When it comes to hi-fi accessories, it pays to make smart choices. There are certain products, painstakingly developed by highly skilled audio engineers, which have the potential to transform the sound of your system so dramatically that you’d be forgiven for wondering if it’s the same system. US magazine The Absolute Sound singles out several such inventions in its 2024 Buyer’s Guide.
Category Archives: Sound Fowndations
Changing the analog game: The Absolute Sound’s Buyers’ Guide 2024 singles out the genius of DS Audio’s optical cartridges
Japanese innovators DS Audio launched their first optical phono cartridge onto the worldwide hi-fi stage back in 2013. Since then, designer Tetsuaki Aoyagi has continued to advance and refine the state of the art, achieving level after level of ground-breaking – and arguably peerless – sonic performance.
DS Audio replaces Master 1 optical cartridge with new third generation, ‘semi-flagship’ Master 3
PRESS RELEASE: DS Audio’s Master 1 optical cartridge was originally launched as the brand’s flagship model in 2016. Since then, flagship status has been justifiably captured by the peerless Grand Master and Grand Master Extreme models, featuring DS Audio’s ‘third generation’ of optical cartridge technology. Now, the Master 3 brings the brand’s third generation features down a price point, bestowing the new Master 3 with ‘semi flagship’ status.
A rare peek behind the scenes: Michael Fremer tours Clearaudio’s German factory
This year, German analogue innovators Clearaudio celebrate 45 years of being at the leading edge of high-end audio. Rather than mounting their usual main floor exhibit at the Munich High End show, this year the company chose instead to throw its own event before the show for its distributors, customers and friends around the world. The Absolute Sound’s Michael Fremer was among those invited to attend and, for those not lucky enough to be there in person, he kindly made a video of his experiences, featuring some fascinating insights into the company’s people and processes.
Continue reading A rare peek behind the scenes: Michael Fremer tours Clearaudio’s German factory
Top ten: The Absolute Sound’s annual Buyers’ Guide highlights its latest hit-list of Clearaudio turntables, cartridges and accessories
Each November, US audiophile magazine The Absolute Sound showcases a selection of the world’s best audio components in its annual Buyer’s Guide. In the just-published 2024 edition, German brand Clearaudio remains at the leading edge of all things analogue with a raft of highly recommended turntables, phono cartridges and accessories.
New from Furutech: NCF Clear Line-RCA & -XLR passive signal line optimizers
PRESS RELEASE: Furutech’s Clear Line range was first launched in 2020 with the NCF Clear Line AC optimizer, a compact device designed to instantly enhance the quality of your system’s power supply. Now, the new NCF Clear Line-RCA and -XLR extend the range, honing in on the quality of your system’s signal line.
Continue reading New from Furutech: NCF Clear Line-RCA & -XLR passive signal line optimizers
“Phenomenal”: The Absolute Sound spends quality time with Clearaudio’s upgraded Goldfinger Statement V2.1 MC cartridge
The Goldfinger Statement v2.1 is the new edition of Clearaudio’s flagship phono cartridge, elevating Peter Suchy’s original cartridge patent to new heights of performance, and featuring a ‘world first’ in design. The Absolute Sound’s Jonathan Valin now has a new favourite.
“It changes the analog game”: DS Audio’s Grand Master Extreme optical cartridge wins The Absolute Sound’s Golden Ear Award 2023
‘Game-changer’ is something of an over-used term, but in this case it’s completely justified. DS Audio’s new flagship optical cartridge “changes the analog game in profound ways,” says US audio magazine The Absolute Sound, and is “one of the, if not the, best cartridges extant.”
“Hi-Fi Choice Recommended”: Neville Roberts enjoys Furutech’s new high-end CF-601M and CF-602F NCF XLR connectors
Furutech’s new top-of-range CF-601M and CF-602F NCF XLR connectors feature the company’s own Nano-Crystal Formula (NCF), an innovative anti-static and anti-resonance material designed to reduce noise and improve imaging and soundstaging.
“Extreme epiphany”: Ken Kessler is ‘stunned’ by DS Audio’s Grand Master Extreme optical cartridge in Hi-Fi News
“How to upgrade the ‘ultimate’ optical pickup?” ponders Ken Kessler in the October issue of Hi-Fi News. DS Audio’s Grand Master is already peerless in both technology and sonic performance and yet, with a single change, designer Tetsuaki Aoyagi has once again upped his own game.
David Denyer PR | The hi-fi specialist 