Palmer Audio 2.5 turntable & Audio Origami PU7 tonearm Review
July 19, 2017 Comments Off on Palmer Audio 2.5 turntable & Audio Origami PU7 tonearm Review
” Through the Palmer-Origami-Etna there was more midrange warmth than I’d become accustomed to, but that accentuation reproduced greater hall space, a larger stage, and more depth, though with perhaps a bit less air on top. Bennett’s voice was more fully fleshed out, which was mesmerizing, and the string tones of the Ralph Sharon Orchestra were rich, woody, and silky-smooth—but Candido’s congas lost a bit of pop, and the brass and percussion lost some bite.”
Grace Design m9XX DAC $799 Review
July 19, 2017 Comments Off on Grace Design m9XX DAC $799 Review
“Sonically the Grace m9XX performed with flying colors when used as a DAC/pre. The well-controlled and extended bass that I heard through headphones was readily apparent when auditioned in a nearfield or room-based system. The m9XX’s unfatiguing upper-frequency presentation made listening through my all-solid-state and Class D amplification system a very natural and relaxed affair. My only quibble is that if you have built a system that is already soft and forgiving the m9XX might be too much of a good thing. However, if you want a neutral, revealing, but still listenable DAC, the m9XX checks all the right boxes.”
AURALiC ALTAIR REVIEW
July 18, 2017 Comments Off on AURALiC ALTAIR REVIEW
“However, there should be a way to combine one’s Favorite stations with one’s manually added stations on a single screen. Currently it isn’t possible to mark something in My Stations as a favorite, and the stations listed in My Favorites don’t provide the URL enabling one to switch back to My Stations and make a manual entry. Lightning DS users will understand this easily. Those who are unfamiliar with Lightning DS, just need to understand that there are two screens with one’s “selected” internet radio stations and they can’t be combined.”
Core Power Technologies Equi=Core 1800 Power Conditioner $1999 Review
July 18, 2017 Comments Off on Core Power Technologies Equi=Core 1800 Power Conditioner $1999 Review
“I was bowled over by the positive effects the Equi=Core 1800 had on my gear. Both vinyl and digital were improved. Noted improvements — the usual suspects with quality conditioning — blacker backgrounds with concomitant drop in noise floor, zero hum, with that ever so slight white noise our ears recognize as distortion, all gone. The proverbial veils were lifted. Like diving into a crystal clear glacial lake untouched by humanity. ”
LAMM M1.2 REFERENCE HYBRID POWER AMPLIFIERS $27,590/pair REVIEW
July 18, 2017 Comments Off on LAMM M1.2 REFERENCE HYBRID POWER AMPLIFIERS $27,590/pair REVIEW
“The utmost challenge for any high end audio product is to convey transparency and act as via medium of the purest and unaltered music delivery. This might sounds simple, but in reality such a pursuit is a highly complex one. Especially when it comes to power amplifiers where one cannot avoid some of the structural modules and electronic parts.”
NSMT M100 Loudspeakers $8995 Review
July 17, 2017 Comments Off on NSMT M100 Loudspeakers $8995 Review
“I couldn’t resist slipping my Tonian TL-D1 and Fritz Morels in the system for a bit of comparison. Not surprisingly the Tonian’s are quite resolving speakers in their own right. They sound a bit more relaxed and they are definitely more efficient. But as I have felt for a while they sounded just a tad thin and have a very slight bit of coloration compared to the M-100. For instance, the trumpet on the Blanchard CD just sounded more realistic through the M-100’s. ”
Wyred 4 Sound DAC 2v2 SE $3,799 REVIEW
July 17, 2017 Comments Off on Wyred 4 Sound DAC 2v2 SE $3,799 REVIEW
“Extensive soundstage portrayal is DAC 2v2SEs top strengths. Musical cues extended to the far left, right and rear of the speakers’ imaging limits give a convincing and layered presentation. Listening to albums like Silent Letters from Bliss, the rich soundstage created by the engineers demonstrates the DAC 2v2SE’s ability to ingest, process and share out the digital bits with aplomb, re-creating the subtle details contained within. Cymbal crashes generate a complexity of audio frequency ”
Devialet Phantom Gold Loudspeaker Review
July 16, 2017 Comments Off on Devialet Phantom Gold Loudspeaker Review
“I must say I am really impressed with the Phantom Golds. No subwoofer required to get some real low end frequency response reproduction at reference level, and beyond. The spherical shape does wonders for a linearly dispersed sound, no matter where one listens in the room. This has all sorts of practical applications where one is not forced to sit in “the listening window” to get the best sound quality.”
‘
Starke Sound IC-H3 Halo Elite Loudspeaker $6495 Review
July 16, 2017 Comments Off on Starke Sound IC-H3 Halo Elite Loudspeaker $6495 Review
What about movies? It’s a dirty little secret but there are more than a few audiophiles who, on occasion, are also looking to satisfy that home-theater sweet tooth—and I admit to being one of them. In my modest listening room, a pair of H3s all by its lonesome (no sub or center channel) was in its element. Soundtracks heavy with dialogue, like the film Fences, were articulate but not overly assertive. Movies that featured pyrotechnics and assorted special effects, such as Star Wars: The Force Awakens, were a showcase for the Starkes. During battle sequences, and even in lieu of surround channels, they twisted the air in the listening room with an authority and fury that created an atmosphere of intergalactic immersion. Their wide dynamic range unleashed the energy of the John Williams-conducted, ninety-piece symphony orchestra with almost casual ease.”
Quad ESL-2912 loudspeaker $13,999 Review
July 15, 2017 Comments Off on Quad ESL-2912 loudspeaker $13,999 Review
“The ESL-2912 has an obvious inherent advantage over box speakers in having no box at all. However, with some music, mostly orchestral, I was at times aware of a kind of drumming sound that wasn’t part of the music. I assumed that this was a characteristic of the stretched polyolefin dustcovers. You’ll recall that removing their dustcovers is one of the ways Quad ESLs have been modified to improve their sound—but this is an extreme step, and unless your listening room is 100% dust free, it will lead to the speaker being damaged in fairly short order. Not recommended!”
You must be logged in to post a comment.