High End Audio

The compact, Swiss-made Thales TTT turntable exudes a subtle, soothing beauty and refinement. The Simplicity tangential pivoted tonearm complements the 'table's "refined to the essentials" design and together they create a vinyl playback system that seems destined to produce great sound, though I really didn't get a chance to listen The battery powered 'table's 100 parts are all manufactured in Thales's own workshop and assembled by a team of experts including a trained watch-maker. The workings of the dual tube arm are best described in a full review. When Mr. first page: 1

I found Mr. Daniel Schuch exhibiting his girder-like tone arm on the floor of one of the big main halls. As a group of fascinated Japanese audiophiles looked on, Schuch demonstrated the workings of his pivoted tangential-tracking tonearm, which he modestly characterizes as "The perfect pick-up arm." The photo fails to clearly show the string that goes around the pivoted head shell and extends to and around the circular wheel at the back of the arm. first page: 1

Music Hall's new top of the line MMF 11.1 turntable incorporates some familiar design features. first page: 1

The Hartvig TT Signature turntable features a 30 pound platter of aluminum and acrylic and a hardened steel bearing shaft with an aluminum base, plus a precision honed bronze bushing with a ceramic ball and Teflon thrust pad. The motor is an electronically regulated brushless DC type.The armboard is of acrylic with an eccentric aluminum base. The outboard motor runs off of a handsomely packaged battery pack. As with the Da Vinci, the attraction here is more implementation than design innovation. Imported to America by AA Audio imports. first page: 1

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David Robinson has posted a review of the exaSound e20 DSD DAC ($2500) at Positive Feedback. His conclusions: “At USD $2500, the exaSound e20 DSD DAC is a stellar performer, a rocketship to the... Visit the Ultra High-End Audio and Home Theater Review for more...

While in the U.K. last week I took a run in the famous Kensington Gardens with the GoPro on my head. Watch it if you want or don't! I just figured I'd put it up here so you can hear me pant and struggle. first page: 1

Before I get to the picture above, I'll make a few closing remarks abut my time in Munich. I went to this show on Stereophile's invitation, and for the most part my time at the show was spent listening to the big rigs for sound that really turned me on. So I didn't spend as much time looking for headphone gear as I would otherwise have done. It was quite a refreshing break from my normal show routine, and I very much enjoyed writing my piece for Stereophile. Show Promo Image A couple of closing thoughts...and then something unexpected. Tyll Hertsens May 19 2013

Take the Audiophiliac challenge and see if you can get better sound with a DIY, manual setup.

The Da Vinci Audio AAS Gabriel MK2 Reference Turntable is a thing of beauty to be sure. It is obviously a mass-loaded design and the build quality appears extremely high with a commensurate price tag of around $50,000. However, this does not appear to be an innovative design. Rather its claimed high performance is based upon its precision build and there's nothing wrong with that! The tonearm is the Master Reference Tonearm Virtu. As with the turntable, the design does not appear to be innovative but rather appears to be an ultra-refined version of a standard gimbaled design. first page: 1