WL Low has posted a review of the Kuzma Stabi SD12 turntable (£2750) at av2day.com. His conclusions: “By now, you know that the full options Kuzma Stabi SD12 is more than just about reproducing music with all Hi-Fi attributes intact. It’s about how much it actually gets out of the way and allow you...
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Rafe Arnott has posted a review of the Transrotor Fat Bob Reference turntable ($9500), SME TR 5009 tonearm ($3500) and Koetsu Onyx Platinum phono cartridge ($9500) at Part-Time Audiophile. His conclusions: “The Transrotor Fat Bob Reference with the SME 5009 modified tonearm and Koetsu Onyx Platinum is a music lovers analog front end with...
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Michael Fremer has posted a review of the Wilson-Benesch Circle 25 turntable and A.C.T. 25 tonearm (together $6900) at AnalogPlanet. His conclusions: “Overall, despite the speed issues which look worse than they sound, the Wilson-Benesch Circle 25 and A.C.T. 25 combo is a compact, extremely attractive, easy to use vinyl playback system that provided...
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Dave Thomas has posted a review of the Charisma Audio MC-2 phono cartridge ($1495) at Stereo Times. His conclusions: “After spending the last few months with the Charisma Audio MC-2 phono cartridge and Abis SA-1.2 tonearm in my analog setup, I have to admit to being more than a little spoiled. They’ve shown me...
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Art Dudley has posted a review of the Leema Acoustics Essentials phono preamplifier ($749) at Stereophile. His conclusions: “Regarding perceived value and perceived performance, we are left to deal with absolutes. It is with those absolutes in mind that I write this: Although it’s a leap to say that I see $749 inside that...
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The Döhmann Helix 1 delivers unparalleled analog playback performance due to its unique Micro Signal Architecture© (MSA) engineering that sets new noise reduction and micro-signal preservation benchmarks. MSA is a cohesive design approach that uses the most advanced available techniques to remove physical and mechanical vibration and electrical noise. While the MSA concept sounds...
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Karl Sigman has posted a review of the VPI Industries Scout turntable ($2750) at Audiophilia. His conclusions: “Don’t get me wrong, the download was outstanding, too, and, of course, there were no cracks and pops and other distractions. But the download had a smoothness, a silky softness which while sounding so pleasant and nice...
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Jacek Pazio has posted a review of the Audio Tekne TEA-2000 phono equalizer amplifier (€20,000) at Sound Rebels. His conclusions: “One has to learn many things through experience, one has to reach certain level of maturity to appreciate what Audio Tekne has to offer. I am sure that most of you in a process...
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Jason Kennedy has posted a review of the Tom Evans Audio Design Groove Anniversary MkII phono stage (£2400) at The Ear. His conclusions: “Calm is the good word when describing the Groove, it takes everything in its stride and no matter how dense the material never seems to struggle. It’s a very low distortion...
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Andre Jennings has posted a review of the EAT C-Sharp turntable with Ortofon Quintet Black cartridge (together $4500) at The Absolute Sound. His conclusions: “Although it lacked the ultimate resolution and complete neutrality of pricier analog front-ends, the C-Sharp/Quintet Black had a way of convincing this listener that its “sins” of omission were more...
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Domenico Pizzamiglio has posted a review of the Ortofon Quintet Black phono cartridge ($999) at Audio Activity. His conclusions: “Denon DL 304: the comparison is not awkward, but it is evident how, even with a no-striking cost difference, the Ortofon sounds more relaxed, free, dynamic, open at the top, natural. Tracking ability seems to...
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Art Dudley has posted a review of the Acoustic Signature Triple X turntable ($5995) and TA-1000 tonearm ($1995) at Stereophile. His conclusions: “Nevertheless, with its excellent speed stability and temporal performance, notable clarity, and superb reproduction of space, the Acoustic Signature combination of Triple X turntable and TA-1000 tonearm deserves consideration; in particular, anyone...
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Dave Thomas has posted a review of the Abis SA 12 tonearm ($1775), Pyon Sound MC Master L step-up transformer ($1500), and TiGLON MGL-10P tonearm cable ($1400) at Stereo Times. His conclusions: “Of the three pieces, the Abis SA-1.2 tonearm is the one that I believe made the biggest impact on improving the sound...
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Wojciech Pacula has posted a review of the Einstein The Preamp (€17,000) and The Silver Bullet OTL monoblock amplifiers (€40,000) at High Fidelity. His conclusions: “The Einstein system belongs to the elite of devices that are outstanding in every respect. The combination of saturation with differentiation, consideration with entertainment, precision with fluidity and detail...
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Noam Bronstein has posted a review of the Nagaoka MP-500 phono cartridge ($699) at Wall of Sound. His conclusions: “In fact, if you’re primarily keen on acoustic music – jazz, folk, classical, etc. – this is a cartridge that I think will have few, if any peers in its price range. It gets the...
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J. Loh has posted a review of the PS Audio NuWave phono stage and USB converter ($1895) at audiofi.net. His conclusions: “Understandably, the NPC will not outshine other standalone phono stages at its price range. If you want to get the best dedicated phono stage for your money, you may find more bang for...
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Angelo Jasparro has posted a review of the Ikeda KAI phono cartridge (€2600) at Audio Activity. His conclusions: “If we consider then that this IKEDA ranks in the middle range (!) of the market, we can say that you can safely nominate the IKEDA KAI as an eligible candidate among the cartridges to be...
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Greg Borrowman has posted a review of the Clearaudio Performance DC turntable ($5995) at AVHub. His conclusions: “It’s so mind-bogglingly good that I seriously thought about concluding this review by writing something along the lines of: ‘If you’re thinking about buying the Clearaudio Statement, why not save yourself $183,000 and buy the Performance DC...
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Paul Rigby has posted a review of the EAT C-Sharp turntable and C-Note tonearm (£2500) at Hi-Fi News and Record Review. His conclusions: “Finally, the soundstage was both full and wide, giving the music a real epic nature while detail could be heard at each extremity, doubtless the result of the excellent arm performance…”...
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Jerry Siegel has posted a review of the RCM Sensor 2 phono preamplifier ($3990) at 10 Audio. His conclusions: “All other phono stages are inferior in one or more ways, and none so far are so reliably enjoyable. The Sensor 2 presents compelling performances that sound very natural and complete. The RCM Sensor 2...
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Karl Sigman has posted a review of the VPI Industries Scout Jr. turntable ($1500) at Audiophilia. His conclusions: “The Scout Jr. is an exquisite entry-level but audiophile quality turntable that won’t intimidate anyone; it will lure one of all ages into a new (old?) world of audio that any audiophile would and should enjoy....
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Key Kim has posted a review of the Aurorasound VIDA phono stage ($4990) at Stereo Times. His conclusions: “The Aurorasound VIDA represents an outstanding accomplishment at its price point. The VIDA’s overall presentation was free of grain and edge, with stark quietness. I really enjoyed my vinyl collection immensely with the VIDA; its black...
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Jonathan Valin has posted a review of the DS Audio DS-W1 “Nightrider” phono optical cartridge ($8500) at The Absolute Sound. His conclusions: “If sheer niftiness and excellent sound at a substantial savings vis-à-vis other ultra-high-end cartridge and phonostage combos are high on your analog agenda, the Nightrider is definitely a cartridge I’d seek out.”...
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Alan Sircom has posted a review of the Linn Majik LP12 turntable system (£2700) at Hi-Fi+. His conclusions: “It’s been almost a quarter of a century since I last spent time listening to an unmodified LP12, but it proved to be something of a homecoming. If you spend some time with the Majik –...
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Jason Kennedy has posted a review of the Clearaudio Absolute Phono Inside phono stage (£8995) at Hi-Fi+. His conclusions: “The Clearaudio Absolute Phono Inside is probably the most compact phono stage in its class, but it proves that small is beautiful when it comes to revealing sonic character and musicianship. There are very few...
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