May - June 2015
Audio Discourse
Your Final System (YFS) PS-12m Mac Mini Power Supply/Internal...
If you're an audiophile, you realize at some point that digital spinning discs won't be around forever. Although that realization hit me...
The Rega DAC-R: Will the Circle be Unbroken
Avec l'assistance de M. Bastille "We sang songs of childhood Hymns of faith that made us strong Ones that mother Maybelle taught us Hear the...
Ready For Computer Audio? Ready To Rip, Download or Stream Your...
During my career with AT&T Bell Laboratories, I had many opportunities to visit some of the finest higher education institutions in the country. My...
Dr. David W. Robinson, Yarlung Records, and DSD
Dr. David W. Robinson, Yarlung Records, and DSD David W. Robinson, enjoying some holy smoke of a recent afternoon. Photograph by John W....
The eXemplar System
A Little Background It's safe to say that mentioning John Tucker's eXemplar audio to an audiophile is likely to get one of three reactions. The...
The Garrard Project 2015: From Simple to Spectacular!
There's just something musically magical about the performance of idler-wheel Garrard transcription turntables that keeps me fascinated with them....
Audio Ramblings - The DEQX PreMate: The Next Step to Sonic Bliss
I wrote a rather extensive review relating my experience with the DEQX Mate in Issue 67 where I quite succinctly reported how wonderful the unit...
Audio Ramblings - Skogrand SC Beethoven Speaker Cables
So here we have the Beethoven loudspeaker cables from Skogrand that at $22K are something I tend to never review. Actually make that never ever ever...
The Woo Audio WA7tp and the Future of Two Channel Home Audio
The Woo Audio WA7tp and the Future of Two Channel Home Audio "It's just a kiss away It's just a kiss away" —"Gimme...
Hardware Reviews
64 Audio U12 IEMs
Recently, there has been an emergence of innovation and unprecedented technologies which have overhauled the headphone and IEM industry from a stagnant...
Synergistic Research Atmosphere Level 4 Interconnects and...
Synergistic Research continues to be one of the driving forces in the high end audiophile community. Teaming up with several industry leaders at the...
Pass Laboratories INT-60 Integrated Amplifier
Over the past ten years, I have reviewed a half dozen or more products from Pass Labs. I ended up purchasing many of those components. It seems like...
Audio-Technica AT33EV Cartridge
Audio-Technica was founded in 1962 by Hideo Matsushita; the company's first offerings were the AT-1 and AT-3 phono cartridges. Over the years the...
Finite Elemente Pagode APS Amplifier Stand - They Take Away the...
I'm no longer responsible. I've relinquished control—the system has taken over. I'm only along for the joyride, afforded aural...
Jasmine LP3.0 MM/MC Phono Preamplifier
Did you know that the sweet jasmine plant is represented by 200 species native to tropical temperate regions of Eurasia, Australasia, and Oceania? Or...
Transfiguration Proteus Moving Coil Cartridge
Transfiguration's new top-of-the-line Proteus cartridge is unquestionably one of today's finest moving coil transducers. The Proteus truly...
Fritz Speakers The Morel 6
Mama said not to believe rumors and hearsay. And in college we learned the meaning of illicit generalizations. So it was in regards to the sound and...
Audience Adept Response aR2p, aR2pTO, and the aR2pTOS AC...
I think we can all agree that, generally speaking, the thought of experiencing a new power supply or conditioning product is not quite as exciting as...
PS Audio Sprout - A "Complete" Amplifier
Over the past several years, one of the big topics in field of high end or perfectionist audio has been how to get new people, and especially younger...
Ortofon 2M Mono Phono Cartridge
When I first found out last fall that I was getting the new Beatles Mono LP box for review, I contemplated going full-on mono to bring as much...
Vermouth Audio - Black Pearl Interconnects and Red Velvet...
When talking about the controversial topic of audio cables, there are three specific areas that keep getting discussed: Do cables actually sound...
JCAT Reference USB and Reference LAN Cables
The principals behind JCAT, Marcin Ostapowicz and Josef Piri are perhaps better known as the creative minds behind JPLAY, a Windows based music...
Merlin Music Black Magic TSM Bookshelf Speakers
How many rabbits can a magician pull out of the same hat? In the case of Bobby Palkovich, the wizard of Hemlock, it does seem like there is no limit....
Dynamic Design’s Challenger Digital Power Cord
Classical music subscriptions gobble up the lion’s share of our entertainment dollars. On average, we attend one or two concerts a week at...
Audiomat Maestro 3 DAC
Based in France, Audiomat was started in 1986 by brothers Denis and Norbert Clarisse. Denis designs the equipment and Norbert manages the company....
Interviews
Reviewers' View, AXPONA 2015: David Robinson and Myles Astor...
Watch David Robinson and Myles Astor, along with Peter Breuninger of AV Showrooms.com, share their final thoughts on the 2015 AXPONA Show on YouTube....
Music Reviews
The Reel Deal - A Pair from The Tape Project's Third Series of...
Dan Schmalle, Paul Stubblebine and Mike Romanowski, aka The Tape Project's tres amigos, are more than anyone else responsible for putting the reels...
Symphonies of Wind Instruments (a Subtle and Brief Summary of...
The four composers represented in this overview and the accompanying album, all wrote music in a variety of styles and for many different types of...
Notes of an Amateur: Jennifer Koh's Bach, Ibragimova's Ysaÿe,...
Jennifer Koh, Bach and Beyond 2. Solo Violin Sonatas by Bach, Bartok, and Saariaho. Jennifer Koh, violin. Çedille 90000-154. Nobody plays Bach...
Fartbarf - Dirty Power
Here is a band that changed the way I view Neanderthals. Most people might see a caveman, or a Neanderthal, and instinctively see the old Geico...
Notes of an Amateur: Sort of Shostakovich, Seither, and...
Dmitri Shostakovich, arranged Rudolph Barshai. Chamber Symphonies. The Dmitri Ensemble, Graham Ross. Harmonia Mundi HMU 907634. These are three of...
Schubert for Two
SCHUBERT: Allegro moderato and Andante, D. 968; 4 Ländler, D. 814; German Dance with 2 Trios and 2 Ländler, D. 618; Introduction and...
Four New Yarlung Records Releases: Summary Notes
Nigel Armstrong, Nigel Armstrong: Bach, Bartók, Korngold. Featuring Sir Neville Mariner and the Colburn Orchestra. Native DSD Catalog number...
New Music on Blu-Ray
Alexander Ekman's A Swan Lake. Composer: Mikael Karlsson. Conductor: Per Kristian Skalstad. Performers: Norwegian National Opera and Ballet. Art...
New Old Stock - Articles from Our Days in Print
Clayton Audio M70 Amplifiers
This article, by Francisco Duran, Dave Clark, Larry Cox, and Victor Chavira, originally ran when audioMUSINGS was in print - Issue 9, 1999. Back in...
Our Friends at HIFI Statement
PS-Audio Directstream DAC ( in German)
Auf den PS Audio DirectStream DAC (DS) war ich aus mehreren Gründen sehr gespannt: PS Audio löst mit dem DS das bisherige, bestens beleumundete.... . . Read More »
Creaktiv Isolation Board (in German)
Die Audio Selection creaktiv GmbH ist in der HiFi Szene ein recht bekannter Hersteller, nicht zuletzt, weil dieses findige Unternehmen immer wieder.... . . Read More »
VertexAQ Powercables and Distribution Block ( in German)
Der Austausch von Kabeln läuft für viele unter dem Begriff „Tweaking“, in Anbetracht der zu erwarteten Ergebnisse. Oder anders ausgedrückt, dies.... . . Read More »
Munich High End 2015 Part I : Fotos from Helmut Baumgartner
An nur einem Tag sammelte Helmut Baumgartner mit seiner Kamera mehr Impressionen, als man live auf der Messe verarbeiten könnte. Aber natürlich waren.... . . Read More »
Munich High End 2015 Part II: Impressions of Wolfgang Kemper
Wie man sich doch täuschen kann. Da meine neuen Autoren-Kollegen Roland Dietl und Peter Banholzer sich mit Dirk Sommer, Jürgen Saile und mir die.... . . Read More »
High End Munich 2015 Part III: Impressions of Jürgen Saile
Heute können Sie Jürgen Saile auf seinem Rundgang über High End begleiten. Variatio delectat: Statt auf eine Fülle von Bildern – von denen es.... . . Read More »
Munich High End Part IV: Impressions of Peter Banholzer
Mein Kollege Jürgen Saile brachte es bei seinem Messerundgang auf den Punkt: variatio delectat. Für alle, die nicht in den „Genuss“ von.... . . Read More »
Our Friends at High Fidelity
Niemen, NIEMEN, or the Red album, or Człowiek jam niewdzięczny
Style of the work of Czesław Niemen is very heterogenic. It covers big-beat, progressive work, rock with jazz elements, blues-rock, avant-garde, and...
Miyajima Laboratory MC Cartridge
Iwashimizu Hachiman-gu Shrine (jap. 石清水八幡宮) is one of the three most important Hachiman-gu Shintō shrines in Japan. It was founded in 859...
Harmonix X-DC20SM MILLION MAESTRO Power Cable
There will always be those who doubt ability to assess and differentiate audio devices by listening to them in controlled environment and comparing...
TechDAS AIR FORCE TWO
Most likely by a pure coincident, if you believe such thing exists, a few things analogue related happened within one week period, important things I...
Accuphase A70 Power Amplifier
Some devices are able to fit into particular audio system seamlessly, like they have always been a part of it, as if they've always belonged. They...
Trilogy 925 - Integrated Amplifier
As I already mentioned once (in the review of Wow Audio Lab L1/M1 amplifier), Audio Show in Warsaw is a place for me to collect information. Not...
Gigawatt PC-4 EVO + LS-2 - Power Conditioner + Power Cable
One can wonder why so many people at certain age start using expression "I remember that..." more and more often. I can not not remember that...
Thrax Audio - TERES + LYRA Power amplifier + loudspeakers
To be honest I can't remember how it started. In my own review of Dionysos preamplifier for January 2011 I wrote that I'd firstly learned about...
Totaldac - d1-twelve DAC
The last page of a folder presenting the offer of the French Totaldac company reminded me of the way in which digital technology has developed in the...
Tellurium Q ULTRA SILVER - Interconnect + Speaker Cable
Geoff Merrigan, the CEO of Tellurium Q, is not very effusive when it comes to telling the secrets of his cables design. To be honest, it seems as if he...
Accuphase E-470 and DC-37 - Integrated Amplifier + DAC
While tracing the development of the Accuphase company for the last several years, I underestimated its approach to designing audio equipment for a...
APL ILLUMI-FI DSD-S DAC
One of the most well-known Polish constructors specializing in digital systems asked me recently what we see in the "whole DSD thing". I...
Show Reports
AES 2015 Europe, Best Of...
Best New Product in Show DPA has come out with something new, a vocal microphone using their existing 4000-series capsules. You can order it as an...
AES 2015 Europe
The European AES show is a very different beast than the American shows, in part because of much lower vendor involvement. The trade show section is...
Impressions: AXPONA 2015
Chicago. Not my favorite city. Mainly it has to do with O'Hare Airport, though its long and well-known history of political corruption and crime...
AXPONA 2015
Dateline April 23-25th, 2015, The Westin Hotel, Rosemont Ill Today's Headlines: AXPONA 2015 Returns and Morphs into Audio Con! Spock Sighted...
