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Listening
Since installing the Mystique X SE DAC in my system about four weeks ago, I have not taken it out. The Mojo's extremely natural, easy-flowing sound trumped every inclination I had to do comparisons with some other digital source. Its nuclear-level pheromone emissions led me amorously from one streaming track to another. In most ways, that's the main story of this review. That's the effect the Mystique had on me and my system. Nevertheless, I must earn my shilling and sixpence, so I will commence with a few descriptions from my listening experiences.

One night, a few…

Description: Two-channel D/A processor in an extruded aluminum chassis. Conversion is effected by an AD1862 R-2R ladder DAC chip, which converts PCM format files up to 24/192 via femto-clocked USB, coaxial S/PDIF, or balanced AES3. Nude Vishay TX2575 resistors matched to 0.1% in analog signal path. Schurter AC input module and medical-grade AC input filtering. Ground lift switch to isolate DC signal ground from earth, chassis, and AC grounds. USB lift switch to optimize S/PDIF inputs and eliminate clocking noise. 3-point Herbie's Audio Lab Fat Dot antiresonance…

Digital sources: Roon Nucleus+ music server; Denafrips Terminator Plus and HoloAudio May and Spring3 D/A processors; dCS Bartók DAC/streamer.
Preamplifier: Lab 12 Pre1.
Power amplifiers: First Watt SIT-3, Parasound Halo A 21+, Elekit TU-8900.
Loudspeakers: Falcon Acoustics LS3/5a Gold Badge, Heretic AD614 (with custom stands).
Cables: Digital: AudioQuest Diamond USB. Interconnect: AudioQuest ThunderBird, Cardas Clear Beyond, Triode Wire Labs Spirit II. Speaker: Cardas Clear Beyond, Triode Wire Labs American. AC: AudioQuest Tornado,…

I measured the Mojo Mystique X SE with my Audio Precision SYS2722 system after leaving the processor decoding AES3 data for several hours to make sure it was fully warmed up. A slide switch on the processor's back panel lifts the DC ground from the AC, chassis, and Earth grounds. The manual recommends lifting the DC ground; it also says that most people prefer the single-ended analog output. So I performed a complete set of tests using AES3 data with these outputs with the DC ground lifted. I repeated some tests with the balanced outputs, with USB and coaxial S/…

"These songs may not be manifestos or solutions, but I know they shed light on the meaning of our contemporary disillusionment." So says singer-songwriter Natalie Mering about her latest album under the name Weyes Blood (pronounced like "wise," a tribute to a novel by Flannery O'Connor).

And in the Darkness, Hearts Aglow, her fifth album, is the second part of a planned trilogy. Its 2019 predecessor,…

It's often said that you can never go home again. Places change, and you won't be the same person you were when you left. The Art Ensemble of Chicago's 1972 album Live at Mandel Hall documented their return home after a two-year stay in Paris, during which the quartet gained a drummer and honed its sound into something completely…

Isabelle Faust makes a fine impression in the Dvořák concerto. She answers the orchestra's opening phrases with firm-bowed flourishes, impeccably tuned, both in the "little notes" and when sailing in alt. Without sacrificing polish, she makes the second theme feel shaggy and untamed. The curlicued cadenzas on the lead…

Description: Remote-controlled, network-connected, class-D D/A integrated amplifier with Dirac Live LE Room Correction, tone controls, and front-panel meters. Analog inputs: 3 pair RCA (line, MM phono, power amplifier direct). Digital inputs: 1 TosLink, 1 coaxial S/PDIF, 1 HDMI, USB Type A, Wi-Fi, Ethernet, Two-way Qualcomm aptX HD Bluetooth. Supported formats: MP3, AAC, WMA, OGG, WMA-L, ALAC, OPUS, MQA, DSD, FLAC, WAV, AIFF. Supported sample rates: up to 192kHz, bit depths 16–24. Supported cloud services: Amazon Music, Deezer, IDAGIO, Napster, Neil Young…