Reviews
REL Classic 98 Subwoofer A brilliant fusion of past and present
REL has achieved a well-deserved reputation for making some of the (if not the) world’s highest performing subwoofers. Read More
YG Acoustics Cairn Speakers Distilled High Performance
Listening to the expansive sound field created by the tiny YG Cairns, with a pair of 8-foot tall electrostatic speakers in the background is really impressive, but not surprising. Read More
The Peak Consult Sinfonia Speakers Welcome back!
Listening to Kraftwerk’s “Boing Boom Tschak” through the Peak Consult Sinfonias has so much information in all three dimensions, it’s almost psychedelic. Read More
The PrimaLuna EVO100 Phono A sublime sense of reality
Listening to PrimaLuna’s new tube phonostage begins with an audiophile cut for a change. If you haven’t had a chance to hear Earth & Wood on Yarlung Records, this is an incredible piece of music exquisitely captured. Read More
The LSA VT-150 Integrated When you need MORE power
With the backlit output meters bouncing to the sound of Massive Attack, cranking up the VT-150s bias to the “high” position and plugging in a set of KT150 tubes proves to be a great move to get that club feeling. Read More
The REL No. 31 Subwoofer How Do They Do It?
Tracking through a time-worn favorite, The K&D Sessions, the very definition of the lower bass notes being delivered is stunning, just coming from a six-pack of REL No. Read More
Luxman L-507Z Integrated Amplifier The Next Generation of Awesome
Relaxing with Elvis Costello’s Painted From Memory on the turntable, it’s almost tough to believe that the source is an integrated amplifier, not a $100k rack full of separate components and a $30k loom of mega cables. Read More
The Degritter Record Cleaner Stylish, Quiet, Effective
This is more of a long-term review, but in a good way. After living with the Degritter for some time now and having cleaned a ton of records with it, the out of the box love has grown. Read More
Acora SRC-1 Speakers Miraculous In Many Ways
Acora’s Scott Sefton opened the door with their stand mount SRB speakers a while back, delivering a lovely experience. Even their stand mount speakers generate a lot of low-frequency energy from a compact enclosure. Read More
The FYNE 500SP Where Are They Hiding The Rest?
Small speakers can rarely energize a good-sized room with full-range sound. This is always the magic that is FYNE. Read More
The Heretic A614 Speakers A perfect blend of new and legacy
Warning, these speakers tend to keep you cemented in your listening chair. The Heretics are “album side” speakers if that makes sense. Read More
The LSA Signature 50 Speakers Quietly Outstanding
In just over four decades of evaluating speakers, the most memorable ones always pull you in with an ease that may not always be as visceral and exciting as some of the flashier “best” speakers out there, but they’ve got staying power. Read More
The Harbeth 40.3 XD Speakers Paradoxically Great!
Enjoying music and audio is almost a spiritual journey. Some will even tell you it is. Your musical taste, hearing, budget, and where you are on your journey will determine how you will voice your system, and what components you will most likely gravitate to. Read More
The PrimaLuna EVO 300/Floyd Design Integrated All Together Now
The new PrimaLuna EVO 300/Floyd integrated amplifier begins its journey here with a PrimaLuna EVO 400 power amplifier (loaded with KT150 tubes) beside it on the rack. Read More
The SVS PB-1000 Pro and SB-1000 Pro Subwoofers Huge Audio Fun!
Here’s a twist for you. Normally, I’m always comparing cars to hifi gear. But not this time. There’s a great burger place in my neighborhood called Killer Burger, that plays metal music most of the time and their burgers all have great names. Read More
The EJ Jordan Marlow Speakers An Interesting Variation on the Small Box Theme
Listening to Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together” is increasing the gravitational pull of the couch the minute I hit the play button. Read More
REL T/9x Subwoofer A New Standard
REL, often gets tagged on social media and mentioned in other platforms for their massive six-pack arrays, which are unquestionably awesome. Read More
The Parasound JC 1+ Monoblocks Real World Reference
Eyes closed, listening to The Allman Brothers Live at the Fillmore East, at close to concert hall levels for a few minutes (gotta watch the OSHA regs…) if someone whispered in my ear and said, “you’re listening to a six-figure pair of amplifiers,” I would believe them. Read More
The Vitus Audio SIA-25 Integrated The 25 Biggest Watts of All
Listening to John Hiatt’s Little Village collaboration, the delicacy presented is otherworldly good. The bass line in “Inside Job” is tight, controlled, defined and powerful. Read More
The Luxman L-590AXII In three acts
Not only did Rob Base and DJ E-Z Rock’s “It Takes Two” make hip-hop history, the 1988 smash and pop-culture staple espoused a philosophy that mirrors a long-held high-end audio doctrine: Separate components (two) reign superior over their integrated brethren (one), unless the latter commands a far, far higher price tag than the comparable pieces. Read More
The Manley Snapper Monoblocks American Muscle and Finesse
Spinning Paul Weller’s “Beyond Sunset” just feels right through the Manley Snappers. Founder EveAnna Manley is currently a Southern California being, and these amplifiers instantly bring up that easy beach feeling. Read More
The Rega P10 Turntable and Apheta 3 Cartridge A Long Journey
Rega’s top table, the P10 is new again. Not new new, but Rega new, which means It’s been subtly updated in nearly every aspect. This warrants a two-tier review. Read More
The Manley Mahi Monoblocks A Quick Re-visit
Manley has not changed the circuit of their smallest monoblocks, the Mahi’s, but since this review came out in 2007, manufacturing costs and a crazy world economy has brought the price to nearly double what they were in 2006 when we first wrote this review. Read More
REVIEW: The Thrax Yatrus Turntable A New King
With turntables spiraling out of control, price-wise, a $100k turntable is no longer the talk of a madman that it once was. That said, I submit that a well sorted $20k-ish table/arm/cartridge combination is all you need. Read More
REVIEW: The Naim Uniti Star Everything you Need in a Single Chassis
Naim’s audio gear legacy extends a half-century, starting with their original amplifier design. From those humble beginnings, they’ve continued to create durable and great-sounding components. Read More
REVIEW – The FinkTeam Kim Speakers Small and Special
With all the internet banter about speaker “break-in,” (and, yes we do believe in it) you know a speaker is special when it sounds fantastic right out of the box. Read More
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