SVS PB-1000 and SB-1000 Subwoofers Review
February 22, 2022 Comments Off on SVS PB-1000 and SB-1000 Subwoofers Review
The SVS PB-1000 Pro and SB-1000 Pro Subwoofers
Thanks to said presets, if you happen to be an audio enthusiast that uses multiple speaker setups, or want to mix it up now and then, being able to store a few setups makes it a lot easier to engage multiple speakers. Using a pair of stand mounted monitors for a more intimate system, or perhaps swap for some large floorstanders, or drag a pair of Magnepans out? Easy, and I did just that, trying the 1000 series subs with a pair of small Maggies, a pair of Sonus faber Lumina 1s and a pair of Focal Arias. All were easy to mate with the SVS subs. I wouldn’t hesitate to use them with anything.
Fyne Audio F500SP loudspeaker Review
February 21, 2022 Comments Off on Fyne Audio F500SP loudspeaker Review
https://www.stereophile.com/content/fyne-audio-f500sp-loudspeaker
The F500SPs seem to be low in distortion, which allows them to place each record in its unique place in time. 1950s mono jazz records cut at Rudy Van Gelder’s Englewood Cliffs studio sounded zippy and energetic. 1990s electronic dance records pounded and pulsed, their spectral synths and robot drum machines sounding creamy and enveloping—almost feline. Modern rock records had plenty of bite and drive, with crisp snares and guitars, palpable vocals, and well-imaged, well-defined electric bass guitar. Reproduced by the F500SPs, music sounded meaty, visceral, and full bodied and proved capable of spinning a deep, wide soundstage with clear spatial relationships among instruments. It portrayed music with gobs of air and space when those qualities were on the recording, as on Frahm’s Felt.
Chord Mojo 2 Review
February 21, 2022 Comments Off on Chord Mojo 2 Review
https://www.whathifi.com/us/reviews/chord-mojo-2
These refinements help give the Mojo 2 a more neutral, crisper and livelier character than its predecessor, whose presentation ultimately feels comparatively confined and a little coloured. Music has the vividity of a stained glass window here – bright, intricate and demanding of your attention. Unsurprisingly, the updated Mojo/Poly pairing (possible when the Poly is firmware updated to 3.0) is even more of a delight in light of the new Mojo’s expanded talents.
VPI Prime 21+ turntable £6,500 Review
February 20, 2022 Comments Off on VPI Prime 21+ turntable £6,500 Review
Perhaps the most noticeable change is the move from the JMW 3D-10 Reference arm to a 3D Gimbal tonearm. This still retains the VTA adjustment tower but a conventional gimballed arm means no more jiggling tonearm when it comes to lifting the cartridge on and off the record. In truth, you get used to this very fast, but can be off-putting to those new to high-end decks. Once again, it’s something that is perfectly fitting in a Prime Signature and beyond, but those viewing the Prime as their first real high-end turntable might get the jitters when they see the arm moving so freely. VPI spent a lot of time developing a gimballed tonearm that didn’t undermine the performance as they heard it; the development that first went into the Mark Levinson turntable and then to the limited edition HW-40 turntable meant that VPI felt it was possible to make a high-end gimballed arm without throwing the baby out with the bathwater, and with its 3D-printed arm, it offers a ‘best of both worlds’ approach.
Riviera Levante integrated amplifier Review
February 20, 2022 Comments Off on Riviera Levante integrated amplifier Review
https://www.stereophile.com/content/riviera-levante-integrated-amplifier
If I were to speculate, I would wager that the RAAL develops a third-harmonic–dominant distortion spectrum while the Levante reverses that equation. I say this because high third harmonic and low second harmonic produces a sense of clarity and beat-keeping, whereas the reverse emphasizes space and atmosphere.
Thinking about this reminded me of what Luca Chiomenti wrote in his email. “A great part of the distortion and ‘character’ of the (Levante’s) sound is due to this first stage circuit, which changes simply by changing the tube.” Because there is no feedback or degeneration on the 12AT7 totem pole, every tube change can, and likely will, make a noticeable, possibly measurable difference in the Levante’s sound character
HIFIMAN ELECTRONICS’ R9 CLOSED-BACK HEADPHONE REVIEW
February 19, 2022 Comments Off on HIFIMAN ELECTRONICS’ R9 CLOSED-BACK HEADPHONE REVIEW
HIFIMAN was founded by Dr. Fang Bian in 2007 and, two years later, introduced the acclaimed HM-801, the first digital audio player to feature true audiophile-grade performance from a pocket-size form factor. Since then, HIFIMAN, under Dr. Bian’s guidance, has developed an extensive selection of no-holds-barred headphones, digital audio players, and headphone amplifiers that are consistently recognized as the best in class, offering performance that belies their price point, no matter the cost.
Monitor Audio Silver 500 7G Loudspeakers Review
February 19, 2022 Comments Off on Monitor Audio Silver 500 7G Loudspeakers Review
I compared the 500 7G with another British speaker: KEF’s R11 tower ($5999.98 per pair). At just over 41″ tall, the Monitor Audio is of average height for the floorstanding models I’ve reviewed, but standing alongside the flagship tower from KEF’s venerable R series, it looked stout. At 49″ tall, the KEF is one of the tallest speakers I’ve ever had in my room, and its substantial height is needed to accommodate a total of four 6.5″ woofers. Furthermore, the R11 boasts the latest version of the company’s Uni-Q driver, a coaxial design that positions a 1″ tweeter at the center of a 5″ midrange driver. Additionally, the KEF weighs 83 pounds, or over 60% more than the Monitor Audio. While they might share basic DNA in that both are bass-reflex designs, there are more than a few factors that differentiate these speakers.
McIntosh MHA200 $2500 Review
February 18, 2022 Comments Off on McIntosh MHA200 $2500 Review
https://www.whathifi.com/us/reviews/mcintosh-mha200
There are valves at the heart of this unit – four in total – made up of a pair of 12AT7s in the driver stage and 12BH7As in the power stage. These run warm and are usually protected from prying fingers by a removable cage. Next to the valves is a trio of transformers: one for the mains and two that couple the amplifier’s output valves to the connected headphones. As with most valve products, a certain amount of care has to be taken over matching. Here, that takes the form of a front panel control that switches between four load options: 32, 100, 250 and 600 ohms. Simply switch to the one that’s closest to the nominal impedance of your chosen headphones for the best results. There’s no harm in trying an alternative setting, and it can be fun to try, but we would be surprised if doing so leads to a better sound.
iFi’s ZEN One Signature $349 Review
February 15, 2022 Comments Off on iFi’s ZEN One Signature $349 Review
Making full use of Qualcomm’s latest four-core QCC5100 Bluetooth processing chip, every current high-definition Bluetooth audio format is supported, including aptX Adaptive and aptX HD, LDAC and HWA/LHDC. Other codecs covered include regular aptX and aptX Low Latency, AAC and SBC (the ‘plain vanilla’ Bluetooth codec). This means that every possible source device is handled at the highest audio resolution its Bluetooth specification allows.
The ZEN One Signature is Bluetooth v5.1-compliant, ensuring the best possible range, stability and performance. Up to eight paired Bluetooth source devices can be stored in memory, making it easy to switch from one device to another.
Modwright Instruments KWH 225i integrated amplifier Review
February 15, 2022 Comments Off on Modwright Instruments KWH 225i integrated amplifier Review
It’s always interesting to try different speakers with any amp so I wrestled a pair of Bowers & Wilkins 802s into place. There’s an enthusiastic quote from an 802 owner on the Modwright website and it instantly became clear why this is the case; the sound they produce was nothing short of vivid in its transparency and three dimensionality. What’s more, a number of pieces created a soundstage that was so real and deep that it felt as if you could walk into it. The solid-state power amplifier serves to amplify the beguiling qualities of those two triode valves and produces results that are electrifying in their immediacy and atmosphere. The recording needs to be good to achieve this of course, but plenty of the tracks I tried did the trick including the distinctly lo-fi eponymous debut from Tortoise, the track ‘Night Air’ having a reach out and touch it presence that encouraged level and extended listening. In fact all the better sounding tunes encouraged me to push the volume, the 802 is a little reluctant in the midrange and this amp balances this perfectly so the end result is very pleasing.
Audiophilepure 
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