The Monoprice Hi-Fi Lightweight On-Ear Headphone looks cheap, and it is. Even so, the all-plastic on-ear headphone feels sturdy enough to withstand some rough handling and it’s not going to fall apart in a month or two. The upside to plastic is that it’s light — this headphone weighs a mere 4.5 ounces, so comfort …

While Apogee is best known for its digital converters used in countless studios all over the world, the Groove digital converter/headphone amp is for audiophiles. It’s a USB powered device for use with PC or Mac computers, and Samsung Galaxy S6, Galaxy S6 Edge and Galaxy S6 Edge + phones. I used the Groove exclusively with my Mac Mini. The …

You invested in a nice turntable, but if you’re still using the cartridge that came with it, you’re not hearing how amazing vinyl can sound. Maybe it’s about time to check out something better, like the new Grado Reference Series Platinum 2 phono cartridge. Like all of the company’s cartridges, it’s designed and hand-assembled in Brooklyn, New York. The Platinum …

Where you listen and how noisy it is significantly changes the way you hear your music. Trains, buses, cars, planes, etc. are far from dead quiet, and you’ll never — even with the best noise-canceling headphones — totally block out all the noise, just some of it. So the quieter, more subtle details of the music will be obscured by …

As a small child, I tuned my AM radio between stations and spent many happy hours listening to static. The spikey roar sounded like abstract music to me, and I could “play” it by slowly turning the dial, shifting the frequencies of the static. I loved that sound. I was a huge fan of guitarist Link Wray’s “Rumble” blasted over …

The Noble Audio Kaiser 10U is the most beautiful in-ear headphone I’ve ever seen. The two-tone red and silver earpiece is a precision machined aluminum housing that’s designed and manufactured in California. Each headphone is hand-crafted and takes a technician about six hours to build. It’s a stunning piece of industrial design. Of course, that wouldn’t mean much if the …

I started thinking about assembling a few high-performance systems for around $1,000 a few weeks ago when I reviewed the ELAC B5 ($230/pair) and B6 ($280/pair) bookshelf speakers , and soon after, the Klipsch RP-150M ($335/pair, with free shipping) bookshelf speakers. All three speakers offer unprecedented sound quality for the money. A NAD C-316BEE ($380) stereo integrated amplifier would do …

A Magnepan 1.7i flat panel speaker Magnepan High-end cars, watches, vacations, boats, wines, clothes, etc. are generally seen in a positive light by the public, but for some reason high-end audio is viewed as an outrageous extravagance for only the wealthiest of audiophiles. Talk about a double standard! Yet the working class guy who collects vintage Ford pickup trucks or …

The best stuff is never cheap, but even top-tier headphones sell for a tiny fraction of the cost of the world’s best speakers. I will follow up with a top 10 affordable headphone list later this year. I’ve limited my selections to just one model from each brand, and I have spent many hours listening to each of these headphones. …

It was just a few months ago that I reviewed a complete Klipsch Reference Premiere 5.1 home-theater system , but I also wanted to spend some quality time with the smallest Klipsch Reference Premiere speaker, the RP-150M monitor. Through the end of this month, the RP-150M is selling for $335 per pair with free shipping in the US, the regular …