The immediate advantage of the Aurender was the startlingly pristine state of CD music that emerged on the first note, prompting the realization of the crudeness of sound from my Apple MacBook Pro and Oppo UDP-205, pre-Aurender days. Tonal definition and spatial projection of instruments by the Aurender approached the Esoteric K-01XD physical disk playback level, conceding in ultimate textural and tonal differentiation.

The Aurender would be a highly qualified transport for the $153,000 Audio Note UK Fifth Element/Fifth Force DAC system for the tone-philes who, after purchasing the DAC, could no longer afford Audio Note UK’s own matching, $100,000 CDT-Six CD transport. Music with resolutions up to 24 Bit 96KHz, the upper limit of the ANUK DAC system, was reproduced with such beauty of tone, especially with solo instruments and the human voice, and yet with such degree of care that there was simply no likeness of it that I know of. The operational stability and sound quality of the Aurender was first-class in serving the Audio Note UK super DAC.
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August 3, 2021

GOLD NOTE A6 EVO II & A3 EVO II > new evolution models

A6 EVO II: THE PERFECT SOUND IN A PERFECT SHAPE

We are pleased to officially present the new three-way floor-standing loudspeaker A6 EVO II: with a rear bass-reflex design featuring a 6″ internal sub-woofer, 2x 5,5″ mid-woofers, and a 1,1″ dome tweeter in silk, it’s stylish and extremely powerful, providing a naturally smooth sound.

From the cabinet to the drivers, this loudspeaker is entirely made in Italy by local suppliers and craftsmen to deliver the highest quality in terms of sound, aesthetics, and materials.

The new design of the front panel, the crossover, the unique characteristics of the drivers, the use of extra-rigid aluminum, and the overall rigidity of the structure have been developed to achieve the most natural and dynamic sound.
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July 27, 2021

ATC SCM 50 P Classics > Excitingly honest!

NATURALLY!
The ATC SCM50PSL play astonishingly unspectacular – as long as there is only porridge on the recording, the British only serve bland soft food. A spectacle for the sake of a spectacle is not what the SCM50PSL does, they claim to be too civilized, too neutral, too correct on the whole. But woe, the canned clay has tonal flavor – then it gets fiery.
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July 20, 2021

TECHNICS PREMIUM ALL-IN-ONE MUSIC SYSTEM SC-C70MK2 > Tone Audio review

Pushing the play button on the new Technics OTTAVA SC-C70MK2, with a MoFi copy of the Superfly soundtrack fills the room with a big, broad soundfield and a solid bass line. Technics has hit nothing but home runs since they re-entered the high-end audio world with a passion about five or six years ago. Their depth of manufacturing and engineering expertise is without peer, and the products they’ve built have heavily leveraged their heritage, while being fashion forward at the same time. It’s a great combination.
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July 13, 2021

MELCO N100 > 7review

Adding a music library server to your network to centralise all your digital audio files is becoming increasingly popular. Melco has been one of the leaders in this category with an extensive range of models spanning the N1A/2 4TB HDD (HFC 424) and N1ZH/2 6TB HDD (HFC 438) through to the flagship N1ZS/2A 2TB solid-state music server with 2TB SSD storage. With prices for these components increasing, Melco has released the N100 to provide a new first rung on its ladder.

July 6, 2021

MAGNEPAN MG1.7i Loudspeaker > TAS review

The balance of this review will now focus on the Magnepan MG1.7i speaker. However, a number of the themes outlined previously are very applicable to the 1.7i and touch directly on the speaker’s remarkably lifelike sound (and “lifelike” is perhaps the most noteworthy attribute that can be bestowed on an audio component).
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June 29, 2021

ATC SCM7 > Hi-Fi+ review

In 2013, ATC delivered the current, third generation SCM7 that you see before you, this was the first to feature the company’s own tweeter, developed in-house by Richard Newman, alongside a proprietary ATC mid/bass driver. It was also the first showing of the formed and laminated curved side cabinet that is now seen across the SCM range and developed to increase both stiffness and damping, not to mention reducing internal reflections.
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June 22, 2021

ELECTROCOMPANIET EC LIVING WIRELESS SYSTEM > Hi-Fi Pig review

The Electrocompaniet Tana SL-2 is designed for use in a smaller room, maybe as a second system in a bedroom or kitchen, or you can set them up around the house as a multi-room system. Although compact I found the Tana, particularly in its two speaker stereo configuration, worked well even in the large, high ceilinged living/listening room that we have downstairs.

I must admit to being someone who never used to enjoy hearing the words ‘wireless’ and ‘speaker’ used in close proximity. The market is full of cheap, almost disposable, options, however, the Electrocompaniet offering is in the class of the likes of the iFi Aurora, Devialet Phantoms and Naim Musos, being a high-quality build with ‘proper’ HiFi credentials.
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June 15, 2021

TECHNICS SL-G700 Network/SACD Player > Applause Award, Stereonet

Technics CD player, SACD player, network streamer and DAC is a really interesting product – but I can’t help but feel that we are witnessing something that fifteen years from now, will feel akin to one of those old hybrid VHS/DVD video recorders from the mid-nineteen nineties. In other words, it’s a super-clever do-everything design – but very much of its time.
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June 8, 2021

ESPRIT CABLES BETA INTERCONNECT > Hi-Fi+ Editor’s Choice 2020

French cable expert and electro-mechanics engineer Richard Cesari founded Esprit over 20 years ago. Esprit might not be the first name to roll off the tongue in terms of audio hookups, but perhaps it should be. Why? Because the Esprit Beta interconnect and loudspeaker cables, and the Alpha power cords all represent extraordinary value for money. They are basically high-end cables that forgot to get a bit too ‘spendy’. Everything about them, from the box they come in, to the braided shield, to the quality of the connectors, all says ‘money’, and the performance they elicit isn’t exactly cheap-sounding either.
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AURENDER N100SC caching music server and streamer > Dagogo review