Articles
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2019 Golden Ear Awards: Andre Jennings
|Graham Engineering Phantom III Tonearm $7000–$7900 Since the introduction of the original Phantom B-44, this “stable” uni-pivot tonearm has been an excellent performer with superb build-quality that speaks to its durability and longevity. Through a ...read more -
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AXPONA 2019: Digital Sources
|Nearly halfway through covering the analog side of AXPONA, I switched hats to covering digital sources. You may ask yourself, why is the person versed in our hobby about analog covering digital? Well that is ...read more -
AXPONA 2019: Analog Sources
|Following on the heels of last year’s success, AXPONA 2019 was even more upbeat and enjoyable for showgoers and exhibitors alike. The available space was expanded to accommodate more offerings and, as a result, the ...read more -
Graham Engineering Phantom III Tonearm
|Graham Engineering has been making tonearms since the mid-80s. Throughout that time, company founder and designer Bob Graham has been refining his designs for better performance. After starting with the original unipivots (the Excalibur and ...read more -
Zesto Audio Andros Téssera Phonostage
|The Greek word tessera refers to the number four. Zesto Audio uses that definition (tessera; τέσσερα) to name its latest phonostage. The word is fitting in function since the Andros Téssera ($12,000) phonostage supports four ...read more -
Ortofon MC Windfeld Ti Phono Cartridge
|The Ortofon MC Windfeld Ti is the newest version of the original MC Windfeld cartridge. Ten years ago, Ortofon’s chief engineer, Leif Johannsen, created the original MC Windfeld as a tribute to Ortofon’s former longtime ...read more -
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2018 AXPONA Show Report: Analog Sources
|AXPONA 2018 starts out with a new location and a new attitude. The new location is the Renaissance Schaumburg Hotel and Convention Center in Schaumburg, Illinois, which is a 15–20 minute ride from O'Hare International ...read more -
Van den Hul Crimson XGW Stradivarius and Colibri XGW Signature Stradivarius
|At AXPONA 2016 in Chicago, I met the man (A.J. van den Hul) himself. In addition to introducing two new cartridges at that show, the Crimson and the Colibri Stradivarius (both precursors to the cartridges ...read more -
Morrow Audio 5 Series & Cardas Audio Iridium Interconnects and Speaker Cables
|The old Chinese philosophy of yin and yang may not apply completely to this pairing of Cardas Audio Iridium and Morrow Audio 5 series of interconnects and speaker cables, but there are some correlations. I’m ...read more -
AXPONA 2017: Analog Sources and Electronics under $15k
|This was the fourth (and final) year for AXPONA being held at The Westin Hotel in Rosemont, IL, right next to O’Hare airport. While this is the last exhibit at this location, it’s not the ...read more -
Accuphase C-3850 Preamplifier and P-7300 Power Amplifier
|The Accuphase brand was originally marketed under the company name of Kensonic Laboratory, Inc. in 1972. To celebrate its tenth anniversary, the company changed its name to Accuphase Laboratory, Inc. The name Accuphase was chosen ...read more -
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Excel Sound Corporation Hana E and S Series Moving-Coil Cartridges
|The four Hana cartridges reviewed here (EL, EH, SL, SH) are designed and manufactured by Excel Sound Corporation of Japan. According to its website, this 45-year-old company has more than 50 years of cartridge-making experience, ...read more -
Golden Ear Awards 2016: Andre Jennings
|Phoenix Engineering RoadRunner Tachometer and Eagle PSU $235/$525 The RoadRunner digital tachometer can be used on any ’table to precisely measure the speed in real-time for each rotation of the platter during normal operation. The ...read more -
Phoenix Engineering Eagle PSU and RoadRunner Tachometer
|Bill Carlin of Phoenix Engineering, LLC, has created two very useful accessories for turntables. The first is the RoadRunner digital tachometer ($235) which can be used on any ’table to precisely measure the speed in ...read more -
Pear Audio Blue Kid Thomas Turntable with Cornet 2 Tonearm and External Power Supply
|While the Pear Audio Blue Kid Thomas turntable ($5995) has a unique look, there are some things about its appearance that may seem very familiar. There is good reason for this because the Kid Thomas ...read more