed that it is warm. Instrument detail is phenomenally clear and resolved. It is a bit drier than the LinnenberG Maestro but not as dry or warm as the Lynx HILO.”
HIFIMAN SHANGRI-LA ELECTROSTATIC HEADPHONES AND PURE CLASS A AMPLIFIER $50,000 REVIEW
August 3, 2017 Comments Off on HIFIMAN SHANGRI-LA ELECTROSTATIC HEADPHONES AND PURE CLASS A AMPLIFIER $50,000 REVIEW
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The headphones are physically transparent as well. There are no cones or magnets in the way to block light, so you can see through them. The open back allows the user to hear sounds in the room, so if your spouse says, “Put the headphones down, and come help me set the table for dinner,” you will hear her. I thought at first room sounds would be distracting, but I became so involved with the music from this incredible audio system, my brain tossed all external sounds aside.”
Pass Labs HPA-1 Headphone Amplifier $3500 Review
July 29, 2017 Comments Off on Pass Labs HPA-1 Headphone Amplifier $3500 Review
“Putting aside its prime directive as a headphone amp for a moment, the HPA-1 got right into the swing of being a dedicated preamp as it smoothly drove the active ATC SCM19A floorstanding loudspeakers (Issue 272). It exhibited the same lack of artifice, dynamic drive, and resolving power. Differences were subtle, subtractions minor (to some degree reflecting the added acoustic of my listening room); however, low-frequency pitch definition did soften slightly and soundstaging wasn’t as dimensionally immersive as that of my reference electronics. Even as a stand-alone preamp the HPA-1 is immensely competitive in its class, and for driving a powered desktop system (the likely goal) pretty hard to beat.”
Ampsandsound Agartha Vacuum Tube Stereo Amplifier And Headamp $3600 Review
July 24, 2017 Comments Off on Ampsandsound Agartha Vacuum Tube Stereo Amplifier And Headamp $3600 Review
“The only real knock on the headphone output is the relatively high amount of background noise. There was a distinct transformer buzz that was quite audible when music wasn’t playing. It was easily drowned out by music, but still faintly noticeable if you were really, really zoned-in on it. If you don’t need the world’s blackest background this should be just fine, and I think the amplifier’s many positive traits definitely outweigh this negative, but some people demand absolute silence from their amplifier, and those folks would likely be a bit annoyed by this hum,”
Grace Design m9XX DAC $799 Review
July 19, 2017 Comments Off on Grace Design m9XX DAC $799 Review
“Sonically the Grace m9XX performed with flying colors when used as a DAC/pre. The well-controlled and extended bass that I heard through headphones was readily apparent when auditioned in a nearfield or room-based system. The m9XX’s unfatiguing upper-frequency presentation made listening through my all-solid-state and Class D amplification system a very natural and relaxed affair. My only quibble is that if you have built a system that is already soft and forgiving the m9XX might be too much of a good thing. However, if you want a neutral, revealing, but still listenable DAC, the m9XX checks all the right boxes.”
KORG DS-DAC-100 REVIEW
June 30, 2017 Comments Off on KORG DS-DAC-100 REVIEW
” Everything else is exemplary. Neither frequency dips nor rises mar any audible surface. There’s hardly any jitter; and even under harsh loads, IMD and THD rise imperceptibly. You won’t get 120dB out of this thing in any metric, but you will artefact-free 107dB, which is a hell of a lot better than 99% of amps out there.”
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