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Japan’s Phasemation has always occupied a special place in my audiophile fantasies. I’ve heard the company’s products in the rooms of American Sound’s Angie Lisi at AXPONA, but auditioning a complete Phasemation system? Never had the chance—until Munich.

A Yukiseimitsu Audio AP-01 Rec-Player and tonearm ($49,975) was fitted with a Phasemation PP-2000 MC cartridge ($7999), which uses custom-made 35µm 6N oxygen-free copper wire wound around an iron core. Either a Phasemation EA-550 Phono Amplifier ($9600) or Phasemation EA-1200 Tube Phono Amplifier ($19,800) fed the recently…

I’d been in touch with Muarah Audio’s US distributor, Octopus Audio, ahead of the Munich show, as I’m currently reviewing the company’s entry-level MT3 turntable for AnalogPlanet. But having that deck in-house didn’t prepare me for the striking flagship MT1 EVO ($8700) or the new Ilumnia loudspeakers. And the room offered more surprises still.

The MT1 EVO, equipped with a $2250 Muarah MY-1/9 tonearm, was fitted with an Aidas Mammoth Gold LE MC cartridge ($11,300; all prices approximate, converted from Euros), and routed through the Polish-built Circle Labs V1000 phono…

This post has been edited to add newly received information.

Having recently read Tom Fine’s review of Amphion’s flagship floorstanders, the Krypton3X ($25,000/pair), in the June issue of Stereophile, I was eager to hear them. As luck would have it, the Finnish speaker company’s display in one of the MOC’s four huge halls included a small, sound-proofed listening booth. Before heading inside, I encountered Amphion CEO Anssi Hyvönen, who founded the company in 1998.

"Finland is a quiet place," he told me, smiling wryly through the opening-day din. "It’s good for speaker…

At recent shows, Switzerland-based CH Precision has most often presented its electronics with Wilson speakers. At High End Munich 2025, the company was planning to demo with a pair of Rockports; that plan was foiled when [edited] the M10s went full power and took out three of four woofers, according to Kevin Wolff, the head of international sales for CH Precision and Wattson Audio. ("I don't know of any other speaker that could have taken as much and had limited damage," Wolff added in an email following the show.)

CH hardly had to settle for second-rate speakers, or anything…

Serbian manufacturer NAT Audio produces a range of eclectic tube amplifiers, including the single-ended, class-A Transmitter EVO monoblock. At the amp’s core is the massive Siemens RS687 QB5/1750 power tetrode tube, which delivers between 40W and 80W of output.

That wasn’t the only overachieving component in this room. A Hungarian-made Rui Borges Ultima turntable ($22,000, all prices approximate and converted from Euros) fitted with a Supreme Analog Tangenta Reference 12.3" tonearm ($18,000) worked alongside Core Audio’s Daido Premium server/streamer ($15,500), Denpo Premium DA…

That changes with the new, career-spanning box set, Rush 50 (Ume/Mercury/Anthem), the first time the band has pulled back the curtain to share previously unreleased and highly sought-…

Soulnote, a Japanese brand established in 2004 by former Marantz Japan director Norinaga Nakazawa, made a strong showing at its third Munich High End. Present in Soulnote’s exhibition space were the handsome P-3 preamplifier ($22,990), M-3 monoblocks ($21,990 each), and a turntable outfitted with a DS Audio DS E3 optical cartridge ($2750). A pair of M-3 monoblocks are headed my way for review, so I’ll soon have a handle on what these babies can deliver in my system.

Each monoblock has a single push-pull output stage with four-stage, industrial-grade Darlington can-type…

Drawn by the lyre emblem on the faceplate and the promise of Swiss engineering, I took note in early April when longtime distributor Jay Rein of Bluebird Music was named exclusive North American distributor for Orpheus Lab. My interest deepened when I learned about Orpheus Lab’s five Absolute components ($12,900–$22,900/each) and the brand’s newer Heritage Opus II lineup. According to Rein’s press release, "The SACD player with separate power supply is priced at $54,900; the stereo preamplifier with separate power supply is $52,900; and 800W (into 4 ohms) monoblock power amplifiers are…

The setup also featured four eye-catching D’Agostino Relentless monoblocks ($349,500/pair), a three-piece Relentless preamplifier ($165,000), a full dCS Vivaldi front end (roughly $90,000 total), and a VPI Direct Drive turntable that…

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…