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LSA 20 Statement Loudspeakers | Review

by John Richardson in Loudspeakers

So here it is, my first audio review in the COVID-19 world, and it’s a real game-changer. I’ve been listening to a lot of music using the LSA 20 Statement loudspeakers (website), yet as much solace as I’ve gotten from the music itself, I really haven’t been in much of a mood to write about it. Well, that stops now. There is hopefulness on the horizon. As a dear friend ended a recent email to me: “There is a collective grieving for the world as we knew it, but I believe [...]

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  • Von Schweikert Audio ESE Loudspeakers | Review

    June 12, 2020 // 4 Comments

    “Are you busy right now?” said the text from Von Schweikert Audio’s Leif Swanson. “Come back to the room when you can. We made a change.” This was back at the 2019 Capital Audiofest where Von Schweikert Audio and VAC were once again showing off what I call The System, approximately $1.5 million worth of high-end audio gear that usually snags Best Sound at Show Awards by an almost unfair margin. The loudspeakers that are used in The System most of the time are Von Schweikert’s own [...]

  • Trenner and Friedl Osiris Loudspeakers | Review

    June 5, 2020 // 0 Comments

    This is the final entry borne from that magical In Living Stereo room at last year’s Rocky Mountain Audio Fest. I started with the precious, jewel-like Mactone MH-120 power amplifier and XX-7000 preamplifier, continued with the mighty yet affordable Hana ML phono cartridge and now I’m finishing up with the very product that lured me into that room in the first place—the Trenner and Friedl Osiris loudspeakers. As I’ve mentioned in those other reviews, I chose to cover the In Living [...]

  • Fern and Roby Raven II Loudspeakers | Review

    May 22, 2020 // 1 Comment

    Reviewing the Fern and Roby Raven II loudspeakers reminds me of April last year, when Eric Franklin Shook and I visited the Fern and Roby factory for an article and photo essay we put together for The Occasional. Since Eric and I were driving from different directions and he was running late, I met Christopher Hildebrand at his house in Richmond VA for breakfast. When I arrived, music was playing in his living room courtesy of a Linear Tube Audio Z10 integrated amp and Christopher’s entry [...]

  • Qln Prestige Three Loudspeaker | Review

    May 15, 2020 // 5 Comments

    Last November at the 2019 Capital Audio Fest, I had a fantastic time hearing numerous amazing systems and meeting some great folks. One of the many rooms I enjoyed was hosted by Well Pleased AV and consisted of an Innuos music server, Vinnie Rossi integrated amp, and a pair of attractive yet modest looking Qln Prestige Three speakers. I found the sound to be instantly compelling.  My friend and fellow audiophile Grover Neville sat down with me to listen. After hearing about thirty seconds of [...]

  • MartinLogan Motion 35XTi Loudspeakers | Review

    April 5, 2020 // 5 Comments

    Would I like to come visit the room at the 2019 RMAF to see the MartinLogan Motion 35XTi? Sure, I thought when I read the email from Devin Zell, MartinLogan, Paradigm and Anthem Marketing Manager. There was a phase of my audiophile life where I had nearly constant seat time with many of their ESLs. I even reviewed one of their active hybrid speakers, one called the Purity. Seems like ages ago, I thought, which is why I said yes so quickly. Then I thought of something completely crazy—Devin [...]

  • Volti Audio Rival, Revisited | Review

    March 8, 2020 // 1 Comment

    A date with Volti Several years ago, I received delivery of a pair of deliciously fun loudspeakers, the Volti Audio Rival. Since that happy day, the Rivals have been in heavy rotation in my primary audio system here at chez moi. That’s kind of an odd thing to say, come to think about it, and saying that I have a pair of massive loudspeakers “in rotation” implies that I have many such. Which is pretty much the case. Honestly, I’m not exactly sure how it happened, but it [...]

  • Raven Audio CeLest’ Speakers | Review

    March 1, 2020 // 4 Comments

    In recent years, it seems that a number of audio manufacturers have made the decision to expand their product lines well beyond whatever it was that put them on the map in the first place. Such a move is bold, but can also be dangerous. In the high-end arena, this has proved to not always be a great idea, this shift to becoming “everything to everybody.” I’ll, therefore, admit to a bit of concern when the editor asked me to review the Raven Audio CeLest’ loudspeakers, a well-known [...]

  • Daedalus Audio Apollo Speakers | Review

    October 27, 2019 // 3 Comments

    Sometimes the timing of an audio review seems inadvertently auspicious. Such is the case of my latest project: the Daedalus Audio Apollo full-range speakers. I’ve had these lovely wooden wonders here in my home for a few months now, but other pressing projects, both audio and non-audio related, kept placing the review on the back burner. I’ve finally had the pleasure of getting a solid month of critical listening and note-taking in, and it’s time to put pencil to paper… Through no [...]

  • Fern & Roby Raven Loudspeakers | Review

    October 19, 2019 // 0 Comments

    My adventures with the Fern & Roby Raven loudspeakers started last year, right before I left my house in Western New York to drive down to the Capital Audiofest in the suburbs of Washington DC. Minutes before I left, I double-checked the CAF website for the address so I could put it into the GPS and there it was, on the landing page, an image of a beautiful single-driver loudspeaker with glorious mid-century style wooden legs and a curiously wide baffle. It reminded me of a perfect pair of [...]

  • Olympica Nova from Sonus Faber | Review

    September 5, 2019 // 2 Comments

    The new Olympica series from Sonus Faber features a number of innovations—new drivers and crossovers, new cabinet designs and new approaches to enclosure bracing and tuning. The result is breathtaking looks and elegant sound in a compact package. [...]

  • Sonus Faber Serafino Tradition | Review

    June 30, 2019 // 2 Comments

    With the Sonus Faber Serafino Tradition in your room, chances are high you will tend to let irrelevancies slide. Like food, water, and personal hygiene. Because you will have more important things to attend to. Like how unbelievably pretty these speakers are. That really is the first and last word — these loudspeakers are the best-looking that I have ever had the pleasure of seeing in my home. They’re embarrassingly well-made. Every aspect is attended to, and the whole is so [...]

  • Amphion Argon 3S loudspeakers | Review

    February 9, 2019 // 4 Comments

    Better living through chemistry As a practicing chemist (or rather, “purveyor of chemical knowledge”), I’m quite keen on all things chemistry. My interest was piqued, therefore, several years ago when I first noticed the offerings of the Finnish company Amphion. As far as I could tell, the operation crafted speakers for both the pro audio and high-end consumer communities, and more importantly, they named their home audio products after chemical elements! Yes, lots of companies do [...]

  • Sonus Faber Sonetto II Speakers | Review

    December 30, 2018 // 17 Comments

    Nothing but the truth Should audio components always be 100% truthful to the source? Ahhh, that’s one of those questions that has resulted in untold audiophile angst, much like the supposed supremacy of analog over digital, or tubes vs. solid state. In the end, it’s ultimately up to the ear of the listener, and nothing else. If it sounds good to you, then it’s probably good. Me? I’m an unabashed truth guy. That’s perhaps why I tend to gravitate toward pro audio DACs and speakers for [...]

  • YG Acoustics Sonja XV and Dan D’Agostino Relentless

    December 2, 2018 // 1 Comment

    Do I really need an excuse to ditch Rochester just before the first major snowstorm of the season just to head down to San Diego? As excuses go, I can think on none more sublime than visiting a high-end audio dealer to evaluate a couple of state-of-the-art designs that have just been introduced. Alma Audio is nestled in the Kearney Mesa area of the city, not far from the airport. It’s a fairly new enterprise, opened in 2015 by partners Alexandre Siufy and Fabio Storelli. Along with Adrienne [...]

  • Wilson Audio Sasha DAW with dCS Bartók DAC | First Listen

    November 11, 2018 // 4 Comments

    Brian Berdan, owner of Audio Element in Pasadena California grew up in a household filled with music, his late father was a well known hi-fi  dealer, so I can suspect that he had some killer vintage gear to play around with.  Brian’s first pair of Wilson Audio Speakers were a pair of Wilson Watt 2/Puppy 1 loudspeakers that began his Wilson journey and which he still owns today.  As Brian and his wife Jennifer geared up to celebrate Audio Element’s 5th anniversary this month, it [...]

  • Wilson Audio Sasha DAW | First Look

    October 25, 2018 // 9 Comments

    It was a once in a lifetime experience about 1.5 years ago when I got to sit alongside David Wilson in his inspiring listening room and hear the WAMM Master Chronosonic. I will never forget those precious minutes with David, nothing has gotten closer to being there. In a world where many high-end companies fade away when they lose their founder, one American company is breaking the mold and demonstrating that a new generation can deliver breath-taking products, namely Daryl Wilson who has taken [...]

  • Apple HomePod Review: Smart Speaker for the High-End?

    July 28, 2018 // 8 Comments

    The Apple HomePod is reported to be an excellent sounding smart speaker, one of the best in the segment. Apparently, that's not a high bar. [...]

  • Studio Electric M4 Review | The Millennial Audiophile

    July 20, 2018 // 2 Comments

    Studio Electric looks for a higher class of consideration Call me crazy but I have a particularly unwavering bias in this hobby for sound and sound only. I do not personally subscribe to the church of audio-bling, although I don’t mind its existence or necessity in another’s sense of taste. I understand the appeal high-end-audio-jewelry and cost-no-object endeavors that embody faultless craftsmanship inside and out. I don’t fault high-end audio manufacturers for looking to one-up each [...]

  • Sonus Faber Launches Sonetto

    June 29, 2018 // 3 Comments

    The 1900 Building in Kansas City, Missouri, is the original HQ for Lee Jeans, and last week I got a tour, courtesy of Mr. Karbank, the owner. The “new” 1900 Building is a very posh and modern affair, with space for industry and a fantastic restaurant, but most interesting to you, dear reader, is that Mr. Karbank is also a client of a local Sonus Faber dealer Elevated Electronics, and that relationship allowed Sonus Faber the opportunity to bring some friends in to introduce a new [...]

  • Precision in Provo: Wilson Audio WAMM Master Chronosonic

    May 28, 2018 // 3 Comments

    Uh oh.  Something was really off. The Velvet Fog’s voice was all over the place.  The sibilance was nasty. Next I know, I am standing next to a finely made miniature metal hand crank.  Dave Wilson is telling me, “okay, now we need to go from 24mm to 27.5mm”.  I slowly and carefully turn the crank in a circle clock-wise until a very fine calibration hash mark moves between 27 and 28. I go back to the listening chair.  Dave cues up the Mel Torme track again. Ahhh, the voice is focused [...]

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