YouTube Music arrives on all Sonos speakers
February 16, 2019 Comments Off on YouTube Music arrives on all Sonos speakers
“YouTube Music Premium (£10/month) offers ad-free music streaming as well as downloads for offline listening, while the £12-per-month YouTube Premium (formerly YouTube Red) subscription offers ad-free, background and offline viewing across all of YouTube, in addition to all YouTube Originals.
Naturally, owners of the smart Sonos One and Beam will be able to control playback of the YouTube streaming services through voice commands once Google Assistant arrives on the speakers, which should be very soon.”
Gold Note PA-1175 MkII solid-state stereo amplifier $6,295 Review
February 16, 2019 Comments Off on Gold Note PA-1175 MkII solid-state stereo amplifier $6,295 Review
“One last design characteristic must be addressed, and it is important enough to mention, though not technically a design flaw. The effort to make the amp balanced through and through – remember, even to the operations of the back panel – causes a logistical connection problem for speaker cables when the amp is in BTL mode. The red/positive posts only are used to connect the + and – leads of the speaker cables when the amp operates in BTL (Mono). There is a serious shortcoming, and the word “shortcoming” is a propos to describe the frustration of discovering that not a single speaker wire I have on hand had long enough leads to reach breach the approximately 14” gap between the two red posts!
I love stereo amps that go mono, but this issue drove me crazy! For some time I could not use the amps in BTL mode because the leads of the speaker cables would not stretch a necessary 15-16”. I had, just days before, returned the last of the TEO Audio Liquid speaker cables on loan following review – it figures, as they were the ones with individual positive and negative runs for each channel.”
Best Headphone Amps & DACs To Buy In 2019
February 16, 2019 Comments Off on Best Headphone Amps & DACs To Buy In 2019
Abyss AB-1266 Phi CC Edition Planar-Magnetic Headphone $4995 Review
February 15, 2019 Comments Off on Abyss AB-1266 Phi CC Edition Planar-Magnetic Headphone $4995 Review
“To appreciate what the Phi CC headphone does so well, try listening to a well-made live recording such as the track “Anabasis” from Dead Can Dance’s In Concert [PIAS America, 16/44.1], and note the adept way in which the headphone handles textural, transient, and spatial details in the music. “Anabasis” features a recurrent, very low frequency percussion motif juxtaposed against a shimmering and also recurrent treble percussion figure. The Phi CC Edition headphones beautifully capture the weight, depth, and incisive attack of the low-pitched drum being struck, while simultaneously rendering all the delicate, finely filigreed textures and harmonics of the higher percussion instruments. Perhaps best of all though, the headphone conveys the myriad low-level spatial cues (including subtle crowd noises, and stage and hall reverberations) that together give this track the uncannily realistic sound and “feel” of a live concert event. It’s this engaging and engrossing quality of vivid realism that sets the AB-1266 Phi CC Edition apart from competitors.”
ExaSound PlayPoint DM Review
February 15, 2019 Comments Off on ExaSound PlayPoint DM Review
“As I listened to Brenda Navarette’s album Mi Mundo (192/24), I experienced stunning realism and immediacy to this Cuban singer/percussionist’s performance – it left me grinning at the beauty of the recording. The sound spread beyond the outer borders of my speakers with excellent focus and clear reproduction of the voices and percussive instruments while always sounding natural and effortless. The dynamic qualities of the percussion and bass were reproduced with a transient quickness and impact that were a real treat for this listener.
One recording that will challenge the best of systems is Don Grusin’s live album The Hang; a 96/24 presentation that combines the musical skills of Don Grusin with a host of top-flight musicians including Patti Austin, Ernie Watts, and Sadao Watanabe. I decided to open up the volume level to allow me to feel the dynamic impact reproduced by my Wilson Alexia Series 2 speakers. If this recording sounds congested during the dynamic passages, it’s something in your system. The PlayPoint DM sailed through this album with a “you are there” presence with absolutely no layer congeal. There was terrific weight and slam to the bass and percussion with impressive reproduction of instrumental textures. The powerful rhythmic drive of many of the selections were reproduced with a lively, upbeat sound that was an absolute pleasure to experience.”
Joe Morello Take Five Solo | STUDY THE GREATS
February 14, 2019 Comments Off on Joe Morello Take Five Solo | STUDY THE GREATS
Luxman P-750u headphone amp Review
February 14, 2019 Comments Off on Luxman P-750u headphone amp Review
“To put the P-750u’s sound in perspective I brought out my reference headphone amp, the Pass Labs HPA-1 and listened again to the headphones. In every case the P-750u was the decisive winner. The sound was more freewheeling and energetic, dynamics punched harder, and treble detail was finer. I heard deeper into the recordings, so each instrument and vocal sounded more distinct. The HPA-1 sound was flatter in perspective, and while the music still sounded excellent I missed some of the P-750u’s joie de vivre.
The Luxman P-750u is an expensive component, but for deep-pocketed connoisseurs who have already amassed sizable headphone collections this amplifier will be a worthwhile investment. It will make every headphones sound better than ever, and the ability to switch between three pairs of headphones for easy comparisons can be a lot of fun. I asked Luxman if a more affordable amp is in the works, but alas the P-750u is it: It has no plans for other amps. It’s good to be rich.”
Gold Note IS-1000 Integrated Amplifier $5,000 Review
February 14, 2019 Comments Off on Gold Note IS-1000 Integrated Amplifier $5,000 Review
“Love it or hate it, the IS-1000 is equipped for decoding MQA files, and being on the “I like MQA” side of the fence, I’m glad that Gold Note left nothing out, especially considering the ROON endpoint capability makes it so easy to stream TIDAL files encoded in this format. Everything I tried, from the oldest classic rock tracks, to recently released faire proved sonically delicious.
Like the rest of the IS-1000, the digital and streaming options all worked without incident, and did not require consulting the owner’s manual. All wireless devices synced up without problem, and ROON quickly found the IS-1000 as an additional zone. Thanks to a recent firmware update, controlling volume in the digital domain is excellent, making it easy to control the volume of your streaming based system with no more than your laptop, phone or pad.”
United Home Audio UHA Ultima 4 Reel to Reel Tape Deck
February 13, 2019 Comments Off on United Home Audio UHA Ultima 4 Reel to Reel Tape Deck
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