New Børresen Flagship Loudspeaker: M6
July 13, 2023 Comments Off on New Børresen Flagship Loudspeaker: M6
Sony NW-A306 $350 Review
July 10, 2023 Comments Off on Sony NW-A306 $350 Review
https://www.whathifi.com/reviews/sony-nw-a306
The Sony is adept enough to turn its hand to various genres and even discern the differences in file qualities, but it doesn’t make a meal out of it at all. In fact, there’s a familial throughline from the high-end NW-WM1ZM2 to the A306 in terms of just how mature and capable it’s able to sound. We can spot the same sound signature, even if the detail resolution is at vastly different levels. Where the A306 differs (and has the upper hand) is with volume: it had no problem driving the Grados, and we found it played more than loud enough for our needs.
As with the NW-WM1ZM2, though, we find ourselves yearning for an ounce more dynamic punch and drive. We think the Sony A306 could sound a whole lot more fun and immersive if it let its metaphorical hair down and stayed up past its metaphorical bedtime. It’s a polite, undemanding listen that could become an absolute barnstormer with just a bit more bite, fluidity and insight.
The Analog Ethos Legendarium 2a3 Stereo Amplifier $1799 Review
July 10, 2023 Comments Off on The Analog Ethos Legendarium 2a3 Stereo Amplifier $1799 Review
Once I remembered that I was supposed to be writing a review, I put on a few of my classic test tracks. Up first was Mika’s Live at Brooklyn Steel album. Listening to the song “Popular” you could feel the energy of the crowed. Mika’s voice was positioned more forward then I am used to, but the stage in general felt deeper. Instruments were well separated throughout the song and detail retrieval seemed to be consistent at high and lower volumes. As other songs on the album played, I continued to be impressed. The song “Tomorrow” thundered over my speakers and the clarity and depth of the stage was really felt. There were a few points where the sound stage lost a little definition, but these were also the most complex parts of the song (which again is okay in the context of a single ended DHT amplifier), turning the volume down slightly would restore the detail that was lost.
Listening to Use Me by Vanessa Fernandez, which is one of my favorite DSD albums, the Legendarium really delivered. The album played to all of its strengths. Female vocals came alive via the 2a3, and the minimalist soundstage was rock solid and picture perfect. Dynamic shifts were handled as well as I could ever expect and I found myself listening to the whole album, at times forgetting to write things down.
Bowers & Wilkins 705 S3 loudspeaker $3400 Review
July 8, 2023 Comments Off on Bowers & Wilkins 705 S3 loudspeaker $3400 Review
https://www.stereophile.com/content/bowers-wilkins-705-s3-loudspeaker
Considering my well-established predilection for large speakers with extended bass, I didn’t expect that much from these small standmounts. I should have expected more. Even though my listening room was not as favorable to the 705s as a smaller, more damped room would be, their performance was rewarding and enjoyable—no apology need be made on account of their size. Their midrange and treble resolution is outstanding, and their bass is musically satisfying. When properly set up, they will readily pull off that little trick and disappear into their own soundstage.
iFi Go Link $59 Review
July 8, 2023 Comments Off on iFi Go Link $59 Review
https://www.whathifi.com/reviews/ifi-go-link
Rather a lot, as it so happens. The iFi Go Link feels like the perfect device for enhancing your headphones on the move and on a budget, living up to its brief of providing discernible sonic enhancements in a portable package without forcing you to fork out a fortune for the pleasure. Choose your apt analogy – Luton Town FC, Bruce Lee, Peter Crouch – the iFi Go Link joins the pantheon of performers punching well above their weight.
Audiolab HiFi amplifier 6000A vs 7000A vs 9000A
July 8, 2023 Comments Off on Audiolab HiFi amplifier 6000A vs 7000A vs 9000A
TAD CE1TX loudspeaker $32,500 Review
July 7, 2023 Comments Off on TAD CE1TX loudspeaker $32,500 Review
https://www.stereophile.com/content/tad-ce1tx-loudspeaker
My definition of the word “best,” as applied to audiophile speakers, would include expressions like “extremely well-sorted” and “exposes everything” and “flawless tone.” This thought struck me now because exactly these words passed through my head over and over during the hundreds of hours I spent listening with the TAD CE1TX’s. These luxuriously appointed standmounts specialize in converting tiny signal currents into moving air with atomic-clock precision—all by itself, a captivating phenomenon to witness. But what elevated these new TADs to a level of performance I’ve rarely experienced from any speakers, anywhere, at any price is the coexistence of that atomic-clock precision with an innate ability to present instruments and voices in a most agreeable, seductive manner.
AVM Inspiration CS2.3 CD receiver Review
July 7, 2023 Comments Off on AVM Inspiration CS2.3 CD receiver Review
https://www.stereophile.com/content/avm-inspiration-cs23-cd-receiver
The AVM Inspiration CS 2.3 is a delicious example of having cake and eating it. Some out-of-the-box thinking has taken shape in this small, attractively finished box. Designer-owner Besser is proud that many of the subcomponents for AVM are produced nearby his small German town; he told me he can literally call out the window to one of those vendors just next door.
But whether someone is carrying trays of capacitors or steins of beer back and forth is less important than the quality of the resulting products. That quality is patently evident in the AVM Inspiration CS 2.3—real creative excellence. It is not inexpensive, but when you price out everything it does—DAC, streamer, CD player, line and phono preamp, amplifier, headphone amp—and how well it does it, the smallness of that number starts to impress. I’d like to give the CS 2.3 an award. Instead, I’ll reward myself: I’m buying the review sample, to use in the Apartment System. Gut gemacht, AVM!
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