Mytek Meets Chicago

Michal Jurewicz, Mytek CEO and designer, of Greenpoint, Brooklyn, brought new and not-so-new equipment to AXPONA. The "Tall Wizard" had two rooms, one including the Mytek Empire Streamer (currently with Editor Jim Austin, for review, $25,000), new GaNFET-powered Empire monoblocks (400Wpc/800Wpc into 4 ohms; $20,000/pair), and his very own pair of 1990s-era JM Labs Point Source 5.1s standmount monitors with JM Labs PS 10 dual subwoofers. ArgentPur cabling was used throughout.

When Jurewicz fired up the Empire Streamer (above) and Empire monoblocks (below), playing Roxy Music's Avalon, it was barely enough to wake me from an un-fitful night's sleep. So, I asked him to pump up the volume. Now Andy Newmark's epic drumming quaked in a groove as wide as Kansas. The room filled with Avalon's still mysterious magic.

Using Tidal/Qobuz, streaming Exotic Dances from Rimsky-Korsakov's Opera Snegurochka "(The Snow Maiden)," the orchestral whirlwind loomed large scale and powerful, with especially relaxed, soaring highs and meaty nether regions. Excellent resolution, super clean highs, dense physicality and energy were all evident from this pint-sized hi-fi rig.

In the smaller room, the new Mytek Brooklyn Bridge II ($4000), was connected to a Mytek Liberty DAC, VPI Scout Junior turntable, HiFiMan HE1000SE headphones ($3499), and Mytek Brooklyn Amp+ ($2495), powering a pair of Totem Signature One loudspeakers. The Brooklyn Bridge II essentially has the functionality of a Roon Core CPU combined with high performance DAC, 6W high current headphone amp, phono-stage and dedicated preamp. Pint-sized power!

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