Cynthia Johnson

Panasonic BD-60 Blu-ray Player

Chris Heinonen and Adrian Wittenberg

Panasonic has a long tradition of producing well regarded, competitively priced disc players. Many of their DVD players were among the best at producing a 480p image, and at a very reasonable cost. Panasonic was at it again with Blu-ray, being one of the main companies out there with a large line of affordable players for consumers, with some extra features that other companies don't include.

Blu-ray Players

Mirage MX 5.1 Speaker System

Richard Stevens

I've always been intrigued by Mirage speakers. Their brand and styling are unmistakable. Having never owned a pair and only partaking in a few brief demos, I was eager to spend some time with the MX 5.1 speaker system. I knew the MX speaker system was compact but when the shipping company arrived with a box that was smaller in diameter than my reference subwoofer I started to feel a little disenchanted.

Surround Sound Speaker Systems

Bowers and Wilkins Zeppelin iPod Amplified Speaker Dock System

Adrian Wittenberg

The iPod dock/speaker market continues to grow every year and more high end speaker manufacturers are joining the game. Products range from cheap and flimsy $20 plastic models to higher end models such as the Fatman iTube Red-i that lists for $649. Bowers and Wilkins, renowned British loudspeaker company, has created their own high end iPod speaker dock system called the Zeppelin, which lists at $599, and is the subject of this review.

Portable Audio

Monster PowerNet 200 and 300 Kits for Audio and Video Streaming Through Your House AC Wiring

Chris Heinonen

Two years ago, there wasn't a single device in my home theater that required an internet connection. Speed ahead to today, however, and my home theater now needs more internet connections than the rest of my household. Two BD Live Blu-ray Players, a DLNA Receiver, a PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii, Tivo HD, and a plasma with Internet Widgets all want to be online for either content downloads, media streaming, firmware upgrades, or more, and many of these require a lot of bandwidth to work well. Monster Cable's PowerNet 200 and 300 packages allow you to connect your music and video server to your hi-fi system in another part of the house by using the household AC wiring.

Wireless

December CD Reviews for the Audiophile – Holiday Recordings to Savor – Part II

Jason Serinus

It's that time again, boys and girls. Santa, egg nog, menorahs, craziness, last-minute shopping, and empty bank accounts to ring in the New Year. You're going to need some good music to get through it all, and even more to entertain family and friends. Whatever your family situation, if you're looking for music appropriate to the holidays, you need look no further. There are some really goodies in the list of mostly new releases that follows. Enjoy!

CD Music Reviews

December CD Reviews for the Audiophile – Holiday Recordings to Savor – Part I

Jason Victor Serinus

Esperanza, founded by the Hispanic Clergy of Philadelphia in 1987, works to “bring a sustained response of hope to the barrio.” To raise funds for their work, they've put together this Christmas compilation with performances by Marcos Witt, Alejandro Sanz, Miguel Angel Guerra, Jose Carreras, Santana, and others. Michelle Bonilla sings quite the “O Holy Night.” The sound quality of the transfers leaves something to be desired, but the joy this will bring to its target audience is great.

CD Music Reviews

The Ongoing Career of Baritone Benjamin Luxon

Jason Victor Serinus

English baritone Benjamin Luxon remains prized for the intelligence of his portrayals, and his unfettered directness of expression. Now 72, and devoting much of his time to theater, Luxon came to fame as a member of Benjamin Britten's English Opera Group. After creating the title role in Britten's Owen Wingrave, he proceeded to perform a wide variety of roles in many of the world's leading houses.

Musician and Vocalist Artist Interviews

Pioneer SC27 7.1 A/V Receiver

Chris Heinonen

Over the past few years, Class D amps have been gaining in popularity for many reasons including their much smaller size, their incredibly high efficiency, and the much smaller amount of heat that they put off compared to a standard Class A, AB, or B amplifier. More and more high end audio companies such as Rotel, Bel Canto and PS Audio have come out with Class D products that offer high performance in a much smaller form factor than was possible with standard amplifier technologies.

Receivers

Paradigm Reference Millenia 300 Tower Floor-standing Speakers, Millenia 30 Center Channel Speaker, Millenia ADP Surround Speakers, and Studio Sub 15 Subwoofer

Larry Hryshko

Talk about mixed feelings! I need to unload all of my biases first since they are sufficient to taint this review. First, I'm a longstanding fan of Paradigm speakers and over the years, I have either owned or listened to a wide range of their products, right from the diminutive Atoms to their flagship Signature models. In this review, I tested the Millenia series.

Surround Sound Speaker Systems

Atlantic Technology 4400 Speaker System

Stephen Hornbrook

Addendum to Atlantic Technology 4400 system review - 642eSB THX select subwoofer

I was having trouble getting good performance from the 444SB so Atlantic Technology was kind enough to send me one of their THX Select certified 642eSB subwoofers. Upon arrival, I immediately noticed the size difference. The 642 is quite a bit larger! It also weighs quite a bit more. It was a decent workout getting it unpacked and moved. To me, this is a good sign when it comes to subwoofers. I set the crossover to bypass and cranked up the gain to about 40% then turned on some music. (Read more at the end of review)

Surround Sound Speaker Systems

PS Audio Power Plant Premier Power Regenerator

Jason V. Serinus

The PS Audio Power Plant Premier (PPP), the company's latest version of the Power Plant P300 that company head Paul McGowan first introduced in 1997, is a true power regenerator. The PPP takes "dirty" and variable AC power from the wall socket, converts it to DC voltage, and then regenerates a new AC sine wave signal at 120 volts. It also serves as a surge protector and all-around power distribution system.

Power Conditioners