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Digital Processor Reviews Solid State Preamp Reviews

Primare PRE35 Prisma streaming preamplifier

Sasha Matson Mar 31, 2023

Hygge might not be the first word that comes to mind when contemplating the Primare PRE35 Prisma preamplifier, but in Limhamn, Sweden, that is how Primare likes to describe their products. It means "cozy," and it's a very important concept in the Nordic countries, almost a way of life. Another term that appears in Primare's product descriptions is lagom, which loosely translates as "not too little, not too muchjust right."

Montreal Audio Fest 2023

Audiophile Experts: Esoteric, Focal, Stable 33.33, Accuphase, André Thériault, Luna Cables

Robert Schryer Mar 30, 2023

Beautiful strains of music lured me into the Audiophile Experts room, where the song "Göttingen," written in 1964 by French chanteuse Barbara (real name Monique Andrée Serf) as an ode to the German city by the same name, was playing. As well as having become a hit in her native country, the song has been credited as having helped improve relations between France and Germany in the years following the Second World War. Barbara called the song "a hymn to Franco-German reconciliation".

Montreal Audio Fest 2023

Distribution Phonograph: Thöress, Luna Cables, Wattson Audio, Rectilinear

Robert Schryer Mar 30, 2023

As soon as I entered the room hosted by distributor / reseller Distribution Phonographe's room, I thought, "where's all the gear?" There wasn't much around, and of the few items that were around, one was so small as to be nearly imperceptible at first glance.

Phono Accessory Reviews

Nessie Vinylcleaner ProPlus+ record cleaning machine

Julie Mullins Mar 30, 2023

I'm a music lover first, not the most Type A of audiophiles. Sure, I clean my records, but I'm not obsessive about keeping them immaculate like my audiophile father is; he cleans each record ultrasonically before it lands on his turntable platter, writing the date of each record's last bath and which cleaning machine he used on the outside of a fresh plastic inner sleeve before sliding the LP back inside. I don't think his cleaning schedule is rigidhe has far too many LPs for thatbut it's regular. Whenever I visit with LPs in tow, they must pass through the record-cleaning machine (RCM) gauntlet before they're permitted to land on his turntable's platter...

Recently, I tried out one of the many RCMs currently on the market: the redundantly named Nessie Vinylcleaner ProPlus+ ($2495), which despite the name does not hail from Scotland, nor is it a monster; in fact it's smaller than some other record cleaners I've used.

Montreal Audio Fest 2023

Planète Haute-Fidélité: MartinLogan, Stable 33.33, Reed, Hana, Saturn Audio, Wattson Audio

Robert Schryer Mar 30, 2023

When I think of MartinLogan, I immediately envision an electrostatic speaker. One of their tall ones equipped with the dynamic woofer. A second later, I'll be reminded that Martin Logan also makes good cabinet-style standmounts such as the one I saw at the 2019 Toronto Audiofest, the Motion 35XTi. What I won't naturally equate with an ML design is a box-design floorstander,

Montreal Audio Fest 2023

MoFi Distribution: Dr. Feickert, Thomas Schick, Koetsu, Whest, HiFi Rose, BAT, Isotek, SolidSteel, AudioQuest

Robert Schryer Mar 29, 2023

Does anyone who's been in our audio hobbyist orbit for some time not know speaker designer Andrew Jones? Wouldn't it be funny to imagine that in alternate 'verses in the multiverse, Jones might be something other than a famous speaker designer? Perhaps a famous pianist in one 'verse, an accountant in another (footnote 1)?

Among the Musical

Among The Musical #3: Footnoting Rock History with Earl Palmer

Tony Scherman Mar 29, 2023

I considered it an exciting discovery. It was an exciting discovery, in the rarefied world of rock'n'roll historiography: namely, that the great New Orleans, later Los Angeles, drummer Earl Palmer was responsible for one of the major paradigm shifts in 20th century American culture: the rock'n'roll beat. The aha moment came when Earl and I were preparing his 1999 oral autobiography, Backbeat: Earl Palmer's Story. Long before my cantankerous interlocutor (Earl ran hot) unspooled his amazing life story for me, a running interview that swallowed the better part of my 1990s, I had come to believe that Earl played a major role, perhaps the major role, in the development of rock's rhythmic underpinnings, hence of the music itself.

Montreal Audio Fest 2023

More from Focal and Naim

Robert Schryer Mar 29, 2023

The second demo I heard in Focal Naim's spacious, hall-sized room was centered around the brand new Naim NSC 222 streaming preamplifier ($12,000) from the company's New Classic Series. This is big news in the realm of Naim, though it doesn't entirely replace Naim's last Classic Series, which was launched … 50 years ago!

Montreal Audio Fest 2023

Audio by Mark Jones: CH Precision, Linn, ProAc, Nordost

Robert Schryer Mar 29, 2023

Although it may seem like it sometimes, not all the exhibitors at an audio show play the same typical audiophile fare, which sounds great but rarely challenges the power and dynamic reserves of their systems. Mark Jones, of Ontario-based retailer Audio by Mark Jones, is one of those exceptions to the rule. The first track he played for me was Led Zeppelin's chord-crunching, drum-whacking "Moby Dick," at high volume.

Montreal Audio Fest 2023