64Audio A6t $1299 Review
February 5, 2019 Comments Off on 64Audio A6t $1299 Review
“Amongst the sea of sub-$2000 do-all in-ears in the market today, 64Audio’s A6t emerges as a true cut above – thriving on youthful zing, tonal finesse and an outstandingly solid midrange. While it boasts a similar liveliness as its peers, a unique physicality accompanies its rhythmic drive. Instruments are not only fun to listen to, but they’re tangible as well. Although it may lack the effortlessness and transparency of 64Audio’s monstrous flagships, the technology that’s trickled down onto the A6t ensures admirable performance at a fraction of the cost. With 3D-Fit and apex, you have yourselves one heck of a package. Whether on the go, on stage or behind the desk, the A6t unfailingly delivers punchy, accurate and refined audio. It may not necessarily be 64Audio’s poster child, but I smell a clear best-seller for years to come.”
Meet David and his very tall speakers
February 5, 2019 Comments Off on Meet David and his very tall speakers
Fluance RT84 turntable Review
February 5, 2019 Comments Off on Fluance RT84 turntable Review
“The RT84 would be a fine choice for your first turntable, or a nice upgrade over your first budget or hand me down turntable from your parents or relatives. You’ll be sure to notice how much quieter and clear all of your LPs and singles sound. Better yet when your music isn’t competing with the sound of clicks, pops, and other noises it sounds better. The RT84 frees the music from the LPs grooves, so you hear deeper into your tunes.
If the Fluance RT84’s price puts it out of reach, no worries, their RT81 at $249 is still an outstanding ‘table, a great way to dip into the wonderful world of analog audio, try it, you’ll like it.”
Qobuz
February 4, 2019 Comments Off on Qobuz
“Roon’s Radio Mode includes the Qobuz library and, of course, your own library (and Tidal’s if you also have a subscription). When Radio Mode is turned on, Roon continues to reach out on its own accord (an example of ‘machine learning’) to consecutively choose and play other tracks of music for you from among all libraries it has access to. One major way I took advantage of Radio Mode (in addition to personal selection and comparisons not using Radio Mode) was to have only the Qobuz library turned on for it; that way I was able to listen to an enormous sampling of Qobuz music—by just keeping Radio Mode on for hours at a time. If I wanted to change genre or another attribute, I could simply intervene and insert a chosen track to cause the music to drift in a new direction. As a reviewer, this was golden.”
Meze Empyrean $2999 Review
February 4, 2019 Comments Off on Meze Empyrean $2999 Review
“On initial impressions, the leather pads feel a bit more reference in their presentation and the detail is indeed excellent. I don’t honestly find the leather pad tonal alterations to produce a cold or clinical sound, an HD800 it is most certainly not.
However, With the leather pads, you get quite a neutral sound with a little more upper mid and lower treble emphasis which seems to jive with the perception of the Empyrean having a very linear and flat low-end to 1k frequency response. It sounds incredibly coherent but may lack a little warmth and body compared to the Alcantara pads juicier and more expansive presentation.”
Devialet Expert 220 Pro Integrated Amplifier Review
February 3, 2019 Comments Off on Devialet Expert 220 Pro Integrated Amplifier Review
“This is an exceptionally quiet amplifier whatever source is selected. Only when using the phono-stage did I ever hear any noise, though that is to be expected. All sources go through a choice of 24bit/96kHz or 24bit/192kHz digital stage, the heart or “intelligence” of the Pro as they refer to it, though at no time in my listening did I even consider this could degrade the sound. First listening was digital via the excellent Krell KPS20i CD player. Vincent Belanger “Pure Cello” is a beautiful CD, produced by Audio Note. This was an engaging performance. The solo cello playing was a positive and forceful performance without being over-powering or tiring. Indeed, all analogue sources I connected into the line input gave a positive performance in terms of accuracy of sound and covering all frequencies with a flat response. Listening to ‘Live at the Citadel’ from my friends The Enid was deep in bass yet top frequencies were equally detailed and clean, with a good sense of being there in the audience. I originally heard the band in the 1970’s and fell in love with the references to Rachmaninov in much of the music as well as the use of synthesiser. The soundstage was large and detailed, without sounding clinical. Listening to sources via USB and SPDif was equally detailed and spacious giving some of the best performances whether FLAC, WAV or DSD. Pat Metheny ‘The Way Up’ and the second track confusingly named “Part One” had a great top end and bass that was relaxed but authoritative. Similarly, Muse Resistance album and “Uprising” has a deep bass at the start which was clean and clinical, though no less enjoyable. Listening to Supertramp ‘Breakfast in America’ on CD the sound was noticeably digitised than when I play my vinyl version of the album. Interestingly, playing it from vinyl, which still goes through a 24/192 ADC, sounded superior. The Devialet performed well in all I played, whether analogue or digital, though vocals and mid-frequencies were more forward in the presentation. Indeed, whilst the Expert 220 Pro worked great with all types of music and instrumentation my only slight concerns as a critical reviewer was a very slight sibilance with some vocals (mainly female), and the sound lacking some warmth in performance.
Sonarworks Creates Headphone Correction App for Mobile Devices
February 3, 2019 Comments Off on Sonarworks Creates Headphone Correction App for Mobile Devices
“A few technical details: The True-Fi mobile app supports a range of file formats including MP3, WAV, AIFF, ALAC (for iOS) and MP3, WAV, Ogg Vorbis, and ACC (for Android); these encompass iTunes and Android content libraries. The highest supported sampling frequency depends on the processing power of the host hardware; iOS users can expect 96 kHz and higher, and Android can expect sampling frequencies up to 48 kHz. FLAC files, as well as higher sampling rates, will be supported in the future.
Customization and personalization of audio files is a new and growing market. It will be interesting to see how Sonarworks develops its technology to respond to this market’s needs.”
AUDIOQUEST NIAGARA 1000 POWER CONDITIONER
February 2, 2019 Comments Off on AUDIOQUEST NIAGARA 1000 POWER CONDITIONER
“When I switched the big ATC P2 power amp from the wall to the high power output on the Niagara, I got a very worthwhile increase in soundstage depth and width, with increased separation between instruments and no sense of dynamic compression; the former was expected, the latter a relief. It also seemed worthwhile to contrast the NRG Y3 with the Isotek EVO3 Premier I usually use on the amp. This did something very similar to the Niagara by calming and adding weight without undermining timing, a perceived reduction in volume level suggesting that distortion and noise had dropped.
The Innuos Zenith SE server should benefit from this sort of power conditioning and the Niagara did not disappoint. A veil was lifted from low level detail which opened up the room and further enhanced musicality, turning a good piece of music into an inspiring one. As a vinyl lover, it was necessary to see if the AudioQuest would improve the sound of my Rega RP8 turntable and Tom Evans Microgroove phono stage. Here the change was more subtle, and it mainly consisted of a slight darkening of the balance alongside a slight calming with quieter backgrounds. There was an improvement but not one that matched the price. ”
Audiophilepure 
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