Full-Length Reviews

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Friday, May 23, 2025

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: Written by: Howard Kneller; Category: Full-Length Reviews; Created: 01 November 2020

Some 15 years ago, after improving the sound of my two-channel audio system by upgrading all of its cables, I looked into doing the same for my home-theater rig. An obvious place to begin was with the Monster Cable coaxial S/PDIF interconnect that was between my DVD player and A/V receiver. Remember, this was around the time HDMI cables first appeared.

: Written by: Hans Wetzel; Category: Full-Length Reviews; Created: 15 October 2020

Reviewers' Choice When I heard I’d be reviewing Mola Mola’s Tambaqui DAC, the first thing that came to mind was not its bespoke field-programmable gate array (FPGA) architecture, nor that it was designed in part by class-D amplifier luminary Bruno Putzeys. No, what came to mind was an easily Googleable Facebook post about the Mola Mola, aka the ocean sunfish, that went viral in 2017. The relevant passage of that foul-mouthed screed:

: Written by: Howard Kneller; Category: Full-Length Reviews; Created: 01 October 2020

In 2007, Synergistic Research developed a DC-biased, electromagnetic (EM), AC-filtering cell that they claim improves the quality of AC by affecting the movement of electrons through its conductive materials. According to Synergistic, the cell works without current restriction -- the Achilles’ heel of many early power conditioners, and of more than a few still sold today. In fact, Synergistic says, the more AC-powered devices are fed through the cell, the better it works.

: Written by: Hans Wetzel; Category: Full-Length Reviews; Created: 15 September 2020

I don’t like the idea of meeting my heroes. The athlete likely takes performance-enhancing drugs and womanizes. The inspired yet tortured artist’s genius no doubt springs from a lifetime of trauma, haphazardly managed through substance abuse. And the stunning object -- a car, watch, loudspeaker -- is ultimately only that: an object, a thing, designed and made by beings as imperfect as you and I. The more I obsess about these people and things, the greater the expectation, and ultimately the greater the disappointment.

: Written by: Jeff Fritz; Category: Full-Length Reviews; Created: 01 September 2020

It’s easy for reviewers to digest a company’s products by starting at the bottom of a manufacturer’s line and working their way up to the top models. You’re initiated into what that company can do at a lower price, and hopefully you see and hear more and better as you ascend their price ladder. It seems to make psychological sense to experience a company’s line this way, and it often works out just as you’d hope: the higher the price, the better the qualities of build, appearance, and sound.

: Written by: Hans Wetzel; Category: Full-Length Reviews; Created: 15 August 2020

Few spirited e-mail threads are exchanged among the SoundStage! Network’s editorial staff. With so many articles coming out each month that need eyes on them to ensure that they’re squeaky clean for your reading pleasure, I find myself weighing in only when I spot something amiss, or I see a chance to lob a snarky remark at the infallible Jeff Fritz or the Napoleonic Doug Schneider. Recently, however, an objectivist/subjectivist discussion broke out that prominently featured the topic of “bias.” No matter where you are on that continuum, bias is of course unavoidable, and to suggest otherwise would be ignorant.

: Written by: Hans Wetzel; Category: Full-Length Reviews; Created: 01 August 2020

Reviewers' Choice I like to think I was ahead of the curve when, in mid-2009, I bought a Benchmark Media Systems DAC1 USB (discontinued) off a dude on Audiogon. That was in the infancy of high-end computer audio, and the well-regarded Benchmark was one of the first mainstream DACs with a USB input. My previous source had been a cheap Sony CD changer (don’t judge -- I was 23), and the Benchmark DAC offered a big step up in sound quality: that immaculate, analytical sound that digital sources of the aughts all seemed to possess. And at the DAC1 USB’s modest price of $1295 (all prices USD), that kind of sound made it a steal.

: Written by: Jeff Fritz; Category: Full-Length Reviews; Created: 01 August 2020

I’m not a member of the Everything Matters camp. I won’t list here all the things audiophiles do to alter the sound of their systems, but suffice it to say that I don’t spend hour after hour comparing footers or cable elevators in attempts to season the sound of my stereo to suit my palate. But most things, of course, do matter, and that’s where I focus my attention.

: Written by: Aron Garrecht; Category: Full-Length Reviews; Created: 15 July 2020

Reviewers' Choice EMM Labs’ DV2 ($30,000 USD) digital-to-analog converter is the product of a three-way collaboration of Ed Meitner, EMM’s founder and chief designer, responsible for the DV2’s overall design, hardware, and layout; Mariusz Pawlicki, who engineered the DSP and firmware; and Kris Holstein, who designed the case and mechanics. The DV2 is based on the circuitry of EMM’s DA2 DAC ($25,000), but partners it with EMM’s VControl -- an all-new, very-high-resolution (50-bit), digital volume controller.

: Written by: Jeff Sirody; Category: Full-Length Reviews; Created: 01 July 2020

Reviewers' Choice My chronic addiction to Audiophilia nervosa has lasted more than 30 years now, and in that time I’ve owned countless components. Family and friends often joke that I should install a loading dock outside my listening room, to ease the swapping of gear in and out. At one time or another I’ve owned products from almost every major maker of high-end audio equipment, and in some cases -- Conrad-Johnson, Magnepan, Mark Levinson, McIntosh Laboratory, etc. -- several of their current and past offerings.