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Stereophile's Products of 2018 Budget Component of the Year

Budget Component of the Year

KEF Q350 loudspeaker ($649.99/pair; reviewed by Herb Reichert, March 2018, Vol.41 No.3 review)

Finalists (in alphabetical order)

Akitika GT-102 power amplifier ($488 assembled, $314 kit; reviewed by Herb Reichert, July 2018, Vol.41 No.7 review)
Apple HomePod smart speaker ($349; reviewed by Jim Austin, August & September 2018, Vol.41 Nos. 8 & 9 review)
Focal Elear headphones ($999; reviewed by Herb Reichert, June 2018, Vol.41 No.6 review)
Hana SL phono cartridge ($750; reviewed by Herb Reichert, October 2018, Vol.…

Stereophile's Products of 2018 Joint Overall Components of the Year

Joint Overall Components of the Year

Benchmark DAC3 HGC DAC/headphone amplifier ($2195; reviewed by Jim Austin & Herb Reichert, November 2017, September & October 2018, Vol.40 No.11, Vol.41 Nos. 9 & 10 review)
Sonus Faber Aida loudspeaker ($130,000/pair; reviewed by Michael Fremer, October 2018, Vol.41 No.10 review)
Wilson Audio Specialties Alexia Series 2 loudspeaker ($57,900/pair; reviewed by John Atkinson & Jason Victor Serinus, July & August 2018, Vol.41 Nos. 7 & 8 review)

Finalists (in alphabetical order)

Audeze LCDi4 in-ear…

Stereophile's Products of 2018 Editors' Choices of 2018

Editors' Choices of 2018

Anthem STR integrated amplifier ($4499, reviewed by Thomas J. Norton, July 2018, Vol.41 No.7 review)
The Anthem STR offers superb basic performance. Its Anthem Room Correction can help clear up the room/speaker interactions that can compromise the bass performance of even the best loudspeakers, and do so without compromising the midrange and high-frequency balance that drew you to those speakers in the first place.—Thomas J. Norton

Benchmark AHB2 power amplifier ($2995; reviewed by Kalman Rubinson & Jim Austin, November 2015…

Currentzis Turns to Mahler's Sixth Symphony

The utter devastation and hopelessness conveyed by Teodor Currentzis' recent Sony Classics recording of Tchaikovsky's Symphony No.6, "Pathétique," was so shattering that I could not wait to hear what he and his MusicAererna orchestra of Perm, Russia would do with Mahler's Symphony No.6 in a, "Tragic." In fact, I was so eager to experience Currentzis' first recording of Mahler's music that I listened to the 24/96 download even before the physical CD becomes available on December 7. (The recording is currently streamable in 16/44.1 on Tidal, Idagio, and other services.)

Although my praise…

Dealer Events in Florida & Massachusetts, Wednesday & Thursday

Wednesday November 28, 5–9pm, Suncoast Audio (7353 International Place, Unit 309, Sarasota, FL 34240) will be hosting an event featuring products from Magico, Audio Research, and Chord. Thursday, November 29, at 6:00pm, Blink High End (129 Franklin Street, Cambridge, MA 02139) will be demonstrating and discussing Technics' flagship introduction for 2018: the Reference Class SL-1000R/SP-10R turntables.

The Suncoast Audio event on Wednesday features Peter MacKay from Magico, Aldo Filippelli from Audio Research and Jay Rein, the North American distributor of Chord, will be demonstrating…

Harbeth P3ESR 40th Anniversary Edition loudspeaker

I promise not to tell you that the 40th Anniversary Edition Harbeth P3ESR loudspeaker sounds like a bigger speaker than it actually is. It does not. Likewise, I won't suggest that it offers a large portion of what Harbeth's bigger, more expensive models do—I'll leave that to the happy owners on the Harbeth User Group. But can I tell you it's good value for the money? The current, non-anniversary version of the P3ESR costs $2195/pair (footnote 1), while the souped-up, tarted-up 40th Anniversary Edition goes for $2890/pair—prices I think are chickenfeed, considering all the timeless virtues…

Harbeth P3ESR 40th Anniversary Edition loudspeaker Specifications

Sidebar: Specifications

Description: Two-way, sealed-cabinet, stand-mounted loudspeaker. Drive-units: 0.75" (19mm) dome tweeter; 5" (110mm) magnetically shielded, Radial2-cone woofer. Frequency response: 75Hz–20kHz, ±3dB. Nominal impedance: 6 ohms. Sensitivity: 83.5dB/2.83V/m. Recommended amplification: >15W. Power handling: 50W program.
Dimensions: 12" (306mm) H by 7.5" (189mm) W by 8" (202mm) D, including grille and terminals. Weight: 14 lbs (6.3kg).
Finish: Bright Olive Wood.
Price: $2890/pair. Approximate number of dealers: 30. Warranty: 3 years.
Manufacturer:…

Elac Adante AF-61 loudspeaker

German manufacturer Elac had a significant North American presence in the 1960s and '70s, primarily with its Miracord automatic turntables. While it eventually disappeared from the US market, Elac never ceased to be a player in Europe, where it eventually shifted its primary focus from turntables to loudspeakers.

When Elac decided to reenter the US market a few years ago, its success was hardly assured. Faced with hundreds of brand names and thousands of models fighting for attention, it hired veteran speaker guru Andrew Jones to improve the odds. In his previous work, first for KEF and…

Elac Adante AF-61 loudspeaker Page 2

I tried a variety of solutions to increase the Elac's bottom end, some more effective than others. Using a 4dB boost on my Marantz pre-pro's bass control helped a little, but also produced additional warmth in the upper bass. This wasn't unpleasant, and would likely appeal to some listeners, but it did reduce the openness of the soundstage. In any case, few audiophile preamps and integrated amps offer bass and treble controls.

I finally settled on two other solutions. After some experimenting with the help of the OmniMic system, I found that moving the AF-61s about 6" closer to the wall…

Elac Adante AF-61 loudspeaker Specifications

Sidebar 1: Specifications

Description: Three-way, ported, floorstanding loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" tweeter, 5.25" midrange, three 6.5" woofers, three 8" passive radiators. Crossover frequencies: 200Hz, 2kHz. Bass function: Interport Coupled-Cavity (bandpass). Frequency range: 39Hz–35kHz. Sensitivity: 87dB/2.83V/m. Nominal impedance: 6 ohms. Power handling: 160W peak (50–160W recommended).
Dimensions: 52.34" (1329.4mm) H with outrigger plate & spikes by 9.6" (243.7mm) W by 15.67" (397.9mm) D with grille. Weight: 101 lb (45.8kg).
Finishes: Gloss Black, Gloss White, Rosewood.…