Keith Monks Prodigy Plus Record-Cleaning Machine
- Written by: Jonathan Gorse
- Category: Full-Length Reviews
Origins
The vinyl era dates back to 1948, when Columbia Records issued the very first 33rpm LP, a recording of Felix Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E Minor, with soloist Nathan Milstein and the New York Philharmonic Orchestra under Bruno Walter. But it wasn’t until the mid-1960s that the challenge of keeping records clean was seriously addressed. That happened when Percy Wilson, then technical editor of the UK classical-music magazine Gramophone, wrote a series of papers on the subject for the Audio Engineering Society.
Speaker Scenarios and Preparing for Warsaw
- Written by: Jason Thorpe
- Category: Opinion
It’s getting tense here at Thorpe Manor. As I begin writing this editorial on October 15, I’m getting set to cover Audio Video Show 2024, which starts on October 25, on location in Warsaw. It seems like just yesterday I was counting down three weeks until departure, which felt like plenty of time to get my editorial finished, wrap up a review, and pack at my leisure.
European Audio Team Fortissimo S Turntable and F-Note Tonearm
- Written by: Jason Thorpe
- Category: Full-Length Reviews
At Munich’s High End 2024, I spent an inordinate amount of time browsing the European Audio Team display. Their booth was encircled with turntables and tube electronics, two 20th-century technologies with which I’ve had a long-standing love affair. My relationship with EAT goes back eight years, to 2016, when I reviewed the company’s C-Major turntable. I got a real charge out of that ’table, out of its combination of visual low-slung elegance and excellent sound quality.
Bury Me with These Analog Accessories
- Written by: Jason Thorpe
- Category: For the Record
In the world of analog accessories, there are entire catalogs of stuff you didn’t know you needed. Of course, I know there’s a distinction between want and need. We humans really only need food, water, shelter, and companionship. A turntable is a want. Heck, any form of hi-fi is a want.
Goodbye to an Old Friend
- Written by: Jason Thorpe
- Category: Opinion
I’ve lived in the same house for 25 years. I’ve owned my motorcycle from new in 2007, and I bought the one before that new in 1990. Once I find something I like, I keep it longer than I should. Perhaps it’s inertia, or maybe it’s because I make shrewd buying decisions. Either way, I don’t let go easily.
Simaudio Moon 891 Streaming Preamplifier
- Written by: Aron Garrecht
- Category: Full-Length Reviews
Note: for the full suite of measurements from the SoundStage! Audio-Electronics Lab, click here.
The term “integrated product” can mean many things in the audio industry. In browsing through the North Collection of components on Simaudio’s website, you will find several integrated products differentiated by number-based identifiers, each positioned opposite its functional counterpart. The 641 integrated amplifier ($11,000, all prices in USD) and matching 681 streaming DAC ($12,000) are the most wallet-friendly products in the North Collection. The 700 series, comprising the 761 power amplifier ($14,000) and 791 streaming preamplifier ($16,000), delivers a step up in performance and complexity. The flagships are the 861 power amplifier ($22,000) and 891 streaming preamplifier ($25,000), the latter of which is the subject of this review.
Electrocompaniet AW 300 M Mono Power Amplifier
- Written by: Phil Gold
- Category: Full-Length Reviews
Note: for the full suite of measurements from the SoundStage! Audio-Electronics Lab, click here.
Scandinavia is home to many highly regarded audio companies, but most are located in Sweden and Denmark. Norway has just a few well-known makes, including Electrocompaniet, Hegel Music Systems, and SEAS. Hegel and Electrocompaniet are both active in electronics, while SEAS makes speaker drivers for speaker manufacturers.
Teaching Turntable Setup to an Analog Lightweight and the Next Generation
- Written by: Jason Thorpe
- Category: Opinion
My family loves Ottawa, Ontario, which is about a four-hour drive from our home in Toronto. Marcia has had a long love affair with Ottawa, stemming back to her late-teenage years when she had friends who went to the city’s Carleton University. Ottawa is Canada’s capital city, and as such it’s loaded with huge stone buildings, both brutal and elegant in equal measure. There are tons of museums and galleries, most notably the National Gallery, which we often visit when we’re there.
Perlisten Audio R5t Loudspeaker
- Written by: Jonathan Gorse
- Category: Full-Length Reviews
Note: measurements taken in the anechoic chamber at Canada's National Research Council can be found through this link.
Founded in 2020, Perlisten Audio is a relatively new entrant on the high-end audio scene. The firm was established by a team of industry veterans with the goal of manufacturing high-performing loudspeaker systems to rival the best at their price points. The first model was the S7t, a tall, four-way loudspeaker which utilizes several relatively small bass drivers to deliver satisfying bass extension in a slender design. Priced at around $20,000 per pair (all prices in USD), the S7t distinguished itself sufficiently well from the surrounding mass of competing designs to win several audio awards. From there, the firm has expanded its range to offer a wider range of options.
Do What You Love! Setting Up a European Audio Team Turntable
- Written by: Jason Thorpe
- Category: For the Record
In my August 1 editorial, I talked about the recent arrivals and departures in my review system. It’s been uncharacteristically variable lately, which has made reviewing a challenge. To make this variability work, I’ve been listening pretty much non-stop, and it’s been hard work. Oh boo-hoo, you might be thinking. Poor Jason—he’s got to listen to music all day. World’s smallest violin, etc.
- Hard Work or Humble Brag?
- Voodoo Labs Witchcraft Speaker Cable
- Charisma Audio Signature Two Moving-Coil Phono Cartridge
- What Happens When the Magic Smoke Escapes?
- Vertere Acoustics MG-1 Turntable
- Thales TTT-Compact II Turntable System
- A New Arms Race—Jason Gets Gimballed
- Munich Exhaustion and EAT’s New Products
- Naim Audio NAP 350 Mono Amplifier
- Audio-Technica AT-ART20 Moving-Coil Cartridge
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