TONEAudio is in the process of making our complete back catalog of equipment reviews available for those of you wanting to just find a specific review without having to download the full issue that they first appeared. This will be an ongoing project for the next few months, so please stop back if you don’t see what you want immediately.
Reviews
Heavy Metal: The Vitus Audio SM-010 Monoblocks
Everything Hans-Ole Vitus makes is heavy. Really fucking heavy. Break-your-back heavy. But those who possess the strength to lift his SM-010 monoblocks out of the boxes will be rewarded with fantastic sound. Read More
Channel Islands D500 MKII Monoblocks Offer power beyond what their compact size suggests
Early class D amplifiers resemble the first efforts at CD players; a great idea that wasn’t fully realized on the first iteration or two. If you’ve been around long enough to remember just how bad those first CD players sounded, you’ll probably agree that the first class D amplifiers offered up the same aural aesthetic, sounding two dimensional, somewhat shrill on the top end and fatiguing after a short period of time. Read More
First US Review: The Rega RP3 A New Legend is Born
Roy Gandy, the founder of Rega Research, proceeds with new ideas and new products at his own pace. Two years ago, Gandy had a prototype table in his listening room that looked as if it could have been a replacement for the P9 turntable, the top end of Rega’s range. Read More
The Consonance XBB Turntable: An excellent addition to your system
It’s a great time to be a vinyl enthusiast. Despite all the excitement over five- and six-figure turntables, many audiophiles are not spending that kind of dough on record players. There are a lot of music lovers exploring vinyl for the first time and getting their feet wet with a $300 to $500 table-and-cartridge combination, but if you really want a stronger dose of analog magic (and remember, digital keeps getting better all the time), you need to spend some more money. Read More
The Octave MRE 130 Monoblocks Scaleable Tube Performance
Merely mentioning that you still listen to vinyl records in casual conversation amongst non-audiophiles almost always invokes a raised eyebrow. And if you try to explain the thrill of vacuum tubes, people that don’t give you a dog-like stare will surely move you to the penalty box. Read More
B&W’s MM-1 Portable Speakers: Massive Sound, Minimum Footprint
“Where’s the sub?” Those were the first words out of my mouth as I entered Danny Haikin’s office at B&W in London earlier this year. He just smiled and said, “There isn’t one. That’s just coming from the two desktop speakers. Read More
The Emotiva USP-1 Preamplifier and UPA-1 Amplifiers A New Budget Standard
In an audiophile world where individual components have five (and sometimes six) figure price tags, the concept of being able to get a preamplifier and a pair of 200-watt mono amplifiers that use discrete circuitry instead of just being Class-D for under $1,200 is refreshing. Read More
The Spin Clean II Record Cleaner Keeps Your Vinyl Clean on a Budget
Yeah, yeah, we are pretty much the last ones to the party to discover the Spin Clean Record cleaner. But in case you haven’t heard of this incredibly reasonably priced record cleaning system that’s been around since 1975 and still made in the USA, it’s definitely worth your time. Read More
