Australian Hi-Fi Magazine January / February 2015

 

   Since 1969, Australian Hi-Fi Magazine has kept audiophiles up to date on all the latest advances in audio technology and the hi-fi components available to enjoy music. All equipment reviews and music reviews are written by professionals who are experts in their respective fields, and are checked for accuracy by experienced sub-editors. Every audio component reviewed in Australian Hi-Fi Magazine is also independently tested by a NATA-certified test laboratory, whose test results and graphs are published with each review, together with a detailed technical analysis of those results. Australian Hi-Fi Magazine also maintains a complete database of all Australian and New Zealand distributors of hi-fi equipment, along with updated listings of the brands they distribute. Australian Hi-Fi Magazine is published six times a year and on sale at thousands of news agencies throughout Australia and New Zealand, as well as being available in selected audio stores across the country plus International mail and online via digital download.

 

03 Editor's Lead-In: No Decline In High End Sales
Is the high end dying? Not on your life, says Greg Borrowman. In fact he has the sociological evidence to prove it's bigger and better (and more expensive!) than ever...

30 Loudspeaker Sensitivity: What's a watt anyway?
Ever wondered why different loudspeakers with the same sensitivity rating play back at different volume levels, even when driven by the same amplifier? Here's why!

40 Sound Travels
This month we meet an audiophile who has vowed never to sell a component again, based on his continued grieving following the misguided sale of a much-loved Krell KPS20i...

50 Breaking In: Fact or Fiction?
Some people would have it that you have to 'run in' or 'break in' hi-fi components—most especially high-end components—before they will deliver their ultimate sound. True or false?

52 MAD Gallery
If you love turntables for what they are, as well as what they do, you're going to love Maximilian Busser's MAD Gallery, says Rod Easdown, who was captivated by his first vinyl-spinner.

58 Interview
Conrad Mas, the founder and sole owner of Avid, one of the world's most successful turntable manufacturers, took time out to talk to Greg Borrowman about the reasons for his success.

61 Obituary: Harry Pearson
The founder of one of the world's most famous high-end hi-fi magazines, known to all as 'HP' has died, aged 77, at his home at Sea Cliff, N.Y.

 

Equipment Reviews
20 Aragon 8008 Power Amplifier
Although it has the same name and model number, the Aragon 8008 is completely different to the old Aragon 8008... it's not even made by the same company.

28 B&W P7 Headphones
B&W may have been a latecomer to the headphone market, but the company has made up ground since, and is now considered a market leader

34 Richter Harlequin Series V Speakers
The long-lived Harlequin finally gets a Series V makeover that has delivered performance benefits, but has it enough magic to mystify the famous Wizard, or force the Dragon from its lair?

44 Sonus Faber Olympica III Loudspeakers
The new Olympica III tops-out the new mid-level line as the largest floor-stander in an expanding range of speaker products from Italian high-end speaker manufacturer Sonus Faber

54 Yamaha NS-SW300 Subwoofer
Yamaha is using electro-acoustic trickery to make sure its new NS-SW300 delivers the goods in the deep bass department, which it does despite its low price and small profile.

 

Music
64 Rock On
Old rockers, dead rockers, retired rockers... this month Jez Ford's giving them all a spin, and particularly liked the newest offerings from Bette Midler, Neil Young and Jack Bruce. As for ABBA...

66 Super Fidelity
Can you hear the advantage of hi-res? Sure can! says John Sunier, particularly when labels like Panegyric release exactly the same recording on CD and on DVD-Audio.

68 Jazz Track
Julien Wilson, Phronesis, Andrea Keller, Billy Hart, James Greening, and Neilson Gough are all gifts to jazz, says John Shand, who this issue reviews new albums from all six.

70 Blu-ray Reviews
Jethro Tull's iconic album, Thick as a Brick, is now available as a live 2014 performance, complete with Ian Anderson's Thick as a Brick 2 both on a single Blu-ray. And then there was Breakfast in America, now also on Blu-ray.

 

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