While I am still on the fence re MQA, I have warmed to the TIDAL model for music exploration. Maybe I am just being more daring. But I have been impressed with the amount of new music added both in CD and Master (MQA) formats. I understand there is a question around TIDAL's longer-term viability but my opinion of they service is most positive.

But coupling up TIDAL with ROON and my new CHORD MOJO DAC, listening to new music has never been better!

Lightly used CHORD Mojo - 2018

The Mojo came with a standard-ish (short) USB cable so I thought I would swap it out for a longer and higher-quality piece. Enter the Audioquest Cinnamon USB to Micro USB cable. All good.

Great packaging and booklet

Lee begins the delivery / installation process - 2017

After a wonderful BBQ dinner and lively conversation, we settled in for a LONG listening session via the Antipodes Audio DX SSD music server with ROON for music management.

Measure & adjust, measure & adjust. Leon on the laptop - 2017

All I will say at this point is that the sound delivered by integrating the Mercury sub-woofers into the existing Kronos system exceeded my expectations. I will reserve technical and detailed sonic reviews until I have had a longer listen with a clear head!

The happy customers! - 2017

Thanks to Lee and Leon for sharing their knowledge, dedicated support and friendship over what has been an unparalleled sonic journey.

DAC1, DX and GS-1000 - 2107

The sound to my ears was a little flat (veiled) via the USB connection and I thought the overall combination was shaded by my Audioquest DragonFly 1.2 DAC/amp kit. Probably a good example of later technology over-shadowing previous generations even in a smaller form factor. It was great to be able to surf my entire library (over 1300 albums) from the iPad quickly and intuitively.

It gives you goosebumps when timeless music gets ‘refreshed’. Which in this instance means a thorough re-mixing and re-mastering. Which simplified means an improved source product meets 21st century recording techniques. And it doesn’t lose a thing and gains plenty!

To my ears, I agree with the initial reviews that both Ringo’s drums and Paul’s bass have a greater presence than the originals, but as an owner of the original MONO vinyl recording, the detail and subtleties of the arrangements of that recording have been preserved and enhanced to the benefit of this ‘new’ stereo reproduction.

I can only assume that the absolute last note of detail has been retrieved from the multiple original four-track tapes as the clarity, separation and depth of the studio ‘performance’ from 50 years ago is totally stunning. The ‘freshness’ of the sound is truly startling.

The DX in place - 2017

My configuration is obviously black finish, with 2 TB of solid state disc (SSD) and all new DXs come with USB, S/PDIF and AES/EBU digital outputs as well as a USB port for connecting NAS storage or for backups of your precious digital music library. I am still loading music and the unit is settling in well. A review and listening impressions to come shortly.

So much music, so little time - 2017

Did I mention that some titles are 'Masters' versions which I believe means MQA encoded. Whether my software and hardware can decode MQA-encoded files is to be determined but it is still (potentially) exciting. The file / data integration with ROON appears seamless.

I have heard TIDAL HiFi on similar equipment to mine and have been impressed so I will settle back tonight and listen via my MacBook Pro w/Retina display (mid 2012, 16GB memory, 512GB SSD), AudioQuest DragonFly Red DAC/amplifier, Jitterbugs and Grado RS 2e headphones, then follow up with the 'big rig' evaluation later in the week. I am on the 30 day trial but it would to have to suck big time from here for me to cancel my subscription.

Now for the challenges.

Update 1: The headphone session is now underway running TIDAL HiFi 'inside' ROON and the results are mixed I am sorry to say. CD-quality albums (44kHz/16bit) appear to play fine but the larger files generated by the 'Master' MQA process (48kHz/24bit) only seem to last a bit less than 30 seconds before causing an unrecoverable network error and drop out requiring a track restart. But the same track will fail again at or around the same spot. I have logged out of all other applications, no strange processes seem to be taking up disk, memory or network traffic according to Activity Monitor so it might just be a function of my poor internet connection. I will do more investigation on 'stripping back' my operating system and user account to see if that is possible and if so if it makes any differences. Perhaps a full shutdown and clean restart might help.

Update 2: After a full shutdown and clean restart, TIDAL Masters play successfully in the TIDAL desktop app. That is some good news, but from what I could tell from the 30 second samples previously with ROON, the latter's sound quality was clearly better. Cleaner and more vibrant (top and bottom) with a bigger image. Interestingly, the TIDAL app takes a lot longer to load a track than ROON, making me think it loads more into cache / buffers before playing therefore buying itself more time to refill the cache to keep continuous playback happening. Maybe… OK, now tried ROON again, and the chosen track gets to the 2 minute mark before failing. And no question, ROON was a significant step up. CD-quality played mostly OK but had one drop out. All this is going on at around midnight my time. That is the end of testing for tonight!

Update 3: A few options to consider to solve my problems came to mind after sleeping on it. NBN is at least nine months away so an immediate internet performance fix is not imminent. I could always use my iPhone as a modem to access the streams via a 3/4G cellular internet connection. I had heard that ROON is CPU-intensive and this may be impacting performance. This led me to consider 'lightweight' options. I have always enjoyed the sound of Audirvana Plus which has TIDAL integration and from V3 also MQA software decoding. My sense is that code is pretty lean with not much feature bloat so it might be a chance. Worth the approx. $A50 investment to try (I know, I know there is a trial available). Lo and behold the software ran perfectly and is way superior to the TIDAL app and hard to say if it is better or worse than ROON from a sound quality point of view. One nice feature is that in the playback window there is an embedded progress bar indicating the status of the stream giving some prior warning of 'connectivity' loss, but I did not experience any. I am sure that I can fine tune the sound a little more with the A+ preferences options but I am very happy so far. Negatives? I have over 200 albums in my TIDAL 'My Music' list and all album art has not loaded fully in the Album List window and metadata is not available for TIDAL albums or tracks. The 'normal' TIDAL album text and info windows are present.

The delightful Kyron Audio Lounge at Klapp AV - 2017

While it was a social and relaxed evening, Klapp & Kyron Audio arranged for a recorded music guru, Josh (sorry I missed his surname) to bring along a curated set of his prized personal (and expensive) vinyl recordings which were intermixed with TIDAL HiFi streaming digital selections. In addition, audience requests were not just tolerated but were actively encouraged.

Readers of this blog will know that I am an owner of a Kronos system, sans Mercurys. It is always a delight to hear the depth, breadth and extension that the Mercurys add to the already spectacular Kronos. On the night, vinyl probably won the sonic battle (thanks to Josh's fine taste and rare pressings) but all selections either analog or digital, without exception sounded superb. There were a couple of folks new to Kyron Audio in the audience and their stunned silence, usually followed by barely constrained expletives, indicated that they felt that they were experiencing the presence of world class music reproduction.

One aspect of the experience was telling for me. The music was played at 'robust' volume levels and after three solid hours with only a couple of short breaks for 'refreshments' my ears and brain felt comfortable without a hint of music or loudness fatigue.

Apart from the opportunity to hear stunning audio, the other benefit of these events is meeting new like-minded people, renewing old relationships and discovering interesting music. I jotted down the set list on my phone as the night went on and have now invested in a couple of new artists and albums and developed a renewed interest in the sonic benefits of TIDAL HiFi streaming.

Many thanks to Hamish Kirkpatrick from Klapp AV and Lee Gray, Co-Founder of Kyron Audio, for the fantastic evening.

Apple MacBook Pro, AQ DragonFly Red & Jitterbugs and Grado RS 2e - 2017

Before I talk about them, I should disclose that I am partial to the Grado 'house' sound and already own (and enjoy for different reasons) their RS-60, Alessandro MS-2 and GS-1000 products. So my heritage might cloud my objectivity somewhat. FWIW, I also use AKG-702 and Sennheiser HD600 via a Benchmark DAC1 USB and a Yamamoto HA-02 amplifier.

The Grado RS 2e is an open-back design with 44 mm dynamic drivers (matched to within 0.05 dB) and a nominal impedance of 32 ohms making them easily drivable by a smart device. But the output quality improves noticeably when driven by dedicated headphone amplification. My RS 2e also have the new light brown leather headband that matches and complements the mahogany ear cups and gives an even more luxurious look to the combo. The latest 'e' models come with a sturdier shielded proprietary copper braided 'Y' cable with the RS 2e terminated with a 3.5 mm mini plug. Also included in the box is a 3.5 mm to 6.5 mm (1/4") adaptor if required.

So, how are they comfort-wise? Grados have a solid reputation as being pretty uncomfortable if you believe all of the internet / blog reports. Actually I find them quite satisfactory. Although relatively light, the clamping force is tight enough that they don't move off your ears (they are an on-ear or supra-aural design) but 'gentle' enough to wear for 60 minutes at a sitting which is the maximum I listen for before giving my hearing and senses a rest.

As for the sound, taking note of the relative price and intended purpose via my associated equipment listed above, I am extremely satisfied.

Sonics / Colour
Warm side of neutral, imparting a slight (but extremely pleasing glow) to the sound. With a warmer amplifier than the DragonFly, I would imagine that 'lush' might be word that could describe the tone. Note to self, must try them with my Yamamoto!

Speed / Dynamics
Always a Grado strength and the 2e doesn't disappoint. They fairly gallop along with music imparting a toe-tapping, head-nodding rhythm that is particularly engaging.

Accuracy / Range
Top to bottom accuracy and range is not the strength of the RS 2e. The high end can lose definition and be a bit sharp, while the bass, although tuneful, doesn't go particularly low if your tastes (or musical selections) demand it. The overall balance is tuned to the mid range (think female vocals) so it is not the most accurate of reproduction devices.

Imaging / Detail
No issues here. The soundstage and instrument separation is clearly discernible and the size of the image is about what you might expect given the size of the drivers, resonance area (on ear) and frankly, the price. For example, the image commensurately increases when I plug in the GS-1000s with their larger drivers and circum-aural bowl pads. Within the presentation described in the preceding sentences, the RS 2es give a decent window into the music delivering very good and believable detail retrieval.

Engagement
This is probably the sum of the parts above and the number one reason people would consider buying Grado headphones. They are just great fun! They draw you in to the performance and make you want to listen.

Love the wood - 2017

Again, I do love Grado and am probably biased, but the proof for me is that I ALWAYS look forward to strapping these headphones on and listening through the DragonFly on my laptop and feel that I am missing very little to the 'big boys' is size, quality and price.

VAF Soundwall, really interesting - 2016

Bricasti electronics and Tidal speakers - 2016

Hilton and Project Audio room - 2016

Audio Note, always an oasis of sound - 2016

The event was saved for me by one room. Stunning (in size, cost and sound) Ypsilon pre-amplifier and mono-block power amps, matching CD player & DAC, the Audio Union Helix 1 turntable designed by Aussie Mark Dohrmann and German Physiks Borderland (I think) omni-directional speakers. The CD player was frankly a bit ho-hum but the turntable sounded pretty special with decent records (CSN live from Melbourne and Johnny Cash being a couple of standouts). But I will save the best for last. When we first walked into the room, there was a drum solo playing pretty loud in a small (untreated) hot, dark hotel room full of people and equipment. It sounded pristine, lively, clear and tuneful. I assumed it was a modern percussion track designed to demonstrate the system’s dynamics. Which it did superbly. After a couple of minutes I sensed that I had heard the track before. A bunch of blokes (my age) were rocking along with the solo and then it struck me, just before the guitars kicked in. The track was ‘Moby Dick’ by Led Zeppelin off their second album recorded in 1969. A closer inspection of the playback suite showed no records on the turntable, a static display on the CD player and there was not a streamer in sight. Then I saw it. A 25+ year old Studer reel-to-reel tape recorder / player deck. I had a mate with with me and we both agreed that this was the best sound reproduction we had ever heard. The fact that the music was a 47 year old rock album that sounded like it was recorded yesterday was borderline unbelievable. We visited the room three times just to make sure our ears weren’t playing tricks on us. No surface noise, no tape hiss, no wow & flutter, just a huge image and pin point instrument placement and clarity across the (artificial) studio soundstage. Revelatory is a word that comes to mind. 

I had read in recent audio mags that audio shows in Munich and Newport had seen a rise in exhibitors using reel-to-reel as a source. I dismissed those articles as promoting the ‘lunatic’ fringe… I am now a believer! And I want one!

The good news is that the reel-to-reel decks are relatively cheap by high end audio standards. Between $5 and $20K gets you used high class Euro gear (Studer, Telefunken etc). Sadly that is the end of the good news. The bad news is that the units are a bit temperamental and delicate and potentially need regular maintenance. There is a degree of complexity around tape width, tape speeds, matching the pre-recorded tapes EQ to the player’s reproduction settings and I am sure other issues. But the big drawback is a lack of range of tapes and their cost. $A450 to $750 per tape!!! Yikes. Practically, I would only be initially looking at 10 - 25 tapes of material that I absolutely loved and was confident in the sonic quality and provenance. Think ‘desert island tapes’...

A poor picture of some awesome technology - 2016

Over dinner my colleague and I continued to focus on the positives of what we heard and are committed to exploring the potential opportunity to get in the game. Lots more research to do however. The cost paradigm of analog LP versus tape is just swapped around. Probably long term costs are similar but in one mode you play more for the equipment and in the other you pay more for the software. But from what we heard, tape sonically kills even SoTA vinyl. I am sure my Kronos system would do the tape sound justice and take my audio reproduction to a whole new level.

Watch this space!

After hearing some new music at the Kyron Audio event recently, I was slightly taken with the Indie band from the UK, 'Elbow' so I procured three albums, 'The Take Off and Landing of Everything', 'Seldom Seen Kids' and 'Live at Jodrell Bank'. I haven't had a chance to have a full listen.

OK, on first listen, I quite enjoyed 'The Take Off and Landing of Everything'. Worried early as it started a bit melancholy and one tempo, but progressed nicely and if it was a vinyl record, side 2 is really enjoyable. Better melodies, greater light and shade and much more 'listenable' All comments are related to the music, I haven't listened hard or thought about the lyrical content yet. I am happy with this purchase.

Cued up next is 'Seldom Seen Kids'. Report to come later.

Fair say none of Elbow is 'three chords and the truth' so it is a little outside my normal genre but that is exactly why I bought it. On balance, good stuff.

Secondly, I have been considering signing on for the Bowers & Wilkins 'Society of Sound' download service for a year or more. The deal is for around $70 per annum, you get two albums per month, usually one 'mainstream' and one classical release. Worth a try to discover some new music AND have an 'asset' at the end of every year to show for it. Sorry I am just not a renter or a streamer…. I know, I am old….

The Kronos and Lee in presentation mode - 2016

Peter and Carol Fitzgerald were my guests and they were completely smitten by the ability of the Kronos to reproduce 'live' sounds and to deliver uncanny imaging from just two speakers. Peter was particularly interested in the technology and how it has been developed by the Kyron team over the years.

Lee, Greg & Leon at Burwood Music Centre - 2016

A special element of the evening was the first Australian audition of Mark Dohmann's new turntable, with the industrial design of the unit penned by non other than Kyron Audio's Lee Gray. While vinyl is not my source of choice given my aversion to 'pops and clicks' there was no question that lifelike tonality, depth and width of the reproduced image and the fluidity and flow of the music via the analog front end was truly spectacular.

Many thanks to Peter and Carol for attending, and as always thanks to Lee and Leon for their hospitality and support.

KingRex PSU and Acoustic Revive RR-888 in situ - 2016

In addition to the power supply upgrade, we also chatted about positioning of the RR-888. I had it a little over a metre off the floor sitting in the bar area. All the documentation, Peter's advice and forum discussions seem to strongly indicate that the generator should be at least 1.5 metres from the floor. That seemed no easy task for me. The only part of the listening room that reaches that height is the top of the CD rack and it is scalloped on top without a flat surface. Hmm. So I 'stole' a granite slab from the headphone system rack and rested that on top of the CD cabinet then placed both the KingRex power supply and frequency generator on the granite shelf. Looks a wee bit clunky if you stare at it but it doesn't stand out too much for the casual viewer / listener and the units are now approx 2.1 metres from the floor.

It has been in and running on power for three weeks now and I will start some critical listening shortly.

Nice - 2015

Initial impressions are very positive. It is crisp but smooth and I know that sounds weird. But after three hours listening that is my initial impression. And it has much more volume than the Kimber Select XLR analog copper cable and a little less than the Red Rose Music Silver Litz analog cable. Interesting. I do however need to re-check the DIP switches inside the Wadia just to make sure the gain settings are consistent across all of the analog & digital outputs.

I will do that and listen more and report additional findings in due course.

The master at work - 2015

One of the reasons for the health check related to concerns about dust levels in our listening room and the ingestion of said dust through the top plate of the Control Unit. The longer term solution is a simple (but of course Kyron Audio custom designed) cover for the Control Unit when not in use, but in the short term we have re-configured the equipment rack to now have the Control Unit living underneath the top shelf. Air flow for cooling is fine and in fact the whole set-up looks a lot neater as well.

More functional, secure AND neater - 2015

So all things Kronos just keep getting better. Thanks for the awesome customer support Leon & Lee and we look forward to seeing you both again when you are next in town.

The Acoustic Revive USB-1.0SP (to use it's full name) cable is an interesting beast. Separate A-connectors for power and signal from the computer (source) end, into one USB-B connection at the DAC / amp end. This cable is beautifully made, of sensible thickness (if a little stiff) with aircraft-grade aluminium plugs at all three connection points. From the Acoustic Revive website, the internal construction is stated as:

'USB-1.0SP and USB-1.0PL USB cables are equipped with a very thick 0.8Φ Solid single-core PCOCC-A conductor (the highest diameter USB cable currently available on the market) to achieve an overwhelming Dynamic range and Frequency range that was previously impossible to create by conventional USB cables.
The purity of PCOCC-A (annealed PCOCC which does not have crystal grain) exceeds the high purity copper such as 6N when it is made into a cable, and its overwhelming conductivity is far superior.
We also applied PCOCC-A as a solid single-core to avoid stray current(Strand jump phenomenon) and to achieve an accurate digital transmission, resulting in a clear and blur-less sound image, wide and deep sound field with an accurate phase and a full three-dimensional acoustic field.'

Additional materials include PE shielding and cotton internal damping. Later versions (the SPS) changed the shield and damping materials.

So what do I hear compared to my previous Kimber reference? The first trait that hit me was speed. After my years with the Zu Audio speakers, I became 'hooked' on my music having a pace that sets feet tapping and head nodding. I easily walk away from high quality reference systems if they in any way start to linger, plod along or just hold the full rhythm back in any way. Not an issue with the Acoustic Revive I am pleased to report. This also renders 'ordinary recordings / sample rates (I am looking at you MP3s)' adequately listenable as rock songs in particular can be entertaining without reaching any audiophile heights. I figured this out listening to (and enjoying) 'Bow River' by Cold Chisel off the 'Barking Spiders Live' album even as a 192 kbps MP3.

The next trick on decent recordings is, added to the speed, is detail and the starting and stopping of notes and or instruments where you hear the leading edge, the content, and the trail off. Pretty cool.

I enjoyed the tonal balance, with the emphasis on 'balance'. Probably not the weightiest bottom end I have heard but it is especially tuneful across the spectrum. Those looking for words like 'tipped up', 'euphonic', 'Stygian' are probably looking at the wrong cable with the AR. I didn't get a sense that it was in any way acting as a de facto tone control.

The logistics of the implementation of this cable can be difficult given it's relative lack of flexibility depending on where the two USB connectors are placed on your server or computer. On my mid 2013 Apple MacBook Pro, the USB ports are on either side of the keyboard base so the main issue is having enough length of cable to stretch side to side then to connect back to DAC.

Even when using headphones, soundstage and imaging are to the fore. As a lover of old Australian rock and blues I cued up '32/20 Blues' by Chain from a 30th Anniversary edition of 'Towards the Blues'. The position of guitar and harmonica in the intro can be easily heard and the separation continued throughout the track.

These impressions have been gained from my headphone system (Apple MBP, Audirvana Plus (V2.2.3), Benchmark DAC 1 USB, audiophilleo 2, Grado GS 1000, AKG 702) with the USB cable having about 50 hours burn in to date.

Now sadly as I write this the JitterBugs are still on back order with a revised shipping date of September 28. If there is any synergy and improvement with the AR USB cable then I am expecting nice things. Roll on next week!

Locked in and ready to load - 2015

Looking forward to many hours of enjoyment from these discs.

Kronos & Friends - 2015

My delivered copy of 'Sticky Fingers' was indeed in mint condition

Thanks goodness for Google (or in this case Amazon) as I found a 'mint' copy for sale in Portugal at a not-totally outrageous price. When shipping was including and with the exchange rate factored in it started to get up there, but hey, it had a real zipper! So I paid my money and took my chances. I received a Portugal Post shipping tracking number and duly waited. After two weeks, nothing, I logged on to the tracking site and found that it had been 'shipped' from Lisbon but no onward info. I was starting to become very nervous when mid week a package from Europe arrived on my doorstop, some two and a half weeks after ordering.

Did I mention the zipper?

With appropriate levels of enthusiasm, I opened the DigiKase, admired the zipper (!) and album-like sleeve insert and duly copied the album in Apple Lossless format to my iTunes library. I then fired up my new preferred digital player, Audirvana Plus 2.2 and sat back to listen. By chance I was speaking to Lee from Kyron Audio earlier in the week about how badly Rolling Stones CDs are normally recorded, produced and mastered.

I am here to tell you that this one is different, very different. I certainly wouldn't call it 'audiophile quality' but it sounded relatively open, spacious, detailed and an absolute joy to listen to from 'Brown Sugar' to 'Moonlight Mile'. I had this album on vinyl back in the day and don't recall the actual music being that good. But, in my opinion, there is not a bad track on the 10 song album.

All is not perfect however. Some of Mick's vocals are a touch harsh and / or strained. Could be the recording or it could be my laptop / USB cable front end.

One last step, for fun, is to re-rip the disc, using XLD and 'Paranoid Mode' into uncompressed AIFF format. It 'should' make no difference at all, but on a recording this good and through the transparent Kronos, even if there is a marginal improvement it will be audible. Update, I did the comparison rip and test and I heard absolutely NO DIFFERENCE between the XLD / Paranoid uncompressed AIFF and iTunes-ripped ALAC. Looks like I will be saving space and going Apple Lossless all the way from now on…

My 'Sticky Fingers' purchase has gone from just being an artist collection filler, to being a reference disc for both outstanding 1970s rock and a high quality rock recording. I couldn't be happier with the outcome.

Packaging is typically complete in Japanese fashion - 2015

Recent hype has been around a device that purports to aid human auditory responses by 'pulsing' the listening room with a Schumann Frequency (7.83 Hz), the same frequency as the resonance of the earth. Spooky stuff.

From the Acoustic Revive website:

'RR-888 changes your listening room to the sound field without muddiness and fills it with a feeling of air, reproducing a realistic sound stage where all the musical instruments are set free.'

But does it work? The answer is a definite 'maybe'.

The Acoustic Revive RR-888 in situ - 2015

The box itself is a plastic / polycarbonate case with a simple circuit board generating the frequency. The recommendation for installation is to place the device at a height of 5 feet or more. Unfortunately, I don't have such a spot available at this time so it is currently sitting at a little over 3 feet. Forum reports are fairly consistent that this is NOT the correct position. Might need to get creative…

The second limiting factor regarding performance is the size of my room. Perhaps the pulse is not strong enough to 'charge' or neutralise the room adequately to alter the listener's perceptions. Again, forum feedback recommends a second box (of any series) to be a significant (and some say, mandatory) upgrade.

The third limiting factor appears to be the included switch-mode wall wart power supply. Dedicated after market power supplies by companies such as KingRex or Channel Islands Audio are the preferred method of maximising the performance of the frequency generators.

I suspect I will go down these paths in the order of 1, 3 and 2. Option 1 should be implementable for 'free'. Option 3 is a few hundred dollar investment new, less if I can find a used box. The 1-3 combo should be enough to definitively determine whether there is a tangible change or not. If there is an improvement, then the incremental investment in a second Acoustic Revive RR unit will be worthwhile.

This brief journey has been fun so far and the results might be profound.

The build quality & fit and finish is spectacular - 2015

Those of you that have watched this Hi Fi Journal will know that I am very happy to talk in enthusiastic terms about the systems that I have been exposed to. The first aspect that strikes me about the Kyron Audio Kronos is the overall QUALITY. When you have something short term on evaluation, perhaps you focus on what is important and in that case it was sound so you focus on that. For long term ownership, sure sonics are critical but other elements come into play. Ease of use, pride of ownership, configuration / input options etc and this is where the Kronos clearly shines.

The new north/south hifi orientation in our lounge room - 2015

From the simple controls on the delightfully weighted remote, to the various analog and digital input options, to the configurable profiles for specific output variations the Kronos is at once complex, but simple to operate. Music is simply only one or two clicks away.

Kronos by night - 2015

Leon Suter dialling the Kronos to the room via DEQX - 2015

There was a significant change this time around from last. The system is now firing up the lounge room from the glass windows towards the front door rather than across. So there are now three 'bounded' sides firing at the listening chair with a void or open space behind. Also the configuration has the sweet spot in a very near field listening position with the speakers <3 metres apart and >2 metres from the central chair. Significantly different from the more distant, across room position of my 'normal system and the Kronos in our earlier trial. Interesting.

Then it was my turn to swap laptops and try my tracks. Pure music followed and all confirmed that the system was duly delivered as expected and operating superbly!

The Kyron Audio guys had other demands on a Sunday afternoon (as they should) so couldn't hang around so I was left with the opportunity to while away more of the day (until Robin came home) listening to the Kronos solo.

I have developed some detailed notes on the Kyron Audio purchase experience, demo, communications, engagement etc and I may or may not publish it, but the short answer is the customer care, service and engagement throughout our entire buying process has been first class. Thank you Leon and Lee, and the support team and suppliers behind you. And to think that this is just the start of the rest of our lifetime of musical pleasure.

If the new Led Zeppelin releases are as good as the 1/2/3 remastered albums, they will be pretty special.

I do have a soft spot for Tom Wait's lyrics and musical styling, and his singing is very well suited to very, very late night listening with a beverage. Usually makes my life seem a whole lot better after an hour or so with Tom!

Robert Plant's solo work and collaborations have been very interesting in his post LZ days. This new album, 'Lullaby and … The Ceaseless Roar' has reviewed well and I look forward to hearing it.

As a blues lover I was saddened by the recent passing of Johnny Winter. His final album, 'Step Back' is a collaboration with friends, admirers and peers and is a fitting farewell to a legend of the blues.

The final purchase was a younger bluesman, Gary Clark Jnr and his 'Live' album. GC Jnr is famous for his high energy, intense live performances and this 2CD set exemplifies this in fine style. From covers to original compositions, his singing and passionate playing are well worth the price of admission.

The unit contains two AC receptacles as outputs, with one IEC input from the wall. The chassis is surrounded with a pleasantly machined aluminium case and rests on four rubber feet. I placed mine on an old, spare amplifier stand just to protect the loaner product and get it up off the floor. All downstream devices should be plugged into the unit so that no stray DC can infiltrate from other connected components. The only system I have that would fit this requirement is my headphone system, and upon further thought, would be an excellent test to determine if any undesirable DC impact was removed from the output.

With several other competing priorities here at Humphries HQ, I have only just got around to installing the DC Blocker into the power supply chain for my headphone system, replacing a well-regarded Gary Cawsey 'PowerBox' filter.

Probably worth mentioning the rest of the headphone rig at this point. I have a Benchmark Media Systems DAC1 USB, which does double duty as a DAC (!) and a solid state headphone amplifier; a Yamamoto HA-02 tube headphone amplifier with RCA input from the Benchmark DAC; Sennheiser HD 600 headphones with a Stefan Art Audio 'Equinox' single ended after market cable. Front end is a mid 2012 Apple MacBook Pro (using only battery power for listening tests) running OS X Yosemite, the Fidelia Digital Player, with the Advanced module enabled. Output is via USB to an Audiophilleo 2 USB transport passing the reclocked signal via a S/PDIF connection to the Benchmark.

I sat down to listen with some enthusiasm but with a totally open mind. Probably best to start with some well known tracks (ripped and stored with the Apple Lossless CODEC) and I cued up various tracks to sample and, hopefully, enjoy. It took only a few songs to realise that I really was enjoying the iTunes-sourced material. A clear, clean and extended musical presentation from top to bottom at moderate gain levels producing a most acceptable sound to my ears.

Then I started to think about what I was hearing. Previously, my system sounded good from mid-range upwards, although requiring the volume control of the Benchmark to be wound around to the 1 or 2 o'clock position. Or more… Here I was listening at less than 12 o'cock levels, hearing excellent dynamics, instrument / vocal separation and tonal balance with minimal blurring or 'sonic confusion' in the music. Just clean, clear, smooth and balanced across the frequency range.

I deliberately did not reference Bryan's website before I sampled the product. But here now is his take on the sonic impact -'The surprise however was the substantial improvement in sound. It was like the system had a layer of grunge removed from the frequency range in the bottom end that you never even knew was there. We are not talking subtle here, faster dynamics and real bass'.

Perhaps due the headphones and related equipment I didn't necessarily hear DEEPER bass but I certainly heard clearer and more spacious bass. I absolutely agree that there is a benefit and change in the lower mid range down, but I also heard some smoothness or reduced 'flare' in the very upper register as well. These two improvements made the overall sound more musical, balanced and listenable. At no stage during a three hour listening session was I fatigued or tempted to listen to my library of high resolution music. I was simply enjoying 44/16 source material too much!

This result is frankly quite shocking. That a relatively small and simple (but well built) 'box' could produce such a sonic improvement was indeed a revelation. I would highly recommend a listen to the DC Blocker if you suspect DC contamination is a problem in your system / environment.

I will beg to retain the DC Blocker for a few more weeks of listening, comparing and testing, but I suspect that it will not be making the long road trip back to SinCity! Many thanks to Bryan Fletcher for the opportunity to sample the DC Blocker and hear it's benefits in my system and my congratulations to him on the development and delivery of such a well realised component.

Kyron Audio Kronos Control Unit - 2014

Now our order has been signed and deposit paid, we are 'in the queue' with some other lucky purchasers for delivery early in 2015.

Somehow we need to survive until then. One way to pass the time might be to buy some new music. From my experience with the Kronos, they seem to make most music sound better, and on some selections, spectacularly so. Therefore one can make new purchases with a degree of confidence that they will sound as good as possible via the Kronos.

Red wine, Fidelia remote and Kronos. Sheer joy! Roll on 2015!

Robin and I are looking forward to exciting musical times ahead!

..

- Either planned or in response to the original lead singer, Doc Neeson's sad recent passing, there are two 3-CD sets of Australian pub rock band, The Angels, one of studio recordings and one of their plentiful live material. I haven't had the chance to listen yet, but I am sure that I will have several hours of musical nostalgia and reminiscing ahead of me!

Your humble correspondent with the Kronos in situ - 2014

So, to my ears in my room, the individual components of the sound are excellent in isolation. In terms of detail retrieval and presentation, yes, you can get your jollies from hearing a stool knocked over in the back corner of the studio at the 4.55 mark of your favourite track. But what really impresses is the way every track comes together as a whole. You can hear the individual instruments in detail laid out across the sound field, but if you just pull back your attention more broadly the entire presentation morphs into focus as a gloriously reproduced seamless piece of music.

I have heard some high end systems which 'blow you away' with their sonic fireworks and you start to consider 'could anything be better?' Then by track three or five or some period of time, you find yourself needing a rest, to get away from that alleged greatness. Too much of a good thing? I didn't have this problem with the Kronos. The sound was simply brilliant and enjoyable at any volume level, and totally non-fatiguing. You will need to sleep, fill your glass or have to eat before the sound will force you to leave your favourite listening chair.

Dynamics are excellent. Notes start and stop. Musical signatures are preserved. In my preferred genres of rock and blues, the rhythm section in particular is extremely well served by the bass reproduction and the ability and speed of the Kronos to sound rhythmically correct giving energy to the performance.

The resolution of the Kronos reproduction chain is particularly evident when listening at lower than concert levels. Instrument separation, imaging, detail and dynamics are all present at near background levels and above.

One attribute we find critically important for a home system is that of engagement. It needs to draw the listener into the music and make you want to continue listening. And here is the clincher. With the Kronos, the quality set-up and reproduction transcends the sweet-spot. Sitting well off-axis in one of the sofas either side of 'the chair', you are still involved with the entire presentation, not just parts of it. Furthermore, if you can engage with your music from another room at modest listening levels, you have a winning system. The Kronos did that for us. Partaking in a lovely Sunday morning breakfast some distance away from the listening room, the music just flowed through the house and I caught myself nodding along and following the bass line of some track that I was barely familiar with. Apart from being fun, this extends the utility of the system as you can be doing other things and still be getting enjoyment and value from your ‘investment’ in the system and your music.

Quality abounds - 2014

There is often an assumption that with high-end equipment everything sounds good, as if somehow by magic. That is of course a myth. After a couple of days and 50 or so discs of various genres and ages, I can confidently state that poorly recorded and mastered discs are spectacularly and accurately reproduced as poorly recorded and mastered discs!

As for the Wadia as a transport using S/PDIF and the Mac using ALAC rips of Redbook CDs via USB, the victory was a pretty clear win to the computer based files. To my ears the entire presentation was enhanced to the point where I stopped playing discs and copied all of my listening material to the laptop for the week.

For all of the reasons discussed above, it would come as no surprise that the Kyron Audio Kronos delivers the best sound I have ever heard in my room by a very, very large margin. Given the complexities of my room, I would never have thought the level of reproduction attained by the Kronos would be possible. Not even close. I am staggered with the sonics the Kronos achieved.

So how does the Kronos System differ from my current Supratek / Zu Audio Definition setup? The Kronos was clearly superior in the quality of the noise floor, the top-to-bottom balance, deeper and more tuneful bass, right-sized imaging and it simply made more music, more enjoyable, more easily, more often. On the flip side, when dialled in, the Supratek pre-power combination delivers superb mid-range tone and engagement (inaccuracies according to Leon!) and the 101dB efficient Zus are the ‘fastest’ speaker that I have heard and anything played through them seriously hustles along.

This is how the Kronos speaker looks on arrival, and sadly, just before departure... - 2014

Ease of Use

Once set up, the simplicity of the plug and play / add a source approach completely disguises the depth of acoustic and technical engineering of the delivered solution. Just wake the system from sleep, cue up a track and hit 'Play'. No intricate turn-on procedures, no extended warm-up period required. Almost too easy!

Three listening profiles can be setup at installation time to present different flavours of sound although I forgot to sample the other two in the week I had the Kronos. I didn't feel the need. Or I forgot... Although I connected my laptop with a decent Kimber USB cable, I don't think the Kronos is cable fussy. I know that Kyron Audio's usual go-to USB cable is a very basic, three of four metre run of Belkin wire with standard USB Type A and B connectors at each end, and the system still sounds superb.

My listening room has either plenty of glass or heavy curtains and my current system sounds overly bright (reflective) with the curtains open, and controlled (or a little over-damped) with the curtains shut. With the Kronos and it's active electronics, there was minimal difference in sound signature and balance with the curtains open or closed. A clever trick and a very big tick for the DEQX I would say.

Like all elements of Kyron Audio products, the remote control is a beautifully crafted all metal affair controlling on/off, source, volume and muting functions and is simplicity itself.

Conclusion & Summary

I cannot overstate the stunning level of detail and quality of the Kronos. From the heavy dust covers, to the build quality of the footers and integrated spikes on the speakers and control unit, the fit and finish of the speakers (almost impossible to capture the details with my photographic skills) and of the supplied USB stick, microphone and stand and accessories hard case made me feel proud to have the Kronos in my home for a week. The fact that it is Australian designed and built makes it even more special.

The Kronos System is undoubtedly a destination product. It is one that will get you off the treadmill of upgrades and tweaks and into your existing, and I would hasten to bet, ever expanding music collection. It is a significant investment suited to individuals and families who are committed to the pleasure and joy that their preferred musical choices give them and to those who are able to exercise those choices often.

Sonically the Kronos System is world class, aesthetically it is off the charts, and operationally is barely more complicated that an iDevice. And as a destination product, you may find that the ultimate destination is the listening room in your home.

If you can, you must. We can't but we still might!

Thanks to Lee Gray (left) and Leon Suter (right) of Kyron Audio for the unique opportunity to enjoy the stunning Kronos System in house

Postscript: I knew that Edgar Kramer of Esoteric Audio had reviewed the Kronos system, and in fact the Kyron guys left me with a copy of his review. However I intentionally didn't read Ed's comments until after I had conducted my own listening sessions and formed my views. Edgar's words and commentary are certainly much more eloquent than mine but it is interesting that our listening and visual impressions are pretty similar, which perhaps says less about us, and more about the consistency, quality and fidelity of Kyron Audio's Kronos system.

I am not expecting these discs to be high quality transfers and you can't expect miracle pressings for $A4 per disc. But if there are one or two musical gems hidden in these sets, then I can reach out and buy those albums in some hi-res format from Mobile Fidelity, HD Tracks etc to enjoy further. Or not, as these artists are part of my musical heritage and I enjoy them as much for the memories they invoke as for the music itself.

All in all, a most enjoyable 'transaction'!

Those of you with sharp eyes will see a couple of old Emerson, Lake & Palmer albums in there. See, I told you I was backward looking. Perhaps some newer stuff may appear in 2014!

MacBook Pro & Wadia Intuition 01 - 2013

James kindly commandeered Studio 1 (the big rig room) for the afternoon.

The Big Room - AR, PS Audio, Wadia Intuition 01, MBP and Wilson Audio Sasha - 2013

He slipped the Wadia onto a spare shelf and had it running for a day or so before I arrived. I placed the MBP onto the top shelf, added my Kimber USB cable, selected the Wadia as the output device and queued Track 1, Stevie Ray Vaughan / Albert Collins 'Pride & Joy', (HDTracks 96/24), from the 'In Session' album. Cool blues filled the room, although the sound was a little thicker and the guitars grungier than I remember. The next track, Pete Alderton playing 'Walking Blues' (Linn Downloads 44/24) was acoustically lighter and sounded much better. Great! But perhaps my old Kimber cable wasn't up to it. So James inserted a similarly priced Transparent Audio USB cable into the system and we tried again. If you don't believe cables make a difference, look away now.... Ooh, that was clearly worse. My cable had been used for 18 months or more and was fully broken in (again, if you believe that sort of stuff) and the Transparent was quite new, but there clearly was a tangible difference in the Kimbers favour and we stayed with that throughout the rest of the day.

As good as the sound was, James thought another speaker combo (and room change) would be worth trying. I amused myself with some Diana Krall and Shelby Lynne while the new speakers were configured. And mighty fine they sounded through the Sashas.

.
The curvaceous B&W 802 (left), and either the ghost of Tivoli past or JF in full flight (right)

So we moved to Studio 2 where a pair of B&W 802 were now expertly set up and waiting. Similar tracks were played and frankly there was no real magic. Slightly recessed vocals, some reduced dynamics and an overall dryness to the experience had the B&Ws sounding very hi-fi-ish and exiting stage left after a few demo tracks. I have heard these speakers previously through a stack of Electrocompaniet gear and they sounded absolutely superb. Either a lack of synergy or more setup / configuration time required for this combination to show it's best.

Enter a pair of Wilson Audio Sophia 3s.

Awesome looking and sounding Wilson Sophia 3 - 2013

Looking absolutely gorgeous in Desert Silver, it would be interesting to see how they sounded compared to the Sashas albeit in a different room. A question for later, but much, much better than the B&Ws in the current room was the initial answer. Immediately the music was more forward and layered, the mid-range glorious, especially on Phil Manning 'Two Roads' (ALAC 44/16), one of my go to demo tracks for male vocals and acoustic guitar. Another jazz favourite, 'Ode to Billy Joe' (ALAC 44/16) by Patricia Barber is another track that I have heard a hundred times on the Wadia and Zus at home. The 'new' Wadia and Wilson combo did it proud. Textured finger snaps, warm bass line and vocals really drew the listener in. OK, time to stop messing around with this low key stuff, so on went Yello and 'Rubberband Man' (ALAC 44/16). Most spectacular! Not only was the energy through the roof, but the Intuition dragged out some details and phrases from this track that I hadn't heard before. The native 384/32 USB upsampling maybe? For whatever reason it was simply stunning. Just for confirmation, we revisited Pete Alderton and the sound I thought was even better than the Sashas, albeit subjectively, after a 45 minute gap. The only thing holding the combo back was a slight (and I mean r-e-a-l-l-y slight) 'slowness' to the presentation compared to my whip-crack Zus and the fact that the Sophias are not the last word in bass impact (tone is fine). But I am really splitting hairs here.

But of course James had a plan to fix the speed and bass issues! Wheel those Wilsons away and lets try some Martin Logan Summit Xs.

The Martin Logan Summit X now in place - 2013

By this point, I have to say that I was getting weary watching James move huge speakers in and out of the room...

On a perfect day, my system sounds pretty darn good. And in two minutes James made the MLs and the Wadia sound better than my systems 'golden' moments.... Through these large panels and active bass boxes, I immediately heard the same (or larger) image size, the same (or faster) speed & snap with an added level of refinement. I could almost have been sitting in my own home, rather the uber-comfy sofa of a primo audio dealer. Of course that is a bit of a problem. Was it better? Absolutely yes, but was it different enough? Probably no, not really.

So the best pairing on the day is..... the Sophia 3 / Intuition 01 combo. It was fabulously engaging, detailed, balanced and to my ears, different enough to consider an investment.

While there were no real losers in this test, there was one standout performer, the Wadia Intuition 01. If you can get a listen, I am pretty sure that you will then understand why. If you have ever thought that digital plus Class D was dry, strident and un-engaging, this is THE product that will change your view.

Thanks again to Geoff and James for your hospitality, time and the outstanding opportunity to savour the delights of the Wadia Intuition 01!

Alex (left) and the intrepid host - 2013

Anyway, the good news was the day got better. Frankly, much better. A quick walk around the interior of the property re-aligned SM's bearings and we retired inside for some chat. And a bottle of 10yo Macallan... The thinking man's BYO...

Some convivial conversation was set aside when the BBQ soy chicken skewers hit the plate. After a respectable interlude, some very fine porterhouse steaks were delivered due, to be fair, a combination of the awesome skill, judgement and experience of the chef (me) and some silly over-priced temp-probe thingy that my guest thought rescued the day.... Luckily the salads were spared from the afore-mentioned intrusion... A superb 2002 Penfolds 389 matched the steak to perfection. Phew.

Tales of family, travels and work accompanied the main course and the home-made chocolate cake and fresh fruits were enthusiastically consumed with coffee.

Ultimate concentration - 2013

The afternoon wound up with a couple more 'cleansers' and my usual musical preferences, imposed on (polite) guests at uncomfortable volumes. Awesome!

I think a great day was had by all. Thanks Alex!

The spectacular Audio Note Ongaku amplifier and a very serious amp stand! - 2013

Kyron Audio: After their Gaia flagship, Kyron Audio has now developed and released a smaller dipole system to suit more modest listening environments, the Kronos. To be honest, I couldn't fault the sound at all. It was hard to identify the highs, mids and lows as the music just appears from 'nowhere' and the sound field lays out in front of you and 'plays' and 'hangs' in the air driven by the quality of the source and not coloured or impacted by the 'box'. Just outstanding. The system was fed by a laptop-driven digital front end.

The audibly and visually stunning Kyron Audio Kronos - 2013

Pure Music Group: A very, very engaging room. A Thales TT and Simplicity tone-arm with a Phasemation PP-1000 MC cartridge, Mola Mola Makua pre-amp, and Mola Mola Kaluga mono-blocks, EMM Labs XDS1v2 CD/SACD player, Gauder Akustik Berlina RC-7 loudspeakers, with the source gear supported on an HRS platform. From what I heard, these new products to the Oz market really got out of the way and you were drawn in to the glory of the music rather than just listening to high-end hi-fi products. A most enjoyable experience.

Audio Fidelity: An analog front end, Tenor amplifier and Vivid Audio GIYA G3 were superbly setup (better than in the distributor's room IMHO), and sounded spacious, relaxed and showed off the G3's to excellent effect.

Magenta Audio: Alternating between a laptop (through a Metrum HEX DAC) and analog front ends, into Audion Black Shadow 2 845 mono-blocks driving a pair of Zu Audio Definition Mk IV. Playing music and delivering a vibrant sound, the Zu's really do get you tapping your feet and drawing you into enjoying the music. Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with Magenta Audio but do own a pair of Zu Definition Mk 1.5s, and therefore I recognise and enjoy the Zu 'house sound'.

The Magenta Room, funky turntable, PS Audio, Pure Audio & Zu Definition Mk IV - 2013

I can't imagine anyone listening to any of the above rooms and coming away disappointed.

Anything else of interest? Well there was the Advance Audio room, using an audio sledge-hammer approach leveraging a clutch of uber high end brands. I didn't check the turntable (I don't usually as you can tell from the mostly non-existent analog descriptions above), but present was the awesome DCS stack (four very large boxes consuming an entire rack), a VTL pre and power combination and the Dan D'Agostino Momentum pre and power combination (visually ridiculously awesome). As for speakers, there was Wilson Audio Duette 2 and the new Wilson Audio Alexia. All in all, very, very serious audio jewellery to be sure. It was in one of the larger (and I suspect more difficult) rooms at the show and all I got to hear was the DCS/VTL/Duette 2 combo playing Dave Brubeck 'Take 5' . That said, the Duettes really sounded full-range like. Sparkling on top, good mid-range and very deep bass for a 'stand mount'. I have to say, the sound was pretty impressive. Would warrant a longer listen in a more friendly environment.

Apologies for the cr*ppy picture of hi-fi 'royalty - 2013

One final observation, I would like to praise most rooms for playing interesting, tailored, thoughtful music rather than the 'audiophile' selections that have been prevalent in the past. A special mention to the Audio Fidelity (playing VinylEye discs), Pure Music Group and Kyron Audio rooms for their musical selections and variety.

The mood of the vendors appeared positive and the crowd seemingly engaged with the products on the day. I do hope that lots of new business was generated and that the audio market place grows in Melbourne as a result of this show.

PS - Apologies for the rubbish pictures. It appears that indoor product photography in crowded dimly-lit spaces is not a core competency of mine…

Thanks to SNA and Tivoli for being proactive and enabling us to get that bit closer to the high-end. A great night was had by all.

The Wadia 151 PowerDAC mini - 2013

The PowerDAC is DAC, digital pre-amplifer with a stereo power amplifier module. It supports only digital inputs (2x COAX, USB and TOSLINK), has no digital or analog outputs, a single pair of speaker binding posts and an IEC receptacle. It doesn't sound much but it is such a compact unit (20 centimetres square) so the rear panel gets pretty busy with 'audiophile' sized cables and connectors.

The specs are pretty straight forward. The 151 PowerDAC has an internal power supply (not too beefy as the entire unit weighs less than 3 kgs), USB is asynchronous and maxes out at 96/24 (although the Wadia DigiMaster software up samples to 24bit/384k before outputting), total power from the Class-D digital amp module is around 25 wpc at 8 ohms (50 wpc at 4 ohms). And that is about it. The only other feature to note is that like all Wadia players the 151 comes with a phase polarity switch to ensure playback can be matched to the source if phase is an issue.

The unit was simple plug and play to get going. Attach your connection of choice, select the correct input via the front panel or remote control and press play on your source and beautiful sound emanates from your speakers, in my case the Zu Audio Definition Mk1.5s. I have used the 170i dock, the Wadia 861SE as a transport (via it's Digital Out COAX output) and a MacBook Pro running Fidelia via an Audiophilleo2 (USB-to-S/DIF converter) as sources into the PowerDAC and they have all worked flawlessly with easy connectivity and setup. I ran the PowerDAC for over 150 hours before I commenced my evaluation and review.

So how does the 151 PowerDAC sound? Pretty darn good actually.

Belying it's solid state / digital amp heritage, the sound is dynamic and full, and not harsh or overly extended in the higher frequencies. I found the bass to be a real feature of the PowerDAC, deep, solid and tuneful providing a sound platform for the mids and highs o be layered upon. The overall sound is very smooth and 'listenable' with no apparent artefacts, gaps or quirks that leave you wanting for 'more of this or more of that'. Information and detail retrieval and playback is probably the PowerDAC's biggest strength with whatever is on the disc or FLAC file rendered completely and presenting it back as a whole for the listener's enjoyment. A very pleasant surprise on one of my favourite test tracks, 'Two Roads' by Phil Manning, was the clarity of the two voices in the chorus that can be hard to discern through lesser playback systems, even when listening hard via headphones. Transparency was also evident with the PowerDAC easily showing the performance and sonic differences of the multiple sources (both hardware and software) that I tried with it. Not surpassingly, power handling / headroom was not an issue in my medium sized room through the 101db efficient Zus.

The busy rear panel, TOSLINK and USB inaccessible - 2013

Compared to my Wadia 861SE player via my Supratek Sauvignon/Malbec tube combo, the PowerDAC throws a somewhat smaller soundstage. The image is properly centred and rock solid but clearly inside the speakers and emanating from a noticeably smaller 'window'.

Overall, I am very happy with my purchase from the fine folk at Tivoli HiFi in Melbourne. It may not see too much time in the 'Big Rig' but will certainly be the heart of my 'Simple & Small Second System' paired with my Red Rose Music stand mounts.

So in summary, the Wadia PowerDAC 151 mini is not SoTA in terms of sound quality and you must live with the limitations of it's digital inputs. But for modest dollars it is a very attractive and compact one-box DAC / amplifier solution that will drive most real world speaker loads in small to medium sized rooms delivering very high quality digital decoding from a range of sources and makes the most enjoyable music. To round out the value equation, Wadia has an enviable reputation for quality and longevity and my unit appears well made, runs silently with all controls and connectors having a solid feel.

Just add a computer and speakers and you have a gateway to high end sound. Recommended!!

Don't just take my word for it, other reviewers at Home Theatre Review and Tone Audio seem to like the 151 as well. The official PowerDAC 151 mini product page at Wadia can be found here.

Wadia 861SE CD player

Supratek Sauvignon Pre Amplifier

First Watt Aleph J Power Amplifier

The two stars of the show (no not THEM), but the Rowans Creek at left and the Lagavulin

Comfortably seated outdoors, conversations abounded regarding the big issues in life, regularly interspersed with semi-serious sipping and listening to some 'cool' music. At various times 'The Kamado Joe' was fired up producing lamb chaps, chorizo sausage and corn all grilled to perfection. As always.

All this as we waited for the sun to go down so that the serious part of the GtG could commence.That, of course, was the whisky tasting and education, most capably led by our gracious host. As the photo indicates, available bottles outnumbered guests about 10 to 1, a most satisfactory ratio IMHO.

The winner for me was the 2011 Lagavulin 12YO Special Release. Special by name and special by nature. Just fabulous. As a counter-point, I took along a Rowans Creek Bourbon of some repute and a mighty fine drop it turned out to be. Not that I got a lot of it with a certain person (whose initials are Moondog) consuming the 'dog's share' of the bottle. Said he wouldn't spoil the bourbon with food so he abstained from eating… For a long while…

Eventually the 'big rig' was fired up and was sounding as good as ever. A range of mellow music was played (Ray Lamontagne and Bat for Lashes were prominent) which suited the now very relaxed group perfectly. A cleansing coffee and a final wee dram rounded out the evening perfectly.

SM, TonyC and at rear, a very relaxed Moondog

On behalf of all of the guests, I would like to thank Super Mustud for again welcoming us into his humble palace and providing an outstanding afternoon and evening of refreshment and entertainment! And a big thank you to TonyC for admirably filling the role of my designated driver. Again…

Drinking is not doing me any good… Cheers!

Also in attendance were LuckyDog, Norpus and Spearmint. So the five of us settled in for a cleansing beverage and pizza and did a little catching up as I hadn't seen a couple of these guys in recent times. Then it was time to fire up the system.

And spectacular it was. Detailed and punchy as needed, soft and delicate when called for. I took a few of my favourite discs along and Shelby Lynne and Geoff Achison sounded as a good as I have ever heard them.

Unfortunately I had to call time on the evening just as the turntable and surround DVDs were firing up. I did catch one DVD, the 2010 Crossroads Blues Festival and the sound and vision of a Gary Clark Jnr track was stunning. I am sure the neighbours enjoyed it as well!

Thanks again for the invite and your generous hospitality Field. I had a ball!

Plus I purchased an Audioquest DragonFly USB DAC for mid-fi listening while surfing the web, doing emails etc. The thing is tiny, but weighty with solid build quality and it is really cool how the dragonfly emblem on top changes colour depending on the bit rate of the song being played. Set up was a breeze on the MacBook Pro.

My review of the Audirvana / DragonFly combo will come once the USB device has been fully run in, allegedly 200 hours according to reports on Head-Fi. Update: Still running in (slowly), only up to around 150 hours so far. I had a quick listen to ALAC tracks with the Alessandros and was quite impressed… More soon.

In the interim, the Audioquest DragonFly product page is here and a short review from 'What Hi Fi?' can be found here.

Then this week, an audio buddy calls me to advise that the new Pink Floyd 'Discovery' boxed set, some 14 albums all remastered is available (locally) for half price. While I am not a card-carrying 'Floydy', I do like a couple of their albums and again it is a bargain. The sound quality is reputedly the best so far on CD but I will have a decent listen and share my views later. Also included is a colour 60 page book as well. Done!

These are on top of last years Bob Dylan Mono Collection and this Christmas's Paul Kelly A-Z recordings. Phew.

The Headphone Rig - 2011

The setup process in my headphone system was a breeze once I found the correct adapter to insert the audiophilleo2 into the S/PDIF input. If you can get a product going without reading the manual it is a bonus in my view, and I am a guy so the manual is an A4 paperweight anyway. My secondary uneducated challenge was cycling through the inputs to select my preferred input option. A second or so of patience as you cycle through is rewarded. Too speedy and the signal is never locked on.

And speaking of the unboxing, while it doesn't affect the sonics, the quality of the Benchmark DAC chassis & controls, the packaging materials, supplied accessories and manual all ooze quality and class.

Initial listening was done using my AKG K702, with an aftermarket AudioMinor silver cable. After listening to three different tracks, all at different bit rates it was easy to understand that the Benchmark products were originally designed as a pro audio monitoring tool. The truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth flowed through the AKGs. No romance, no bloom, no thumping bass, no take your ears off highs. Just the accurate rendering of what was recorded. I was initially disappointed with the lack of fireworks, but I quickly settled into listening to the music rather than the audiophile artefacts and really started to enjoy the presentation, and forgot about the technologies in play. This is not a product for those who like to use their DAC as a form of tone control.

Benchmark DAC1 USB - 2011

Without an A/B test to fully evaluate, my sense is that the Benchmark is more balanced and more composed than the DacMagic. The Cambridge Audio DAC is a great budget value-for-money performer but with multiple filters and a presentation that swings between slightly veiled and strident it is unable to match the Benchmark's confident, consistent if slightly clinical output.

I have not yet used the DAC1 USB as pre-amp, but plan to ASAP as I can run the Benchmark's RCA output into my Yamamoto amplifier to get the tube-amp headphone experience and be able to compare the two amplifiers with a standardised DAC front end.

Another use for the Benchmark is for headphone comparisons. Two separate 1/4" plugs enable two different headphones to share the same input / tracks and enable genuine evaluations on the fly. Should help remove the 'memory effect' of swapping / unplugging 'phones when comparing.

US v Japanese craftsmanship - Benchmark & Yamamoto - 2011

Is there anything not to like about the Benchmark? After a few hours, frankly, not yet. I have read quibbles about the texture of the volume control knob (are you kidding me?), the input selector is slow to lock on (get over it) and the obvious flaw that the product delivers output that is 'uncoloured' (unforgivable...).

There is much to learn about the many features and options built into this compact device. More details and listening impressions to come.

A formal (if a little quirky) Benchmark DAC1 USB review by Home Theatre Hi Fi can be found here.

Disclaimer: I have no financial interest in any of the companies / products mentioned. Also my findings and thoughts are based on my ears, my music, in my room, with my BAC level and mental state. YMMV.