They told us ….. The 3010S2-D is the fourth incarnation of Exposure’s top integrated amp. For high-end audio at mid-range prices, the Exposure 3010S2 series has long been considered as one of the best options on the market. The British brand, renowned for creating hi-fi components with involving musical reality, places its focus firmly on […]
Month: February 2020
Found 106 results
I lived in Manchester in the mid 1990s and looked in the ad paper Loot and saw a Linn Sondek with Lingo and ekos for £50 , I immediately phoned at 9.30am thinking I’d be first in but a caller had already seen it and was on his way to buy, I was gutted […]
There are a few threads running at the moment that have rekindled a quandary that has long frustrated and bemused me .Why are one man band maverick designer manufacturers often ridiculed by the audio press and vocal public(us on forums) these people often move completely away from accepted norms in audio and make unique products […]
Paul McGowan writes: It’s no surprise that vinyl and digital are different. Different mastering techniques, playback equipment, recording chain (often), bandwidth, dynamics. So it should be no surprise that a system optimized for one, doesn’t sound as good playing back the other. Music Room One, for example, has been optimized for digital audio reproduction. Michael […]
Paul McGowan writes: I mentioned that the retailer is the perfect sorting house – choosing and selling only those products that perfectly reflect the dealer’s brand promise and makes it easy for customers, especially new customers, to make easy choices getting involved with high-end audio. Several of you asked “what about the two magazines, TAS […]
Paul McGowan writes: If you had a chance to read my recent post you’ll remember we’re in the process of setting up Music Room number Two, where we have a pair of floor standing 2-way Thiel loudspeakers. That room is considerably smaller than Music Room One, measuring 12 x 15 feet, compared to Music Room […]
42 people express their opinions HERE
While the high-end is still enjoying a great deal of demand and support, high-end dealers are not. The state of high-end audio retailing isn’t good; we lose a few each year and they are not being replaced. Some manufacturers are abandoning the high-end retail channel altogether: B and W is a good example. While not […]
Paul McGowan: Just because you observe something doesn’t mean you understand how to measure and repeat it. We get confused a lot between the observations we make, the measurements we use to try and quantify those observations and the conclusions we draw from it all. For example, when a listener observes a change in sound […]
Paul McGowan writes: Power supplies play a big role in how a product sounds: something we’ve been advocates of for years with our bigger power transformers, exotic regulators and Power Plant AC regenerators that make everything sound better. Most designers now agree that the power supply in a design is at least as important as […]
Do amplifier internal parts (capacitors etc) deteriorate over time if they aren’t being used, for example if an amplifier is in storage? Thanks. Read 13 opinions HERE
Paul McGowan writes: For the past few days, I’ve been in Japan visiting dealers, riding the Bullet Train (200 mph), and enjoying this wonderful culture and its incredible people. Yesterday I was in the country’s second largest city, Osaka. The day before, the far north. What a treat. I will definitely put together a short […]
Paul McGowan writes: Modern analog designs leverage common circuit ideas. Few are original. Complimentary outputs, vbe multipliers, diff pairs, current sources, current mirrors, etc., were all original designs that became commonplace. One of the most talented, creative, and radical designers of all time is Bob Widlar. Widlar invented the basic building blocks of linear ICs. […]
They say ….. Audiophiles, are you sitting comfortably? Moreover, is your chair playing an active role in the quality of your listening experience? If not, then you may need one of these… You’ve no doubt spent many hours evaluating every element of your hi-fi system and its placement in your listening room. But what about […]
Paul McGowan writes: In my experience getting the very low frequencies to integrate and propagate through the room is the biggest challenge we have placing a subwoofer in the room. That’s why in yesterday’s post I suggested we start low: both in frequency and level. If you’re using one of the low frequency rich discs […]
I’ve owned a few but there are still many integrated amps/brands I would like to hear, for example Gryphon, Plinius, MBL, Pass Labs to name a few. I’m interested to hear from owners what attributes drew then towards specific amps. I’m more interested in SS than typical valve options (that’s not to say that […]
Maybe Frito Bandito? I promised to get into specifics about the idea I put forth of manufacturers adopting the Wal Mart approach of not owning inventory as way to get local “audio experts” to become high-end retailers. Reader Steve Barry (himself once a high-end retailer) pointed out a flaw in that model and suggested something […]
Paul McGowan writes: In the late 1970′s I began experimenting with planar loudspeakers: first with Magnepans and later with electrostatic loudspeakers – specifically the Acoustat 2+2 which happened to be tall enough to qualify as a line source. If you’ve never heard an electrostatic loudspeaker then you’ve missed out on an amazing experience – albeit […]
Paul McGowan writes: I was set to move onward in our explanation of the output analog stage of a DAC or preamp but one of my readers asked me to explain output impedance which I mentioned a few days ago. This is a subject that folks should understand at least at some level because so […]
Looking for vintage preamp with very open, quiet phono stage…any sleepers around? Interesting answers HERE
Paul McGowan: Sidewalls are easy to ignore. In fact, I’ll bet you haven’t a clear memory of what they even look like or their distance from the center seat. Most of us know our front and rear walls. We stare at or pass through them each time we enter or leave the room. Yet, in […]
Apologies if this has been covered elsewhere, but I did a search on where to start and drew a blank Due to unforeseen circumstances, ill health and a relationship breakdown, I find myself unable to work for 6 months and the need to move from a house to a flat. This means I need to […]