Spirit Torino Mistral Pro – the wooden wonder

Intro and acknowledgement I heard and purchased the Mistral Pro at Canjam London 2022 at a discounted price, direct from the Spirit Torino representatives there. No input was sought or received as to the content of this review - all opinions (however misguided) are my own. My thanks go to the team at Spirit Torino,... Continue Reading →

January 22, 2023 0

Canjam London 2022 impressions – part 1 (Audeze, Campfire Audio, JOMO Audio)

This is my fourth trip to Canjam London, which given the lack of availability of audiophile in ears and headphones across most of the United Kingdom outside of a handful of specialist dealers, makes it my fourth trip to Willy Wonka’s audio factory. There is no doubt that Canjam London holds a special place in... Continue Reading →

August 12, 2022 0

Noble Audio Kublai Khan – initial impressions

Acknowledgement The Kublai Khan was purchased with my own money at a small discount from the ever-helpful Andrew at MusicTeck USA for the purposes of writing a full review (which will be published soon). No input or other incentive was sought or received from MusicTeck or Noble - all opinions and words below are my... Continue Reading →

July 8, 2022 2

MMR Balmung – broadsword of bass

Acknowledgement The Balmung was purchased with my own money at a hefty discount from MusicTeck USA (https://shop.musicteck.com/collections/mmr) on one of their periodic sales. No incentive was sought or received for writing a review, and all opinions (however misguided) are 100% my own. Rating and specs (From back of main box) Price: $2599 RRP (at time... Continue Reading →

June 3, 2022 0

Ambient Acoustics – 24 types of madness

Intro Ambient Acoustics was set up in 2009 in the Ukraine, primarily to service the professional audio and hearing aid markets. They started getting a little notice in audiophile circles a few years ago with their LAM serious of tuneable switch models, and it’s fair to say they are a brand that is now starting... Continue Reading →

October 18, 2021 0

Unique Melody MEST Mk II – the bone conductor’s revenge

Acknowledgement I purchased the MEST Mk 2 from Andrew at MusicTeck USA at full retail price (RRP was $1499 at time of purchase), with the intention of reviewing them. No input has been sought or received from MusicTeck or Unique Melody with regards to the content of this review - the opinions expressed below (however... Continue Reading →

April 23, 2021 0

The HiFiMAN MegaMini – now in plastic, with a far better $99 price

Pros: Tiny form factor, excellent build quality, nice looking, good even keeled sound, easy UI and intuitive control scheme, excellent value at $99 Cons: no external DAC, no gapless (on the way?), limited playlist capability, somewhat thin sound, dismal battery life (especially with HiRes) List Price: $99 Product website: http://store.hifiman.com/index.php/hifiman-megamini-high-res-music-player-531.html Rating disclaimer: ratings for audio... Continue Reading →

December 9, 2017 0

iFi Nano iDSD Black Label: great genes in this DAC family, wallet happy price

Pros: Excellent transparent sound, small size, outstanding price, driving power for HD600, iEMatch built in, iPurifier built in, excellent 3.5mm line-out, two good filters, huge format compatibility Cons: Silk-screen writing is damn near impossible to read, doesn’t come with short OTG cable (one would be better than none), doesn’t come with USB3.0 adaptor so not... Continue Reading →

November 27, 2017 13

Audio-Opus Opus #1: a transparent reference quality DAP and a great start for a promising company

Pros: Uber transparent black background, balanced out, easy operating system, build quality, up to 432 GB of storage, battery saving mode, nice leather case Cons: Android in name only, did not successfully scan all tags, operating system not fully featured List Price: £399 ($399), available from HiFi Headphones in the UK, Musicteck in the USA.... Continue Reading →