Bryston A110: $2300 For An Amazing Speaker Array! Two grand is a popular price point in the speaker market. What’s the best value for about $2k? Let’s up the ante a little bit because $2300 gets you into a WHOLE NEW WORLD for just a little more money. The majority of offerings in this range are Chinese imports. Most are flimsy, booming…

Rega Planar 2 Turntable $895 Price includes Ortofon Red MM Cartridge If you’ve done some home work on record playing machines I’m betting the name Rega isn’t new to you. Rega is a family owned company that still makes its turntables in the UK. There are distinct advantages to giving a rip about how you make mechanical devices. That… is what separates…

When I read hi-fi magazines I usually blow right past reviews of uber expensive equipment. I don’t really care what’s going on with gear that nobody can afford. I made an exception this weekend when the beautiful Sonus Faber Amati G 5 was reviewed in the Brit Hi-Fi News (Aug ‘23). Amati G5 at $36k per pair is gorgeous. I don’t sell…

Bryston: Accuracy Over Preference

What’s a great full range speaker system for $2090? They’re made in N America, not China. They’re made in their own house, not by a job house half way around the world. They’re made with drivers made by themselves, they’re not buying drivers from a vendor. The speakers I’m describing are Bryston Tiny A stand mount speakers, augmented by a JL Audio…

Evgeni Kissin, Piano Beethoven wrote prolifically for the piano. His sonatas are multi-movement works that are simply unsurpassed. They’re the true red meat of piano music. Here’s a chance to hear one of the best pianists in the world, playing in some of the best recording halls in the world – on pianos that have been scrupulously prepared for the recording. This…

JL Audio Double Subs Most hi-fi guys know that it’s very tough to get tower speakers to produce bass as deep and powerful as a good subwoofer. Much less TWO good subwoofers. Bryston is among the very few speaker companies who can give you such prodigiously deep bass in a tower that you might think- well, I really don’t need a sub….

In an earlier post I guesstimated there must be 500 or more speaker makers out there. As I’ve done more research, I’m going to double that guesstimate! “Companies” range from a one man band in a basement or industrial park space to very sophisticated industrial operations. With a thousand or so entities to consider, how do you pick the one that’s right…

Bryston A1s vs Kef Reference 5 Meta Kef brags on its site, “The flagship model that all other high performance loudspeakers compare themselves against.” OK. Let’s compare. Kef Reference 5 Meta $22k Per Pair Built in UK, 5 year warranty 55.2h, 12.7w, 18.4d, 133 lbs, 4 ohms 1” Aluminum tweet, 5” Aluminum mid, Four 6.5” Aluminum woofs 40-35k +/- 3dB, SPL 88d…

Stereophile is the ugliest audio mag out there. But I still enjoy reading it for CONTENT. There are things to learn every month if you fight through the fine print. By ugly I mean, it always has tiny pictures and even tinier captions. I don’t need glasses to read. But with Stereophile, it’s GETTING CLOSE! Sometimes it’s hard to even be sure…

Bryston Active Impresses!

Tubes! Rogue Sphinx V3 Integrated Amp $1700 With Remote (5h, 17w, 15.5d, 25 lbs, 100×2 into 8 ohms. 200X2 into 4 ohms) One of my favorite integrated amps on the planet is the tube driven Rogue Sphinx V3 (Version 3). When Rogue went from V2 to V3, it incorporated some important changes that made it a much better performer. Rogue insists that…