Talk about the mother of all dream assignments. Ten years ago, as an audiophile civilian, I had to literally beg the local hi-fi dealer for a brief, in-home audition of the now classic Meridian 508.24 ...

Cary Audio made a name for itself with vacuum-tube power amplifiers, primarily the single-ended triode variety. Indeed, it was a passion for SET amplifiers that inspired Dennis Had to found Cary Audio Design in 1989. ...

Music Hall in Great Neck, New York, has long been a source of musical, mostly twochannel audio equipment. The folks there are uncannily good at finding high-performance gear that won’t break the budget. I’m thinking ...

I was tickled pink by Cayin Audio’s A-88T all-tube integrated amplifier from the moment I began to unpack it. The inclusion of white gloves signaled an attention to detail in the presentation that puts to ...

I’ve recently been the beneficiary of an embarrassment of high-end riches. This happy bit of serendipity has allowed me to evaluate loudspeakers from ATC and DALI, and electronics from Plinius (most notably, the CD-101 CD ...

Audio critics seem to forget that the people buying the stuff they write about are doing so for a pretty simple reason: to get musical pleasure. And while it is their job to convey how ...

Back in the late 90s I reviewed the Simaudio Celeste PW- 5000 integrated amplifier. It was my first experience with a component from Simaudio, the Canadian firm established in 1980. It was a terrific little ...

I usually cover all digital products at shows, but this year I split the task with Alan Taffel. I took the disc players, transports, and DACs, and Alan tackled “Next-Gen Audio” (hard-disk-drive storage, Web-based content ...

If Rodney Dangerfield had been an audiophile, he might have joked that tuners “just don’t get no respect.” But they should. Tuners are tasked with responsibilities greater than typical source components. They are a sophisticated ...

Back in the late 90s I reviewed the Simaudio Celeste PW- 5000 integrated amplifier. It was my first experience with a component from Simaudio, the Canadian firm established in 1980. It was a terrific little ...

Epos M16 It’s hard to not be excited by the Epos M16. For fifteen-hundredninety- five bucks you get an English-designed, Chinese-built speaker possessing truly special performance qualities. The M16 can whisper yet still be clearly ...

As I scanned the market for music servers to review for this special feature, the Qsonix Q100 stood out from the crowd. When it comes to music servers, the user interface is paramount, and Qsonix ...

The best technology-based products hide enormous complexity and sophistication behind a simple façade. The product does exactly what the user wants it to do— and nothing more—with the magic that makes this happen remaining transparent. ...

The new Cambridge Audio 840C CD player left me shaking my head in wonderment at how Cambridge can sell this much CD player for $1499. The 840C is packed with advanced features, sophisticated technologies, and ...

Never underestimate the power of a first impression. With a killer instinct for trends, the A/V industry knows that it's the buttons, lighted dials, and marquee-style displays that net more impulsive creditcard swipes than any ...