In late 2018 I spent some quality time with a couple of high-end JBL horn speakers, the 4429 and S3900. Nice, but the 4429 sells for $5,000 a pair and the S3900 for $10,000 a pair! High-end to be sure, so I also wanted to spend some ears-on time with JBL’s considerably more affordable speakers …

I’ve covered a lot of American and British audiophile speakers in my time, but French contenders, rarely. This one, the Esprit Titus EZ from Triangle HiFi may be the first I’ve heard from that company, but there will likely be many more. Triangle was founded in 1980 in France, how I overlooked Triangle this long is beyond me. The Esprit …

FiiO designed some very decent wired in-ear headphones over the past few years, but this new one, the FH5, feels like a fresh start. Great, but since most phones no longer have headphone jacks and Bluetooth headphones now rule the portable market, who’s still buying wired in-ear headphones? Audiophiles, for one, or anyone who wants to hear music at its …

Back in the day, speakers that had any credibility with audiophiles were big, and Wharfedale’s revitalized Linton Heritage delivers the sort of big-speaker bravura that pint-size speakers never muster. Small speakers can be good, but not as good as this. The Wharfedale Linton is a speaker with a history that dates back to 1965. The design was updated and revised a few …

Etymotic made a big splash in 1991 with its ER4 in-ear headphones, which brought professional audio monitoring into the mainstream.  The Etymotic ER4 headphone was my go-to in-ear for years, and in 2017 the line was refreshed with the ER4SR (Studio Reference) and ER4XR (Extended Response) at $349/£360 each.  This model was quickly followed by the ER3SE/XR ($179/£199), and it was the Audiophiliac affordable …

I know more than a few audiophiles and mastering engineers who love Revel speakers. That kind of loyalty is pretty rare, but hardly unique to Revel: Bowers & Wilkins and ProAc speakers also have cred with professionals and audiophiles. This much I know for sure, the Revel Concerta2 M16 sound is so pure it lets me focus on the music. …

Linear Tube Audio is an American high-end company that specializes in producing tube electronics designed by David Berning. That’s interesting because Berning has his own company, but the components it produces are a lot more expensive than LTA’s. Both companies offer designs that are radically different from traditional tube amplifiers, and don’t have the euphonic sound most people associate with …

Sennheiser HD 650 headphones are a modern classic; they’ve never gone out of favor with the cognoscenti. Wear a pair for 10 minutes and you’ll know why: They just sound right. Part of the appeal is they sound more open, less stuck inside your skull than everyday headphones. The “tone” is just right too. Bass, midrange and treble are well …

Place the Micca RB42 Reference speaker in the hands of experienced audiophiles and they’ll never guess its price. I didn’t come close, but they’re $130 a pair on Amazon, and the RB42 feels like at least double that. Better still, it sounds right. I couldn’t get over how much bass the RB42 makes from its steel-framed 4-inch paper cone woofer, …

I’m a sucker for style, so even before I heard the Bowers & Wilkins Formation Duo I was ready for something special. Duo tops its all-new Formation line, which includes the single speaker Wedge ($899, £900), Bar (sound bar) ($1,199, £1,000), Bass (subwoofer, $999, £900) and for buyers seeking expanded connectivity options, the Audio ($699, £600) wireless hub. That last …