SECRETS Best of Awards 2025

Focal and Naim collaborated on the design of the DIVA UTOPIA with the goal of taking all-inclusive stereo systems to new heights. This system is so much more than a basic pair of active speakers. The cabinets and drivers are designed and sourced from Focal, and the internal electronics are courtesy of Naim. What you get is a pair of stereo speakers with high-end drivers, a built-in Naim streamer, and 400 watts per channel of Class A/B power with individual amp channels for each driver, so there is no analog crossover. Reviewer Craig Chase said it best, “This system is so complete that all one needs is a smartphone or a tablet along with a few minutes to set it up, and one can experience glorious sound from a variety of music sources.”

In practice, the end user enjoys practically unlimited SPL capabilities, deep bass to 20 Hz, scintillating micro dynamics, and macro dynamics that will rattle your bones. Inputs are by way of the streamer, analog inputs, or through a USB input for playback from digital sources.

The entire system is app-controlled through the Focal and Naim app. Not only can you stream from almost every popular streaming service on the planet, but the app also allows full control over the system to include built-in room correction.

Craig’s final analysis is summed up simply: “They do almost everything right, with no apparent weakness.”

The Eversolo DMP-A8 sets a new bar for an integrated streamer-DAC-preamplifier with its excellent versatility, features, and performance in the sub-$2,000 price category. Not only does it boast excellent build quality and full features for each of its functions, but it also exhibits prowess in performing all the tasks within its capabilities. More importantly, the sonic performance of the DMP-A8 is superior to many of its competitors and can even compete confidently with the higher-priced components out there. Considering all these factors, the DMP-A8 indeed brings in a lot of value for the money. The DMP-A8 is the very definition of a product with a high performance-to-price ratio that easily earns our strong recommendation.

WiiM has shown that great streaming doesn’t have to come with a premium price tag. Its lineup delivers impressive sound and functionality without pretending to rival far costlier gear, and that’s exactly the point. The Pro Plus is a perfect entry for those new to streaming, offering Apple AirPlay and an effortless user experience. Step up to the Ultra, and you’ll gain a noticeable boost in sound quality and features, even if AirPlay isn’t part of the deal. Reviewer Jim Milton was so taken with the Ultra, he made it a permanent part of his own setup.

The Denon AVR-A10H A/V Receiver embodies flagship performance with an unmatched mix of power, flexibility, and polish. With 13 channels of amplification and processing, support for four independent subwoofers, multi-zone capability, and decoding for every major surround format, it checks every box for serious home theater enthusiasts. Its robust build, intuitive setup, and thoughtful features, like HEOS streaming, dual room-correction options, and a refined on-screen interface, make it a pleasure to use. Most importantly, the A10H delivers superb sound quality for both music and film, operating with the kind of ease and confidence usually reserved for far more expensive systems. Denon has set a new benchmark here.

The DALI Epikore 3 redefines what a stand-mount loudspeaker can achieve. Though compact, it rivals full-sized towers in both authority and refinement. Co-Editor Chris Eberle described it as “unequaled among bookshelf speakers,” praising its deep, controlled bass, electrostatic-like precision, and striking craftsmanship, each cabinet finished like fine furniture. What stood out most was its effortless listenability: hours of music at high volume, with zero fatigue. The Epikore 3 brings music to life with such ease and emotion that it feels less like playback and more like presence. Few speakers, at any size or price, can match that.

The ELAC Debut 3.0 DB63-BK bookshelf speakers prove that refinement and power can share the same footprint. Sturdy, elegantly finished in satin black, and accented by a textured magnetic grille, they strike a confident visual presence. Inside, a 6.5-inch aramid fiber mid-bass driver and 1-inch aluminum dome tweeter, set in a precision waveguide, deliver sound that’s both dynamic and beautifully balanced. Reviewer Taps Das calls them “darn near perfect,” praising their ability to make every genre shine. If you’re looking for a pair of speakers that combine timeless looks with stunning performance, these belong on your shortlist.

The Sonus faber Concertino G4 loudspeakers integrate precision engineering with optimized acoustic performance in a compact form factor. When coupled with their engineered steel-walnut stands, these transducers exhibit acoustic output characteristics exceeding typical dimensional constraints, demonstrating enhanced soundstage reproduction beyond their physical parameters. The units employ durable construction methodologies ensuring extended operational lifespan, while maintaining consistent frequency response characteristics. The industrial design incorporates both electroacoustic functionality and aesthetic considerations consistent with manufacturer specifications.

The Michi Q5 integrated CD transport and digital-to-analog converter represents a multi-format digital audio processing platform with robust mechanical construction. The unit demonstrates compatibility with optical disc media and digital streaming protocols across multiple audio formats. At $6,999, this component occupies a mid-tier market position while delivering performance metrics comparable to higher-priced reference equipment. The device functions as a central digital signal processing hub, providing digital-to-analog conversion for both stereo audio reproduction and multichannel home theater applications. Technical specifications and measured performance parameters indicate exceptional signal-to-noise ratios, low total harmonic distortion, and consistent frequency response characteristics across all supported formats.

The EMM Labs MA3i digital-to-analog converter demonstrates advanced signal processing capabilities with integrated network streaming functionality supporting multiple protocols, including TIDAL, QOBUZ, and ROON platforms, alongside USB data transfer and UPnP/DLNA compatibility. Laboratory measurements indicate exceptionally low total harmonic distortion (THD) values, representing significant engineering achievement in digital signal conversion. System-level performance analysis reveals that overall signal fidelity remains constrained by the highest-distortion component within the audio signal chain, including transducers. Optimal implementation of this high-specification converter requires complementary components with comparable performance metrics. Signal chain optimization necessitates avoiding impedance mismatches between premium converters and budget-tier components to maintain signal integrity throughout the reproduction pathway.

The Geshelli Labs JNOG3 Digital-to-Analog Converter (D/A Converter, DAC) is a bargain at its price point. It is compact with a minimalist design, has a very low noise floor, and is easy to set up and use. There are multiple op-amp choices available when ordering, and it can be highly personalized with a variety of case and finish options. Paired with one of Geshelli Lab’s headphone amplifiers, one can have a capable, compelling desktop headphone system that will sound fantastic and not break the bank.

The Audiovector Trapeze RI loudspeakers incorporate Air Motion Transformer (AMT) tweeter technology for extended high-frequency response, coupled with optimized mid-range drivers and bass transducers delivering controlled low-frequency extension. The enclosure features a dual-plinth aluminum base incorporating carbon steel bearings for mechanical isolation from room-induced vibrations. Variable damping factor adjustment permits impedance optimization for both solid-state and vacuum tube amplification. The crossover network employs Freedom Grounding circuitry for minimized phase distortion and enhanced signal coherence. Performance specifications indicate optimal operation with amplification exceeding 100 watts RMS, yielding measurable improvements in frequency response linearity, transient response accuracy, and harmonic distortion characteristics comparable to electrostatic transducer designs.

We loved the MoFi SourcePoint 888 Speakers for their coherent imaging that comes from a concentric tweeter that is on axis with the top-mounted eight-inch woofer. Two more woofers take the bass down to an honest 32 Hz from a cabinet that is compact by tower speaker standards. Oh, and they’re designed by legendary audio engineer Andrew Jones. Reviewer Mel Martin called them “a triumph of design and musicality.”

Lori Hawley was very impressed with the Rotel DX-3 Headphone/DAC/Amplifier/Preamp for its solid and premium build quality and precise sound. It drives difficult headphones with ease and looks good doing it. It sports a fully balanced design with a toroidal transformer and is housed in a beefy aluminum chassis. Not only does it treat your headphones with love, but it can also serve as a streamer, preamp, power amp, or outboard DAC. All that functionality is a solid value for well under $2,000.

The FiiO FT7s bring planar headphone magic to a shockingly low price point, costing just $699. For that sum, you get precise imaging and extremely high resolution in an easy-to-drive package. There is no corner-cutting on materials here as they are constructed of carbon fiber, wood, and leather, which makes them light, comfortable, and durable. Their load is easy enough to pair them with portable DACs and players, too.

HIFIMAN continues to earn awards by delivering high performance that is uncompromised and unmatched. The HE1000 Unveiled Planar Magnetic open back headphones deliver a huge soundstage and fine detail from comfortable and breathable earcups. The driver operates with no external grill, giving it maximum breathing room, which translates into revealing sound that is incredibly clear but never harsh.

The MOON 641 Integrated Amplifier delivers a premium experience even before you turn it on. Built from high-end materials formed into a flagship aesthetic, it looks as good as it sounds. Cost-no-object components mean a sound that is nothing short of exquisite. Even the remote-control doubles as a piece of art. It stands well on its own but sounds even better when paired with the 681 DAC/Streamer. Reviewer Yongki Go, PH.D., saw it as completely deserving of its price point.

A few years ago, a projector that could put 200 nits on a 92-inch screen would have cost you at least $15,000. BenQ manages to achieve that brightness for just $2,999. The W4100i isn’t just bright, though. It also delivers a sharp image from a quality lens, accurate wide gamut color, and excellent dynamic range from both HDR10 and HDR10+ content. Its compact chassis also includes a speaker and Android TV. And it’s one of the few remaining displays that supports 3D.

The Epson QL7000 High-Lumen 3LCD Laser Projector is designed for large theaters with an honest 10,000 lumens of white and color brightness. It also has interchangeable lenses ranging from ultra-short to long throw and everything in between. A laser light engine goes 20,000 hours with no need for bulb changes or loud fans. Custom installers will appreciate the RS-232 and IP control, along with remote access to make adjustments from off-site. It’s a premium display in every way, and though it costs around $34,000 with a lens, most projectors that bright will set you back at least $50,000.

Advance Paris is well known for its value-oriented and flexible components. The X-A160 EVO two-channel power amp makes 160 watts into eight ohms and can be paired with any stereo preamp or with the X-P700, which Yongki Go, PH.D., reviewed as a system. He found it to be technically capable and sonically pleasing. He also lauded its ability to handle digital and analog signals with equal prowess. It delivers great sound quality at an accessible price.

Nearly any product in NAD’s Masters Series is deserving of a Secrets Best Of Award. The M66 DAC Preamp combines modern technology, supreme flexibility, and premium build quality into a single component. It can serve as a traditional preamp for analog signals with a fully balanced I/O section. It also streams using BluOS and even includes HDMI ARC for two-channel video systems. NAD provides two upgrade slots that add future proofing using its MDC technology. DIRAC room correction means you can tailor the sound for any space, large or small.

THX has certified many audio and video components over the years, but few have earned the THX Dominus rating. Perlisten’s D15S Subwoofer is one of those elites that checks every high-performance box for a crushingly good sub. A 15-inch carbon fiber cone is precisely controlled by a DSP module that delivers linear bass down to 16 Hz in a 6,500 cubic foot room up to 20 feet away. It also has extensive tweaking options that include a 10-band parametric EQ. If you have $6,595 to spend on a high-end sub, this one is well worth checking out.

“Nearly two decades ago, SVS debuted its first ‘Ultra’ subwoofer—a bold step that redefined what affordable high-performance bass could be. Since then, the Ultra name has remained synonymous with SVS’s top-tier engineering, growing from 12-inch drivers to the formidable 17-inch design found in today’s SB17-Ultra R|Evolution Subwoofer.

Reviewer Craig Chase found the new model to be a revelation: compact yet commanding, effortlessly linear at any volume, and capable of delivering reference-level output without distortion. With in-room extension down to a jaw-dropping 10 Hz, it offers bass that’s as precise as it is powerful. At under $2,500, the SB17-Ultra R|Evolution isn’t just an evolution, it’s a statement on how far SVS has come.”

The MartinLogan Motion XT F200 Home Theater Speaker System was comprised of a collection of 5 speakers from its updated Motion Series. Carlo Lo Raso reviewed this set in May 2025. The review setup included a pair of the Motion XT F200 flagship loudspeakers, the Motion XT C100 center-channel loudspeaker, and a pair of Motion MP 10 on-wall surround loudspeakers for a full 5-channel MartinLogan home theater system. Carlo reported that the system created an excellent and immersive home theater and multi-channel music listening experience. He found the newly-refined Folded Motion Tweeter and midrange drivers to be quick, detailed, and nicely balanced overall. He also described their lack of dynamic compression. In conclusion, he opined that these updated MartinLogan Motion XT loudspeakers were definitely worth considering, as they left a big smile on his face!

This turntable is a collaboration between Technics and Automobili Lamborghini. Of course, it is an iconic direct drive turntable with the classic S-shaped tonearm from the SL-1200 range. The table is available in three different Lamborghini-inspired colors: yellow, orange, or green. The table has these colors splashed across the top of the plinth in the Lambo Y-shape graphic language. It also comes with a slip mat with bold Lamborghini graphics. This table is said to be ideal for audiophile use, but with a wide range of adjustments and capabilities for the DJ. It was reviewed by Taps Das in a video review. Taps fell in love with this table, largely in terms of its utility as a DJ deck. It has significant features for the DJ that include wide-range pitch controls, a high-torque motor with adjustable torque settings, as well as a reverse-play functionality.

The Kaleidescape Strato E Movie Player is a 4K player with 480Gb of storage and support for Dolby Vision and HDR10 video, plus Dolby Atmos and DTS: X. It has available storage for approximately six Ultra HD titles. Downloaded content means no waiting for your Wi-Fi or internet service to catch up while you watch. It integrates with other Kaleidescape players and servers for whole-house video and expanded storage. The best part of Kaleidescape’s players is the user interface, which has always been, and still remains, the coolest way to search and browse through content, far surpassing the competition. The Strato E Movie Player is a perfect example of the premium Kaleidescape experience with its easy installation, premium video and audio quality, and access to a huge selection of content. This player is one of the best ways to watch a movie in the highest possible quality due to its high bandwidth: Colors are richer, dynamic range is greater, and sound has more impact. The Strato E Movie Player is the ultimate way to bring in content. This Kaleidescape player received Chris Eberle’s highest recommendation. Movie lovers should definitely check it out.

Our Editor-in-Chief, Carlo Lo Raso, has reviewed many different headphones over the years, so whenever he has such a strong, positive reaction to a new model, it is time to sit up and pay attention. The Focal Bathys MG are upgraded versions of the original Bathys Wireless headphones. The upgraded model features large, 40 mm diameter magnesium drivers with the Focal proprietary dome “m” profile. These headphones are very lightweight and comfortable, with a claimed extensive battery life of up to 30 hours, even with noise cancellation engaged. Carlo found them to be super comfortable for long listening sessions. He also highlighted the headphones’ wealth of features that include three modes: Bluetooth, DAC Mode, and Wired. He also enjoyed the accompanying Focal app that has extensive adjustability to tailor the sound to your preferences and even to compensate for your unique hearing capabilities. They were also quite well finished. Though they are not “perfect”, they nonetheless held their own among some tough competition.

The Topping D900 leaves little doubt that it belongs in the upper echelon of modern digital-to-analog converters, especially considering its price. The measured distortion is vanishingly low, and the noise floor almost disappears into the limits of test equipment, creating a foundation of technical transparency that few products can equal. In practice, these numbers translate into sound that is free of haze, grit, or unwanted coloration. Instead, what emerges is a presentation of exceptional clarity, where the smallest nuances in recordings are revealed with ease. Micro-dynamics, reverberation trails, and spatial cues that lesser converters tend to blur are rendered with precision. For those who still question whether digital playback has reached maturity, the D900 offers a persuasive answer. Topping has combined superb engineering discipline with innovative decoding technology, and the result is a converter that competes with units costing several times as much. The D900’s fine detail retrieval is spectacular, its noise performance exemplary, and its overall contribution to system fidelity impossible to overstate. As the essential bridge between digital media and the analog world we hear, the DAC deserves as much attention as any amplifier or transducer. With the D900, Topping has proven that this attention can pay extraordinary dividends.

In the waning months of 2024, Craft Recordings has seen fit to take the Bill Evans Trio’s classic album “Explorations” (originally released on Riverside in 1961) and subject it to the full Craft Small Batch edition treatment. For those who don’t know, that involves sending the original master tapes to remastering impresario Bernie Grundman. Bernie works his magic through an all-analog remastering process. He cuts new lacquers using his very customized setup. Those lacquers are sent to RTI (Record Technology Incorporated) to be used in their “One-Step” process for creating the record stampers. This process claims to reduce two steps’ worth of generational loss, so the resulting 2500 edition copies of this LP, pressed on 180-gram advanced-compound vinyl, will have the highest resolution and lowest noise possible. The music itself is positively stunning! A superb re-issue of the highest quality.

“The overall sound quality of this LP is superb. It has a big, warm presentation to the sound while still keeping the players clearly defined and with a decent sense of depth for a vinyl LP. According to the liner notes, the recording sessions were recorded live at Power Station Studios, NYC, and captured on two-track, 1/2-inch analog tape at 30 ips. The recording was treated to a full analog mastering by Bernie Grundman, with this particular LP that I have being a 1-Step, limited edition pressing, the process reducing some of the inherent generational loss from standard LP production.

Technically, the LP is flawless, with an almost dead-quiet level of surface noise and no clicks or pops to mar the listening experience. A truly lovely listen!”

Jeff Wheaton reviewed a series of IsoAcoustics isolation products for domestic use. His review covered the OREA component isolation feet, the GAIA speaker isolation feet, and the Aperta speaker isolation stands. He found all to be very effective in improving the performance of his sound system. He found that these isolation solutions allowed his systems’ components to “perform at their musical best”. He also felt they could resurrect your love of components that you may be losing faith in. These products are very affordable, especially when compared to the many very expensive audio tweaks on the market. So, IsoAcoustic products are a cost-effective solution to help eke out the best from your system.

The ‘VRDS’ in the 701T’s model number stands for “Vibration-Free Rigid Disc-Clamping System”, which is derived from TEAC’s luxury brand, the Esoteric Grandioso CD transport. The concept is to reduce the vibration of the disc during playback. Craig Chase marveled and concluded that, “The midrange is neutral and musical with the highs extended and clear while never being etched . . . and to this reviewer’s ears, they deliver an accurate, authoritative performance that is among the best available, regardless of cost.”

Chris Eberle found that this compact projector literally checked all the boxes: It is an Ultra HD DLP projector with a tri-laser light engine, delivering 3,500 lumens, a huge color gamut, 4K resolution, automated lens shift, zoom and focus, automatic geometry correction, Google TV, integrated audio, and an elegant design in a compact chassis. It’s a flagship product that hits all the marks right out of the gate. He especially marveled at the wide color gamut, sharp image, and useful lifestyle features.

The Degritter Mark II is very effective at cleaning your prized records. It is relatively quiet in operation with flexible operational settings/programmability. The biggest knock is that it is a little pricey. But if you have a large record collection, then the value of the Degritter Mark II becomes easily justifiable, through both its cleaning performance and time savings. It also feels like it’s built to last, so it will be around to service your vinyl library for a good while.