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Audio by Mark Jones: CH Precision, Linn, ProAc, Nordost

Although it may seem like it sometimes, not all the exhibitors at an audio show play the same typical audiophile fare, which sounds great but rarely challenges the power and dynamic reserves of their systems. Mark Jones, of Ontario-based retailer Audio by Mark Jones, is one of those exceptions to the rule. The first track he played for me was Led Zeppelin's chord-crunching, drum-whacking "Moby Dick," at high volume.

And that was Mark's point, wasn't it? To show how his system could play big, hard, loud rock music while remaining cool under pressure. And it did. Listening to "Moby…

More from Focal and Naim

The second demo I heard in Focal Naim's spacious, hall-sized room was centered around the brand new Naim NSC 222 streaming preamplifier ($12,000) from the company's New Classic Series. This is big news in the realm of Naim, though it doesn't entirely replace Naim's last Classic Series, which was launched … 50 years ago! The New Classic Series also includes the NSC 222 preamplifier (without streaming), the NAP 250 power amplifier, and the NPX 300 power supply. You might say the NSC 222 replaced Naim's Statement NAC S1 preamp ($129,999), but only at this show: The NAC S1 was supposed to…

Among The Musical #3: Footnoting Rock History with Earl Palmer

I considered it an exciting discovery. It was an exciting discovery, in the rarefied world of rock'n'roll historiography: namely, that the great New Orleans, later Los Angeles, drummer Earl Palmer was responsible for one of the major paradigm shifts in 20th century American culture: the rock'n'roll beat. The aha moment came when Earl and I were preparing his 1999 oral autobiography, Backbeat: Earl Palmer's Story. Long before my cantankerous interlocutor (Earl ran hot) unspooled his amazing life story for me, a running interview that swallowed the better part of my 1990s, I had come to believe…

MoFi Distribution: Dr. Feickert, Thomas Schick, Koetsu, Whest, HiFi Rose, BAT, Isotek, SolidSteel, AudioQuest

Does anyone who's been in our audio-hobbyist orbit for some time not know speaker designer Andrew Jones? Wouldn't it be funny to imagine that in alternate 'verses in the multiverse, Jones might be something other than a famous speaker designer? Perhaps a famous pianist in one 'verse, an accountant in another (footnote 1)?

Luckily for us, this Jones has devoted himself to designing speakers. He has done so for years, very successfully, for many audio manufacturers. Such is his reputation as a speaker designer that every new design he creates is an event.

It's…

Planète Haute-Fidélité: MartinLogan, Stable 33.33, Reed, Hana, Saturn Audio, Wattson Audio

When I think of MartinLogan, I immediately envision an electrostatic speaker. One of their tall ones equipped with the dynamic woofer. A second later, I'll be reminded that MartinLogan also makes good cabinet-style standmounts such as the one I saw at the 2019 Toronto Audiofest, the Motion 35XTi.

What I won't naturally equate with an ML design is a box-design floorstander, which is what I encountered in retailer Planète Haute Fidelité's room, and which prompted me to blurt out to the shop's owner, Chris Vézina, "Hey, a Martin Logan tower in a cabinet!". To which he nodded genially…

Nessie Vinylcleaner ProPlus+ record cleaning machine

I'm a music lover first, not the most Type A of audiophiles. Sure, I clean my records, but I'm not obsessive about keeping them immaculate like my audiophile father is; he cleans each record ultrasonically before it lands on his turntable platter, writing the date of each record's last bath and which cleaning machine he used on the outside of a fresh plastic inner sleeve before sliding the LP back inside. I don't think his cleaning schedule is rigid—he has far too many LPs for that—but it's regular. Whenever I visit with LPs in tow, they must pass through the record-cleaning machine (RCM)…

Nessie Vinylcleaner ProPlus+ record cleaning machine Specifications

Sidebar: Specifications

Description: Electronic record cleaning machine with motorized turntable platter, built-in fluid tank and suction turbine system, and aluminum record clamp. Turntable speed: 30rpm. Maximum noise level: 57dB. Suction system tank content: 450ml. Power consumption: 18W in cleaning mode, 175W in suction mode, <1W in standby mode.
Dimensions: 12.9" (330mm) W × 9.8" (250mm) H × 11.8" (300mm) D. Weight: 15.4lb (7kg).
Finish: High-gloss black acrylic with chrome and stainless steel accents.
Serial number of unit reviewed: ESL203AB000171. Manufactured in…

Distribution Phonograph: Thöress, Luna Cables, Wattson Audio, Rectilinear

As soon as I entered the room hosted by distributor / reseller Distribution Phonographe's room, I thought, "where's all the gear?" There wasn't much around, and of the few items that were around, one was so small as to be nearly imperceptible at first glance.

The first component to hit my eye was the one sitting front and center against the far wall, under a banner that contained the only word I saw at the show with an umlaut over one of its vowels. That word was brand name—Thöress—and the umlaut is a clue to the country of origin: Germany. Thöress is also the family…

Audiophile Experts: Esoteric, Focal, Stable 33.33, Accuphase, André Thériault, Luna Cables

Beautiful strains of music lured me into the Audiophile Experts room, where the song "Göttingen," written in 1964 by French chanteuse Barbara (real name Monique Andrée Serf) as an ode to the German city by the same name, was playing. As well as having become a hit in her native country, the song has been credited as having helped improve relations between France and Germany in the years following the Second World War. Barbara called the song "a hymn to Franco-German reconciliation".

It's a melancholy song, sung in a style reminiscent of Edith Piaf. Along with vocals, it includes…

Primare PRE35 Prisma streaming preamplifier

Hygge might not be the first word that comes to mind when contemplating the Primare PRE35 Prisma preamplifier, but in Limhamn, Sweden, that is how Primare likes to describe their products. It means "cozy," and it's a very important concept in the Nordic countries, almost a way of life. Another term that appears in Primare's product descriptions is lagom, which loosely translates as "not too little, not too much—just right."

For me, none of this is lost in translation. I'm all for folksy adjectives for high-tech equipment. After spending hygge time with the new PRE35 Prisma preamplifier, I…