beginner audiophile | hifi | gear reviews | stereo | hi-end audio

No matter how high end your speakers are, you’ve got to put them in the right place to maximize the sound. The old adage says “a cheaper, well placed pair of speakers will sound better than a more expensive, poorly placed set. In this solo episode, Michael breaks down a few different methodologies of … Continue reading 8: Speaker Placement 101 → Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today’s Beginner Audiophile, we “bake off” 4 different speaker cables from Monster, Blue Jeans, Analysis Plus, and Monoprice to see if A: if we can hear any difference, and B: if the difference is palpable enough for us to make a buying decision. We also give an Anthem update, and announce the winner of … Continue reading 7: Do Speaker Cables REALLY Matter?? → Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today’s Beginner Audiophile, we start by explaining the WAF, audio file resolution, and Michael gives an aptX update. Then we jump into the review of the OPPO Sonica DAC and what made a huge difference while we tested it. Finally, we dig into your questions. Gear Guide, Topics & Highlights: 04:26 – KEF LS50 Wireless Speakers … Continue reading 6: Resolution Demystified, Oppo Sonica DAC/Streamer Review, What is The WAF? → Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

…or at least, when things don’t go the way you expect them to. Today’s episode is about patience. I received a piece of gear that I couldn’t get to connect to the interwebs, and Paul and I fiddled for hours with the Oppo Sonica DAC until we got files loaded from our hard drive. Now, the … Continue reading 5: When Things Go Terribly Wrong… → Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today’s show, Paul and I test out various ways to integrate a subwoofer into your 2-channel and multichannel system, including doing the infamous “subwoofer crawl”. We also check in with Nicholas Brown from SVS live from CES, and have a special announcement about winning a great pair of 1moreUSA earbuds! Gear Guide: 10:36 – REL … Continue reading 4: The Great Subwoofer Bake-Off, and Nicholas Brown of SVS → Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today’s show is a real treat. We got to sit down with Andrew Jones (Of TAD / Pioneer Fame) of ELAC. We’d first heard of Andrew a couple years ago when he made these insanely affordable Elac Debut B6 Speakers (See Episode 1 for A Review of these $250 marvels) and he continues to break new … Continue reading 3: A Deep Dive Interview with Andrew Jones, The Speaker Designer Who’s Breaking The Rules of the Audiophile Industry → Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today Michael tells the story of how he fell down the rabbit whole of audiophilia and walks us through his reference system. Then, we do the Great Headphone Bake-Off, volume 1, testing $100 vs $150 vs $1800 headphones. A pretty fascinating…and unexpected result from that test! Gear Guide: 02:30 – Marantz SR7009 Receiver 03:30 – Paradigm Monitor 11 Speakers … Continue reading 2: Michael’s System, and The Great Headphone Bake-Off, Starring 1MoreUSA, Audio-Technica, & Mr. Speaker → Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Origin of Beginner Audiophile. Our audiophile stories. What IS an audiophile. Tour of Paul’s system. We test the ELAC B6 and Sprout. Gear Guide: Paradigm Monitor 7 speakers Tidal Chromecast 1MOREUSA E1001 Triple Driver In-Ear Headphones 1MOREUSA MK802 Over-the-ear Headphones Sprout ELAC System Integrated Amplifier by PS Audio Analysis Plus Oval 9 Speaker Cables Squeezebox … Continue reading 1: Origin of Beginner Audiophile, Paul’s System Walkthrough, Testing PS Audio Sprout/ELAC System → Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices