PMC cor integrated amplifier From the moment I learned that the PMC cor integrated amp was coming to market I was wondering what this integrated amp would be like, and when it did appear I wondered why it got the name cor. Some say it is an expression of interest, admiration or surprise, others say […]
Goldring has to be the longest running British cartridge maker, in fact it’s about the only cartridge company of any scale on these shores. The only competition is Rega but they make the whole gamut of components so are a little different. Goldring is part of the Armour Group alongside QED and Q-Acoustics among others […]
It says something about the size of the German market that AVM, a brand with a substantial range of high end hardware, was virtually unknown on these shores until it started working with PMC. AVM’s products have so much consistency of industrial design that it’s difficult to tell them apart at a glance, it’s hard […]
Audio Technica ART1000 moving coil cartridge The Audio Technica ART1000 is the most radical moving coil cartridge on the planet. It turns conventional cartridge design ideas on their head by moving the coils from one end of the cantilever to the other. Not since the Decca London of the fifties has anyone produced such a […]
When it launched “the world’s best headphone” last summer Focal really put the wind up the headphone community. This sweeping, ‘endgame’ statement had consumers and critics alike clamouring to hear what the fuss was about, and is likely the reason I had to hold out for so long to receive a pair to review! With […]
In an age when a 50inch television is considered normal it is increasingly rare to find anyone who has loudspeakers that are much bigger than baked bean cans. And yet who ever reached nirvana watching the telly! I know that Fargo is pretty good but transcendant it is not. We know that this is all […]
With a range that’s trebled in recent times Rega have clearly got their MC production line up to speed, Ania is the latest and least expensive moving coil that the company has made but it has a lot in common with its pricier range mates. There are more similarities between Ania and both the Apheta […]
Ken Ishiwata is a bona fide hi-fi guru, he’s got the look, the clothes and the underground lair, I mean listening room, to die for. In an unassuming office building in Eindhoven, Holland, Ishiwata has created one of the best sounding rooms in the world (see more here and here). This is where he refines […]
I immediately recognise Danish design. The well thought out minimalist looks, the neat and elegant lines, the use of colour… it draws me in like a magnet and just because of that I promised myself that one day I would listen to a Bergmann Audio turntable at home. It took a few years, but recently […]
Cute, that’s the reaction that this smallest of the current Quad amplifiers elicits. And it is I guess, a valve integrated in a chassis that’s about the size of an original Quad II is an unusual thing. But they sold an awful lot of Quad IIs back in the day, so perhaps it’s a popular […]
A few months ago I spent some time with the Auralic Aries Mini, a streaming bridge that connects a music server to a DAC and provides a control interface in the form of a very attractive iOS App. That product is the least expensive in Auralic’s catalogue, further up the chain is the Altair that […]
If you’re looking to moving into streaming the array of options and the complexities of setting a streaming system up can look pretty confusing. But in practice it has got a lot easier than it once was and pretty well anyone with a broadband network can get started. As Aurender shows on the webpage for […]