The Importance of Tells: Installing a Phono Cartridge By Ear

The Importance of Tells: Installing a Phono Cartridge By Ear

In poker, "tells" are subtle physical or verbal actions that give away the strength of players' hands.

I am not a poker player, but I am an audiophile, and I use a variety of "tells" as my prime tools in critical listening. You know my worn-out line: "You can't hear what you're not listening for."

Analog Corner #274: SMc Audio AC Nexus power conditioner, Kuzma 4Point 9 tonearm

Analog Corner #274: SMc Audio AC Nexus power conditioner, Kuzma 4Point 9 tonearm

Why am I once again falling down the rabbit hole of alternating current? A while back, I committed to listening to SMc Audio's AC Nexus power conditioner, designed by SMc founder Steve McCormack and distributed by dealer Hi Fi One.

Technics SU-R1000 integrated amplifier

Technics SU-R1000 integrated amplifier

Technics, an arm of the Japanese giant Panasonic Corporation, has long been a major player in the hi-fi world, even if, in some recent decades, it stayed below the radar.

In the 1970s, analog-centric audiophiles particularly praised the Technics SP-10, the world's first direct drive turntable. Created by Matsushita engineer Shuichi Obata in 1969, the SP-10 and its successors became the standard in vinyl playback for American radio stations during that heyday of broadcast radio.

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