CES 2012

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CES 2012
Stretch your inner sound with Alpha Design Labs by Furutech
Stephen Mejias  |  Jan 11, 2012  |  1 comments
Imagine: Somewhere in this pretty purple tangle of cables, there’s the world's hottest audiophile yoga instructor—a lithe little woman in white tights, stretching her inner sound.

Here we see Alpha Design Labs’ new iDevice ID-30 Series of iPod dock cables. Each uses silver-plated, oxygen-free continuous crystal copper conductors and can be fitted with straight or angled, 24k gold-plated USB A-type or 3.5mm stereo connectors. Prices range from $63 to $185, depending on model and length.

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CES 2012
Mark Levinson No.519 SACD Disc Player
Jon Iverson  |  Jan 11, 2012  |  0 comments
Also due sometime near the end of the year is a new SACD player which can also function as a digital preamp and includes four digital inputs (two USB, two SPDIF) and volume control. The 519 also has HDMI, AES/EBU, optical, and SPDIF outputs.
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CES 2012
Mark Levinson No.560 Digital Audio Processor
Jon Iverson  |  Jan 11, 2012  |  10 comments
Harman's Mark Levinson line is celebrating 40 years in business by announcing a completely new line of audio products, all in empty box prototype form at CES. Pictured here is the No.560 Digital Audio Processor with can function as both DAC and digital preamp. The 560 has 10(!) digital inputs on the back (though the prototype on display had only a blank panel) including two HDMI 1.3 inputs with "DSD-direct" input capability.

The No.560 is slated for release by the end of the year for a retail price of $6k.

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CES 2012
T+A Power Plant Balanced
Stephen Mejias  |  Jan 11, 2012  |  1 comments
In 2009, when Jon Iverson reviewed T+A’s Power Plant integrated amplifier, he was impressed by its “tight, yet musical character,” noting well-controlled bass and extended treble. T+A’s E Series Power Plant and Music Player have now been updated with high-quality balanced inputs and outputs.
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CES 2012
Cambridge Audio's New 851 Series
Stephen Mejias  |  Jan 11, 2012  |  2 comments
Cambridge Audio introduced their new flagship 851A integrated amplifier and 851C CD player ($1999 each).
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CES 2012
Rogue Audio Medusa tubed/class-D hybrid
Stephen Mejias  |  Jan 11, 2012  |  1 comments
Mark O’Brien’s Rogue Audio is notable for building high-quality products right here in the United States and offering them at real-world prices. How does Rogue do it?
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CES 2012
Partying with Music Hall's A70.2
Stephen Mejias  |  Jan 11, 2012  |  6 comments
There were beautiful women. There were pink socks. There was loud music, expensive alcohol, shameless dancing. There might have been a tiger in the bathroom. It wasn’t like a party in the Music Hall suite—it was a party. The company’s energetic sales manager, Leland Leard, was too busy rocking out, so Roy Hall introduced me to his new A70.2 integrated amplifier ($1499). (Here we see Leland playing DJ; I will spare us the images of Leland on the dance floor.)
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CES 2012
Moon Madness
Jon Iverson  |  Jan 10, 2012  |  0 comments
Unlike the mass-market consumer electronics exhibitors, which started their press conference onslaught over the weekend and Monday, the audiophile exhibitors like to maintain a sane CES schedule.

And so for us lucky enough to cover performance audio, the show starts today, Tuesday. And with a full moon setting over the desert no less. Posts should start dribbling in today, and kick into full gear by this weekend.

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Stephen MejiasCES 2012
Preparing for Las Vegas
Stephen Mejias  |  Jan 06, 2012  |  13 comments
The Consumer Electronics Show takes place January 10–13 in Las Vegas.

Have I mentioned that I hate Las Vegas? My hatred for Las Vegas is juvenile and irrational and represents what is probably the last strand of my nearly resigned defiance for all things bourgeois, fascist, bogus, and generally lame. I’ve softened up a lot over the last 10 years, but Vegas hardens me anew. I hate Las Vegas.

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