World Premiere Review! Wells Audio Milo Headphone Amplifier Mixing up a mean synergy sauce.
Review By Dave Hanson Before I
reviewed the JPS Labs Abyss AB-1266 ($5,495) earlier this year, designer
Joe Skubinski arranged for me to borrow the massive Wells Audio Headtrip
amplifier ($6999) to drive his power-hungry headphones during the evaluation.
After a short introductory phone call with Jeff Wells, the Headtrip arrived
promptly at my doorstep and I was immediately taken by the sound. It seemed that
no matter what headphone I plugged into the massive Wells amplifier, they would
absolutely light up and sound better than I ever thought they could. --->
Read More
Future Publishing Acquires Australian Hi-Fi
Magazine Australian Hi-Fi Magazine, which celebrated its 50th anniversary earlier this year, has been acquired by
Future Publishing Australia, in a deal that includes other audio and video titles formerly published by nextmedia pty ltd including
Sound+Image, Best Buys Audio & AV, and Audio Esoterica
Magazine. "This is a fantastic opportunity for Australian Hi-Fi Magazine," said Greg Borrowman, Editor of
Australian Hi-Fi Magazine. "Future is a progressive, cutting-edge publisher that has already demonstrated its commitment to supporting specialist magazines, and now that we have access to greater resources and support,
Australian Hi-Fi Magazine's Australian-based editorial team will be able to lift the quality of
Australian Hi-Fi Magazine's content to even-higher levels, with more equipment reviews, more feature stories, and more music content, written by Australians specifically for Australian audiophiles and music-lovers."
12 / 25 / 19
12 / 24 / 19
Free Cartridge Protractor And Speed Discs!
There's no place like home. Home is where my turntable is and everyone should have a two point protractor and speed
strobe discs. For the cartridge alignment tool, the trick is to have the cartridge mounted so that the needle aligns perfectly on BOTH dots without moving the protractor. What you may need to do is mount the cartridge a bit loose and slightly move it forward or back and see how it aligns on both points. You know you have it perfect when both points are perfect without moving the protractor. It takes time and patience to get it just right, but the results are worth
it! As an added bonus for you, Enjoy the Music.com also offers a free Excel file two page
spreadsheet with one page for Löfgren "A" alignment and one page for Löfgren "B"
alignment, plus you can calculate your own custom alignment points too! Get
your free Enjoy the Music.com cartridge protractor and speed discs at
this link.
12 / 21 / 19
Roger Skoff Announces RSX Technologies,
Inc.
Roger Skoff, founder of XLO and designer of high-end audio cables, has announced the formation of
RSX Technologies, Inc. RSX will manufacture specialized cables that outperform even Roger's best previous efforts is the plan. Since selling XLO in 2003, Mr. Skoff has written for
a variety of magazines including Enjoy the Music.com. Roger has also served as a Vice President of
the Los Angeles and Orange County Audio Society (LAOCAS). Roger Skoff continues his research into the physics of cable design, plus the availability of modern advanced materials and technologies that have made RSX Technologies and his new designs possible. During an introductory period, RSX products will be sold directly to customers through its soon to be launched website and to members of selected audio clubs throughout the USA. International distribution is currently in process.
12 / 19 / 19
Winter Warm Weather Florida Audio Expo Is Sold Out
Music lovers rejoice as February's warm weather Florida Audio Expo 2020
show is sold out of exhibit space months before the event! The Florida Audio Expo is
the place to be from Friday February 7th through Sunday the 9th at the Embassy Suites by Hilton Tampa Airport Westshore. Attendees will have the opportunity to experience the
world's finest high-performance audio equipment in Florida's famous sunny
weather. This includes audio electronics, legendary loudspeakers, terrific turntables, and must-hear headphones from the
industry's most coveted brands. Hi-Res Music streaming service Qobuz returns as the
Expo's official music source. There's no cost to attend the show; however, attendees are encouraged to register in advance so that we can ensure that the Expo
doesn't exceed the hotel's maximum daily capacity. Register ASAP as Enjoy the
Music.com will soon announce a very special Florida Audio Expo event in a few weeks!
"Building on the success of last year's Expo, we have increased our exhibitor count by 60% and are now officially sold
out," said Bart Andeer, co-founder and operations manager of the Florida Audio Expo.
"We are proud to welcome back many returning exhibitors, but also thrilled to welcome new brands, including leading headphone manufacturers and several international audio brands. We believe we have created a recipe for success with our
Expo — the right mix of beautiful weather and incredible sounds from fantastic brands from all over the world. The Florida Audio Expo is a great start to the audio-show season, and we encourage music lovers and audiophiles from across the country to experience what we have to
offer."
12 / 18 / 19
Audio Research Updates 6SE Pre And Ref. 750SE Amp Audio Research
is pleased to announce important updates to two products within their Reference series, the Reference 6 line-stage preamplifier and the Reference 750SE mono power amplifier. The REF6SE ($17,000) replaces the REF6, which has won more than a dozen international awards since its introduction in 2015. Several component and wiring upgrades are said to create an immediate sonic impact, providing higher resolution, greater transparency, better focus, and an effortless quality that draws the listener into the rich musical soundscape. The SE update will be available to current REF6 owners in January 2020 and can be installed through Audio Research or authorized service centers for $3000. Note that an update kit will not be available to convert the REF750SE to a REF750SEL because the changes are too substantial to make the upgrade feasible.
Audio Research is proud to announce a special limited edition of the REF750SE mono amplifier ($75,000/pr., pictured). Only 10 pairs available, the REF750SEL replaces the REF750SE, with first shipments available after December 16th. The development of the compan's Reference 160M and 160S amplifiers provided a number of component and wiring upgrades that have been incorporated in the new 750SEL. This new product establishes a benchmark of quality for Audio Research amplifiers, with the sonic improvements instantly heard, boasting new levels of transparency, purity, naturalness, and improved micro- and macro-dynamic
contrasts — from pppp to ffff — that allow the music to come alive.
12 / 17 / 19
Melco Announces Their Extensive New EX Series
The Melco platform takes a major step forward with the
introduction of Melco Intelligent Music Library (MIML), a powerful browse and search software suite with
automated metadata corrections, plus vTuner Internet radio and much more. The new EX Series includes the HA-N1Z/2EX-S40 (SSD £9,999), HA-N1Z/2EX-H60
(HDD £4,999), HA-N1A/2EX-H60 (HDD £2,749), plus two half-width units N10P-H30-B
(HDD £6,999) and N100-H20 (HDD £1,999). MIML enables music lovers to enjoy a superior browse and search experience, even with classical music. The new MIML software upgrades deliver new standards of convenience and capability for
Melco's class-leading digital music libraries; with existing models having the ability to be upgraded too.
MIML offers the clever integration of a powerful metadata engine, SongKong for Melco, plus an advanced UPnP Server, MinimServer 2, into
Melco's hardware. By using MinimServer to browse and search, combined with the sophisticated tagging automatically implemented in SongKong, finding music (within even the largest library) becomes simple. New software for the user interface on the
units' OLED display gives greater detail of status and playback, too. There is full web control from virtually any network-connected devices including smartphones, tablets, and
PCs.
Exposure VXN Active Crossover And Power Supply
In collaboration with Kudos Audio,
Exposure's VXN active crossover and power supply allow you to experience incredible audio performance enhancements by upgrading your loudspeakers to active operation. With
Exposure's new VXN active crossover and power supply, which by-passes the
speakers' internal passive crossovers, you can optimize your amplifiers' output and greatly improve your
speakers' performance. While a typical audio system uses one power amplifier channel per loudspeaker, in an active system there is one power amplifier channel per drive unit.
Exposure's VXN active crossover unit is connected between your preamplifier and the power amplifiers. The new Exposure VXN crossover has initially been developed for active operation with Kudos
Audio's top-of-range loudspeakers. Kudos Audio's flagship Titan series, as well as the
'Super' models within its Cardea series, are all configured to allow simple by-passing of the internal crossover for active operation, opening up a wider upgrade path and enabling a variety of performance enhancing capabilities.
12 / 16 / 19
Win Sony's MDR-Z7 Hi-Res Audio Headphones Win a pair of Sony MDR-Z7 headphones
valued at $480! Enjoy the
Music.com is honored to join with leading
international consumer electronics company Sony for our December 2019 contest.
Sony's MDR-Z7 headphones ($480) delivers music to your ears as the artist intended with Hi-Res Audio
clarity. Take your music collection to another level with Sony's custom 2.76" HD driver units that seamlessly power through your music, keeping every note precise even at higher volume levels. Sony's special drivers create a plane wave effect in the earcups that seeks to prevent reflection delays and minimizes sound loss. --->
Learn more plus enter our contest.
12 / 13 / 19
Audience Forte F3 Audiophile Power
Cord Replace your performance-robbing stock power cord today with Audience's Forte F3 audiophile power cord (5.75-feet long). The forte f3 powerChord contain massive 10 AWG conductors, made from 99.9999% pure OFC stranded copper in XLPE (cross linked polyethylene dielectric) with PVC jacket. ---> Read More
Blown Away By Steve
Steigman Making
our Great Audiophile Gift idea once again is perhaps the most
classic, and iconic, music photo that everyone over the age of 40 knows. When you see this
poster, made famous in the Maxell TV commercial, do you immediately think of
Wilhelm Richard Wagner's Flight of the Valkyries? ---> Read More
Bottlehead Single Ended eXperimenter's Kit
3.0 Bottlehead's affectionately-named S.E.X. 3.0 Kit ($539 on up) is extremely easy to build and will run any dynamic headphones – even AKG K1000s and Audeze LCD-2s – to great effect. Power output is a generous two watts per channel, so it could also drive highly efficient loudspeakers too! ---> Read More
Cardas EM5813 Ear Speaker In-Ear
Headphones Cardas
Audio's incredible EM5813 Ear Speakers are the product of over four years in exhaustive research and development encompassing every part of the human hearing
system.
The human hearing system, musical chords, and the Cardas Audio EM5813 Ear Speakers are reflections of the Golden Ratio
— closely related to the Fibonacci Sequence.... ---> Read More
CHISTO High-End Analog, Digital, And Gear
Cleaners There's so much to love about CHISTO cleaners, and they have a great product for every format to bring more joy of music, plus a gear cleaner too! Their Easy Groove Concentrate (€49.90)
concentrate makes a liter of effective vinyl records cleaning solution. ---> Read More
Chord Mojo Portable DAC
/ Headamp Welcome to your music via the legendary Chord Mojo DAC / headamp ($599 yet on sale, see below). As perhaps the world's most advanced portable digital to analog converter and headphone amplifier that has reached extreme
popularity, thanks to technology derived from Chord's Hugo series units and Dave reference converter this little powerhouse delivers! ---> Read More
Digital Amplifier Company Cherry USB To
S/PDIF Cherry USB to S/PDIF Converter by the Digital Amplifier Company ($390) is a premium unit that is plug-and-play easy to use. You
can easily connect a USB device (driver installation not necessary) for modern Windows and Mac PCs. Power is also provided through USB, so there's no need for an external power adapter. ---> Read More
FiiO M3K Portable Hi-Res Audio Player
And FiiO BTR3 Bluetooth Amplifier Being
an old timer in battery powered portable audio, including everything from a
brand new 1970 Panasonic transistor radio to the world's first portable CD
player (Sony D5 in 1985) and toyed with Diamond Rio mp3 player (1999), I am
truly impressed at these two under $100 offerings. ---> Read More
Furutech NCF Cable Booster-Signal Damping
System Furutech's
NCF Booster ($350 each, with additional extension shafts in 10pcs sets for $33) employs specially developed sound enhancing material for superior connector and cable damping. According to Furutech, "Not only does the Furutech NCF Booster Connector and Cable Holder lift audio cables off the floor minimizing their points of
contact.... ---> Read More
Gingko Audio Acoustic Resonance Clarifier
(ARCH) The unique shape of the patent-pending ARCH Acoustic Resonance Clarifier
($199 to $599) and its material construction make it an effective vibration control base for speakers and heavy audio components.
Ginko Audio's ARCH is constructed from a lossy material that dissipates vibration across the audio frequency spectrum. ---> Read More
Goal Zero Yeti 400 Lithium Portable Power
Station Our
Senior Editor Tom Lyle has
always been a proponent of some sort of power conditioning for one's high-end
audio system. If you're tired of the low quality power coming out of your
outlet, your system only sounding good at night, or want to realize the great
sound capability of your gear by going 100% pure sine wave battery supply, then
the Yeti is for you! Better still, it is priced right and you can charge it via
an optional Yeti solar panel. ---> Read More
HDtracks Hi-Res Music Special 20% Off Holiday
Gift HDtracks is the largest online Hi-Res music store in the world. Their massive catalog of uncompressed, ultra Hi-Res music has all the classic albums that an audiophile could want — Beatles, Zeppelin, Miles Davis, Coltrane, Aretha Franklin,
Radiohead, Nirvana, and beyond — plus brand-new releases added every week from major and independent labels. ---> Read More
IEUYO Ferrite EMI
/ RFI Signal Noise Filters Electrical noise causes problems, many problems. We deal within all
the time as electronic technicians. Yet what have you done to reduce RFI / EMI within your cabling system? For only $11 you can get the IEUYO Ferrite EMI / RFI Signal Noise Filters 20-piece pack that may help improve the sound of your hi-fi
system. ---> Read More
KEF Q150 Uni-Q Bookshelf
/ Desktop Speakers The KEF Q150 Bookshelf Speaker helps round out the company's award-winning Q Series. KEF's Q150 features a solid cabinet, sleek black finish, and a modern 5.25"
Uni-Q driver array. The Q150 contains an enhanced Uni-Q Driver Array designed to smooth out treble frequencies, and reimagined crossovers to provide cleaner and more accurate bass. ---> Read More
Kimber Kable B BUS Cu USB Cable Kimber's
very high quality B-Bus USB cable ($50 for 0.5 meter length) is without a doubt
much higher quality than the throw-away cables that come standard with most
electronics equipment. Our very own Dick Olsher has made very positive comments
about the difference in the sound quality of one's digital system when using
this cable. ---> Read More
Nordost QPOINT Resonance Synchronizer Nordost's QPOINT Resonance Synchronizer ($749.99) emits a subtle field which manipulates all electromechanical resonances within its immediate proximity so that they resonate in unison with each other. The company feels that by sync'ing these resonances, their QPOINT eliminates internal electrical noise, enhancing the coherency and timing that is typically lacking in even the most high-end audio systems. ---> Read More
Pro-Ject Phono Box Ultra 500 Ltd. Ed. Phono Stage In early 2018, Pro-Ject celebrated the shipment of their 500,000th Phono Preamplifier with an exciting design challenge! This time around, the company desired to create an ultra low-noise phono preamp completely free from the damaging effects of environmental interference, while keeping the design compact and simple enough to fit in the same size chassis as
Pro-Ject's S2 line of electronics. ---> Read More
Schiit Sol Cast Aluminum Turntable Schiit's new Sol Cast Aluminum Turntable
($799)
doesn't look like any other affordable turntable in the world. That's because it's designed to deliver the most amazing performance possible for the bucks, without regard to how it
"should" look. ---> Read More
S.M.S.L SP-200 THX AAA-888 Headphone Amplifier For the longest time, getting your hands on a headphone amplifier featuring THX technology was a headache. There were previously only three headphone amplifiers that included
THX's groundbreaking technology, the most popular of the three had notoriously inconsistent availability, leaving many adopters with long wait times. ---> Read More
Sumiko Olympia Moving Magnet Phono Cartridge In a marketplace full of mass-production, planned obsolescence, and endless hype, Sumiko Phono Cartridges provides an oasis of artistry and accessibility for every music lover and analog enthusiast. For over 40 years, Sumiko has provided the industry with some of the finest tools in analog reproduction. ---> Read More
SVS Prime Wireless SoundBase SVS' Prime Wireless SoundBase ($499) is a dual-threat audio component that brings high-resolution wireless audio streaming, advanced connectivity and smart control to conventional speakers or, using its line level output, creates a smart wireless music zone with your AV receiver or two-channel stereo system. ---> Read More
Synergistic Research Orange Quantum Fuses
And UEF Black Duplex Outlet The ORANGE Fuse is Synergistic Research's latest and greatest version of their extremely popular UEF Blue Fuse. In fact the Blue fuse earned Enjoy the Music.com's 2018 Great Audiophile Gift recommendation. If you are one of the thousands of SR Fuse users, than you already know what an improvement the tiny devices add to your
electronic's performance. --->
Read
More
See
MANY MORE Special Gift Suggestions
Great Audiophile Gift Ideas 2019
Over 50 60 great gifts for music lovers! Welcome to Enjoy
the Music.com's 14th annual Great Audiophile Gift recommendations! We all love gifts,
yet getting that something special for an audiophile can be quite a challenge. Enjoy the Music.com's
annual Great Audiophile
Gift wish list brings you 50 web pages filled with some truly spectacular ideas for music lovers.
We've also just added over a dozen new products for a total of
well over 60 Great Audiophile Gifts for this holiday season to satisfy
virtually every music lover!
Prices start at
around $10
and reach to a still reasonable $500 or so. Sure we snuck a few $$$ bits, yet
still under $800. Be sure to visit this page as we
have a free gift especially for you! ---> Read More
Network Demands Composers Give Up Royalties
In what can be described by many as unfair to musical artists, the Animal Planet, Discovery Channel, Food Network, and HGTV (all owned by Discovery Networks) has enacted a new pay policy that beginning in 2020
music composers will have to give up USA airing performance royalties. In further amazement, this includes signing away collecting royalties on previous shows
too! According to Variety, "Music makers surmise that the policy will result in an 80% to 90% drop in their income from these shows.
It's the last straw for many composers who say they will refuse to continue to score such series as Gold Rush, Deadliest Catch and Alaskan Bush People."
In seeking "direct source licenses," Discovery Network is
hoping to lower their already very low investment for music within their programs. "Composer David Vanacore ('Fixer Upper') says that initial fees are already so low that he and his peers rely on the so-called 'back end' payments just to keep operating." according ton Variety. "There is no way I can support what it takes to do a show based on what
they're offering," says David Vanacore. "I don't think they understand the amount of time and energy that goes into the creative process." Unsurprisingly, Discovery declined to make its music executives available for the Variety story, but issued this statement: "Our 8,000 hours of original programming a year drives enormous economic value to the global music community. We compensate countless composers and musicians for their valued contributions, and will continue to do so."
Read more about this drastic
downturn in developments at Variety's website.
12 / 12 / 19
Tidal Goes Immersive With Dolby Atmos Music Amazon Music HD, and to some extent Qobuz, seem to be the leaders
recently in proving true Hi-Res Music, and now online streaming music service Tidal is
joining Amazon in offering Dolby Atmos Music tracks within their Tidal HiFi tier.
Hip-hop / Rapper Jay Z-owned Tidal is now streaming Universal and Warner Music artists in Dolby's surround-like 3D object-based encoding. For now, you'll need to use a modern Android device,
as there has been no date mentioned for Apple iOS devices.
With Dolby
Atmos, sound moves around you in three-dimensional space so music lovers feel like you're inside the action. Rather than being constrained to legacy channels such as stereo, sounds can be precisely placed and moved
within a true 360-degree space including width, height, and depth. Dolby Atmos renders everything from vocals to musical instruments with excellent clarity, richness, detail, and depth. Dolby
Atmos encoding / decoding seeks to create a powerfully moving entertainment experience for music and movie enthusiasts.
McIntosh Labs Announces MC901 Dual Mono Amplifier McIntosh Labs
is proud to announce the MC901 dual mono amplifier ($17,500). From their longstanding heritage comes a truly one-of-a-kind home audio amplifier design and build as the ultimate solution for bi-amp'ing loudspeakers. McIntosh Labs' MC901 is a monoblock amplifier that drives a single speaker. But it is unlike any other monoblock amplifier in that it's two amplifiers combined into one. Adding to the uniqueness is that each amplifier is of differing design philosophies: the MC901 consists of a 300 Watt vacuum tube amplifier attached to a 600 Watt solid-state amplifier on one unified chassis.
The 300 Watt vacuum tube portion powers the speaker's mid and upper drivers via eight KT88 output tubes, plus four 12AT7 and two 12AX7A signal tubes. The solid-state section delivers 600 Watts of dedicated power to the power hungry woofers / subwoofers. The 300 Watt vacuum tube amp in the MC901 uses McIntosh's patented Unity Coupled Circuit output transformer – the same technology McIntosh was founded on in 1949 – to deliver its full 300 Watts into almost any speaker regardless if it has 2, 4 or 8 Ohm impedance. Similarly, the 600 Watt solid state amp delivers its full 600 Watts into a 2, 4 or 8 Ohm impedance speaker via McIntosh's Autoformer technology. Like virtually all McIntosh amplifiers, the MC901 features an iconic 'McIntosh Blue' Watt meter. This time it features their new DualView Power Output Meter to keep track of the output for each amplifier section, with one meter dedicated to the 300 Watt vacuum tube amplifier and the other to the 600 Watt solid-state amplifier.
STEREO Magazine #25 Now
Online / Free Download
This issue of STEREO Magazine features
Editor Michael Lang asking "Is Hi-Fi An Active Hobby?". Their turntable special compares record players from Acoustic Solid, Cambridge
Audio, Perpetuum Ebner and Pro-Ject. Other gear reviews include the Thivan Eros-9, WBT Plasma Project, Accustic Arts Power I & Player I, NAD C368
digital-analog-hybrid, Focal Elegia closed back headphones, and Q Acoustics Concept 300 standmount speaker. There's also an article about the Chromecast interface, which is renown for its great flexibility and usability.
Within his editorial, Michael Lang asks if Hi-Fi is a hobby. He
says, "It depends. Of course, you can buy a high-quality HiFi system, throw yourself on the couch and simply enjoy listening to music at a high level. There's nothing wrong with that. But both the music and the technology also allow a more intensive, deeper engagement with "one of the most beautiful things in the world".
So the music lover may like to contrast different interpretations, compare an early with the late work of an artist, search for similar music of other artists, educate himself (also casually) about music or even music history."
See what's within this issue of STEREO
Magazine and download the entire issue for free at this
link.
Q Acoustics Concept 300 Standmount Speaker A life of harmony.
Review By Michael Lang Of STEREO Magazine Standmount speakers often lose a lot of their sound potential because they are placed in cabinets or on shelves. Q
Acoustics' Concept 300 won't let that happen. Strictly speaking, the Q Acoustics Concept 300 is not a British speaker at all, because its creative father is Karl-Heinz Fink, one of the
world's most respected and busy loudspeaker developers – who lives and works in Essen, Germany. --->
Read More
CH Precision Ethernet Streaming HD Board Review
By Marshall Nack Of Positive Feedback It's winter time. Want to
know the best tweak for the season? Humidity. Get a humidifier and maintain
about 35% RH at the equipment rack. Not only does it make you feel better, it
will make the equipment perform better. Sound travels through air: consider it
the final wire in your system. About a year ago, CH Precision sent around an email
introducing Ralph Sorrentino, their new Brand Ambassador for America. ---> Read
More
12 / 10 / 19
Free Crystal Cable/Siltech CD Via
STEREO Magazine Crystal Cable
and Siltech are proud to announce the release of a new CD with five tracks played by company co-owner and pianist Gabi Rijnveld! STS Digital recorded the tracks for their 40-year anniversary CD in Het Concertgebouw with Crystal Cable Ultra Diamond microphone cables. The CD can be yours for free with the
January 2020 German print issue of STEREO
Magazine! "The past 15 years as Sales & Marketing Leader have been an exciting and rewarding part of my life, developing Crystal Cable and Siltech to high-end audio brands," says Gabi Rijnveld. "The sheer passion for music has enabled me to build strong relationships with our partners and friends around the world. I'm proud of our past and we looking now forward to a successful future under new leadership. I have worked close with the new team to make the transition productive, in getting to know our partners, our people, our culture and brand's DNA."
"After months of practicing for the most recent CD recording that I was honored to be part of," continues Gabi Rijnveld, "I felt the necessity to follow my passion for playing music professionally again, combining this with matching talents I can use in my work in the many years to come. In my future carrier, I like to use my creativity, artistic talents and musician experience during design, development, testing and listening sessions, to give our brands the special exposure and place in the industry they deserve. In pursuing these new opportunities I will be able to share my thoughts how to connect high-end audio with music and other art forms. I'm super excited about the changes and I am looking forward to keep in touch with you all and to support our brands in the best possible way."
HIFICRITIC's Latest Issue Features
UK Show And Reviews HIFICRITIC's
latest issue features their coverage of The UK Show Live as it features a new venue, a different atmosphere, and more
exhibitors. High-end audio equipment reviews include the Eclipse TD-510z and TD-520 subwoofer, dCS Bartok DAC/streamer, Bowers & Wilkins Formation Audio Duo and Edge, KEF LSX colourful speaker, Naim Mu-So Qb 'kitchen speaker', ELAC Navis ARF-51 active floorstanding speaker, Gato Audio DIA-250S NPM amplifier, Spendor D 92 floorstander, Rega RP10 turntable, icOn4 AVC (autoformer) passive preamplifier, and Pro-Ject Classic Evo turntable. HIFICRITIC also gives you the lowdown on subwoofers as Keith Howard says making them play music is tricky.
Within his editorial, Martin Colloms says, "This the final
HIFICRITIC editorial for Volume 13, 2019: from the new year, we are planning to expand
HIFICRITIC, increasing the number of pages from 60 to 64. Unfortunately, this goes hand in hand with our first price increase for five years – despite ongoing price rises for print, paper and editorial content, and still more so for postal rates. Currently UK annual subscription rates for HIFICRITIC are £65, or £17 per single issue inclusive of postage; overseas rates pro rata. The new UK price will be £20 per issue inclusive of postage, and a discounted rate of £75 for our four quarterly issues (see our website for overseas rates)."
See what's within this issue of HIFICRITIC at this
link.
SVS Launches 2000 Pro Series Reference Subwoofer SVS, one of the fastest growing high-performance speaker, subwoofer and audio accessory brands, proudly announced their new 2000 Pro Series subwoofers (starting at $799 on up). Each of the three models boasts an all-new 12" high-excursion SVS driver and a potent 550 Watts RMS (1500+ Watts peak power) Sledge STA-550D amplifier with discrete MOSFET output. Loaded with advanced technology from SVS' flagship 16-Ultra models and features only available from SVS, 2000 Pro Series subwoofers redefine the company's subwoofer performance for music and home theater fans. Comprised of the SB-2000 Pro sealed cabinet, PB-2000 Pro ported cabinet, and PC-2000 Pro ported cylinder cabinet models, each new SVS subwoofer features advancements to the driver, amplifier, cabinet and overall user experience. The result according to SVS is deep and thunderous low frequency output below the threshold of human hearing, with accuracy in frequency response and crisp speed in transients, at a breakthrough price.
Harnessing the massive power of the Sledge amplifier is a 50 MHz Analog Devices Audio DSP with 56-bit filtering, the most sophisticated DSP engine ever used within a home subwoofer. The abundant processing power maintains pristine sound quality that's true to the source material through advanced in-room tuning, optimized frequency response curves, powerful DSP controls and more. A proprietary SVS 12" driver features dual ferrite magnet motor assembly with long-throw parabolic surround for extreme excursion with room-pressurizing SPLs. A lightweight and rigid aluminum vented cone with composite fiber dustcap moves immense amounts of air to create tactile sonic energy without losing control. The 2000 Pro also features convenient control and custom presets via the SVS subwoofer DSP smartphone app for Apple, Android and Amazon devices. The SVS app is the most convenient way to control volume, access multiple DSP functions and program custom presets for one-touch tuning optimized for music, movies, gaming, and more. Users can also adjust crossover frequencies, a three-band parametric EQ, polarity, room gain and more, all from their favorite seat.
Audeze LCDi3 Portable In-Ear Headphones Incredible portable audio any way you want it!
Review By Peter Pialis Of Headphone.Guru I absolutely loved the iSine20 when I reviewed them a few years ago. I found them to really shake things up in the portable market space with their full-sized headphone sound and transparency. Well, never to rest on their laurels, Audeze has just released their follow up; the LCDi3. This new product is a big step up from their iSine20 predecessors with the same magnesium housing and grill from their flagship in-ear headphones; the LCDi4. As well, you now get a plethora of options to use these in-ear
headphones. --->
Read More
Stan Considers Microphony And Electronic Component
Quality Article By Stan Curtis Of HIFICRITIC We largely take it for granted that each generation of amplifiers will be audibly superior to those that came before even when occasionally they
aren't. From my viewpoint as an erstwhile designer I do sometimes find myself doubting some of the claims when I
can't find the evidence to substantiate a claimed improvement whilst applauding the efforts of designers who have spotted and solved a problem we old codgers missed or chose to
ignore. ---> Read More
12 / 09 / 19
Nordost Tonearm Cable + Available In
Four Series
The tonearm cable is perhaps the most critical and sensitive cable
within any vinyl-sourced high-fidelity audio system. The delicate signals generated by pick-up cartridges in these systems demand purpose-built, low-capacitance cables, in order to protect from signal loss and image smearing.
Nordost took many factors into consideration when releasing their new tonearm cable. Nordost is excited to introduce the same advances that have made their V2 such a resounding success to the rest of their tonearm line, by integrating the Tonearm Cable + into their Blue Heaven, Heimdall 2, Frey 2, and Tyr 2 ranges ($599.99, $799.99,
$1399.99, and $2749.99 for a 1.25 meter length respectively). Each new Tonearm Cable + uses four silver-plated, solid core OFC conductors that are arranged in a twisted pair design to create a left and right channel.
The tonearm cables in the Norse range are wrapped in Nordost's patented Micro or Dual Mono-Filament before both channels are individually wrapped in a silver, braided shield, to eliminate inter-channel cross-talk. A separately shielded silver-plated Bond Ground Wire, wrapped in Micro Mono-Filament, is then incorporated into the construction in order to enhance performance and minimize the noise level. To further eliminate noise, Nordost provides two detachable ground wires with every Tonearm Cable +. These silver-plated ground wires, complete with Micro Mono-Filament technology, connect to the shield of the cable, serving as additional ground loop prevention when needed.
Vertere Acoustics Mystic Moving Coil Cartridge Vertere Acoustics
has announced their new Vertere Mystic moving coil (MC) Cartridge (£2000, $2695, and €2498). Unlike the company's DG-1, the Mystic moving coil cartridge is not revolutionary – no wheels have been reinvented – the Mystic is a combination of experience, common sense, science and a little art. Vertere Acoustics seeks to deliver a cartridge that stays in the groove, retrieves the maximum musical information, and is least affected by old or damaged records. They desire a MC system that allows most records within a collection to be played and enjoyed.
The body is machined from solid aluminum alloy and is mass-tuned to the generator for optimum support and control of unwanted mechanical vibrations. Threaded body accepts the supplied stainless steel thumb screws for correct coupling of the cartridge body to the tonearm headshell. An alignment ridge on the front top that assists mounting Mystic to any Vertere tonearm. The
aluminum 7000 telescopic tube cantilever maximizes stiffness without a massive high Q peak. The company chose to employ a micro elliptical diamond stylus tip that is designed for maximum tracking ability without compromising the high frequency response or increasing surface noise. Wide band frequency response of below 10Hz to 40kHz ensures Hi-Res Audio frequency
response. And lastly, an output of 0.5mV should provide a lifelike dynamic range with depth and precision.
12 / 07 / 19
SOtM sPA-1000 Class D Stereo Amplifier
A power amplifier is an essential device for proper music playback.
SOtM's sPA-1000 ($3500) uses an in-house designed Class D amplifier module, which is inherently different from others, and produces 200 Watts per channel @ 4 Ohms. Although some still believe that digital amplifiers are insufficient as high-end audio devices, based on SOtM's unique technologies their sPA-1000 will be the one that may break this bias. SOtM does not use the typical ready-made modules by a few companies. Instead, the sPA-1000 is inherently different from others and is said to outperform them.
SOtM's sPA-1000 uses power stabilization technology (pumping reducer technology) on the power circuit, which removes the power pumping phenomenon. When playing music on the speaker, the electromotive force is generated and it changes the power voltage, and with this special power circuit the sound can become more natural and bring out more details. Most of all, you can play music with very precise low and mid-high ranges. In addition, from the input stage to the speaker output stage, a fully balanced circuit has been applied to withstand the noise from inside and from outside the product. Overall frequency response is from 20Hz to 40kHz with THD+N being 0.05% > @ 1 Watt into 8 Ohms. Dimensions are 360 x 84 x 255mm and the unit weighs 7.5 kgs.
12 / 06 / 19
Kimber Kable NAKED Analog Interconnects Kimber Kable has just launched their new NAKED analog interconnects for high-fidelity audio systems. NAKED is an exquisite cable, capable of delivering an equally exquisite performance says the company. Used between a CD player, phono stage, music streamer, and your amplifier will help you achieve a perfectly balanced sound that is detailed and musical. NAKED interconnects start life as a solid-core copper conductor of the utmost purity achievable. Kimber Kable then anneals the surface within a hydrogen-rich environment for maximum conductivity before plating with palladium. This is followed by a thick, 24ct gold plating. This outer layer is conductive, while also preventing oxidation of the copper conductor. Palladium slows down the diffusion of the copper into the gold, and thus maintains the purity and conductivity.
NAKED interconnects are formed from a precision-braided matrix of these remarkable conductors and organic, un-dyed and un-waxed cotton. The cotton serves to lock the conductors in position, maintaining the spacing and geometry, and preventing the conductors touching. Furthermore, the cotton acts as superior insulator, behaving more like the perfect dielectric. The conductors themselves have no insulating polymer applied to their gold surface in the conventional sense - they are truly NAKED. A high performance wide-braid fabric jacket completes the cable providing additional mechanical damping and protection.
12 / 05 / 19
PureAudioProject Trio15 Horn1 Open Baffle Design Speaker A trip down the rabbit hole.
Review By Paul L. Schumann First of all, let me be totally upfront with you my dear
readers, this is the first review I've written in a long time, so if I come off
as an old curmudgeon, I apologize. In the business of high-end audio, the
one constant is change. So when Steven asked me to review the Trio15 Horns,
I knew I'd be in for a challenge. After so long, could I still use the
reviewer part of my brain? --->
Read More
Hi-Fi+ December 2019 High-End
Audio Magazine Hi-Fi+ magazine's
December 2019 issue features Show reports of RMAF 2019 part 2 from Denver and The Audio Show 2019 within the UK. Meet Your Maker showcases Cambridge custom loudspeaker experts Node Audio. You could win one of three pairs of Final B-Series Universal-fit Earphones! Their 2019
Hi-Fi+ Awards brings you the finest products in audio and personal audio. Gear reviews include the Naim Audio Mu-So QB 2nd generation wireless audio system, Accuphase E-370 integrated amplifier, Linn Series 3 (301) wireless audio system, plus Lyra Etna SL MC cartridge, and Cardas Audio Clear Cygnus loudspeaker cables.
Hi-Fi+'s Ultimate Headphone Guide answers your personal audio questions, plus there are reviews of the Final B-Series earphones, Effect Audio Vogue-Series earphone cables, and FiiO's M11 portable digital audio player.
their largest issue ever!
Within this month's editorial, Alan Sircom says,
"This is one of our largest ever issues, and it is devoted to this year's Awards. Why so many awards? We have felt that the audio industry is undergoing something of a renaissance at the moment, and many of the best sounding, and best performing audio devices have been made in recent years. The improvements to streaming and personal audio devices are self-evident, but there have also been improvements in all fields of audio and these deserve respect." See
what's within this issue of Hi-Fi+
magazine at this
link.
12 / 04 / 19
Lee Scoggens Appointed Pres. Of
NextScreen Publishing
This news just in, NextScreen
LLC, publishers of The Absolute Sound
and Hi-Fi+, just announced that Lee Scoggins will be joining the team as President, NextScreen Publishing Group. The newly formed Publishing Group will house
The Absolute Sound and Hi-Fi+, two leading high-end audio journals.
The Absolute Sound is based in Austin, Texas and Hi-Fi+ is based in Salisbury, England. Lee will be responsible for the day to day operations of the Publishing Group. Lee will also be Executive Vice President for New Business development at NextScreen and will also work on strategy projects across the NextScreen portfolio. Lee will report to Tom Martin, CEO of
NextScreen.
"I am very honored and excited to join the teams on these two prestigious
journals," said Lee Scoggins. "I have been a lifelong audiophile who has
benefited greatly from reading TAS and Hi-Fi+ cover to cover for decades. Both journals have an established record of excellent writing and, indeed, historical contributions to the formation of the high-end audio business. Music is highly important to society and high-end audio offers the best path to maximum enjoyment. My work in digital transformation and analytics suggest there are additional ways that NextScreen can grow the audience for better quality audio and enhance the engagement between the advertiser and their
customer."
Sotheby To Auction The Beatles Decca Audition Tape Sotheby is going to auction Brian Epstein's copy of The Beatles 1962 Decca audition tape (estimate:
£50,000 to £70,000). This 0.25" open reel magnetic tape on a 5" Phillips brand spool
labeled "2" in ball-point, carrying c.15 minutes 20 seconds mono recording at 7.5 inches/second, of The Beatles performing seven songs. These songs include
"Money", "The Sheik of Araby", "Memphis
Tennessee", "Three Cool Cats", "Sure to Fall (in Love with
You)", "September in the Rain", and "Like Dreamers Do" at Decca Studios. It was recorded in London on January 1, 1962. The tape is housed within a contemporary box (Emitape, for a 5.75 inch spool)
labeled "2" and "THE BEATLES" in ballpoint on the base; now housed in a collector's bespoke cloth box; end of tape frayed and brittle with 280mm detached. Also included is a CD transfer and letters of provenance and authenticity. Online biding opens Friday December 6th at 9am EST.
12 / 03 / 19
Marantz Ambassador Ken Ishiwata
Has Passed
We are deeply saddened to report that longtime music lover and Marantz ambassador Ken Ishiwata has passed away. Ken was a very influential personality within our high-end audio industry for his remarkable talent in
conceptualizing stunning sound reproduction. His views and visions have been enthusiastically
reported by high fidelity magazines and websites all around the world. For more than 30 years he lovingly combined his love of music with his conceptual engineering design approach to create high-quality audio products. Many of Marantz's top-tier products designed by Ken include their famous KI series, with KI Pearls and KI Signature being
his very best efforts. Ken Ishiwata was a glorious personality to meet during
high-end audio events and his presence will be missed. Everyone at Enjoy the Music.com wishes Ken's family and close friends all the very best as our memories of Ken will live forever within our hearts.
Hi-Fi World January Features Reviews & Think Pieces Hi-Fi
World's January 2020 issue features a contest with your chance to win a
Audio Technica Oc9X SH cartridge worth £570. This issue also includes their Hi-Fi World Awards 2019 and Hi-Fi World Award winner reviews. High-end audio equipment reviews include the PSB Alpha T20 loudspeakers, Klipsch The Three II table top speaker, PrimaLuna EVO 300 valve amplifier, Cambridge Audio CXA61 budget digital amplifier, and Titan Nemesis interconnects. Other reviews within this
issue are the Blue Aura Blackline PG-1 turntable, The Beatles 7" singles box set, and Audio Analogue Aaphono phonostage.
Within his editorial, Noel Keywood says, "It's time to look once again at the best products we've encountered over the last year. Our bumper Awards issue highlights the products we loved listening to during 2019 and also loved using, sometimes for almost-peculiar reasons.
These days there are lots of good products around, as there should be since at heart hi-fi equipment falls into electrical and acoustical engineering – subjects fairly well worked out nowadays. But of course hi-fi invokes other less deterministic issues, like what does a piece of wire sound like? Yes, there are dark arts locked up in the subject."
See what's within this issue of Hi-Fi World
at this link.
Audiophiles Are Easy! Roger Skoff writes about gifts for the coming holidays.
Article By Roger Skoff Do you have a lot of people on your Holiday Gift List? Do you
want a suggestion for getting them all something that will always be
appreciated? Try music. I know; that's what I said in my last article, but in that one
I was mostly suggesting introducing "newbies" to our hobby and saying that
giving them music to play or the equipment to play it on would be a great way to
both "hook" them... ---> Read More
Special
Holiday Edition!
Great Audiophile Gift Ideas
2019 50 great gifts for music
lovers! Welcome to Enjoy
the Music.com's 14th annual Great Audiophile Gift recommendations! We all love gifts,
yet getting that something special for an audiophile can be quite a challenge. Enjoy the Music.com's
annual Great Audiophile
Gift wish list brings you 50 web pages filled with some truly spectacular ideas for music lovers.
Prices start at
around $10
and reach to a still reasonable $500 or so. Sure we snuck a few $$$ bits, yet
still under $800. Be sure to visit this page as we
have a free gift especially for you! ---> Read More
Win Sony's MDR-Z7 Hi-Res Audio Headphones Win a pair of Sony MDR-Z7 headphones
valued at $480! Enjoy the
Music.com is honored to join with leading
international consumer electronics company Sony for our December 2019 contest.
Sony's MDR-Z7 headphones ($480) delivers music to your ears as the artist intended with Hi-Res Audio
clarity. Take your music collection to another level with Sony's custom 2.76" HD driver units that seamlessly power through your music, keeping every note precise even at higher volume levels. Sony's special drivers create a plane wave effect in the earcups that seeks to prevent reflection delays and minimizes sound loss. --->
Learn more plus enter our contest.
Allnic H-7000 Vacuum Tube Phono
Preamplifier Bringing you closer to the musical performance.
Review By Tom Lyle I've been lucky enough to be able to
review a variety of excellent preamplifiers during the last few years,
from the more affordable to the quite extravagant. As with the Allnic
H-7000 vacuum tube phono preamplifier, as reviewed here, I'm hoping that
these different types of phono preamplifiers that I've reviewed might
help some audiophiles make a decision as to which phono preamp might be
best for their system's analog set-up. --->
Read More
EMM Labs DV2 Integrated
DAC A truly magical musical machine!
Review By Phil Gold It's many years since I've owned a
standalone DAC. When your CD Player is from EMM Labs it not only
contains a world class DAC, but that DAC keeps improving sonically with
regular free firmware updates. On top of that, EMM Labs has updated the
XDS1 CD Player to V2 and now V3 with new physical components for a
reasonable update charge. Without doubt today's XDS1 V3 shows remarkable
improvements over the initial model I first reviewed in 2010. --->
Read More
World
Premiere Review!
Raven Audio Osprey MK3 Tube Integrated Amplifier Fanatic attention to every detail.
Review By Ron Nagle Once
upon a midnight dreary, while I pounded, weak and weary, with a tap, tap,
tapping on a darkened Qwerty. Now with many a quaint and curious tome proffered,
still, I must type evermore. The Raven Audio people are a Texas based company.
Raven's products are made in the town of Onalaska, Texas. They are a
manufacturer sharing some manufacturing facilities with the aerospace industry.
And the aerospace people manufacture some things that are classified as, "only
on a need to know basis." --->
Read More
Metronome Le Dac
Digital-To-Analog Converter... ...and the Technicolor Dream.
Review By Paul Schumann Those
of you who have read some of my previous reviews know that I am in some ways a
throwback, sticking with my compact discs while some audiophiles have moved to
uncompressed digital files and others have embraced the vinyl side. I have a lot
of CD's, and by god, I'm going to still listen to them. A few years ago I purchased the iFi
Audio iDSD, and that opened
up my world on how far digital has come in the last decade. ---> Read
More
SVS Pinnacle 3.5-Way Floorstanding Speakers These speakers can rock, plus produce excellent macro and micro dynamics too!
Review By Dr. Matthew Clott SVS
came on the scene several years ago and impressed everyone with their range of
high performance subwoofers. They established themselves as a high value to
performance product and sold primarily dealer direct. Their subwoofers come in
multiple sizes, multiple price points and in both sealed and ported versions to
seamlessly mesh with home audio and home theater systems. With their success,
speaker production was an obvious progression and they introduced a 5.1 HT
system, bookshelf speakers, dedicated surround speakers and floorstanders. --->
Read More
Monitor Audio Platinum PL 100 II Standmount Speaker Heart of platinum.
Review By Michael Lang Of STEREO Magazine Recently we tested the Gold 200 from Monitor Audio. But we wanted more than gold – and ordered the Platinum PL 100 II standmount speaker from the
Brit's top series. This compact two-way speaker from England deserves a price for its meticulous attention to detail that we
haven't seen anything like in a long time. The Platinum 100 is manufactured neatly and lovingly right down to the last
screw. --->
Read More
Read
All Articles, Reviews, And Show Reports
We
have many more reviews, show reports and think pieces than shown above, so
be sure to read this month's edition of Enjoy
the Music.com's Review Magazine at this link.
Previous High-End Audio News
For previous high-end audio and music industry news
click here.
High-Performance Audio Reviews
