The Latest Features
The Four Surprising Reasons Why Some Reviewers Rail Against Measurements
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- Written by Doug Schneider Doug Schneider
- Category: Monthly Column Monthly Column
- Created: 01 April 2021 01 April 2021
The SoundStage! Network began publishing in 1995. By 1999, we had started expanding, adding more sites to the network, and we inked a deal with Canada’s National Research Council (NRC) to measure speakers in their anechoic chamber and publish the results. The NRC’s anechoic chamber and associated lab facilities were world-famous then—and still are today—because that’s where Dr. Floyd Toole initially conducted his groundbreaking loudspeaker research (in the 1970s and into the 1980s) that correlated listening impressions with objective measurements. Toole’s research is considered by many to be the most comprehensive body of work ever produced on the subject and was so influential that it helped to build and shape the Canadian loudspeaker industry.
Bowers & Wilkins 705 Signature Loudspeakers
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- Written by Diego Estan Diego Estan
- Category: Full-Length Equipment Reviews Full-Length Equipment Reviews
- Created: 01 April 2021 01 April 2021
Note: measurements taken in the anechoic chamber at Canada's National Research Council can be found through this link.
I have many fond memories of listening to loudspeakers from Bowers & Wilkins, and over the years have owned several pairs of B&W speakers—including the very first product I reviewed for the SoundStage! Network, the 705 S2 two-way standmount ($2999.99/pair, all prices USD), B&W’s smallest tweeter-on-top model.
Recommended Reference Component: NAD C 298 Stereo/Mono Amplifier
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- Written by SoundStage! Hi-Fi Editors SoundStage! Hi-Fi Editors
- Category: Components Components
- Created: 01 April 2021 01 April 2021
Only a few years ago it was difficult, if not impossible, to find a stereo amplifier with extremely low distortion and low noise and with enough power to drive most loudspeakers and not have it cost several thousand dollars. With NAD’s recent introduction of the C 298 amplifier, which can be used as a stereo amp to deliver over 185Wpc or as a monoblock to output more than 620W (both into 8 ohms), the price for such an amp has dropped to just $1999 (all prices in USD). Evan McCosham reviewed the C 298 for this site last month.
Remembering the Cassette and Its Inventor, Lou Ottens
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- Written by Ken Kessler Ken Kessler
- Category: SoundStage! UK SoundStage! UK
- Created: 01 April 2021 01 April 2021
With the way the Grim Reaper has been harvesting of late, there is nothing coincidental, ironic, or remarkable about two of audio’s most inventive individuals leaving us these past few months, so closely together. It is simply a sad sign of the times. I am starting to get the tiniest whiff of what it must have been like during the Great Plague of 1665 and have stopped counting friends and acquaintances lost this year, let alone the litany of recently deceased celebrities who made the news.
Cleaned Up, Rearranged, and Improved—My 2021 Reference Room and Stereo System
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- Written by Doug Schneider Doug Schneider
- Category: Monthly Column Monthly Column
- Created: 01 March 2021 01 March 2021
On December 16, 2020, I posted the picture below to my personal Facebook newsfeed with this caption: “There are valid reasons why I don’t often post pictures of my listening room—this reviewing gig can get a little out of hand sometimes.”
NAD C 298 Stereo/Mono Amplifier
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- Written by Evan McCosham Evan McCosham
- Category: Full-Length Equipment Reviews Full-Length Equipment Reviews
- Created: 15 March 2021 15 March 2021
Note: for the full suite of measurements from the SoundStage! Audio-Electronics Lab, click this link.
Perched atop my ladder outside on a gorgeous fall Saturday, working through our home-improvement list—my favorite COVID-lockdown activity—I was excited to receive this message from the SoundStage! Network’s founder, Doug Schneider: “Your first review product is in—the new NAD C 298 power amp.”
High-Value Surprise—the Music Hall a15.3 Integrated Amplifier
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- Written by Doug Schneider Doug Schneider
- Category: System One System One
- Created: 01 March 2021 01 March 2021
Originally, I had no intention of writing about Music Hall’s a15.3 integrated amplifier for this column, even though its price (only $549, all prices in USD) makes it ideally suited. In December 2020, the a15.3 was sent to us by Music Hall’s Canadian distributor, Motet Distribution, for James Hale to review, which he did in February 2021 in his SoundStage! Xperience “Art+Tech” column—and that should’ve been that.
Aurelia XO Cerica XL Loudspeakers
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- Written by Jason Thorpe Jason Thorpe
- Category: Full-Length Equipment Reviews Full-Length Equipment Reviews
- Created: 01 March 2021 01 March 2021
Note: measurements taken in the anechoic chamber at Canada's National Research Council can be found through this link.
I traveled 4298 miles to discover Aurelia speakers, and in that first encounter, at the 2018 Warsaw Audio Video Show, I didn’t realize what I was hearing. Even at the best of times, the listening conditions at audio shows are terrible, and this wasn’t the best of times: the multitudes of attendees made it almost impossible to hear what was going on, and we had to keep to an insane go-go-go pace to cover the show for SoundStage! Global.
Retro Hi-Fi in Several Forms
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- Written by Ken Kessler Ken Kessler
- Category: SoundStage! UK SoundStage! UK
- Created: 01 March 2021 01 March 2021
Lovers of retro come in two types. They are not mutually exclusive, but most of the retro-addicts I know are absolutists, one way or the other. There are (1) those brave enough to employ actual, vintage items, and (2) those who prefer the peace of mind offered by brand-new products which are retro in concept but otherwise modern. Examples include running an original Fiat 500 or Mini vs. buying a new one; wearing a 1940s British military watch or choosing one of the recent replicas; and, of course, listening to aged hi-fi equipment or only to current models.
Recommended Reference Component: Audeze Euclid Earphones
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- Written by SoundStage! Hi-Fi Editors SoundStage! Hi-Fi Editors
- Category: Components Components
- Created: 01 March 2021 01 March 2021
Audeze’s new Euclid earphones ($1299, in USD) have earpieces made from aluminum and carbon fiber, each containing a single, bespoke 18mm planar-magnetic driver. Because of the high price, unique driver, and high-quality materials, the Euclids might seem targeted mostly at serious enthusiasts simply looking for the best possible sound. But as Brent pointed out in his February 2021 review on SoundStage! Solo, with their reasonably high sensitivity and what he called the “the outward normality of the design,” these earphones are “also for well-heeled people who just want a good set of earphones they can plug into their Android phone, their tablet, or their computer.” Brent used his Samsung Galaxy S10 as well as an AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt DAC-headphone amp for the review and found that the 105dB (1mW input) sensitivity of these headphones meant they could be driven to high sound-pressure levels (SPLs) with not that much power.
