Canor Audio Virtus I2 Integrated Amplifier Review
May 22, 2024 Comments Off on Canor Audio Virtus I2 Integrated Amplifier Review
https://www.hifinews.com/content/canor-audio-virtus-i2-integrated-amplifier
This song feels like a nod to the trip-hop genre of Massive Attack and Tricky, with a spacious production and weighty, sluggish beats. It has a meditative aspect that suited the Virtus I2, as the amp’s warm but also slightly forward character created an encircling listen and delivered the synth notes with plenty of texture. This sonic signature was even more apparent during ‘Burning (For A New Start)’, where the reverb-heavy soundscape was perfectly matched to the Virtus I2’s rich balance


PlatiMon Virtual Coaxial One Speakers $6,000 REVIEW
May 22, 2024 Comments Off on PlatiMon Virtual Coaxial One Speakers $6,000 REVIEW
They also prove easy to drive, even with lower powered amplifiers. The BAT is big and dynamic, yet our reference ampsandsound Bryce monoblocks delivered the most delicate listening experience, with layer upon layer of inner detail. Should you purchase a pair of these, you will be surprised at how far you can keep upgrading equipment and still hear more musical information – these speakers are that good. The recently reviewed Enleum AMP-23R is a very close second place.

Dan D’Agostino Momentum C4 Preamplifier $50,000
May 21, 2024 Comments Off on Dan D’Agostino Momentum C4 Preamplifier $50,000
Utilizing no negative feedback anywhere, core D’Agostino circuit concepts include a signal path that is fully complementary, direct coupled, and balanced from input to output achieving a frequency response flat to 120 kHz.
All signal gain is realized in the current domain using proprietary multiple-output current mirrors with nearly 30 times the linearity of other designs. Executed with four-layer circuit boards for superior signal quality, the use of four-layer boards dramatically reduces distortion and propagation losses as compared to the more commonplace, two-layer boards.



HUMMINGURU ULTRASONIC VINYL RECORD CLEANER $430 REVIEW
May 21, 2024 Comments Off on HUMMINGURU ULTRASONIC VINYL RECORD CLEANER $430 REVIEW
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Most importantly, using the HumminGuru with any of the fluid variations resulted in pretty flawless-looking records. As far as the sound, the HumminGuru eliminated static and surface noise issues to the point I no longer heard them. While it may seem obvious how much of a difference this would make to the listening experience, I have to say it was even better than that. Specifically, I have noticed static and surface noise to varying degrees on almost every record I recall playing and, over time, I just accepted that was part of the analog experience. And I convinced myself this was true because I buy a good number of new records and the used records I buy are in good shape; I clean every record I buy before playing it the first time, and yet the static and noise would always be audible. In other words, the HumminGuru gave me a better result than I thought possible.

Musical Fidelity M8xTT Turntable $10,499 Review
May 20, 2024 Comments Off on Musical Fidelity M8xTT Turntable $10,499 Review
https://www.soundstageultra.com/index.php/equipment-menu/1229-musical-fidelity-m8xtt-turntable
Supertramp’s Even in the Quietest Moments . . . is so heavily biased toward the midrange that it tends to dissolve into a gelatinous mess, given half a chance. Even the cymbals seem to descend into the midrange. I have a half-speed-mastered version (A&M Records SPJ 4634), but even that has generally left me cold. But the music is magnificent! “From Now On” has a regal sense of majesty that’s musical genius. The M8xTT actively decoded this mess. I could hear the rhythm guitar as a discrete instrument, whereas it’s normally buried beneath heaping dollops of piano.
Flipping over to side 1, “Give a Little Bit” starts off with an emo-style 12-string guitar that threads right through the whole track. It’s finely detailed in the opening, and it gets progressively harder to keep it distinct once the other instruments start to crowd it out. The M8xTT did right by that guitar.
No record in my collection showcased the M8xTT’s grip on the bass and its transition to a clear, open midrange better than St. Vincent’s MassEducation (Loma Vista LVR00448). SoundStage! founder and publisher Doug Schneider turned me on to this album. It’s entirely acoustic, mostly with an enormous piano riding under St. Vincent’s rich, evocative voice. With both the piano and voice sharing the same acoustic plane, the M8xTT concocted a vast soundstage; one that benefited hugely from a lack of noise, combined with a feeling of latent power in the lower registers.

Franco Serblin Accordo Goldberg Loudspeaker £8888 Review
May 20, 2024 Comments Off on Franco Serblin Accordo Goldberg Loudspeaker £8888 Review
https://www.hifinews.com/content/franco-serblin-accordo-goldberg-loudspeaker
As cultured and refined as was Franco Serblin, the Accordo Goldberg standmounts sounded better the louder they were played. It reminded me, too, of another conversation with Franco, who was no head-banger. He posited that every CD, LP or tape has an optimum playback level, clipping, breakup or distortion notwithstanding. Listening to harmonica so life-like that the SPLs seemed merely incidental, I understood what he meant, grabbing a harmonica of my own to hear the reeds and the levels.
Steely Dan’s Can’t Buy A Thrill [Analogue Productions CAPP134SA SACD] turned the clock back to the first time I heard the saxophone break in ‘Dirty Work’, with just the right balance of rasp and honk. Likewise, pace/rhythm/timing junkies would revel in the opening bongo patterns of the same album’s ‘Do It Again’, delicious beats with the sounds of the heads almost shimmering. As for the vocals, I started imagining what an LS3/5A would sound like with a couple of octaves extending the bottom, and another 10dB added to the levels.


AGD The Audion MKIII Monoblock Amplifier Review
May 20, 2024 Comments Off on AGD The Audion MKIII Monoblock Amplifier Review
DAN CLARK AUDIO – DCA E3 $1,999 REVIEW
May 19, 2024 Comments Off on DAN CLARK AUDIO – DCA E3 $1,999 REVIEW
The second important E3 feature is the all-new 5th generation planar-magnetic driver. According to Dan Clark Audio it delivers the smoothest, richest, and most detailed experience they could create to date. Its innovative diaphragms are made on an all-new tensioning system for a more uniform and consistent performance, lower distortion, and enhanced consistency.
Extensive R&D was spent optimizing E3’s planar driver. New diaphragm materials combined with highly optimized V-Planar knurling deliver a remarkably smooth frequency response with low distortion throughout the listening range for levels of detail heretofore found primarily in the top-of-the-line electrostatics, all with an exceptionally easy and fun tonal balance.
The third and last feature we’re getting into is the Gorilla glass 3 combined with the Dual-Mode bass ports. While it’s not unusual to find a bass port on a closed headphone, DCA states that their ingenious dual-mode port delivers unrivalled control of the bass frequency response, creating a superbly balanced, impactful bass experience that is full of power yet free of bloat or midrange creep.

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