Darko.Audio podcast

Less for consumers, more for hi-fi manufacturers, distributors and retailers. In this episode, Jeremey Lim discusses how Zeppelin and co. - a head-fi store & coffee shop in Singapore - has used social media to build its business and brand identity.

I also chime in with some thoughts of my own on how audio manufacturers might more effectively use Facebook, Instagram and YouTube to build their online presence and expand their reach.

https://zeppelinandco.com/

https://www.facebook.com/zeppelinandco/

https://www.instagram.com/zeppelinandco/?hl=en

With Jeff Dorgay of TONEAudio.

What is an audiophile lifestyle product? Jeff seems to have a better handle on it than I do. And yet in 2019, many audio products coming to market don't ask us to bend our lives around them and don't suffer the sound quality penalty of yesteryear.

ELAC's Andrew Jones is a loudspeaker designer with a knack for making the complicated sound ever so simple. I'm less interested in his CV than understanding why most loudspeakers are wooden boxes. Or if active crossovers can solve problems that passive networks cannot? Or if a pair of loudspeakers can accurately reproduce a live event and can a loudspeaker ever be considered 100% 'neutral'?

At the very end of the loudspeaker design process, is Jones measuring or is he listening? Are there any pitfalls that he looks for when measuring a loudspeaker? Why doesn't he publish his own measurements of ELAC'S Debut and Uni-Fi series?

Further info: https://www.elac.com/

Garth Powell, AudioQuest's Direct of Power/Engineering, explains how electrical noise can infect a high-end audio system and how that noise can trouble a DAC to obscure its low-level detail retrieval. The same low-level detail retrieval sought by many audiophiles.

More info: https://www.audioquest.com/ac-power

With Vinnie Rossi.

What is a pre-amplifier? What are the differences between active and passive designs? Do volume controls matter? What about tubes? Do I even need a pre-amplifier?

I put these questions to high-end audio manufacturer Vinnie Rossi in the hope of lifting the veil on perhaps the most misunderstood component in the audio chain.

https://www.vinnierossi.com/

With Jeff Dorgay of TONEAudio.

"Nothing beats the sound of vinyl". "Nothing beats the sound of digital".

Idealism sure sounds silly. We bring some much-needed pragmatism to the vinyl playback conversation.

More coverage at http://Darko.Audio and http://www.tonepublications.com/.

With Jeff Dorgay of TONEAudio.

In which we discuss some of our favourite products of the last twelve months.

John's picks...

Naim Uniti Atom £1,999

https://www.naimaudio.com/product/uniti-atom

Chord Qutest DAC £1,195

https://chordelectronics.co.uk/product/qutest/

Devialet Expert Pro 140 €4,999#

https://www.devialet.com/en-eu/expert-pro-audio-system/

Campfire Audio Atlas IEM $1,299

https://campfireaudio.com/shop/atlas/

Campfire Cascade $799

https://campfireaudio.com/shop/cascade/

MrSpeakers Aeon Flow Open $799

https://www.mrspeakers.com/headphones-22/aeon/aeon-flow-open-back-headphone.html

Audeze LCD 2 Classic $799

https://www.audeze.com/products/lcd-collection/lcd2-classic

Jeff's picks...

Hana SL $749

https://www.musicdirect.com/phono-cartridges/Hana-SL-MC-Mono-Cartridge-(Low-Output)

Boulder 508 $5,000

http://boulderamp.com/products/508-phono-preamplifier/

PS Audio DirectStream PowerPlant 15 $7,499

https://www.psaudio.com/products/directstream-power-plant-15/

Roon Nucleus €1,500 - €2,500

http://blog.roonlabs.com/what-makes-nucleus-so-special/

dCS Vivaldi One $88,000

https://www.dcsltd.co.uk/products/vivaldi-one/

With Jeff Dorgay of TONEAudio.

Sometimes we want steak, other times only sushi will do. So it goes with loudspeakers: we might lust for (full-range) floorstanders but either our room's acoustics and/or our aesthetic sensibilities demand standmount standmounts. Like food, it's better to have too little than too much.

In the latest Darko.Audio podcast episode, Jeff Dorgay of TONEAudio and I discuss small loudspeakers with our informal chat romping through the following products (and more):

47 Labs Lens: https://www.sakurasystems.com/

Atacama Nexus 6i: http://www.atacama-audio.co.uk/p/nexus-i-speaker-stands-600mm-23-6-pair

Blumenstein Audio: https://www.blumensteinaudio.com/

DENSOTen Eclipse 510Z MKII: http://www.eclipse-td.com/products/td510zmk2/index.html

ELAC Debut 2.0: https://www.elac.com/series/debut-2-0/

ELAC Uni-Fi UB5: https://www.elac.com/product/ub5/

Genelec 8341 'The Ones': https://www.genelec.com/studio-monitors/sam-coaxial-studio-monitors/8341-sam-studio-monitor

Genelec GTwo: https://www.genelec.com/home-speakers/g-series-active-speakers/g-two-active-speaker

Harbeth P3/ESR: https://www.harbeth.co.uk/hifi-speaker/11/Harbeth-P3ESR-loudspeaker

JERN 14DS: http://jernspeakers.com/specs/

KEF LSX: https://m.int.kef.com/products/lsx

Michael Green Room Tunes: https://www.michaelgreenaudio.net/

Martin Logan Motion 4i: https://www.martinlogan.com/en/product/motion-4i

Paradigm Monitor SE Atom: https://www.paradigm.com/en/passive/monitor-se-atom

Pioneer SP-BS22-LR: https://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/Home/Speakers/Pioneer+Speakers/SP-BS22-LR

ProAc Tablette 10/Signature: https://www.proac-loudspeakers.com/html_files/Speakers.php?Range=Tablette&Speaker=Tablette10

Raidho Acoustics D1.1: http://raidho.dk/product-detail/d-1-speakers/

Sonus Faber Sonetto I: https://www.sonusfaber.com/en/products/sonetto-i/

Sound Anchors: http://soundanchors.com/

Wharfedale: http://www.wharfedale.co.uk/

A must listen for any apartment dweller.

With Innuos R&D Director Nuno Vitorino.

He explains why there's more to digital audio connections than just the accurate transfer of data.

http://www.innuos.com/en

With Roon CEO Enno Vandermeer.

He explains the difference between Roon Ready and Roon Tested.

https://roonlabs.com/