The direct-drive motor sealed it. That, and the copper-topped platter. And the high-gloss wood veneer. And the mid-century modern look. And the absence of a felt mat, which I cannot stand. So yes: in late 2023, I bought a €12,000 turntable largely on aesthetic grounds...

While the upgrades that Unison Research made to its Triode 25 integrated amp were sufficient to warrant a ‘Black Edition’ suffix, the Italian brand’s decision to label its new pre/power amplifiers as merely ‘v2’ is to underestimate the uptick in performance. The Pre...

Preconceptions are never stronger than when reviewing Italian loudspeakers. There’s an expectation about how they will look, the breed nearly always taking its cues from expensive, hand-crafted Italian furniture, heavy on the wood and leather. How they will sound is...

Excerpted from 《Audio Art》 After an upgrade, there are times when I feel a certain indescribable longing. Of course, the new cable brings a certain frequency band into sharper focus, brings out a certain sense of space, and moves everything forward—yet one evening,...

Review By: HIFI.DE We’re not allowed to reveal who exactly developed the Thorens MC 1600. Instead, we’ll clarify how this phono preamplifier sounds – and what the deal is with its 43 hidden switches. "Whether it's an ambitious moving-iron, an affordable MM, or an...

From the moment the Union Jack covering was slipped off the new SME Model 35 turntable and Series Vi tonearm unveiled at the press launch last April in London, England, I knew that this was going to be a very special product to review! SME has been building what I...

Truly new concepts are extremely rare in audio. Generally, new ideas aren’t welcome, unless they manage to develop some sort of inorganic viral buzz. And wildly different topologies are looked on with active suspicion. I wish this weren’t the case, but audiophiles...

The Siltech Classic Legend Series continues to impress listeners around the world, with the latest feedback coming from longtime audiophile and reviewer Dr. Deegan following his experience with the Classic Legend 680 Power Cable. Having already integrated Siltech...

Excerpted from 《u-audio》 Speaking of Thorens, the most famous turntable is undoubtedly the TD 124, launched in 1957. Designed back then for professional broadcast studio needs, German engineering created a precise and durable turntable. To that end, Thorens also...

⌈ SPENDOR is an English company specializing in loudspeaker production, set up in 1968 by SPENCER HUGHES. Its first product designed with the thought of independent operation in mind was the BC1 model (1969), ordered by the British Broadcasting Company (BBC). We are...

“For its 50th anniversary, HMS is treating itself to a new edition of the Gran Finale series and returns to the big stage fully revamped. I had the chance to try out the cable family in my listening room.” As odd as it sounds, it’s true: you need a bit of patience....

The new prophecy5 speaker system from PMC is an affordable high-end floor-standing monitor system designed for home use. Enclosed in an attractive wood grain finish, the prophecy5 features advanced drivers, crossovers, and a unique transmission line system to provide...

What struck me most about this review article on the new Thorens TD 404 DD direct-drive turntable—written by the domestic audio magazine AV Fashion—is the realisation that turntables need not remain confined to a "nostalgic" label. They can equally embrace modern...

Loudspeaker design is an encouragingly stable area of audio but, even judged by the standards of the category, PMC has delivered two-way standmounts with the consistency of the Swiss rail network. The prophecy1 can trace its lineage all the way back to the Nineties as...

This Dutch cable brand has been serving audiophile hi-fi systems for many decades. We test its modern ‘Classic’. Edwin Rynveld, Siltech’s CEO, has been driving the innovation behind this 43-year-old brand since 1992. His willingness to break with convention has...