personal audio Archives - Positive Feedback

FiiO R7 Desktop Digital Music Streamer, Preamplifier, and Headphone Amplifier

Editors at Positive Feedback — Mon, 20 Mar 2023 18:16:04 +0000

With this article, Positive Feedback continues its content-sharing relationship with Enjoy the Music where Steven R. Rochlin shares his thoughts on the FiiO R7. Dr. David W. Robinson, Editor-in-Chief A superb DAC, streamer, preamplifier, and headamp designed for music lovers. Review By Steven R. Rochlin When FiiO sent me an e-mail showcasing their new R7 desktop stereo... Read More »

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iFi xDSD Gryphon Portable DAC and Headphone Amp

Michael Wechsberg — Tue, 12 Apr 2022 17:46:10 +0000

iFi Audio has been on my radar for a couple of years mainly due to the excellent reviews for their affordable DACs, streamers, amps, and other digital accessories. The digital portion of my home audio system is currently in a transition phase. I had to give up my reference AURALIC Vega DAC, reviewed in Positive... Read More »

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iFi Audio GO blu - Another Perspective

Francisco Duran — Tue, 01 Mar 2022 17:29:26 +0000

Did you ever see an audio product that you thought you didn't need but once you looked into it you just had to have it? Such is the case with the iFi GO blu. As of late I have been rethinking my headphone/amp set up, and leaning more to adding an amp than a DAC.... Read More »

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iFi GO blu Mobile Bluetooth Headphone Amp/DAC

Malcolm J. Gomes — Fri, 18 Feb 2022 21:35:22 +0000

"Honey, I shrunk the headphone amplifier and DAC," is what the engineers at iFi probably told their marketing counterparts when they first showed them the prototype of the GO blu, and that is hardly an overstatement! When I received the GO blu in the mail, and unpacked the unit, I encountered a component that is... Read More »

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Questyle M12 Mobile Phone Headphone Amp and DAC - Great HiFi On the Go

Juan C. Ayllon — Sat, 01 Jan 2022 17:32:20 +0000

Chances are, you spend a lot of time either behind a desk, on a computer, or out and about without access to a quality home high fidelity stereo. Or, if you're like me this past season, your system is out of commission, tucked away in storage while renovations are being performed in your home. That's... Read More »

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The Little Devil - The ifi iDSD Diablo DAC/Amplifier

Al Chieng — Fri, 07 May 2021 22:03:30 +0000

Established in 2013, iFi currently has developed and manufactured over 30 products from its headquarters in Southport, UK. Sourcing parts from all over the world its main aim has been to create high quality audio wherever you are. Thus, the iFi iDSD Diablo would be the quintessential device to deliver on its mission statement. For... Read More »

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Taking it With You - Clarus CODA DAC

Michael Laurance — Mon, 01 Mar 2021 17:01:51 +0000

In December of 2020, Clarus Cable released the Coda DAC/headphone amplifier ($300), giving the audiophile on-the-go a new and elevated option for taking music everywhere. Utilizing the ESS Professional Series SABRE DAC, the CODA plugs directly into your laptop via USB-A, and features a 3.5mm headphone jack on the other end. Inside the solidly-constructed device... Read More »

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Meze Empyrean Upgrade Wire - It Just Gets Better!

Kermit Heartsong — Sat, 09 Jan 2021 21:55:58 +0000

The Meze Empyrean continues to be the headphone that I go to for both reviewing and for simply enjoying the music. Rare, indeed, is the product that is transparent, musical, and truly engaging. That the Empyrean is also one of the most aesthetically beautiful headphones that I have come across, easily validates a form follows... Read More »

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Empire Ears Odin - A Transparency and Sound-Staging Champion!

Kermit Heartsong — Fri, 01 Jan 2021 18:58:00 +0000

Empire Ears is a family-owned In-Ear-Monitor (IEM) company based in Atlanta, Georgia, that, collectively, brings over thirty years of experience in acoustical engineering and product manufacturing. As I mentioned in a previous review, every audio equipment company's product has it unique voice—neutral, warm, reference, detailed, bright, vivid etc—and its form. The Empire Ears' voice is,... Read More »

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Astell&Kern SR25 - Incredible Transparency Weds Wondrous Musicality!

Kermit Heartsong — Wed, 16 Dec 2020 21:34:34 +0000

In the late 1990's, prior to Apple's creation of the iPod, the company, IRIVER, had been manufacturing consumer electronic products and some of the first portable music players in the world. Music players that were capable of both lossy and CD-quality music playback. For the next twenty plus years IRIVER would continue to produce portable... Read More »

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FiiO Q3 - A Powerful, Little Musical Engine!

Kermit Heartsong — Tue, 08 Dec 2020 18:43:35 +0000

If you think about it, every musical instrument has its birth, grows its shape, as it chooses its skin—metal, wood, glass, reeds—and develops its own unique tone / timbre. Though there are various families—woodwinds, brass, strings, keyboard, idiophones, friction instruments, and percussion—that share, within families, similar to overlapping voices. And there are literally hundreds of... Read More »

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Obravo EAMT-2C IEM - Breathtaking Musicality, Transparency, and Engagement!

Kermit Heartsong — Sat, 14 Nov 2020 20:25:42 +0000

We review products across a relatively narrow band, a niche, if you will. And our niche is dichotomous, generally, in that it supposes that great transparency and superb musicality can coexist in the same piece of audio equipment—headgear. Our research has revealed that we are, indeed, in a quite narrow niche, as manufacturers, to date,... Read More »

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iFi hip-dac - A Smooth, Musical Operator!

Kermit Heartsong — Tue, 10 Nov 2020 19:31:27 +0000

The Streaming Houses—Spotify, Apple, Amazon, Qobuz, Tidal, etc.—that provide access to, literally, millions of albums at home or On-The-Go (OTG), can be said to have birthed the "Glorious Age of Accessible Music (GAAM)." And the generation that is, arguably, best suited to take advantage of this is Generation Z (<20yrs)—the largest population segment at 25.9%,... Read More »

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Fiio FH5 - A Beautifully Detailed and Musical IEM!

Kermit Heartsong — Mon, 09 Nov 2020 19:09:29 +0000

That so much transparency—detail, macro/micro-dynamics—and music lies within these small and, relatively, inexpensive IEMs is, no doubt, a wondrous discovery. For more years than I'd like to recall, I have chased after the audiophile "Maltese Falcon" (The Maltese Falcon, John Huston, Warner Brothers,1941) only to be left wanting for what a given piece of equipment—speaker,... Read More »

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VISION EARS EVE - Astounding Musicality, Transparency, and Speed!

Kermit Heartsong — Mon, 02 Nov 2020 20:09:01 +0000

The In-Ear-Monitor (IEM) company VISION EARS was founded by Marcel Schoenen, a former guitarist and singer for the band SUIDAKRA (folk-metal), and Amin Karimpour, a design and IEM enthusiast with an "exceptional love for detail1." The two met while working for a leading German IEM company. And it would be a shared vision—for quality, product... Read More »

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Meze Audio Rai Penta In-Ear Monitors

Editors at Positive Feedback — Fri, 08 May 2020 21:32:23 +0000

Worth The Wait: Meze delivers an artful and meticulously crafted masterpiece. Review By Dave Hanson With this article, Positive Feedback continues its content-sharing relationship with Enjoy the Music. Dave Hanson shares his thoughts on the Meze Rai Penta In-Ear Monitors. Dr. David W. Robinson, Editor-in-Chief I first encountered the Meze Rai Penta ($1099) at CanJam SoCal in 2018,... Read More »

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DethonRay Prelude DTR1 Player

Smit Patel — Tue, 03 Mar 2020 16:46:16 +0000

DethonRay is a new boutique audio brand started by Anson Tse— a figure with many years of experience in the industry of personal HiFi. Their first and only product so far is the DethonRay DTR1 Prelude—a compact digital audio player that does without the bells and whistles of contemporary players, and focuses primarily on sound... Read More »

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The Best Simple Mobile Audio Configuration

David Elias — Mon, 24 Feb 2020 22:17:15 +0000

A friend recently wrote me to help another friend who is interested in getting a mobile music setup. Quality is important, meaning "Sound Quality" or SQ… Price is important, meaning "Cost"… Mobility is important meaning "Something that travels with good sound but also sounds good in a room when you get there"… Here is what... Read More »

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64 Audio Tia Fourte & U18t In-Ear Monitors

Smit Patel — Fri, 07 Feb 2020 21:59:43 +0000

With just a decade of experience, 64 Audio have quickly grown to become a tour de force in the world of portable audio. Part of their ascension has stemmed from their firm desire to challenge traditional audio standards with innovations and ground-breaking technologies. The pinnacle of their knowledge has culminated in the Tubeless In-Ear Audio... Read More »

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Meze Audio Rai Penta In-Ear Monitors

Smit Patel — Mon, 27 Jan 2020 19:59:50 +0000

Following the success of the impeccably designed and tonally agreeable Meze Empyrean headphones, the Meze Audio Rai Penta IEMs were established with the same decisive vision of a marriage of comfort, aesthetics, and sound. Culminating from three years of research and development, the Rai Pentas—as their name suggests—packs five drivers in a seamlessly hybrid topology.... Read More »

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Fiio M11 Pro Android-Based Digital Audio Player

Smit Patel — Sun, 15 Dec 2019 20:13:37 +0000

Having released a multitude of digital audio players for entry, mid, and now hi-fi consumers, Fiio are a company dedicated in maximizing value for money propositions, and strive for continual improvement. Their latest breed of players include the Fiio M11 Pro digital audio player which improves upon the M11 Pro with an all new carefully... Read More »

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Campfire Audio Atlas IEMs

Smit Patel — Sun, 03 Nov 2019 17:43:48 +0000

Known for its industrial designs and commitment to sound tuning, Campfire Audio represent a bold and daring personal audio company in the midst of an already populated marketplace. Headed by Ken Ball, who oversees both Campfire and its parent company ALO audio, the boutique brands have earned a solid reputation amongst both audiophiles and the... Read More »

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Dita Audio Twins - Fealty & Fidelity IEMs

Smit Patel — Sun, 04 Aug 2019 22:01:24 +0000

With a vibrant commerce scene and international trading links, Singapore is a country where personal audio and high-fidelity sound are significantly valued. Planning to capitalize on these national traits, Dita Audio are a Singaporean brand striving to seek perfection without conforming to market trends. The latest in their rather impressive line-up is the new Twins... Read More »

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Fiio FH7 In-Ear Monitors

Smit Patel — Sat, 20 Jul 2019 16:39:31 +0000

Fiio are a Chinese audio firm who have been well-regarded within audiophile circles. With an enthusiasm to bring affordable offerings to the mass-market, their products have received critical acclaim, and they have many awards under their belts. Hence, their vision to improve the "Made in China" reputation has certainly come a long way, owing to... Read More »

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Master & Dynamic MW65 Wireless Headphones

Smit Patel — Fri, 19 Jul 2019 17:53:48 +0000

New York based audio company Master & Dynamic have always pushed the envelope in product design where styling and aesthetics are concerned. This, coupled with their striving for audiophile sound, has earned them acclaim from many a critic. It is not surprising then that their latest creation—the MW65 active noise-cancelling headphones—have been eagerly anticipated in... Read More »

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