Nordost • Blue Heaven Interconnects, Speaker Cables, and Power Cords
November 2, 2023 § 1 Comment
https://www.theaudiobeat.com/equipment/nordost_blue_heaven.htm
If you want to build a Nordost Blue Heaven loom but do so in installments, start with the QBASE and Blue Heaven power cords. I am firmly convinced that electronic devices cannot work to their full potential until power cords and power distribution/noise reduction are addressed. While power cords may not be as thrilling as purchasing a new electronic component or speaker, my experiences suggest that mixing and matching power components can result in poor performance. It’s also notable that the Blue Heaven power cords and QBASE were used on the listening tour, replacing cords and distribution pieces costing far, far more, yet the sound retained the same level of bass slam and the low noise floor I associate with good, clean power management. This was fairly remarkable for one of Nordost’s “budget” cable lines.
Next, purchase interconnects and then the speaker cables for their clarity and drive. With these two in place, you have the Nordost signature sound. Adding the speaker cables will bring the speed of attack and clarity I’ve discussed, while the RCA interconnects are more neutral, having less effect on the sound of my system.
Provided your DAC needs a USB cable, the Blue Heaven is a fine choice at a budget-friendly price. In my system, the USB cable gave excellent results and was an easy recommendation. Substituting an expensive, well-reviewed USB cable from a competing brand lessened my interest in listening. Timing was confused and the soundstage shrunk. A bit of dullness crept in. The USB swap was definitely more dramatic and clear-cut than swapping RCA interconnects. Even if you have opted to use various brands of cabling in your system, I encourage you to give the Blue Heaven USB a try.
Finally, for those vinyl users needing a DIN-terminated phono cable, the clever engineering Nordost included in their design is easily appreciated. While I’m not plagued with audible hum in the phono stage, the ability to add extra paths for grounding is a nice touch and could be a lifesaver in many systems.
Fyne Audio F502SP Review
November 2, 2023 Comments Off on Fyne Audio F502SP Review
https://www.hifichoice.com/content/fyne-audio-f502sp
Perhaps the Monitor Audio is the most appropriate warm up act as the F502SP takes that crowd-pleasing energy, ramps up the colour, luxury, clarity, spirit and sense of fun, and runs with it. As I’ve found with more modestly priced Fynes, neutrality isn’t necessarily a guiding principle, whereas distilling the music seems to be a natural gift. The SP is cut from the same cloth, but with the advantages of big-boy bandwidth and resolution, not to mention arguably the most solid and precise imaging I’ve heard in the room – a convincing vindication of the isotropic driver topology, I guess.
Hankering for some ‘cosmic’ funk as only Edgar Winter can deliver, Jasmine Nightdreams’ Sky Train streamed from Tidal sounds fresh, incisive and dazzlingly clear with oodles of inner detail and solid, well-shaped bass. My favourite Jools Holland collaboration – with Taj Mahal singing Outskirts Of Town – builds superbly to its balls-out climax, TM beseeching any future offspring to all: “Look-look-look like him”. This can often be a little overwhelming for some smaller speakers that struggle to separate out the competing elements and allow enough dynamic headroom for the song to swell. No problem here. From start to finish, the F502SP sounds beautifully open, expressive and lucid with clean, extended upper frequencies that are naturally textured and free from grain, intricately detailed yet gloriously unforced, the Fyne drawing colour, emotion and ‘substance’ out of the slightly grey recording.
Dan Clark Audio Corina Reference Flagship Electrostatic Headphones Review
November 2, 2023 Comments Off on Dan Clark Audio Corina Reference Flagship Electrostatic Headphones Review
Apple Music & HI-RES AUDIO — where are we now?
November 2, 2023 Comments Off on Apple Music & HI-RES AUDIO — where are we now?
Longdog Audio P6100M
November 1, 2023 Comments Off on Longdog Audio P6100M
https://www.hifichoice.com/content/longdog-audio-p6100m
This is helped along somewhat by the naturally gutsy, barrel-chested sound, but it’s not thuggish or brutish in any way. There is enough slam to really tickle the big 12in bass drivers of my loudspeakers. This power is swiftly deployed; the opening drums on Roxy Music’s More Than This for example, are wonderfully powerful and dramatic when the wick is turned up. Yet still there’s no obvious sense of strain, despite the amplifiers not having a ‘muscle amp’ look about them.
Extended listening ends up with me thoroughly enjoying these Longdog Audio monoblocks. They’re really good at pretty much everything; for example, soundstaging is excellent, with a really ‘out of the box’ presentation that is never less than expansive and three dimensional. Ultimately, perhaps, they don’t have the true grit and insight of some really high-end designs – yet they deliver massive amounts of sound per pound.
Bluetooth STILL can’t do HI-RES AUDIO
November 1, 2023 Comments Off on Bluetooth STILL can’t do HI-RES AUDIO
NAD M33 BluOS Streaming DAC Amplifier Review
November 1, 2023 Comments Off on NAD M33 BluOS Streaming DAC Amplifier Review
Margules Audio U-280SC 30th Anniversary Limited Edition Vacuum Tube Amplifier $12,000 Review
October 31, 2023 § 1 Comment
I learned that even in ultra-linear mode, this amplifier could easily drive the Scansonic speakers to a volume that I considered “realistic.” Not only was the volume more than satisfactory but so was their sound, due to the sound quality prowess of the Margules U-280SC 30th Anniversary tube amplifier. Even though the Scansonic MB5 B speakers cost less than half the price of the speakers that were used for the majority of the audition period, their midrange transparency made it so I felt as if I could hear not only details from the musical signal being sent to the speakers but the details from the musical signal that was sent to the Margules amplifier.
The above description might seem a bit obtuse. Yet, it was the relative amount of transparency of these speakers that led to a feeling that I could imagine hearing through to the Margules amp, and therefore could sense that I could clearly hear the intentions of the musicians, engineers, and producers that were responsible for the recording I was listening to at the time. The Margules amp’s level of transparency was often frighteningly lifelike sounding on some recordings.
Focal Grande Utopia EM EVO Loudspeaker Review
October 31, 2023 Comments Off on Focal Grande Utopia EM EVO Loudspeaker Review
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