Woot, woot! I was thrilled when I saw the announcement for this amplifier. I was tempted to order one sight unseen and sound unheard. Why? First off, it employs the newest (as of March 2025) class-D amplification technology. Second, it can accommodate all sorts of audio systems, from an eight-channel surround setup to a megalomaniacal two-channel stereo system. Third, the specs, even in the context of its technology, are impressive. And fourth, I can lift it by myself—easily! How can I pass this amplifier up?

Gryphon's long-awaited pure class-A Antileon Revelation amplifier, the successor to the Antileon EVO, will hit dealer shelves late August in both stereo ($39,800) and mono ($45,500/each) versions. We used to say, “It will arrive late August if the creek don’t rise;” these days, we replace creek with tariffs.

A year without an MBL fix is a year incomplete. Hence, off to the spacious MBL suite I went, to experience a complete MBL Reference Line system ($750,000; price approximate, converted from Euros).

The big news in Nordost land was twofold. First, the company has upgraded its entire entry-level Leif line to the new Leif 3 series. The latest offerings, presented by PR representative Meredith Gabor, include Blue Heaven 3 digital interconnects, Ethernet and USB 2.0 cables, and (soon) a White Lightning 3 tonearm cable.

Moonriver brought a prototype of its forthcoming 606 integrated amplifier to Munich. Due in the fourth quarter, with a projected, tariff-dependent price of approximately $12,000, the unit will offer optional modules for phono, DAC, and streaming.

Edward Mott Robinson (above), a Quaker tycoon from whaling-era Massachusetts, would turn down fine cigars. He preferred the cheap kind. "I smoke four-cent cigars, and I like them," he declared (footnote 1). "If I were to smoke better ones, I might lose my taste for the cheap ones that I now find quite satisfactory."

Robinson wasn't so much guarding his palate as preserving his contentment. A simple pleasure had settled into place, untroubled by ambition, and he knew to leave it alone.

I think about Robinson's four-cent stogie sometimes, usually when someone asks whether a $10,000 integrated amplifier really sounds five times better than a $2000 one. (Answer: No, it doesn't.) Or whether hearing a $12,000 DAC will ruin you for the $1000 unit you used to love. (My take: Very possibly.)

Audio Reference of Hamburg, in collaboration with many of its distributed brands, set up a mind-blowing system at Munich High End, valued at well over $3 million.