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With its battery fully charged and using both its unbalanced Headphone and Line 3.5mm output jacks, I measured the PonoPlayer with my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see www.ap.com and the January 2008 "As We See It"). I uploaded WAV and AIFF files of the test signals to the player's internal memory using the JRiver-sourced PonoMusic World app.

The volume control operates on the headphone output only; the output with a 1kHz tone at 0dBFS from the headphone jack with the volume control set to its maximum was the same as from the line output: 961.3mV. Both…

Editor: Way back in 1979, when I was a staff producer for Columbia Records, I was asked to produce Jerry Goldsmith's seminal music score for Star Trek: The Motion Picture.

I started looking around for something futuristic that would be compatible with the movie's ethos, and while I was at the Audio Engineering Society (AES) convention in downtown Los Angeles, at the Biltmore Hotel, I happened to stumble on a small exhibit in a Sony demo room. They were showing a PCM-1600 digital recording system that processed sound at 16-bit/44.1kHz, as well as a hand-…

This year's Montreal Audio Show is on track to welcome a good 3000 attendees to active exhibits in 55 rooms. One of its unique features is the presence of a host of Canadian manufacturers. Showings by 10 Canadian companies—double that of last…

I don't remember when, but at some point during the past few years I realized that, in my home, mono cartridges outnumber their stereo counterparts. A few weeks ago, my collection of phono equipment took another step in the same strange direction: After receiving from Ortofon a sample of their CG 25 DI Mk.II mono pickup head ($902) for review, I was so impressed with its sound that I asked if I could buy the review sample. Now,…

And to wring from today's mono reissues those selfsame qualities, it does, in fact, help to have a mono cartridge in your analog arsenal. The primary reason: A…

Ryochi had…

This was John Atkinson's response to my request to review Emotiva's Pro Airmotiv 4s ($299/pair). My colleague Steve Guttenberg had been discussing this speaker with me at a recent industry event, and I'd realized that it had been some time since I'd reviewed an entry-level loudspeaker. I'd reviewed Emotiva's X-Ref XRT-5.2 floorstanding speaker in the August 2012 issue and had been impressed with its combination of sound quality and price. I requested samples for review.

Design
Emotiva designs and makes a…

The Enzo XLs reminded me ever so much of Snell's gloriously hypermusical Type A speakers, albeit with a slightly more hesitant, tighter, but perhaps…

Description: Two-way, bass-reflex, powered bookshelf speaker. Drive-units: 1" (26mm) by 1.25" (32mm) Airmotiv high-frequency folded-ribbon tweeter, 4.5" (135mm) Airmotiv mid/woofer with Curv polypropylene-composite cone. Crossover frequency: 2700Hz. Frequency response: 58Hz–23kHz, ±2dB; 52Hz–27kHz, +0/–6dB. Total amplifier power: 50W RMS. High-frequency amplifier: 25W RMS, S/N >90dB; THD+N, <0.05% at 15W, 10kHz. Low-frequency amplifier: 25W RMS, S/N >90dB; THD+N, <0.05% at 20W, 100Hz. Adjustments and calibrations: High-frequency tilt control: 4kHz…

Description: Floorstanding, three-way, reflex-loaded loudspeaker. Drive-units: three 1" ring-radiator tweeters, two 10" pulp-cone woofers. Frequency range: 30Hz–30kHz. Impedance: 8 ohms (average). Sensitivity: 96.5dB/W/m. Power handling: 400W.
Dimensions: 48" (1230mm) H by 11.625" (300mm) W by 15.125" (390mm) D. Weight: 72 lbs (32.7kg).
Finishes: Black, Red, White, Gray (all Satin). Custom paints available at extra cost.
Serial numbers of units reviewed: None found.
Price: $2100/pair; grilles and capacitor upgrades available at extra cost.…