Category: DACs
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NAD Electronics D 3045 HybridDigital DAC Amplifier Review: Flexible And Affordable
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At one point in time, other than being known as one of the best stereo amplifier brands, NAD was known for nondescript grey audio components that sounded great and didn’t cost a lot of money. Features and fluff were kept to a minimum, with the bulk of the budget put into high-current amplification. That way…
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Audiolab 6000A In The House: A Truly Versatile Integrated Amplifier
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35 years ago, Audiolab shook things up with their 8000A Integrated Amp, a product still revered today for its bulletproof build quality and high-end sound. Now they have distilled the essence of the 8000 series down (along with adding digital capabilities!) into the more affordable 6000 series, and the $899 6000A Integrated Amplifier is the cornerstone.…
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Get This High-End Audiophile Headphone At A Bargain Basement Price!
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in Best Buys, Budget, DACs, Deals, Headphone Amps, Headphones, Hi-Fi, Hi-Res Music, MQA, Music, Portable AudioWhen The AudioQuest Nighthawk Carbon Headphone first came out a few years back, it used to routinely sell for $699, but now you can get it at the crazy price of $299! The Nighthawk Carbon is a bonafide audiophile headphone that is not only beautiful to look at, but also provides a smooth, warm sound…
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PS Audio Sprout100 Integrated Amplifier In The House!
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Ever since the first version of PS Audio’s Sprout Integrated Amplifier was announced back in 2015, I was intrigued by its promise. PS Audio was a well-respected high-end audio company, with renown driven not only by great sounding gear but also by the personality of its founder Paul McGowan. Before Sprout, all of their gear…
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Triangle Elara LN01A Active Bookshelf Speaker Review-Bluetooth Speakers Fit For An Audiophile
Triangle is a French manufacturer of high-end speakers and the Elara is their entry-level series of speakers. The range is made up of both passive and active variants, and what I’m looking at today is one of the active models, specifically the $649 LN01A bookshelf speaker. They also make an active floorstanding model, the LN05A. As…
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EMOTIVA BasX TA-100 Integrated Amplifier/Tuner In The House!
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EMOTIVA is known for making some heavy duty audio gear and selling it at very low prices. Because of this, I have been really wanting to get some of their stuff in for review, and it has finally happened! This is the BasX TA-100 Integrated Amplifier (w/ tuner!) and it does a whole lot for…
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iFi xDSD Bluetooth DAC/Headphone Amp Review-Must Have Companion For Audiophile Headphones
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So not too long ago, I reviewed the iFi xCAN Bluetooth headphone amp, and today I’m reviewing its sister unit, the iFi xDSD combination Portable Bluetooth DAC and Headphone Amplifier. As I said in that review, it’s hard to tell the difference between the two by just looking at them, but basically, the xCAN is…
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NAD D 3045 Hybrid Digital DAC Integrated Amplifier In The House!
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NAD D3045 Hybrid Digital DAC Amplifier ($699) – I call it a little wonder box…Integrated Power Amp, High-Current Headphone Amp, USB DAC w/ MQA and DSD, not to mention an APT-X HD Bluetooth Reciever. There’s not much this relatively small box can’t do. I can’t wait to put it through its paces! Stay tuned for the review……
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How To Get The Best MQA Audio With TIDAL and Your iPhone (Plus A Word Regarding Android)
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in DACs, Headphone Amps, Headphones, Hi-Fi, Hi-Res Music, MQA, Music, Portable Audio, Software, Streaming, WirelessSince TIDAL added universal MQA (Tidal Masters) support to their iOS app, there has been some confusion on how to get the highest quality hi-res MQA audio stream out to your headphones or audio system. John Darko jumped right on this with an excellent explanation of why getting hi-res audio out of an iPhone can…
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TIDAL Now Supports MQA on iOS App
UPDATE: Check out my post on How to get the best sound quality from the TIDAL app and MQA! As of today, TIDAL supports the MQA (Master Quality Authenticated) Hi-Res audio format on their iOS app, bringing better than CD-Quality streaming to Apple devices like the iPhone. The following is courtesy of TIDAL & MQA:…
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HiBy W5 Audiophile Bluetooth Amp Hits Kickstarter
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Much to the chagrin of Audiophile purists, Bluetooth has firmly taken root within hi-fi, and HiBy is seizing upon the trend with a new portable Audiophile Bluetooth amplifier for headphones. It’s called the HiBy W5 and it launched today on Kickstarter with a Super Early Bird price of $59. (As of this writing, the $59…
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10 Building Blocks for Your Budget/Affordable 2-Channel Audiophile System! (2019)
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(Check out our new post on this topic: How To Build A Mind-Blowing Affordable Hifi System In 5 Steps!) While I spend a lot of time covering headphones, earphones, and headphone DAC/Amps, 2-channel audio systems are my first love. While headphones can create a wonderful listening experience, they can’t re-create the sound of a well-matched…
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Shanling Audio Intros M2x DAP With TIDAL Streaming, DLNA, Airplay, & Two-Way Bluetooth (Updated)
Shanling Audio is releasing a new version of their M2 Digital Audio Player, called the M2x, with new wireless capabilities as the hook. This will put it in competition with the HiBy R3 and Fiio M6, which sell for $199 and $149 respectively. There is no word on the M2x price right now, but the…
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iFi xCAN Portable Headphone Amp Review
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Powerful Portable Audiophile Amp with Excellent Wireless Sound Judging from my research and general discussion about the xCAN, it seems like people are really confused about what it actually is. I guess part of the confusion is the existence of the xDSD, a portable headphone amp/DAC that is more along the lines of what people…
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HiBy R3 Digital Audio Player Review
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in Bluetooth, Budget, DACs, Headphones, Hi-Fi, Hi-Res Music, MQA, Music, Portable Audio, Reviews, Streaming, WirelessGreat sound, Build Quality and Tons of Useful Features Makes This Player An Excellent Value. When the HiBy R3 campaign landed on Kickstarter early last year, it was leaps and bounds ahead of any audiophile music player in terms of features at the $200 price point. While they may have overshot the mark a bit,…
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Cambridge Audio CXA60 Integrated Amplifier Review
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Class-leading sound in the sub-$1000 price range. I purchased a Cambridge Audio Azur 540a V2 integrated in the early 2000s because I was impressed with its robust design. The thick metal faceplate and big toroidal transformer told me this amp meant business, It also didn’t hurt that it cost less than $500 at the time.…
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1MORE Receives CES Award For New Flagship Penta Driver In-Ear Headphones
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1MORE just announced a new flagship in-ear headphone at CES for which they have earned the CES 2019 Innovation Honoree Award. The new neckband-style Penta Driver In-Ear Headphones feature 5 balanced armatures per side, and have the option of either wireless listening via Bluetooth or wired via an included adapter. They also support the Apt-X…
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USB Audio Player PRO Adds MQA Support
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USB Audio Player Pro, the popular music playback app from eXtream software, now supports MQA decoding, but you will have to pay a little extra for the option. The upgrade comes in the form of an in-app purchase which costs $3.99. Once purchased, it unlocks the ability for UAPP to function as an MQA core…
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2018 Budget Hi-Fi Holiday Gift Guide
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Last-Minute Gifts for the Audiophile/Music Junkie in your life! Christmas is approaching fast, and if you are ordering online, then the time to order your gifts and have them delivered in time is approaching even faster! Here are some last minute gifts for the Audiophile in your life that won’t break the bank! 1MORE Triple…
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Review: Nano iDSD Black Label by iFi
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MQA and Native DSD playback set this mini powerhouse apart. Looking for a powerful, great sounding, DAC/headphone amp combo that handles MQA rendering and native DSD playback? Want it to be smaller than a pack of cigarettes? Want to pay less than $200? Then the Nano iDSD Black Label by iFi is not only the…