Aurender Flow DAC & Headphone Amp Review
March 25, 2019 Comments Off on Aurender Flow DAC & Headphone Amp Review
AudioQuest Niagara 1000 Low-Z Power Conditioner $995 Review
March 24, 2019 Comments Off on AudioQuest Niagara 1000 Low-Z Power Conditioner $995 Review
“The 1000 model is smaller in dimension and form factor than the Niagara 5000 and 7000 priced above it. Unsurprisingly, it lacks some of their heavier parts, so it also weighs far less: just a featherweight 5.5 pounds. Placement is easy; it’s been designed to sit on a rack or on the floor, even behind your system. AudioQuest also provided an AC power cable (sold separately), its NRG-10 ($779/6-ft.), which will be replaced soon. A more affordable option for the Niagara 1000 is AudioQuest’s new NRG-Z cord ($249.95/6ft.). I’m told that the design advancements in the company’s entry-level NRG line mean t”
hat the new NRG-Z will outperform the NRG-10, while costing far less. (Of course customers can select from other AQ power cords too.)
NOBLE AUDIO KHAN $2,399 REVIEW
March 23, 2019 Comments Off on NOBLE AUDIO KHAN $2,399 REVIEW
“Khan uses a ten millimeter dynamic driver for lows, four balanced armatures for mids and high mids, and a ten millimeter ceramic piezo electric super tweeter. The interesting thing about the piezo and the dynamic is, that they sit on top of each other. The low end DD is placed above the ceramic tweeter, and both share one stainless sound tube.
Noble is not very keen on disclosing too many technical details on the Khan, other than that it’s sensitive enough to be used with smartphones and digital audio players, but that really counts for almost all IEMs. Khan does pair very well with my gear, but due to its nature of design, it proves to be slightly harder to drive than other monitors in my inventory.”
AURALiC VEGA G1 $3,999 Full Review
March 23, 2019 Comments Off on AURALiC VEGA G1 $3,999 Full Review
”
The Auralic Vega G1 is a streamer, DAC, and preamp that can drive power amplifiers directly. This fact alone is enough to make one consider upgrading to the G1 because of the reduction of boxes and price associated with three separate components. The G1 has it all in a single chassis. Let me rephrase that, it doesn’t have it ALL because some features are better left to products like the Auralic Aries. Anyway, the G1 has all the traditional digital inputs and its most powerful input Ethernet. I call it powerful because it enables not only streaming from cloud or local network sources, but it also enables two-way communication for volume and playback control. ”
TriangleArt Ultimate TA-350M Monoblock Amplifiers $59,900/Pair Review
March 22, 2019 Comments Off on TriangleArt Ultimate TA-350M Monoblock Amplifiers $59,900/Pair Review
“I always enjoy reviewing tube-based amplification as, to me, it really takes a level-headed engineer to design one that is both simple, but robust and clear of outside interference. Tube-based amplifiers can be prone to microphonics, ground hum, or just about any other noise on one’s power line. In my opinion, vacuum-tube amplifiers are more susceptible to this than any transistor-based amplifier—but if designed right, it can be quite an enjoyable experience. The only thing I got out of these amplifiers was pure music, although I did have one run-in with outside interference, I had some Christmas decorations up that would cause a tiny noise from the speakers during quiet passages.”
Dachorn Kron Speakers Review
March 22, 2019 Comments Off on Dachorn Kron Speakers Review
“The Dachorn Kron speakers system is an exemplary 21st-century product that embraces and blends numerous contemporary technologies and approaches. All the know-how and R and D results in the standout, out of the box loudspeaker design that steps up from the usual norms. The complex enclosure, DSP and dedicated amplifiers provides seamless integration of different technological approaches and the sound that is subordinate to the music.”
T+A Elektroakustik DAC 8 DSD High End D/A Converter Review
March 21, 2019 Comments Off on T+A Elektroakustik DAC 8 DSD High End D/A Converter Review
“Much like any top DAC these days, digital filters offer the listener a customized sound. Want a softer, gentler approach? Done. Want an etched, lean performance? You got it. I spent a few days reading the manual and pressing buttons. I settled on one filter and left it for the duration of the review. I did the same when reviewing the Mytek Manhattan DAC II; the MQA setting, which the T+A does not offer (an MQA software update is in the works). I used Qobuz, primarily, as a streaming service via Roon on my Antipodes CORE Music Server. With Qobuz, there is no MQA support, but some seriously amazing hi res recordings available from the ever growing Qobuz catalogue. You won’t miss it.
Here we get a choice of four oversampling filters, used only for PCM audio (the 8 plays DSD, too, up to 512). There are two Finite Impulse Response filters and two Bezier interpolations. My choice was the ‘BEZ 1’ (blue LED), which is said to produce results ‘similar to an analogue system’. All four filters offered refined, superior sound, with enough variation to satiate the most nit picking listener. ‘A Bézier curve is a parametric curve that uses the Bernstein polynomials as a basis.’ Deep MIT dive here. To me, ‘BEZ 1’ sounded as detailed as the three other filters but with an even more pleasing musicality. ”
JBL Synthesis L100 Classic Loudspeaker Review
March 21, 2019 Comments Off on JBL Synthesis L100 Classic Loudspeaker Review
“The trickling keys of Red Richards’ piano sounded so close to the real thing that it made me laugh a little during the recording. Likewise, for Howard Johnson’s alto saxophone. The only caveat I had during my listening test with this record was that the bass did lack that last quarter or half octave of range, which cost it a touch of scale, though its dynamics and upper registers were on absolute point. Aside from that, the L100 Classic ranks as one of the more coherent three-way loudspeakers I’ve ever heard.”
Audeze LCD-4z Planar Magentic Headphone $3995 Review
March 20, 2019 Comments Off on Audeze LCD-4z Planar Magentic Headphone $3995 Review
“In many respects, the Audeze LCD-4z comes surprisingly close to the performance of the best electrostats in fine-detail retrieval, transparency, coherence, openness, and clarity. It should appeal to those who want top-tier performance in an easier-to-drive and more comfortable package than the in LCD-4. While its price tag may be a bit daunting, when compared to reference headphones, as well as loudspeaker systems costing many times more, the LCD-4z is arguably something of a bargain. If you want the best, make sure you audition the LCD-4z”
Grado PS1000e Review
March 19, 2019 Comments Off on Grado PS1000e Review
https://www.whathifi.com/reviews/grado-ps1000e
“Don’t be tempted to skimp on partnering equipment. While Grado provides a 6.3mm to 3.5mm adaptor to allow the PS1000es to be connected to a smartphone, we wouldn’t recommend it. While you’ll get a decent sound – those headphones are usefully sensitive at just short of 100dB for a milliwatt signal – you really won’t get a sense of just how good these Grados are.”
Audiophilepure 
You must be logged in to post a comment.