Sometimes products come along that we just have to surrender to. The small wireless streamers from WiiM are among those products. They give you streaming with a sound quality that far surpasses what we are used to in the budget class. Now they have taken the successful streaming platform one step further and combined it …
From a cynical point of view, one could argue that perhaps it was time for a successor. After all, the Hegel H190 is their oldest amplifier, and seven years after its debut, perhaps it’s time for a sequel? It’s definitely coming, just not any time soon, but this one will. The Hegel H190V is not …
With the CD 50n, Marantz is well on its way to renewal. It is the third CD player – and the seventh product – with the characteristic design and familiar Marantz qualities. The player is positioned between the excellent Marantz SACD 30n with SACD CD and network and the simpler CD 60. Which is a …
The sound of the piano is crystal clear. As if carved out with a scalpel. At the same time, the notes float weightlessly into space, creating a warm, almost organic atmosphere. Jan Gunnar Hoff’s otherworldly piano playing rarely sounds as good on vinyl as it does right now. Interestingly, it’s not because I’ve set up …
New CD players are not commonplace, but surprisingly, there is a demand for CDs that makes it necessary to offer players. Add to that the millions of CDs sold since 1982, and it starts to make sense to offer your customers a CD player or two. Hegel’s decision to do so doesn’t seem so strange …
At one point in Autumn Leaves, Jack DeJohnette hits the snare drum as a warning. Then one more time. You sense what’s coming. A few bars later, an interplay starts with Keith Jarrett behind the piano, and the two of them take off at a breakneck pace before everything calms down and the drumsticks gently …
The Hegel H590 was perhaps the best integrated I’d heard when I tested it back in 2018. But things move fast, especially in electronics and digital processing, so a lot has happened in the last five years. Let’s not forget that Hegel recently launched its two-part amplifier set P30A and H30A, which beats its predecessors …
Bluesound Node is a small family of streaming receivers. We tested the fourth edition two years ago. But now the fifth incarnation has arrived, and it’s not called Node 5, but Node X. This is to mark the 10th anniversary of Bluesound. The Bluesound Node X has exactly the same dimensions and connections as its …
Many newbies get a surprise the first time they buy a turntable. When they plug it into their amplifier, they realise there’s something strange about the sound. What many don’t realise is that all turntables need to be connected to a special input, often called phono stage, RIAA stage or simply turntable input. Many amplifiers …
With the DNP-2000NE, Denon has a solution for anyone who wants better sound with streaming than you get from a Bluesound Node or a Wiim Pro. The Denon streamer also features a DA converter, HDMI input, headphone output and volume control. This means it can also be used as a pre-amplifier. Which makes it just …
It almost makes one feel a bit stupid. When I’ve tested an amplifier with both power and resolution, I often use the words: “Can drive any speaker“. And I often add: “with conviction“. But what are these words really worth? There’s no doubt that you can have a lot of fun with a 120-150 watt …
Anyone who streams music from their phone knows just how quick it is to get some tunes playing. Most folks stick with Bluetooth because it’s so simple, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Playing music over the Wi-Fi network can be just as easy, but in that case you’ll need a better solution for streaming. …
Fortunately, streaming your favourite music is not just reserved for Bluetooth. Which is convenient enough when you’re on the move, but at home you want better sound than you get from wireless earbuds. Wireless streaming over the Wi-Fi network provides by far the best sound quality, and now more products are emerging with inbuilt streaming …
CD sales are on the rise, according to figures from the Recording Industry Association of America – RIAA . The figures are nowhere near the peak years of 1995 to 2005, and interestingly, vinyl sales are higher. But the point is that interest in CDs is actually growing. In addition, millions of households around the …
As someone with all of Beethoven’s symphonies and piano concertos on my shelf, I took the news of an Ortofon pickup bearing the composer’s name with a shrug. According to the press release that came out in 2020, they had taken a perfectly good 2M Black and added an exclusive pin. Big deal. Besides, it …