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Astell&Kern AK240
Don’t freak out—the AK240 high-resolution pocket player costs $2,500. Now, before you crucify me for even floating the suggestion that a souped-up iPod costing as much as (if not more than) a monthly...
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OPPO HA-2 Portable Headphone Amplifier/DAC (PREVIEW)
High-performance portable listening is a phenomenon that continues to grow, with new enthusiasts constantly looking for a way to take their tunes on the go, without having to sacrifice audio quality....
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Master & Dynamic MH40 Headphones
It takes the growling bass line of “Bitch, I’m Madonna” just 10 seconds to convince me that the MH40 headphones are winners, but not just because of their sound. Aesthetically, they seem influenced by...
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Wax Rax RC-2 Record Cart
The Wax Rax RC-1—a $4,200 anodized-aluminum, CNC-machined beauty on wheels—is an amazing piece of analog art. Hmm, Eames Lounge chair or record rack? Wax Rax proprietor David Stanavich lost out to...
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VPI Classic Two Turntable
Back in Issue 46, I was enamored enough with VPI’s Classic One turntable to give it one of our Exceptional Value Awards for 2012. Even more, I purchased the review sample to make it a permanent...
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Audio Research GSPRE Preamp and GS150 Amp – PREVIEW
The new Galileo series from Audio Research combines over 40 years of amplification know-how with the proficiency in visual design resulting from ARC being part of the Fine Sounds Group and leveraging...
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Naim Mu-so – PREVIEW
While Naim’s Mu-so might fool the unfamiliar that it’s a sound bar, it’s anything but. Other than kind of looking like a sound bar, albeit a very cool one with a gigantic volume control and moody...
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iFi Retro 50
Knowing that a quartet of EL-84 tubes lurk under the hood of the iFi Retro 50, I knew it was time to break out the JBLs – and it was good. Just as with the Dynaco SQA-35 and even the Manley Stingrays,...
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Apple Watch
Do you want an Apple Watch? Of course you do! but what you MUST do before succumbing online, is take advantage of the Apple Store ‘Try On ‘Programme and get one on your wrist. And of course, down in...
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Aurender W20 Server – PREVIEW
We’ve been living with an Aurender S10 for over a year now and it has been fantastic. With world-class sound and build quality, the S10 doesn’t give you much (if anything) to complain about. You can...
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AudioQuest Jitterbug
Precious little is known about the latest audio insect, I mean gadget. AudioQuest set the digital world on its ear two years ago with their DragonFly miniature DAC and headphone amplifier bundled into...
View ArticleChris Lightcap’s Bigmouth
About ten years ago, Bassist Chris Lightcap formed his own group on a whim. He had already done the hard work to make a considerable name for himself—so much so that he could draw from the pool of top...
View ArticleJoe Lovano & Dave Douglas Sound Prints
It’s a matter of buoyancy. When jazz improvisers are really, really swinging, all the ensemble action seems to float. Once it’s in play, it can work in innumerable ways. Sometimes musicians bear down...
View ArticleThe Word
After a 14-year absence, the jazz-jam-band-meets-sacred-steel group the Word is reunited. The group sounds like it’s shrugged off whatever changes occurred in popular music since then, just as much as...
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Sansui AU-717 Integrated Amplifier
I remember the day like it was yesterday: I was pestering the guy at Pacific Stereo in the mall, begging to audition the Sansui AU-717 amplifier and a pair of JBL L-100 speakers that I was lusting...
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Harman/Kardon HK670 Receiver
I’ve been a fan of vintage Harman/Kardon gear for several years now, so when I heard a local record store had an HK670 receiver for sale I was on the case, immediately. The typical going price for...
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Rock Star Soap
You might not look like a rock star, and you might not be a rock star, but now you can bathe like one. Do rock stars bathe? If they did, we suspect that they might use this herbal blend, dark red soap...
View ArticleCalexico
Few artists can slip into different stylistic skins while also maintaining identities distinctly their own. It’s the hallmark of painters like David Hockney and of musicians like Beck and Bjork....
View ArticleBuena Vista Social Club
In 1997, the record Buena Vista Social Club took off as an unexpected international sensation. Recorded in Havana and produced by Ry Cooder, the project featured some of the most revered veteran...
View ArticleDjango Django
Scottish quartet Django Django constantly obscures its mission statement. Is this a surf-rock act for our modern, dance-driven times? Or maybe a group of electronic gear heads with a love of guitars?...
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