Clearaudio Concept Turntable

Chris Heinonen

Recently in reviews, I've talked about the Loudness Wars that have infected many modern recordings and how music that I enjoy is rendered almost unlistenable by a bad recording. I imagine it might surprise many people to learn that most releases on vinyl require a different mastering technique than the digital release of the same album, and so many of the flaws of the digital master won't be present on the vinyl release. I tested the Clearaudio Concept Turntable with some modern albums recorded digitally and released on CD as well as Vinyl to prove my point.

TurntablesTurntables
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RTI at CEDIA EXPO 2011

Secrets

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/RTI_Training Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/rticorp?ref=ts CEDIA EXPO 2011 Remote Technologies Inc. (RTI) Booth 3024 Remote ...

Press

KEF Q300 Bookshelf Speakers

Jim Clements

KEF recently introduced an all new Uni-Q driver. The Q300's are the largest bookshelf models in the "All New Q Series" speaker line. Will KEF be able to further their reputation as a high value brand with the all-new Q300's?

Bookshelf Speakers

Sabian 18″ HHX Manhattan Jazz Crash Cymbal

John E. Johnson, Jr.

Sabian's HHX series is specified as "Modern Dark . . . drier, dirtier, funkier". The word "Dark" translates to lots of low frequency undertones, and I think, after having analyzed quite a few cymbals, "dirtier" means more midrange wash . . . more "SHHHHH" to the sound. The current review is of their 18" HHX Manhattan Jazz, which is classified as crash cymbal. Its medium thin weight delivers a bright, but not too bright, sound. It is suited for riding the body as well as the bell.

Cymbals

Pass Labs XP-20 Stereo Preamplifier

John E. Johnson, Jr.

After having tested a Pass power amplifier and phono preamplifier, I could not wait to get my hands on a preamplifier, to complete the system analysis. The subject of this review is the venerable XP-20, which has been in the Pass inventory since 2009. It's a fully balanced design, with separate power supply chassis for low noise. The bench test results were quite surprising. Read on to see for yourselves.

Preamplifiers

Dream 20″ Contact Crash/Ride Cymbal

John E. Johnson, Jr.

Dream Cymbals is one of the new companies whose products are manufactured in China. From what we are told, the cymbals are totally hammered and lathed by hand, directly from the cast bronze disc, rather than put through rollers to flatten them before hammering. If that is accurate, I don't think I would want to get into a fight with any of the cymbal smiths, because it must take enormous strength and endurance to perform this task from the raw cast ingot. However, the sound is very revealing, and suggests that it is so. The cymbals have a very strong wash that sustains. The Dream 20" Contact Crash/Ride Cymbal is the subject of the current review. Compared to the 20" Dream Bliss Crash/Ride Cymbal that we reviewed recently, the Contact has a higher pitch, and is, therefore, more penetrating.

Cymbals

Home Theater Movie Renter’s Guide – August, 2011

The SECRETS Movie Review Team

Source Code (Blu-ray), Amelie (Blu-ray), Rango (Blu-ray), Brazil (Blu-ray), The Smurfs (DVD), Unknown (Blu-ray), Your Highness (Blu-ray), The Blues Brothers (Blu-ray), Chocolat (Blu-ray), Fast Times at Ridgemont High (Blu-ray), Mars Needs Moms 3D (3D Blu-ray), The Big Lebowski (Blu-ray), Paul (Blu-ray), National Lampoon's Animal House (Blu-ray), Dazed and Confused (Blu-ray), Jane Eyre (Blu-ray)

Movie Reviews

B&W CM8 Tower Speakers

Brian Alvarez

Bowers and Wilkins (B&W) recently made the bold move to sell their products through Magnolia and Best Buy. Adding big box retailers in addition to specialty retailers is quite a step from a brand surround by "audiophile" credentials. Few speakers have as much universal respect as B&W speakers. One of their new models is the CM8 Floor-stander (tower), which is reviewed here.

Floor Standing Speakers

Yamaha RX-A2000 7.1 A/V Receiver

Kieran Coghlan

I've been using a Yamaha receiver in my home theater for well over a decade. The fact that I've been happy with the sound from this receiver for so long though, speaks volumes for the quality Yamaha built into their receivers back then. Although I have reviewed one of their entry-level receivers, I decided it was time to take a look at one of their better, current offerings, the RX-A2000 to see how far they have advanced in the past decade.

Receivers

Comects Neptune 4 x 2 HDMI Matrix Switcher

John E. Johnson, Jr.

Comects is a Hong Kong-based company that makes A/V accessories, including switchers. We have reviewed a few of their products, and at this point, I had stopped reviewing HDMI switchers because most receivers and processors have HDMI input switching built-in. However, the Comects Neptune 4x2 HDMI switcher is unique, in that it has four inputs and two outputs, and you can route any of the four inputs to either of the two outputs, simultaneously (meaning that it is called a "matrix" switcher). So, for example, if you have a satellite box, Blu-ray player, and media server in your home theater, and you also have an HDTV in an adjacent room, you can route the Blu-ray player to the receiver (which forwards the video to your HDTV or projector) in your home theater, while the satellite box or media server is routed to the HDTV in the adjacent room.

Switchers