May 2026 Rock/Pop Record Reviews
Deary: Birding; Bird Streets: The Escape Artist; Kula Shaker: Wormslayer; Miles Kane: Sunlight in the Shadows.
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LATEST ADDITIONS
Advance Paris at AXPONA 2026
At AXPONA 2026, Ken Micallef speaks with Advance Paris owner Dimitri Peucelle about the company's latest gear at the show, including its new line of Nova integrated amplifiers.
Nordost QNet7 reclocking network switch
In the opinion of this hi-fi reviewer, the debate over the efficacy of audio-quality network switches should be over. As logic would dictate, when connections are made via a network switch, the quality of its inputs, outputs, oscillators (clocks), power supplies, and pathways affects the sound of everything downstream. It's clearly audible. Everything matters.
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An "Average Joe" Goes to a Listening Party
The Thursday after AXPONA, I planned to go to a listening party, sponsored by our town's library and held at a local art gallery. I thought that for once I would expand my horizons and spend time with others who love music instead of sitting alone in front of my hi-fi.—Joe Lynn
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Ex Machina Soundworks and Danville Signal at AXPONA 2026
At AXPONA 2026, Ken Micallef speaks with Ex Machina Soundworks' Dev Avidon and Danville Signal's Al Clark about the all-in-one Main Sequence System they demo’ed together at the show.
ReDiscoveries #13: The End of the Road for Megadeth
After ignominious dismissal from Metallica shortly before that band's debut recording, guitarist Dave Mustaine could have easily become a Greg Walls–esque footnote in metal history. But his seething anger, easily audible in his subsequent discography, led him to retaliate by forming Megadeth, which, if not as lucrative as Metallica, was just as influential.
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Phasemation at AXPONA 2026
At AXPONA 2026, Ken Micallef speaks with Axiss Audio's Steve Huntley and Phasemation's Hideki Sato and Shigeki Momoto about the gear shown in another one of the Axiss rooms at the show, including Phasemation MA-3000 monoblock amplifiers, a Phasemation PP-2200 cartridge, and a Reed Muse 3C turntable.
MOON by Simaudio 371 streaming integrated amplifier
The origins of Canadian audio manufacturer MOON, from the company called Simaudio, stretch back to 1980, when audio engineer Victor Sima created his first designs. Sima's company became Simaudio Ltd. in 1990. Simaudio launched the MOON brand in 1997.
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Stenheim, VTL, VPI, and Nordost at AXPONA 2026: A system fit for a Duke
Rogier van Bakel concludes his AXPONA 2026 ventures by spending quality time with Stenheim's Reference Ultime Two SX speakers, VTL Lohengrin Reference monoblock amplifiers, and a VPI Avenger Direct turntable.
Well Pleased AV, Norse, Merason, and QLN at AXPONA 2026
At AXPONA 2026, Ken Micallef speaks with Well Pleased AV's Mark Sossa about the gear shown in the company's room at the show, including a pair of Norse X1 amplifiers, a Merason DAC 2 DAC, and QLN Prestige Five Gen 2 speakers.