For reviews of source equipment related to tape and vinyl.
Last year I reviewed the Van den Hul The Grail phono stage, and I gave it a firm recommendation. If you’ve read that review, you’ll know that I hoped to spend some seat time with […]
Van den Hul? I finally get to review some Van den Hul? Honestly, I’m not entirely sure I’ve even heard a Van den Hul product before. Maybe at a high-end audio show or in a […]
It seems as if the better part of last year was focused on reviewing the Brinkmann Taurus turntable. First, I arranged for a series of cartridges and phono stages that would be suitable for this […]
The Koetsu Urushi Black phono cartridge reminds me that in my more pretentious moments as a journeyman audiophile, I referred to myself as a “Koetsu Guy.” This was after decades of less expensive and mostly […]
I hate being one of those high-end reviewers who hold onto gear forever, stretching the process out over months and months, waiting for other products to show up, working out whatever issues come up, and […]
Shortly after my review of the ModWright PH 9.0 phonostage (linked here), Dan Wright reached out to inform me of a new upgraded model (ModWright PH 9.0X) and asked if I’d like to listen to […]
They’ve been here for a long time, this Pass Labs XP-22 preamplifier and matching XP-27 phono stage combo. Months, maybe even a year. They’ve watched other amps and preamps and integrated amps and phono stages […]
Does anyone really NEED a $34,000 turntable/arm/cartridge setup like the Acoustic Signature Typhoon NEO, TA-5000 and Acoustical Systems Palladium? Well, of course not! Okay, let me qualify and rephrase that. If someone is a serious […]
The Allnic Audio H-5500 phono preamplifier forced me to ask myself a serious question—am I still a tube guy? Just a few weeks ago I stood in front of my ever-evolving reference/review system and wondered […]
To understand why Part-Time Audiophile is taking another crack at reviewing the Hana Umami Red, especially just a few weeks after our own Mohammed Samji reviewed it in conjunction with his Technics SL-1210GAE feature, you […]
When I first heard about Andover Audio’s SpinBase in the PTA War Room, I obviously wondered, “What’s a SpinBase?” After a quick internet search and a read through PTA’s review of the Andover Model One […]
I don’t have a story about Hagerman Audio Labs from the old days, other than the fact that they offered a product I found intriguing—an affordable tube phono stage called the Trumpet that sounded […]
The Sumiko Celebration 40 moving-coil phono cartridge entered the stable during a very busy time for analog at my place. I’ve plenty of phono preamps and step-up transformers and cartridges in for review, and we’re […]
This isn’t the first time in the last few months where I had to explain my reasoning behind reviewing a certain component. Take this new Sumiko Amethyst cartridge, a moving-magnet cartridge that retails for a […]
Why do a comparison between the Technics SL-1210GAE and SL-1200G? Everybody “knows” the Technics SL-1210GAE Anniversary turntable, which was just released last year, is better than the Technics SL-1200G. Why? Well, the classic Technics […]
“Did you ever hear one back in the day?” Tim Stinson of Luminous Audio Technology (website) asked me. He was referring to his Arion phono preamplifier, the original version which created a lot of buzz […]
To say the Technics (website) SL-1200 is a legend is an understatement. Rumor has it that they sold 3.5 to 4 million SL-1200s over its 50+ year history. Its distinct look, reliability and smooth pitch […]
The first time I listened to the ZYX Ultimate Airy X cartridge it instantly reminded me of Scot Hull’s wife, Julia. I know that sounds strange, and even Scot’s probably thinking “WTF, Marc?” right about […]
In my earlier review, I wrote about the Vertere MG-1/SG-1 turntable/tonearm combination. Here I’m going to pen about a few other offerings from Vetere (website), companion pieces I received with the ‘table and arm–the Vertere […]
The story of the ModWright PH 9.0 phono stage (website) is in many ways the story of my entry into the world of high-end vinyl playback, coinciding with my first serious turntable, then a second, […]
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