According to Burmester’s sales manager, Thorsten Poenig, it has been almost impossible to make a successor to Burmester’s legendary 911 – not to be confused with the Porsche model of the same name. In this context, for two decades the 911 has been perhaps Burmester’s most popular power amplifier. And the last step up the … Read more
The fact that Scottish speaker manufacturer Fyne Audio was founded by former Tannoy employees was not in doubt at the company’s stand at the High End 2022 trade fair in Munich. For it had brought the brand new(!) Vintage series. And they were so classically Tannoy that even Tannoy can’t compete. Which has its rightful … Read more
We’ve previously tested wireless, active Focus speakers from Danish Dynaudio and were thrilled with the sound, but not quite so thrilled with the control. Now it seems we may have been heard, because the new Dynaudio Focus range looks far more exciting than we’d hoped. With these speakers you don’t need an extra box to … Read more
Not all speakers have to look like boxes. Some speakers can’t even be designed as a box, because then they don’t work as intended. The Monitor Audio Concept 50 is just such a speaker, which couldn’t have been made to looked any different even if they had tried their best. That’s because Monitor Audio – … Read more
Estonian Estelon has quickly become a household name in high-end environments. Ever since the XA model, they have shown that they dare to go their own way. The loudspeakers don’t look like much else out there, and some think they take it too far, but for Estelon the shapes are not just cosmetics. It’s also … Read more
If you ask MoFi what their goal in life is, they will answer: “To bring the sound of the studio tapes into the homes of the listeners.” With the two new products, MasterDeck turntables and MasterPhono turntable amplifiers, they believe they are closer to that dream than ever. With innovative engineering and intuitive functionality, mixed … Read more
The brand new KEF Blade 2 Meta delivers a bass punch I didn’t think was possible in the big hall. The smaller version of the two Blade models, has undergone the same transformation as the larger Blade Meta, and sounds more dynamic, open and balanced than ever. Some credit for that must go to the … Read more
Munich is the world centre of hi-fi these days. First and foremost at the MOC exhibition centre, where High End 2022 is taking place, but also elsewhere in the city. At the nearby Marriott Hotel, they’ve set up a mini-fair called HiFi Deluxe. Here you can meet Danish Jern (Iron) Speakers. We have previously tested … Read more
We asked Yamaha if they could make this – and they did! A fully integrated amplifier with power galore, wireless and analog with digital input, turntable input, and audio calibration system. All in one box, weighing around 22 kg, and looking exactly like the high-end amplifiers in the 3000 and 5000 series. It’s equipped with … Read more
High-End 2022 is like most high-end fairs, full of remarkable products you hardly see anywhere else. This one, however, you can soon buy and put in your living room. The Pro-Ject Metallica Turntable is perfect for Metallica fans, of course, but it is also compatible with vinyl records from other artists. The player has the … Read more
The more sensibly priced QR series from Audiovector took us by storm, one of them even became L&B’s Speaker of the Year, and now a bigger model in the same series is being released. QR7 is the name, and it looks like a floorstanding QR5, just with bigger woofers and a bigger cabinet. The new … Read more
Dali usually make good, common sense products. The kind that most of us can afford, accomodate, and enjoy. They also have speakers in higher price ranges for those who want more of everything, but none of them are similar to these. That is, there are a few similarities. For example, Dali uses the same red-brown … Read more
Sonos Ray is the most affordable soundbar to date to carry the Sonos logo. Who’s it for? Before we go into what we think of it so far, we need to think about who it’s meant for. “This soundbar is designed to improve TV sound for the many people who don’t care about the latest … Read more
Many more people, especially in the Nordics, have probably heard of Dantax, the Danish speaker factory that has been around since 1972. Far fewer have heard of Raidho Acoustics, a relatively new Danish producer of high end loudspeakers with the same roots. That could change quite quickly, for Raidho has been working for a while … Read more
The long-awaited High End fair in Munich opens today, with some exotic, heavy and expensive hi-fi on the menu. Tradition-rich Marantz is of course there too, featuring among other things a new CD player! But compared to the other expensive products at the fair, the CD 60 doesn’t cost very much! Marantz CD 60 Marantz … Read more