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Empiricism vs. Theory What was my biggest discovery last year? Bass traps. I installed them in the left and right front corners behind the speakers, as recommended. Having done my homework, I knew what to expect: low-end response would be smoother and tighter, clarity would increase, and some dampening would occur. The treble also would... Read More »

When I first requested an opportunity to write about the next new First Watt amplifier, I was candid with Nelson Pass that it was possible my Von Schweikert Audio VR-35 Deluxe loudspeakers and passive Bent Audio AVC-1 linestage might not be a good match for any First Watt amplifier. Several months later, I received a note... Read More »

I really couldn't resist the splendid speaker and interconnect cables from Göbel Audio. To be on the safe side I therefore listened only briefly to the power cables, but exchanged them before I got used to it. However, the most recent digital cables I cannot hide from you—and really don't want to—despite this being a... Read More »

Remasters 2016 vol. 1 | vol. 3 | vol. 4 | vol. 24 | vol. 54 | vol. 63 COMPACT DISC | LONG PLAY Warner Music Poland sp. z o.o. Wytwórnia Polskie Nagrania [email protected] polskienagrania.com.pl  warnermusic.pl  The third meeting of High Fidelity readers with Polish Jazz Remasters (the so-called second "six", as the record label decided to launch... Read More »

Merrill Wettasinghe with his Merrill Audio Christine Preamplifier at Nack Labs When you think about it, the room is arguably your most important component. I am well aware of the sound of mine, a 12' W x 8' H x 32' L living room. I had a choice: setup on the long wall for soundstage width,... Read More »

The National's sixth album, Trouble Will Find Me, continues the Brooklyn-based band's streak of melancholy mellow, indie rock. It's reminiscent of the rhythms and monotone vocals of Joy Division and with the suffer-in-silence-like lyrics of The Smiths. "Don't Swallow The Cap" and "Graceless" are dead ringers for Joy Division songs. Singer Matt Berninger and band... Read More »

Speakers—out of all the components in the audio chain— have seen the biggest advancements in performance over the last couple of years. Cabinet design. Driver design. Enclosure and driver materials. Computerized speaker design and crossover modelling. In house machining and construction. These factors and a few more have gone a long way to elevating high-end... Read More »

Positive Feedback has reviewed a number of products from Sophia Electric. Way back in Issue 8 of audioMusings hardware reviews, I was fortunate enough to review their "Baby" tube amplifier. Recently, I reviewed their gorgeous Coke Bottle KT-88 ST tubes. The subject of this review is the Sophia Electric Magik Box. If any component in... Read More »

The Esoteric K-01X SACD/CD player that I recently reviewed was an amazing performer. It was my first experience with an Esoteric product and I found it to be extremely impressive—one of the most impressive components that I spent time with in 2016. In support of my extensive series on integrated amplifiers, I was also given... Read More »

I'm no stranger to reviewing Raven Audio gear having previously reviewed a pair of the Raven Audio Silhouette Reference amplifiers and Silhouette Reference preamplifier, and the Shadow Reference stereo amplifier for PF. All Raven gear shares something in common, and that is the ability to reproduce music in such a way that it never fails to... Read More »

GRIEG: Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 16 (rev. Grieg and Grainger)*; Piano Concerto in B minor (fragments); EVJU: Piano Concerto in B minor (on fragments by Grieg)*; GRIEG: Two Songs (trans. Evju for solo piano). Carl Petersson, piano; *Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra/Kerry Stratton Grand Piano GP 689.  TT: 56.35 Downloads: prestoclassical.co.uk (320-kbps mp3, FLAC);... Read More »

The Super Audio CD Player, Ayon Audio  CD-35 turned out to be significantly different from typical products of this type, both in terms of technical aspects, the sound quality and price/performance ratio. We believe that this is the player that changes—in a micro-world, but still—rules of the game, because it aspires to the level previously... Read More »

Serge Prokofiev, Piano Sonatas, Vol. 1. Nos 2, 6, and 8. Alexander Melnikov, Harmonia Mundi HMC 902202. For those of us who find early twentieth century modernism one of the pinnacles, Prokofiev's piano concertos and piano sonatas are among its richest assets. What I have always found especially attractive in this music is a sense... Read More »

Ascend Acoustics is a high-end loudspeaker manufacturer operating out of Southern California. Founded by David Fabrikant in 1999, Ascend Acoustics' mission has been to deliver class-leading price-to-performance ratios for customers seeking loudspeakers for music-listening and home-theater applications. Ascend Acoustics maximizes value by selling direct to customers and minimizing marketing expenditures. Over the years, the company... Read More »

Zesto's audio designer and chief engineer, George Counnas, reminds me of the late great William Z. Johnson of ARC fame. Johnson just had to think about what he wanted to build and then he built it. Easy! George Counnas just thought about the ultimate phonostage with flexibility never before seen in audiophile design history and... Read More »

The Unison Research Unico DM amplifier (image courtesy of Unison Research) "There is no end. There is no beginning. There is only the infinite passion of life." - Federico Fellini You've got to hand it to the Italians: the paintings, the operas, the suits, the fast cars, the food, the wine. Theirs is a cultural aesthetic... Read More »

This is the third in my series of reviews on the Devialet product line. Please see my commentary on the Devialet Expert 400 and Devialet Expert 800 by just clicking on the model number. Devialet has now introduced their latest generation of product called the Devialet Expert Pro series that will replace the Expert series.... Read More »

Preoccupations, Preoccupations JAGJAGUWAR, Digital, vinyl, and CD In hindsight, naming a band Viet Cong probably wasn't the best idea, but they did it anyway and controversy ensued. Claims of cultural appropriation and insensitivity sparked outrage from student communities, online communities, and the threat of protest and boycotts forced the hand of concert promoters to cancel shows. That... Read More »

The humble phono stage is the unsung hero in most analog systems, yet many hobbyists overlook its importance and often allow it to become a bottleneck. This is especially true for those folks who operate in the affordable realm of vinyl playback, and are concerned with getting the most from their audio dollars. This topic... Read More »