NHT C-4 LOUDSPEAKER AND CS-12 SUBWOOFER REVIEW
October 4, 2020 Comments Off on NHT C-4 LOUDSPEAKER AND CS-12 SUBWOOFER REVIEW
“One reason I chose to use the Marantz NR1200 for the review is because it has a good FM tuner that I could leave on all the time. I would listen critically at the end of the day and I could hear the speaker slowly improve day by day, week by week. Eventually, I just let the CD player go all day while at work and left the door open so I could listen. I love my job!
Matt and I listened to a few tracks to make sure everything was playing correctly. He thought they sounded promising. Fortunately, my other friend, John who is a co-founder of the River City Audio Society here in San Antonio was able to stop by after a couple of weeks. John mentioned that over the years he had owned 3 different pairs of NHT speakers. He loved the bass and midrange, but his ears are sensitive to bright or hard high frequencies. So, after a while, he would move on from each of the NHT speakers because he would be bothered by the highs. John and I listened for a couple of hours and he liked the sound but felt there was still a hint of hardness in the highs. I took note and hoped he would come back again after a few more weeks to see if things had changed for the better.”
Yamaha A-S3200 integrated amplifier $7499 Review
October 3, 2020 Comments Off on Yamaha A-S3200 integrated amplifier $7499 Review
“As I pondered these questions, my sorely missed colleague, Art Dudley, came to mind. Art and I shared similar taste in and love for music—classical and beyond—and waxed equally rapturous about some of the same recordings. Yet, his sonic preferences were so different than my own that I doubt we would have liked each other’s systems. That doesn’t make one system “right” and the other system “wrong.” Diversity is a big part of what makes the world so wonderful. But how does one adequately take fundamental differences into account in a review and say something meaningful, while simultaneously acknowledging the humbling fact that experience itself is subjective?
What matters most, to many of us, is that our sound systems bring us joy. Do I believe that many card-carrying audiophiles will love the sound of the A-S3200? Absolutely.”
System Audio Legend 40 Loudspeaker Review
October 3, 2020 Comments Off on System Audio Legend 40 Loudspeaker Review
“That said, this System Audio pairing has the knack of sounding bigger than you might imagine, and can image precise details as well as creating a fluid, forward-feeling wall of sound. AC/DC’s ‘Hell’s Bells’ [Back In Black; Columbia 510765 2] sits in the former camp, with a relatively sparse mix that places its twin guitars left and right, cymbal crashes mid-right and a kick-drum emanating dead centre. Brian Johnson’s tobacco-torn vocal then pushes through from behind. However, with the double whammy of Pink Floyd’s ‘Breathe (In The Air)’ and ‘On The Run’ [Dark Side Of The Moon; Tidal Master], the Legend 40s have to become more involved to capture the dreamy nature of the first recording, sending flange guitars soaring and giving body to organ notes, and then integrate seamlessly to hold ‘On The Run’s signature stereo pans in check. It’s a thrillingly evocative performance.”
Constellation Audio Inspiration Integrated 1.0 Integrated Amplifier Review
September 30, 2020 Comments Off on Constellation Audio Inspiration Integrated 1.0 Integrated Amplifier Review
“With “Mad Rush,” from Philip Glass’s Solo Piano (16-bit/44.1kHz FLAC, CBS/Tidal), it was remarkable how I was able to check every audiophile box. Glass’s repetitive, minimalist theme danced in front of me with an intoxicating blend of accuracy and smoothness, and nary a hint of harshness or bite in the sound of his piano. The depth of the soundstage extended well past my room’s front wall, and its width past the outer side panels of my KEF floorstanders. Glass’s nimbleness on the ivories was on full display in my room, and in no way was the weight or distinction of individual keystrokes abbreviated. The imaging was superb — I could easily track his fortissimo runs up and down the keyboard — yet the Integrated 1.0’s articulation and spaciousness never called attention to themselves. The elusiveness of any sound of the Constellation’s own meant that, whether I played this 1989 recording or a far more recent selection by Jóhann Jóhannsson, I got the same result: everything sounded accurate, linear, fundamentally right — dare I say, perfect? Those who, like me, love dynamics and top-end sparkle will be plenty satisfied — as will those whose tastes veer toward a fuller, more analog sound, which the Integrated 1.0 also delivered in spades.”
Sennheiser Momentum Wireless Review
September 30, 2020 Comments Off on Sennheiser Momentum Wireless Review
“Connected via Bluetooth, it is silent at idle, with no obvious clues that it isn’t conventionally wired up. The connection is entirely stable up to a few metres from the transmitting device. This ensures that music isn’t affected by unwanted background noise and the sparse Shadow Queen by the Alba Griot Ensemble sounds immediate and believable as a result. The interplay between the guitar and harp as well as the vocal harmonies is easy to follow. For a closed-back design, there is very little feeling of constraint to the soundstage.
If you select something a bit more ballistic like Resonant Body by Octo Octa, the Sennheiser responds effortlessly. The driving rhythm of Can You See Me? is deep – effortlessly subsonic, even – and detailed without losing the energy and speed that’s needed to sound convincing.”
ABYSS HEADPHONES DIANA V2 $2995 REVIEW
September 29, 2020 Comments Off on ABYSS HEADPHONES DIANA V2 $2995 REVIEW
“The timbre is wonderfully natural sounding on the Diana V2. The overall timbre is richer and relatively forgiving compared to the crisp and peppy treble tour de force of the Phi. Studied matching with sources will pose less of a challenge with the Diana V2.
To achieve this Abyss has attenuated the V2 treble just a little and pulled back its upper mids to match to dull down any potential odd-harmonic nasties. At the same time, the midbass and sub-bass FR has a bit of a bump throwing in some additional body and warmth into the mids to up the even-harmonic bias.”
Copland CSA100 USB DAC/Integrated Amp £3498 Review
September 29, 2020 Comments Off on Copland CSA100 USB DAC/Integrated Amp £3498 Review
“Disco was always characterised by a tech-y feel, maybe even exaggerated sonic properties, but the CSA100 delivered the shake-your-booty excitement without ever resorting to aggression. It’s an area where Copland has always excelled and which it hasn’t abandoned, its hybrid sounding as ear-friendly as its all-valve designs. I hope I am getting across to you all that this amp seems incapable of causing listener fatigue.
As a farewell to the CSA100, I put on Howard Tate [Analogue Productions APO 009], a live mini-LP that Chad Kassem’s crew produced a decade ago, featuring my all-time favourite R&B singer. With a crack band and a guitarist whose notes soared, the ageing singer brushed away the years to deliver heartfelt renditions of a couple of his classics and gems like B B King’s ‘Sweet Sixteen’. The intimacy was tangible, the space enveloping. The CSA100 did all of which it was asked.”
Goldmund Mimesis 15/Prana Active Loudspeaker £70,000 Review
September 28, 2020 Comments Off on Goldmund Mimesis 15/Prana Active Loudspeaker £70,000 Review
“What these speakers deliver is all the scale and power of the music – as much as that CD-quality limitation on the USB input will allow. Playing the Scottish Chamber Orchestra’s recording of the overture to Mozart’s Così Fan Tutte [from Linn Records CKD 460], the Pranas’ rhythmic ability certainly sweeps the listener along with the music, while there’s entirely appropriate weight and scale to the sound.
Yet for the diehard audiophile, the Pranas may be found to lack that vital blend of musical force and window into the event that’s the hallmark of many a fine, if conventional and less convenient, set-up of amp and speakers.”
Sony NW-A55L $220 Review
September 28, 2020 Comments Off on Sony NW-A55L $220 Review
“If you’re looking for a sonic upgrade over your phone, the Sony will offer it across the board. It has a next-level maturity when it comes to delivering clarity, cleanliness and weight, and its well-timed sprightliness and more than a hint of dynamics save it from mimicking the often flat presentation you get from a phone’s output.
The NW-A55L confidently bops along to the grooves that underpin D’Angelo and The Vanguard’s Ain’t That Easy, driving the bassline with impetus while giving the rest of the track its fair share in the spotlight. We play Lubomyr Melnyk’s Pockets Of Light, and it diligently unravels the dynamics to ensure the long passage of piano playing sounds rightfully captivating rather than repetitive.”
iFi PowerStation AC Line Conditioner Review
September 26, 2020 Comments Off on iFi PowerStation AC Line Conditioner Review
“Interestingly, the PowerStation feeding the source components excelled at the very characteristics—high frequency resolution and dynamics—that I found problematic with it feeding the power amps. That is not a contradiction; it’s a reminder that a power amp places quite different demands on a conditioner than do source components. When audiophiles speak of “lowering the noise floor,” it’s often not about the no-music, barely audible hiss from the loudspeaker. The oxymoron here is that inaudible RFI can interact with electronics processing audible-range signals, and thus become audible as a blurring of subtle textural, spatial, and temporal information. Permit me to compa”
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