AudioKeyREVIEWS! ISSUE 4 - MAY 2022 by audiokeyreviews

AudioKey REVIEWS! HIGH FIDELITY PERSONAL AUDIO

VIVA AUDIO EGOISTA STX

STEREO MAGAZINE

MAY 2022

AN ELECTROSTATIC HPA ON TRIODES! ACCUSTIC ARTS PLAYER II CDP QUALITON X200 INTEGRATED SPENDOR AUDIO A2 BRICASTI DESIGN M1SE DAC ZMF VÉRÍTÉ

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Schaumburg, Illinois

www.staxheadphones.com

Music is art, art is music.

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INSIDE THIS ISSUE…

HI-FI REVIEWS

TABLE OF CONTENTS PUBLISHER’S LETTER

ACCUSTIC ARTS PLAYER II

BRICASTI M1SE DAC - PREVIEW

MUSICAL MUSINGS - RUTH SLENCZYNSKA

INTERVIEW - JOHN MCDONALD/AUDIENCE

QUALITON X200 INTEGRATED

VIVA EGOISTA STX HPA

GOLD NOTE 3 EVO SPEAKERS

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JOAN OF AUDIO

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VIDEO REVIEW - RSX POWER8

INTERVIEWS

MUSIC

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Brassai

MAY 2022

AUDIO ZMF AUDIO VÉRÍTÉ

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SPENDOR A2

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AXPONA 2022

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RECOMMENDED COMPONENTS - UNDER $300

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MAGICAL SYNERGIES

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COMING NEXT

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REVIEWS ON THE WEB

Front Inside Cover: Imogene Cunningham, Flowers Back Inside Cover: Imogene Cunningham, Fleur noir et blanc

MUSIC REVIEWS

The Other Art. It is my belief that the artist and the musician are not only creatives, but they access heart and soul and experience, perhaps, in the selfsame ways. My own love for art and music are inseparable. And so art, music, and those things which facilitate the music, shall share theses pages.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR - SEND HERE

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VIDEO REVIEWS

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INSIDE THIS ISSUE…

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We offer the finest products available anywhere. Where else can you go and hear products like Audionet, YG Acoustics, Kronos, Kii Audio, Mola Mola, Soulution, Tenor and Veloce under one roof? We have been doing business since 1995 and have been into Audio on either the equipment or music side since 1978. We are located in rural New Jersey (yes there is such a thing) approximately 45 minutes from New York City and 1-½ hours from Philadelphia. Drop us a line and schedule your appointment today. Hours: Monday—Friday: 8:30AM–6:30PM | Phone 908.850.3092 356 Naughright Road, Long Valley, NJ 07853 av@gttaudio.com | gttaudio.com

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Air-Tight

Kii Audio

Screen Research

Audionet

KLIPSCH

Stewart Filmscreen

Auralic

Kubala•Sosna

Soulution

Datasat

KLAudio

TAOC

Devialet

Kronos Audio

Tenor Audio

Genelec

Mola Mola

YG Acoustics

JL AUDIO

ROON

Veloce

JVC Projectors

Sony 4K Projectors

Von Schweikert Audio

KEF JANUARY 2022

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EDITOR’s CHAIR

s anyone can tell you who has experienced failure in their lives, businesses, relationships, etc., it, failure, is a most astute and honest teacher, if one is willing to listen and to take in the lessons and insights that it offers. On two occasions after leaving the software/IT world, I decided to transform my hobby—Hi-End audio and music—into a business endeavor. Long story short, I was not very good at being an audio dealer, I was horrible. However, failure once again gave me insight. But then kudos to the audio dealers who do well! The insight gained—I love music and writing and discovering/learning new things (the entrepreneur in me), and I also love the technology of audio components. A second insight gained—why not meld these things that I love into a productive life pursuit. And from this AudioKeyReviews.com and

Stones, Crime and Punishment, etc. etc. They fueled my imagination, curiosity, and a furious want to write. Education for my mom was also of tantamount importance and despite many years of meager existence, private Catholic schools became the basis of my learning, granted me by my mom. Suffice to say that I am tremendously grateful for my mom and the seeds she planted long years ago in her son’s mind and heart and soul. She has always had my love and compassion, my care, and understanding. My mom, my friend, my teacher passed on March 4, 2022 leaving a gaping, empty space, oceans of turmoil, and a stultifying sadness, that will take some time to surmount. I dedicate this May issue, the issue of my birth month, to my mom for all the planted seeds that have come to fruition in the bliss of what I now do.

AudioKeyREVIEWS! Magazine were born. Now I listen, curate good to exceedingly good to superb equipment for review via research, so as to avoid the ‘not so good,’ and I write about the experience, while also designing their graphic containers. When one’s various loves come together, bliss is sure to be at hand. And as Joseph Campbell was oft to say, “Follow your bliss.” My mom was the one to plant the seeds for my love of music at a very young age, and my love of books and reading too, as I drew from her shelves countless experiences—War and Peace, Grapes of Wrath, For Whom the Bell Tolls, To Kill A Mockingbird, Babbit, Five Smooth audiokeyreviews.com

In Loving Memory Juanita ‘Rebecca’ Mae Thomas (mom) December 20th, 1936 - March 4th, 2022

OCTOBER 2021

THE CREW Publisher/Editor-in-Chief K. E. Heartsong Managing Editor Dr. Irina Kuzminsky

Oliver Masciarotte Columnists Dr. Irina Kuzminsky Roger Skoff Rain Jordan Chris Sommovigo Music Reviewers (Video/Written) My Nguyen Nathan Lathourm Matt Nielsen Dr. Irina Kuzminsky

MASTHEAD

Associate Editor(s) Andre Marc

Photographer K. E. Heartsong Graphic Design Wabi Sabi Design Group

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Welcome

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ACCUSTIC ARTS PLAYER II The Pinnacle of CD Playback? You Bet!

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By K. E. Heartsong OCTOBER 2021

ACCUSTIC ARTS PLAYER II

he 2013 dystopian Sci-Fi film Transcendence, which features Johnny

Depp and Rebecca Hall, opens with a man placing a computer keyboard under a door as a makeshift doorstop. The ‘internet of all things’ has gone ‘kerplunk’—crashed with a thud—and Information Technology (IT) is defunct and computers obsolete. Got traditional HiFi, a CD player, a turntable? Would albums, eight-track tapes, cassettes, and CDs once again be…king? How many dystopian films paint this as a possibility? As mentioned in my previous review of the PS Audio Transport/DAC combo ($12,500), between the years of 1983 and 2020 there were 15.1 billion CDs sold in the US alone. And while a good number of them may well be in landfills, one imagines that a good deal more are still available for playback. This alone

should be enough to contradict the naysayers who posit that CDs and CD players are dead.

Do you remember when albums and turntables were dead? Yeah, me too. What I have learned over the past several months in the course of evaluating a range of CD players (reviews forthcoming), is that CD players have, oddly enough, followed the life, death and rebirth cycle of, well, turntables. Suffice to say that technology and technologists have breathed fresh life and vigor and new capabilities into CD players while the various new mechanisms— transports, DACs, decoding/upsampling modalities, etc—make them, well, better! This might be called ‘The Great CD Renaissance’. Maybe. This brings me to the review of what may be, to date, the CD player destined to be at the very forefront of this renaissance. This is the Accustic Arts Player II CD player ($22,500) and it is imbued with the gathered wisdom of the technologists and of burgeoning technologies. How good is the Accustic Arts Player II CD player really? REFRAIN: Unlike most reviews, this review will be non-sequential, as it will start with how the components actually sound and not the process of physically “undressing” them and/or laying out their various parts, specifications, etc. Think of this review then, as a nonlinear movie—Memento, Kill Bill, Arrival, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, etc—that, likewise, starts at the end and winds its way to the beginning.

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Vincent van Gogh - Church at Auvers

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ACCUSTIC ARTS PLAYER II THE SOUND Formidable. Within a single chassis the Accustic Arts Player II simultaneously challenges any and all Top-Of-The-Line (TOTL) CD players and DAC/Streamer combos with the ROON Nucleus+ as primary streamer, is no small task. Have technologists and technology given CD players and, in particular, the Accustic Arts Player II, an analog voice which possesses all the naturalness, richness, transparency, and resolution once believed to belong in the province of either/or—analog or digital? The short answer is yes and beautifully so. This is not my first experience with Accustic Arts. I had owned at one time, long ago, its Transport and DAC components, designation unremembered, and I lament to this day ever selling them. If you’ve been on the audiophile merry-go-round, then you know exactly what I mean. The Accustic Arts Player II brings a whole-cloth naturalness that is easily discerned and yet remains hard to fathom. As one’s shoulders fall and tension ebbs away one instinctively searches for the turntable responsible. But there is no turntable. And when called for there is an aliveness born of transparency, resolution, and a ‘vacuuming up’ of detail that lays a performance naked and startling when called for. Further, there was no streaming combination that bested the

Accustic Arts Player II in CD player mode for the careful resolution of voices, that made clear lyrics that had been guessed at or simply overlooked or unavailable (see below)! Words and phrases that are often used to describe this phenomenon are ‘palpability’ or ‘as if transported to venue’ or a ‘you-are-there’ experience. The Player II’s CD playback as well as its streaming abilities will touch heart and soul and provide for one of the most immersive and engaging experiences I have ever had with a CD player. I have owned many TOTL CD players and DAC/Transport combos over the years and have experienced a good and growing number of today’s ever evolving models but, to date, the Accustic Arts Player II has no equal. No equal. My quickly growing cache of CDs speaks clearly to its abilities, and my preference to listen to it and less so to streaming media is another powerful indicator of where my

ACCUSTIC ARTS PLAYER II interests now lie or where they have been taken. The proof for you will be in the playing and the listening. However, if I were to stop there, I would do disservice to its truly exceptional DAC and decoding/upsampling capabilities. Its CD playback bettered the ROON Nucleus Plus/ Tambaqui streaming combo. However, the Player II’s DAC going toe-to-toe with the Mola Mola Tambaqui with both using the ROON

Nucleus Plus gave advantage to the Tambaqui. One imagines a TOTL frontend streamer— Grimm Audio MU1, INNUOS STATEMENT, Aurender W20SE, etc—if aligned to the Accustic Arts Player II would provide a much different outcome in regard to streaming. The Accustic Arts Player II’s volumetric cube—its soundstage—is vast with cavernous

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depth, great width, and substantial height. Layering, separation and positioning are, well, outstanding. Further, the Player II boasts exceptional transparency and resolution which lifts copious detail, microscopic and otherwise from beneath the noise floor, all of which combine to conjure up an organic whole. The best analogy would be a crossover-less speaker’s ability to bring top to bottom, organic coherency—whole-cloth. The Accustic Arts Player II was paired with the Roon Nucleus Plus, LTA Z10e HPA /Integrated, and the Viva Audio Egoista STX HPA (review coming). The headphones used were the STAX SR-009S, Meze Empyreans, Meze LIRIC, ZMF Véríté, ZMF Atticus, ZMF Atrium, and Rosson Audio RAD-0. Wires. Cabling throughout were Audience’s Front Row Cables (review coming) and power was RSX Power8 with the RSX BEYOND AC Power Cord and the TORUS RM20. NOTE: The same tracks that were used to review the PS Audio SACD Transport/DAC combo were used for the Accustic Arts Player II to discern their respective rendering abilities. Again, there was no in-house streaming combination that bested the Accustic Arts Player II in CD player mode for the careful resolution of voices, making clear lyrics that had, to date, been guessed at!

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Edgar Degas - Dancers in Blue

ACCUSTIC ARTS PLAYER II BASS At the present time, my apartment is 250 feet, perhaps a little less or a little more, from the Minnesota Symphony Orchestra. It is, of course, where Eiji Oue’s Stravinsky album was recorded by Reference Recordings. This recording has been, for some time, my go to, to understand sub-bass and bass reach, resolution, and the detail liberating abilities of a given component. Further, the album as a whole has allowed for the determination of speed and cohesion of dynamic shifts, of transient speed, and staging. As I know it so well and use it consistently (along with a few other bass rich albums), determinations are made quickly regarding components. Eiji Oue’s “Infernal Dance of King Kashchey” (Stravinsky, Reference Recording) begins and there is rumble and anticipation, power and thunder that reaches deeply into the sub-bass depths and that takes no prisoners. This alone sets the Accustic Arts Player II far above even that of the PS Audio PerfectWave CD transport combo recently reviewed. And, again, no streaming/DAC combination available in-house came close to delivering a similar performance. The Player II has a weight that extends across the frequency spectrum providing gravitas, flesh and

palpability, while never obscuring resolution or detail. And there was that ease again. The lowered shoulders, exhaled breath, defurrowed brow often conjured by a good

analog rig—turntable—as the Stravinsky album plays through. Obviously, it takes time to perfect a given format and the Player II is the result of just such a process. MIDRANGE Shirley Horn's “Beautiful Love” (You Won’t Forget Me, Verve) is yet another of my favorites for discerning the abilities of a given component from CDPs to DACs to amps to speakers. There are things that must be gotten right—timbre/tonality of Toots Thielemans’ harmonica, sibilance free articulation and deep

MARCH 2022

ACCUSTIC ARTS PLAYER II microdynamic detail of lyric formation and articulation, phrasing, and delivery of Shirley’s voice. Else, this song is unable to engage or move or to evoke the 3D-realism it should. As “Beautiful Love” plays now, via the Player II, the timbral/tonal accuracy and richness of Toots Thielemans’ harmonica is spot on, rich, ethereal. Shirley’s voice is dimensional, crystal clear, nuanced, entirely free of sibilance, and lush with the microdynamic cues of words/ lyrics, phrases formed and released into the

the silver disc with an energy, weight, texture, and frequency gravitas via the Accustic Arts Player II that, again, no in-house streaming combo has matched. The punch of Joe Morello’s bass drum boom comes with a tautness and energy and immediacy that says “true-that.” Meanwhile the cymbal licks, the hihat crashes, rise air-infused and detail rich with a clarity and resolution that, once again, the in-house streaming combos could not match. And Eugene Wright’s bass has never

world most naturally. All boxes marked would see the Accustic Arts Player II quickly adopted into one’s loving home. “Prayer to a Guardian Angel” by Voces8 (Lux, Decca Music Group

been clearer, more definitive, and better resolved. At this point, the Player II was just showing off with prodigious skill, as to why CD playback is alive, well and challenging ALL formats. The PS Audio SACD Transport/DAC combo got me started and excited about the possibilities of CD playback, but the Accustic Arts Player II has moved things to a quantum level above it. That the Player II’s DAC section is second only to the Mola Mola Tambaqui ($13,500), our Best of the Year for 2021 product, speaks volumes. In the review of the PS Audio SACD Transport/DAC combo, I likened its playback to, “Like triple chocolate cake and a Rutherglen Muscat (Campbells

Ltd.), a recent favorite, is a glorious choral piece from this ensemble, in which tone, timbre, harmonies and technique are quite brilliant. Though it must be admitted there are sections where the lyrics have proved difficult to discern. The Accustic Arts Player II, however, finally gives complete clarity to line after line and every word contained therein! A smile quickly formed that would not soon diminish. Of course, I had to repeat this experiment, which was again validated. Every word was clearly discerned in line after line. I have listened to this song, this album for well over 18 months and the clarity has never been better. And this from a CD player! Long live CDs! TREBLE+ Dave Brubeck’s “Take Five” (Time Out, Columbia-Legacy) plays via

JANUARY 2022

Claude Monet - Water Lilies Blue

ACCUSTIC ARTS PLAYER II Merchant Prince) after a fine dinner.” The Accustic Arts Player II would then be a six course meal at the former El Bulli’s (Catalonia, Spain), with the appropriate wine, of course. Suffice to say, that the Accustic Arts Player II’s talents are formidable. CONCLUSION Formidable. The Accustic Arts Player II rendering of CDs bested its streaming counterparts and even higher resolution versions of the same CDs(!) time and time again, regardless of genre. And this came as quite the surprise. It is also preternaturally engaging and immersive, alive, dynamic, incredibly resolving, and, at the same time, the doppelgänger of analog. This being no small task for a ‘digital playback’ component. And it serves, beautifully, two worlds—CD playback and streaming. As I mentioned earlier, one of the many sales of my equipment that I lament most is the Accustic Arts Transport/DAC combo. The experience, however, with the Accustic Arts Player II clears that memory and replaces it with a profound new experience altogether. Ahh, but this player, unfortunately, is well out of range, otherwise it would never be let go. Fool me once… CD playback is back, alive, standing toe-totoe with ALL formats (while clearly bettering most), and, in this evolved iteration, it is better than ever. And with that, I, we, enthusiastically honor the Accustic Arts Player II CDP with

for cutting-edge-excellence in the rebirth of what was briefly thought extinct, dead, forgotten. Long live CDs! Pros: Unparalleled playback of CDs which rivals even higher resolution streaming. An exceptional internal DAC that renders streaming in a transparent, detailed, and very musical way. Formidable build quality. Intuitive operation. Cons: Expensive. Heavy. THE COMPANY Accustic Arts Accustic Arts Player II ($22,500) www.accusticarts.de/en/ THE DISTRIBUTOR Rutherford Audio info@rutherfordaudio.com rutherfordaudio.com

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our highest award, the DIAMOND AWARD,

MARCH 2022

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OCTOBER 2021

BRICASTI M1SE DAC The Synthesis of Transparency and Beautiful Music

AudioKey REVIEWS! I3

By K. E. Heartsong

JANUARY 2022

BRICASTI MISE DAC PREVIEW

count myself fortunate in the extreme to be able to curate incredible components to evaluate and review, based upon research and word of mouth recommendations that line up consistently from people I trust. The other products I avoid. And, as there are no accidents, those products that I should avoid but have no

might as well be called vanilla 1 to X. Vanilla, because the purported differences may range from extremely subtle to, well, no differences at all, other than those written up in the marketing materials. The M1 DAC, however, is completely legit and a dream to ‘tweakers’ and those suffering ADD. The Bricasti Design M1 DAC is svelte with

prior knowledge of are in any case denied me. But, precisely because there are no accidents, I take this as guidance and I take note. The Bricasti Design M1 DAC is yet another revelation in terms of resolution and musicality and it offers a host of flavors (filters)—15—that are truly differentiable,

a thin front profile, medium depth, and a width which supports a very wide wheel-base, as though built for tight cornering. Its black facade with a large, red digital readout is easy to see from across most rooms and is very reminiscent of the Mark Levinson No. 39, which I once adopted into my HiFi system (it was an immediate hit!). The M1 DAC’s buttons,

unlike some others who offer flavors that

tastefully done, are gold, as are its four

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Claude Monet - Tulips

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BRICASTI MISE DAC PREVIEW Stillpoints feet and its left and right side panels. Spied from above its three cooling vents reveal cities of red lights within, as though flying over a densely settled city at night. Like great art, one gets a visual idea of it through pictures, but pictures never do great

The Bricasti Design M1 DAC is to be paired with the Grimm Audio MU1, Roon Nucleus Plus, LTA Z10e HPA /Integrated and the Viva Audio Egoista STX HPA (review coming). The headphones to be used are the STAX SR-009S, Dan Clark VOCE, Meze Empyreans, Meze LIRIC, ZMF Atticus, ZMF

art justice. Nor, in this case, do pictures do its exceptional industrial design justice. It is far more elegant in person and would fit nicely amongst Mid-Century Modern decor, just beside the Eames chair. Bricasti Design M1 DAC is a breeze to hook up and drive. Its front panel controls are clearly labeled, and the large round knob, set right of center, handles both volume and menu surfing. The remote control (standard) duplicates all the various functions.

Véríté, ZMF Atrium, and Rosson Audio RAD-0. Cabling throughout will be the Audience’s Front Row Cables and AntiCable and power will be handled by the RSX Power8 with the RSX BEYOND AC Power Cord and the TORUS RM20.

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Full review coming soon.

AKRM

Claude Monet - Lilies

MAY 2022

HermanMiller

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MAY 2022

MUSICAL MUSINGS By Irina Kuzminsky

y Life in Music, a

recent release by 97 year old pianist Ruth Slenczynska, is both a celebration and a revelation. A celebration of the remarkable longevity of her career – Slenczynska first recorded for Decca 66 years ago. And a revelation because, even though Slenczynska readily admits she can no longer ‘play everything’, what she can still do is astounding. A revelation also, because the album reveals the pianism of a former era when colour and nuances and phrasing and rubato were paramount. Ruth Slenczynska is a direct descendant of the musical ideals and performance practices of that time, being, as she is, the last surviving pupil of Sergei Rachmaninoff himself. One of the things that immediately strikes you about her playing is the lack of rigidity

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and her fearlessness in the use of rubato. This is not playing to a metronome, this is playing to tell a story, complete with all the tricks of the storyteller’s craft – emphasis, varied repetitions, dramatic pauses leaving one hanging for the next word/note. Slenczynska says that it was Rachmaninoff himself who introduced her to music as storytelling. Unlike her previous teachers, he had a different way of thinking about music – as a story. It is a teaching Slenczynska clearly took to heart and it continues to define her musicianship. A feature of Slenczynska’s pianism is that she is a pianist who listens, really listens to her left hand, and another is that nothing is rushed – she is not afraid to take her time over the music, letting it unfold, sometimes at speeds we are no longer attuned to, being used to ultrafast performances which might

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MUSICAL MUSINGS show off the brilliance of a technique, but might also sacrifice a lot of details and nuances in the process. It is playing that demands, no, assumes the attention of the listener. Playing that is confident of the pianist’s ability to take her audience on a journey with her, tell them a story, immerse them in a different world of beauty and sound. It is good to take time out between tracks, as there is quite a bit of concentration involved if one is to take in all the many musical details highlighted by the performance. To listen all the way through is a bit like barely finishing one satisfying meal before sitting down to another. It’s better spread out. Ruth Slenczynska was born in California in 1925 to Polish immigrants, made her concert debut at the age of four, and continues to perform to this day. For any budding pianists, Slenczynska stresses, first, that nothing comes from nothing. She practised for 8-9 hours a day regularly to get to where she is. And you had better work even harder if you are a woman. Women pianists, Slenczynska maintains, still have to play twice as well as their male counterparts to get paid half the fee.

Most important of all, love your audience and have the desire to bring people beauty when you play. The repertoire of My Life in Music is carefully selected, including works by Rachmaninoff, Samuel Barber, Chopin, Grieg, Debussy and Bach. The Rachmaninoff pieces, “Margaritki” (“Daisies”) and Prelude in G Major, exploit the colours and textures of different registers of the piano, while Samuel Barber’s Nocturne and “Fresh from West Chester” are probably as close to Barber’s intentions as we could now get, given that he was both a friend and a fellow student of Rachmaninoff. But, for me, the album really hits its stride with the Chopin pieces, the first of which is the “Grande Valse brillante in E flat major.” Chopin’s “Berceuse, Etude in E major,” “Prelude in F major,” and a very impressive interpretation of his “Fantasy in F minor” are all included. The Valse is full of attention to detail with lots of interesting touches. Nothing is rushed over, every note is clear and given space to breathe, and Slenczynska is not afraid of rallentandos and rubato, which is not to say

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MUSICAL MUSINGS she cannot play fast when she wants to. She makes you listen for the details, the flourishes you might otherwise gloss over. There is a change of pace and mood for the Berceuse, a peaceful rocking lullaby. The Etude in E major is inward looking, again allowing space for each harmony, each chord to sing out in perfectly judged transitions. The Fantasy in F minor is masterful, all its sections nicely judged and given differing moods and colours. Debussy’s “La fille aux cheveux de lin” is a favourite track, full of the subtleties of dynamics and colour Slenczynska brings to her playing. Some of the harmonies of this so familiar piece manage to speak out unexpectedly. They seem to have more space around them and you are made aware of them in a new way. Grieg’s “Wedding Day at Troldhaugen” is ideally suited to the storytelling pianism of Slenczynska. Again, there is the attention to detail and nuance, with nothing hurried over as the wedding scene unfolds, opening out onto both new and familiar musical vistas. The arpeggiated chords, taken somewhat slower than usual, give the distinct impression of a harp.

My Life in Music concludes, fittingly, with Bach’s C sharp minor Prelude and Fugue from Book I of the Well-Tempered Clavier. This is beautifully pointed contrapuntal playing with clarity of line and unimpeachable evenness of the semiquavers in the Prelude, and a fullness of texture in the fugue, while each entry remains clear and pointed. The inevitable architecture of a Bach fugue is fully grasped and made clear to the listener. Slenczynska’s playing bears witness to a total immersion in the music, and, somehow, through a lifetime spent engaging with the musical worlds of these composers, she causes us to hear them afresh. Hers has indeed been a life spent in music. There is currently another child prodigy pianist in the world, Elisey Mysin, now all of ten, whose mature musicality, technique and sheer affinity for the instrument continue to astound. May he be blessed with as long a career as Ruth Slenczynska.

AKRM

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INTERVIEW

John McDonald

Conducted by K. E. Heartsong MAY 2022

INTERVIEW: JOHN McDONALD

have long known about the cable & wire company Audience and though I never met its President and CEO, John McDonald, I was certainly aware of who he was. I came to the awareness of both through the company’s various AU24 speaker cables, interconnects, and power cords. They were of a small gauge, malleable, resolving, and very musical and they would remain part of my system for quite some time. To date, the Audience company produces some of the top cables in the industry, as well as Top-of-the-Line power conditioners, monitor speakers, and all are multi-award winners and prized by music lovers and audiophiles the world over. After reviewing the Audience Front Row cable, its flagship cable loom, which easily became an award winner for us and with my memories of the AU24’s intact, I wanted to find out more about John, aside from technology and the industry. John, I’d like to get a general idea of where and how you grew up, what influenced your life, how your parents may have influenced a love for music, possibly audio. Basically those things that started you on the journey to where you are now. So this is much less a technical interview than it is an understanding of you and the personal and the inspirational. KEH: Where are you from? JOHN: Pasadena, Texas

KEH: Was their music in your home? Record Player? CD player? If not how do you think that affected you? Yes, during my youth, we had a custom built stereo Heathkit amp and record player system.

KEH: Nothing like vinyl. We are so fortunate to have grown up during its heyday. How did music affect your early life? Was there a family member or another person, who inspired your love for music (art, aesthetics, design)? At around age 18, my cousin, Jeff Storey, who had just returned from the war in Vietnam, turned me on to a 45 rpm song by a band called The Beatles. I forget which song; though it was very amazing. Jeff also took me to my

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Claude Monet - Water Lilies 1914-1919

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INTERVIEW: JOHN McDONALD first rock concert that was Jimi Hendrix in Houston. KEH: What was your very first system then? How did you listen, in terms of Digital or Analog? How did it make you feel? JOHN: In the early 70s, a friend and audio enthusiast needing money, which I had, sold me his Macintosh/Bose/Dual TT system that opened me to a new world of inspiring music. All of my music was LP vinyl. The 70s represented a revolution of expression through music. Listening to great music through a great playback system was all inspiring. I lived near downtown Houston in a single apartment above a dentist office. At night, the dentist office was closed, so I could play music at concert level through the Bose 901 that hung in the corners from the 10 ft. high ceilings. It was a great set up. And the billowing weed packed hookah typically enhanced the experience. My place was an historic hang out. KEH: The “Billowing weed” but, of course. It was the 70s after all. In light of the various happenings today, I truly miss the 70s. What musicians did you admire then, enjoy, love as a young man? Why?

JOHN: The Beatles of course, the Doors, Emerson Lake and Palmer, Stevie Wonder, Hendrix, Clapton, Joplin, Dylan, America … the list seems endless. KEH: Most memorable epiphany that has come from listening to music or turning a good friend or a significant other on to music?

JOHN: Early one Saturday morning, following an evening of loud rock and roll, I woke up to hearing Gregorian chants, my friend Jim Fogo had brought over on LP. I was emotionally transported to a mystical place I’d never been before. KEH: Without our music loving friends and family where would we be? What catalyzing event put you on the road to high-end audio? JOHN: To me it has always seemed like destiny. It’s hard to say exactly which event put me on the road. I remember when I was a young Boy

OCTOBER 2021

INTERVIEW: JOHN McDONALD Scout. We’d play a game where we sat in a large circle with one person sitting in the center blind folded. Then someone from the outer circle would attempt to quietly tip toe to the person in the center and touch him without being heard and identified by pointing at him. No one could touch me. Looking back, I realized that I could hear better than anyone else. My ability to hear was exceptional. Many years later, like into my early 20s, while running a health food store in Southern California, one of my customers was Richard Smith with whom I later started my first high end manufacturing company. I remember the first time I heard Richards “model III” loudspeakers. I was truly moved and was inspired to establish Sidereal Akustic Audio Systems, Inc.

ever made, personally and then with Audience? And what did you learn from it? JOHN: As far as the biggest mistake made personally, I’ll keep that to myself. And I’ve made so many mistakes in life, I wouldn’t know where to begin. As far as the biggest mistake made in the audio business, that’s an easy one. Underpricing. I learned that to stay afloat in high end audio, I had to charge more. With Audience we started out not charging enough that led to years of hard times. I can’t tell you how many times I re-financed my home to pay the bills. KEH: I too have learned and continue to learn some hard business lessons. Though my best teacher has always been failure. How did Audience begin and what were the initial motivations? JOHN: Six years after establishing

Sidereal Akustic Audio Systems, Inc. in 1979, my partner and majority partner and company President, Richard Smith, wanted to split up just after the business had started to blossom. Great timing! I said to him “okay, you’re the genius, so you keep the company and I’ll move on.” It only took Richard a short time until he went BK. I then moved to Los Angeles and started a whole new business in a different field and did well. About 10 years later, in KEH: So you’ve also been in to health food 1997, Richard asked if I’d give it another try, for a long time. John, the biggest mistake you this time with me as the President and CEO. I

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needed repair. I always remembered that when McIntosh repaired the unit, and carefully repacked it like new and said “no charge”. KEH: You embraced and welcomed his karma Needless to say, I was impressed. So, that was when it circled back.What do you believe sets and is today, my vision for Audience … solid Audience apart from the other high-end products with stellar customer service. audio retailers/manufacturers? KEH: I longed for McIntosh accepted the second try with Richard that was the beginning of Audience.

products but could only stare at them through the Sound of Music’s front window. What is Audience’s driving philosophy, its goals for the future? JOHN: We always strive to get out of the way in every way possible. I.e. IT’S ABOUT THE MUSIC! Our philosophy and goals are one in the same. We strive to make the best audio gear possible that you cannot hear! JOHN: That’s a tough question to answer because there are lot of great high-end audio manufacturers. Though, I believe that Audience is a brand you can trust. We do not make any products that I am not proud of. I wanted to establish a company with a Sony like product and a McIntosh like service. I’ll explain. At the time, Sony was the television that lasted forever unlike every TV that preceded them. I’m talking about CRT TVs.

KEH: I’ll bring this part of the interview to a close with a question on ethos and philosophy. Tell me, what is Audience’s overall ethos. JOHN: Do no harm. Get out of the way. Live for truth. KEH: Beautiful! If only the wold embraced such ethos. Okay. What is your current reference system or your best high-end

system of all time? Why? Though their service, if needed, was horrific. On the other side was McIntosh. My integrated McIntosh was out of warranty; however, it OCTOBER 2021

INTERVIEW: JOHN McDONALD JOHN: My current system is also my best ever.

Great movie include Lawrence of Arabia, Seven

My source is a Denon DP-62L turntable with Ortofon Cadenza cartridge, home built server, MSB The Analog DAC, Audience *prototype passive/active auto former pre-amp, Herron phono stage, Audience *prototype Hypex Class-D power amps, Audience *proto-type loudspeakers, Audience cables and powerChords and power conditioners. *the pre and power amps were designed years ago by the late Roger Sheker; however, never taken to market. The prototype loudspeakers are set to go into production later this year.

Samurai, Sunset Blvd., Patton and American Gangster. KEH: There is great overlap in both the music and the movies that you consider your favorites. Is there anything that I’ve not covered, that you like to share or address concerning Audience? JOHN: Sincere thanks to you for this interview and a big THANK YOU to all of our patrons! KEH: John, Thank you for your time and providing insight into you, the music you love, and your audio experience, business and personal.

KEH: What are your five favorite albums and movies of all time and why? And art? JOHN: Creedence Clearwater Revival – all of their albums are my favorite R&R of all times. Jimmy Smith/Organ Grinder Swing and The Oscar Peterson Trio/We Get Requests and Time Out/The Dave Brubeck Quartet are three of my favorite Jazz albums. Jimmy Cliff/The Harder They Come, Stevie Wonder/Songs in the Key of Life for upliftment.

AKRM

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QUALITON X200 By Andre Marc MAY 2022

QUALITON X200

udio Hungary is a company I have been intrigued by for a few years now. I had heard so many good things about their products, quality control and customer satisfaction. I was eager to hear one of their products in my own system. That opportunity presented itself when US

complement is as follows: two 6922s, two 2AX7s, and four KT120 power tubes. KT150 tubes are also available. Our X200 arrived with Tung-Sol KT120. The X200 retails for $6499. The K120 tubes will produce 100 watts per channel, which is typically the upper end for integrated tube amps. The X200 is solid and

importer Mark Sosa of Well Pleased Audio Video offered up the Qualiton X200 tubed integrated amplifier for review. I jumped at the chance, and the X200 appeared on my doorstep a short time later. The Qualiton X200, like the rest of the line up, is designed and manufactured by Audio Hungary in their factory in Nyíregyháza, in Northern Hungary. The amplifier uses tubes in all amplification stages. There are no hybrids

heavy, weighing in at 23 kg. Audio Hungary winds their own transformers, ensuring consistent quality, The build is outrageously good, with clean workmanship and high quality precision knobs and connectors that inspire confidence. The amp has the “feel” of a product made with care. Featurewise, the X200 is impressive. There are four RCA inputs, a built in MM phono input, along with line and subwoofer outputs.

or solid state output stages involved. The tube

Also included are old school tone control

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knobs for bass and treble. There are a number of other inputs and outputs, such as balanced inputs for use with an external preamp and tape line out. A most welcome feature is the onboard headphone amp! A well built chunky remote is included, which can be used to control the volume or turn to Mute. A sturdy tube cage is supplied. We used the tube cage only when not listening to protect the tubes from dust.

organic beauty, it was addictive. The X200’s tubey goodness created an abundance of harmonic richness, and more importantly, pristine tonality. The title track flowed out of the speakers so effortlessly! We then listened to a brand new, true, all analog recording/mix/master vinyl pressing by a Los Angeles group named Calling Cadence. Their debut is pressed on 180g vinyl, and sounds wonderful and authentic. The music draws on classic California roots rock. Bands SET UP & LISTENING: like America, Doobie Brothers, and Fleetwood Aside from installing the tubes and plugging Mac come to mind. This album was clearly a in all the cables, the only additional step was labor of love, and a very enjoyable listen. checking the bias of the tubes. This is done Highly recommended! automatically via the front bias knob which The above listening was done with my Rega checks the tubes and provides status via LED. phono stage, but i wanted to test the X200’s We let the amp warm up for about an hour internal onboard Moving Magnet phono before each listening session. preamp. To do that I hooked up a Rega Planar We used the X200 in a system comprised of 3 with Elys2 MM carriage. I was more than a Bryston BDA-3 DAC, a Sonore microRendu, impressed. I spun the same records, and a few a Rega Planar 6 turntable, and QLN One others, including Traffic’s Low Spark of High monitors (review in progress). Cabling was a Heel Boys, and the X200 provided excellent mix of Audio Art Cable and Black Cat Cable. fidelity via the phono input. In fact, it Everything was plugged into Bryston and surpassed three sub $1000 standalone phono Audience power conditioners. preamps I had in house. Audio Hungary also We listened to a lot of vinyl with the X200 makes a two box standalone phono in house. One of the records we spun preamplifier with optional configurations. numerous times is an original green label Moving to digital, we streamed everything Warner pressing of Van Morrison’s Tupelo from Redbook CD rips to high res. Pentangle’s Honey. The reason this platter was on repeat is Basket of Light, remastered from the original that the X200 captured the pastoral, earthy tapes along with all of their studio albums in a beauty of this recording. It is perhaps the box set, was as fully fleshed out and as analog pinnacle of Morrison’s “soul folk” period. The sounding as it ever will be in digital. The level acoustic guitars, keyboards, and of course of recorded detail, anomalies and all, including Morrison’s voice are rendered with such JANUARY 2022

QUALITON X200 tape saturation, are presented stunningly by the X200. Tracks like “House Carpenter” and “Train Song” have so much atmosphere and texture, it seemed like the X200 was tailor made for British folk rock.

exceptionally talented composer, songwriter and recording artist from Toronto. Her music can be best described as ambient folk. There are plenty of dreamy soundscapes, minor key melodies, and electronics blended with

A 24 bit recording we just purchased, an absolutely beautifully produced album of classical Spanish guitar pieces by Alejo de los Reyes, “Al compas de la Vihuela,” was jawdropping via the X200 and Qln One combo. The woody texture of the guitar and sheer passion of the playing were front and center. Goosebump city in fact! We decided to purchase the entire

acoustic instruments. Engel’s voice is a thing of beauty, and her recordings are intimate and very well balanced. Her two most recent releases, available in 24 bit, Their Invisible

Bandcamp discography of Clara Engel, an

Hands and Dressed In Borrowed Light, are superb, putting the listener on the edge of their seat. Listening to the way the X200 captured the light and shade of Engel’s music I was most certainly on the edge of my seat. We also highly enjoyed the debut album from Spook, (24 bit, 96 kHz) a “psychedelic

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QUALITON X200 jazz” combo that sounds like early Pink Floyd hosting part with electric Miles Davis. There are pulsating rhythms, sculpted electronics, David Gilmour like guitar, and gobs of

The X200’s board Headphone amp was super fun, and we put it through its paces with various Grado and Audio Technica cans. The overall balance was spot on with plenty of juice

Kraftwerk like atmosphere. The X200 laid out to spare. We loved how the headphone amp the whole sound picture in a way that made it sounded with our trusty Grado SR-80’s. In fact, easy to be drawn in and seduced by the overall it was a throwback to our high school days, dark tone. We decided to move the X200 to our second system, driving Spendor Classic S35/R monitors. The results were astonishing. We have had three iterations of this classic BBC design from Spendor and have never heard so much from the speaker. The X200 provided the best match of any amplifier to date. The overall sound was intimate, holographic and

when tubes and headphones were our daily routine. Note, when headphones are connected to the input jack, the speaker output is muted, which is always a good thing. Ergonomically, the X200 worked like a dream. The tubes never needed a bias adjustment. The amp was one of the quietest, if not the quietest tubed component we have used. Personally we loved the control knobs,

transparent.

the amount of usable volume range, and the

OCTOBER 2021

QUALITON X200 The X200 provides transparency, a silky top end, holographic midrange, and a pleasing deep bass. There is plenty of good old tube magic. Also, not to forget, the X200 can be used with KT150 power tubes as well as the KT120. Audio Hungary has an exciting line up and Mark Sosa of Well Pleased AV has done a wonderful job of spreading the word. This is a classic case of if you want “more”, you have to spend a lot more. If shopping for a low maintenance, high performance, feature rich, tube integrated amp, the Audio Hungary Quality X200 is literally a must audition. We happily award the Qualiton X200 our GoldKeyNote Award for exceptional sound quality!

THE COMPANY number of inputs. Nitpicks? It would be nice to Audio Hungary able to turn the unit on or off via the remote. audiohungary.com Also an onboard Moving Coil phono option Qualiton X200 ($6,499) would be welcomed. CONCLUSION:

THE DISTRIBUTOR Well Pleased AV 703-750-5461 mark@wellpleasedav.com wellpleasedav.com

The Audio Hungary Qualition X200 is in our estimation a highly successful product, and even more so when taking into consideration its price point. You get a heck of a lot for $6500. Along with high grade workmanship, a slew of welcome features such as built in phono, headphone amp, subwoofer outputs, remote control and more, make this a well thought out package. There is plenty of wattage AKRM to drive even power hungry speakers, and then of course there is the actual sound.

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VIVA AUDIO EGOISTA STX 80

A Time Machine to Musical Venues Everywhere! AudioKeyREVIEWS! I2

By K. E. Heartsong JANUARY 2022

VIVA AUDIO EGOISTA STX

here were some good things about being an audio dealer, despite my marked inability to run an audio store. I met some great folks and was exposed to exceptional equipment that rendered music with sublime prowess and, well, some other equipment that rendered music in not so sublime a way at all. The folks that I met embodied the selfsame characteristics—a love of challenge, discovery, experimentation, and, of course, music—that feed heart, soul and mind. And via the discovery of our kindred ways, we got along swimmingly, that is very well. Amedeo Schembri of Viva Audio was one of those folks brimming with intellect, creativity, enthusiasm, and a torrent of ideas and wisdom. We also shared a love of films from the Golden Age of Hollywood. Through knowing Amedeo, I came to appreciate a great number of things audio and the Viva line in particular. I carried the Viva Audio line in my audio boutiques and owned one personally. The Viva Solista integrated was my first owned component. To a one, the Viva components embodied incredible musicality, naturalness, resolution, and the ability to transcend the listening experience and deliver a compelling “you-are-there” perspective. When I became aware of Amedeo’s Egoista STX – a singled-ended, electrostatic headphone amplifier – after my many journeys into the storied world of electrostatic, I was excited to have the opportunity to review it. I had found the ability of electrostatics to assist in seeming time travel from this venue to that

and to simulate a preternatural closeness to performances simply stunning. If Viva had gotten me to the “you-are-there” perspective even without the electrostatic technology, what part of that world would the electrostatic Viva Egoista STX land me in? And what would be the experience? REFRAIN: Unlike most reviews, this review will be non-sequential, as it will start, below, with how the equipment actually sounds and not the process of physically “undressing” it and/or laying out its various parts, specifications, etc. Think of this review then, as a non-linear movie—Memento, Kill Bill, Arrival, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Terminator, In the Shadow of the Moon, The Queen’s Gambit, etc—that, likewise, starts at the end and winds its way to the beginning. THE SOUND “How,” I thought, “would the coupling of an electrostatic headphone amplifier and a singleended triode implementation using 300B tubes sound?” Both are known for their resolution, their ability to peel away artifice and layer upon layer of opacity, while bringing forth a distortion free, “you-are-there” palpability and an arresting sense of texture. Interestingly, both technologies are nearing, or will be nearing soon, a century of existence. How is it that they still command what is thought, by many, to be the crowning achievement of audio playback? Add the

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Edgar Degas - La classe de danse, 1874

turntable and it makes a trifecta with regard to century+ old technologies that continue to

smartphone, etc.—only to discover that there was a screen over it and that by removing the

evolve, to bring enjoyment, and to welcome a growing following. Well, back to the question, how does the synthesis of these two technologies render music? Magnificently! I find myself once again in the esteemed world of electrostatics, but on a different continent altogether with the Egoista STX. And this new continent is powerfully immersive, incredibly exciting, with the clearest blue skies imaginable! Have you ever taken for granted the clarity of a window or a display—microwave, preamp,

screen things became, well, more clear. This then is the analogy for the Viva Egoista STX in terms of its mastery at providing a clearer window on a performance but multiplied sevenfold. The Egoista STX does this via its sheer transparency, resolution, and its ability to extract detail—all the hidden notes, cues, coughs, movements, microdynamics, etc.—that generally lie beneath the noise or the “noise floor.” The “noise floor?” In my writeup of the Mola

Mola Tambaqui, our Product of the Year for

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VIVA AUDIO EGOISTA STX 2022, I used an analogy to explain the noise/ noise floor, reprinted below: “Imagine, if you will, a house filled to the ceiling with sand, while one of the house’s sides has a ceiling to floor window that allows one to see in. Let’s consider the sand, in this case, noise, with floor to ceiling sand representing, say, signal-free static between radio stations. But once a clear FM station is dialed-in the noise or sand drops to perhaps a millimeter or two above the floor. Most modern high-end audio components have very effectively dealt with noise to this or much better degrees. In the case of the Mola Mola Tambaqui, a janitor has been tasked with sweeping the floor clean of all remaining (observable) sand (noise).” Yes, the Mola Mola Tambaqui and the Viva Egoista STX have a good deal in common, at the very least with regard to the lack of noise and distortion, and to banishing opacity in favor of window-not-there clarity. Of course, there’s a great deal more. Tone, timbre and texture are sublime in the tradition of singled-ended triodes, which conjure the naturalness of instrument after instrument and voice after voice, as well as the atmosphere of every venue (which many components fail to do). Goal! The Egoista STX handles a wealth of lightspeed transients and dramatic dynamic swings with great ease, as though it were lounging and eating Bon-bons while doing so. Mustn’t forget the nuance, the air and the spaciousness. The Viva Egoista STX’s volumetric cube—

and exceptional height. Positioning, layering and separation are again superb in the tradition of single-ended triodes, with the added resolving power of its electrostatic heritage doubling down on all the aforementioned. For the Egoista STX’s evaluation it was paired with the Accustic Arts Player II CDP, Roon Nucleus Plus, Mola Mola Tambaqui DAC, Bricasti Design M1 DAC, DENAFRIPS Pontus II DAC, STAX SR-009S, Dave Clark VOCE, Audience Front Row cables/wires, AntiCables cables/wires, RSX Power8, and the TORUS RM20.

its soundstage—reaches beyond the plane of the headphones, and it embodies great depth

bass and Regina Carter’s classical violin, that is both call and response and a wild frolic that

BASS Potent. Fast. Detailed. Eiji Oui’s “Infernal Dance of King Kashchey” (Stravinsky, Reference Recording, CD) begins and there is the distinct rumble which foreshadows what is to come via the crescendo of the seven assembled tympani, arranged for this particular performance. The crescendo arrives and the assembled tympani are potent and attention grabbing, though the lowest, sub-bass is only ever barely pierced. Head-Bangers need not apply. Marcus Miller’s “Power” (M2, Concord Records) powers in, brash, taunt, and thumping! The force and the depth of the bass on this track takes no prisoners and offers no excuses. It’s a rocking jaunt. So good was the Egoista STX’s portrayal that I had to sneak another bass rich album in for good measure. Christian McBride’s “Fat Bach and Greens” (Conversations with Christian, Mack Avenue Records) is the interplay of jazz

MARCH 2022

VIVA AUDIO EGOISTA STX traverses classical and jazz lines. The song moves at speed, with delicious resolution, solid bass licks, and blazing hot transients, all of which set this chair-dancer in motion. Repeat playlist! MIDRANGE The Viva Egoista STX produces a “You-arethereness” that wanders resolutely across the frequency range with a “whole-cloth” coherent rendering. This is what single-ended triodes do via a single vacuum tube responsible for the entire output of a given channel (left, right). They are coherent. Think of an artist drawing a single image on a piece of paper—singleended, coherent. Now think of that artist drawing one half of the same image on two pieces of paper and taping them together—not single-ended, not entirely coherent. Imagine the potential incongruities, missed overlaps, different line thicknesses, etc. This is called push-pull which is what most amplifiers do, as they “paste” or “tape” together two wave forms or halves of a picture for a given channel (left, right). Don’t get me wrong, most do it exceptionally well, but not so well as singleended triodes do, they simply can’t. Shirley Horn’s “Beautiful Love” (You Won’t

inflections of Shirley’s voice, as she whispers into my ear like she never has before (it’s taken 30 years!). Toots Thielemans’ harmonica is tangible and held at his mouth like only singleended triodes can render in full threedimensionality. Several repeats later, I engage Kandace Springs’ “Black Orchid” (Indigo, Blue Note), Olafur Arnalds’ “Árbakkinn” (Island Songs, Mercury (Universal France)), Andy Bey’s “Angel Eyes,” (American Song, Savoy), and Voces8’s “Prayer to a Guardian Angel” (Lux, Decca), and there are a multitude of discoveries to be made in these time tested pieces which come alive via the Egoista STX. The naturalness, the freed detail, the microdynamics and the transparency enable inner discovery, time after time, that is breathtaking. TREBLE+ “Take Five” (Time Out, Columbia-Legacy, CD)

via the Viva Egoista STX, Accustic Arts Player II CDP and the STAX SR-009S was, perhaps, the most natural, most musical, and the most transparent rendering that I have heard to date. The specter of analog must be raised as ease and immersion and resolution were chart topping! And to make sure, I listened to the entire album, twice! The TOTL STAX SRMForget Me, Verve, CD) plays with such incredible T8000 in comparison is quite a bit opaque, less intimacy, detail, and texture that I am taken nuanced, and does not bring the air, the aback by the beauty of this rendering. But then palpability, texture, nor the “you-are-thereness” I’ve never listened to a single-ended triode, of the Egoista STX. Live and learn. As Laura St. electrostatic headphone amplifier before. Tone John’s “Zigeunerweisen” (Gypsy, Well Tempered) and timbre are so natural, so fluid, so rich that begins, Laura is heard to either have gathered immersion is unavoidable and unfought. A rush up her violin or to have positioned it. A first of inner detail betrays the emotion and hearing of this interesting ‘atmospheric’ detail.

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15 It is, perhaps, the most incredible, if not the best IEM that I have ever had the opportunity to review, let alone listen to. —Kermit Heartsong, AudioKeyReviews.com

obravoaudio.com/en MAY 2022

Bressai

VIVA AUDIO EGOISTA STX Then comes the beguiling sweetness of tone, the unrelenting, unhindered climb to the highest treble heights, and the all encompassing resolution of electrostatics as the Egoista STX pops in another Bon-bon. “That was easy, too,” it says. Emmanuelle Bertrand’s “Tout un monde lointain Concerto pour Cello & Orchestra: 1. Enigme” (Dutilleux & Debussy:Works with Cello, Harmonia Mundi) follows, and, with the lightspeed transients, brooding atmosphere, and potent dynamic shifts, excitement fills air and ear. Another ‘first’ hearing of this long known, often heard work by Emmanuelle Bertrand. A standing ovation for the various portrayals! Bravo! CONCLUSION As I mentioned earlier, I curate products for review based upon research and an understanding of their combined merits, prior to asking for a review sample. Why give time to anything less? Truth be told, I’m having a rather grand time curating the best of the best for review and indulging my love for both music and the equipment which makes its rendering so glorious.

“You-are-there” describes succinctly my experience with the Viva Egoista STX electrostatic headphone amplifier. And it is an experience that will not soon be forgotten. As mentioned, the Top-Of-the-Line STAX SRMT8000 is not a contender, though at approximately one third the price, it shouldn’t be. It isn’t. As I write this, there is no competition for the Viva Egoista STX electrostatic headphone amplifier. Where that contender may come from has yet to be discovered, but then competition is good, especially when the competition provides a different yet compelling perspective.

This is, perhaps, the easiest honor bestowed upon a component, Mola Mola Tambaqui aside, that I have made to date. Without further ado we, AudioKeyREVIEWS!, honor the Viva Egoista STX with our DIAMOND AWARD for its unparalleled excellence as a single-ended, electrostatic, headphone amplifier. It is very highly recommended and a must listen for those heeled well enough to adopt the STX into a loving home. Pros: Sublime in its single-ended triode way with music and palpability as married to the effortless transparency, resolution and speed of electrostatics. Together the technologies provide for involuntary immersion, immense enjoyment, and unrivaled transparency. Cons: Not for Head-Bangers but expressly not meant to be. Expensive. Heavy.

THE COMPANY VIVA Viva Egoista STX $17,000 R&D Facility Camisano, Veneto, Italy info@vivaaudio.com THE DISTRIBUTOR PROFUNDO 2051 Gattis School Rd. Suite 540/123 Round Rock, TX 78664 510.375.8651 info@profundo.us AKRM MARCH 2022

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GOLD NOTE A3 EVO AudioKeyREVIEWS! I2

By Andre Marc JANUARY 2022

GOLD NOTE A3 EVO

he Italian audio manufacturer Gold Note has been known for designing and manufacturing beautiful looking and sounding home playback gear since 2012. We have friends and colleagues who rave about the sonics and the craftsmanship. Until now though, we had had little experience with the brand. We took delivery of the Gold Note A3 EVO monitors, and put them through their paces for several months.

in one of the great cities of the Italian renaissance. One cannot help but gaze at them in admiration of their visual impact, and while their aesthetic appearance is in no way a prerequisite for enjoying their performance, it would still give you a sense of pride to own them just on that basis alone. Of note, the binding posts are of very high quality and accept bananas or spades. The rear port is a specially formulated aluminium tube. The A3 EVO is a bass reflex design with a

silk dome tweeter custom made by SEAS for Gold Note to their exact specifications. Silk dome tweeters are known for their organic, non-fatiguing sound. The published specifications note low frequency extension to 45 Hz, and a 6 Ohm load, with sensitivity at 87 dB. The A3 EVO are not very large monitors but they are far from “bookshelf” speakers. They weigh a hefty 30 lbs each, and they feel very solid. The speakers ship with attractive grilles, but we never used them during This two way, standmount monitor is manufactured in Florence, Italy, as is the entire listening, only to protect from dust. Gold Note also makes dedicated stands for the A3 EVO Gold Note product line. The speaker starts at for seamless integration. However, we used our $4,799 for a Walnut matte finish, with an own Sound Anchors 28 inch stands for the upcharge for a very attractive Walnut gloss finish. The A3 EVO is first in line among four duration of the review. other speakers Gold Note offers, all of these SET UP & LISTENING: being impressive looking floorstanders. We set up the A3 EVO in a system that DESIGN & DESCRIPTION: included a Sonore mircoRendu streamer, a The A3 EVO is stunning in appearance, and its Bryston BDA-3 DAC, a Rega Planar 6 contoured lines make quite a statement. This is turntable, a Schiit Freya+ preamp, and an Audio Research VS55 amplifier. Cables were a not a surprise considering they are produced

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Georgia O’Keeffe - Red Canna, 1923

GOLD NOTE A3 EVO mix of Audio Art Cable and Black Cat. We started with the speakers firing straight forward but eventually settled on about 15 degrees of toe in, roughly 8 feet apart. We were able to allow for plenty of space around the

during a period considered his most artistically fruitful, with strong material and superb performances. The albums are packed with classic tracks like “Power Of My Love”, “Inherit The Wind”, “Kentucky Rain”, and “Long Black Limousine”. The material is a mix of country, soul, gospel, and rock. The songs are augmented by strings, horns, and great backing vocals. The A3 EVO did such a wonderful job of highlighting the creative energy of these 1968 and 1969 recordings. And most importantly, Presley’s voice was front and center, almost spookily present. Putting some vinyl spins into play, we really enjoyed an original green label Warner pressing of Van Morrison’s Moondance. The

Celtic / folk / soul hybrid Morrison was producing during this period was intricate and speakers as well. sonically nourishing. The A3 EVO made this After casually having music play for a few album sound earthy and timeless. “And It days to let the speakers settle in, we decided on Stoned Me” and “Into The Mystic” flowed out a whim to start off critical listening with the of the speakers effortlessly, with acoustic Deluxe high-res remaster of Led Zeppelin II. guitars shimmering, and the various layers of Having heard this remaster numerous times, as horns and keyboards delightfully easy to well as original vinyl pressings and various CD follow. versions, we were quite surprised to be able to We then dug out a pristine copy of a hear new levels of detail and layers through the Philips pressing of the London Symphony A3 EVO. The percussion, bass line, and Orchestra performing Ravel’s Ma Mère L’Oye. acoustic guitar on “Ramble On” were rendered We were dazzled by the sheer mystery of the in such a delicate way, it was revelatory. It was music, and the A3 EVO unravelled the like noticing small details in an old painting instrumental interplay beautifully. The that has been carefully restored. woodwinds and strings had excellent texture We then streamed Elvis Presley’s From and filigree. We enjoyed the presentation so Elvis in Memphis, and Back in Memphis, two of much, we played the record several times front Presley’s strongest LPs. They were recorded

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Focusing on recent releases, we put some CONCLUSION: new 24 bit download purchases into rotation. There was a descriptor that kept appearing in First up was Hallival, by Iona Lane, a UK based my mind after each listening session, and that songstress who specialises in ambient folk. Her word was elegance. That is how I would sum music is both ethereal and seductive, calling up my experience with the Gold Note A3 EVO upon British folk and subtle jazzy touches, and speakers. There was something immersive her own overdubbed harmony vocals. Her about their performance. They draw the powerful, clear voice came though the A3 EVO listener into the music, and make it difficult to brilliantly. Highly recommended! end listening sessions. We also enjoyed the debut release from I can sum up the Gold Note A3 EVO New York City jazz drummer Charles Goold, monitors by saying they occupy that rare Rhythm in Contrast. The album is a delight from territory where recording accuracy and start to finish, and features some of the most musical satisfaction interact. This is generally tasteful and vibrant new jazz we have heard for never an easy task from a designer’s some time. Goold’s superb drumming, along standpoint. However, Gold Note has done it with electric guitar, horns, vibes, and piano here. For those who have had their interest create a thrilling soundscape. The A3 EVO did piqued, but who have large rooms, it would be a fantastic job of creating a “live” sound, so that a very good idea to audition the Gold Note the interplay between the musicians was a joy floorstanding models. In our opinion, at to behold. The textures of the acoustic around the $5000 mark per pair, the A3 EVO instruments, and the tonality of the piano and is a superb value. vibes really showed how the Gold Note SPECIFICATIONS: speakers strive for accuracy and beauty at the

same time. We were really pleased with the bass articulation, and the low end extension improved as the speaker loosened up. Right out of the box, however, the midrange and lower treble were perfectly balanced. The soft dome tweeter seems to have been perfectly calibrated, and also improved after a few days. Once settled in, and positioned correctly for the room and listener position, it is smooth sailing.

Gold Note A3 EVO: $4799-$5599 Frequency response: 45-20000Hz ±3dB Sensitivity: 87dB SPL 2,83Vs/1m Tweeter: 1” silk dome driver Midwoofer: 6” in polypropylene Impedance: 6ohm nominal Dimensions: 240mm W x 345mm H x 295mm D

Optional Stands Available RUTHERFORD AUDIO rutherfordaudio.com AKRM

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JOAN OF AUDIO By Rain Jordan

MAY THE SOURCE BE WITH YOU “Man unites himself with the world in the process of creation” Erich Fromm

istening to live music is one of the most meaningful things I regularly engage in. It is such a relief to see that live music events are popping up everywhere again. It’s been a long wait. There are already a number of local shows I plan on attending. The reasons I seek out live music are simple. I love the sound of live music. And live performances have continually deepened my awareness and appreciation of music, and the musicians who play it. In my article, “How to Get Started in High-end Audio”, I recommended, as a first step in your high-end audio journey, that you “go to the source”. What I meant by that is that live music is the source of recorded music, and to wholly know music, you must listen to more live performances. There is no other way to have a direct experience of the musician’s creative expression than by being there to hear it as it’s being played. Regardless of how real any hiend audio system sounds, a record album, cd, or high-resolution computer file cannot deliver what live music delivers. But, yes, it is the next best thing (smile). Megan Liscomb, musician, and singer of the band Soft Lions, says it best, “Music doesn’t come out of a machine, a cloud or out of a search engine. People make music”.

Today we are seeing a tremendous surge in the development and use of technology in all facets of our lives, including the consumer electronic industry and the hi-end audio sector. As hi-tech growth continues to accelerate, we are quickly replacing our reallife experiences with a computer and a wi-ficonnection. Technology has catapulted us into a world where we can obtain information faster and easier than ever before. On any given day, while visiting most public places, including trails and parks, I can look around and see a smart phone in almost every hand. We are beginning to lose contact with what is real and alive, as we opt out of being present to what is actually happening in the moment. So it is with music as well. Remarkable advances in audio technology and the everexpanding capabilities of wireless technology have elevated recorded music to the main event. Recorded music came into existence over 135 years ago with the invention of the phonograph in 1887, and then the radio in 1895. Prior to that time, we had no options but to listen to live music where we could find it. Thus, recorded music revolutionized the music industry, eventually providing us easy access to music in our homes, cars and at work. Without

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Vincent Van Gogh - Daises, Poppies

JOAN OF AUDIO question, recorded music has made an immense contribution to humanity. It has made music incredibly accessible, and it’s made quantum leaps in the quality of its sound. However, if we begin to know music primarily through recordings, or if we consume recorded music en masse, we may confuse it with the real thing. Moreover, we risk losing our ability and capacity to recognize and value the beauty and realness of music being played live. It will be one more illusion that stands between what is truly alive and what is a reflection of reality, much like confusing your reflection in the mirror for a real person. When I backpacked through the Grand Canyon a few years ago, I was struck by the number of visitors on the top of the rim taking copious amounts of pictures with their smartphones. I recall overhearing a group of friends commenting about the photos they took, as one of them thumbed through the photos on her smartphone. One of the friends commented that the photos looked “just like the postcards in the gift shop”. The friend quickly took out a few postcards she had purchased to compare them. “Yes,” they all agreed, the photos looked just like the postcards. My point is that we cannot afford to forfeit the real-life experience for an image, symbol, or a reproduction. I think that’s what the bible meant by “You shall have no other gods before me.” (Matthew 24:24) In other words, don’t overvalue or confuse an imitation of reality with what is the source of reality. Live your life rooted in what is real and sustainable. Today we already lack the presence we truly

need to live mindfully and humanely in the world. Live music is an antidote to this affliction. As a music lover, and an art lover, I’ve come to realize there is no substitute for a live performance or original art. It’s very basic, one is alive, the other is a representation. As mentioned, but worth mentioning again, live music sounds so much better than recorded music, and no matter how good the audio system or the recording is, it will never have the gravity and power that a live performance has. You cannot know the infinite and spontaneous nuances of what an instrument or voice genuinely sounds like until you hear it live. Or the innumerable variations of styles and creativity that each musician brings to their music as they play it live. You simply cannot experience the reality of a cello, an electric guitar, a xylophone, congas, an upright bass, an accordion, a grand piano…or its capabilities, until you hear it live. Secondly, live music is a performance art. You get to see it or experience it being made. You are present for the creation process. The musician graces us with their talent, imagination, passion, grit, and capacity to play music in a way only they can play it. What makes Carlos Santana, Carlos Santana, or Joni Mitchell, Joni Mitchell, or Keith Jarret, Keith Jarret is how they uniquely express or play with the creative energy that is available to them. This creative energy or life force is our true nature. It is available to all of us and exists in all things. One of the reasons people universally love music is that when we listen to music, especially live music, the musician’s creative expression makes contact with the

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Rothko - Violet, Red and Green

JOAN OF AUDIO creative energy that lives inside each one of us. It awakens in us a deep sense of beauty, awe, passion, imagination and inspiration. We feel a kinship and a resonance with the musician and the music. The truth is we are all creative. We all have an innate urge to create and live meaningful, creative and harmonious lives. Live music ignites our own passion and creativity by showing us that it possible. This brings me to the next reason why live music is the perfect antidote to our current trend of being plugged into our computer devices consuming virtual realities, instead of having real-life experiences with other people. A live performance is a participatory one. When we enter the venue of a live performance, whether small or large, we already begin to feel the excitement mounting as the audience makes its way in. We look around for the stage, and are immediately attracted to the stage set, the placement of the instruments, piano, guitars, percussion, a saxophone, a keyboard, etc. We see that the stagehands and sound engineers are busy making their final adjustments to the equipment and sound. We feel out the room or theater, or outdoor space, and take in the buzz of the crowd. The anticipation is palpable. Right before the musician(s) enter the stage, a silence descends upon the crowd. Everyone is present. The musician(s) enters, and the crowd erupts with applause and cheers. Love is in the air! The music begins, most of the audience recognizes the song, and cheers and whistles erupt again. The audience sometimes sings along, dances, sways, cries, or becomes supremely quiet so as to hear and feel every sound and nuance. In return, the musicians

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respond to the reception and energy of the crowd. A collaborative and synergetic union envelops all who are present. The more engaged the musicians become in playing their music for the audience, the more deeply the audience feels its effects and responds. It is an utterly unique and creative living experience that is unrepeatable. In fact, you won’t ever hear it the same way again. And, if it is not being recorded, you will never hear it again at all. If you rarely go to hear live music, now is the moment. Our lives are moving faster and further away from what is real and alive. Many of us spend a good part of our lives at work, in buildings and rooms with little natural light, tethered to a computer screen, discussing data and how to increase profits, instead of discussing people and how to make lives more fulfilling and sustainable. I strongly encourage you to listen to more live music. Venture out and find some good quality local venues. There are so many enormously talented jazz and classical independent local artists playing at smaller venues where good seats are affordable, and the sound quality in the room is exceptional. Also, these musicians will truly benefit from your support and your presence. Let us not lose our capacity to recognize and value our own creative life force. Live music can show us that an infinitely creative reality is here for the making. May the source be with you.

AKRM

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VID EO CO MPO NEN T SHORT & SWEET REVIEWS

elcome to AudioKeyREVIEWS! Magazine’s video component review, our first. In this respect, we ask for your patience as we feel

things out and adjust to the tenor of the ‘video reviewing’ times. That said, we will approach the reviews from a perspective of brevity, efficiency, and, as always, getting to the dessert of the review—the sound—as quickly as possible. The various reviews will include products of all types—speakers, DACs, amplifiers, preamplifiers, headphones, IEMs, portable audio, etc.—and from manufacturers across the wide world. And in holding with our review philosophy, if a given component does not review well, rather than flame it or write a bad review we will return it to its manufacturer with the caveat, that, perhaps, our system synergy was not able to show it in its best light, or our quite subjective criteria was not met. And nary will a negative word be said against it. There is far too much negativity in the world and we do not wish to contribute to it. The reviews, in general, will be no longer than 5 minutes, as it is not about us but the product under review. Please do see our written component reviews for more detail.

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Vermeer - Girl with the Pearl Earring

Stereophile’s Herb Reichert says the Z10e “might be Linear Tube Audio's finest achievement so far.”

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ZMF VÉRÍTÉ The Incredible Headphone Hits Keep Coming!

By K. E. Heartsong

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he Chinese ‘curse,’ “May you live in interesting times,” is apparently at hand, as we most certainly live in interesting times. And, I imagine, that one

holds onto the keys to sanity during these times—by finding some amount of joy, something to be grateful for, someone to help, every single day. Of course, pulling oneself free of the TV (the Boob Tube) may in and of itself bring a much needed balm of ease and quiet and peace. There is also, of course, music, where one can find joy, connection, peace, and memories reflective of the times when our lives were a bit less “interesting” and fond memories which live beside our favorite music. Music has alway been transportive for me. It has taken me often to my very early years—

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as a five year old sitting on a sofa, affixed to his mom. We listened to jazz greats and sometimes the greats of blues, as my feet dangled high above the carpeted floor. Then there was rock when in Santa Barbara at my cousins’ home, where the Doobie Brothers, Marshall Tucker, Fleetwood Mac, Jefferson Airplane, Cat Stevens, Jim Croce, and others were all the rage, and those memories too bring a release of angst, a peaceful ease and comfort. The philosophical and heartfelt meanderings above bring me to my review of the ZMF Véríté headphone which I believe is an exceptional component for connecting with those aforementioned times, the music, the memories, and the finding of bliss and connection and peace. This is my second go round with ZMF. The first was with their entry level headphone — the ZMF Atticus—that was truly an earopener! Though its elder sibling—the Véríté—currently under review—is more capable, in, literally, every respect. How much so? Hold on to your seats folks. REFRAIN: Unlike most reviews, this review will be non-sequential, as it will start with how the equipment actually sounds and not the process of physically “undressing” it and/or laying out its various accoutrements, specifications, etc. Think of this review then, as a non-linear movie—Memento, Kill Bill, Pulp Fiction, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Queen’s Gambit, In the Shadow of

the Moon, etc—that, likewise, starts at the end and winds its way to the beginning.

Suffice to say, that what the ZMF Atticus did, the ZMF Véríté does a good deal better and in every respect. I will not repeat what I’ve said about the Atticus, but I could with more passion and enthusiasm and it would be true. But then this would not be a review, so much as a facsimile, a simulacrum. So… The ZMF Véríté appears to be the first iteration of a hybridization of dynamic and planar technologies. Its beryllium coated driver provides the requisite stiffness and speed, sufficient to move at planar magnetic speeds, whilst excavating entire lost civilizations of detail across soundscape after soundscape. The Véríté is fast, fast, fast reminding one, at times, of electrostatic speeds and their energy and aliveness. In truth, after listening to how electrostatics rendered live music, choral

not choose to listen to this music via other headphone types. It just wasn’t the same. The Véríté has changed that somewhat and now I venture into that area again, selectively. While the Véríté does not match the electrostatics in every way, there is not another dynamic or planar headphone that I have experienced to date that comes as close. And then there is the emotion, emotion, emotion. So incredibly immersive, so beguiling that it is as if the sound, the music rendered by the ZMF Véríté moves directly into one’s heart and soul, while keeping the left brained—the technologists/engineers/audiophiles—fully engaged. For those who may not have experienced this sensation with music, or with, perhaps, a headphone attached to an extremely capable system—Accustic Arts Player II, LTA Z10e—a listen is, indeed, in order. And it will not be necessary to access the heights of such component combos to gain an understanding of the prowess of the ZMF Véríté. It will deliver

arrangements, and symphonies, I simply did

the ‘emotionality’ of a musical experience and

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ZMF VÉRÍTE all the attendant informational cues via even DAPs and it will be spellbinding. Like its sibling, the Atticus, I listened to everything I could get my hands on and purchase (CDs) and load into my Qobuz file via ROON. And yes, like its sibling, voices were stunning and yet, there was more there, in terms of copious amounts of detail which followed in the wake of greater resolution and transparency. And the coupled warmth did steal one away from doing or wanting to do anything else or even thinking about doing anything else. And as I mentioned in the review of the Atticus, “…Every single moment with the Atticus was enjoyable! Every. Single. Moment.” This goes double for the Véríté and the choice between them would be an easy one. Yes, I played the Véríté with the Accustic Arts Player II, the LTA Z10e, as mentioned above, and what it conveyed of its up-line partners was revelatory, defined by one’s mouth being agape more often than not, being entirely lost in the music, being aware of all the spatial cues, and experiencing a sense of joy and astonishment time and time again. Please know that this is a most rare occurrence for a ‘jaded’ music lover. The ZMF’s Véríté volumetric cube— soundstage—is more vast and encompassing still than its little brother’s—the Atticus. It brings intimacy on the level of planars and, dare I say, at moments, on that of electrostatic headphones as well. And this I would never

are truly superb and again far beyond the Atticus. And where the Atticus peeked in or touched down for microseconds on the world of electrostatics, the Véríté stares into that world and lingers a bit longer. I cannot think of a dynamic or planar headphone that combines its talents or its electrostatic-like delivery. Nor has the whole-cloth coherency of an electrostatic ever been so close at hand with a dynamic headphone. I have listened mouth agape on many an occasion to the Véríté and I relish continued listening after a review piece. The ZMF Véríté was partnered with the Accustic Arts Player II CDP (review coming), ROON Nucleus Plus, the Mola Mola Tambaqui DAC as both DAC and balanced headphone amplifier, the Bricasti M1 DAC, the LTA Z10e HPA/integrated, MEZE Empyrean, MEZE LIRIC, Rosson Audio RAD-0, ZMF Atticus, ZMF Atrium (review coming). Cabling was Audience Front Row and power conditioning was handled by the RSX Power8 and the TORUS RM20. BASS Tumultuous. Propulsive. Eiji Oue’s “Infernal Dance of King Kashchey” (Stravinsky, Reference Recording) opens and there is the portent of power in the low rumblings of the orchestra, where often there is not. The stage is deep and wide, the layering and positioning superb. Tone and timbre are rich and natural. Enters the assault of “Infernal Dance of King Kashchey” and via the massed tympani it is

have thought. Imaging, separation and layering tumultuous, propulsive, beautifully resolved,

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ZMF VÉRÍTE and fast! Interestingly, its streamed version does not carry at all the same weight as the CD via the Accustic Arts Player II, nor the resolution! The CD brings tremendous bass weight and easily reaches to sub-bass depth and on to the Holy-Bass-Head-Grail with the

be “full-bodied, opulent, and sexy.” Olafur Arnalds’ “Árbakkinn” (Island Songs, Mercury

Véríté. Further, no detail is missed or obscured right across the frequency range, so refined, nuanced, and capable is the Véríté. And when power is called for the Véríté summons it easily. It is impossible to stop listening to the entirety of this CD and the next.

that I have ever heard. Poet Einar Georg Einarsson recites his poem with warmth and richness, and yet there is exacting resolution and detail that place him or, perhaps, me in Iceland, listening but a few feet away. Voces8 “Prayer to a Guardian Angel” (Lux, Decca)

MIDRANGE Spacious. Resolving. Natural. Immersive. If the ZMF Véríté’s midrange were a wine, it’d be a 2018 Harbison Estate ‘The Trail’ Cabernet

(Universal France)) is given perhaps the most moving rendition via the ZMF Véríté and the Accustic Art Player II (not available for the STAX SR-X9000 review) and the LTA Z10e

follows via CD and it too is compelling and induces an eyes-closed, peaceful, momentary catatonia. It is hard to rouse oneself from this playing. The Lux album plays through and then the Voces8 Enchanted Isle album plays

Sauvignon Oakville. In other words, it would

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ZMF VÉRÍTE through, and, though contemplated, the hour and its handling of dynamic swings are fast, is late, and an overlong day holds off play of fast, fast as though lightning flashes, which the Eventide album. Again this is an area where make the Atticus seem slow in comparison. dynamic and planar headphones often fear to Few headphones could, however, keep pace. Its transparency, its ability to bring finely resolved focus and thus detail to track after track brought discovery and a newness to the very familiar. This, coupled to its analog richness, made each experience immersive and captivating. And the Véríté’s ability to infuse air into live performances and choral pieces and symphonies once again posed a challenge even to electrostatics! Though the air that the Top-Of-the-Line (TOTL) STAX SRX9000 provides on choral arrangements, live performances and symphonies goes, to date, very much tread—choral—so accomplished are unmatched. electrostatics here, but the Véríté shows no Vilda Frang’s “Allegro Molto” (Veress: String fear. Trio - Bartók: Piano Quintet, Alpha) and its The ZMF Véríté is faster than its immediate rapid, transient pulses—knuckle raps, plucks, brethren—dynamic headphones—faster even drumming upon violin or cello, and bowing— than planar headphones, and as fast, at times, and dynamic shifts are handled with aplomb. as electrostatics, and it brings a weight and And again there is weight and detail and palpability and a richness that electrostatics resolution—as though sunlight crossing over themselves, save the STAX SR-X9000, cannot and exposing a dark intricate mosaic. The match. Shocking! The ZMF Atticus was Véríté’s rendering is also visceral and startling. exceptional. The Véríté is better still and in Far too many headphones, regardless of every respect. Truly shocking! modality, do not appear to curate these various TREBLE+ combined traits. Dave Brubeck’s “Take Five” (Time Out, Columbia-Legacy) saunters in Fast. Extended. Transparent. Air-infused. Across the treble region the Véríté’s transients

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well, and pulsing. Paul Desmond’s sax weaves texture, tone, timbre in an entrancing dance that, via the Véríté, the Player II, and Z10e, is, no doubt, the envy of snake charmers the world over. Meanwhile, Brubeck and Wright, spotlit and layered, provide gravitas and drive. Bravo! CONCLUSION Gorgeous. Incredibly transparent, resolving, detail rich, fast, fast, fast, and astonishingly musical. The sum of the Véríté’s talents speak to something other than a dynamic headphone, something imbued with a good measure of the planar magnetic tribe, and, at times, the electrostatic tribe as well. An exceptionally talented chameleon able to meet the task at hand with all its best skill forward! The Véríté is a TOTL headphone that will sound marvelous with a DAP, but it will be at its very best with top-flight, read, TOTL components of uncompromising abilities— Accustic Arts Player II, Mola Mola Tambaqui, Bricasti Design M1, Enleum AMP-23R, LTA Z10e, etc.

Without further ado, we award the ZMF Véríté our highest honor—the DIAMOND AWARD for all that it embodies. And a heads up, its recently debuted big brother—the Atrium— listened to side by side with the Véríté is, well…!!! You’ll have to wait for that review. however, the SE180 fully deserves the award, regardless. Pros: Musicality, transparency, dynamics, speed, sound staging, imaging, the incredible beauty of the delivery of the music, the Seahorse case. Cons: None. THE COMPANY ZMF ZMF Véríté ($2499.99) www.zmfheadphones.com contactZMF@gmail.com

AKRM

The ZMF Véríté is, undoubtedly, a step above its sibling in every respect— transparency, resolution, transient speed, detail retrieval—whilst not for a nanosecond being anything less than extraordinarily musical. This then is another salute to ZMF with regard to its ability to produce gorgeous, heirloom quality headphones that happen to sound even better than they look! And that is no small feat.

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Alta Audio is proud to announce the Alyssa monitor is the recipient of an Editors’ Choice Award from The Absolute Sound. “Longtime readers know that I rarely go gaga over anything I review, but I must admit the Alta Alyssa loudspeaker is something special. For many audiophiles it could well be the loudspeaker that enters their listening rooms and never leaves. It is simply that good.” —STEVEN STONE, The Absolute Sound

THANK YOU FOR THIS ESTEEMED HONOR.

For further information, visit altaspeakers.com.

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he British speaker company Spendor is not only one of most iconic brands, but it continues to thrive today. The company was founded in the early 1970’s by Spencer and Dorothy Hughes. Hence the

in their A and D lines. We received a pair of their A2 floor standing model in for evaluation, and it took up residence in our home for several months. Full disclosure, I am a big Spendor fan. I have owned three pairs of their

name Spen(cer) and dor(othy). Hughes was part of the BBC research team in the 1960’s that developed one of the most famous designs in HiFi, the LS3/5a two may monitor. Spendor currently has a full suite of loudspeakers ranging from BBC legacy designs in the Classic line, and more recent products

speakers, and currently still own a pair of S3/5R stand mount monitors. The A2 sell for $2395 a pair. The A2 is a small floor stander, it only stands 30 inches tall, without spikes, with a slim profile. It is a 2 way design, with a back firing port. The published specs say that it

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Robert-Doisneau

SPENDOR A2 SPEAKERS reaches down to 36 Hz, and is fairly easy to drive, with an 8 Ohm impedance rating. The A

A2 were positioned six feet apart, with no toe in to start. We experimented with toe in, but

line is available in several finishes, and our review sample arrived with a very nice black oak veneer.

ultimately had them firing straight forward. They settled in right away as these had been broken in quite nicely before we received them. We paired the A2 with our Audio Research VS55 tube amp, a Channel Islands Audio passive preamp, a Marantz HD-DAC1 / Sonore microRendu combo, a Rega P3 turntable with

SET UP & LISTENING: From past experience, setting up Spendor speakers is as stress free as it gets. They have tended to sound very good regardless of placement. Even on a bookshelf, literally. The

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a Lounge Audio phono preamp, and Audio Art Cables. The A2 and the Audio Research amp were such a complimentary combination, we stuck with it. Everything was plugged into an Audience power conditioner. When I first received the A2, I was curious as to what Spendor had done with their design, having heard only the Classic and D lines extensively in the past. There was no need for concern that Spendor had gone in a new direction, as the A2 proved to be a Spendor through and through. All the elements I associate Spendor with were there, namely, smoothness, superb tonality, and most of all, a beautifully coherent presentation. To begin my listening, I cued up an extensive list of high resolution classic rock and folk remasters, as well as vinyl. The playlist included The Moody Blues, Fairport Convention, Steeleye Span, Pink Floyd, early Rod Stewart, Grateful Dead, Jeff Beck, and many more. What became apparent was how the A2 painted a superbly balanced sound picture, with acoustic instruments and voices sounding particularly present. The Mobile Fidelity SACD remaster of The Jeff Beck Group’s legendary Truth, is an

long buried recorded detail emerged, like the cascading reverb decays, nuanced drum fills, and various other little details in the mix. We then took a different direction, and cued up recent recordings, all 24 bit, by several young talented artists. One such spectacular album, The Shadow Vol I, by the Tronosonic Experience, an instrumental fusion ensemble from Oslo, Norway. They explore Miles Davis Bitches Brew era improvisation, funk, and progressive rock. The D2 was right up to the task, with the electric bass, horns, and the syncopated beats all handled with aplomb, and with excellent overall impact. The homespun, pastoral folk rock of Walker & Wylde is in peak form on their new release, Second Hand Existential Crisis. The recording is free from clutter, over compression, and slick production, and the acoustic textures were tailor made for the D2. The guitars, upright bass, and percussion all had very nice body, and the co-lead vocals were easy to differentiate. We finished our time with the A2 with new acoustic jazz, including Christian McBride’s just released Live At The Village Vanguard, a 96 kHz download. The recording is outstanding, with the live interplay of McBride’s masterful band, Inside Straight, driving the groove home, and the arrangements turning on a dime. The Spendors made this album sound like a band on stage, at their peak, with each instrument

unexpected revelation. This album has been reissued numerous times, but MoFi seems to have extracted the most we have heard from the master tape to date. Rod Stewart’s lead vocal is an undeniable powerful presence, and Beck’s guitar is front and center. The Spendors getting the correct tonal presentation and with perfectly rendered the classic analog vibe, and all the dynamics you could ask for from a small

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SPENDOR A2 SPEAKERS speaker. In the end, the A2 made it a pleasure to listen to any genre of music, and for extended periods of time. I decided to compare the A2 to my standmount S3/5R, and the results were as I expected. Both speakers were cut from the same sonic cloth, but the D2 had more definition, especially in the midrange, went deeper into the low frequencies, and was essentially a modern update to the legendary Spendor sound. Thankfully, Spendor has produced these speakers as an evolution, not a revolution. In fact, we would now like to hear the standmount A1, the smallest speaker in the A line, to compare. Perhaps the ultimate strengths of the Spendor A2 are imaging and coherence. To our ears, everything just sounds correctly sorted out. No furrowed brows, and no areas of the frequency spectrum that felt under served. The A2 are a great example of what makes two way speakers so appealing, and that is the seamless, articulate presentation of music. CONCLUSION: The Spendor A2 is one of the most delightful speakers I have had in my system. In fact, I have not heard speakers I have enjoyed as much at this price point, other than several Magnepan models. Magnepans, however, do require more set up consideration, and plenty of amplifier power. The A2, in contrast, is very easy to integrate into virtually any appropriately sized room, and will pair with

any high quality amplifier over 25 wpc. The A2 were a perfect fit for my medium sized room where I keep my second system. With a much larger room, the A2’s big brothers, the A4, or A7, would be more appropriate. For intimate listening situations, the A2 performed effortlessly. Spendor does not strive to dazzle with bombast, or artificial sizzle. They are like the sonic equivalent of the most comfortable pair of shoes in your closet. They make you want to listen to music for hours on end, day after. As a nice plus, the A2 are built to a high standard, with nice craftsmanship, and attention to detail. All Spendor products are designed and manufactured in their factory in the U.K. In fact, all the key components are also made in house. The Spendor A2 is a must audition for listeners who are looking for a modern rendition of the classic British sound. Manufacturer: SPENDOR spendoraudio.com Contact: Rob Fritz, Audio Art Cable audioartcable.com AKRM

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Paul-Cézanne -Vue sur L’Estaque et Le Château

San Francisco

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Schaumburg, Illinois

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SOME OF THE FACES AT Renaissance Schaumburg Hotel & Convention Center

un! Yes, it was also business but it was good fun as well. I met people that I had emailed for over two years and people whose voices had become very familiar to me but whom I could never have identified, if they were walking beside me down a street. It was wonderful to meet them all. It was also great listening to the music of various systems, discovering new companies, and introducing AudioKeyReviews (AKR) to the Hi-End community. We are, it seems, a good bunch of folks for whom music is impetus, passion, calling, and life’s work. As mentioned, this is the first show for AKR though not my first show by any stretch of the imagination. In this respect, I was the “Press” gathering materials—photos, videos, and interviews—for the AKR website, magazine, and our social media channels. There was also, of course, the very subjective determination of those manufacturers whose rooms qualified as very good and/or “Best of Show.” I was only able to spend time in a fraction of the rooms at AXPONA, so this represents but a fraction of a fraction of the rooms. And as my video skills are amateur, at best, I humbly ask your indulgence. Though, I assure you those skills will improve. Lastly, but certainly not least, I’d like to thank the good folks at AXPONA, who provided for a wonderful venue and were consummately helpful and courteous. Thank you! Without further adieu the AKR AXPONA show report.

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Van Wassily Gogh -Kandinsky Vue sur L’estaque - Giclee et Blue Le Circle Chateau

AV Luxury Group

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Ayre

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Constellation

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Burmester 24

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Spatial Audio 15

Jackson Pollack- Drip Painting

Alta Audio 25

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Malbork Design

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SOTA Turntables

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SOME OF THE COMPONENTS

SOME OF THE COMPONENTS 16

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RECOMMENDED

COMPONENTS

elcome to AudioKeyREVIEWS Magazine’s

Recommended Components, which will become part and parcel of each of our various issues. The purpose of this section is to acquaint the reader with products—speakers, DACs, amplifiers, preamplifiers, turntables, headphones, IEMs, streamers, portable audio, etc. —that we feel are quite exceptional and rise above their like brethren. There will be three categories—Budget, Mid-Tier, and Top-Of-The-Line. In our Budget Recommendations there will be products that compete far above their respective price point and are, generally, also built to reflect this.Our Mid-Tier Recommendations will encompass those products within arms reach, in terms of relative affordability, that present value and a challenge to the vanguard of their respective product niches. Finally, our TOTL Recommendations will be composed of those products that are at the cutting edge of technological advancement now happening across the world. The three categories of recommendations will rotate across the various issues of our magazine and there will also be a fluidity to the products within the various lists. Things change and especially now given our current technological epoch. The various lists, however, will be fixed on the AudioKeyReviews.com website.

Joan Shelly

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BUDGET COMPONENTS RECOMMENDED 30 29

BELOW $300

1. iBASSO IT00 $79: Its match will not be found within its price range, but at, perhaps a three to four multiple of its retail price. This, of course, speaks to the fact that there is quite a lot packed within these tiny shells. 2. AudioQuest DragonFly Black $99: The DragonFly Black represents a beautiful solution for those wishing to rescue their computers and ‘smart devices’ from the purgatory of ‘unmusicality’ to the ‘garden,… of musicality, plain and simple. 3. iFi Hip-DAC $149: The iFi Hip-Dac ($149.99) is, indeed, a smooth, musical operator and though not the last word in transparency, it will not embarrass itself in any genre or over any piece of music and that is, indeed saying a lot! 4. FIIO Q3 $149.99: The FIIO Q3 ($149.99) will lift any and all smartphones and computers and iPads to stellar heights. And at its current price point, it should be written upon anyone’s short list, who is looking to upgrade the sound quality…. 5. AudioQuest DragonFly Red $199: The DragonFly Red represents the next elevator stop up from the Black in terms of its dynamics, transparency, and how it engages. For those who seek to go beyond the limitations of their computers…

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Henri Matisse - The Blue Window

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BUDGET COMPONENTS RECOMMENDED

BELOW $300 (CONT’D)

6. Nordost Sort Kones 3 for $267: I dare you to place a set of three SORT KONES under each component in your system and then try to take them away. Hint. Once you have heard the change, you’re going to need the help… to take them away. 7. FIIO FD5 IEM $299: The FiiO FD5 from a design, aesthetic, build, and operational perspective is, indeed, a flagship product. It also provides a wealth of accessories that few flagships have, to date, matched. 8. iBASSO AM05 $299: The AM05 is very well made, aesthetically quite beautiful, and provides for one of the most easy to place and most comfortable fits for an IEMs that we have ever reviewed. 9. AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt $299: Music via the DragonFly Cobalt will very much engage heart and mind and soul, above that of both its brethren, with a rich, natural, and transparent musicality that is highly addictive. 10. Clarus Audio CODA $299: The Clarus CODA is much more than anticipated, For the price, its decoding Strengths, its musicality, solid build, the CODA has few if any competition at its price point., very highly recommended!

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MAGICAL SYNERGIES 33

Magical măjʹĭ-kəl▶ Of, relating to, or produced by magic.1 Syn•er•gy sĭnʹər-jē▶ The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.2

or us a Magical Synergy represents two foremost and not professionals who produce components or more, that together music or movies for a living and require make music far above what either make different synergies, nor do measurements separately. Generally, we’ve discovered Magical come into determination for us of what is a Synergies via reviews, where we mix and good Magical Synergy and what is not. No, for match a good number of components to this we determine by ear, heart, and soul, that determine how one of the components—the which moves us, provides for that “vibrational” component under review—sounds. comfort food, and a rich and engaging musical And while there may be strengths and experience. The experience should, of course, weaknesses between the various combinations, come with sufficient detail and resolution and the Magical Synergy represents that fidelity to recreate venue and/or the experience combination which has very few if any of listening to live music, when appropriate. weaknesses and a wealth of combined After a long and trying day in this topsy-turvy strengths. world, wouldn’t it be wonderful if some small In this respect, we’ve done the homework measure of nirvana could be achieved through for the reader by evaluating numerous one’s music and the components that play it combinations to uncover the Magical Synergy, back? as many of you may not have the time, options, or financial wherewithal to make these determinations. And Magical Synergies are not always uncovered in our reviews and or our research, as they tend to be, well, rare. A note on the various Magical Synergies that we uncover. We are music lovers first and

In other words, our Magical Synergies do not render music that is dry, unengaging, subtractively neutral (see dry, boring, etc.), flat, or lacking in dynamics, when called for. Please find for your review a number of Magical Synergies below.

1, 2 The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

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MAGICAL SYNERGY BELOW $200

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MAGICAL SYNERGY BELOW $2,500

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MAGICAL SYNERGY BELOW $5,000 28

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Imogene Cunningham- Three Dancers, Mills College, 1929

IN THE NEXT ISSUE

6 3

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AUDIO

1. SPATIAL AUDIO X4 Speaker 2. GRIMM AUDIO MU1 Streamer 3. MOLA MOLA Kaluga Amplifiers 4. DENAFRIPS Terminator Plus

6. QLN 1 Monitor Speaker 7. ACCUSTIC ARTS POWER 1 Integrated (not pictured) 8. TRI-ART AUDIO B5 Integrated (not pictured)

INTERVIEWS

5. BLUE HAWAII SE Headphone Amp

9. BRICASTI DESIGN M1SE DAC (not pictured) 10. And other reviews, columns, interviews, videos, etc.

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KLIPSCH AUDIO DSD

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Music is art, art is music.

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