KEF’s R300 speaker Review
October 31, 2017 Comments Off on KEF’s R300 speaker Review
“I have a pair of KEF LS50 speakers on hand for direct comparison and not surprisingly, the two speakers sound similar, but the R300 is weightier, fuller and delivers more low-end power. Dynamics pack a bigger punch with Led Zeppelin’s “Presence” album; returning to the LS50 I miss the R300s’ oomph.”
AROMA AUDIO A10 PORTABLE HEADPHONE AMPLIFIER – REVIEW
October 30, 2017 Comments Off on AROMA AUDIO A10 PORTABLE HEADPHONE AMPLIFIER – REVIEW
“Aroma is a company to watch, their first offering hit it out of the park. If you have one of those really expensive DAPs that needs an external amplifier, or if you would just rather use your phone for your music source, then the A10 is a must have, even if you are only using IEMs, and at a reasonable price. If you are looking for a signal processor that will make a product that actively sounds bad, sound better, then the A10 is not that, but there are plenty of DSP apps that can do the job better than an external amplifier that is in effect degrading the sound (even if you like the results), but if you want to get the most out of your source and headphones then the A10 is a great choice.”
Dynaudio Special Forty Review
October 29, 2017 Comments Off on Dynaudio Special Forty Review
“The manufacturing process used to create the Special Forty’s veneer is more elaborate than we might expect: 1.5mm-thick wood slices are cut from birch wood in Finland. Each slice is coloured red or grey without paint (lest it obscure the wood grain) before many hundreds of slices are glued and pressed together to form a solid block. This block is then cross-cut again to create thin slices of veneer, this time though at ninety degrees to the original layers and so creating a pseudo wood/pin-stripe effect.”
QUESTYLE AUDIO QP2R DIGITAL AUDIO PLAYER $1,300 REVIEW
October 28, 2017 Comments Off on QUESTYLE AUDIO QP2R DIGITAL AUDIO PLAYER $1,300 REVIEW
‘Parazaider’s delicate flute, working with G Dorian flair as the intensity of the track rises. Piano, horns and drums come in as the volume rises. The QP2r keeps everything together in a fluid and musical way. The power of the band is well in evidence as well as their subtlety as the song flows from Powerful to subdued moments. Terry Kath’s strident vocals are captured with all the strain of his worry and anxiety for the survival of our society. This song could be about today and not nearly fifty years ago as a social statement. The QP2r unleashes the UE11’s to their best effect. Very satisfying!”
Astell&Kern A&ultima SP1000 portable audio player $3499 Review
October 27, 2017 Comments Off on Astell&Kern A&ultima SP1000 portable audio player $3499 Review
Read Here
In some ways, the various musical elements were excessively dissected, but overall, the timbral and textural balance, along with the precision of attacks and generous sustain, produced a picture that seemed to be organic on the “cellular” level, without ever sounding mechanical. The sound of John Densmore’s cymbals, particularly from the vinyl rip, was ideal, as was the sound of his kick drum in the title song. That was a tribute to both the Audeze headphones and to the A&ultima SP1000
KIMBER AXIOS HEADPHONE CABLE REVIEW
October 27, 2017 Comments Off on KIMBER AXIOS HEADPHONE CABLE REVIEW
“The bottom line is that Kimber’s Axios headphone cables can and do help high-end headphones be all that they can be—often in quite dramatic ways. The Axios cable is not inexpensive, but it rewards the enthusiast’s investment by really delivering the goods, both in sonic terms and in service of the music. Very highly recommended.”
Fiio Q1 MKII Review
October 26, 2017 Comments Off on Fiio Q1 MKII Review
“The Q1 has nice bass extension but sub-bass notes have a slightly softer, looser impact. Mid-bass is slightly elevated, granting additional fullness to its low-end, but also some added bloat when compared to cleaner, more linear sources. This sap a little texture and definition from bass notes though more mid-forward or cooler earphones such as the Rose BR5 MKII find great synergy with the Q1 MKII’s slightly larger bass notes. The Q1 MKII also benefits from a larger stage and generally impressive clarity that aids separation. Otherwise, bass is surprisingly linear, the Q1 MKII is tighter and more defined than its predecessor and appreciably more balanced than similarly priced sources like the Hidizs AP60 that utilize the same DAC chip.”
AVATAR AUDIO HOLOPHONY NUMER 4 REVIEW
October 26, 2017 Comments Off on AVATAR AUDIO HOLOPHONY NUMER 4 REVIEW
“It’s a truism but I will say it anyway, that Avatars speakers sound differently than all others. It should be obvious, even if you have never seen them before nor listen to them nor read any reviews – just read the introduction above. That does not mean, however, that they sound weird. They offer very capable performance with some typical high-end qualities, but with its elements composed in a way that initially seems very different from anything one has heard before.”
AudioQuest • Niagara 5000 and 7000 Power Conditioners $4,000 Review
October 25, 2017 Comments Off on AudioQuest • Niagara 5000 and 7000 Power Conditioners $4,000 Review
“What these records shared was a sense that the players were not just in the room with me but were in the same room with each other. The kind of noise that the Niagara 7000 was removing was not like the noise of children playing in the next room, or noise from traffic filtering into the listening room. The best noise reduction is reducing noise that’s riding along with the musical signal and disguising itself, not as background noise in the normal sense of the word. Power-line noise is an unwanted electrical signal that attaches itself to the recorded signal and strangles it of dynamic energy and rhythm. Fighting against that noise (by, for example, simply adding more amplification power) can add a more “audiophile” sound. Reducing or eliminating the noise, on the other hand, will make the performance sound less canned, reducing the sludge that prevents you from hearing the cues of real people in the same room reacting to each others’ playing. Miles Davis In Concert/My Funny Valentine [Mobile Fidelity UDSACD 2141], a fabulous Fred Plaut Columbia recording polished to perfection for this reissue, will sound pretty good on most any system, but with the Niagara inserted, the sense of Miles’s interactions with the band stood out as never before.’
REL 212SE Subwoofer Review
October 25, 2017 Comments Off on REL 212SE Subwoofer Review
“The combination of dynamics and musicality that a pair of REL 212SEs add to the mix is of such high quality, I had made up my mind after about 10 hours of listening (I was up until about 4 a.m. after Hunter left, the day he installed them) that this would be our product of the year. For my money, this could be TONE’s product of all time.”
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