Category: Reviews
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#NewMusicFriday…New Record Releases You Need To Hear feat. Hamilton Leithauser +18 Other Artists!
Every #NewMusicFriday, I pick a bunch of the best sounding new albums so you can get your audiophile music fix!… As usual, it’s a very eclectic mix (Albums are arranged with more traditional audiophile genres like Jazz and Blues at the top, and the non-traditional audiophile stuff towards the bottom). Here are my picks for this…
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Here Are The Best Speakers, Headphones And Electronics On Sale Right Now! (4/9/20)
Best Buys, Bluetooth, Budget, DACs, Deals, Headphone Amps, Headphones, Hi-Fi, Hi-Res Music, Home Audio, Integrated Amps, MQA, Music, News, Noise Cancelling, Portable Audio, Reviews, Speakers, Streaming, VideosHifitrends.com has always been about pointing out the best values in Hi-Fi, so it’s only right that we point out the best deals on Hi-Fi every week. There’s a lot of stuff on sale out there, but we only point out the things worth buying. To determine that, we put a premium on sound quality, followed…
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Dyplay Urban Traveller 2 Review: These Inexpensive Noise Cancelling Headphones Are Outstanding!
Bluetooth, Budget, Headphones, Music, News, Noise Cancelling, Portable Audio, Reviews, Videos, WirelessLast year, I reviewed the Dyplay Urban Traveller Bluetooth Active Noise Cancelling headphones, and I was quite impressed with their value. The build quality was excellent, the noise-canceling was effective, and the sound quality wasn’t bad either. They had a few quirks, but none of them were deal-breakers. This go around I’m checking out the…
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#NewMusicFriday…New Record Releases You Need To Hear feat. Jessie Reyez +16 Other Artists!
Every #NewMusicFriday, I pick a bunch of the best sounding new albums so you can get your audiophile music fix!… As usual, it’s a very eclectic mix (Albums are arranged with more traditional audiophile genres like Jazz and Blues at the top, and the non-traditional audiophile stuff towards the bottom). Here are my picks for this…
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The Tremendous Q Acoustics 3030i Bookshelf Speaker In The House: First Impressions And Unboxing Pics!
If you read this site regularly, you know I have a thing for budget mini-monitor speakers. So I’m always excited to get a new pair in the house. Back in January, Britain’s Q Acoustics announced they were releasing the 3030i bookshelf speaker, a larger version of their popular 3020i bookshelf to which I gave a…
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DALI IO-6 Premium Wireless Noise Cancelling Headphones Review: The Ultimate Work From Home Cans?
Bluetooth, Headphone Amps, Headphones, Hi-Fi, Hi-Res Music, Home Audio, Music, Noise Cancelling, Portable Audio, Reviews, Videos, WirelessThe $499 DALI IO-6 Premium Wireless Noise Cancelling Headphones are part of the Danish speaker manufacturer’s first headphone lineup, a product line released last October to much fanfare. It shares that distinction with the DALI IO-4, which is essentially the same as the IO-6 without noise canceling. The IO-6 enters into a crowded product category,…
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5 Awesome Essentials For The Work From Home Audiophile
Best Buys, Budget, DACs, Deals, Headphone Amps, Headphones, Hi-Fi, Hi-Res Music, Home Audio, MQA, Music, Portable Audio, Reviews, Speakers, WirelessThe Coronavirus disease 2019 (also known as COVID-19) has made it necessary for many of us to shelter in place and work from home, some for the first time. I’ve worked from home for a long time, and of course, as an audiophile, music is an essential part of my workday. It makes my daily…
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Andover Spinbase Turntable Speaker System In The House: First Impressions And Unboxing Pics!
Best Buys, Bluetooth, Budget, First Impressions, Headphone Amps, Headphones, Hi-Fi, Hi-Res Music, Home Audio, Integrated Amps, Music, Power Amps, Preamps, Reviews, Speakers, Streaming, Videos, WirelessThe Vinyl revival is alive and well. Sales of Vinyl recordings have seen constant growth, and while COVID-19 may take a chunk out of sales this year, there’s no doubt that people love their records! So it should come as no surprise that there are several companies out there developing products to make listening vinyl…
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Cambridge Audio CXN V2 Audiophile Music Streamer In The House: First Impressions And Unboxing Pics!
DACs, First Impressions, Hi-Fi, Hi-Res Music, Home Audio, Music, Preamps, Reviews, Software, Streaming, Videos, WirelessThere are a couple of budget (around $500) Audiophile Music Streamers I recommend. The first is the Audiolab 6000N Play, which I consider to be the best sounding streamer in that price range. The second is the Bluesound Node 2i, which I believe to be a notch below the 6000N in sound quality. Still, it…
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Ztella Integrated USB DAC Amp Cable Review: Tantalizing Audiophile Sound For Your Smartphone!
Budget, DACs, Headphone Amps, Headphones, Hi-Fi, Hi-Res Music, Home Audio, MQA, Music, Portable Audio, Reviews, VideosLast week I found out Samsung will be the latest to pull the headphone jack from their flagship smartphones. That means if you want to listen to music on their latest and greatest devices, you’ll have to choose between Bluetooth headphones, USB-C wired headphones or a USB-C adapter (also known as a dongle) with a…
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World Premiere! The Enchanting Audio By Van Alstine SET 120 Integrated Amplifier-First Impressions And Unboxing
Budget, First Impressions, Headphone Amps, Hi-Fi, Home Audio, Integrated Amps, News, Power Amps, Preamps, Reviews, SpeakersWhile many Audiophiles, including myself, enjoy whiz-bang mass-market Hi-Fi, we should never forget the essence of this hobby lies in gear produced by enthusiasts for enthusiasts. These (usually) small scale manufacturers pour over every detail, not to meet a price point or marketing strategy, but to obtain the best possible sound for the money. One…
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Awesome! The Best Integrated Amplifiers Around $1000 (2021)
Best Buys, Bluetooth, DACs, Hi-Fi, Hi-Res Music, Home Audio, Integrated Amps, Music, Power Amps, Preamps, Reviews, Speakers, Streaming, Uncategorized, Videos, WirelessCheck out our latest list: Best Buys: Best Budget Amplifiers For Audiophiles (2022) If you’re looking to build an affordable high-performance hi-fi system, then you should be looking at a quality integrated amp to be the heart of it. The Integrated Amplifier, a combination of pre-amp and amplifier, will play traffic cop for your sources…
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Triangle Esprit Titus EZ Bookshelf Speaker Review: Their Breathtaking Natural Sound Will Astonish You!
Triangle is hot right now. The French speaker manufacturer’s new budget Borea range has been a huge hit, with tons of audio reviewers singing its praises. We made the Borea BR-03 bookshelf our 2019 Product Of The Year, and What Hi-Fi? just gave it a five-star review. Today, I’m looking at a bookshelf from the…
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Review: iFi Audio’s Hip-Dac Is The First-Class Portable Dac-Amp You’ve Been Waiting For!
Best Buys, Budget, DACs, Headphone Amps, Headphones, Hi-Fi, Hi-Res Music, MQA, Music, Portable Audio, Power Amps, Reviews, VideosLet me say this. I’ve always loved the way iFi’s portable DAC/Amps sound. I still have an iFi nano iDSD LE (currently $139 on Amazon) that I purchased eons ago, and I have heard just about every one they have put out since then, including the nano iDSD Black Label, and the xDSD. My only…
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Save A Fortune On These “Award-Winning” Bookshelf Speakers-$40 off w/ Coupon!
Best Buys, Budget, Deals, Hi-Fi, Hi-Res Music, Home Audio, Integrated Amps, Music, Reviews, Speakers, VideosWe recently named the PSB Alpha P5 Bookshelf Speaker “The best bookshelf speaker under $500”, and Stereophile awarded them “2019 Product Of The Year”, just two accolades they have received since dropping early last year. Their sweet highs, coupled with the engaging mids and weighty bass, draw you in, making for a smooth sounding speaker that…
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The Phenomenal Denon PMA-1600NE Stereo Integrated Amplifier In The House: First Impressions And Unboxing Pics!
DACs, First Impressions, Hi-Fi, Hi-Res Music, Home Audio, Integrated Amps, Music, News, Power Amps, Preamps, Reviews, SpeakersCheck out our full review of the Denon PMA-1600NE Stereo Integrated Amplifier here! As I said in my post about the Polk Audio Legend L100 speakers, I first came across the $1599 Denon PMA-1600NE Stereo Integrated Amplifier at Rocky Mountain Audio Fest. It was the amp they used to support the L100 demo, and it…
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Outstanding! The Best Bookshelf Speakers Under $500 (2021)
Best Buys, Budget, Hi-Fi, Hi-Res Music, Home Audio, Integrated Amps, Music, Power Amps, Reviews, SpeakersIf you’re just getting into hi-fi, or you’re on a tight budget, it’s a great time to be alive. Affordable audio gear has never been better, especially when it comes to speakers. Current technology allows master speaker designers like ELAC’s Andrew Jones and PSB Audio’s Paul Barton to wring amazingly great sound out of lower-cost…
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HIFIMAN Ananda-BT Bluetooth Over-Ear Planar Magnetic Review: Mind-Blowing Sound From These Amazing Wireless Headphones!
Bluetooth, DACs, Headphone Amps, Headphones, Hi-Fi, Hi-Res Music, Home Audio, MQA, Music, Portable Audio, Reviews, Videos, WirelessThe $999 HIFIMAN Ananda-BT Bluetooth Over-Ear Planar Magnetic Headphone is something of a unicorn in the wireless headphone world. There aren’t too many wireless open-back audiophile headphones out there, especially full-blown Planar Magnetic models. As a matter of fact, I can’t think of any others. If you know of another one, feel free to drop…
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The Extraordinary Polk Audio LEGEND L100 Premium Bookshelf Speaker In The House: First Impressions And Unboxing Pics!
First Impressions, Hi-Fi, Hi-Res Music, Home Audio, Integrated Amps, Music, Power Amps, Preamps, Reviews, Speakers, Uncategorized, VideosCheck out our full review of the Polk LEGEND L100 and DENON PMA-1600NE! Last Fall, at Rocky Mountain Audio Fest outside of Denver, Colorado, I had the good fortune to be there when Polk Audio unveiled their new flagship speaker line called the Legend Series. The star of the show was their new L800 “True…
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The Intoxicating Kef LS50 Bookshelf Speaker Is Back Down To Its Lowest Price Ever!
Right now, the Kef LS50 Mini-Monitor is back down to the lowest price ever on Amazon. It’s THE bookshelf speaker to get if you value beautiful midrange, big soundstage, and accurate presentation above all else. These speakers are prized amongst audio reviewers (including myself) who refuse to part with them despite having access to just…
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