Although it made an analog junkie out of me, I have to admit that I’ve always been aware of the slightly resonant signature of Oto’s phono stage. To my ears, there has always been a sonic disparity between its line-level and phono performance, which manifested itself as a kind of exaggerated euphonic quality in the latter.
Category: Gear
Audio Note AX-Two Stand-Mounted Loudspeakers
I have to confess that initially I was impressed neither by their appearance nor by their sound. It was a year ago that I climbed the stairs to my apartment carrying the 15 kg box that Andy Whittle handed me after a short stop at my place on his way to Copenhagen. “These are your new speakers; give them some time to properly break in,” were his words.
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Bernd Timmermanns’ Micro Block MK2 Compact Loudspeakers
I don’t really know why I decided to build these particular speakers, which were introduced to the public through the pages of Hobby HiFi magazine. Perhaps it was the unusual concept that caught my attention in the first place — a two-way design combining a long-excursion 4.5-inch woofer with a 3-inch dome tweeter in a relatively compact yet extremely rigid enclosure.
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Abbingdon Music Research DP-777 D/A Converter
I’m going to wrap up my thoughts and impressions of the AMR DP-777 D/A converter, guys. Together with the SoTM sMS-200 network player, it forms the core of the digital front end in my audio chain.
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System Update – December 2017
Some time has passed since the Audio Note OTO SE Signature took over the amplification duties in my audio system, and as usually happens when a new component of higher quality is introduced, some deficiencies intrinsic to other links in the audio chain begin to reveal themselves. Armed with some new knowledge obtained during my communication with Peter Qvortrup, I went through a process of system optimization evolving around this single-ended amplifier, with the main goal of bringing out the best in it. I am glad to say that the end result is a level of enjoyment that has surpassed anything I have experienced before.