Noble Audio Shogun $3900 Review
November 5, 2025 Comments Off on Noble Audio Shogun $3900 Review
I could best describe the Shogun tuning as sitting somewhere between the power and smoothness of the Onyx and the articulating airiness of the Ronin. This is a very balanced ‘musical’ tuning that is equally comfortable with quiet passages of music as it is slamming heavy BPM house tracks.
The Shogun is a deep-sounding performer with excellent power, offering a smooth set of mids with relatively neutral but clear vocal imaging. Sitting above is a refined set of highs consistent with Noble’s recent tuning that offers good extension but without too much in the way of unnerving lower-treble spikes.
Degritter Mark II ultrasonic record cleaning machine Review
November 5, 2025 Comments Off on Degritter Mark II ultrasonic record cleaning machine Review
https://www.dagogo.com/degritter-mark-ii-ultrasonic-record-cleaning-machine-review/
This raised two questions in my mind: To what extent were all ultrasonic cleaners pretty much the same in performance (which I had assumed was the case); and, as noted, were additives really necessary?
Another issue began to complicate the picture: reliability.
Ultrasonic cleaning machines are complicated, REALLY complicated. In addition to performing the function of directing millions of tiny, tiny compressed air bubbles at or near your vinyl record, which is done on some sort of timed basis, and which may involve multiple intervals during which the record is slowly, or less slowly, spun by a motor in the machine, all of which is followed by a completely different (technology-wise) drying cycle, which also involves different speeds of record rotation (typically) and according to a different timed schedule. The machines must also automatically accept, and later, eject the records, before and after aforesaid process.
YG Acoustics Vantage 3 Live Active Loudspeaker Review
November 4, 2025 Comments Off on YG Acoustics Vantage 3 Live Active Loudspeaker Review
The In-room average response measurements are derived from an 18-point spatial average taken from around the listening position (11 ft away), with the microphone capsule placed at ear level. The overall in-room response was measured with a Bass Boost setting of +3 and a Tilt setting of +2.
Caveats: Unlike measurements taken outdoors or in an anechoic chamber that measures a speaker in isolation, in-room measurements give a sense of how a speaker behaves in the actual environment in which it’s used. Both types of measurements are valuable (make no mistake, a properly designed speaker in an anechoic environment will hold up much better in an average listening space), I just find in-room measurements interesting as they help shed light on what I am hearing and why. Note that no in-room measurement will ever match an anechoic measurement, and a measurement taken in my room won’t necessarily match a similarly done measurement taken in your room. But, after measuring dozens of speakers here, I’ve acquired a good understanding of how this space interacts with the speakers under test, and some general performance observations can always be drawn.
Soulines tt9/KiVi M3 turntable/arm
November 4, 2025 Comments Off on Soulines tt9/KiVi M3 turntable/arm
https://www.hifinews.com/content/soulines-tt9kivi-m3-turntablearm
Here, again, there was a fraction more solidity to the lows, but Soulines’ platform also noticeably increased the depth of the tt9’s soundstage and added a lovely sense of sweetness to the midrange. This made the character of instruments, be they electronic or acoustic, shine through just that little bit more. Consequently, Therese Schroeder-Sheker’s harp on ‘Credo Of Ballymacoda’ [Windham Hill Sampler ’89; Windham Hill 371082-1] grew in stature, each string pluck gaining in attack and resonance.
Isolation bases are unpredictable things, their effect ranging from barely there to ‘can’t go back to living without it’. The addition of the u-base to the tt9 is towards the top of that scale, so if you’re shopping for Soulines’ deck, I would strongly recommend finding the budget for the platform, too.
Eversolo Z10 DAC Overview | Flagship
November 4, 2025 Comments Off on Eversolo Z10 DAC Overview | Flagship
Treehaus Audiolab The Preamplifier $24,000 Review
November 3, 2025 Comments Off on Treehaus Audiolab The Preamplifier $24,000 Review
https://www.stereophile.com/content/treehaus-audiolab-preamplifier
My long-term reference Shindo Allegro preamplifier, one of Ken Shindo’s earliest creations, benefits from point-to-point wiring and separate chassis for left and right channels. It has the unmistakable Shindo sound and so provided an entirely different view into the music than the Treehaus did. The Shindo Allegro’s noisefloor was noticeably higher, and its presentation lacked the layering, separation, and transparent personality of the Treehaus. On the other side of the ledger, it manifested more physicality and more flesh-and-blood tonality and texture, both very well-known Shindo strengths. The Shindo plays records with stunning force and apparent realism. The Shindo’s soundstage is smaller than the Treehaus’s, but within that soundstage it rendered a sense of intimate closeness, searing viscosity, and bristling texture never equaled in my system
Hifiman Audivina LE Review
November 2, 2025 Comments Off on Hifiman Audivina LE Review
https://www.headfonia.com/hifiman-audivina-le-review/
The biggest problem with the Audivina LE is likely its bass response. It’s tuned so flat— and I mean that is dead flat —that you don’t get any sub-bass rumble. The mid-bass area isn’t so textured and definitive either. So what you have is a very flat bass that isn’t capable of giving the music the blood that it requires, particularly in genres that need that specific trait.
The positive aspect here, of course, is the speed. The PRaT here is very good, and the decay is quick, so that there’s no mid-bass bleed possible, even remotely. Other than that, I don’t have much else to say about the bass performance, except that it’s explicitly tuned for speed and subtlety. It works well with classical and jazz.
Campfire Earphones Review
October 31, 2025 Comments Off on Campfire Earphones Review
https://www.stereophile.com/content/brilliant-corners-31-campfire-earphones-fiio-portable-player
Then there’s the dense physicality of the sound, a quality no doubt attributable to the dynamic drivers, which move more air than their balanced armature or planar magnetic counterparts. The Trifecta plays with more meat on the bone than any earphones I’ve heard, and with greater dynamics, compounding the sense of presence created by the vast staging. Its gorgeous, colorful midrange, which gives guitars and voices so much vividness, definitely contributes, too. Most importantly, the Trifecta proved matchless at generating engagement and emotion. Its unrestrained, juicy sound is difficult to approach analytically; after a few minutes I usually forgot what I was supposed to be focusing on or comparing and got lost in listening.
TEAC AP-507 class D stereo power amplifier Review
October 31, 2025 Comments Off on TEAC AP-507 class D stereo power amplifier Review
Was the noise the result of my room’s electrical supply? I have two sets of dimming lights in my room, and there have been occasions when components have been particularly sensitive to them. If the lights are on fully or off, the noise is all but eliminated, but if the lights are dimmed, then the noise can intrude. However, I found that even turning the lights off entirely did not eliminate the noise. One solution I tried was insertion of cheater plugs (3 to 2 prong adapters) for the power cords, and that reduced the noise by a perceived 50%, but it did not eliminate it altogether.
Other components such as the Heaven 11 Billie Amp Mk2, which is a tube hybrid class D integrated amplifier, or the PS Audio Stellar Strata Mk2 Integrated Amplifier have never had noise issues. Conversely, the Legacy i.V4 Ultra Amplifier at times has been a bit noisy like the AP-507, but not as loudly. All this took place while using the TEAC VRDS-701 and CG-10M-X upstream, so using a full TEAC system is not a fix for the potential of the AP-507 exhibiting noise. The simplest solution is to use these amplifiers with less efficient speakers and if necessary, insert an adapter plug.
Audiophilepure 
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