FENDER FXA9 $1.299 REVIEW
August 8, 2018 Comments Off on FENDER FXA9 $1.299 REVIEW
“From the A&Futura SE100, the FXA9 sounds smoother and clearly has a touch of warmth all over. Bass is a bit thicker but it’s also slower and less detailed/layered. The presentation of the mids is smoother and that actually goes for bass and treble as well. It’s an easy to listen to combo but you don’t get the sound stage, spaciousness and separation the SP1000 and FXA9 combo brings. It’s still a balanced FXA9 but it’s more relaxed and soft. I myself prefer the more energetic signature the FXA9 delivers from the SP1000.”
DYNAUDIO CONTOUR 30 FLOORSTANDING LOUDSPEAKER REVIEW
August 7, 2018 Comments Off on DYNAUDIO CONTOUR 30 FLOORSTANDING LOUDSPEAKER REVIEW
“The joy of the Contour 30 is it is perfectly designed to work precisely where it should work: in mid-sized rooms. The loudspeaker is large enough to physically and sonically dominate small rooms, and is probably just not quite loudspeaker enough in really big rooms, but in a medium sized room it works nigh-on perfectly. I can’t help but think of Goldilocks and the Three Bearshere. In a smaller room, if you want this performance, go with a Special Forty or a Contour 20 (but probably the Special Forty) and in a bigger room, possibly go for the Contour 60 or the C2 Platinum. That’s the other secret joy of Dynaudio – the company has nailed consistency. There’s no batch variation in individual models, and the individual models have a consistent sound through the ranges. Many brands make that claim and some achieve that goal with a smaller and more high-end portfolio. Dynaudio smashes this one out of the park – if you like the sound of the bigger or smaller models but have a room that’s too small or too big, the Contour 30 fits. If you think this sounds like faint praise, guess again.”
SweetVinyl | SC1- Vinyl Noise Remover
August 7, 2018 Comments Off on SweetVinyl | SC1- Vinyl Noise Remover
Audio-Technica ATH-ADX5000 Headphones $1999
August 5, 2018 Comments Off on Audio-Technica ATH-ADX5000 Headphones $1999
“In his “Conclusion,” Brent declared: “I think Audio-Technica put themselves back among the top players in audiophile headphones — something that hasn’t really been true since the rise of ambitious audiophile-focused competitors such as Audeze and HiFiMan.” The ATH-ADX5000s are “sonically competitive with anything on the market up to at least $3000,” he said; “if you’re looking for high-end open-back headphones, they’re a must-hear.” Appropriately enough, with the ATH-ADX5000s, Audio-Technica is now included in our list of Recommended Reference Components for the very first time.”
SHUNYATA RESEARCH DENALI D6000/T POWER DISTRIBUTOR REVIEW
August 5, 2018 Comments Off on SHUNYATA RESEARCH DENALI D6000/T POWER DISTRIBUTOR REVIEW
” Alongside the CCI filters, the Denali also sports a patented ‘QR/BB’ dynamic enhancement. Typically, a power conditioner stores some power in capacitors, chokes, or coils. This is available to the devices that use the conditioner, but big ‘pulls’ on power delivery from the wall are not completely instantaneous as a result. This is why many power conditioners got short shrift with users of big power amplifiers, or – paradoxically – smaller power amps with stiff power supplies that give a taut, fast rhythm. In the first case, a power conditioner can seem to dynamically compress the sound, in the latter it acts to slow it down. Not here, though”
Woo Audio WA33 Balanced Headphone Amplifier $15,000 Review
August 4, 2018 Comments Off on Woo Audio WA33 Balanced Headphone Amplifier $15,000 Review
“There have been several songs that have been thrown to the zeitgeist of audiophile tracks as references for music that fully represents entire spectrum of sound for testing purposes. During a tour of Harmen’s testing facilities in California, researcher Sean Olive expressed a nomination for Tracy Chaplin’s Fast Car. While not the most uplifting song every penned, it does a fine job as an amplifier illuminator. Though the WA33 the polished dynamics of the tube driven amp really laid the foundation for a capability to be drawn into the music. The bass was so supportive of the rest of the mix, the overall presentation sounded accurate, but also fun. If one was to break down the feeling into more certain terms, you could look at two separate, but intertwined ideas. 1. its relaxed 2. its intimate. This Woo isn’t relaxed in the sense that it has opened its grip on transparency, control or otherwise, but rather it finds a balance between the analytical nature of pureform detail pass-along and the slowly creeping edge of overpopulating the notion of information presentation. It’s the emotional equivalent of someone saying “relax, we got this” before coordinating a game winning play. There both confidence and authority in the delivery. The intimacy is derived from a robust tonal structure that fills in the lost spaces between reality and recreation. T
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UNIQUE MELODY MENTOR V3 REVIEW
August 4, 2018 Comments Off on UNIQUE MELODY MENTOR V3 REVIEW
“The highs on these have a small peak in the lower treble region, really bringing out cymbal crashes. The are smooth in the transition between mids and highs though, being free from sibilance. The highs are well presented and extended, I do not find them lacking, but the sound of the Mentor V3 definitely leans towards a fuller and more engaging sound. There is plenty of detail up top, and the timbre is spot on, it is so easy to tell the different parts of drum kits apart with these. The highs never get muddled when it comes to complex tracks; they are always there to bring out a bit of excitement in the music.”
Mojo Audio Deja Vu Music Server with Roon
August 4, 2018 Comments Off on Mojo Audio Deja Vu Music Server with Roon
“But five years is a long time in the digital world. Much has happened. I did see and listen to various new alternatives including NUCs (‘Next Unit of Computing’ mini-computers) which were smaller, lighter, typically less expensive, and more energy efficient than a Mac mini. Like a Mac mini, a NUC is ‘headless’, e.g., you do not need to connect a monitor or keyboard to it except for setting it up with software and such. Once set up, controlling music play is accomplished by using a wirelessly connected app on a mobile device or tablet. I also checked out serious commercial high-end music servers, and I have been impressed at times. Suffice to say it has become clear that the Mac mini is on the way out; there are quite a number of alternatives.
Elac Miracord 70 Review
August 3, 2018 Comments Off on Elac Miracord 70 Review
“Its presentation’s openness should be highlighted again here, as it greatly helps coherence and even makes the Clearaudio sound a little penned-in.So while the Elac does need a bit more subtlety and rhythmic insight if it’s to reach the full five stars, it’s fair to say it would happily slip into most systems and offer an enjoyable, insightful vinyl session.”
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Hifiman’s $999 Ananda Review
August 3, 2018 Comments Off on Hifiman’s $999 Ananda Review
“To finish up, I plugged the Ananda into my iPhone 6S’ headphone jack, where I streamed Tidal FLAC files. I wasn’t expecting much, but the sound was very decent. With M. Geddes Gengras’ Hawaiki Tapes album of synth driven ambient music the Ananda projected a massive sound that surrounded my head!”
Audiophilepure 
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