McIntosh Laboratory C1100 Preamplifier $14,000 Reviews
June 8, 2020 Comments Off on McIntosh Laboratory C1100 Preamplifier $14,000 Reviews
McIntosh Laboratory’s C1100 is a captivating-sounding preamplifier, and a worthy successor to the C500 and C1000. Designed to be the center of any high-quality audio rig, the C1100 offers myriad analog and control connections, MC and MM phono stages, exemplary build quality, luxurious yet intuitive ergonomics, and a rich, inviting sound. Moreover, the C1100 is very competitively priced; at $14,000, it costs $3000 less than the C1000, and to get the same level of functionality from other preamplifiers of this ilk, you’d likely have to pay more. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with the C1100; it spoiled me every time I touched it, and captivated me every time I listened to it. Highly recommended.”
Audiovector R1 Arreté $5500 review
June 8, 2020 Comments Off on Audiovector R1 Arreté $5500 review
“It really is impressive just how bold and confident these speakers are when challenged with the music’s savage dynamics and dense instrumentation. The R1s stay composed even when pushed hard and barely harden-up in such circumstances.
Detail levels are as high as the price point demands, but the Audiovector’s musically cohesive way of assembling all that information really impresses. These are the kind of speakers that allow you to analyse the production of a recording if you want to, but they’d rather you step back and enjoy the musical experience.
When we listen to this Stravinsky piece we’re wrapped up in the musical drama rather than wondering about the mechanics of the recording. That’s just as it should be in our view”
Von Schweikert Research VR-4 Loudspeakers Review
June 7, 2020 Comments Off on Von Schweikert Research VR-4 Loudspeakers Review
“Play most any recording taken from a concert hall or other large acoustic space and you will “feel” the pressurizing of the room with these speakers. It’s amazing how much ultra-low low bass information there is on many of these recordings and how much that information enhances the illusion of your room being that same concert hall. There is a down side, though. It can get a little disconcerting when you can plainly hear the rumblings of the air ventilation system or the traffic outside the recording site. I hear way too much of this on Chesky’s Johnny Frigo with Bucky and John Pizzarelli and the other recordings made at the RCA Studio “A” site in New York City.
Another down side is that a speaker that goes this low with real authority, will excite room resonances and standing wave problems much more than speakers that don’t move as much air or that have limited range. I don’t have resonance problems in my “audio bunker,” my room being underground with concrete under the floor and on all four walls, but I do have a standing wave problem at about 34 and 37Hz due to the long straight and diagonal lengths of my room. With the Wilsons, they’re heard as only minor peaks—with the VR-4s, they’re quite a bit more prominent. Not to worry though, the problem is nicely solved with a few of ASC’s 20″ tube traps or some of Tyll Hertsen’s (Mr. Headroom’s) home brew frequency specific cancellation tubes. Let’s face it, you have to pay your dues if you want killer bass with no peaks.”
JADEAUDIO EA3 IEM REVIEW
June 7, 2020 Comments Off on JADEAUDIO EA3 IEM REVIEW
“They performed equally well with most music genres though admittedly I don’t go in much for the “House” or EDM sound that might, in fact, prefer a boomier bass-heavy headphone, of which there are plenty out there for less discriminating tastes.
What the EA3s are is an exceptional, well balanced, everyday use IEM, that won’t insult your music or sources and that won’t break your heart and pocketbook if you lose them, with a look and sound that will fool the uninitiated into believing they are much more expensive than they actually are, a definite thumbs up recommended product.”
Acoustic Solid Wood Round MPX Turntable Review
June 7, 2020 Comments Off on Acoustic Solid Wood Round MPX Turntable Review
“Acoustic Solid has done it again with the Wood Round MPX turntable. The plinth layout adds a dash of style while the engineering ‘under the bonnet’ is top drawer. The package with the WTB 370 arm and Ortofon Quintet cartridge is sonically very well judged yet the turntable itself will give even more if treated to an arm upgrade when the mood or funds arrive. Solid by name, it’s a solid choice too.”
MARK LEVINSON NO. 515 TURNTABLE REVIEW
June 6, 2020 Comments Off on MARK LEVINSON NO. 515 TURNTABLE REVIEW
“Mark Levinson makes the No. 515 with the company’s customer base in mind, and ML amplifiers now have seriously good phono stages onboard (which put paid to my suggestion that they make a stage that could fit under the plinth of this turntable). The opportunity to buy a matching record player will appeal to that base. For the rest of us, the No. 515 is a substantial turntable with many appealing qualities and a sound that is as physical as the record player itself. It would be interesting to contrast cartridges that you can get for the £2,000 premium for the Ortofon Cadenza Bronze to the turntable, This Ortofon is competent and revealing, but there may be alternatives that are a little easier to love, and the turntable is more than capable of handling a more up-market cartridge. But such things are often in the ear of the beholder so don’t discount it by any means. ”
ACCUPHASE E-370 INTEGRATED AMPLIFIER REVIEW
June 6, 2020 Comments Off on ACCUPHASE E-370 INTEGRATED AMPLIFIER REVIEW
“So what we have here is an amplifier which uses considerable technical skill to interfere with the music signal as little as possible. Protection of phase relationships and almost obsessive preservation of fine detail pays enormous dividends when it comes to the rendering of the musical experience. Large-scale is more than adequately catered for: the LSO/Alwyn Tchaikovsky ‘Capriccio Italien’ [Decca] has some phenomenal dynamic swings and leans towards bombast in places, and there was no question the E-370 was up to the task at hand. My listening notes just read: ‘Bloody hell!’, which is shorthand for ‘a rollicking ride, which nevertheless preserved an excellent sense of the passing of thematic material around the orchestra – something often lost in translation’. It’s no one-trick pony, either. I’ve already praised the amp’s felicity with contemplative Scandy jazz, and now ‘When I am laid in earth’ from Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas [Apex] was almost unbearably poignant. The phrasing, the way the searing melodic line plays against the implacable ground bass, and the precise spatial placement of solo, choir, and orchestra, all contributed to a deeply affecting performance.”
Abyss AB-1266 Phi TC Headphones £4950 Review
June 5, 2020 Comments Off on Abyss AB-1266 Phi TC Headphones £4950 Review
“However, listening to the cellist Jean-Guihen Queyras in his new Harmonia Mundi collection Complices [HMM902274] I didn’t quite get all the magic of the Saint-Saens ‘Le Cygne’. In the John Coltrane ‘Improvisation on Bach: Alabama’ Queyras is partnered by tenor saxophonist Raphaël Imbert and you hear occasional sharp spitty noises, but these became merely buzzy ‘noises off’ with the AB-1266.
The upper strings from Vladimir Jurowski’s live Moscow recording of Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker ballet [Pentatone PTC5186761; 96kHz/24-bit] aren’t that well reproduced – or not that good in reality – so track 2, more low register and winds, was more enjoyable than the Overture with these ‘phones. Overall their clarity within the soundstage kept my attention over a longer tract, and they do capture subsidiary details well – as with the Johann Strauss II. And the flow of the music is engaging – toe-tapping or head-nodding, if you like.”
Sonus Faber Olympica Nova II $10000 review
June 5, 2020 Comments Off on Sonus Faber Olympica Nova II $10000 review
“I’d actually asked a friend over to help with some fine-tuning and tweaking, but it turned out it wasn’t necessary because the minute the music started playing, it was obvious that the positioning was perfect, not least because the soundfield I experienced was virtually holographic from the outset, so that there was no way I could localise the sound as issuing from the speakers. It was as if the speakers didn’t exist, just the musicians.
I have experienced this before, of course, but rarely so perfectly from such large multi-driver loudspeakers, because a prerequisite for this level of performance is that the left and right speakers are perfectly matched, so this must certainly have been the case with my review pair. And by holographic soundfield, I am referencing not just the stereo imaging, but also the height and depth of the soundstage. It was the sonic equivalent of a hologram.”
TECHNICS SL1500C TURNTABLE $1199 REVIEW
June 5, 2020 Comments Off on TECHNICS SL1500C TURNTABLE $1199 REVIEW
“The Technics SL1500C turntable is an outstanding performer for its price class, and then some. It distills and refines all the elements that made the original SL1200 turntables such a favorite with Hi-Fi enthusiasts and does away with the more DJ-centric features that are now available in the purpose-built SL1200 Mk 7. At $1199.99, with a modern direct-drive system, a fine-sounding Ortofon 2M Red cartridge, and a more than capable built-in MM phono preamp, the SL1500C is almost a “no-brainer” purchase for someone who is looking for a turntable at this price point. Yes, the auto-lift tonearm feature is a little indecisive and the action of the cueing arm annoys me. All the turntables I’ve seen at this price point have cueing arms that unfortunately act and feel the same way, so I do wish the SL1500C stood out better in this regard. Still, If your heart is set on a nice quality belt drive table (and there are some nice ones at this level to be had out there) then this whole discussion is moot. But if you want your records to be spun by something a little more advanced than a rubber band, or you always liked the idea of owning an old SL1200, the SL1500C has you covered every which way from Sunday. Don’t bother with the knock offs or the SL1200 wannabe tables out there, you know you’ll only use the pitch control and strobe light to show off to your friends. Go for the legit “Son of Kon”
Audiophilepure 
You must be logged in to post a comment.