High-End Audio And Audiophile Hi-Fi Stereo And Immersivephile Review Magazine By Enjoy the Music.com

High-End Audio / Audiophile / Immersivephile Hi-Fi Equipment Reviews And Think Pieces

December 2021

Enjoy the Music.com's Great Holiday Gift Guide 2021
We want you to support audiophile companies this holiday season.
Article By Steven R. Rochlin
Welcome one and all to Enjoy the Music.com's 16th annual Great Audiophile Gift recommendations! We all love gifts, yet getting that something special for an audiophile can be quite a challenge. This year we're doing something extra special to benefit the industry. Usually, we have our recommendations, with links to Amazon where, yes, we received the typical (low) associate fee. Well, it was time to do something... different.
---> Enjoy the Music.com's Great Holiday Gift Guide 2021.

Rick Becker's Holiday Gift Guide 2021
The Elite 8
Eight special holiday gifts for audiophiles.
Article By Rick Becker
One of my biggest pleasures of the year is to look back at the products I've reviewed or seen at shows and make suggestions for Holiday Gifts for your beloved audiophile. Unfortunately, some of these require special knowledge or data such as the size and value of fuses, so they won't qualify as surprise gifts but I strongly believe they will be treasured nonetheless.
---> Rick Becker's Holiday Gift Guide 2021.

Enjoy the Music.com Sponsors AudioCon LA 2022 Exhibitor / Press Party
Enjoy the Music.com, high-end audio's celebrated online site for over 26 years and a leader in providing industry news, hardware reviews, and show reports, is pleased to announce that we're sponsoring AudioCon Los Angeles' (AudioConLA) Thursday night Industry Happy Hour! Show exhibitors and members of the press are invited to join us at the hotel lobby bar for drinks, music, and good times. The Los Angeles and Orange County Audio Society are pleased to welcome you to the premiere of AudioConLA, a world-class international high-end audio show organized under the direction of Sarah Tremblay and Michel Plante, the successful duo behind Montreal Audiofest and Toronto Audiofest.
---> Enjoy the Music.com Sponsors AudioCon LA 2022.

Capital Audiofest (CAF) 2021 Show Report
Capital Audiofest is recognized as a fun, friendly, and family-oriented show where you often see families strolling from room to room listening to music and auditioning gear. You can also browse the multiple bins of vinyl LP records, CDs, and hi-fi accessories in the Atrium Marketplace. During CAF there are wonderful live music events too!
---> See our Capital Audiofest 2021 show coverage.

Hi-Fi And Music Industry News
Essential high-end audio news you need to know.
Enjoy the Music.com posts audiophile news virtually every day.

Are Your Ears Good Enough?
Roger Skoff answers the question.
Article By Roger Skoff
Somebody recently wrote within one of the Facebook audiophile groups to ask if, before going to all the effort and expense of putting together a good high-end audio system, people ought to have their ears checked to find out if they can hear well enough to make it worthwhile. Does that sound reasonable to you? Another thing about ears and hearing that's happened to me more times than I can count, and that I suspect has probably happened to you, too, is that I've mentioned – or even played – a recording or some hi-fi product or even a full audio system to a non-audiophile friend, and had him tell me something like " I'm sure that's fine for you, a golden-eared hi-fi buff, but I'm just an ordinary person, so I (whichever the case may be) didn't / couldn't / probably wouldn't hear the difference."
---> Are Your Ears Good Enough?

Turntable Lab: 10 Questions For Peter Hahn
Peter Hahn, owner And founder Of Turntable Lab in New York City, joins us for 10 questions about vinyl and the state of the industry.
Review By Ian White
If you shop for records, DJ equipment, HiFi equipment, or turntable accessories online, you've probably spent some time on the Turntable Lab website. After more than 20 years, the online retailer has a global customer base who love their selection of products, and value their expertise and customer service. As a customer, I've always been drawn to their music section that offers records you don't often see for sale on sites like Music Direct or Acoustic Sounds. Turntable Lab's Peter Hahn explains how the company started and offers up some thoughts on the future of vinyl.
---> Turntable Lab: 10 Questions For Peter Hahn.

High Five For Hi-Fi!
An introduction to hi-fi for people who love music.
Video By Emiko
Emiko, a.k.a. ThatHiFiGirl and eCoustics (one of Enjoy the Music.com's online partners) have joined together on a new video series aiming to connect with the next generation of music lovers, audiophiles and hi-fi enthusiasts. Our goal is to inform, entertain and attract an entirely new audience that appreciates music, but is not quite sure how to begin its journey. In our inaugural episode, Emiko covers the basics of what it means to be an audiophile and what "hi-fi" actually means. Future episodes will cover the building blocks of putting together a high-end system and how new listeners can actually have fun on their journey. That is allowed. Fun.
---> High Five For Hi-Fi!

The Audio Analyst Episode 61
Guilty Treasures: Supertramp Crime of the Century.
Video By Greg Weaver
Greg Weaver's The Audio Analyst first appeared during 1988 as the title of a small, high-end audio publication that he founded that same year. As many Enjoy the Music.com readers know, Greg Weaver has been involved within the high-performance audio industry for more than five decades. This episode features Supertramp's 1974 extraordinary Crime of the Century, which is somehow today one of the most overlooked, underrated, and slighted albums from its era. To my ears and mind, "Crime" unquestionably represents the zenith of the bands' efforts, their unparalleled Magnum Opus. Today, I am excited to introduce you to the unbridled brilliance of this defining, straight-ahead art-rock masterpiece.
---> The Audio Analyst: Supertramp Crime of the Century.

Raidho TD 3.8 Floorstanding Loudspeaker Review
Wonderfully cohesive and engaging.
Review By Dr. Matthew Clott
The art of weaving pros allows us to convey description, imagery, opinion, impression, and emotion. Yet Raidho's TD 3.8 floorstanding loudspeaker, as reviewed here, lends itself to the elegance of the solitary word; my notes are awash with them.... "Behold, Shimmer, Brilliant, Wow, Delicious, Holographic, Cohesive, Decompressive." I think I made up the last one, but I'll explain later.... Raidho, as a company, has gone through some changes. The Raidho of old has matured, retaining much of the DNA of its' previous incarnation while looking to the future with a redefined path. This metamorphosis has resulted in some voicing changes and a slightly different design philosophy yet retained the passion for physical beauty and all-out audiophile performance without restrictions.
---> Raidho TD 3.8 Floorstanding Loudspeaker Review.

Primus Inter Pares:
Audionet's Category Smashing HUMBOLDT Integrated Amplifier Review
First amongst equals.
Review By Maurice Jeffries
If review beginnings also function as narrative endings, let me begin this review with a simple summative declaration: Audionet's stunning HUMBOLDT integrated amplifier re-imagines from the ground up how to design a modern integrated amplifier and recalibrates our expectations of what such a device can deliver musically. Boasting unparalleled build quality, a superb set of user interface features, and transformative sound quality, this super-integrated argues without equivocation that the best single-box amp-preamp solutions need not compromise on sound quality compared to similarly priced separates. In the universe of expensive integrated amplifiers, HUMBOLDT sits amongst its peers as a primus inter pares device of extraordinary ability.
---> Audionet HUMBOLDT Integrated Amplifier Review.

Naim Audio Solstice Turntable System Review
A great turntable package!
Review By Alan Sircom
It's a little strange that for all its importance in vinyl replay over its first 48 years as a manufacturer, Naim Audio has never made a turntable. Sure, there have been power supplies, phono stages, and even the Aro tonearm, and yes... a heavily modified turntable or two were bounced around the Salisbury-based company's 'skunkworks'. But a company that was one of the two defining vinyl brands for more than a generation of music lovers never made a turntable; until the Summer of 2021. Solstice is that first complete turntable from Naim Audio, a 500 turntable run special edition turn-key package launched – as befits the name – on the Summer Solstice (Naim's Salisbury HQ is precisely 2.5 metric Druids from Stonehenge, and sometimes that rubs off in moments of uncontrollable tie-dye).
---> Naim Audio Solstice Turntable System Review.

Meze Audio Elite Masterpiece Open Back Headphones Review
Meze's Elite headphones are a heavyweight champion in performance!
Review By Frank Iacone
Antonio Meze leader designer and founder of Meze started ten years ago with a simple headphone design that took the country by storm. The year following they began working with Rinaro Isodynamic located in Ukraine whom for over 30 years had been working on completing their hybrid array technology. Meze's Empyrean was the first to use the technology and received worldwide awards for best-sounding headphones when it hit the market. Priced at $2999, and still available, it is regarded as one of the best sounding and most comfortable headphones. Three years in development the Elite has many of the same features as the Empyrean with a more refined and new Rinaro designed driver.
---> Meze Audio Elite Headphones Review.

Euphony Audio Summus Endpoint Review
How do you improve upon digital perfection?
Review By Tom Gibbs
From late 2019 into 2020, my personal life was an absolute shambles, mostly due to a seemingly never-ending series of health crises that quite nearly took me down with them. The only really positive thing (besides living through it all!) that kept me grounded in my audiophile reality was the arrival of the Euphony Summus Server. Which amazingly took an almost five-year process from my first contact with Euphony's DaliborKasac — at the point when he first reached out to me, I didn't really completely know what digital file streaming was about. But I must give him credit: Dalibor — if anything — was definitely persistent! Getting the Summus was an absolute godsend; the absence of the recently departed Sonore Signature Optical Rendu streamer had left a rather gaping hole in my system's audiophile credibility.
---> Euphony Audio Summus Endpoint Review.

Cyrus One HD Int. Amplifier / DAC Review
The Cyrus One HD Integrated Amplifier is not inexpensive at $1,500 but nobody said that great sound quality would be cheap either.
Review By W. Jennings
Cyrus is a very interesting British audio manufacturer that doesn't receive a lot of press coverage in North America; a reality that is starting to change because it's hard to keep a secret for over thirty years. Very much like Croft Acoustics; another British manufacturer with a cult following, Cyrus have been engineering some of the best hi-fi in the world for over 30 years but without a lot of fanfare. The British press fall over themselves to review their extensive range of products and it's rare to see any component not receive a "rave" review. The Cyrus One HD Integrated Amplifier hopes to continue that streak. I have owned and enjoyed an original Cyrus One in the past so when a press tour of the new One HD was announced, I requested that I be included.
---> Cyrus One HD Int. Amplifier / DAC Review.

Bowers & Wilkins 805 D4 Standmounted Monitor Speaker Review
The latest generation of the British company's flagship speaker series is here; Ed Shelly has set about the smallest member of the range to see what makes it tick.
Review By Ed Shelly
The 800 Series has long occupied a unique place in high-end audio. Such is the market share that Bowers & Wilkins has of the total sales of speakers in this price category that the models that result enjoy both a ubiquity and economy of scale nothing else can really match. Insofar as a 'normal' member of the public can envisage a high end speaker, it's generally the 800 Series that springs to mind. For those more familiar with the high-end category, the 800 Series still holds considerable interest as a demonstration of design features Bowers & Wilkins will no doubt trickle down its range in due course and are likely to influence other manufacturers, too.
---> Bowers & Wilkins 805 D4 Monitor Review.

Nucleus+ Core Unit And XLCR Power Supply Review
Roon: A Short Story
Martin Colloms has become a Roon convert – Here he charts his path to 'Roonification'; using the company's Nucleus+ Core unit.
Review By Martin Colloms
I'd encountered Roon music playing and cataloguing software on a few occasions, as well as its predecessor, the Sooloos music storage and handling system, with its attractive graphical presentations of tracks, artwork and music cataloguing. Acquired by Meridian some years ago as the heart of its streaming solution, Sooloos was later spun off as a separate company, eventually becoming Roon in 2015. But the heart of the system has remained: an informative, easy to use music management system, based on extended metadata and intelligent cataloguing of content. It has seen several iterations bringing it to the present level of refinement – in fact to a level where I felt that I just had to try it out.
---> Nucleus+ Core Unit & XLCR PS Review.

World Premiere Review!
AGD Tempo di GaN Stereo Amplifier Review
Worthy of the highest recommendation.
Review By Rick Becker
Alberto Guerra took a dive into high-end audio using his background in the development of GaNFET transistors as his springboard to success. In bold strokes he premiered his Avant-Garde style Vivace monoblock putting out 100 Watts into 8 Ohms, 200 Watts into 4, and the Art Deco-like simulated tube design of The Audion, another monoblock putting out 85 Watts into 8 Ohms and 170 Watts into 4 Ohms. The clever ploy of inserting the power modules into the glass of vacuum tubes and featuring them prominently in his designs, allowed for easy user upgradeability when new power circuits were developed. And indeed, one was developed two years later. Pull out the old tube; plug in the new one. Suddenly you have a new, improved amplifier at a relatively small cost with a boost of power and an increase in sound quality.
---> AGD Tempo di GaN Stereo Amplifier Review.

Aavik R-180 Phono Preamplifier Review
Born To Invent: It seems as if Michael Borresen was born with a special passion for tinkering and inventing. With his smallest phono preamplifier Aavik R-180, he impressively demonstrates this once again.
Review By Michael Lang
Finally, something different! That was my first impression when taking a look at the new devices from Danish manufacturer Aavik. They are more compact than what we are used to from hi-fi and high-end and have only three buttons, but feature numerous curves and a housing that is not bursting with aluminum. The value of a device is not measured by its looks and its weight at Aavik. Instead, the design is Scandinavian in its straightforwardness and simplicity – not wholly without a reason, though, as we will discover later. In addition, a large display with red letters, which of course can be dimmed or switched off, is to be found. It even allows older listeners to recognize the selected settings from a distance. By the way, the two larger models R-280 and R-580 are characterized by the same simplicity.
---> Aavik R-180 Phono Preamplifier Review.

North America Premiere Review!
Lindemann Limetree Network II Music Streamer
An island in the stream.
Review By Paul Schumann
Streaming is the last frontier of high-end audio, or so I've been told. This is critically important, and so here we're reviewing Lindemann's Limetree Network II music streamer. As reported within Enjoy the Music.com, streaming has already conquered mainstream audio with an 84% revenue share. But we audiophiles are a picky bunch. I have dipped my big toe in the audio stream a couple of times, with disappointing results. Both times, I used my laptop connected to my beloved ifi micro iDSD. The first time I used Spotify, the second time I used Tidal. Both times I found the sound lacking in sparkle and involvement. Based on those experiences, I concluded that, while I might use a streaming service to casually listen to music using my phone, I would probably never use it for serious music listening.
---> Lindemann Limetree Network II Music Streamer Review.

Klipsch Cornwall IV Floorstanding Loudspeaker Review
James Michael Hughes ends his thirty-year quest for a dream loudspeaker with this distinctive design....
Review By James Michael Hughes
Klipsch introduced the Cornwall as far back as 1959. It began life as a centre-speaker for use with the big corner-placed Klipschorns in stereo. Of course, it could also be used singly as a mono speaker on its own or as a pair in stereo. It remained in production for the next thirty years or so, albeit with changes and upgrades to drive units, crossover and cabinet. Discontinued in 1990, the speaker then returned to the Klipsch range in 2006 as the Cornwall III. The considerably revised Cornwall IV reviewed here was released in August 2019. The name Cornwall derives from the speaker's suitability to be placed in a corner or against a wall, rather than being a tribute to a popular holiday destination in England.
---> Klipsch Cornwall IV Floorstanding Loudspeaker Review.

Davis Acoustics Courbet No.7 Loudspeaker Review
Birthday celebration!
Review By Neven Kos
Exactly 35 years ago, Michel Visan decided to establish his own production of speaker units. Having spent a certain amount of time in Audax, Visan joins the French manufacturer Siare Acoustique in 1968, in which he spent seven years as a developer and then technical director. When Siare passed into the hands of Harman, Visan left in 1986. and found Davis Acoustic. Davis Acoustic was one of the first companies to start using Kevlar, carbon and glass fiber in making speaker units, so the first product of the year of incorporation was a bass/medium with a Kevlar membrane, marked 13KVL5A. After producing only speaker units and kits for several years, in 1993, they were launched their first loudspeaker system on the market: Davis Acoustics DK200.
---> Davis Acoustics Courbet No.7 Loudspeaker Review.

Living Sound Audio Discovery Warp 1 Stereo Amplifier Review
One of the best, if not the best, amplifiers in its price range… full stop.
Review By Gary Alan Barker
iving Sounds Audio (LSA) has really brought Class-D amplification to a new level with their epic LSA Discovery Warp 1 which is rated at 150 Watts per channel into 8Ω and 250 Watts into 4Ω, is stable down to 2Ω. Furthermore, the Warp 1 has a prodigious peak current output of 17 amps per channel. All of this power out of a small 14" wide x 10" deep x 3" high package with distortion as low as 0.0027% and a stunning 115dB Dynamic Range and -119dBV noise floor. As you can guess, when Walter Liederman of Underwood HiFi offered to ship me a review sample to test out, I jumped at the chance.
---> LSA Discovery Warp 1 Stereo Amplifier Review.

Bluesound Pulse Flex 2i And Pulse Mini 2i
Early Takes
The Bluesound Pulse Flex 2i and Pulse Mini 2i are already proving to be worthy alternatives to the Sonos One SL system in my kitchen.
Review By Ian White
When One of the most frequently asked questions that I receive involves my opinion on the best affordable wireless loudspeakers. Most people don't know that they're being slightly annoying when they ask it — because they already know what the answer is in their head and I'm apparently just there for validation. Everyone assumes that I going to say something like the Sonos One SL. Much to their dismay this Chanukah, I'm going to suggest the Bluesound Pulse Flex 2i or Pulse Mini 2i instead.
---> Bluesound Pulse Flex 2i And Pulse Mini 2i Review.

Wells Audio Cipher DAC Review
Excellent subjective performance, great imaging, plus superb detail!
Review By Sam Rosen
My journey in high end audio started with Digital to Analog converters (DACs). The first piece of audio gear I bought was a Yulong D100 DAC/Headphone amplifier. Since then I have listened to 30+ different high end DACs ranging from $100 to $25,000+. During this process, I discovered that my personal tastes lean towards DACs that are neutral or neutral warm. It is rare that I want components in my system to be truly neutral. Typically, I like warmer sounding systems. I like things that make your toes tap, and while neutral is good, I also tend to find neutral boring.
---> Wells Audio Cipher DAC Review.

Vertere Techno Mat Review
A change almost comparable to a significant cartridge upgrade.
Review By Martin Colloms
Call me a mat sceptic: it's not that I am against accessory mats but rather that I have tried numerous examples on my highly-spec'ed Linn LP12, and so far have not found better than the current thin, designed and calibrated density, black wool felt example Linn provides. I recall extensive tests on the LP12 some eleven years ago (July Aug Sept 2009 issue) where I even went as far as to check the sound difference for the Linn mat for the normal side up and then when inverted: yes, there was a small difference as felt manufacture involves laying the wool fibres such that there is a graded density with thickness. The 'correct' upper side is a better impedance match in the mid treble for the audio vibrations induced in the LP disc by the speaker-generated soundfield, and also from the stylus tip reaction while tracking the music modulations.
---> Vertere Techno Mat for turntables review.

The First Watt B1 Buffer Preamplifier
Article By Nelson Pass Of First Watt
So here we are in the New Millennium, and thanks to Tom Holman and THX we've got lots of gain in our electronics. More gain than some of us need or want. At least 10dB more. Think of it this way: If you are running your volume control down around 9 o'clock, you are actually throwing away signal level so that a subsequent gain stage can make it back up. Routinely DIYers opt to make themselves a "passive preamp" — just an input selector and a volume control. What could be better? Hardly any noise or distortion added by these simple passive parts. No feedback, no worrying about what type of capacitors - just musical perfection. And yet there are guys out there who don't care for the result. "It sucks the life out of the music", is a commonly heard refrain (really - I'm being serious here!).
---> The First Watt B1 Buffer Preamplifier.

The Intro
Editorial By Art Dudley
Until eight or nine months ago, Listener Magazine rented office space U on the second floor of what used to be the Oddfellows Hall in Oneonta, New York. Our two rooms were toward the back of the building, right next to a spacious and well-equipped kitchen. judging from what we found in the building, hot meals were a key part of every Oddfellows meeting, along with a thoroughly bizarre ceremony involving elderly men dressed like David and Goliath and a skeleton in a black cardboard coffin. (And thus evaporated all mystery surrounding the group's name.) The important thing here is the kitchen, in which we kept a coffeemaker. One day it was my turn to wash it. I had been rinsing the carafe under running water for several minutes when I recognized a sound: Someone was speaking to me, and apparently had been for several minutes>

Fear Of Frying
Or how I learned to stop worrying and love my home audio system.
Article By Joyce
Despite the fact that I've been married for years to an audio geek extraordinaire; despite the fact that back in college I owned the mini-component audio system that was the envy of the entire fourth floor of my dorm; despite the fact that I have artfully wielded a soldering iron (okay, so his arm turn in a cast, and mine was twisted behind my back, no matter), I still find that nobody takes me seriously as an accomplished, dues paid-in-full, audio aficionada. I really resent this. All I have to do is walk into a room full of "audiophiles" and the conversation goes something like this, "Yeah, this 655 output to primary voltage resistance is very musical. Oh, hi Joyce, bake anything interesting lately? Great.
---> W.A.F.: Fear Of Frying.

My Own Triode Input MK III
Dan remakes a Dyna MKIII to 'juice his lizard'.
By Dan Schmalle From VALVE Issue 9, September 1994
A remarkably bad graphic representation of a very pretty amp. Squint to see the Tung-Sol 6550's, new tube arrangement, Vitamin Q caps, new bias pot location, and cool paint job. Some of you may remember that I was so enamored of the Mklll's I modified for Chris that I wangled a pair for myself. As I recall I bought a Fisher 20A, swapped that and some other stuff for a MkIV, and then swapped the MklV and a pair of Ampex monoblocks for the Mklll's. Then I swapped a Philco Model 60 cathedral radio for a quad of Tung Sol 6550 tubes. Then I made my list of parts for the mod. I ordered polypropylene caps and metal film and power resistors from Mouser, and axial electrolytics from Antique Electronic Supply.
---> My Own Triode Input MK III.

10 Questions For High-End Audio Manufacturers
Featuring Andy Kerr, Director Of Product Marketing & Communications At Bowers & Wilkins
During Enjoy the Music.com's very special 25th Anniversary we're asking various high-end audio manufacturers to answer the same ten questions. Their answers may surprise you! This month we're featuring Andy Kerr, Director of Product Marketing & Communications at Bowers & Wilkins. The story of Bowers & Wilkins starts with one man: John Bowers. Even some 30 years after his death, his passion and drive still pulse through the lifeblood of the company he founded. Bowers' dream of producing the perfect loudspeaker has driven the company from its humble beginnings behind an electronics shop in Worthing to becoming a global leader in audio. In 2019 Bowers & Wilkins' Formation was revealed to the world, marking the latest evolution of cable-free listening, first realized by the company's Zeppelin Air in 2011.
---> 10 Questions For Andy Kerr At Bowers & Wilkins.

10 Questions For High-End Audio Manufacturers
Featuring Eli Gershman, Founder And Chief Designer Of Gershman Acoustics
During Enjoy the Music.com's very special 25th Anniversary we're asking various high-end audio manufacturers to answer the same ten questions. Their answers may surprise you! This month we're featuring Eli Gershman founder, Chief Designer And Co-Owner Of Gershman Acoustics. Gershman Acoustics is a designer and manufacturer of high-end audio loudspeakers since 1993. The combination of the world best technology and art for the discriminating audiophiles and music lovers! If you are a music lover and looking for natural sound, the way it was intended to be heard by the artists, then Gershman Acoustics speakers are the only speakers for you. Each speaker is carefully handcrafted in Canada.
---> 10 Questions For Eli Gershman At Gershman Acoustics.

Wanna Have Some Musical Fun?
Roger Skoff writes about another way to enjoy the music.
Article By Roger Skoff
I have 14 different recorded performances of Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazade, 23 of Vivaldi's The Four Seasons, 11 of Shostakovich's Symphony No. 15, and at least 8 of his Waltz No. 2. I also have multiple live and studio performances of all kinds of rock and pop music, either performed by the same artists at different venues and times or with the same principal performer(s) and different support personnel — ranging all the way from just different backup players or singers to a full symphony orchestra (Deep Purple "In Concert with The London Symphony Orchestra" 1999, for example).
---> Wanna Have Some Musical Fun?

Music And Mindfulness For Stress Reduction
Mindfulness is very real and it provides a powerful change in perspective.
Article By Gideon Waxman Of Drum Helper
Mindfulness is an incredibly liberating practice; one that has exploded as a recent phenomenon in the western world. Interestingly, us moderns are the last people on the planet to uncover the wealth of treasures it has to offer. Music and mindfulness are indeed complementary practices. Music and sounds make a wonderful object of focus for the mind, with mindful listening proven to boost our overall well-being and reduce stress significantly.
---> Music And Mindfulness For Stress Reduction.

World Premiere Review!
Winter Tweakfest 2020!
Featuring many Great Audio Tweaks Including:
Audio Magic CE Generators (Donuts)
Captive Power Cord Conversion Male AC Plug
Herbie's Audio Lab Way Excellent II Turntable Mat
Soundeck Record Weight
Block Audio C-Lock Duplex Outlet Cable Support
Furutech NCF Clear Line Mini Power Conditioner
Review By Rick Becker
With the 2020 election behind us, we still face the battle of Covid-19. From what I hear from manufacturers, many audiophiles have turned to music to fill their isolation and the audio industry had not evaporated. In fact, many high-end companies are doing quite well. Those individuals who have maintained their professional careers in one form or another have continued to upgrade their equipment, even in the absence of new product introductions at shows that never materialized in 2020. Those working from home and minimizing social interactions and errands have likely saved thousands of dollars in travel expenses. In my case, we've downsized from two cars to one with little inconvenience.
---> Rick Becker's Winter Tweakfest 2020.

AGD Productions The Audion Monoblock Amplifier Review
New GaN technology that brings Class D amplifiers into the upper echelon of performance.
Review By Michael Zisserson
What's new in audio? Not much in the past 40 years or so. When was the last technological shake-up in audio? Compact Disc, maybe? From there, digital technology has spawned endless formats of claimed resolving power that is rarely capitalized on. What I have had a hankering for is not another format war, rather, HARD technology. Like the birth of the solid-state transistor that knocked vacuum tube amplifiers on their heels. To my surprise, such a technology flashed into existence a couple of years ago, that is truly revolutionary, and I have been oblivious of its existence until now.
---> AGD The Audion Mono Amplifier Review.

Kimber Kable Naked Interconnects Review
Let's go skinny dipping... with an impressive leap in cabling technology!
Review By Paul L. Schumann
Ok, we've all done it. We've swum in the water in our birthday suits. It may have been in a swimming pool, maybe in a lake or stream, maybe even in the ocean. I don't want to know your details, and I'm sure you don't want to know mine. But one way or another, we got naked outside and took the plunge. And no matter the outcome, it was a memorable experience. Such as with the Kimber Kable Naked Interconnects. My familiarity with Kimber Kable goes back further than I like to admit. Back then I was still a novice to the world of high-end interconnects. It was 1997 and I just upgraded my CD player.
---> Kimber Kable Naked Interconnects Review.

Pass Laboratories INT-25 Solid-State Integrated Amplifier Review
A fantastic sounding Class A stereo amplifier!
Review By Tom Lyle
Lest one think that this review is simply not only more evidence that I have somehow formed an untoward relationship with Pass Laboratories, I'd build my defense around the fact that every time I reviewed one of their high-end audio components, I was "assigned" the task. Sure, the fact that I use not only the power and preamplifier but also the headphone amplifier I use as references, must not help my case. The next thing I know I'm asked to review their INT-25 integrated amplifier. It's tough work, but someone has to do it. Yes, I'm grateful for my problems.
---> Pass Laboratories INT-25 Int. Amp. Review.