Every year product life cycles in the consumer marketplace grow ever shorter and we see ever faster turnover in cameras, phones computers, and so on. On the audio side, the latest and greatest receivers become yesterday's news faster than you can say "HDMI 1.4." It seems like no receiver can stay current for more than a year or so.
Speaker companies show a little more restraint and "refresh" their lines every few years, but even then new models rarely demonstrate actual performance improvements over the previous generations' models. Speaker manufacturer Magnepan doesn't play by those rules; it invests years of development in each of its models before introducing a new speaker. It has to sound better--a lot better--than the outgoing model before it's released to the world.
The new Magneplanar 1.7
(Credit: Magnepan)And not just in the opinion of the designers. New-model Magnepans undergo extensive "blind" listening tests with a wide range of audiophile and non-audiophile listeners (the listeners don't know whether they're hearing the old or new model). The new speaker must consistently score better than the old model before it goes into production.
When I first heard the Magneplanar 1.6 back in 2008 I said it was the best under-$2,000 speaker on the market. Incredibly enough it was 10 years old at the time! The Magneplanar 1.6 has stayed in production for 12 years, but now it's about to be replaced with the new Magneplanar 1.7.
Magnepan, based in White Bear Lake, Minn., builds nothing but panel (boxless) speakers. Not only that, Magnepan designs forgo conventional dome tweeters and cone-type woofers. As I pointed out in my August 14, 2008, blog that's why the company's Magneplanar 1.6 speaker mostly avoids sounding like a speaker. The speaker earned the top position in my Top 10 greatest audiophile speakers blog earlier this year.
The new Magneplanar 1.7 is also a flat-panel design, 64.5 inches tall and a mere 2 inches thick! The new speaker looks a little more contemporary, thanks to its aluminum, wrap-around edge molding. The old model was a two-way design, with a 48-inch-tall aluminum ribbon tweeter and a 442-square-inch mid/bass panel. The Magneplanar 1.7 is a three-way design, with a woofer, tweeter, and super-tweeter. The super-tweeter comes in around 10,000 hertz and is said to produce wider dispersion and better-resolved treble than the Magneplanar 1.6 did.
The other big difference is the Magneplanar 1.7 is a "full-range" ribbon design. ... Read more
For those of you with older receivers lacking HDMI connectivity, or perhaps for audiophiles with stereo home theater systems, the Oppo BD-83 Special Edition player is for you.
You see, the new Oppo player handles the digital-to-analog conversion at a higher standard than the original--and still available--BD-83 player. So rather than use its HDMI connectivity you hookup the Special Edition's eight analog (7.1) outputs to the multichannel inputs on older receivers or sound processors. Don't worry if your receiver is limited to 5.1, the Special Edition will work perfectly well with those systems. The Special Edition would be the go-to player for HT 2.0 (stereo) systems.
(Credit:
Oppo)
The BD-83 is known for its exceptional audio and video performance, the BDP-83 Special Edition is upgraded with an all new analog audio stage and improved power supply.
The Special Edition uses the Sabre32 family of Digital-to-Analog Converters (DACs) from ESS Technology. Stereo lovers take note: the player's dedicated stereo output uses another 8-channel Sabre32 DAC chip by stacking multiple DACs for the left and right channels "to achieve even greater audio performance" in stereo. The Special Edition's HDMI output bypasses all that good stuff, so it would be a waste of money to use it that way.
The 7.1 analog outputs are the reasons to buy the Special Edition player.
(Credit: Oppo)Just like the BDP-83, the Special Edition is a Profile 2.0 Blu-ray player featuring bitstream and full decoding capability for Dolby TrueHD and DTS Master Audio.
Here are my picks for the best-sounding audio products of 2009, in no particular order.
Pioneer VSX-1019AH Receiver
The VSX-1019AH has just about every gotta-have feature and its stellar performance makes it the go-to choice for sound-quality-conscious midprice receiver buyers.
Onkyo HT-RC180 Receiver
Sure, the HT-RC180 goes for around double the Pioneer's price, but its power and dynamic slam put it over the top.
Onkyo HT-S9100THX Home Theater in a Box
The HT-S9100THX is not only the best sounding HTIB on the planet, you can easily upgrade its performance by adding better speakers or subwoofer. Few HTIBs offer owners that capability.
Onkyo's HT-RC180, our favorite receiver of the year.
(Credit: Onkyo)Monster Turbine Pro (Gold) in-ear headphones
I'm a big fan of the original and still-available Monster Turbine in-ear headphones, but now that I've gotten to spend time with the Pro I can tell you this: it's simply the best $300 in-ear I've heard.
Anthony Gallo Acoustics Reference Strada Speaker
The double-balled Reference Strada ($995 each) measures a lifestyle-friendly 6.5 inches tall by 12.5 inches wide by 5.5 inches long, but the compact speaker makes a huge, room-filling sound. The Strada is jam-packed with unique technology.
The new preamplifier looks amazing.
(Credit: Einstein Audio Components)We're not talking about Albert Einstein, the legendary theoretical physicist; we're talking about Einstein Audio Components, a Germany-based high-end audio manufacturer.
Its advanced audio equipment designs use vacuum tubes. Its latest stereo preamplifier, The Tube MKII, uses a total of (gulp) 19 tubes. That's a lot of tubes! Most tube preamps only use four, five, or six tubes. However, here's the cool part about the new Einstein preamp: only 10 of the 19 tubes operate at any given time. Eight are used all the time, and two are selected for whichever audio source happens to be playing.
The rear panel of The Tube MKII.
(Credit: Einstein Audio Components)This feature makes The Tube MKII the only preamp in the world that lets users tailor the sound from each audio source by selecting the specific "flavor" of tube dedicated to each source. Some owners might opt for "warm" sounding tubes for the CD input, and superdetailed tubes for the phono input. Tweaky? You bet, but I guarantee a lot of wealthy tube-obsessed audiophiles will love that feature.
The 33-pound preamp has two large controls on its front panel: one for source selection and one for volume. On its rear, it has three pairs of XLR inputs, two pairs of RCA inputs, and two tape outputs.
Its build quality is superlative and is reflected in The Tube MKII's $17,800 MSRP. The preamp will make its U.S. market debut at the 2010 CES next month.
Renowned piano manufacturer Steinway & Sons has partnered with Danish high-end audio manufacturer Lyngdorf to create a new company, Steinway Lyngdorf.
The Model D stereo system
(Credit: Steinway Lyngdorf)I've met with Peter Lyngdorf many times and enthusiastically reviewed some of his products (back when his company was called TacT Audio). Lyngdorf founded, co-founded, or bought a number of high-end audio companies, including Dali Loudspeakers, NAD Electronics, Gryphon Audio, and Snell Acoustics.
Lyngdorf is also the founder and owner of Hi-Fi Klubben, Europe's largest chain of hi-fi shops specializing in high-end audio. Founded in 1980, Hi-Fi Klubben has 70 shops and is still expanding.
The Steinway connection dates back to 2005, and Steinway Lyngdorf is the first time the piano maker put its name on something other than a music instrument. Steinway Lyngdorf offers music and home theater systems.
... Read more
(Credit:
Marantz)
Marantz currently offers a full line of stereo and home theater components, but in the 1950s, the company was one of America's most prestigious hi-fi brands. Early Marantz products were designed and built by Saul B. Marantz in his home in Kew Gardens, New York. Those hand-built components now fetch huge dollars on the used market.
So naturally, I was interested in what Home Entertainment magazine's Richard Ames had to say about the Marantz UD9004 "universal" player. The $6,000 machine spins Blu-ray, SACD, DVD-Audio, and CDs.
The UD9004's rear panel.
(Credit: Marantz)It certainly looks the part: the Marantz UD9004's copper-plated chassis, thick aluminum/resin front panel, and aluminum-and-zinc die-cast parts are many steps above the build quality of mainstream Blu-ray players. The UD9004 tips the scales at a hefty 42.3 pounds, more than many receivers.
The rear panel hosts two HDMI outputs, so you can send the audio to the receiver without having to route them to the TV. On the analog side, you get XLR balanced outputs for the main left/right, and eight channels of RCA outputs for surround.
Inside, there are 32-bit Analog Devices SHARC processors for the HD audio decoding and up to 192 kHz/32-bit digital-to-audio conversion on all channels.
The luxury feel of the disc drawer, and the way it silently slides in and out, doesn't happen with most Blu-ray players.
Ames found the sound to be "incredibly lifelike; you can hear the notes reverberate though the recording space, not just the initial notes."
Some may quibble about the "need" for a $6,000 Blu-ray player, but the same guilt trip could be laid on any number of luxury products. No one needs a $122,000 Porsche Panamera 4S to drive to work, or a $7,000 Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III digital SLR camera to take a picture. But some people who can afford the best buy it, and the Marantz UD9004 is for them.
If you listen to music over your iPod or computer, it's safe to say you're listening in stereo.
Cars are a different story; they can have speakers in all sorts of places, so I'll grant that music in the car may not be in stereo.
But the music itself at least started out as stereo; MP3s and CDs are strictly stereo, so unless you listen to a lot of 5.1 channel SACDs or DVD-Audio discs, stereo is where it's at.
For around the same money, which sounds better?
Most, but not all post-1980 films are available in 5.1. So if you have a 5.1-channel home theater, surround is where it's at. But there's a catch; most people, I'm guessing at least 75 percent, listen to movies with the speakers built into their TVs. Which are, after all, stereo speakers.
So again, stereo wins the popularity contest. And if you're watching movies on a portable device or computer, yup, you're listening to stereo.
The movie companies are certainly aware that once their film leaves theaters most folks will be listening to the stereo mix. They make sure it sounds great.
My personal home theater is a 2.0 (no subwoofer) system. I'm no fan of special-effects-driven films; I go for dramas and concert films. What can I say? Stereo fits my lifestyle/aesthetic perfectly.
I'm not claiming 5.1-, 6.1-, or 7.1-multichannel sound is "bad"; not at all. In fact, I think the quality of movie surround mixes has steadily improved over the years. I listen to them when I'm reviewing gear all the time, but I don't need to hear surround at home. For me film is about the quality of the story, acting, and cinematography. The sound? Sure, it's extremely important, but it's there to support the picture.
How about you? Do you listen to movies in stereo?
It's more than a little ironic; Linn Products, based in Glasgow, Scotland, burst onto the audiophile scene in the early 1970s with its LP-12 turntable. The LP-12 has never gone out of production and earlier this year it received a bunch of performance-enhancing upgrades.
When the CD was introduced in the early 1980s, Linn was a massive digital basher. The company spearheaded an anti-CD movement in the audiophile community. It wasn't just Linn; a sizable percentage of audiophiles worldwide didn't buy CD players through most of the 1980s.
A Linn DS hi-fi system
(Credit: Linn Products)Linn introduced CD players at the close of that decade, while it continued to make turntables, electronics, and speakers. Now, they're calling it quits.
Quoting from Linn's Web site, here's the straight scoop, "At Linn we have always been wholly committed to making systems that push the boundaries and deliver the highest possible audio performance. When we launched our first digital stream player, the flagship Klimax DS, we did so only once we had proven comprehensively that it outperformed the iconic Sondek CD12, our former reference digital source, in every way."
Linn's LP-12 turntable, introduced in 1972, is still in production.
(Credit: Linn Products)The press release continues, "This development saw Linn DS far exceed what was possible with traditional CD playing technology, both in terms of its audio performance and the convenience. Linn DS is now firmly established as the future of music and the only way to get the very best from your CD collection and enjoy downloads of the highest possible quality."
Linn may be out of the CD player business, but it has a full line of 24-bit/192 kHz sampling Digital Stream players.
More irony, Linn's record label will continue to release music on CD and SACD as well as LP and high-resolution downloads.
I've recently reviewed most of the contenders for the world's best headphones: the Audio Technica ATH-W5000, Denon AH-D7000, Sennheiser HD 800, Grado PS-1000, Ultrasone Edition 8, and the best headphones I've heard so far, the Stax electrostatic SR-007Mk2. I listened to the Stax with the Woo Audio WES headphone amplifier. If you want and can afford the best, go for the Stax-Woo combination.
The HE-5. real wood earcups, innovative technology, and awesome sound quality!
(Credit: Hifiman)But now I have yet another headphone to check out, and this one is a very different-sounding design. Oh, and it's less than half the price of the least expensive of those models!
It's called the Hifiman HE-5, and it uses planar-magnetic drivers to create sound. A planar magnetic driver is a large, flat Mylar diaphragm, coated with superthin aluminum, suspended between rows of slender bar magnets. The HE-5's diaphragm is therefore driven over its entire area, which dramatically reduces distortion; conventional dynamic headphone drivers are "driven" by a voice coil on the outer edge of the diaphragm, so the inner portion is more likely to distort.
The HE-5's driver is similar to the Stax electrostatic 'phones in that way, but the HE-5 doesn't use the bias charging scheme that all electrostatic headphones use, which also means the HE-5 can be used with standard headphone amplifiers. The Stax cannot.
The HE-5 is incredibly detailed sounding, but at the same time it's very smooth and laid back. Swapping between the HE-5 and the Sennheiser HD 800--considered by many to be the world's best dynamic headphone--the two headphones are opposites. The HD 800 is brighter, crisper, with more apparent treble detail; the HE-5 is softer, warmer, and more natural-sounding.
... Read moreWhen the CD was introduced in 1982, everyone thought the LP's days were numbered, but it's still here. Now it's starting to look like the LP might outlast the CD.
(Credit:
Steve Guttenberg)
Of course "record stores" are also on the endangered species list; here in NYC, Tower, Virgin, and Sam Goody are long-gone, but J & R Music World in lower Manhattan is the last remaining full-size outfit. Smaller shops are hanging in there, too.
You can still buy CDs and LPs online, and vinyl's selection is getting better and better. So if you're a music lover, what should you buy, CD or LP? First, it depends on whether you can get the music you want on vinyl.
Sound quality issues aren't black and white. CD wins in terms of noise-free listening, though clean records, played on a decent turntable can sound amazingly quiet. But even then, there will be occasional clicks and pops. That's a deal breaker for some, but if you've never heard records played on a decent turntable, you don't know how quiet records can be.
LPs can sound warmer, fuller, and more natural than CDs, and way better than low-bit MP3 and AAC variants. LP sound seems to engage listeners in a very different way than digital recordings do. It's not that digital sounds bad, but vinyl is more fun to listen to. Music on LP seems more immediate and realistic than digital. Oh, and it's worth noting that most people who use vinyl actually listen to music, while digital listeners rarely do. Digital makes do as background sound. That's just the way it is. If you can't see yourself ever really listening to music--without talking, reading, working on the computer, etc--sure, CDs and MP3s are perfectly fine.
... Read more
