THE REVIEWS
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THE FOCAL STELLIA - REVIEW
The FOCAL Stellia, from wrapping box to speaker cups to headband, is gorgeous! FOCAL has done a magnificent job in designing every aspect of this, decidedly, high-end headphone, which as I’ve mentioned above, should never be worn on the street and certainly not in a big city. Unless, of course, you are a thrill-seeker and don’t mind the prospect of your headphones and DAP going missing (read: being stolen after your mugging).
STAX SRM-T8000 - REVIEW
The STAX SRM-T8000 is, decidedly, the TOTL of the STAX energizer line, as it incorporates all that its siblings do, in terms of transparency, resolutions, transient speed, etc. and on a level far above them all. The SRM-T8000 is an apex musical component that ticks the boxes across, well, all relevant parameters and then provides a near transcendental listening experience. At least, it did so for me.
TRI-ART AUDIO P-SERIES INTEGRATED - REVIEW
If you’ve got the scratch—money, loot, bing-bings, dollars, coin—you may want to avoid some of those time-honored brands, whose parts are nowhere close to the parts or thought or environmentally friendly approach envisioned and employed by Tri-Art Audio in the Tri-Art P-Series Integrated/Headphone Amplifier.
STAX SRM-700S - REVIEW
Count me twice surprised now by a tubed electrostatic headphone amplifier—STAX SRM-700T—sporting 6SN7 tubes in the power role and now by a solid state electrostatic headphone amplifier—STAX SRM-700S—that stands at the doorway of two worlds—tube and solid state—though it is bereft of a single tube but can, nonetheless, speak both world’s languages rather fluently. The STAX SRM-700S is an extremely capable earspeaker energizer that, simply, must be heard.
KLIPSCH HERITAGE DSD HEADPHONE AMP - REVIEW
At $574, the Klipsch Heritage DAC / Preamp / Headphone amp is one of the most satisfying audiophile products we have ever auditioned under a grand. In fact, we purchased this unit, as we really could find no flaws. Sure, a “deluxe” version with a linear power supply and remote would be nice, but that is strictly a luxurious wish.
ROGUE AUDIO RP-5 TUBE PREAMPLIFIER - REVIEW
The Rogue RP-5, at $3500, is a tremendous value. The field in that price range is rather crowded for tubed components, but we believe Rogue has a real class leader here. The sonics are outstanding, and the build is off the charts good. What sets the RP-5 apart is the coupling of great sound with a treasure trove of features.
SONORE MICRORENDU 1.5 - REVIEW
The microRendu 1.5 is clearly a superbly transparent streamer, that, when connected to a quality DAC, will make listening to a networked library a breeze. With onboard apps in SonicOrbiter, one can use the 1.5 in a variety of settings…with Roon, HQPlayer, DLNA, Squeezebox Server, etc.