High-End Audio Reviews / Hi-Fi Audiophile Equipment Review Magazine

High-End Audio / Audiophile Equipment Reviews And Think Pieces

May 2020

Senseless Rambling
An Article Everyone Is Going To Hate
The below article has been rolling around in my head....
Editorial By Steven R. Rochlin
First off, this is a Senseless Rambling article so you know the shit is about to get real as I see it. I have to also add this undesirable legal disclaimer that any likeness to the below situation(s), people, or places is merely a coincidence and is not based on any facts. Any relation to any events real or imaged is pure coincidence. Odds are everyone is reading this article will be emotionally angry, feeling unfulfilled that their point of view is not as 'valued' as others. Perception plays a key role in how this species experiences life.
---> Steven's Senseless Ramblings that you're going to hate reading.

AXPONA 2020 And The Coronavirus
Major USA show reschedules, then cancels.
Editorial By Steven R. Rochlin
As most of you reading this know, AXPONA 2020 had to be rescheduled during the first wave of the Coronavirus pandemic. In early March they sent out an e-mail that said, "AXPONA has been rescheduled from April 17-19 to August 7-9, 2020 out of concern for the health and safety of all participants due to the growing coronavirus situation. This decision was made following an outpouring of feedback from the AXPONA community over the last 72 hours."
---> Read more about AXPONA 2020 and the Coronavirus.

T.H.E. Show Interviews Steven R. Rochlin
T.H.E. Show (The Home Entertainment Show) recently launched their news series called T.H.E. Talk, which is available on Facebook and other online platforms. This week they interviewed / Q&A'ed with Enjoy the Music.com's Creative Director Steven R. Rochlin. Emiko Carlin asks many great question including budget and cost-no-object audio gear, to streaming music and more!
---> Watch this very special video interview on Facebook.

'Round And 'Round, Having Fun!
Roger Skoff writes about how one good thing can lead to another.
Article By Roger Skoff
When I was a kid, I was a music snob. Other than Doo-Wop (which I still love, even today), I pretty much thought that any music written after the death of Handel (1759) wasn't worth listening to. The exception — the reason I just say "pretty much" about my musical bias — was that, if it was brilliantly and believably recorded, I would listen to and enjoy just about anything! I became a Hi-Fi Crazy...
---> Read Roger Skoff's 'Round And 'Round, Having Fun! article.

The Six Steps To A Successful Online Strategy
Article By Bobby Owsinski
Although you'll find plenty of detailed information about most aspects of your online promotion in the latest edition of my Social Media Promotion For Musicians book, here are the six basic steps you'll need to take in order to prepare for a successful online strategy.1. Make your website your main online focal point. Make sure that all your important information is curated there and is easy for a site visitor to find.
---> Read more about The Six Steps To A Successful Online Strategy.

Marketing Strategies That Will Win
A three-pronged approach to allow your marketing to thrive in the 2020s. Article By Steven Picanza Of Latin & Code
New year... new decade... same old marketing strategies? Regardless of whether you actually kept your 2020 marketing-planning meeting on the books, all isn't lost. The amazing thing is, the impassable mountain called "marketing" that's sitting in front of you is actually an optical illusion; in reality, it's just a bunch of smaller hills.
---> Read Marketing Strategies That Will Win For The New Decade.

Flashback Editorial: The Intro
When I first heard about the Internet, I thought it was a load of crap.
Editorial By Art Dudley
When I was five years old, grocery stores began selling a product called Happy Nut, which I considered ingenious: peanut butter shaped into quarter-pound sticks, like butter, and filled with a core of grape jelly. With Happy Nut on the butter dish, one did not have to bother opening two jars (or even one!) before enjoying a healthy, satisfying meal: It was a simple and time-saving matter of dipping one's knife, spreading one's spread, and eating. The fact that the Happy Nut logo was a picture of a monkey was icing on the cake.
---> Read Art Dudley's The Intro editorial from Listener magazine.

Our Largest Review Magazine In History!
Plus I shoulda bought a high-end music system.
Stuck at home during Staycation 2020? Well then, it's time to buy a great hi-fi system!
Editorial By Steven R. Rochlin
My coding fingers are raw to the bone! The April 2020 issue of Enjoy the Music.com's Review Magazine is the largest we've ever done in our 25 years history! The many new writers we've hired are finally chiming in! Blame me for not announcing every new hire, as we've been on a spree as of late and want to take a moment to point out our youngest reviewer, plus a 'new guy' who I've known for decades!
---> Read more about Enjoy the Music.com's largest issue in history.

Coronavirus And High-End Audio
The last few weeks have turned our world a bit topsy-turvy.
Editorial By Steven R. Rochlin
Well, that happened. The past month has been extremely eventful for everyone around the world. As this article will be online for decades, please allow me a moment to put this article into some context. The Coronavirus (Covid-19) has affected many people throughout the world. It has also caused the cancellation, or delay, of a variety of shows from high-end audio and mechanical timepieces to cars, etc. Summertime music concert tours have also been canceled, or at the very least delayed.
---> Read more about the Coronavirus and high-end audio.

Plenty Of Time To Enjoy The Music
Roger Skoff tells how to turn a lemon into lemonade.
Article By Roger Skoff
Seems like everyone I know is staying home lately. Either they're sick; afraid of getting sick; afraid they might unknowingly contract or carry the Coronavirus to someone else just by getting too close; or just staying home because the government (at every level, from the most local to all-the-way up) is telling them to. Besides, with just about every kind of social or recreational business, event, or activity shut down and just about every restaurant, bar, or bowling alley closed or restricted, there's really no place to go – especially if one of those businesses or events happens to be how they make their living.
---> Read more about making plenty of time for music.

Immersive: The New Gold Standard Of Sound
The sonic search is an exciting journey!
Article By Dennis Baxter
The evolution of audio in broadcasting and film has paralleled the increase in the number of audio record and transmit channels available in the ecosystem. Analog satellite technology provided two channels of audio and often one channel was for a full program and one channel for the program without commentary – hence mono audio except for special events. Through the early 1980s, stereo was often electronically processed from mono and original surround sound was processing from two channels to create five channels of sound.
---> Read more about immersive sound as the Gold standard.

Why Hi-Fi Part 2
Article By Gary Alan Baker Of HiFiAudio.Guru
When I decided to continue these little periodic chats as a glimpse into the mind of an audiophile, I thought why not continue on the same subject: "Why Hi-Fi?" After all, that is really what it all is about, why the obsession, why the expense, why continue looking for that perfect formula. I say periodic since I don't know the regularity of this column, as it is really about inspiration and of course available time (writing for and editing two magazines does take its toll).
---> Read more of Gary Alan Baker's Why Hi-Fi article.

Industry POV: A New Understanding Of Diffusion
It's a far more complex concept than absorption is, and here's why.
Article By Jim DeGrandis Of Acoustics First Corporation
In decades past, traditional barrel and pyramidal sound diffusers had their acoustical specifications presented with absorption coefficients as the only available acoustical data. This was handy for low-frequency control applications or targeting particular "bumps" in a room without adding too much absorption, which could make a room too dry. Toward the end of the 20th century, more than one acoustical company began to use graphed polar plots of various diffusion devices to illustrate where sound was being redirected when it reflected off a device's surface. It could be "visualized" from that information.
---> Read more about measuring diffusers.

Shoplifting With Chick Corea
Watch as Chick Corea gets caught shoplifting vinyl LPs.
First he raids their record bins, then he reviews his loot. Chick shows us how to handle vinyl properly and reminds us of the importance of not leaving your car unattended when your record collection is on the back seat. From Miles Davis Relaxin' to Issac Hayes' Hot Buttered Soul, Chick Corea takes us through his must-have LP rap sheet, album by album.
---> Watch Chick Corea shoplifting Craft Recordings vinyl LPs.

Shoplifting With Record Producer Scott Litt
Watch as record producer Scott Litt gets caught shoplifting vinyl LPs.
First he raids their record bins, then he reviews his loot. Watch as Scott Litt, longtime friend and producer of R.E.M., gets caught shoplifting at Craft Recordings! First he raids our record bins, then he reviews his loot, sharing insights into his musical heroes, influences and inspirations along the way. From THE Pharcude's Bizzare Ride to John Coltrane's Lush Life, Scott Litt takes us through his must-have LP rap sheet, album by album.
---> Watch Scott Litt get caught shoplifting Craft Recordings vinyl LPs.

Advanced Record Cleaning On The Cheap
A recipe for building an articulated, weighted brush holder.
Article By Joe Cohen Of The Lotus Group
My good friend Jeff Whitlock got me thinking about the fabulous Clearaudio Double Matrix record cleaner. I mean, who wouldn't love to own one: press a button and it performs a complete cleaning, applying the fluid, brushing, vacuuming and demagnetizing both sides of an LP in 2.5 minutes, automatically!
---> Read about Advanced Record Cleaning On The Cheap.

Speaker Placement In Five Easy Steps
Article By Nordost
Implementing correct speaker placement could be one of the most beneficial changes one can make in an audio system. The slightest shift or rotation in your loudspeakers can completely transform your soundstage, for better or worse. And when even one centimeter could be responsible for transforming the sound system that you have invested so much in, the idea of tackling and perfecting speaker placement may seem daunting.
---> Read about Speaker Placement In Five Easy Steps.

Understanding Digital Room Correction
Article By Mitch Barnett Of Accurate Sound
Modern Digital Room Correction (DRC) is an often misunderstood subject area. I have seen many articles written on the subject that don't answer basic questions such as what problem is DRC trying to solve? How does DRC work? And why, as an audiophile, should I care? This article endeavors to answer these questions. Let's start off with what problem DRC is trying to solve. One can identify the problem fairly quickly by listening to the bass response of your loudspeakers in your room. Try it along with me.
---> Read more about understanding room correction.

Interview With Art Dudley
Listener Magazine Head Honcho And All Around Great Guy!
Interview By Steven R. Rochlin
Listener magazine began life in 1994 as an inspiration from a deep love of music. As a musician, Art Dudley (with the assistance of his wife Janet) threw caution to the wind and began venturing into the wonderful world of print publication. Listener magazine had a virtually cult-like following reaching readers that desired an alternative to super mega-buck products and perceived advertorials as found in other media. In December of 1999 Belvoir Publications bought Listener from Art Dudley, keeping him as editor and allowing the magazine's writers and its direction to remain intact.
---> Read our interview with Listener's Art Dudley at this link.

10 Questions For High-End Audio Manufacturers
Bill Dudleston, Founder & Engineer Of Legacy Audio
Enjoy the Music.com's 25th Anniversary special feature!
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 Bill Dudleston of Legacy. Bill Dudleston is President and founder of Legacy Audio, a high-performance audio and home theater equipment manufacturer located in Springfield, Illinois.
---> Read more about Bill Dudleston of Legacy Audio.

10 Questions For High-End Audio Manufacturers
Featuring Dan D'Agostino Of Dan D'Agostino MAS
Enjoy the Music.com's 25th Anniversary special feature!
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 Dan D'Agostino Of Dan D'Agostino Master Audio Systems. Perhaps no name is more closely associated with high-end audio amplifiers than that of Dan D'Agostino.
---> Read more about Dan D'Agostino of Dan D'Agostino MAS.

10 Questions For High-End Audio Manufacturers
Featuring John Franks Of Chord Electronics
Enjoy the Music.com's 25th Anniversary special feature!
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 John Franks, Founder, Owner and Chief Designer at Chord Electronics. Chord Electronics offers a broad range of high-end amplification and digital conversion products.
---> Read more about John Franks of Chord Electronics.

10 Questions For High-End Audio Manufacturers
Featuring Ray Kimber Of Kimber Kable
Enjoy the Music.com's 25th Anniversary special feature!
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 Ray Kimber of Kimber Kable. In the mid 1970s Ray Kimber worked at a sound and lighting company in Los Angeles. The first big discotheques were being installed at that time.
---> Read more about Ray Kimber of Kimber Kable.

10 Questions For High-End Audio Manufacturers
Featuring Val Cora Of Acora Acoustics
Enjoy the Music.com's 25th Anniversary special feature!
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 Val Cora of Acora Acoustics. At Acora Acoustics, their goal is simple: Engineer speakers that bring your music to life. Their loudspeakers are crafted to let pure sound take the stage.
---> Read more about Val Cora of Acora Acoustics.

10 Questions For High-End Audio Manufacturers
Featuring Tommy O'Brien Of Digital Amplifier Company
Enjoy the Music.com's 25th Anniversary special feature!
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 Tommy O'Brien of Digital Amplifier Company. Digital Amplifier Company was founded in 1996 after several years of developing switching amplifiers for audio. Their goal was development of new high performance amp technology.
---> Read more about Tommy O'Brien of Digital Amplifier Company.

10 Questions For High-End Audio Manufacturers
Featuring Benjamin Zwickel, Owner of Mojo Audio
Enjoy the Music.com's 25th Anniversary special feature!
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 Benjamin Zwickel, Owner of Mojo Audio Inc. The company's products are engineered to sound natural, musical, and coherent. We never use voicing or attractive distortions to impress or enhance. Rather, we seek to create the most musically transparent products possible. They strive to have the simplest signal path, the highest performance power supplies, the lowest resonance, the best shielding, and best grounding possible.
---> Read more about Benjamin Zwickel, Owner of Mojo Audio.

10 Questions For High-End Audio Manufacturers
Featuring Florian Cossy, CEO Of CH Precision
Enjoy the Music.com's 25th Anniversary special feature!
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 Florian Cossy, CEO Of CH Precision. Each and every CH Precision circuit is designed with a single goal – to touch the signal as little as possible. It sounds simple and in some ways it is, at least on a conceptual level. But it also means accepting that conventional approaches and accepted practice fall well short of that ideal.
---> Read more about Florian Cossy, CEO of CH Precision.

10 Questions For High-End Audio Manufacturers
Featuring Jeff Poggi, Co-CEO Of Audio Research
Enjoy the Music.com's 25th Anniversary special feature!
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 Jeff Poggi, Co-CEO Of Audio Research. Audio Research is one of the oldest continually operating manufacturers in American audio. The company was founded in 1970 in Minneapolis with one goal in mind: to advance the state-of-the-art in music reproduction. Today, Audio Research remains a performance-oriented company by philosophy and design.
---> Read more about Jeff Poggi, Co-CEO of Audio Research.

10 Questions For High-End Audio Manufacturers
Featuring Nelson Pass Of Pass Labs And First Watt
Enjoy the Music.com's 25th Anniversary special feature!
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 Nelson Pass of Pass Labs. Pass Laboratories was founded in 1991 by Nelson Pass. Operating out of his shop at home, Pass developed prototypes of a single-ended Class A amplifier design. At the same time, he and Mike Burley were constructing an in-house machine shop with three home-built CNC milling machines with which to produce the amplifiers when the design was finished. The first product, the Aleph 0, shipped in 1992.
---> Read more about Nelson Pass of Pass Labs and First Watt.

10 Questions For High-End Audio Manufacturers
Featuring Norbert Lindemann Of Lindemann Audio
Enjoy the Music.com's 25th Anniversary special feature!
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 Norbert Lindemann of Lindemann Audio. The development of their products fall back on a wealth of experience gathered in 25 years of building loudspeakers, amplifiers and digital sources. At Lindemann Audio, new products are created by means of the most advanced design tools and measuring methods.
---> Read more about Norbert Lindemann of Lindemann Audio.

10 Questions For High-End Audio Manufacturers
Featuring Yoav Geva, Chief Engineer At YG Acoustics
Enjoy the Music.com's 25th Anniversary special feature!
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 Yoav Geva, Chief Engineer at YG Acoustics. Founded in 2002, YG Acoustics is recognized as one of the most prominent companies in the high-end audio industry, a pioneer whose technical advancements remain unmatched. They strive to provide the best performance, cutting-edge technology, value, reliability and exceptional customer service.
---> Read more about Yoav Geva, Chief Engineer at YG Acoustics.

Couchmaster CYBOT Ergonomic Lap Desk
Be a Staycation couch potato champ with your notebook computer.
Article By Steven R. Rochlin
Suitable for notebooks up to 17", the Couchmaster CYBOT Ergonomic Lap Desk has a ventilation grille for optimal cooling of your notebook. Made from sustainable bamboo, their patented ergonomics features lateral support cushions to ensure stability. The new Couchmaster CYBOT is a game-changer for all notebook users.
---> Read more about Couchmaster CYBOT Ergonomic Lap Desk.

Porsche 911 Flat-Six Boxer Engine
Keep busy during Staycation 2020, build a Porsche flat six engine!
Article By Steven R. Rochlin
Bored at home during Staycation 2020? Now you can build a fully-functional 1:4 model of an all-time classic motor - the flat-six engine from the Porsche 911. This detailed replica features many excellent details as is found within the real thing. The kit includes a transparent casing so the moving parts can be seen when switched on. Furthermore, it also featured engine sounds.
---> Read more about building a Porsche 911 flat-six engine.

Sigma 200mm To 500mm f/2.8 Zoom Lens
No other lens like it in the world!
Article By Steven R. Rochlin
Some say bigger is better, and with this lens you have (perhaps) the world's most impressive commercially-produced for the general public lens every created by humankind. It's also the largest high speed ultra-telephoto zoom available. Sigma’s APO 200mm to 500mm F2.8 / 400mm to 1000mm F5.6 EX DG, is the first large-aperture ultra telephoto lens to have an F2.8 aperture at 500mm.
---> Read about Sigma's 200mm To 500mm f/2.8 zoom lens.

Warwick Acoustics APERIO
Electrostatic Reference Headphone System
The master of detail retrieval from Warwick Acoustics!
Review By Frank Iacone Of Headphone.Guru
It's here, the Warwick Acoustics APERIO Electrostatic Reference Headphone System. The headphone division of Warwick Acoustics LTD, as many may remember, was once called Sonoma Acoustic LTD. The parent company, located in the United Kingdom, is a pioneer in electrostatic audio systems designed for automobiles. Warwick's custom designs are known to offer a remarkable listening experience whether you using it for the automobile or in an electrostatic home-based system.
---> Read the Warwick Acoustics APERIO headphone system review.

ATC SCM150ASLT Active Speakers
Active floorstanding speaker test.
Review By Michael Lang Of STEREO Magazine
ATC – never heard of it? Then it's time to change that! Otherwise you might possibly miss the best loudspeaker of your life – as for example the SCM150ASLT active floorstander. You might think our introductory statement to have been rather bold, which, of course is absolutely possible. However on the other hand there is the list of people using ATC speakers, which reads like the Who's Who of worldwide recording studios, musicians and producers.
---> Read our review of ATC's SCM150ASLT Active speakers.

Top Wing Suzaku - Red Sparrow MC Phono Cartridge
Perhaps the last cartridge you will ever need.
Review By Tom Lyle
A few years ago I reviewed the Van den Hul Crimson Stradivarius phono cartridge. I began that review by expressing my love-hate relationship with phono cartridges. The love stems from my love of music, and the fact that I prefer music reproduced by vinyl, and that the phono cartridge converts vibrational energy from the grooves of the records into an electric signal and then this electrical signal is somehow converted into the music that comes forth from our speakers.
---> Read our review of Top Wing's Suzaku - Red Sparrow MC cart.

World Premiere Review!
Endow Audio T35 Point-Array Loudspeakers
Exceptionally well made with impressive on- and off-axis sound.
Review By Brett Rudolph
Last month I had the fortune of being asked to review new speakers from Endow, which made their debut at the Florida Audio Expo 2020. Endow Audio's T35s loudspeakers, according to the company, represents the same quality at a substantially reduced price without cutting corners. Indeed, they are certainly visually a sight to behold.... The engineering itself was fascinating; Endow utilized multiple drivers in various phases and closed baffle in a very non-trivial design to allow for a very expansive off-axis listening field.
---> Read our review of the Endow Audio T35 loudspeakers.

Kronos Sparta Super Capacitor Power Supply
Making the already exceptional truly exemplary!
Review By Greg Weaver
Typically, I open my reviews with technical information and engineering background on the product under examination before I address its sonic attributes. However, my experience with the new Kronos Sparta Super Capacitor Power Supply (SSCPS) was so remarkable and brought such starkly positive change, to such an already overachieving turntable, that I had trouble believing it. After its installation, within the first ten seconds of my original needle drop, I was so floored by what I was hearing that I was almost speechless. If you knew me, you'd realize just how significant that is; I'm rarely at a loss for words!
---> Read our review of Kronos' Sparta Super Capacitor Power Supply.

Sonus Faber Il Cremonese Floorstanders
Sonus Faber's Il Cremonese speakers tell a story, and the more you listen, the more you not only get lost in the music, you appreciate and admire both in the story and the telling of it.
Review By Jules Coleman
If there is anything obvious about obvious truths, it is their truth. Nothing else about them need be, and often nothing else is. Moreover, some obvious truths are obvious only in retrospect. Obvious truths – truisms – can be revealing, insightful and even important. Take what is certainly one of audio's most obvious truisms: an audio system is, after all, a system! Patently obvious? Yes. Uninteresting or unimportant? Hardly!
---> Read our review of the Sonus Faber Il Cremonese speakers.

Synergistic Research UEF Record Weight
Aspired to inspire.
Review By Robert S. Youman Of Positive Feedback
One great satisfaction as a reviewer and eternal romantic is when one discovers something new that significantly enhances the emotional connection to one's music. This can have even a greater impact when that something is simple and easy to implement. No unpacking and backbreaking transport to the listening room. No re-arrangement of racks. No additional expensive cabling. No burn in. No burn out.
---> Read the Synergistic Research UEF Record Weight review.

iFi Audio Aurora Lifestyle System
An audiophile lifestyle system that will play most music well.
Review By Gary Alan Barker Of HiFiAudio.Guru
The iFi Aurora is an audiophile lifestyle system. Funny enough, contrary to popular belief, this is not a new concept; in fact, it goes back to some of the very first Victrolas. And like its many predecessors, the Aurora acknowledges one inescapable fact; a Hi-Fi system is also a piece of furniture, and as such, it must blend in and compliment your décor.
---> Read the iFi Audio Aurora lifestyle system review.

Magico SPod Footers Review
After his in-depth exploration of the Mpod footers provided for his review of the company's M2 speaker in this issue, Martin Colloms realizes it's time to reassess the Junior version.
Review By Martin Colloms Of HIFICRITIC
After his in-depth exploration of the Mpod footers provided for his review of the company's M2 speaker in this issue, Martin Colloms realizes it's time to reassess the Junior version. I reviewed these vibration-controlling feet, accessories designed to be fitted to the Magico S5II speakers and also other S series models, within HIFICRITIC Vol 11 No4 Oct-Dec 2017.
---> Read HIFICRITIC's review of the Magico SPod Footers.

Meze Rai Penta In-Ear Monitor
Worth The Wait: Meze delivers an artful and meticulously crafted masterpiece.
Review By Dave Hanson
I first encountered the Meze Rai Penta ($1099) at CanJam SoCal in 2018, and at the time, I found myself absolutely floored by it, noting that it had the potential to be a best-in-class all-rounder. Of course, at that time, it was only an early prototype, but seeing it again and again at subsequent shows over the next year, I always came out feeling the same way – wow, this is the real deal.
---> Read our review of the Meze Rai Penta in-ear monitor (IEM).

World Premiere Review!
Synergistic Research Tweakfest
With the Orange Duplex, Carbon Fiber Duplex Cover, Tranquility Pod, MiG SX footers and Ground Block.
Review By Rick Becker
Originally, I wanted to write an article about turning my aging speakers into a more contemporary version with the addition of some tweaks for tens of thousand dollars less than buying a new pair. I called up Andy Wiederspahn at Synergistic Research and gave him my wish list. Although he was willing to help, he politely twisted my arm and convinced me to first review the quartet of hot new products they have just released. How could I refuse?
---> Read our Synergistic Research Tweakfest.

Xavian Premio Esclusivo Loudspeakers
A gem of a monitor that knows how to sing.
Review By Rick Jensen
My first confession: I had only heard of Xavian Loudspeakers in this magazine before being offered a pair of their Premier Esclusivo (PE) small monitors for review. Brett Rudolph reviewed their Perla Esclusiva monitors in June 2019. Yes, I had not read reviews of the same monitors in other publications. And I will also confess that my first reason for wanting to review a pair was very simple – they looked really good.
---> Read our review of Xavian Premio Esclusivo loudspeakers.

Synergistic Research PowerCell ONE Line Conditioner
Common mode noise reduction and a complementary dose of Synergistic Research technology might be just the thing.
Review By Bruce Kinch Of Positive Feedback
Just a mere month ago, Audio Tourism looked like the next new thing. Given the continuing demise of brick-and-mortar retail salons, regional, national, and international audio shows were popping up all over — how brilliant was having a show in Florida in February, not in Miami, not in Orlando, and not during school vacation week? But then, comes March, and out of China spreads the coronavirus pandemic.
---> Read PF's Synergistic Research PowerCell ONE Line Conditioner review.

KEF LS50 Active Wireless Speaker System
KEF's bookshelf speakers still tower over much of the competition.
Review By Rogier van Bakel
I've long had a predilection for prix-fixe meals. And why not? Hacking your own path through the culinary scene is fine, but it might be unwise to turn up your nose at three or four courses pre-selected by a talented chef. I don't presume to know his cooking better than he does, so if he tells me that the suggested dishes are his way of combining quality ingredients, his special skill in preparing them, and a reasonable bill at the end, I'm in.
---> Read our review of KEF's LS50 active wireless speakers.

Audience Forte V8 Power And forte f3 Power Chord
Clean power at an affordable price.
Review By Dr. Jules Coleman
There is no doubt that the quality of electrical power is a limiting factor in the performance of an audio system. I learned this lesson the hard way. In the mid to late 1970s, while living in Milwaukee, I had put together what at the time was a high-end system featuring an early version of the Magnepan Tympani loudspeakers, a Connoisseur Turntable with a Formula 4 arm and a Decca Plum cartridge. Between the TT and speakers, I employed as many different high powered amplifiers as I could get my hands on.
---> Read our review of Audience's Forte V8 & forte f3 Power Chord.

World Premiere Review!
Audio Analogue aaDAC Hi-Res Audio DAC
The converter to beat within this price range.
Review By Tom Lyle
Audio Analogue's aaDAC digital-to-analog converter is the latest high-end audio component from their PureAA line, which also includes their AAcento integrated amplifier and AAphono phono preamplifier. Audio Analogue says on their website "the aaDAC is a product that perfectly fits in the Audio Analogue philosophy: its simple design, its remarkable sound performances and its great care for the finish and the materials and parts selection, make it a perfect partner for your digital sources".
---> Read our review of the Audio Analogue aaDAC Hi-Res DAC.

Digital Amplifier Company 2-CHerry Power Amplifier
The light amp that packs a heavy punch!
Review By Frank Garofalo
My time as an audiophile to date, I've always had the impression that Class D amplification is just simply inferior to Class A or Class A/B amplification. That impression was influenced by educating myself in the various topics of audio, and through lurking on many online forums including topics about Class D amplification.... While this may be true for common off-the-shelf Class D modules that may be found in A/V receivers and the like, this is certainly not the case for the 2-CHerry Power Amplifier.
---> Read our review of Digital Amplifier Company's 2-CHerry amp.

World Premiere Review!
Lindemann Musicbook SOURCE And POWER 500
Beautify, simplify, electrify... may the SOURCE be with you.
Review By Clive Meakins
The old days are gone... well, almost. How many of us still have piles of audio equipment connected via cable spaghetti? Is it crazy to dream of simplifying Hi-Fi systems into a very few items of equipment? Doesn't such simplicity come at the expense of quality? There are of course economies in reducing the Hi-Fi box count; chassis costs are high so fewer of these should result in a major saving. Reducing the number of power supplies is beneficial too as is directly connecting circuits internally which can cut the costs associated with providing external connectivity.
---> Read our Lindemann Musicbook SOURCE & POWER 500 review.

World Premiere Review!
Monoprice Monolith Liquid Gold X Headamp
Return Of The King: Monoprice and Alex Cavalli resurrect the legendary Liquid Gold.
Review By Dave Hanson
The Cavalli Liquid Gold holds legendary status within the personal audio community. I remember when I first entered into the hobby the Liquid Gold felt like the very definition of ultra-high-end unobtanium. Among many within the hobby, it was considered the king of headphone amplifiers. My first encounter with the Liquid Gold was at Rocky Mountain Audio Fest in 2015. I remember vividly how it gave headphones a tremendous sense of body, a level of holographic imaging and transparency I had never heard before.
---> Read our review of Monoprice's Monolith Liquid Gold X.

Schiit Bifrost 2 DAC & Ragnarok 2 Nexus Int. Amp.
A true multi-bit Hi-Res Audio DAC meets Nexus-level amplification.
Review By Ron Nagle
Yes, it's pronounced, SHIT! There is no person with that name associated in any way with this relatively new company. Would you think of this as a name for a startup? As it happened this Schiit company started in 2010 when two audio industry veterans decided it was time to produce their Shiit audio products. The two audiophiles are Jason Stoddard, formerly of Sumo Audio, and Mike Moffat, formerly of Theta Audio. They began with a nascent idea to build highly innovative Audiophile quality components at a reasonable price. So how do you tell people how they sound?
---> Read our Schiit Bifrost 2 DAC & Ragnarok 2 Nexus int. amp review.

Casual Reactions
The Need To Party = Potential Difference
Article By Herb Reichert of Eddy Electric
From Sound Practices Issue 3, Early 1993
About ten years ago, I decided to try to learn electronics so I could build my own amps. I bought a book called Electronics Made Simple. A week later, I had to buy a book called Mathematics Made Simple. It seemed I couldn't learn electronics without mastering some math concepts. Woe to a misspent youth! If I could have bought Kenn Amdahl's book There Are No Electrons: Electronics for Earthlings, I would have known that an amateur can understand electronics better than a pro-without doing a single calculation.
---> Read more of Herb Reichert's Casual Reaction.

Joining The Singles Club
Article By Dan Schmalle From VALVE Volume 2 Number 1 January 1995
DHT, 60 years young, still full of life, tired of push-pull relationships, seeks single ended romance. Jazz and classical music lover who can rock in the right environment, particularly fond of female vocalists. I believe in strong emotional involvement, attention to detail, and efficiency. I admit to favoring quiet play, but if you are slightly horny, amply loaded, and interested in coupling in oil, I am sure you would find me still quite hard. Won't someone transform this quiet type into an efficient speaker?
---> Read more about joining VALVE's singles club?

Historic Video: A Dream Of Audio Perfection
Stereo: Three dimensional sound.
The biggest contribution to music since Barnum & Bailey.
Throughout the years, even from the very beginning, there was audio gear... and critics soon thereafter. Audio gear evolved, just as audiophiles carefully adjusted our listening space to accommodate it all. Finding the best recordings can be a challenge, too! Here's a great look back at the beginnings of high fidelity home audio equipment, and the reviewers in hopes of finding gear that achieved sound perfection. Call it what you will, perfect sound forever or the absolute sound, audiophiles seek to reproduce music within homes that is indistinguishable from what was heard during the live event.
---> Watch this historic video about the dream of audio perfection.

World Premiere!
ZMF X Vibro MK II Headphones
Bespoke craftsmanship and uncompromising sound.
Review By Dave Hanson
One listen to ZMF headphones and it is readily apparent that Zach Mehrbach gets tone. I mean really gets it. So it came as no surprise to me when I learned he cut his teeth building acoustic guitars long before he ever began making headphones. Only first-hand experience can breed that kind of knowledge. In his newest creation, the ZMF X Vibro MK II ($479.99), Mehrbach brings that sweet, musical take on tone to the masses with an extremely capable headphone at a very accessible price point.
---> Read our review of ZMF's X Vibro MK II headphones.

Bowers & Wilkins 800D Floorstanding Speaker
Newly refined design under close scrutiny.
Review By Alvin Gold
Until it was spelt out by the powers I don't think I fully realized how strong Bowers & Wilkins' (B&W) domination of the high end of the loudspeaker has become. Of course there are other brands and many of other individual high-end models out there, but B&W's share of the market with its extensive 800 series is enormous, and this means that uniquely among high end producers, B&W is able to benefit from the economies of scale in a way that is the envy of other producers. Just as an indication of what this can mean in practice. I have here a pair of large, well built loudspeakers with sapphire tweeter domes, which currently cost UK sterling £32,000 a pair.
---> Read our review of Bowers & Wilkins' 800D floorstanding speaker.

World Premiere Review!
VAC Renaissance Preamp Mk V With MM/MC Phono Stage
For serious music lovers living at the cutting edge of what is possible.
Review By Ron Nagle
The letters VAC is not an abbreviation for vacuum, although the VAC Renaissance Mk V does have five miniature twin triode vacuum tubes on board. The company banner is actually an acronym for, Valve Amplification Company. This Mk V preamplifier is something entirely new in the VAC lineup for 2017. There is a basic MkV line stage preamplifier without the phono stage that sells for $9990. That configuration uses just two miniature Dual Triode tubes. The Renaissance Preamplifier Mk V under evaluation contains an optional phono amplifier stage which adds three additional 12AX7 tubes. With the optional phono stage on board the cost increases to, $12,990.
---> Read our review of the VAC Renaissance Preamplifier Mk V with MM/MC phono stage.

SVS SB-2000 Active Subwoofer
A reasonably-priced high quality 12" powered subwoofer system.
Review By Tom Lyle
At times I must come off as some sort of audio-curmudgeon, such as when I became upset when I noted some audiophiles calling a component a preamplifier rather than a line stage. There have been other times, too, that I've gotten upset over someone using what I consider the incorrect nomenclature for an audio component or part. Thankfully, I've gotten over that preamplifier versus line stage episode. But I'm still working on the fact that some sell speakers that they call "subwoofers" yet don't go below 20 Hz.
---> Read our review of the SVS SB-2000 Active Subwoofer.

Digital Amplifier Company MEGAschino Stereo Amp
Tommy O'Brien's Class D amplification is a total success.
Review By Jeremy R. Kipnis At Kipnis Studios (KSS)
You're sitting there, quietly listening to a favorite album, when... BAM, something catches your attention by popping out of the recording and sounding absolutely amazing! In this case... I'm listening to the soundtrack to The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, the first of three soundtracks by composer Ennio Morricone that offers very unusual orchestration featuring voices, guitar, Latin percussion instruments, and full orchestra w/ piano, strings, brass, winds, etc. And what's amazing is that, even though I know the sound of this album very well, being a recording producer and engineer, there are little familiar bits like the opening main title which leap out, suddenly, like never before.
---> Read our review of Digital Amplifier Company's MEGAschino stereo amplifier.

Dan D'Agostino Master Audio Systems
Momentum Phono Stage Preamplifier
A championship phono stage from living legend Dan D'Agostino.
Review By Tom Lyle
When I heard that I would be reviewing the $28,000 Dan D'Agostino Master Audio Momentum phono preamplifier for this issue of Enjoy The Music, I was a very happy audiophile — on account of the time I spent with the $50,000 D'Agostino Momentum Lifestyle integrated amplifier that I reviewed earlier this year. If this phono preamplifier had any of the sonic characteristics of the MLife, I suspected I was going to hear my records through a state-of-the-art phono preamp, or at the very least one that was very close to state-of-the-art. When writing about their MLife integrated amp I declared that not only have I never heard an integrated sound so marvelous in my system, I never have I heard one sound as marvelous anywhere.
---> Read our Dan D'Agostino MAS Momentum Phono Stage Preamplifier review.