Indholdsfortegnelse for September - October 2019 i Australian HiFi

Dynaudio’s Sub 6 Active DSP subwoofer is clever… very, very clever. It’s so clever that when it knows what main speakers you’re using it will automatically adjust its output level and crossover frequency and frequency response so that you get perfect, seamless sound from the depths of the subwoofer’s bass extremities to the extreme highs of your main speakers. There is a catch though… a limit to its cleverness. Well, two catches really, a perfect Catch 22. It relies on you telling it which main speakers you are using, and on you being clever enough to make sure those main speakers are made by Dynaudio. But, given the proven, documented high quality of Dynaudio’s loudspeakers, and the number of main speakers in the company’s range, I can’t see either catch…

Due to the growing market for records back in 2017, the ageing pressing plants around the world became increasingly unable to keep up with the mounting numbers of orders. Now, with demand for vinyl at a 25-year high and news that vinyl is on track to becoming a billion-dollar industry, we are seeing a new breed of pressing plants springing up, which is certainly great news for vinyl devotees. However, this also brings new challenges—not only to keep up with the orders flooding in but, also, to maintain the quality of the LPs. Many of us will remember the low point for vinyl LPs in the late seventies and early eighties. In an effort to cut costs, pressing plants started using increased amounts of recycled vinyl, which resulted in an…

• Over 30 kilowatts of amplification (that’s over 30,000 watts of power!) • A high resolution music distribution system managing 25 zones of audio featuring 76 loudspeakers and 11 subwoofers from nine manufacturers • A dedicated Dolby Atmos 7.2.4 home cinema • 12 zones of 4K video over IP • A professional night-club system • Integrated security system with CCTV and access control • Integrated HVAC, lighting, blinds, pool and spa control • Managed by Savant Automation Systems…

We now have a select range of the new PrimaLuna products on display – and we still have some remnants of the previous series left at clearance prices, check the specials section of our website! This brand of valve-based electronics has become synonymous with performance and quality. It is well priced, well built and great sounding. As a result it’s no wonder they have garnered the following that they have around the world. These products are due in late September. EVO100 Integrated Amp The EVO100 series is physically the smallest range in the Prima Luna stable – measuring 280mm wide. The EVO100 Integrated is rated at 40 watts/channel utilising EL34 valves. Unlike the earlier Prima Luna range the EV100 integrated includes a headphone socket. $3,395 EVO200 Pre Amp The EVO200…

It’s been a long time coming but the eagerly awaited Krell K-300i integrated amplifier has made a solid landing in Australia. While initially due last year, Krell developed an upgrade path to their iBias circuitry during its construction. This new circuit has since been rolled out to all Krell power amplifiers under the ‘XD’ banner. We have upgraded our existing floor stock to the XD design, and it works! The K-300i has been on the American market (admittedly in small numbers) for some months now, and the comments filtering back have been glowing. Even if the K-300i was only half as good as everyone says it is, it would have been a winner, and thankfully it has exceeded our expectations – the listening we have done to date has been…

As TVs became slimmer the sound quality suffered so much that it has become necessary to add a soundbar, or an alternative style of speaker, to hear what was going on (the ‘what did he say’ syndrome). It is universally accepted that a soundbar will never have the performance characteristics of a well-designed Home Theatre system, but they do have their advantages, the main ones being that they are simple to install and relatively inexpensive. Sit it under the TV, plug it in and the job’s done. Unfortunately this category is now so price-competitive that the quality of many soundbars has deteriorated to such an extent that they are little better than the TVs to which they are attached. Sennheiser is not a company that you associate with speaker manufacturing,…

While the two Mu-so wireless streaming speakers were somewhat of a departure from Naim’s usual product offering, they quickly established themselves as being among the best on the market. Naim have now released the Mk.2 versions of both models. We already have the Naim Mu-so Gen2 on display, and we should have the Mu-so Qb2 within days. Far too often we find Mk.2 products to be little more than a facial upgrade – not so with the Naim Mu-so Gen2 (pictured above). In fact, it is almost the exact opposite. Put the original Mu-so and the Gen2 side-by-side and you will notice very little physical difference, yet the Mu-so Gen2 is almost a complete revamp – new drivers, new digital processing, with updated connectivity and also revamped cabinet construction. From…

Ask any audiophile who the most influential person in this industry is and there is a good chance the answer would be Ken Ishiwata. Ken has been the face of Marantz for more than 40 years, and we have become accustomed to seeing products bearing his initials (KI Series) or signature. Over the years Ken has taken many a model under his wing, tweaked it, and released it as a special release, generally to great acclaim. Ken has now announced his retirement from Marantz, and he will be sorely missed. Under his watchful eye Marantz have continued to release high quality, reliable and well-priced products. We wish Ken the very best in his retirement.…

The AudioQuest family of DragonFly portable DACs has a new member – the Dragonfly Cobalt. Even the most affordable of the Dragonfly family – the DragonFly Black – has been praised by Darko.Audio as “the quintessential everyman hi-fi product”, bringing a low-cost high-performance portable DAC to a whole new market. The Black is designed for use with portable devices such as phones where power consumption is a concern. The higher spec’d DragonFly Red incorporates a more advanced headphone amp and an improved volume control – and uses more power, making it more suitable for devices such as lap-tops. As good as the Red and the Black are, AudioQuest has recognised a need for yet a higher quality unit – enter the Dragonfly Cobalt. The Cobalt boasts a more advanced DAC…

ROGERS LS3/5A RETURNS One of Britain’s oldest loudspeaker brands, Rogers, is now again available in Australia. The new distributor is Melbourne-based Audio Magic. ‘Rogers has been internationally synonymous with quality audio equipment since 1947,’ said Aleksandar Maksimovic of Audio Magic. ‘Rogers’ founder, Jim Rogers, through his inspiration and inventive ideas, produced a sequence of consistently improved and refined loudspeakers which are now available again in updated form, such as the celebrated Rogers LS3/5A, which is now available for sale in Australia for $4,950 per pair.’ Rogers International UK Ltd says that more than 50,000 pairs of the original Rogers LS3/5a Classic 15 Ohm design had been previously manufactured. ‘Rogers is now once again manufacturing this landmark speaker in the UK exactly in accordance with the original BBC specifications,’ said Andy…

The exotically named Ella is the top model in the Blue range of headphones—a range that is rather less well-known than Blue’s range of microphones, which includes the famous Yeti model—and features 50mm square magnetic planar drivers. Blue’s Ella design is unusual in a number of ways. First, they have two operating modes: active and passive. Second, despite being battery-powered and having a 250mW amplifier built in, they are not wireless: they plug into ordinary headphone outputs. Third, despite the in-built amp, there is no volume control. Operating time in active mode is claimed as 12 hours, with re-charging via a Micro-B USB socket. The quandry with these headphones is which mode to use: Passive or Active? A three-position switch (Off, On and On+) turns the headphones on and off,…

I have a mate who I’ll call Marty. He doesn’t want me to reveal his real name not because he craves anonymity, but because his real name is, get this, Fosset. Being named Fosset is a continual embarrassment to him, so his mates call him Marty while people who don’t like him—and the entire public service—call him Fosset. It was something about a rich grandfather. Where was I? Anyway he sent me an enraged email a while ago after a test I did on a JBL Bluetooth speaker. It was IPX7 certified, which meant it could be immersed in water to a depth of one metre for 30 minutes without damage. So as part of the test, and because it would be fun, I immersed the JBL in the laundry…

THE FIRST was awarded ‘Best Integrated Home – Level III’ at the CEDIA awards night held in Melbourne late August. THE SECOND, for the home featured here, was awarded the Gold award for the ‘Best Whole-House/Smart Home Project over $150k’ by CE Pro in the USA at an awards ceremony held in Denver on September 12th. THE THIRD rreceived the Silver award for ‘Best Home Theatre Over $100k’ also by CE Pro at the same awards ceremony.’ (This project is also being readied for use as a training module by Meridian Audio in the UK).…

Marantz M-CR612 and NAD M10 In recent times there has been a trend towards high-quality all-in-one amplifier+CD+streamer+tuner (or variations on this) units. This type of product was once the domain of lesser quality systems, i.e. if you couldn’t afford or didn’t have the space for a Hi-Fi system, or it simply wasn’t that important, you invariably ended up with a ‘midi’ system rather than the multiple boxes of electronics which defined a Hi-Fi system. But now the idea of ‘less-is-better’ is becoming more popular, with an increasing number of manufacturers of quality releasing all-in-one electronic packages, as seen with the recent success of the Naim Uniti series and Linn’s Selekt range (see p24). Enter the Marantz M-CR612 This Marantz M-CR612 is the latest in a line of ‘Network CD receivers’…

We have recently put our first pair of Meridians DSP5200SE digital/active floor-standing speakers on the floor. These are an impressive speaker – in every sense of the word. The build quality is impeccable, and they would visually suit almost any environment (the fact that you can choose from 270 colour options helps). Each speaker houses two 160mm bass drivers, one 1” beryllium dome tweeter, three 75-watt amplifiers and three high-performance DACs. They are Roon-enabled with MQA decoding. Meridian also manufacture a smaller bookshelf active speaker – the DSP3200 (pictured right), which is also now on display. These are a two-way system utilising two 75-watt amplifiers and two DACs in each speaker. Of course, it all comes down to performance, and Meridian active speakers do not disappoint. There is a lot…

The Chord Mojo portable DAC/Headphone amplifier must be the most awarded product in audio history. For example, it has received over 100 (yes one hundred) 5-Star reviews. Most companies are chuffed to receive one. Part of the appeal of the Mojo is its price – this is very impressive kit for $799. Until the end of this year Chord have decided to raise the bar still further and have reduced the price of the Mojo to $599. This is a phenomenal offer! At Len Wallis Audio we have decided to make this offer even more attractive: 1) Add the Poly portable music streamer, which sells for $999, and we will bundle the two for $1,398, a further saving of $200. 2) Add the Poly and a pair of Meze 99…

We have been extolling the virtues of the Australian-designed and manufactured Serhan+Swift Brigadier Mu2 bookshelf speaker for some time now. Several months ago designer Brad Serhan and his team redesigned the cross-over and toyed with the idea of turning this into a Special Edition version of the Mu2. Eventually the decision was made to simply incorporate the new design into the existing speaker as a running upgrade. As many of you know, we believe that the original Mu2 was an outstanding loudspeaker. It is now even better!! Price $6,500.…

As many of you know, we have been singing the praises of Linn turntables for a long time – in fact a good number of you own one. Since day one, Linn have always preached that the most important component in any good audio system is the source, and some time ago they decided that they would apply the same philosophy to digital sources that they have to analogue. The result is their current line-up of DSM music streamers. Majik DSM: This is a neat, well-priced streamer plus pre and power amp in one compact box. The amplifier is rated at 90 watts/channel; it has 15 inputs including phono and HDMI, and supports virtually any digital format up to 24-bit 192kHz. Simply add a pair of speakers of your choice.…

The Devialet Phantom wireless speaker is a product like no other – compact, loud, simple to use and with a totally unique style. Devialet recently followed up the Phantom (now called the Phantom Premier) with a smaller sibling, the Phantom Reactor range. The Reactor may be a smaller version of the Premier range, but it is still very impressive. There are two versions: Reactor 600 – rated at 600 watts and capable of 95dB SPL. $1,990 Reactor 900 – rated at 900 watts and capable of 98dB SPL. $2,590 Connection is wireless via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, or wired via optical or analogue. Unlike the Premier Series you can control the Reactor using touch buttons on the device itself as well as from the usual app or the optional remote. And…

Australian Hi-Fi Magazine is proud to be a member of the world-wide Expert Imaging and Sound Association—EISA—which each year gathers together expert reviewers from 62 technology magazines and websites specialising in hi-fi, home theatre, in-car electronics, mobile electronics, photo and video from 29 countries around the world to judge the best products of the year in each class, and reward the manufacturer with a coveted EISA Award. As a member of EISA’s Hi-Fi Expert Group, Australian Hi-Fi Magazine voted on the awards given in the various audio categories, which was an exhaustive process that involved nominations, short-lists, more short-lists and then attending listening sessions in Europe, before an exhaustive final voting session. Unlike in some of the other EISA Award categories (which are listed on page 23), all of the…

Sometimes I know the price of equipment I am reviewing and sometimes I don’t. I sometimes check it before I start, so I can judge the product in its context, but occasionally, just for the fun of guessing, I do much of my listening in the dark as to pricing. I had used Pioneer’s SE-MS9BN wireless noise-cancelling headphones for several days before I got around to checking the price, and was surprised to find they were only $279.95, significantly below the sweet-spot for wireless noise-cancellers, which has settled around $399–$499 (and, of course, upwards). THE EQUIPMENT So a potential bargain then. But where has Pioneer saved the money? It does not seem to have been on construction, as these are substantial and well-built headphones, using aluminium for the housings, a…

These days, just because you’re travelling does not mean you have to settle for second-rate sound quality. You can listen to high-quality music from your notebook computer, iPhone or Android phone without making do with mere Bluetooth connectivity, even if your device doesn’t have a headphone output. All those devices support an external DAC. And that’s where the AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt comes in. It is a super-compact DAC and headphone amplifier you can take with you when you’re travelling. THE EQUIPMENT The Cobalt is the latest and most premium version AudioQuest’s DragonFly series of DACs. It looks somewhat like a USB memory stick, around the same length and volume as a typical mid-sized one. But it looks much classier than that, with its deep, glossy cobalt blue finish and backlit…

How many of you have recently had the opportunity (or necessity) to shop for a new lounge suite? I lately did just this, and the one thing that struck me was the amount of furniture that is driven by design and not by what its main purpose should be, in this case comfort. My wife and I found that a surprising number of the suites we sat in looked fabulous, but were about as comfortable as sitting on a sack of coal. The same can be said of our industry. On so many occasions we sacrifice quality for design, convenience or quantity. For example we find an increasing number of components coming onto the market where local terrestrial radio broadcast sources have been removed. Why offer FM when you have…

particularly given that the two CE Pro awards are international and judged against the best the world has to offer. It is testament to the dedication and capability of everyone involved. Each project we undertake has its own set of challenges (they are all unique) and require input from designers, draftsmen, installers, project management, programmers and the support staff in the office. I would like to thank, acknowledge and congratulate our team for their work on these stunning projects.…

Panasonic GX1000 & GX850 The new ‘GZ1000’ Panasonic TVs have now arrived, and they are every bit as good as we hoped. It is easy to see why Panasonic is the brand of choice for most Hollywood colourists; while the colours may not ‘jump out at you’ in the showroom, closer scrutiny shows that they are very natural looking – as they should be. The good news is that the new range was released at the same pricing as the previous series. We are accustomed to seeing new models hit the market at higher prices, which are then eroded. The other screen from Panasonic which offers extraordinary value is the 65” TH-65GX850A 4K Ultra HD HDR LCD TV. While not quite as good as the OLED variant, this screen offers…

In 2018 Musical Fidelity was sold to Audio Tuning – the company that also owns turntable manufacturer Pro-Ject Audio – so it was inevitable that we would see a turntable reappear bearing the Musical Fidelity name. The Roundtable S is more than just an updated version of the original Roundtable (which was also manufactured by Pro-Ject); it is a completely new beast with the only common link being the name. This manual operation belt-drive turntable sports a polished steel centre bearing – for an exceptional long life and friction-free performance – an extremely inert chassis and suspension system, and a high-quality tonearm. The platter is made from finely-machined high density MDF and has high mass and low resonance. The plinth is made from similar bulky low resonance material, and the…

We currently have a limited number of Marantz PM7005 integrated amplifiers for sale. The versatile PM7005 features multiple analogue and digital inputs, including optical and coaxial digital inputs along with a USB-B 2.0 for direct connection to computer high resolution digital audio sources. Featuring the reference-class CS4398 high resolution D/A converter, the PM7005 can decode high resolution digital audio files up to 24 bits and 192kHz sampling. It’s also compatible with DSD 2.8MHz and 5.6MHz high resolution files (the same system found on SACD), and the asynchronous USB-B port also features jitter removal for the most pristine sound quality. There are multiple analogue inputs, including a MM phono input, along with dual recording inputs and outputs, and the Source Direct function which bypasses the balance and tone controls for the…