HIFICRITIC Vol 12 No 4

Our merry  freelance band of writers and critics has managed to pack in a great variety of music reviews, rock, pop, jazz and classical accompanied by an in-depth music feature from legend Mark Prendergast researching ‘The Great Post-Punk Explosion’ .  The issue begins with Paul Messenger’s Editorial leading to our regular Stan Curtis feature Stan’s Safari exploring the gap between live and recorded sound.

Chris Frankland is surprised and delighted by the ex pat company Audion EL34 Anniversary integrated valve-tube ‘power’ amplifier while Kevin Fiske goes a bundle on a high class Origin Live Calypso MK4 combo turntable  with Illustrious MK3   arm, including matched OL  cables. The Editor also samples high end tube amplifiers with the KR Audio Electronics VA340i hybrid/ FET tube design with two choices of output tube.

Martin Colloms awards a Best Buy to the compact PMC RESULT 6 active studio monitor in his review and does not quibble over the switch mode amplification employed judging by results alone. Colloms also tackles a dsp amplifier active speaker design in the Kii3, an amazing compact stand mount with excellent timing in linear phase operating mode. We remember the late Siegfried Linkwitz and also John Bamford the latter erstwhile editor of HIFICHOICE when the two HIFICRITIC Editors wrote issues of HIFICHOICE A5 review editions.  Andrew Harrison critically reviews the state of play of MQA; Chris Bell recounts his cable design experiences. Andrew Everard enthuses over the iFi Audio Pro ISD while Julian Musgrave has fun with a full range direct coupled loudspeaker, amongst other issues.

Marantz gets a slot and a front cover with the NA6006 which so impressed Andrew Everard that it got a Best Buy rating. Keith Howard goes into technical detail on how to rip DSD files.
Phil Gold explains how he built a compact sound room at his apartment, while Martin Colloms reviews the PMC core, their first analogue integrated amplifier.

​Andrew Harrison explores the all in one Studio 19 audio and loudspeaker system, the SOLO E500X-EQ , while Paul Messenger reviews the 3Square ‘ Audio Translator’  floor standing two way loudspeaker and introduces the  John Howes modified Leak Stereo 20.