Articles, Reviews and Measurements of Audio Products
Audeze SINE Review (Closed Back Headphone)
This is a review and detailed measurements of the Audeze SINE closed-back, on-ear planar magnetic headphone. It is on kind loan from a member. I think it came out back in 2016 (?) and cost US $450 then. Seems to be discontinued now.
The metal and soft material feel good in hand but don't look luxurious:
Specialized angle connectors are used to mate to a short and flat cable. Cable seems to have silicone insulation that keeps it from tangling and feels good in hand.
Being a small headphone, it is rather lightweight:
The cup is odd-sized so I did not try to measure its dimensions.
Note: The measurements you are about to see are made using a standardized Gras 45C. Headphone measurements by definition are approximate and variable so don't be surprised if other measurements even...
The metal and soft material feel good in hand but don't look luxurious:
Specialized angle connectors are used to mate to a short and flat cable. Cable seems to have silicone insulation that keeps it from tangling and feels good in hand.
Being a small headphone, it is rather lightweight:
The cup is odd-sized so I did not try to measure its dimensions.
Note: The measurements you are about to see are made using a standardized Gras 45C. Headphone measurements by definition are approximate and variable so don't be surprised if other measurements even...
Kennerton Rognir Review (Closed Back Headphone)
This is a review and detailed measurements of Kennerton Rognir (Rögnir) closed back planar magnetic headphone. It was kindly purchased new by a member and drop shipped to me. Rognir comes in many colors but cost seems to be the same € 3,250 (US $3,770).
Clearly high quality material is used in construction of this headphone:
The look is a bit fussy for my tastes but you may think otherwise. Fortunately despite its weight this is a very comfortable headphone to wear for me:
The cups are round and have an inside diameter of 60 mm and depth of 22mm.
Note: The measurements you are about to see are made using a standardized Gras 45C. Headphone measurements by...
Clearly high quality material is used in construction of this headphone:
The look is a bit fussy for my tastes but you may think otherwise. Fortunately despite its weight this is a very comfortable headphone to wear for me:
The cups are round and have an inside diameter of 60 mm and depth of 22mm.
Note: The measurements you are about to see are made using a standardized Gras 45C. Headphone measurements by...
Loxjie D30 Review (DAC & Headphone Amp)
This is a review and detailed measurements of the new revision of the Loxjie D30 stereo DAC and headphone amplifier. It was sent to me by the company and costs US $260 on Amazon including Prime shipping.
The main stand-out feature as far as looks is the better home screen graphics than sister company (SMSL):
The menus otherwise look like SMSL DACs. I don't like how the audio format and sample rate are emphasized in big letters as opposed to the volume control. Speaking of that, it is linear so while good for small adjustments, it takes forever to go from low to high volume. They should implement acceleration for it and show the level in large letters in the middle.
The back side is as you expect except the nice bonus of built-in power supply despite the small size:
Loxjie D30...
The main stand-out feature as far as looks is the better home screen graphics than sister company (SMSL):
The menus otherwise look like SMSL DACs. I don't like how the audio format and sample rate are emphasized in big letters as opposed to the volume control. Speaking of that, it is linear so while good for small adjustments, it takes forever to go from low to high volume. They should implement acceleration for it and show the level in large letters in the middle.
The back side is as you expect except the nice bonus of built-in power supply despite the small size:
Loxjie D30...
Kanto YU6 Measurements (Powered Monitor)
This is a review and detailed measurements of the Kanto YU6 powered speaker. It was kindly sent to me by a member and costs US $499 on Amazon including Prime shipping.
The YU6 comes in different finishes, all of which look pretty attractive. The sample I have is black:
As you see, you have a front volume control which is great for a desktop monitor. A remote control is also provided which is even more convenient to use as it also lets you select many other options including different inputs:
I don't think I had seen a powered monitor with phono input before! Very nicely done as far as inputs and feature set.
Measurements that you are about to see were performed using the Klippel Near-field Scanner (NFS). This is a robotic measurement system that analyzes the speaker all around and is able (using advanced...
The YU6 comes in different finishes, all of which look pretty attractive. The sample I have is black:
As you see, you have a front volume control which is great for a desktop monitor. A remote control is also provided which is even more convenient to use as it also lets you select many other options including different inputs:
I don't think I had seen a powered monitor with phono input before! Very nicely done as far as inputs and feature set.
Measurements that you are about to see were performed using the Klippel Near-field Scanner (NFS). This is a robotic measurement system that analyzes the speaker all around and is able (using advanced...
Schiit Lokius Review (Equalizer)
This is a review and detailed measurements of the Schiit Lokius balanced (I/O) analog 6-band equalizer. It was kindly sent to me by a member and costs US $299 from the company direct (plus shipping).
The Lokius looks like other Schiit products in their mid-sized configuration:
There is a bypass button and selection between balanced and unbalanced inputs:
The standard (giant and heavy) Schiit AC transformer is supplied to power the unit.
I must say, I hated operating the Lokius. The knobs are too close together and even my skinny fingers can't fit between them. This means you have to move the knob a bit then pick up your finger, move it back and repeat. The knobs are kind of slippery so you have to put some pressure on them to turn them. The combination of these literally made the bones in my fingers hurt. For a device where you want to fiddle with all the time and possibly per track you are listening...
The Lokius looks like other Schiit products in their mid-sized configuration:
There is a bypass button and selection between balanced and unbalanced inputs:
The standard (giant and heavy) Schiit AC transformer is supplied to power the unit.
I must say, I hated operating the Lokius. The knobs are too close together and even my skinny fingers can't fit between them. This means you have to move the knob a bit then pick up your finger, move it back and repeat. The knobs are kind of slippery so you have to put some pressure on them to turn them. The combination of these literally made the bones in my fingers hurt. For a device where you want to fiddle with all the time and possibly per track you are listening...
Anthem AVM70 Review (AV Processor)
This is a review and detailed measurements of the Anthem AVM70. It was sent to me by the company for review and costs US $3799.
The AVM70 has a very modern and attractive front panel and display:
Company takes full use of the large display as you see with nice icons. Importantly, the interface speed is lightning fast! What a delight it is to finally see an AV product with such good graphics and super responsive UI. Hit a button the remote and the action is taken immediately as are changes including input selection. Whatever application processor they are using must be quite fast with good programming. It is about time we see such implementations especially in higher end of the market.
The back panel shows rich set of connectivity including balanced XLR outputs:
That is 17 outputs by my count.
I ran the measurements you are about to see by the company. They are close enough that they signed off...
The AVM70 has a very modern and attractive front panel and display:
Company takes full use of the large display as you see with nice icons. Importantly, the interface speed is lightning fast! What a delight it is to finally see an AV product with such good graphics and super responsive UI. Hit a button the remote and the action is taken immediately as are changes including input selection. Whatever application processor they are using must be quite fast with good programming. It is about time we see such implementations especially in higher end of the market.
The back panel shows rich set of connectivity including balanced XLR outputs:
That is 17 outputs by my count.
I ran the measurements you are about to see by the company. They are close enough that they signed off...
SMSL SU-9n Review (Balanced Stereo DAC)
This is a review and detailed measurements of the SMSL SU-9n balanced USB stereo DAC with Bluetooth support. It was sent to be my Shenzhenaudio and costs US $399.
From the outside, the SU-9 looks like the recent DACs from SMSL:
And from the back side for that matter:
A side story. When I started to test the SU-9n, I could not get one unbalanced channel working. I tried everything but one channel would not work. Balanced was fine. Later on I went to test the Coax input and it was then that I figured out that the "non working" channel cable was hooked up to the Coax digital input! I had hooked it looking from above and just assumed the RCA...
From the outside, the SU-9 looks like the recent DACs from SMSL:
And from the back side for that matter:
A side story. When I started to test the SU-9n, I could not get one unbalanced channel working. I tried everything but one channel would not work. Balanced was fine. Later on I went to test the Coax input and it was then that I figured out that the "non working" channel cable was hooked up to the Coax digital input! I had hooked it looking from above and just assumed the RCA...
Does Quality of Coax Input Matter for DACs?
The title is much more lofty than this little test but I thought I share the results of testing a DAC with super high quality Coax S/PDIF vs a lower quality one. Question came up in the review of FX Audio DAC-SQ3: "how good is its coax output?" I have not done many measurements of these "digital to digital bridges" so I thought I expand it into an article by itself.
As I showed in the review of DAC-SQ3, it is one of those odd birds with USB input and Coax/Toslink output:
So if you happen to have a DAC or AVR that you like otherwise but lacks USB input, you can use this box for that (and get a DAC for free). It was not long ago that companies were selling and promoting such bridges. Getting one question out of way, no, the volume...
As I showed in the review of DAC-SQ3, it is one of those odd birds with USB input and Coax/Toslink output:
So if you happen to have a DAC or AVR that you like otherwise but lacks USB input, you can use this box for that (and get a DAC for free). It was not long ago that companies were selling and promoting such bridges. Getting one question out of way, no, the volume...
JBL 4309 Review (Speaker)
This is a review and detailed measurements of the JBL 4309 2-way speaker. It was kindly purchased new by a member and drop shipped to me. The 4309 costs US $2,000 for a pair.
NOTE: our company Madrona Digital is a dealer for Harman products including the JBL Line. While the measurements are performed just like any other speaker and hence can't be "gamed," you are welcome to read any kind of bias you like in my subjective assessment.
The 4309 is a shrunk version of its larger brothers and somehow manages to look very cute!
It is like a half-scale version of a super car! Back panel nods to audiophile market with bi-wire binding posts:
Measurements that you are about to see were performed using the Klippel Near-field Scanner (NFS). This is a robotic measurement system that analyzes the speaker all around...
NOTE: our company Madrona Digital is a dealer for Harman products including the JBL Line. While the measurements are performed just like any other speaker and hence can't be "gamed," you are welcome to read any kind of bias you like in my subjective assessment.
The 4309 is a shrunk version of its larger brothers and somehow manages to look very cute!
It is like a half-scale version of a super car! Back panel nods to audiophile market with bi-wire binding posts:
Measurements that you are about to see were performed using the Klippel Near-field Scanner (NFS). This is a robotic measurement system that analyzes the speaker all around...