Apple AirPods Pro 3: First Impressions

Hegel H150 Integrated Amplifier Officially Announced

Sonus faber Announces Amati Supreme Speaker

FiiO M27 Headphone DAC Amplifier Released

Audio Advice Acquires The Sound Room

LATEST ADDITIONS

Art Dudley Listening Turntable Reviews

Listening #175: Soulines Kubrick DCX turntable

Art Dudley Jun 27, 2017

Sometimes I feign interest in living in the Soviet Union of the 1950s and '60s. This happens mostly when I'm shopping for toothpaste at my local supermarket, where the toothpaste aisle is as long as a football field. "I don't want so many choices," I say in my Abe Simpson voice, "because all these choices are stupid. I wish I lived in the USSR: Shopping for toothpaste wouldn't take so long." But I'm only kidding.

Interviews Music and Recording Features

George Winston Climbs Aboard his Carousel

Robert Baird Jun 27, 2017

New Age. Most of it was acoustic. While there were vocals here and there, much of it featured instrumentalists playing solo or in groups. Some of it was meant to alleviate stress. Some of it was marginally connected to a similarly named movement in spirituality. Environmentalism and respect for nature were constant themes. Some New Age artists created moody, ambient sounds that were intended as background music, to promote healing and relaxation.

Interviews Jana Dagdagan

High-End Dealer Jeffrey Catalano Talks Horns, Tubes, & LPs with Herb Reichert

Jana Dagdagan Jun 26, 2017

This video is about Jeffrey Catalano and his shop High Water Sound, located in Manhattan's South Street Seaport, right under the Brooklyn Bridge. Though it was my first time meeting Jeffrey, I had long been familiar with his nameoften associated with good sound at audio shows and a true appreciation for music.

Robert Baird

Buffalo Tom's Let Me Come Over Celebrates 25th Anniversary

Robert Baird Jun 25, 2017

. . . with a second LP containing an never-released 1992 live show from the University of London.

Jason Victor Serinus

Mellifluous Schumann from Baritone Matthias Goerne

Jason Victor Serinus Jun 24, 2017

For his fourth Schumann disc since the 1998 Dichterliebe; Liederkreis collaboration with Vladimir Ashkenazy, the great German baritone Matthias Goerne joins pianist Markus Hinterhäuser in a 19-gem collection of heart-touching songs by Robert Schumann entitled Einsamkeit (Solitude). The singing on the Harmonia Mundi recital is gorgeous throughout, and the repertoire deeply communicative. This is especially the case in hi-rez from HDtracks, where the duo's artistic brilliance shines strongest.

Interviews Jana Dagdagan LAAS 2017

Zu's Sean Casey Talks Loudspeakers

Jana Dagdagan Jun 22, 2017

At the Los Angeles Audio Show, held June 24, John Atkinson spoke with Zu Audio's founder, owner, and chief engineer Sean Casey about the Zu Audio Druid (pictured), Sean's background and his "unconventional" approach, and historic speaker designs. And toward the end of the video, Sean Casey turns the tables on JA by interviewing him about the role of the audio reviewer!

Solid State Power Amp Reviews

Mark Levinson No.536 monoblock power amplifier

Larry Greenhill Jun 22, 2017

Dinesh Paliwal, CEO of Harman International Industries, was addressing engineers and the audio press in a crowded conference room at the opening of Harman Luxury Audio's new Engineering Center of Excellence (ECOE), in Shelton, Connecticut. Paliwal singled out as the ECOE's first beneficiary the Mark Levinson brand, with the goal of revitalizing it as Harman's flagship marque. (Other brands in the HII stable include Harman Kardon, Infinity, JBL, Crown, AKG, Lexicon, and Revel.) To achieve this, he gave the ECOE team access to Harman's R&D budget of $400 million; brought on Todd Eichenbaum, formerly of Krell, to be its Director; and hired 11 more engineers.

Turntable Reviews

AnalogueWorks Zero turntable

Herb Reichert Jun 22, 2017

My main task is to describe an audio component's basic character. How was it made? How did it fit into my system? How effectively did it deliver musical performances? My goal is to create stories that generate sounds and images in your mindstories that will allow you to imagine how the component might perform in your system.

I can hear the moans from all you objectivist guys: Please, Herb, spare us your purple prose.

Audacious Audio Solid State Preamp Reviews

Lamm Industries L2.1 Reference preamplifier

Art Dudley Jun 20, 2017

"As the original L2 circuitry was virtually flawless, it was the emergence of new electronic components that opened up a possibility of [even better performance] . . ."

So begins one of two bookletsone a collection of specifications and interior photos, the other a distinctly thorough user's manualincluded with the new L2.1 Reference line-level preamplifier from Brooklyn's Lamm Industries, earlier products from which have impressed me as among the best available. Indeed, coming from almost anyone else, the above quote would strike me as trivial boastingbut I know from experience that there's nothing trivial about designer and company head Vladimir Lamm.

Budget Component Reviews Digital Processor Reviews Headphone Reviews

Arcam irDAC-II D/A processor

John Atkinson Jun 20, 2017

For digital playback, in recent months I've been breathing some rarefied air, pricewise. In December 2016, I reviewed dCS's Rossini Player and Clock, followed in May 2017 by Meridian's Ultra DAC, and in June by Chord's DAVE DAC. The Rossini Player costs $28,499 without the Clock, the Meridian $23,000, and though the DAVE is less expensive than either at $10,588, that's still a fair chunk of change. Even PS Audio's PerfectWave DirectStream DAC, which I bought following Art Dudley's review in September 2014, costs $6899 with the Network Bridge II, which hardly counts as "affordable."