Sumiko is not Japanese, but American and is both an American distributor and the company behind Sumiko Cartridges. Their Black Pearl and Blue Point Special are among the very best pickups in a reasonable price range. This is also one of the nicer ends of the price scale, and the Moving Magnet cartridge Olympia is …
The Japanese construction is older than the undersigned. The Denon cartridge was launched in 1962, and has since come in a wide range of variants. The cartridge is a Moving Coil, and has gained an ever so small legend status, since it was conceived for broadcasting use over 50 years ago. Denon DL-103 is easy …
Pro-Ject X2 is confusingly similar to another turntable from Pro-Ject. Namely the X1, which is one of the best buys under £ 1,000, and by far the best alternative to the Rega Planar 3, which has long been the reference in that price range. The very well-sounding Pro-Ject X1, which comes with an 8.6-inch arm …
Who would have thought that a stripped-down, analog analog amplifier would trigger the drooling reflex? An amplifier that has neither DAC, streaming, not even turntable input? Not me. The elusive Rega Aethos amplifier has a design that few will remember. It costs a lot. And unless you only have analog audio sources, CD player, cassette …
If you are in the market for a turntable in a moderate price range, you will usually come across two brands, almost no matter where you plan to shop: Rega and Pro-Ject. They dominate the hi-fi market, especially in the price range below £ 1000, and there are many reasons for this. One is that …
Hi-fi manufacturers can mainly be divided into two camps: those who use their ears in the search for products they think sound as musical as possible, and those who are looking to make the components that measure the best. Distortion should not just be tuned to the most ear-friendly area possible; it must be eliminated! …
The most iconic Norwegian hi-fi export is still called Electrocompaniet. Now it is admittedly a worn-out hi-fi story that Michael Jackson himself gave the producer a “Special thanks” in the cover of the releases History (1995) and Invincible (2001). Electrocompaniet was also another company at the time, with Per Abrahamsen as founder and chief designer. …
Now that soundbars come with both five, seven and nine channels – many of them with the 3D audio formats Dolby Atmos and DTS: X – who needs a big and ugly amplifier with a dullion channels, like the Denon AVC-X6700H? And a bunch of speakers that belong? I’ll tell you this: It’s the one …
The Masters series is NAD’s bid for equipment in the most prestigious class, and while the cheaper models in the hi-fi market come and go with the change of seasons, years can pass between the replacements in the high-end segment. One of them is the integrated amplifier M33. We first wrote about it in connection …
The new Technics player Technics SL-1210GAE is only made in 1000 copies. About 700 of these are coming to Europe, and judging by the success of the previous Limited Edition version of the SL-1210GAE, it is important to know your visiting hours. But, and there is one but here that must be mentioned: the SL-1210GAE …
You will never get goosebumps from music played through a soundboard. On the other hand, you can easily bring out the popcorn when you play the movie sound through a good stereo system! But then you depend on a good amplifier. It’s not just easy to make an amplifier that appeals to everyone. A modern …
Many believe that Technics’ legendary turntable was made for DJs. The truth is that Technics made the SL-1200 for the hi-fi market, but since the player was so solid, it was quickly intercepted by DJs who needed a reliable work tool. The rest is history as it is called, and it could have had its …
Probably not many people have heard of Como Audio. It’s no wonder. They do not belong to the established brands, which can be found in every store shelf. But that can change quickly. At least if Como Audio Musica is as well received by the audience as by us. Behind the Italian-sounding name is Tom …
Since its inception in 1982, Musical Fidelity has been behind a large number of successful and well-sounding products in all parts of hi-fi. Gray-bearded audiophiles will remember the enormously successful A1 amplifier of 20 W (almost) pure class A from 1984. But the company has since made a number of far more powerful amplifiers. Musical …
Few brands are so closely linked to gramophones and turntables. Ever since Hermann Thorens founded the company in Sainte-Croix, Switzerland, the name has been associated with music. They even made harmonicas – and lighters, but that’s a different story. Thorens has since had many different owners, everything that has been done has not been as …