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A friend is a connoisseur of many things in life. At the intermission of a concert, he was puzzled that the audience was clapping as the pianist had made so many mistakes—he performed professionally. He pushed aside a meal at the first bite because it wasn't worth the calories. As a counterpoint, the first time... Read More »

North America Premiere Review! Small package – Big impression! Review By Clive Meakins With this article, Positive Feedback continues its content-sharing relationship with Enjoy the Music Rick Becker shares his thoughts on the Charisma Audio Musiko Tonearm, Soundeck, and Audio Machina Accessories. Dr. David W. Robinson, Editor-in-Chief Lindemann is very well versed with digital technology and Class D amplifiers. For... Read More »

George Counnas of Zesto Audio with his Andros Deluxe II Phono Stage in Bob Levi's listening room Before I start: the most-asked question answered first! Yes. Those of you who own the Zesto Audio Deluxe Phono Stage may receive a factory Deluxe II upgrade through any Zesto Audio dealer for $1200, including a new faceplate... Read More »

I was really impressed by the Pass Labs XP-12 line-level preamplifier that I wrote about in Positive Feedback Issue 111 (HERE), and I have been looking forward to telling you about my time with its intended phono preamplifier partner, the Pass Labs XP-17. Given that Nelson Pass and Wayne Colburn both use Tannoy 15-inch dual... Read More »

The art of listening for art's sake - the art of listening to music, including hi-res audio, MQA, DSD, and 5.1 surround sound In an unconventional approach from the tech learning and evaluation methods I've all but trained myself to follow since the 80s, I hooked up the iFi Zen Phono preamp without looking at... Read More »

Beautiful to behold and a joy to use. Review By Brett Rudolph With this article, Positive Feedback continues its content-sharing relationship with Enjoy the Music. Brett Rudolph shares his thoughts on the LampizatOr MM2 Moving-Magnet (MM) Phono Stage. Dr. David W. Robinson, Editor-in-Chief Turntables have always been one of my favorite sources for my playback system. They are highly... Read More »

In the year 2002 the CD era was in full swing. CDs made up 93% of all recorded music sales—a huge slice of the pie. Vinyl record sales were 2/10ths of 1%. Into that vinyl-on-life-support environment Lamm Industries introduced their first phono preamplifier, the LP2. Fast forward 17 years to 2019. Sales of all physical... Read More »

I've had the same Linn LP12 turntable in my system for thirty-six years. Regular maintenance has kept it in tip-top condition. Of course it has had a few different cartridges over that time, but with one exception it is the same now as when I bought it in 1984. That one exception being replacing the... Read More »

Impressive sound quality that we've come to expect from Pass Labs. Review By Tom Lyle With this article, Positive Feedback continues its content-sharing relationship with Enjoy the Music. Tom Lyle shares his thoughts on the Pass Labs XP-17 Phono Preamplifier and X250.8 Power Amplifier. Dr. David W. Robinson, Editor-in-Chief For quite some time I've been using a Pass... Read More »

A few things on my mind here. Make that two things; digital and analog. Digital as in getting the bits from A to B (in this respect the Diamond Revision 30th Anniversary USB cable from Purist Audio Design - $2100 for the 1.5 meter I have here) and analog in getting the signal from A... Read More »

At the enthusiast audio shows I have visited in the USA over the years, I've always thought that year-to-year, the Audio Note (UK) rooms had some of most consistently excellent musicality & sonics of all the show rooms I visited. The fact that those Audio Note (UK) show rooms utilized relatively modestly priced equipment and... Read More »

The savvy audiophile is keenly aware of the weakest link of the chain theory when it comes to our hobby. The arena of vinyl playback is one place where this event is illuminated with the brightest of lights. Vinyl hobbyists will debate cartridge types, turntable drive formats, and the methodology for cleaning vinyl, however all... Read More »

We've all seen the comeback that vinyl has been making over the last few years. Back when vinyl was dead, I built up my record collection to its present twenty five hundred LPs and one thousand 78s size by asking people if they had any records they no longer wanted. Everyone I asked handed over... Read More »

One of the great benefits of reviewing the KECES Ephono is that I have been playing so many records lately. But with the recent inclusion of the Sophia Electric Baby Magik Box installed into my digital rig, digital music has been a lot more palatable and fun to listen to. This fact has reduced my... Read More »

The new Cary Audio VT-500 Phono Preamplifier, based on the venerable 6SL7 tube and the most expensive phono preamp Cary has ever manufactured here in America, takes its place as the most successful phono stage from this 30-year-old company. Cary Audio now sells direct to the consumer. Musical and melodious to the max, moving coil... Read More »

With the matching cartridges, the KECES Ephono turned out to be a real bargain: So much superb sound and substantial usage of materials plus good workmanship can hardly be found elsewhere at this price. The Sphono now also offers higher load impedances and even more features. Does it also have more to offer in terms... Read More »

Honey, I Shrunk the Phono stage I've had the privilege of knowing Dan Wright for the past twenty years. Over that time, I've seen ModWright burgeon from its humble beginnings as an upgrade or modification-only service provider, to becoming a respected manufacturer of a full line of products. Over the past two decades, ModWright has... Read More »

Stein Music of Germany has been known in these pages as the source for unique and exciting accessories that advance room treatment, amplifier performance, power supply distribution, power cords, turntable performance and more. We knew they were big into loudspeakers and electronics, though few made it to these shores. Time all that changed! Now available... Read More »

'Twas the week before Christmas when Nick Doshi and Anthony Chiarella dropped by bringing seasonal cheer in the form of the Doshi Phono Stage V3.0. While it was warming up, I took the opportunity to bring them up to speed on my current configuration: all CH Precision components, including the CH P1 phono stage. Nick... Read More »