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Music lovers (and reviewers) long for those listening moments when their entire being lights up with joy. For me, that divine spark surfaced unexpectedly one February afternoon when, late for an appointment, I dashed into the music room, searching for my keys. That's when I heard a bit of the 24/96 WAV files of this issue's Recording of the Month, conductor Andris Nelsons's mammoth survey of the complete orchestral works of Richard Strauss, which I'd cued up on repeat to help Meitner's MA3 integrated D/A converter ($10,500) settle in. I didn't know which of Nelsons's two orchestras, the…
Amadeus Meitner told me that Ed's "passion project" for the last few years has been perfecting the company's DS-EQ1 Optical Equalizer, a dedicated phono preamp for DS Audio optical cartridges. Through his research, EMM Labs learned how to make "serious improvements to its analog architecture." My upgraded DV2 includes component-value adjustments and "optimized" circuits in the (analog) output stage. The considerably more open soundstage and extended top of the upgraded DV2 significantly altered my impressions of this flagship integrated DAC. Had my DV2 not been upgraded, I would not have…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Fully discrete single-bit 16×DSD upconverting integrated D/A processor with volume control and remote control. Roon Ready, with streaming from Tidal, Qobuz, Deezer, Spotify, and vTuner internet radio, and file playback from NAS, external drive, or USB stick using Roon or UPnP/DLNA. Inputs: AES3 (XLR), S/PDIF (RCA electrical and TosLink optical), USB, USB Media (2) Type A, a Network/ Ethernet interface (RJ45), and RS-232 for Remote and Service. USB Audio input supports up to DSD128 and DXD with full MQA decoding; other inputs support up to DSD64 and…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Digital sources: dCS Rossini SACD/CD transport, Rossini DAC, and Rossini Clock; EMM Labs DV2 Integrated DAC; Synology 5-bay NAS 1019+; Roon Nucleus+ music server with HDPlex 200 linear power supply; Uptone Audio etherRegen, Small Green Computer Sonore opticalModule, TP-Link gigabit Ethernet media converters plus multimode duplex fiberoptic cable (2), Linksys routers (2); Small Green Computer linear power supply & Small Green Computer/ HDPlex four-component, 200W linear power supply (3); external hard drives, SSD USB sticks, iPad Pro; Apple 2017 Macbook…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I measured the Meitner MA3 with my Audio Precision SYS2722 system, repeating some tests with the magazine's higher-resolution APx500 system. I performed the testing using the AES3 and coaxial and TosLink S/PDIF inputs, all of which accepted data sampled at all rates up to 192kHz, as well as via the USB and network ports, the former using my MacBook Pro, the latter using Roon. Apple's AudioMIDI utility revealed that the MA3's USB port accepted 16- and 24-bit integer data sampled at all rates from 44.1kHz to 384kHz. Apple's USB Prober app identified the Meitner as "…
There was buzz about many rooms at the High End Munich show but perhaps few were as talked about as the Nagra/Wilson Audio Specialties setup in Atrium 4.1 F130. It seemed to be among the more packed ones, a tough room to get into. I passed by twice before I was able to poke my head in, then was only able to return briefly near the end of the show.
Nagra sales and marketing manager René Laflamme, who's also a mastering engineer, gave a couple of playback presentations of his and (if I remember correctly) Wilson Audio's Peter McGrath's recordings.
Part of the buzz was…
DS Audio's Tetsuaki Aoyagi, known casually as Aki, was at High End Munich introducing his new DS Audio Eccentricity Detection Stabilizer ES-001 device. The next-gen (read: young) designer attended with his parents—something seldom seen at hi-fi shows. (That said, my father attended AXPONA again this year.) And families do attend the High End Munich show, perhaps more regularly than others.
Anyway, Aoyagi's new Eccentricity Detection Stabilizer ES-001 (estimated MSRP $6000) performs a few cool functions and has a touchscreen display on top. It essentially acts an LP centering…
While walking through the aisles of Halle at Munich High End, heading for my last couple of assigned rooms (or areas), I came across designer Michael Børresen, who, with Lars Kristensen (above), gave me a quick run-down of his latest gear. There were new speakers at both the entry and extreme levels from Børresen, and new amplification at the top end from Aavik. The three brands on display—Børresen Acoustics, Aavik Acoustics, and Ansuz Acoustics—were consolidated under one umbrella company, Audio Group Denmark, in 2020.
Two new pairs of Børresen Acoustics speakers were on demo:…
The Harman room at Munich High End showed a wide array of products on active and passive display. Several Classic JBL designs revamped with modern tech and materials took center stage in a long lineup display of speakers.
The retro-modern JBL SA-750 integrated amplifier was shown alongside them. The "class-G" amp takes inspiration from the vintage JBL SA600 model but contains a DAC with UPnP streaming and built-in Apple AirPlay 2 and Google Chromecast. Its initial "remake" had had teak side panels as a décor option; it's coming soon with walnut veneer panels as standard for its $…
Triumphing over multiple pandemic-enforced cancellations and postponements, the "is it really going to happen?" four-day event drew 9472 trade visitors from over 80 countries and 9878 consumers from 69 countries. Among them were 450 exhibitors from 40 countries and a grand 417 media representatives from 36 countries. Audio brands topped out at a whopping 800! Thanks to the customary high level of organization that has made Germany's High End Society such a central part of the audiophile industry, Munich High End 2022 was a resounding success. The industry-organized show attracted 19,767…