The crossover is the brain of a loudspeaker. In a traditional system, this passive network sits at the end of the chain, struggling to split a high-level signal among different drivers. Making sure each driver sees only the amplified frequencies...
When I hear the word Abyss, my mind goes straight to my favorite headphone brand, and the name is fitting. In my experience, all the Abyss models make me feel that the music I am listening to is emerging from enormous...
Headphone listening has become an increasingly significant aspect of Hi-Fi. For an entire generation of audiophiles, headphones served as their initial, and often sole, audio experience. As advancements in headphone amplifiers have progressed and manufacturers like Audeze offer models from entry-level...
One of the most common assumptions in Hi-Fi is that meaningful upgrades require replacing major components every time. New Speakers, new amplifiers, and a more expensive DAC. Those are all great upgrades, and can absolutely transform a system — but...
High-resolution streaming has never been better. Lossless and high-bit-rate files are widely available. Integrated amplifiers and streamers now include built-in DAC sections as standard. Yet one of the most common upgrade questions we hear is this: “What’s the best DAC...
To integrate or not to integrate, the question that comes up in audio on a regular basis. It can be about space, but if you're like me, and many other audiophiles, it can come down to budget. The classic, “I...
There was a time when buying floorstanders meant quietly accepting that you’d eventually “need separates.” Big speakers demanded big power. And integrated amps were seen as stepping stones. That’s not the world we’re in anymore. Modern integrated amplifiers, whether we...
Why Power Is Often the Quiet Limiting Factor in a System Power is easy to overlook because it’s shared by everything in the room. Every component plugs into the same wall. Every system starts from the same outlet. That sameness...
Why the Phono Stage Is Where the Truth Shows Up A cartridge is a little generator with a hard job. It’s pulling microscopic information out of a groove and turning it into a signal so small that everything downstream has...
