UNIQUE MELODY MEST MKII REVIEW
October 29, 2021 Comments Off on UNIQUE MELODY MEST MKII REVIEW
For the MEST MKII, UM decided to implement upgraded metal vents for the dynamic driver and the MKII now has an improved sensitivity and response range. “How did UM do that?” you ask?
The UM MEST MKII uses a double sided piezoelectric bone conduction driver. This driver is placed in between 2 supporting plates. At the center of the driver you have the vibration board which is covered by a ceramic coating on both the front and the back. The bone conduction driver now has a larger contacting area with the shells (double sided contact) and as such you feel more of the bine conduction effect.
UM hasn’t touched the rest of the driver configuration compared to the original MEST. There’s a slight change in efficiency and sensitivity, but nothing spectacular.
Audiovector R1 Arreté Loudspeaker Review
October 29, 2021 Comments Off on Audiovector R1 Arreté Loudspeaker Review
AMT drivers manifest both horizontal and vertical dispersion similar to that of a small dome tweeter, but without the vertical dispersion issues of a ribbon, which requires a listener to be seated at precisely the same height as the transducer to get the superior detail that technology promises. Audiovector further improves its AMT driver by implementing the “Soundstage Enhancement Concept,” sending 30% of the tweeter’s energy backwards—through a long tube so there won’t be any negative interaction with the radiation to the front. There’s less compression and distortion. Klifoth declared proudly: “The technology creates openness, better harmonics, and a generally more lifelike presentation.” Well, of course, he’d say that: They’re his speakers. Time to report on my own experience with the R1 Arretés—and the experience of three other listeners especially qualified to have informed opinions about the Audiovector’s high-frequency reproduction.
The journey from idea to finished horn speaker design
October 29, 2021 Comments Off on The journey from idea to finished horn speaker design
THX Onyx DAC/Headphone Amplifier $199 Review
October 28, 2021 Comments Off on THX Onyx DAC/Headphone Amplifier $199 Review
https://www.soundandvision.com/content/thx-onyx-dac-headphone-amplifier-review
Competition? I had an AudioQuest Dragonfly Red, another $199 portable DAC/amp with MQA support, on hand. After running my playlist using all available DAC/headphone combinations, I concluded both were capable of clean playback at loud levels and could easily handle dynamic musical passages such as the drums-heavy final 30 seconds of Anouar Brahem’s jazz/world-music jam “Bahia.” Where the Onyx differed was in its slightly wider, more layered spatial presentation—something that bodes well for the portable gaming and movie-viewing THX touts for its DAC.
Scansonic M20 Loudspeaker Review
October 28, 2021 Comments Off on Scansonic M20 Loudspeaker Review
https://www.hifinews.com/content/scansonic-m20-loudspeaker
Fed with the familiar symphonic work-out that is Britten’s ‘Young Person’s Guide To The Orchestra’, here played by the Kansas City Symphony Orchestra under conductor Michael Stern [from Britten’s Orchestra, Reference Recordings RR-120SACD], the strength of these Scansonic speakers is in the detail they bring out in the various instrumental groups, and their speed and lightness of touch. But as the great final fugue builds to its climax, one can’t help but want for a bit more grunt and scale.
That said, these speakers don’t need massive amplifier power to do their stuff. With a Supernait 3 integrated from Naim, which admittedly falls below the lower limit of Scansonic’s suggestion, they were easily capable of going more than loud enough with no signs of stress, while still sounding both open and dynamic.
RAAL-requisite HSA-1b headphone Review
October 26, 2021 Comments Off on RAAL-requisite HSA-1b headphone Review
As a reviewer-prattler, I endeavor to discover and advocate only those products I believe advance the cause of deep listening. Whenever I discover a “deep listening” product that sounds a lot better than its competition, I am obliged to stand up, applaud loudly, and declare its excellence. To that end:
In my 100-year-old-Herb view, RAAL-requisite’s SR1a pure ribbon Earfield Monitors, connected with RAAL’s optional SR728 silver cable to RAAL’s new HSA-1b headphone and speaker amplifier, represent the cutting edge of what is currently possible in high-resolution audio reproduction. And, in case you hadn’t noticed: RAAL-requisite’s style and coolosity factors are off the charts.
Audes ST3000 Review
October 26, 2021 Comments Off on Audes ST3000 Review
https://stereo-magazine.com/review/audes-st3000-review
In conjunction with the setup found in our small STEREO listening room, using the Audes „Isolator“ paid off immediately. While a stoic silence was being built up in the background, the actual sound stage seemed bigger, more spacious, more open and airy. Quite interestingly – and I had not necessarily expected this – it was also more dynamic, even in the bass! This even stayed true when a very powerful amp like the Musical Fidelity M8xi was in play; or even a 2 x 1000 watt THX power amp like the QSC USA 1310, sitting in the editor‘s home theater. Here, I would have expected overdamping, but Audes is actually even equipped for such an extreme task. While being ideal for sources, it is thus also suitable for larger voltage-consumers. Mastering very large Class A mono power amplifiers – or two QSC mono in a bridged setup (2620 watts sine into 8 ohms) – is something I would not have necessarily expect of it, but that also applies to other “power conditioners”.
This toroidal, balanced isolation transformer thus seems to be the uncompromising one-way solution that can help a system have more legroom thanks to interference decoupling. Taking it away from your setup is even more severe than the sonic progress achieved when implementing it; because you actually don‘t want to do without the Audes anymore – and the step back really hurts. It‘s not a cheap device, but should absolutely be recommended for excellent hi-fi chains!
Susvara vs. SR-009 – Battle of the Aging Flagships
October 26, 2021 Comments Off on Susvara vs. SR-009 – Battle of the Aging Flagships
Balanced Audio Technology VK-3500 Integrated Amplifier REVIEW
October 25, 2021 Comments Off on Balanced Audio Technology VK-3500 Integrated Amplifier REVIEW
It can be difficult to stand in out in the crowd when it comes to full-featured integrated amplifiers from well-known high-end audio manufacturers, high-performance units that claim to offer the sound quality of most separates at any given price point. It becomes more difficult once we cross the five-figure threshold like the Balanced Audio Technology VK-3500. You want more than a box with lots of lights and knobs for that kind of money. You want great sound.
Even the marketing copy on the BAT website suggests that you try finding separates for the same price as the VK-3500—we’re talking $6000 preamps and $6000 power amps—that can out-perform it. I’d accept that challenge, but my enthusiasm would immediately wane once you bring that phono stage into the contest. I’m not sure how much I would pay for this phono stage in an outboard version, with a presumably nice chassis and a separate power supply and perhaps with more access to gain and loading options, but it would be enough to qualify the VK-3500 as a superb value.
I’ll probably look back on my experience with the Balanced Audio Technology VK-3500 integrated amplifier and first remember the quirky phono stage, and how it qualifies as one of the finest inboard phono stages I’ve heard. But I’ll also remember how the BAT handled everything else, with extraordinary poise and just a shade of velvet.
Audiophilepure 
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