Bluesound POWERNODE EDGE $649 REVIEW
April 28, 2024 § Leave a comment
https://www.audiophilia.com/reviews/2023/10/10/bluesound-powernode-edge
In my office reference system driving the 91-dB / 4 ohm Care Orchestra Deep Breath Evo monitors the Powernode delivered what I can call a full performance. I heard surprisingly tuneful bass from these power-hungry boxes. Articulate and substantial midrange as well. Treble information was detailed and important for any budget audio component, it was free from uncomfortable grain and harshness. My AmazonHD stream of Leonard Bernstein’s 1987 live recording of Mahler Symphony No. 5 with the Vienna Philharmonic (Deutsche Grammophon) started with a convincing trumpet fanfare to open the famous funeral march. The rich tone drew me into the narrative and the decent spatial separation of orchestra sections helped paint a full picture of the performance.
QUAD REVELA 2 FLOOR-STANDING SPEAKER $4495 REVIEW
April 28, 2024 § Leave a comment
Because of this whole “reviewing” thing, I’ve been given the opportunity to listen to and experience several speakers that I would have otherwise passed over. This is a speaker that would have fallen into the passed-over category. And that would have been a shame. The Revela 2 is a stout, 3-way floor-standing speaker. It features twin 6.5″ woofers, a 6″ midrange driver, and a single 2.5″ ribbon driver taking care of the high frequencies. The speaker stands a hair over 37″ tall and weighs 60 lbs. The Revela is available in piano walnut and black piano gloss. And retail for $4495.00 USD.
Tektron Italia Neptune Reference Vacuum Tube Integrated Amplifier Review
April 27, 2024 § Leave a comment
https://www.audiophilia.com/reviews/2024/3/4/neptune
The acoustics are surprisingly good, giving a full amplitude to the horns and brass and revealing an unfailing purity of sound and accuracy from the upper strings. The bass is perhaps slightly muddied in spots, but this, in no way, mars the overall impression of a stunning sound and performance. The Neptune’s macrodynamics are represented with a clear, yet golden glow that is so typical of SET amps but with a bonus from the Neptune’s 211 power tubes. With no negative feedback required, neither local nor global and low levels of distortion, the 211s create a substantially open and spacious soundstage, augmenting the perception of depth and instrument placement with this orchestra and this recording. T
PlatiMon Virtual Coaxial One Speakers $6,000 Review
April 27, 2024 § Leave a comment
The PlatiMons deliver an excellent sense of timing and musical pace. When at Chris’ house the other night listening to his setup of the new Skyanalog REF cartridge, the same thing was going on with his reference system when we listened to Kind of Blue. All of the instruments were blended as they should be, yet all occupied their own space without being buried under one another. It’s one of those deceptively simple aspects of musical reproduction that sometimes you don’t even notice until it’s wrong.
These speakers always present a lack of blur in musical transients and high frequency decay. Cymbals and percussion sound natural, along with stringed instruments. Some of the metal cabinet speakers auditioned here have exhibited a great sense of dynamic energy yet impart their own sense of tonality to the music being presented. The PlatiMon speakers do not fall victim to this. Listening to them for days on end is an exceptionally pleasant experience. So much so, that I did purchase the review samples to use as an ongoing reference.
Luxman PD-191A Turntable Review
April 26, 2024 § Leave a comment
https://www.hifinews.com/content/luxman-pd-191a-turntable
Where it became interesting was in comparing two pressing types, which I had never actually bothered to do before. Such was the openness, transparency and detail retrieval afforded by this flagship Luxman deck that I figured I would compare the new, clear pressing with my black vinyl originals. The validity of this test is questionable as I am sure the new release has been remastered, while the original came from younger master tapes.
Still, what intrigued me was a question that some hardcore vinyl addicts love to debate: is black vinyl better than clear, as its carbon component serves as a lubricant, even though transparent vinyl is the material’s natural state? I had three black vinyl versions of Swan Song dating back to 1974 as well as the new pressing, and while I couldn’t arrive at an answer to the black/clear conundrum all sounded unalike thanks to the PD-191A deftly exposing their differences.
VINCENT AUDIO SV-237MKII HYBRID INTEGRATED AMPLIFIER REVIEW
April 26, 2024 § Leave a comment
Vincent Audio has built a reputation for making amplifiers that sound great, are reliable and that can serve as the anchor of a well-performing stereo system. When our editor-in-chief, Carlo Lo Raso, asked if I could make time to review an integrated amplifier from Vincent, the answer was a rousing YES! There is no audio dealer within 200 miles of our home that carries Vincent, and over the last two decades, I have been curious to find out just how good their amps are.
The Vincent SV-237MKII goes well beyond being a high-value audio component. It can serve as the centerpiece for a high-end audio system. It can hold its own with a variety of high-end speakers. Its performance on both the Diptyque 140 Mark II planars and the DALI Oberon 9’s demonstrated a versatility that is hard to find for such a modest price.
The included remote operates all inputs with complete silence. The build quality is excellent. I have worked hard to come up with something I don’t like about this amplifier, and cannot think of anything except that it only has two digital inputs. Everything about the Vincent 237MK II is first class. Think of it as a five-star performer with a three-star price!
Noble Audio New Wireless $369 Earbuds
April 25, 2024 § Leave a comment
Dubbed Cowell, the solid-state tweeter is billed as the world’s smallest micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) microspeaker and said to deliver “exceptional sound quality, phase coherence, and treble extension,” according to Noble.
Tuned by one of the company’s top acoustic designers, the FoKus Triumph earbuds are based on Bluetooth 5.3 and support high-quality streaming through aptX Adaptive, LDAC, and Snapdragon Sound in addition to supporting. The earbuds also support Siri and Google voice assistants and multipoint connectivity in addition to featuring two Qualcomm technologies: TrueWireless Mirroring for seamless swapping and cVc noise-canceling for phone calls.
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