Magico A5 £35,998 Review

February 15, 2023 Comments Off on Magico A5 £35,998 Review

The Magico A5 isn’t just another Magico loudspeaker and isn’t even just another high-end loudspeaker; it’s a point of inflexion. It’s the tipping point where real high-end happens, and its flexible enough to let high-end happen in a wider range of home than usual. The combination of being capable of being driven by a good integrated amplifier and the way it integrates into smaller rooms than you might expect all lend the A5 a gravitas that sets it apart from its peers. It’s the gateway to a higher-end world, but not simply a stepping-stone that leaves you wanting more. And for many this will be their first experience of what Magico can sound like and that’s a big step for many. For some, it will be the only step they ever need to make, for others, it will be the first step in a wholly new journey.

BOWERS & WILKINS NEW PI7 S2 Review

February 15, 2023 Comments Off on BOWERS & WILKINS NEW PI7 S2 Review

Bowers & Wilkins, founded in the U.K. in 1966, has been at the forefront of high-performance audio technology for more than 50 years. It designs and manufactures precision home speakers, headphones, custom installation and performance car audio products that set new standards for innovation and sound quality, earning countless awards and accolades from the world’s leading recording studios and musicians. Bowers & Wilkins’ reputation is based on the unwavering pursuit of the best possible sound and an unsurpassable music listening experience.

Halcro dm58 monoblock Review

February 14, 2023 Comments Off on Halcro dm58 monoblock Review

https://www.hifinews.com/content/halcro-dm58-monoblock

But Halcro isn’t tunnel-visioned, so the company also recognises that there are other benefits, including the way that separated, screened boxes perfectly suit vertical stacking to create a small footprint. Well, ‘Aussie small’ at least, because however much Halcro wants to boast that each 56.75kg unit occupies less floor space than most conventional amplifiers, a 400x400mm footprint is hardly Cinderella-esque. Height, by the way, is an awe-inspiring 790mm, so a pair of dm58s monoblocks is a sight to behold.

Cleverly, the company also points out that this ‘aesthetically relates well to the typical vertical speaker formats’, and I have to admit that they looked right at home next to the Wilson WATT Puppy System 6 they were driving. Also mentioned on the unit’s behalf were the fact that freestanding amps don’t require support stands and that the sheer acreage provides maximum surface area for heat dissipation. No matter how hard these were driven, they never got more than lukewarm.

Børresen Acoustics Z1 and 01 Review

February 13, 2023 Comments Off on Børresen Acoustics Z1 and 01 Review

The cryogenic treatment of the metal parts is done by Børresen Acoustics in-house and in their own specific manner. The cryogenic treatment of the metal parts is a process that takes a total of 3 days. In the first 24 hours, the metal parts are cooled to cryogenic temperatures. During the next 24 hours, the temperature is kept constant at around -196° Celsius. During the following 24 hours, the temperature of the metal parts is gradually raised to room temperature. Gradual cooling and heating of the metal parts are critical to avoid thermal stress in the metal. The cryogenic treatment of the metal parts compresses and strengthens the structure of the metal and reduces the residual stress in the metal which normally occurs when metal changes from its liquid phase to a solid phase. The result of the cryogenic treatment of the metal parts is that the conductivity increases by about 6-8%, which in turn ensures faster and more transparent sound reproduction.

EMM Labs DS-EQ1 Optical Phono Preamplifier Review

February 13, 2023 Comments Off on EMM Labs DS-EQ1 Optical Phono Preamplifier Review

https://www.soundstagehifi.com/index.php/reference-components/1742-recommended-reference-component-emm-labs-ds-eq1-optical-phono-preamplifier

However, Jason offered sage advice about the price near the end of his review: “Within audio, more money doesn’t necessarily mean more better. More money can result in better sound quality, but there’s no guarantee.” He went on to say that “the nine large above the cost of the DS 003 phono stage is more than just justified,” citing its build quality, which in his view “surpasses the DS 003,” as well as “the improvement to the bass, the refinements up in the top end, and the holy-shit imaging.” Those accolades, among many others within Jason’s review, earned the DS-EQ1 a Reviewers’ Choice award when the review was published—and have also earned the DS-EQ1 a Recommended Reference Component award this month.

PS Audio BHK M600 Power Amplifier Review

February 12, 2023 Comments Off on PS Audio BHK M600 Power Amplifier Review

https://www.hifinews.com/content/ps-audio-bhk-m600-power-amplifier

More controlled aggression was also in evidence with The Stone Roses’ cheekily titled sophomore album The Second Coming [Geffen 424 503-2], which might be blighted by vocalist Ian Brown’s slap-dash approach to singing in tune but has a thrilling ‘in-the-live-room’ production. The standout track ‘Daybreak’ benefited from the BHK M600’s out-of-the-blocks slam, giving the loose-limbed rhythm section an epic scale to match the spotlight shone on John Squire’s outro guitar solo.

From the same album, ‘Good Times’ ends in a glorious upbeat jam, drummer John ‘Reni’ Wren flitting between ride and crash cymbals, bassist Mani running up and down the fretboard and Squire again squealing away on his Les Paul. It was a performance of extravagant energy, detail and panache. These amps let the good times roll.

BOWERS & WILKINS PX8 Review

February 12, 2023 Comments Off on BOWERS & WILKINS PX8 Review

The Bowers & Wilkins Px8 Wireless Noise Cancelling Headphones are everything you would expect from a company like B&W, they have what I think of as that classic B&W sound, smooth mellow highs, and solid bass, very reminiscent of the classic 801 loudspeaker that made them famous. Yet they also reflect that elegance that is the modern B&W speaker like the Nautilus. Comfortable and versatile they are the perfect on-the-go headphone, as well as great for doing chores around the house.

Aries Cerat Aurora Dark Knight Black Copper

February 12, 2023 Comments Off on Aries Cerat Aurora Dark Knight Black Copper

Topping DM7 8-channel D/A processor Review

February 11, 2023 Comments Off on Topping DM7 8-channel D/A processor Review

https://www.stereophile.com/content/topping-dm7-8-channel-da-processor

After I selected the DM7 as the output device in Roon and JRiver, I wanted to hear something new. The timing was just right. For many years, I have really enjoyed Holst’s St. Paul’s Suite whenever I have come upon it, especially, the third movement Intermezzo. Written to mark the opening of a soundproof music studio in St. Paul’s School for Girls in Hammersmith, it is filled delightfully with variants and interlacings of traditional melodies familiar from Holst’s other works, such as the Second Suite for Band. The quasi-Oriental section that opens the Intermezzo, with its solo-violin melisma, is perfectly placed and startling. I already had two recordings of the suite, but neither was especially satisfying, so I looked for a better version, in multichannel if possible. HRAudio. net listed three. In my auditions on Qobuz, one stood out, the one by Ensemble Esperanza. I ordered the SACD (Ars Produktion ARS 38 227, SACD), which arrived in time to be ripped and played back for the DM7’s debut in my system.

The clarity and spaciousness of the recording was wonderful, the dynamic range impressive, in stereo or multichannel. Both versions approached, but did not equal, similar achievements (in different music) of the much immersive 2L recordings by the Trondheimsolistene; still, the DM7 rendered a traditional and believable soundstage from the Ensemble Esperanza’s recording. I heard striking purity in Chouchane Siranossian’s solo violin, especially in that wonderful Intermezzo—and also in the suites by Grieg, Bridge, and Nielsen that fill out the disc.

Marantz CINEMA 50 AV Receiver Review

February 11, 2023 Comments Off on Marantz CINEMA 50 AV Receiver Review

https://www.soundandvision.com/content/marantz-cinema-50-av-receiver-review

The one complaint I mustered is that the Cinema 50’s porthole display includes no telltale for surround mode, including Atmos or DTS:X, so when streaming content from a television’s internal app (as I do for Netflix and others), there’s no visual confirmation that you’re actually getting what you expect. And because the receiver’s on-screen “Info” page is, of course, not visible with the TV sourcing its own video, and “Info” data does not appear or scroll across the receiver’s front-panel circle, you’re left wholly in the dark.

But if this is the only remaining niggle I can come up with, you might conclude that the Marantz is a strong choice for a thoroughly modern home-theater control center. And given the Cinema 50’s fine audio and video results, broad feature list, and generally solid ergonomics, you’d be correct.

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