When Kalman Rubinson reviewed this affordably priced amplifier in the January 2025 issue, he was impressed by what he heard. "Sonically, the Buckeye 1ET9040BA monoblocks are superb," he concluded, adding that "to their credit, they are transparent, open and balanced, and with the right program material, thrilling. ... Physically, they are compact, lightweight, and utilitarian in the best meanings of the word. I could happily adopt them into my own system."
The issue of how to balance and mesh measurements and subjective observations is interesting and rich. Stereophile's traditional policy is to have the subjective, listening-based report performed first, before a product is measured on the test bench. The intent is to ensure that the reviewer is not biased by prior knowledge of the test results, good or bad—but the downside is situations like this, when technical faults, which may or may not be audible, are discovered only after the subjective review is completed. Of course, there's a middle course…
For me, one of the biggest surprises at Munich High End 2024 was the performance of Constellation’s new Revelation 2 stereo amplifier ($30,000), preamplifier ($25,500), and phono stage ($29,000). I’d expected refinement, but not this level of clarity; previous Constellation gear had sometimes struck me as a little dark. In Munich, the sound was beautifully illuminated, with wonderful colors and an ideal amount of brightness in the treble.
Those impressions were confirmed at AXPONA 2025. Revelation 2 isn’t even Constellation’s top tier—two higher lines are on the way—but its sound…
Room 1225 with Fidelity Imports offered a jolt of musical energy—vinyl spinning, bookshelf speakers punching, and a vibe that was more “groove and grind” than “rise and shine.” Even early in the day, the system sounded wide awake.
Michell Engineering, a British maker of high-quality turntables, was in pole position with its Gyro SE Bundle player ($6199), fitted with a Goldring E3 cartridge ($189), followed by Michell’s Apollo and Muse phono preamp and power supply ($4999). Amplification duties fell to the Primare I35 Prisma streaming integrated amplifier ($5999), which drove Q…
AXPONA 2025 marked the debut of Computer Audio Design’s 1543 DAC Mk.III ($19,500), presented by CAD founders Scott Berry and Isabel Whitley. Also on hand were the CAD CAT (Computer Audio Transport, ca. $15,000) and a suite of CAD noise-reduction devices.
The 1543 DAC Mk.III runs 20 Philips TDA1543 chips in parallel. According to CAD, its power supply transformers and choke rectification improve dynamics and transient response. “Even though the chip is 16-bit, it can decode 24-bit/176.4kHz files natively,” Berry said.
An array of CAD’s passive ground control…
Designed by Nathan Vander Stoep, Turnbull Audio is the result of a 16-year journey that began with a decade at NVS Sound. Turnbull's power cables are built to minimize internal vibration and use a proprietary “maze” construction intended to reduce electromagnetic interference.…
As AXPONA wound down, I stopped by the Supreme Acoustic Systems room hoping to catch up with CEO Hiram Toro. Instead, I was greeted by another familiar face: distributor Philip O’Hanlon of On a Higher Note, who welcomed me into a space humming with last-day energy.
A handwritten sign on the door said “Welcome to midrange magic.” Inside, I discovered a new-to-me product: Albedo Audio's Acclara SGS speakers ($82,230/pair). On Mino Cinélu and Nils Petter Molvær's short and mellow "Le Monde Qui Change," from the LP SulaMadiana, colors were deep, bass superb, and air and color contrasts…
AXPONA 2025 had the world premiere of ATC’s most compact active speaker, the ATC SCM20ASL ($9999–$13,499/pair, depending on finish). Designed for small to medium-size rooms, the sealed two-way speaker is hand-built in England and includes ATC’s proprietary 6" "Super Linear" mid/bass driver and 1" "S-Spec" dual-suspension tweeter. Both are powered by onboard class-A/B MOSFET power amplifiers that deliver 200W and 50W of continuous power to the bass and HF drivers, respectively.
ATC says the mid/bass driver uses a 75mm voice coil and a long-gap "SL" motor system designed to reduce…
Familiar faces, new form.
Before me stood a pair of stand-mounted Dynaudio Confidence 20 active loudspeakers, complete with DSP ($24,000/pair). Larger, higher-quality cousins to the Dynaudio Focus 10 active loudspeakers I reviewed a little over two years ago, the Confidence 20s sounded notably more refined and more convincing. That tracks: Each driver is powered by its own dedicated amplifier. While both models share the same DSP room correction protocol, nearly everything else is an upgrade.
Leonard Cohen’s “Nevermind” delivered exactly what I’d hoped for:…
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