“If you take reel-to-reel seriously, do yourself a favour and give an RX reel a spin,” writes Martin Pipe in Hi-Fi World. “It takes better care of your precious tape, will aid sound quality, and could even prolong the life of your machine.”
Continue reading “Spool’s gold”: Hi-Fi World recommends RX Reels’ superbly-made tape reels
There’s no shortage of devices that produce RF noise that can interfere with the sound of your hi-fi system. Fortunately, there’s also no shortage of simple, effective and affordable solutions from Furutech.
Kerr Acoustic’s Jes Kerr came from a background as a session musician and producer, so when he turned to loudspeaker design, his focus was initially on the professional studio market. However, Kerr has since turned his sights towards home audio and on bringing professional-quality hi-fi to the music-loving listener. Reviewer Chris Frankland likes what he’s hearing.
“If you’ve never heard an MBL Radialstrahler before, then you should,” writes David Price for hi-fi webzine Stereonet. “I’ve reviewed a couple in my time in one capacity or another… they were memorable things.” The 126 is the smallest omnidirectional speaker yet developed by the company and is, says Price, “arguably the company’s most interesting product because it’s just about compact enough to be used in most people’s listening rooms.”
In the world of high performance hi-fi with high budgets to match, you might assume that an asking price of £125 wouldn’t buy you much. Think again, says Hi-Fi World, having just discovered the “hidden charms” of Topping Audio’s entry-level headphone amp.
“No matter who you are, where you are, what you do or how you do it, here are a stack of ideas on how tech can make it better,” says gadget and technology magazine T3. In its May issue, T3 offers Top 10 recommendations for ‘Best Tech’ in home entertainment, home office, fitness, gardens, the smart home, getting around and pastimes and passions. Clearaudio’s Concept turntable package features high on the home entertainment list.
Continue reading Clearaudio Concept deck in T3 magazine’s Top 10 ‘Best Tech’ for home entertainment
Ken Kessler knows a thing or two about open-reel tape, having amassed nearly 1,800 commercial pre-recorded tapes from the 1950s to the early 1980s, as well as a tape deck or three. As the tape revival continues, a trickle of manufacturers of new support gear emerges, including RX Reels: “makers of new 10″ reels, which I was driven to try, as plastic reels at that size lack precision”.
Jes Kerr is an audio designer / engineer to watch, believes The Ear’s Jason Kennedy. Most of the people who really appreciate good sound and make good sounding equipment grew up in the heyday of hi-fi in the 50s, 60s and 70s, he writes. “But there are a few exceptions and Jes Kerr is one of them.” Kerr started Kerr Acoustics in his mid-twenties and is not yet 30, yet his distinctive loudspeakers were already gracing the kind of professional studios that produce chart-topping records before he expanded into home audio a couple of years ago.
Few loudspeakers are as instantly recognizable as German brand MBL’s Radialstrahlers. “At every international hi-fi show their appearance draws crowds while the all-encompassing sound keeps visitors rooted to their seats,” writes Hi-Fi News editor Paul Miller. MBL has finally reached UK shores via specialist retailer Stranger High Fidelity, and Miller can’t wait to explore its wares “inside and out, Hi-Fi News style”. “It was worth the wait,” he finds.
Dan Clark Audio’s “sporty-looking” entry-level Aeon 2 planar magnetic headphone is available in both open-backed and closed-back versions. Hi-Fi World’s Martin Pipe takes the former for a test drive and finds it as “fast as the sports car its lines were inspired by”.
David Denyer PR | The hi-fi specialist 