LATEST ADDITIONS

Denon, Marantz, and Classé announced today that the HEOS wireless audio platform will adopt a new identity, transitioning from "HEOS Built-in" to "Powered by HEOS." The rebranding accompanies a redesigned app interface and expanded platform capabilities, marking a decade since the platform's 2014 launch.

After owning a McIntosh MR78 tuner for many years—I bought it on eBay sometime early in this millennium; it was fully functional and in superficially excellent condition—I finally did what I'd long intended to do: I sent it in to Audio Classics for inspection, refurbishment, and the famed Modafferi mod.

Holst: The Planets & Cheetham Fraillon: Earth, Deborah Cheetham Fraillon, soprano; MSO Chorus; Melbourne Symphony Orchestra/Jaime Martín; Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto 3, Yunchan Lim, piano; Fort Worth Symphony/Marin Alsop; Mozart: 6 String Quintets on Historical Instruments, Spunicunifait; L'Extase: Debussy & Messiaen, Magdalena Kožená, mezzo-soprano; Mitsuko Uchida, piano.

Pulp: More; Lord Huron: The Cosmic Selector, Vol. 1; Craig Finn: Always Been.

Spotify began rolling out lossless audio to Premium subscribers September 10, delivering streams up to 24-bit/44.1 kHz FLAC format. The feature arrives in select markets first, with broader availability expected through October. The streaming service will notify Premium subscribers when lossless becomes available in their region.

As much as I love my stereo system and listening to music through two speakers, some recordings just can't be bound by the limits of stereophony. For instance, Carl Orff's epic cantata Carmina Burana. Sure, I've heard successful stereo versions, but listen to the four-channel Quadraphonic mix of the classic 1974 recording by the Cleveland Orchestra, Chorus and Boys Choir, conducted by Michael Tilson Thomas, then decide whether stereo still does it for you.

In high-end audio, Italian designs play by different rules. They tend to favor beauty over austerity, boldness over caution, and emotion over restraint. Rather than just hearing the music, you're meant to be swept away by it. That spirit animates gear from Unison Research, a tube-focused company located just north of Venice.