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Stereophile's Products of 2018 Joint Loudspeakers of the Year

Joint Loudspeakers of the Year

Sonus Faber Aida ($130,000/pair; reviewed by Michael Fremer, October 2018, Vol.41 No.10 review)
Wilson Audio Specialties Alexia Series 2 ($57,900/pair; reviewed by John Atkinson & Jason Victor Serinus, July & August 2018, Vol.41 Nos. 7 & 8 review)

Finalists (in alphabetical order)

DeVore Fidelity Orangutan O/93 ($8400/pair; reviewed by Sam Tellig, Herb Reichert & Art Dudley, January 2014 & December 2015 & May 2018, Vol.37 No.1 & Vol.38 No.12 & Vol.41 No.5 review)
Dynaudio Special 40 ($2999/…

The Scott Walker Audio / Synergistic Research Room Featuring Ideon, JMF, and Estelon

Dealer Scott Walker Audio, which has showrooms in Anaheim, California, and Keller, Texas, and Synergistic Research presented several new products at FLAX including the Synergistic Voodoo streamer erver ($14,995); the PowerCell 8 SX conditioner ($3495); and SRX USB ($5995), Ethernet ($5995), and XL Power cables ($13,000).

Walker and Josh Dolye (also of Scott Walker Audio) were especially jazzed about a new line the dealership has picked up: French amplification company JMF Audio. On active display in the Scott Walker room were the JMF PRS 1.5 Preamplifier ($36,000) and HQS 6002…

Canadian Debut of Wilson’s Sabrina Speaker

Although I attended the 2015 Consumer Electronics Show, and contributed to Stereophile's on-line show report, there were many products outside my beat that I found about just like Stereophile readers, ie, reading my colleagues' show reports. One of these that piqued my interest was the Wilson Audio Sabrina, the lowest-priced ($15,900/pair) floorstander from this elite speaker manufacturer. Larry Greenhill's report provided a brief description of the speaker, but since the speaker was only being shown, not demonstrated, he couldn't very well say much about the sound.

A listening report…

DS Audio, Mobile Fidelity Electronics, Aesthetix Pallene and Dione, ProAc Speakers, Ansuz Acoustics Cables

DS Audio's Tetsuaki Aoyagi, known casually as Aki, was at High End Munich introducing his new DS Audio Eccentricity Detection Stabilizer ES-001 device. The next-gen (read: young) designer attended with his parents—something seldom seen at hi-fi shows. (That said, my father attended AXPONA again this year.) And families do attend the High End Munich show, perhaps more regularly than others.

Anyway, Aoyagi's new Eccentricity Detection Stabilizer ES-001 (estimated MSRP $6000) performs a few cool functions and has a touchscreen display on top. It essentially acts an LP centering…

August 2021 Classical Record Reviews

J.S. Bach: Cello Suites
Justin Pearson, cello; Pedro Silva, 5-string cello; Katherine Rockhill, piano
Chasing the Dragon VALLP014 (5LP). 2021. Mike and Franáoise Valentine, prods.; Matt Sartori, Petronel Butuc, John Webber, engs.
Performance ****
Sonics ****½

Here, skilled musicians take a back seat and the recording takes the wheel: five LPs of solo (and near-solo) Bach recorded with a single stereo array of tubed, AKG C12 clones (by Flea), vintage Focusrite pres, and a Sony reel-to-reel connected up with Nordost cable. Lacquers were cut on a Neumann VMS 80 lathe and…

dCS Rossini Player & Rossini Clock MQA Playback

Jason Victor Serinus auditioned the MQA upgrade for the dCS Rossini in May 2018 (Vol.41 No.5):

Although it seemed that a permanent rapprochement between Democrats and Republicans might arrive sooner, dCS's day with MQA has finally dawned. The company's Rossini DAC, Rossini Player, and limited-edition Vivaldi One SACD/CD and network player can now "unfold" and render MQA files; by the time you read this, their Network Bridge should be equipped for MQA unfolding; and the Vivaldi DAC and Upsampler are being readied for MQA rendering.

While the reasons for dCS's delay in implementing…

MQA's Sound Convinces Hardened Showgoers

Digging MQA (from L–R): Peter McGrath, Jason Victor Serinus, and Michael Fremer, with Bob Stuart anxiously looking on and Winai Pawitwatana behind. (Photo: John Atkinson)

CES 2016 marked the first time that three writers for Stereophile—Editor-in-Chief, John Atkinson; AnalogPlanet analog guru, Michael Fremer; and this Contributing Editor—could sit down in the same room with Bob Stuart of MQA/Meridian and spend a concentrated amount of time comparing before- and after-MQA encoded (Master Quality Authenticated) tracks. Joining us were recording engineer Peter McGrath, also of Wilson Audio,…

Music, After All

Audio shows are tough. As a member of the press and, more specifically, as a representative of Stereophile magazine, I feel an extreme amount of pressure to do as thorough a job as physically and mentally possible. (I should emphasize that I put this pressure on myself.) It would be outstanding if a single person could cover an entire show, spending quality time with manufacturers, dealers, and readers, while also actually having the opportunity to listen to the gear being presented. But no audio show is ideal&#151not even this year's Rocky Mountain Audio Fest, which was, by…

D'Agostino Unveils the Momentum Z Mono Amplifier

Meet the Momentum Z mono amplifier. Other than this one, all photos in this story are by Jason Victor Serinus.

On January 12, 2026, Dan D'Agostino Master Systems (DDMAS) welcomed approximately 52 international audio dealers and distributors, along with four members of the audio press, to the unveiling of the new Momentum Z mono amplifier ($125,000/pair) at the Dan D'Agostino factory in Cave Creek, Arizona. This 15th Anniversary event included: a fabulous welcome dinner in the finest and most sophisticated "steakhouse" I've ever visited (not that I've visited many); an extended product…

Recording of May 2026: <I>Willows</I>

Willows
Music by Vaughan Williams, Caroline Shaw, Ellen Reid, and Traditional/Sam Amidon
Pekka Kuusisto, violin; Sam Amidon, folksinger; Norwegian Chamber Orchestra
Platoon PLAT29192 (reviewed in stereo as 24/96 WAV files). 2026. Jørn Pedersen, prod., mastering; Åsgeir Grong, eng.
Performance *****
Sonics ****

The last time my head turned when a recording received "Best of Month" notice from several magazines was in 2023, when Warner released Antonio Pappano's Turandot. The time before that was 26 years ago when Sony released pianist Murray Perahia's spiritually…