@Featured
FutureAudiophile.com 2023 Gear of the Year Awards
It’s hard to believe that we’ve been doing FutureAudiophile.com for a whole year now, but since our late-2022 launch, we’ve reviewed over 150 audiophile components ranging from very high end to sub-$200 Chi-Fi integrated amps and seemingly everything in-between. Getting back in the… Read More »
More @Featured
Why I’m Buying My Wife a Dark Side of the Moon T-Shirt for Christmas
Sitting in our living room with the inward-facing French doors open to let the cool evening ocean breeze waft in, I cued up my audiophile system for some chill, trip-hop, loungy/electronic jams as my wife and I had a rare… Read More »
Boulder Amplifiers 1160 Stereo Amp Reviewed
Nestled slightly south east of Boulder, Colorado, is a high-end audio company whose name is synonymous with world-class, high-performance gear: Boulder Amplifiers. In fact, Boulder is generally considered by many savvy audiophiles as one of the best overall electronics brands available… Read More »
Laufer Teknik The Note Line Array Loudspeaker System Reviewed
Quantum physicist and well-known audio engineer Mark Porzilli, someone who has been designing award-winning audio products for decades, has, since 2019, been updating and perfecting his third and latest line array loudspeaker system: The Note. Manufactured by Laufer Teknik, The… Read More »
Audiophile Lingo You Need to Know Part 3: Different Types of Speakers
Loudspeakers are somewhat of a marvel. Where electronic components are designed to efficiently move electrical signals from one place to the next, speakers have the unique job of converting those signals to the mechanical vibrations we perceive as music. Without… Read More »
AGD Productions Alto Stereo Preamplifier Reviewed
It is no secret that we at Future Audiophile are fans of GaN technology and have a great deal of respect for AGD Productions for getting on the bleeding edge of this technology. I was so thrilled by AGD Productions… Read More »
Amped America AAP-1 Stereo Preamplifier Reviewed
We’ve been pretty psyched here at Future Audiophile about Amped America’s presence on the audiophile astral plain. What’s not to love? The company’s affordable Class D amplifiers like the AMP 2400 utilize the same core technologies as amplifiers costing six times… Read More »
Why It’s Still Important to Review Really Expensive Audiophile Gear
Longtime audiophile reviewer Steven Stone was being shy in a recent phone conversation. As far as I can tell, he coined the phrase “oligarch audio,” which describes audiophile components that are priced north of $100,000. By anyone’s measure, that is… Read More »
NAD C 3050 Integrated Amplifier Reviewed
The 3050 may be NAD’s newest integrated amplifier, but it takes little more than a casual glance to see that it’s been inspired by some of their most meaningful legacy products – ones that helped guide the first steps of… Read More »
RBH 6500-SF Floorstanding Loudspeaker Reviewed
RBH Sound knows a thing or two about speaker design. The Utah-based company has been doing it since the mid-1970s, producing OEM speakers for major players such as McIntosh and JBL before pivoting to focus on their own in-house speaker… Read More »
How To Get Out-of-Warranty Audiophile Electronics Repaired
After my article about three recent in-warranty repairs, my publisher, Jerry Del Colliano, asked me to write about out-of-warranty audiophile repairs. Those are the ones that you can expect to have to pay for. Basically, there are three out-of-warranty repair scenarios.… Read More »
Magnepan LRS+ Loudspeakers Reviewed
Magnepan’s LRS+ ($995 per pair) is a somewhat modestly sized planar speaker that operates as a dipolar design, meaning the room contributes to the sound of the speakers more than you’d expect with a typical pair of dynamic speakers. They’re… Read More »
Reducing Background Noise Can Get You Big Audiophile Gains
A few years before COVID, I walked into a listening room at a CEDIA show in Denver for an audition of Wisdom Audio’s latest powered and room-corrected speakers. Calling it a room is a stretch, mind you, as these demo spaces are easily assembled… Read More »
Orchard Audio Starkrimson Ultra 2.0 GaN Amplifier Reviewed
Few industries have a wider range in terms of the sizes of companies creating products for public consumption than does the audiophile market. Some companies, such as Harman and Sony, are multi-billion-dollar conglomerates. Others, such as like Orchard Audio, are… Read More »
Kanto ORA Desktop Powered Loudspeakers Reviewed
The ORA Two-Way Active Wireless Reference Desktop Speakers by Kanto Living offer a refreshing blend of audiophile performance and versatility. Immediately, I was drawn to these speakers and their ability to produce clear and vibrant sound, which seems uniquely tailored for… Read More »
Marantz SACD 30n CD/SACD Player Reviewed
Marantz’s SACD 30n SACD player (buy at Amazon), like the recently reviewed Model 30 integrated amplifier, has a blend of old-school features and design with modern technology. Marantz calls the SACD 30n a complete digital source player, and while it does not handle every… Read More »
How Should Audiophiles Think About Hearing Loss as They Age?
The human ear is quite an amazing piece of audio gear. It’s an intricate yet vast system of tiny, superbly-tuned components working in sync to convert mechanical energy into what we interpret as sound. Most people, audiophiles included, will go… Read More »
Spin-Clean Record Washer Deluxe Kit Reviewed
In a world where digital streaming dominates the music landscape, there’s a certain charm and nostalgia that comes with spinning vinyl records. For audiophiles and music enthusiasts alike, the warm tones and nostalgic sound of vinyl offer a unique and… Read More »
Pass Labs XA-25 Audiophile Power Amplifier Reviewed
How many people back in the day really knew how special a car designed by Enzo Ferrari was? Today, years after his death, an Enzo-era design from Modena is almost always more than a million-dollar investment. When it comes to… Read More »
Are Warranty Repairs Even Worth It Anymore?
One of the ugly truths of consumer electronics is that stuff breaks. When we’re lucky, a malfunction occurs while the product is still under warranty. But what do those warranties actually cover, practically speaking? The following stories draw from my… Read More »
Tekton Design Matrix Monitor Loudspeakers Reviewed
Tekton Design is well known as a disruptive force in the world of audiophile speakers, what with their mix of distinctive design, high value, dramatic dynamics, and even exotic, custom paint jobs. The one thing missing in their very extensive… Read More »
Marantz Model 30 Integrated Amplifier Reviewed
Marantz’s Model 30 integrated amplifier (buy at Amazon) has a blend of old-school features and design with modern technology, but perhaps not in the way most audiophiles might anticipate. The Model 30 has a classic, old-school interface and feel, blended with modern aesthetics… Read More »
Classé Delta Stereo Amplifier Reviewed
Long before Classé became part of Masimo Consumer (the parent company that also owns Polk, Definitive Technology, Denon, Marantz, and Bowers & Wilkins), the company was making some of the highest-performance audiophile components in the market. I’ve owned past versions of the company’s AV preamps… Read More »
Want a Better Sounding Hi-Fi System? Fix Your Room First
For most audiophiles, the road to sonic nirvana often follows the path of increasingly better equipment. Many of us spend decades and untold thousands of dollars replacing an existing something for a something better – all in the hopes of… Read More »
