The Latest Features
Shunyata Research Theta Speaker Cable
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- Written by Killain Jones Killain Jones
- Category: Full-Length Equipment Reviews Full-Length Equipment Reviews
- Created: 15 February 2025 15 February 2025
The topic of cables is extremely polarizing among audiophiles. Different audiophiles have different thresholds for what they consider an acceptable amount to spend on cables; and the opinions about which type of cables should be prioritized—speaker cables, interconnects, or power cables—vary greatly. Because I’ve found that speaker cables deliver the greatest sonic improvement per dollar, they would be my first choice for an upgrade.
Recommended Reference Component: DALI Epikore 9 Loudspeaker
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- Written by SoundStage! Hi-Fi Editors SoundStage! Hi-Fi Editors
- Category: Components Components
- Created: 15 February 2025 15 February 2025
The idea that bigger is better does not necessarily hold when it comes to loudspeakers. Some large speakers are capable of such prodigious low-end output that they can overwhelm a room. This was something Jason Thorpe experienced when he auditioned the DALI Epikore 11 ($60,000; all prices USD for a pair), the first model to be released in the Danish brand’s premium Epikore series.
January Snow Days—Treble Clef Audio and the David Chesky Trio
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- Written by Doug Schneider Doug Schneider
- Category: Monthly Column Monthly Column
- Created: 01 February 2025 01 February 2025
The Canadian winter hits hard here in Ottawa, where I live. From mid-December to mid-March snow is a near-constant companion to us, punctuated by occasional major snowstorms. We call those events snow days—sporadic snow flurries don’t really count here. Despite great advances in weather forecasting, the time of onset of such storms all too often eludes accurate prediction. Two of this January’s heavy snowfalls seemed set to foil my hi-fi adventures.
T+A Elektroakustik Criterion S 230 Loudspeaker
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- Written by George de Sa George de Sa
- Category: Full-Length Equipment Reviews Full-Length Equipment Reviews
- Created: 01 February 2025 01 February 2025
Note: measurements taken in the anechoic chamber at Canada’s National Research Council can be found through this link.
Growing up in Toronto, one of the most multicultural cities in North America, I’ve had the opportunity to experience foods and flavors from around the world. Of course, I’ve had my fill of cheeseburgers and fries, mac and cheese, and other North American staples, but from time to time I also indulge in Chinese, Middle Eastern, Filipino, and many other cuisines. Being of East Indian heritage, I am well accustomed to the rich variety of curry dishes and adore spicy food in all its forms. Of course, not everybody enjoys spicy foods—one’s palate, after all, is truly one’s own.
PSB Imagine T65 Loudspeaker
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- Written by Philip Beaudette Philip Beaudette
- Category: Full-Length Equipment Reviews Full-Length Equipment Reviews
- Created: 15 January 2025 15 January 2025
Note: measurements taken in the anechoic chamber at Canada’s National Research Council can be found through this link.
Last summer, when I was asked to review the PSB T65 floorstander, from the Canadian loudspeaker brand’s revamped Imagine series, I accepted the assignment without hesitation. As a young undergraduate and a budding audiophile on a shoestring budget, I cut my teeth on PSB speakers. PSB opened my ears to high-end sound. I purchased the PSB Image 4T floorstanders, my first pair of “real” speakers, in 2002. Four years later I replaced them with the Platinum M2s, PSB’s flagship bookshelf model at the time. Several other pairs of PSB speakers have graced my listening room in the ensuing years, entrusted to me for reviews for the SoundStage! Network. (My last review, about the PSB X2T towers, was in 2015.)
Recommended Reference Component: Arendal Sound 1528 Tower 8 Loudspeaker
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- Written by SoundStage! Hi-Fi Editors SoundStage! Hi-Fi Editors
- Category: Components Components
- Created: 15 January 2025 15 January 2025
For the last few months, Norway’s Arendal Sound and its Tower 8 loudspeaker, the flagship model in the company’s new 1528 series, have consumed a lot of SoundStage! Network’s bandwidth: two videos on our YouTube channel—one about Arendal Sound, the other about the 1528 series—and three articles by Doug Schneider on this website about the Tower 8, the most detailed of which appeared as a full review in his December 1 System One column. The Tower 8 earned a Reviewers’ Choice award at the time this review was published and a Product of the Year award when the SoundStage! Network’s annual awards were announced, on December 15.
My Three Favorite Products of 2024
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- Written by Doug Schneider Doug Schneider
- Category: Monthly Column Monthly Column
- Created: 01 January 2025 01 January 2025
The SoundStage! Network’s Product of the Year awards for 2024 were announced on December 15 on this website and on our YouTube channel. Award winners were selected by our editorial team (which includes me). As in previous years, we sifted through reviews of products that received Reviewers’ Choice awards during the year on SoundStage! Hi-Fi and its sister websites—SoundStage! Ultra, SoundStage! Access, SoundStage! Simplifi, and SoundStage! Solo—and picked standout products in the different categories.
Peachtree Audio Carina GaN Integrated Amplifier
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- Written by George de Sa George de Sa
- Category: Full-Length Equipment Reviews Full-Length Equipment Reviews
- Created: 01 January 2025 01 January 2025
Note: for the full suite of measurements from the SoundStage! Audio-Electronics Lab, click here.
“Beloved” is not a word to be used lightly. It’s an older term you don’t often hear today, and conveys a feeling of deep love and adoration. A softer variation is the Italian name Carina. Derived from the Latin word for “beloved,” it’s also the name of the current integrated amplifier lineup from Peachtree Audio. Such a name hints at some promising qualities for these components.
The 2024 SoundStage! Network Awards for Outstanding Achievements and Products of the Year
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- Written by Doug Schneider Doug Schneider
- Category: Monthly Column Monthly Column
- Created: 15 December 2024 15 December 2024
Scope
The SoundStage! Network has been presenting Product of the Year awards annually for almost 30 years. As always, selection of the 2024 award recipients has been based on product reviews published during the year on our core group of audio-review websites: SoundStage! Hi-Fi, SoundStage! Access, SoundStage! Ultra, SoundStage! Simplifi, and SoundStage! Solo. Winning products were chosen from among those that received a Reviewers’ Choice award at the time the review was published.
Stunning Sound: Dynaudio Confidence 20A Loudspeakers in Warsaw
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- Written by Doug Schneider Doug Schneider
- Category: Monthly Column Monthly Column
- Created: 01 December 2024 01 December 2024
One of the top five audio shows in the world, Warsaw’s annual Audio Video Show (AVS), was held from October 25 to October 27 this year, its 26th. Founded and still run by Adam Mokrzycki, it has enjoyed steady growth over the years and has established itself as a world-class event. I started attending the show in 2016. From my perspective, it is the second-most important audio show in Europe, after the annual High End show, in Munich (soon to be held in Vienna). It has surpassed the American audio shows and, along with several Asian shows, holds considerable importance. Needless to say, it is a key event for us.
