Burmester Ambience BA71 Loudspeakers $55,000 Review
November 14, 2018 Comments Off on Burmester Ambience BA71 Loudspeakers $55,000 Review
“With the Ambience BA71s positioned as best as I could manage, and before doing any serious listening, I let them burn in for a good 200 hours, which gave me time to think about why I’d had so much trouble getting these speakers to sound right in my room. I concluded that there were just too many cooks in the kitchen. My first struggle had been with the BA71s’ MTM arrays and getting the image to snap into focus: I’d found that the Burmesters’ listening window was very narrow — I had to position my head just so between the speakers. My next challenge was with the AMT: when I listened on its axis, the sound was just too bright, even with the rear, ambience AMT dialed all the way down. As I reduced the speakers’ toe-in to smooth out the AMTs, I had to be very careful not to lose proper imaging. Minimizing toe-in seemed to increase the efficacy of the rear-firing AMT, but I had to be careful here, too — if I got too greedy for ambience, the increased high-frequency energy translated to a leaner upper midbass, emphasizing the brightness from the front-firing AMT.”
Von Schweikert Ultra 9 Premiere, VAC Statement 450i RMAF
November 13, 2018 Comments Off on Von Schweikert Ultra 9 Premiere, VAC Statement 450i RMAF
SONUS FABER AMATI HOMAGE TRADITION FLOORSTANDING LOUDSPEAKER REVIEW
November 12, 2018 Comments Off on SONUS FABER AMATI HOMAGE TRADITION FLOORSTANDING LOUDSPEAKER REVIEW
“Don’t underestimate the Amati Homage Tradition. It is not the Sonus faber of even 10 years ago. This is a Sonus faber that combines the best of the past with the clarity and energy of the present. And yet, it’s not a forward sound… it’s just a ‘right’ sound. If you are the kind of person who thinks Sonus faber is all about the looks and not so much about the sound, then the Amati Homage Tradition will be something of a wake-up call. Don’t be surprised if you end up thinking it’s one of the best speakers on sale right now!”
TECHNI
KEF LSX Review
November 11, 2018 Comments Off on KEF LSX Review
“Despite the smaller mid/bass driver (10cm as opposed to 13cm) and cabinet volume, it shares its sibling’s relative talent for bass performance. Whether it’s punching out the potent beat opening to St Vincent’s Los Angeles or pushing along the tubby yet tuneful bassline in Mac Miller’s What’s the Use?, the LSX’s low frequency delivery is consistently taut, agile and lucid.
With Tidal streams, the LSX remains cohesive without feeling condensed. Play Shame’s The Lick and the building swamp of electrics underneath thickens the presentation’s consistency but doesn’t drown out its clarity or that of the singer’s deliberately prolonged pronunciation.”
Monitor Audio Studio Loudspeaker Review
November 11, 2018 Comments Off on Monitor Audio Studio Loudspeaker Review
“Driver integration gelled at distances beyond about 3 feet, allowing a generous seating area for casual listening. Critical listening gave immersive results in near field and quite compelling performance far field, where bass response optimized with a meaty zest. The lower frequency limit was commendable, given the speaker’s modest proportions and 4 inch paired driver complement, plumbing down to a solid 35 cycles with good authority, provided that volume levels were kept at sane levels. I never felt the need to augment with my subwoofer, although those demanding greater impact may prefer that option. Midband performance was very much studio monitor neutral, neither adding or subtracting warmth, and could be mildly tailored to taste by choice of ancillaries. Highs reached upwards with pedigree finesse, showing Monitor Audio’s MPD tweeter to be a standout performer. With the IsoAcoustics resonance control mounts in place, the Studio transformed the character into a classic British reference monitor, becoming more midrange centric, with the response expanding in both directions as natural extension.”
TRIANGLE ESPRIT AUSTRALE EZ FLOORSTANDING LOUDSPEAKER REVIEW
November 10, 2018 Comments Off on TRIANGLE ESPRIT AUSTRALE EZ FLOORSTANDING LOUDSPEAKER REVIEW
“A modern loudspeaker needs to be good when the sound is good and when it is bad because a lot of modern recordings leave a lot to be desired. The Australe EZ does this exceptionally well, coping with the compression of modern music as well as it does with the open dynamics of outstanding recordings. It doesn’t make compressed recordings any easier on the ear; Metallica’s Death Magnetic[Vertigo] really hasn’t got any nicer over the intervening decade, and the Australe EZ doesn’t hide the pain, but it makes it slightly less aggressively thin. However, well recorded music – such as Buddy Guy’s Damn Right, I’ve Got The Blues[Silvertone] – is performed with sparkle and energy, just like it did the first time I heard it 27 years ago. ”
Focal Kanta No.2 loudspeaker $9999 Review
November 9, 2018 Comments Off on Focal Kanta No.2 loudspeaker $9999 Review
“The Kanta No.2s are provided with bases made of Zomac, an alloy of zinc and aluminum, that include spikes that can be extended by turning knurled knobs, similar to the method used by Monitor Audio—a convenient design that permits the precise control of leveling. I first listened to the Focals with the spikes retracted, extending them only when I felt the speakers were in their final positions, and protecting my wood floor with metal discs. Listening to the sort of bass-heavy music that’s expected to reveal the effects of spikes, I compared the Focals’ sound with and without spikes, going back and forth several times. The spikes certainly made an audible difference, but I wasn’t sure it was an improvement. With spikes, the bass was a little tighter but also a bit subdued—which may be another way of saying “tighter.” But see my discussion below of the effects of IsoAcoustics’ Gaia isolation devices for speakers.”
KII THREE ACTIVE LOUDSPEAKER SYSTEM REVIEW
November 8, 2018 Comments Off on KII THREE ACTIVE LOUDSPEAKER SYSTEM REVIEW
“The Kii Three is clean, detailed and even in the bass to an extent that is rare at almost any price, so it shows you both the nature of the original signal and the partnering electronics with considerable clarity. With some recordings this can slide into a degree of exposure that is less appealing than you might hope. Van Morrison’s voice on Astral Weeks [Warner], for instance, sounds as if it’s a little too much for the microphones: there is an audible strain. At the same time, what he is singing and what the band is playing has never been clearer. If you want to decipher lyrics I’m certain there is not a better speaker for the purpose; this was made clear playing Radiohead’s A Moon Shaped Pool [XL] where Thom Yorke’s mutterings were made intelligible for the first time in my experience. I’m not saying they made much sense, but the words themselves were clear. Separation of instruments and voices is likewise transparently obvious, so that you can hear the characteristics of each with utmost ease. One visitor put on a Bob Dylan track he has been playing for decades [‘Absolutely Sweet Marie’ from Blonde on Blonde, Columbia] and was stunned by how much he could hear in the mix, the way the drums sounded being particularly novel. Material with plenty of bass was even more explicitly exposed; this is where the room has the greatest impact on the overall sound and by minimising this aspect the Kii Three opens up the lower registers and makes them as transparent as the mid and top. ”
Sonus Faber AIDA 2 HI-FI & HIGH END Show 2018 Moscow – Video
November 7, 2018 Comments Off on Sonus Faber AIDA 2 HI-FI & HIGH END Show 2018 Moscow – Video
Elipson Prestige Facet 6B BT Speaker Review
November 7, 2018 Comments Off on Elipson Prestige Facet 6B BT Speaker Review
”
My testing primarily focused on music, because these speakers are sold as an audiophile solution, but I did also try them with my TV, games console, PVR and Blu-ray player. The sound quality of the LG C8 is actually very impressive for an ultra-slim TV, but putting the 6B BT speakers either side of the screen lifted the audio to another level.
The front soundstage was wider, deeper and more refined. The sense of stereo separation and the improved imaging this allows, resulted in more precise localisation of effects and instruments. The superior mid-range ensured that dialogue was clear, while the excellent treble gave the higher frequencies more presence.”
Audiophilepure 
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