Blue Hawaii S.E. Electrostatic Headphone Amplifier 'Audiophile consensus' is an oxymoron. In the world of ultra-pricey hi-fi gear, nobody agrees on anything. There may be one exception: the Stax SR-009, a $4,450 electrostatic headphone that has the build quality of a bank vault. The sound is even more impressive. What makes these Japanese cans so good? Transparency. They're pinpoint accurate, and as close to live as one can get...provided they're plugged into an even more expensive amp. The Blue Hawaii S.E. was designed by headphone amp guru Kevin Gilmore. This hybrid component was specifically engineered to power the SR-009s without coloring the signal or adding the slightest sonic artifact. Evidently it's also a bargain. 'For music with headphones, we haven't heard anything better,' gushed The Absolute Sound. 'This $10K combo (actually $10,700; audiophiles round down, not up) can do things that many in-room stereo systems can't match at 2X or 3X the price.'
WaxRax RC-2 Millionaire audiophiles aren't going to rely on some lowly Ikea Expedit bookshelf to store their ultra-rare blues and jazz 78s from the 1920s and '30s. Those cubbies may be perfectly sized for holding albums, but they're also incredibly flimsy, aesthetically banal, and make browsing titles difficult. The worst part: It's immovable, rooted to the floor like an oak. The RC-2 ($1,500) solves all these problems. The sober, overbuilt construction smacks of Prouvè and the machine age. It holds 400 records, and is available in a variety of custom colors. The real bonus, though, are those wheels. Slide it next to the turntable, and pretend you're John Cusack flipping through the bins in High Fidelity.
Audioengine B1 Bluetooth Music Receiver Audioengine, a company known for its affordable DACs and desktop speakers, has solved the Bluetooth puzzle: How to stream 24-bit digital audio through a radio frequency that was designed to carry ring tones. That is precisely what the B1 ($189) does. And it performs like a champ, without any audible glitches like hiss, interference, or dropouts. That's impressive for a unit the size of a cigarette pack. If you've ever dreamed of listening to the hi-res FLAC and WAV files on your phone through a proper home stereo system, the B1 fits the bill. Range is impressive (100 ft.), and the DAC automatically upsamples lossy files to 24-bit. Add a Mophie Juice Pack to the equation, and the unit is truly portable.
Naim Audio Statement amplifier system Behold the world's most expensive stereo amplifier: the $240,000 Naim Statement. This is what happens when you tell a bunch of audio engineers not to cut corners. To be fair, it's more than just an amplifier. It's an 'amplifier system' (the monolith in the middle is a preamp). What do you get after ten years of R&D? Three 37-inch analog towers that put out a chandelier-shaking 745 watts per channel. Naim claims it invented a new transistor 'style' that enhances the illusion of a live performance, but the real selling point are those sensuous CAD ripples. You might think this is Naim's Heaven's Gate, the project that will end careers and bring the company to the brink of bankruptcy. But you would be wrong. Naim has already pre-sold 60 units.
Blue Hawaii S.E. Electrostatic Headphone Amplifier 'Audiophile consensus' is an oxymoron. In the world of ultra-pricey hi-fi gear, nobody agrees on anything. There may be one exception: the Stax SR-009, a $4,450 electrostatic headphone that has the build quality of a bank vault. The sound is even more impressive. What makes these Japanese cans so good? Transparency. They're pinpoint accurate, and as close to live as one can get...provided they're plugged into an even more expensive amp. The Blue Hawaii S.E. was designed by headphone amp guru Kevin Gilmore. This hybrid component was specifically engineered to power the SR-009s without coloring the signal or adding the slightest sonic artifact. Evidently it's also a bargain. 'For music with headphones, we haven't heard anything better,' gushed The Absolute Sound. 'This $10K combo (actually $10,700; audiophiles round down, not up) can do things that many in-room stereo systems can't match at 2X or 3X the price.'
WaxRax RC-2 Millionaire audiophiles aren't going to rely on some lowly Ikea Expedit bookshelf to store their ultra-rare blues and jazz 78s from the 1920s and '30s. Those cubbies may be perfectly sized for holding albums, but they're also incredibly flimsy, aesthetically banal, and make browsing titles difficult. The worst part: It's immovable, rooted to the floor like an oak. The RC-2 ($1,500) solves all these problems. The sober, overbuilt construction smacks of Prouvè and the machine age. It holds 400 records, and is available in a variety of custom colors. The real bonus, though, are those wheels. Slide it next to the turntable, and pretend you're John Cusack flipping through the bins in High Fidelity.
Audioengine B1 Bluetooth Music Receiver Audioengine, a company known for its affordable DACs and desktop speakers, has solved the Bluetooth puzzle: How to stream 24-bit digital audio through a radio frequency that was designed to carry ring tones. That is precisely what the B1 ($189) does. And it performs like a champ, without any audible glitches like hiss, interference, or dropouts. That's impressive for a unit the size of a cigarette pack. If you've ever dreamed of listening to the hi-res FLAC and WAV files on your phone through a proper home stereo system, the B1 fits the bill. Range is impressive (100 ft.), and the DAC automatically upsamples lossy files to 24-bit. Add a Mophie Juice Pack to the equation, and the unit is truly portable.
Naim Audio Statement amplifier system Behold the world's most expensive stereo amplifier: the $240,000 Naim Statement. This is what happens when you tell a bunch of audio engineers not to cut corners. To be fair, it's more than just an amplifier. It's an 'amplifier system' (the monolith in the middle is a preamp). What do you get after ten years of R&D? Three 37-inch analog towers that put out a chandelier-shaking 745 watts per channel. Naim claims it invented a new transistor 'style' that enhances the illusion of a live performance, but the real selling point are those sensuous CAD ripples. You might think this is Naim's Heaven's Gate, the project that will end careers and bring the company to the brink of bankruptcy. But you would be wrong. Naim has already pre-sold 60 units.
Audiophiles tend to be smug know-it-alls with a propensity for dogmatism and obsession. It's a good thing they are, too. Without audiophiles, the entire stereo ecosystem would collapse under the immense weight of mediocrity. Imagine a world where vinyl is no longer pressed, and every 'hi-fi' system is a plastic box made by robots. In such a low-res dystopia legions of drones would trudge to work listening to Big Brother lossy files through crappy white earbuds. That sexy carbon fiber tonearm, the one on the $400 critically acclaimed Pro-Ject turntable your girlfriend gave you for your birthday? Sorry. It doesn't exist. It would never have trickled down from those high-end decks that use to cost as much as a Lincoln Towncar 25 years ago. Nobody but a crazy audiophile hell-bent on inventing the perfect turntable would ever think of making a tonearm out of the same exotic material that NASA used in the space shuttle.
For all these reasons and more, anyone with more than a passing interest in recorded music should attend an audio show. The latest whistle-stop on the stereophile circuit, New York Audio Show 14, recently took place in Brooklyn. As expected, there was enough audio porn crammed into 54 Marriott hotel rooms to make graybeards with deep pockets feel like young lions again. Here are some of the highlights.
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