YG Acoustics Hailey 2.2 Loudspeaker $46,800 Review
December 11, 2020 Comments Off on YG Acoustics Hailey 2.2 Loudspeaker $46,800 Review
http://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/yg-acoustics-hailey-22-loudspeaker/
The Hailey 2.2 is a musically expressive, revealing speaker capable of deep-reaching, tuneful bass and agile, wide-ranging dynamics. It creates focused images within an expansive soundstage into which the speakers sonically disappear as sound sources. It reproduces power musiclike grand orchestral passages and hard-driving rock very well, as is also the case with subtle solo acoustic works (and all other kinds of music, for that matter). The Hailey is the lowest-priced model in YG’s line to offer all of the company’s defining engineering features except the cabinet-in-cabinet enclosures found in all the models above it. As such, it is a compelling way for listeners to enjoy most of YG’s technology at a significantly lower price. It is a fine example of trickle-down technology yielding good results. The Hailey 2.2 deserves to be on your audition short list at its price level. Another fine loudspeaker from YG and another recommendation.

PARASOUND A23+ STEREO POWER AMPLIFIER $1595 REVIEW
December 11, 2020 Comments Off on PARASOUND A23+ STEREO POWER AMPLIFIER $1595 REVIEW
“Parasound’s tradition of offering good quality and high value audio components continues in the A23+ amplifier. This amplifier is well built and looks stylish with its gold accent lines and lettering. In general, the sonic attributes of the A23+ score highly in my scorecard. The A23+ delivers neutral-character vivid sounds with excellent dynamics. Sonic presentation seems well balanced across the audible frequency spectrum with extended treble and punchy bass. It is capable of portraying satisfying soundstage too. While the A23+ may not be the best in every respect, it can deliver well above average in all aspects of the sonic performance. Overall, the A23+ amplifier brings a lot of value to the table that easily justifies its $1595 price tag. This amplifier should be on the audition list for someone who is in the market for sub $2000 stereo amplifier.”


Denafrips Terminator-Plus R-2R ladder DAC
December 11, 2020 Comments Off on Denafrips Terminator-Plus R-2R ladder DAC
PMC twenty5.26i Loudspeaker £8495 Review
December 10, 2020 Comments Off on PMC twenty5.26i Loudspeaker £8495 Review
https://www.hifinews.com/content/pmc-twenty526i-loudspeaker
AC/DC’s ‘It’s A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock ‘N’ Roll)’ [High Voltage; EMI 494 6712] does not have the holographic imaging of other compositions, but while the speaker did not have to dig deep, neither did its midrange driver gloss over the distorted guitar riffs, retaining the distinctive layering. The wide soundstage also stood out, with Malcolm and Angus Young’s guitar parts enjoying a breadth that mirrors their on-stage setup.
There’s a cohesive nature to the twenty5.26i’s performance that’s addictive. The effect is that you can lose the sense you’re listening to a set of speakers, the sextet of drivers instead forming a balanced, even whole, from pure-sounding bass at the bottom to grit-free highs.

AirPods Max hands-on: New noise-canceling king
December 10, 2020 Comments Off on AirPods Max hands-on: New noise-canceling king
Thorens TD 1601 Turntable £3000 Review
December 10, 2020 Comments Off on Thorens TD 1601 Turntable £3000 Review
https://www.hifinews.com/content/thorens-td-1601-turntable
Playing ‘The Dance’ from The Cinematic Orchestra’s soundtrack The Crimson Wing [Walt Disney Records 050087443269] was a joy to behold, with percussion leaping enthusiastically from the loudspeakers. Behind this, the double-bass was appropriately fruity and fulsome and, when The London Metropolitan Orchestra’s strings came in, they soared magnificently.
The TD 1601 has a lovely sense of depth and scale. It may not quite pull performers out into the room in the manner of some rivals, but it conveys good atmosphere, which fills the space between and behind the loudspeakers well.

Rotel Michi M8 Mono Power Ampiifier £5399 (each) Review
December 9, 2020 Comments Off on Rotel Michi M8 Mono Power Ampiifier £5399 (each) Review
https://www.hifinews.com/content/rotel-michi-m8-mono-power-ampiifier
Whether with powering guitars and pounding bass and drums, or delicate solo and small-ensemble music, these amps are entirely in their element, as evident when falling back on an old audiophile favourite, the Antonio Forcione/Sabina Sciubba version of ‘Why Can’t We Live Together’ [Meet Me In London; Naim cd021].
The sheer focus of the sound is breathtaking, from the openness of Sciubba’s voice to each strike on string or tap on the body of Forcione’s guitar, and the subtle additions of percussion. It has probably been demonstrated to death, but in the hands of the Michi P5 preamp and M8 monoblocks it still has the wherewithal to tingle and show what made it so special.



Wadax • Atlantis Reference Digital-to-Analog Converter $145,000
December 9, 2020 Comments Off on Wadax • Atlantis Reference Digital-to-Analog Converter $145,000
http://www.theaudiobeat.com/equipment/wadax_atlantis_reference.htm
In playing these three, very different renditions, the system’s ability to capture not just the notes, their amplitude and pitch, attack and sustain, but also the gaps the player leaves between them, is paramount. Such is the temporal precision of the Wadax Reference, the clarity with which it places and spaces notes, that the yawning chasm in the expressive range that separates Uchida’s sensitive, exquisitely weighted and deeply emotive performance, from the smooth color-scape of Perahia or Lisiecki’s fireworks displays, matches the artistic separation you experience hearing these performers live, reflecting both personal preference and who you’d choose — or pay good money — to see and hear in concert. Do we really need another set of Beethoven Piano Concertos? When the performance delivers such depth of musical and emotional insight — and when we have replay systems capable of revealing that insight — then the answer is definitely “Yes.” Hearing Uchida playing these familiar pieces through the Wadax Atlantis Reference Transport and Reference DAC is an experience that not only shows them in a new light, but engages you with the full power and emotional range of those original performances. The overall temporal, dynamic and musical coherence of the musIC process has always brought impressive communicative qualities to the Wadax products. But combine it with the black silence, dynamic potential, tonal range and absolute stability of the Reference DAC’s operating environment and you have the basis for natural musical reproduction that is, in audio terms, unprecedented — something that moves us demonstrably closer to the original event.


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