Audio Creative Groovemaster 4 tonearm I love tonearms. To me they are the access point for getting that magical stuff called music out of the grooves in a vinyl record in such a way that we can become immersed in it. I know that the turntable and cartridge are integral parts of that process, but […]
Gold Note Da Vinci & Giotto cartridges Gold Note has risen to prominence in recent years with an extensive product offering that includes turntables, cartridges, phono stages, amplifiers, CD players and DACs, the company is rapidly gaining a well deserved reputation for good sound quality. The company was founded in Italy by Maurizio Aternini. He […]
Atoll MS120 streamer Somewhat bizarrely, it was in an Austrian high street dealer, while sheltering from a torrential downpour, that I heard the Atoll MS120 streamer. It was clear that the unit has great qualities and, having enjoyed the brand’s integrated streaming amps, I wanted to try this mini version in my own system. French […]
Soulnote D-2 DAC Soulnote is Japanese brand that has been around for a lot longer than recent events would suggest. They first made an impact on me at the High End show, Munich in 2022 but a quick web search reveals that their products go back considerably further, to 2004 in fact when it was […]
Skyanalog P-1M & P-1G MC cartridges Cartridges are right at the sharp end of groove information retrieval, in every sense of that phrase. Whether it’s a wax cylinder, 78rpm shellac disc or a vinyl record, the cartridge is where the music starts. Stylus tip shape is an often-debated subject too, and many engineers have spent […]
Tangerine Audio Revolver LP12 platter Those of you who have been kind enough to read any of my pieces for The Ear over the past few years will know that vinyl is my favourite music replay medium and that, unless there is a guest turntable in the house, I use a Linn Sondek LP12. You […]
Silent Angel Munich MU streamer The Munich MU is the latest streamer from Silent Angel and aims for higher performance than the entry level Munich M1. To this end it has a double-layer aluminium chassis inspired by their Bonn NX audiophile network switch, for superior structural integrity, enhanced resonance damping and better electromagnetic interference isolation. […]
Rega Nd7 moving magnet cartridge The Nd7 is the most ambitious of Rega’s radical new moving magnet cartridge range. We enjoyed the entry level Nd3 a couple of months back, got some excellent results with the Nd5 not long ago and have arrived at the Nd7 to top of the trio. All three cartridges share […]
Network Acoustics eno2 streaming filter system The eno was a lockdown project between Richard Trussell, an ex-IT professional who is a qualified electronics engineer, and Rob Osbourne, who previously worked as a publisher, filmmaker and DJ. Dissatisfied with the sonic results they were hearing from their music streaming systems, they worked together and came up […]
Merason Reuss DAC The name of Merason’s mid price DAC is pronounced royce I am told, but that takes some remembering. I have enjoyed both iterations of the Merason DAC1 which sits at the top of the range, especially the original with its stainless steel and acrylic casework, and the UK distributor is of the […]
Pachanko Labs Constellation Mini SE server/streamer Made in La Réunion is not something I have seen on anything before let alone a high end audio component, and yet Pachanko Labs is based in the French Department in the Indian Ocean thousands of miles from the nearest hi-fi retailer. Apart from the active volcanos and persistently […]
Rega Nd5 moving magnet cartridge The Nd5 is the second of three moving magnet cartridges announced by Rega at the Bristol Hi-Fi Show, the first new examples from the company in over a decade. It resembles and is in almost all respects identical to the Nd3 entry level cartridge that we reviewed last earlier in […]