Think back to before you became interested in the equipment. If you’re like me, perhaps you listened to music on the radio, through a ‘record player’ or even one of the new little integrated amps and stereo speakers from Olson’s or Lafayette. If you wished for better sound at all it was probably that it […]

Should the ratio of audiophile to the layman be 1:100, then in the highest population density section of the Hong Kong SAR of 16,000 in a square mile, there would be 160 audiophiles dwelling within those high-rises, their audio systems plagued by colossal, detrimental AC irregularities. The resultant demand for AC solutions in Hong Kong, […]

Tubes Those big tubes sticking out the top are the famous 6SN7 octal vacuum tube, a directly heated 5AW4 rectifier tube, 6AH4 triode cathode follower stage. Description The physical appearance of the Ultra Verve seems to draw different responses from different people. Mine had a silver faceplate with black lettering. I thought it was very […]

Readers of Dagogo are undoubtedly familiar with Audio Note speakers, as five models have been previously reviewed in these pages: AN-E/D, AN-E SE (2003), AN-E SPe-HE, AN-E SEC Silver, AN-E SEC Signature. After having heard – and been enormously impressed with – a top-of-the-line Audio Note system at the Vacuum Tube Valley Expo held last […]

I’ve been in turntable withdrawal for nearly 20 years. I have a severe love/hate disorder when it comes to turntables. What’s not to love about them? They are the artwork of audio equipment with their beautiful plinths, platters, and suspensions. Some look functional, some like they came out of the future, some so retro, and […]

Introduction When I think about the biggest mistakes of my life, selling my records ranks just behind gambling against Michael Jordan and the Bulls in the 90s. Dumb with a capital “D”, on both counts. But I’m not one to look in the rear view mirror and long for the road not traveled (or for […]

A worldwide leader in the creation and development of state-of-the-art broadcast systems and protocols, Nagra’s 650-million-dollar, technology-driven parent company, the Kudelski Group, employs a certain cache of insane scientists, and it is only a matter of time that the company’s think tank would find application of its technologies in home audio. Spawned from such creativity […]

Opening Statement & Question This is going to be a very easy review because this is a very special preamp. So let me just say it right up front, this is the most accurate, dynamic, coherent, and transparent preamp I have ever heard in my system. Does that mean it’s the best preamp I have […]

It was only late last year when I remember melting into the recliner with a glass of Irish cream liqueur, a packet of chocolate raisins and an obscenely contented smile on my ugly mush, thinking how great it was to be finally off the upgrade ladder/roundabout and able to simply relax, forget about the equipment […]

Howdy. Here we are now further along into the year with more of the world’s things Art. With yet another take or reiteration on some of those things out there that assure us that people ‘are’ paying attention and are affected in some capacity or other with a 21st century response. Quite a few reviews […]

I would like to share a few comments on my further use of the V8i over the past few months. I mentioned in the review the use of Jena Labs “Dussy” jumpers. Wherever possible, an owner of an integrated should seek to replace stock jumpers since it will have a profound impact on the listening […]

When I sit in my listening room these days, I am confronted with power – huge amounts of power. I’ve got four 600 wpc monoblocks and one 500 wpc stereo amp. The “little” monoblocks are 95 pounds apiece, while the big ones weigh in at 175 each. This is in stark contrast to the 500 […]

To help exploit the potential of the Ongaku as much as possible, 47 Laboratory’s PiTracer CD transport served in this review as the reference source in the respective company of Audio Note’s own $65k DAC5 Signature, the $34k DAC5 Special and Wadia’s $10k 27ix v3.0 Decoding Computer. The AN DACs were rotated with the PiTracer […]

Melody & Its Hi-Fi Black is always in fashion, especially when it’s a piano gloss black on a Melody Hi-Fi P1688 Signature preamp and matching S88 Mono Block amps. One thing that’s sure to fire up the desire to hear music is looking at some svelte equipment, and the Melody Hi Fi tube gear is […]

I have been doing a bit of reading about the Sun as I sit and listen to the Dussun V8i integrated amplifier. Although an average star, the amount of energy our Sun generates is staggering. Every second, the amount of energy the sun gives off exceeds all the energy used by mankind in all of […]

In the October Issue, I reviewed the very excellent XLH M2000 monoblocks. This is a review of the XLH SL-11XS line stage preamp (no phono), both with the M2000 monoblocks and with other components. Preamps I’ve dated (but not married) I’ve auditioned and reviewed several very good preamps in my various systems: the one-time class […]

I have previously used six Walker Audio products in my own system, and all but one gave me great “bang for the buck” results. The Walker Extreme SST, Ultra Vivid CD/DVD Enhancer, Silent Source power cables, Silent Source Silver Signature Interconnects, and the Velocitor Power Enhancer (yes, the Velocitor is great “bang for the buck” […]

The year is quickly coming to a close, and holidays are upon us again. For Dagogo’s December Top-Of-The-Month Issue, rather than following its routine of concentrating in publishing reviews on top product models, the Staff of Dagogo have compiled reviews on four economically-priced products to compliment your celebration of this gift-giving season. Hence, the Part […]

In my last column article, I admitted how hard it is to review a piece of equipment that doesn’t exactly light my fire. That doesn’t mean that it’s not a very fine or even an exceptional piece of equipment. What I’m discovering is that reviewing is becoming a greater educational experience for me than I […]

The Tube Circuit When I first set out to design the tube circuit, I had just received a remarkable piece of computer software courtesy of my business partner Mike Tseng. This software called “Multisym” by Electronics Workbench enables anyone to “build” complete circuits and connect them in operational configurations and to measure various quantities like […]

“Be careful what you wish for” was never truer when I received a call from a freight company, advising me that I had a shipment of 4 palletized crates weighing 1500 pounds! With the help of friends and a truck with a lift-gate, we unloaded, uncrated and shlepped the 1812’s inside the house. The picture […]

Nagra Audio of Switzerland drafts its space-age engineering prowess from its parent company, the Kudelski Group, a 650-million-dollar, publicly-traded European conglomerate founded by Stefan Kudelski in 1951. Today, the company continues to be run by the founding family, and another of the Kudelski Group’s divisions, Nagravision, develops and owns the exclusive encryption technology used by […]

While reading stimulates the intellect, and music-listening provides stimuli of powerful emotions that make us feel alive, the audio/visual entertainment, on the other hand, constitutes an artificial experience package, and aims at engulfing its participants with adequate sensory stimuli to evoke as high a degree of a sense of reality as possible. As the latest […]

First Impressions You got to be kidding me! How do I hook up the speaker wire? From my listening chair, the front panel of the preamp looks like a cassette tape. I need interconnects three inches long. Why did they send them to me not broken in? How could anything without a separate power supply […]

Bösendorfer (bûr-zen-‘do-fer) The core realm of high-end audio has always been purveyed predominantly by enthusiasts with electrical engineering background. Back in the 60’s, there were also the amateur DIYers around the world whose hobbyist passion fueled the formation of many of today’s renowned audio companies. Now, Bösendorfer of Austria, the oldest piano maker in the […]

It’s been awhile since I’ve been really excited about an audio product. You’d think that with a truly great amplifier as well as a world-class set of speakers on hand that wouldn’t be the case. But this summer, I had some health issues and a war raged, so audio has slipped away, somewhat. So much […]

The Long And Winding Road To A Hard Drive: You Know It Don’t Come Easy. There are numerous reasons for using a hard drive-based audio system. To explain mine I must make a confession: I am sloppy. Despite my best intentions CDs are scattered throughout my listening room, some in stacks on the floor, others […]

Intro Is there a more well-known company in audio than McIntosh? Sure, Wilson Audio, Krell and Quad are the stuff of legends, but those companies are for hard-core audiophiles; the masses think hi-fi means Bose (egads!) or, if they’re a bit more knowledgeable, will think of McIntosh as the defining brand of “hi-fi.” However, it’s […]

Many pioneers of the audio industry have borne the brunt of a reluctant and skeptical customer base, and have faced the risk of rejection bravely. If lucky, they also stand to reap their trailblazing visions. In those days, unlike the vastly advanced iterations in today’s cable products, high-end audio cables were just beginning to replace […]

Let me just say it in the first sentence: the GINI iTube is a nifty product. It looks nifty – in fact, it looks like a big white iPod with two little iPods – it makes nice music from cool sources like the iPod, iBooks, and of course from other computers and any other line […]