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Patrick Dillon enjoys a change of pace with the Audioengine A5+ wireless speakers, trying them out both with bluetooth and wired via computer and external DAC. His conclusion? "I could envisage a pair of these serving as an almost one-stop audiophile rig, paired with whatever digital device you have. Throw...
"I recently found myself intrigued by an interface from the pro-sound world, the RME ADI-2 Pro," writes John Reekie. This line-level convertor and audio interface is billed as RME's "reference" A/D and D/A convertor, but also has a solid complement of onboard processing, two powerful headphone amps, and technical performance good enough for...
John Reekie wraps up his articles on inexpensive SBC-based music servers, with instructions on how to install music-related services on the ODroid HC1. This time, he's also using an Android tablet as the renderer....
"In year’s past, the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest (RMAF) has been hampered by an aging, rather stale venue, and backward looking management. This year, things were looking up with the hosting hotel being newly refreshed and the exhibitors better able to cope with the remodeled rooms." Oliver Masciarotte provides his...
John Reekie revisits his Raspberry Pi based music server with a new offering: the ODroid HC1 ("home compute server"). "The HC1 has the distinguishing feature of a SATA port, so that it connects to a hard drive without going through USB. It also has a Gigabit Ethernet port and a...
JWM Acoustics aims to deliver custom-designed products to meet the needs of individual audiophiles who purchase for the long haul. Patrick Dillon spends time with their standmount Alyson AML speakers and finds them capable of performance that marries unique style to exceptional musical resolution....
When PS Audio set out to build a world-class power amplifier, nobody anticipated them using tubes in a design for the first time. The resulting hybrid monoblocks are big and powerful but how do they sound? Patrick Dillon takes a listen and feels the new amps are the best he's...
In 2013, the San Francisco Symphony took on a monumental project, a re–staging of the beloved West Side Story. After listening, Oliver Masciarotte came to realize that the album’s production must have been a heroic effort, and wanted to know more......
"The Charisma 103 moving coil cartridge delivered rich, full-bodied sonics that made me spin record after record in simple enjoyment," writes Patrick Dillon in his review of this modified Denon 103 from Charisma Audio. "It came alive without fussy adjustment or tweaking, a boon to vinyl lovers no matter their...
Patrick Dillon visits the world of Class A amplification with the Valvet A4 monoblocks. His conclusion? "When you hear them over an extended period of time on music you love, you come to realize there is something quite special about these amplifiers. ... The Valvet A4s are capable of delivering...
Patrick Dillon test-drives a pair of Bybee RCA adapters. He finds them position-dependent. But where they work, he concludes that "It’s these small incremental improvements in tone, timbre and decay that the Bybees repeatedly provided that has me quite impressed with their value. Taking them out is as noticeable as...
Patrick Dillon explores the range of cables from father-and-son business IceAge Audio in his own rigs. Impressed by their performance-price quotient, he nominates them as a new value leader. "No magic here, no spoof science, just well chosen material, solid workmanship, and really sane prices." The review concludes with a...
