HIFICRITIC Volume 14 Number 4 October-December 2020 Completing another (partial) lock down issue, we have been able to create and sign off the varied content for this, our 60th issue. Magazine production has been held to our customary if somewhat delayed scheduling. And all at HIFICRITIC hope that our readers are in good shape. Flexible planning and keeping going, if you can, is one way of dealing with these strange times. I would be the first to admit it has helped preserve my peace of mind while many thanks are due to our team of home working freelancers working assiduously from their homes. I would also like to thank the audio industry who have generously put themselves out and supplied a host of exceptional products for the HIFICRITIC team to evaluate. My own contributions began with a report on eight interconnect and loudspeaker cables, while a few more turned up in conjunction with another massive audio electronics review. |
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HIFICRITIC Volume 14 Number 3 July-August-September 2020
Preview: HIFICRITIC Vol 14 No2 April-June 2020 issue I have almost lost count of the 100 or so listening tests recently conducted on network cables and net switches, scrutinised with the aid of an exacting audio system founded on a Naim ND555 streamer with dual PS555DR supplies. With such a task you have to be prepared for a proportion of null results, i.e. no change or no discernible difference, and even these results need repeating just to be sure – as sure as you can be, in that set up, with that state of acuity, with that system, and those chosen track(s).
Historical Review: Martin Colloms April 1993 Tannoy has made steady progress on the studio monitor market over decades. Medium sized monitors are required to have a performance envelope which reaches beyond the capability of most domestic speaker designs. Low coloration, subtlety and transparency may be the provenance of high quality domestic speakers; the professional monitor must be capable of very high standards in terms of dynamics, 'speed', power handling and loudness as well as outright sound quality. Furthermore it must be highly analytical. It does not have to sound 'nice'; rather it must faithfully reveal both flaws and qualities in the monitored signal source.
Historical: 12 December 1991 review of an early CD player by Martin Colloms The US company conrad johnson are best known for their classic line of high quality valve/tube electronics which includes the long running, true high end 'Premiere' series. However, this company is larger and more active than you might imagine and has other divisions which generate significant home sales such as Motif - these high performance, non valve products, and also Sonographe, a mid priced line. Sonographe includes speakers and turntables in addition to amplifier electronics and of course, the SD22 CD player, latest version from a series which has been in production for several years now.
![]() The Library of Congress has released from the national recording registry the ultimate stay at home playlist. The following announcement was just released from Washington D.C.. Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden today named this and 20 other recordings as aural treasures worthy of preservation because of their cultural, historical and aesthetic importance to the nation’s recorded sound heritage. Understandably the show was a bit smaller and quieter than in previous years, with Corona inevitably beginning to cast its shadow, but it was well attended nonetheless for its 33rd year with many improved products and systems and numerous launches of new audio product.
It seems to get bigger every year and this time I was determined to be a little selective even with the danger of overlooking something of particular interest. The layout is something of a maze and despite maps and extensive signage it is easy on more than one occasion to end up at the same place. That is not so bad, as more often than not you then find something interesting that you would otherwise have missed.
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AuthorMartin Colloms has a passion for audio and music and has written for many of the key hi-fi magazines worldwide. History
December 2020
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