KEF Debuts New Finishes for Blade One Meta and Blade Two Meta
Sennheiser Drops HDB 630 Wireless Headphones
Sponsored: Pulsar 121
Vivid Audio Introduces Giya Cu Loudspeakers
PSB BP7 Subwoofer Unveiled
Sponsored: Symphonia
Apple AirPods Pro 3: First Impressions
Sponsored: Symphonia Colors
Sonus faber Announces Amati Supreme Speaker

LATEST ADDITIONS

Best Music of Show

I know it's only the first day and I've hardly listened to any music, but my Best Music of Show Award goes to the Tone Imports/DeVore Fidelity/Box Furniture Co./Clearaudio room. I doubt there'll be any other suite at SSI where you can hear Q-Tip's <i>The Renaissance</i> followed by some radically bad-ass, virtuoso tabla.

Continue Reading »

Leben RS 30EQ

You would never guess that just moments before the photo was snapped, Tone Imports' Jonathan Halpern was bent over, purple-faced, and teary-eyed with delirious laughter. I'm not sure what it was all about. It had something to do with "championship wood."

Continue Reading »

Dynaudio's OCOS Speaker Cable

Dynaudio's Mike Manousselis introduced me to the OCOS (Optimal COnnection System) coaxial, copper speaker cables ($500/3m pair). OCOS insists that a speaker cable should be completely transparent, imposing no sonic signature of its own. Manousselis explained that the cable provides a constant impedance throughout the entire frequency range, so as to stabilize the partnering amplifier, allowing it to "see" the speaker directly.

Continue Reading »

Simaudio: Reaching for the Moon

Simaudio's Costa Koulisakis was excited to tell us about the company's new "Reach For The Moon" trade-up program. For up to a year after initial purchase, Simaudio customers interested in moving up the Sim price ladder can receive a 100% refund on their well-maintained gear. After the first year, Sim owners can receive a 75% refund on their used gear. "It's a way to stimulate the economy, while building brand loyalty," he said.

Continue Reading »

Monitor Audio PL200

Monitor Audio's Sheldon Ginn is very excited about the company's new PL200 loudspeaker ($8000/pair). This attractive floorstander fills the gap between Monitor's PL100 bookshelf and the much bulkier PL300 floorstander, and uses a three-driver configuration with a ribbon tweeter. It's available in ebony, rosewood, and piano black finishes, and boasts a real leather front baffle.

Continue Reading »

Totem Wind Design

Totem's Vince Bruzzese was happy to tell me about the Wind Design, an enhanced version of the company's flagship floorstander. It uses a "skid plate" decoupling system with a front "claw" which is user-adjustable to complement the phase interactions between the speaker and various associated electronics. Totem strives to create loudspeakers that will mate happily with all sorts of associated equipment, and today they were making music with an Arcam FMJ disc player and Bryston amplification.

Continue Reading »

Cut and Thrust: RIAA LP Equalization

Until the Recording Industry Association of America hit the headlines in recent years with its antipiracy campaign, the initials RIAA meant one thing to seasoned audiophiles: the vinyl-disc equalization characteristic introduced in the 1950s to standardize what had previously been an anarchy of different EQs. Three decades later, as CD gained ascendance, a large proportion of audiophiles still knew what RIAA equalization was, and a good number of them had some idea or better of what the RIAA EQ curve looked like, and why it was applied.
Continue Reading »
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement