North West Audio Show 2022
We have just heard from Kris and the team at the North West Audio Show giving the dates for the show in 2022 and announcing the cancellation for the 2021 event.
Author: HifiPig
The Fledgling Audiophile
Stu looks at a few things from his past as a fledgling audiophile, though he didn’t know it then.
Melco EX Upgrades
Melco Ex is an update to Melco library hardware. New machines from Melco will have Melco EX as a standard install, but owners of older Melco units can also take advantage of the new features. Chris Baillie takes a look at what the Melco EX upgrades bring to Melco’s functionality.
Solidsteel SS-6 Speaker Stands
The SS-6 from Italian brand Solidsteel is a tripod design speaker stand costing around £480 in the UK. Stuart Smith has a listen to various loudspeakers on them.
Tools Of the Tirade – More Shouty Shouty
More Hifi and audiophile tools and tweaks that many of us will have at our disposal to make our audio lives ‘easier’.
Titan Audio Force Field Module
Hifi Pig review of the Titan Audio’s Force Field Module that is designed to reduce the effects of RMI, EMI, and Wi-Fi interference in Audio systems.
Raspberry Pi Streamer and Roon Endpoint Using Roipeee
I’m a recent and evangelical user of Roon, and couldn’t imagine an audio life without it. However, I wanted to explore the possibility of getting Roon connectivity using the ridiculously cheap Raspberry Pi computer – a route I’d been very wary of in the past.
Tools Of The Tirade – A Bit Of The Old Shouty-Shouty
As audiophiles, many of us will have amassed certain tools and the like to help them get the most out of their HiFi system and music. Only it’s not always plain sailing as Stu has found out over the years!
Musical Fidelity M2si and M2Scd
Musical Fidelity’s M2si and M2SCD are distributed in the UK by Henley Audio and cost £699 each. Ian Ringstead tries them out.
Gold Note PA-10 Power Amplifier
The Gold Note PA-10 Power Amplifier is a stereo amplifier offering up 150W into 4Ohms, but add a second PA-10, flick a switch on the back of the amps and you have a pair of monobloc amps that give you a total of 600W into 4Ohms. Stuart Smith gives these £1300 (each) amps a whirl.
Esprit Eterna Cable Loom (Speaker, RCA and XLR)
Esprit is a French-based cable manufacturer that has a great name for building high-quality cables in their own country but were relatively little known in the UK and beyond until quite recently. In this review David Robson checks out their Eterna range of cables, including RCA, XLR interconnects, and speaker cables and priced as follows […]
Origin Live Cartridge Enabler
The Origin Live Cartridge Enabler is a £25 piece of felt that fits between cartridge and headshell and comes with felt and nylon washers. In this Quickie Review, Stuart Smith gives it a spin.
Vinyl Is A PITA Part The Second – Let’s Get Ready To Grumble!
Last week’s Stu’s Views blathered on about how much a pain in the fundament vinyl records can be to the avid collector, and the response to it was really phenomenal – we got messages from all over the world and the article prompted one chap in South Africa to put pen to paper (actually, fingers […]
KJF Audio SA-01 NCore Power Amplifier
The KJF Audio SA-01 NCore 100W (continuous) power amplifier is a no-nonsense but good looking power amp that is made in the UK. Stuart Smith, a long time advocate of Class D power, takes a listen to this £690 power amp.
Interview With Alfred Vassilkov Of Estelon
Estelon is a high-end loudspeaker manufacturer based in Estonia and this year they are celebrating ten years of creating what they hope are “the world’s best loudspeakers”. Hifi Pig caught up with chief designer and engineer Alfred Vassilkov to ask him a few questions about the brand, their philosophy, and more.
Mellow Acoustics FrontRo II Loudspeakers
Mellow Acoustics FrontRo II is the second incarnation of this interesting electrostatic-hybrid loudspeaker. The loudspeakers cost £9500, are manufactured in England and have some interesting design features. Janine Elliot takes a listen.
Technics SL-G700 Network, CD and SACD Player
The SL-G700 network, CD and SACD player from audio giant Technics is, as the title would suggest, a wired or wireless network player, CD player and SACD player in one heavyweight box costing £2350. Stuart Smith gives it a spin.
Vinyl Is A PITA!
There’s a meme, or rather a cartoon, that’s been doing the rounds recently that has two characters looking over a HiFi system with the caption “The two things that really drew me to vinyl were the expense and inconvenience.” If you spend any time on social media, and particularly audiophile groups then I’m sure you […]
Diptyque dp77 Anniversary Loudspeakers
Diptyque is a French loudspeaker manufacturer specialising in making Isodynamic panel loudspeakers. In this review, Stuart Smith takes a look at their dp77 Anniversary model retailing at €3540.
Klipsch Announce ProMedia 2.1BT Desktop System
Klipsch (UK) and Henley Audio announce the ProMedia 2.1 BT, the powered speaker system.
Townshend Isolda Loudspeaker Cable
Max Townshend is one of the stalwarts of the UK (and beyond) audio scene and is one of the industry’s great characters. Over the years he and his company have introduced a number of innovative products, and not always without a degree of controversy. Here Janine Elliot takes a listen to the company’s Isolda loudspeaker […]
LEEMA LIBRA DAC – A Different Perspective
Hifi Pig first reviewed the LEEMA LIBRA DAC way back in August 2016. In this update to that review, Stuart Smith takes a slightly different viewpoint and makes very different conclusions, but based on very similar findings, to the initial review.
High Fidelity? What’s That Then?
In this latest diatribe, Stuart Smith has a bit of a look at what we mean by the term High-Fidelity.
LAB12 dac1 REFERENCE DAC
LAB12 are an Athens, Greece based manufacturer that feature valves in all their designs other than mains conditioners. In this review Stuart Smith takes a listen to their dac 1 REFERENCE Non-Oversampling DAC costing €2900.
iFi Power Station Mains Purifier
The iFi Power Station is, as its name may well suggest to many, a mains purifier and distribution block. It costs £499. Janine Elliot plumbs it into her system.
Ophidian Minimo 2 Loudspeakers
The Ophidian Minimo 2 loudspeaker is, as the name would suggest, a mini-monitor type of loudspeaker. It is made in the UK and costs £900 a pair. Ian Ringstead takes a listen.
Views Of Stu – On Streaming
Ok, I admit it, I have on several occasions ranted about my thorough dislike of all things streaming – specifically streaming services. I’ve moaned about having my listening experience being tailored to my past listening preferences, and I’ve whined about being tied to a screen and the lack of physical media. I also didn’t like […]
