AudioQuest DragonFly digital converter/headphone amplifiers Review
June 19, 2016 Comments Off on AudioQuest DragonFly digital converter/headphone amplifiers Review
” I also listened to the ‘Black and ‘Red plugged into my iPhone 6S. Again the sound impressed with some of the same headphones mentioned above. Then I tried a few in-ear headphones, starting with the Klipsch Reference X6i and Cardas A8, comparing the iPhone 6S’ headphone jack with the sound of the Red. The difference in sound quality wasn’t nearly as significant as it was with full-size headphones.”
Beyerdynamic T1 Headphone Review
June 18, 2016 Comments Off on Beyerdynamic T1 Headphone Review
” The old and new T1s are high-impedance (600-ohm) designs, so they won’t sound their best with smartphones and run-of-the-mill port- able devices. Even so, I had good results with Chord’s mighty little Mojo USB digital converter/headphone amp. At home, the solid-state Oppo HA-1 amp was a good match. My old reliable NAD C316BEE stereo integrated amp was just a few notches down in fully exploiting the T1’s ultimate potential, but it still wasn’t at all bad. The magic really happened, though, when I paired the T1 with my Woo Audio WA6SE all-tube headphone amp. Its sweetened tonality made everything go down easy. The imaging opened wide, and bass heft filled out. As with all the best headphones, the T1’s character changes with each amp; they clue you in to sound in ways that lesser ’phones gloss over.”
NUPRIME IDA-8 INTEGRATED AMPLIFIER $995 REVIEW
June 17, 2016 Comments Off on NUPRIME IDA-8 INTEGRATED AMPLIFIER $995 REVIEW
“In my experience, the downsides to the IDA-8 were few. Upon occasion, the upper treble thinned out a touch, but not much. Can fans might well miss a headphone input option. The only moments I felt something was missing occurred when the sound of the digitally converted analog signal softened ever so slightly due to A-to-D processing; the effect is quite subtle and hard to describe, but once in a while, it seemed some of the raw impact on my LPs was lost. I want to stress that the instances when I noticed this were few and far between and never detracted from my musical enjoyment. Perhaps digital devotees would not register this. The tradeoff here, I would say, is the IDA-8’s consistently lovely and uncannily liquid presentation.”
Paradigm Premium Wireless Multiroom Audio System Review
June 17, 2016 Comments Off on Paradigm Premium Wireless Multiroom Audio System Review
” Anthem Room Correction routinely gets top-notch ratings, and even though ARC is slimmed down in the PW series, it’s easy to hear why it’s so well respected. Of course, the differences you hear will depend on the room, the sound system’s location in the room, and your finesse with the measurement procedure. In very general terms, in my room, the bass got tighter (but not necessarily louder), the midrange gained clarity, and the highs became less aggressive and harsh without losing detail. One of the many cool things about ARC is that after you’ve completed the calibration process, you can print out a report containing graphs of the frequency response pre- and post-ARC”
Gryphon Pantheon Loudspeakers Review
June 16, 2016 Comments Off on Gryphon Pantheon Loudspeakers Review
“After getting the lay of the Gryphon land to spin more complex fare, the next quality which arose were dynamics. Here I’m emphatically not discussing macrodynamic excesses. With this level of clarity and projection power, there’s no need to caveman it on the throttle. There’s no need to overcome “intelligibility drag” until the curtains finally raise. They’re up already at subdued levels. I’m instead referring to the rippling of amplitude in the realm of melodic emphasis, of small accents in a beat’s delivery. Rather than a solid albeit congealed mass of loudness, such keen microdynamics are twitchier. There’s more flickering. By being dynamically interesting at standard volumes, the urge to crank it dissolves. It feels not merely primitive but a sign of compensation that attempts to remedy a lack of distinctiveness and involvement elsewhere. Perhaps it’s most sensible and meaningful to call this conjunction of qualities—microdynamic astuteness, focus and energetic projection for in-room presence—the ability to communicate. Unlike with poorly recorded dialogue during a television show that requires constant effort to not miss words, hence meaning and subtext, getting the complete message is easy. This must be down to Gryphon’s obsession with the time domain based on the complex filter math of their mentor ”
UNIQUE MELODY MAESTRO REVIEW
June 16, 2016 Comments Off on UNIQUE MELODY MAESTRO REVIEW
” The bass is typically balanced armature sounding in a lot of respects due to its speed, punch and lack of absolute rumble, it is boosted just enough to handle some bassier genres and also meet demands of a lot of folk. It is also just soft enough to make it pleasant on the ears without going over board like the InEar SD-4 which is very much categorised by a soft and spongey bass. Compared to more neutral products such as Hidition’s Viento-R it has a bit more bloom but is still way too polite to even draw a comparisons to Jh Audio’s Roxanne on the lowest bass setting! I would say therefore it is nearer to the Hidition in quantity, but still noticeably warmer. While it does not pull off the rumble of a dynamic driver (or Campfire armatures) it does have a great equality through all aspects of the bass, not rolling off too soon or being overly thick in the mid bass.”
Focal Utopia Headphone $4,000 Review
June 15, 2016 Comments Off on Focal Utopia Headphone $4,000 Review
” n an unusual twist of fate, perhaps the polarizing section of the spectrum may be the mids for the Utopia, if an area was to be poked or prodded long enough. Impressions from the two areas most hotly loved or hated (bass and treble) feel very right, unique and exceptional to this reviewers ears, as is the overall detail, presence and imaging. Detail in the mids is among the highest in the land, outpacing planars like the LCD-X (less grain) and the Oppo PM-1 (more transparency). Even though Focal’s mid-tier Elear shares some of the same shaping and design elements, the switch from Aluminum-Magnesium to Beryllium creates a superior, more responsive sound by comparison. There is a full-body open sound to the center that is truly high fidelity at its core. Some might still prefer the sonic tapestry of the Audeze house sound and its information rich tones throughout the midband, but it’s very hard to argue with the added dimensionality of the Utopia. Like the solid low end, the mids never sound too far forward or even hint at a letter shape other than “B” for balanced.”
LEAR NATROSOUND NS-U1- REVIEW
June 15, 2016 Comments Off on LEAR NATROSOUND NS-U1- REVIEW
” Regardless of the cable, having NS on is simply a choice. You can listen to it off and then turn it on when you so desire, with immediate effect and easy access. When off these are no different to simply listing to a 6mm CCAW neodymium magnet, dynamic driven earphone and that could be your thing but if you want to actually take advantage of the acoustic crossfeed and involve the second 6mm driver you will want to turn NS on.”
Pioneer XDP-100R Review
June 14, 2016 Comments Off on Pioneer XDP-100R Review
” This provided us with some MQA samples, along with the same tracks in 24-bit/352kHz FLAC for a bit of A-B testing. To give you an idea of the difference in file size, a 410MB 24/352 FLAC file is reduced to 50MB in MQA, so making it quicker to download or easier to stream.”
Sonus Faber Venere S Loudspeakers Review
June 13, 2016 Comments Off on Sonus Faber Venere S Loudspeakers Review
“The Venere Signature sounded different. When I put on “Brothers in Arms,” one of the standout tracks from Junkie XL’s (aka Tom Holkenborg) sublime original score for Mad Max: Fury Road (16/44.1 FLAC, WaterTower Music), I was blown away by the dynamics I heard from these shapely towers: they rocked, and rocked hard. As the phalanx of massive drums that provide this track’s foundation unleashed volley after volley, I was not only struck by the Veneres’ tight-fisted bass control — it never overpowered my room — but also by the quality of the drumstrokes. There was texture aplenty, with authentic-sounding impact and slam instead of a weightier, punchier, but ultimately falser facsimile.”
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