The venerable firm Audio Research has recently undergone a big transition in ownership, strategy and product offerings. We covered this extensively in a visit to their Minnesota headquarters in advance of the release of 6 new products this summer. Today, I’ll be reviewing two of those products, the LS-3 solid-state preamp/DAC and the S-100 solid-state power amp. We’ve covered the new D-80 tube power amp, and will be covering the LS-2 tube preamp and the S-200 solid-state power amp soon.

This video is sponsored by: https://fidelityimports.com/pages/introducing-perlisten

00:00 The Audio Research S-100 & LS-3

1:01 Overview

4:24 Sound Quality S-100

09:34 Sound Quality LS-3

12:45 Operational Caveats & Comments

14:15 Summary

Newsletter: https://www.theabsolutesound.com/newsletter

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theabsolutesound

Substack: https://www.theabsolutesound.substack.com

Tom's reference system:

Aurender N20 Streamer/Server

Roon Nucleus server

Mac Mini (M2) server

Wiim Pro server/DAC

Bluesound Node server/DAC

Topping D70 Pro DAC

dCS Lina DAC/Master clock

Berkeley Alpha DAC Reference Series 3 with Alpha USB Series 2 input module

MSB Premier DAC

J Sikora Initial Max turntable

Technics SL-1210G turntable

Kuzma 4Point 9” arm

J Sikora KV12 tone arm

DS Audio 003 cartridge

Benz Gullwing SLR cartridge

Hana Umami Blue cartridge

Hegel V10 phono preamp

Musical Surroundings Phonomena III phono preamp

DS Audio 003 optical cartridge energizer

PS Audio BHK 600 mono power amps

MBL N51 integrated amp

Audio Research 160S power amp

Magico A5 speakers

Perlisten S7t speakers

Wireworld Platinum Electra speaker and line cables

Shunyata Omega digital cables

Shunyata Venom power cables and director

Audioquest Niagara 3000 power conditioner (for analog)

Audioquest Niagra 7000 power conditioning

Rediacoustic diffusers and absorbers

Rediacoustic bass traps

PSI Audio AVAA active traps

Salamander racks

Solidsteel Turntable rack

What Is The Absolute Sound?

The Absolute Sound magazine has been a leading publication in high-end audio since 1972. Since the early 2000s, The Absolute Sound has expanded to include web, newsletter, digital magazine, social media, YouTube and Substack platforms. The Absolute Sound platforms have a global audience of over 500,000 audiophiles.

#hifi #audiophile #theabsolutesound

Copyright 2025, Nextscreen LLC, all rights reserved

What happens when you take one of the most respected professional monitor companies and ask them to build their flagship home speaker? You get something that challenges everything you think you know about how big sound should look...

This video is sponsored by: https://www.javahifi.com/home

00:00 PMC Prophecy9

01:39 Overview

4:40 Sound Quality

11:15 Is it for you?

12:46 Technology

13:36 Summary

Newsletter: https://www.theabsolutesound.com/newsletter

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theabsolutesound

Substack: https://www.theabsolutesound.substack.com

What Is The Absolute Sound?

The Absolute Sound magazine has been a leading publication in high-end audio since 1972. Since the early 2000s, The Absolute Sound has expanded to include web, newsletter, digital magazine, social media, YouTube and Substack platforms. The Absolute Sound platforms have a global audience of over 500,000 audiophiles.

#hifi #audiophile #theabsolutesound

Copyright 2025, Nextscreen LLC, all rights reserved

The streamer is quite possibly the most misunderstood device commonly used in the high-end audio chain. Most people harbor the thought that the differences between streamers are either non-existent or very, very small. I had that thought, reinforced by the idea that “it’s just a computer, and computers can be had for $500.” Then I started testing them. The differences are pretty obvious on a good system, and I think meaningful if you have a well-developed system. The Tidal Audio Arkas certainly makes this point.

This video is sponsored by: https://www.ch-precision.com/

00:00 Tidal Audio Arkas

01:17 Overview

04:05 Sound Quality

09:24 Background

11:13 Summary

Newsletter: https://www.theabsolutesound.com/newsletter

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theabsolutesound

Substack: https://www.theabsolutesound.substack.com

Tom's reference system:

Aurender N20 Streamer/Server

Roon Nucleus server

Mac Mini (M2) server

Wiim Pro server/DAC

Bluesound Node server/DAC

Topping D70 Pro DAC

dCS Lina DAC/Master clock

Berkeley Alpha DAC Reference Series 3 with Alpha USB Series 2 input module

MSB Premier DAC

J Sikora Initial Max turntable

Technics SL-1210G turntable

Kuzma 4Point 9” arm

J Sikora KV12 tone arm

DS Audio 003 cartridge

Benz Gullwing SLR cartridge

Hana Umami Blue cartridge

Hegel V10 phono preamp

Musical Surroundings Phonomena III phono preamp

DS Audio 003 optical cartridge energizer

PS Audio BHK 600 mono power amps

MBL N51 integrated amp

Audio Research 160S power amp

Magico A5 speakers

Perlisten S7t speakers

Wireworld Platinum Electra speaker and line cables

Shunyata Omega digital cables

Shunyata Venom power cables and director

Audioquest Niagara 3000 power conditioner (for analog)

Audioquest Niagra 7000 power conditioning

Rediacoustic diffusers and absorbers

Rediacoustic bass traps

PSI Audio AVAA active traps

Salamander racks

Solidsteel Turntable rack

What Is The Absolute Sound?

The Absolute Sound magazine has been a leading publication in high-end audio since 1972. Since the early 2000s, The Absolute Sound has expanded to include web, newsletter, digital magazine, social media, YouTube and Substack platforms. The Absolute Sound platforms have a global audience of over 500,000 audiophiles.

#hifi #audiophile #theabsolutesound

Copyright 2025, Nextscreen LLC, all rights reserved

In many loudspeaker reviews, you'll hear the word 'soundstage' and 'sound dispersion' a lot, and today you're going to hear a lot more about it, in this review of The Golden Ear Triton five loudspeakers.

This video is sponsored by: https://fidelityimports.com/pages/introducing-perlisten

00:00 Golden Ear Triton 5

1:01 Overview

01:42 Specs & Design

5:35 Sound Quality

09:15 Summary

Newsletter: https://www.theabsolutesound.com/newsletter

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theabsolutesound

Substack: https://www.theabsolutesound.substack.com

John's Reference Equipment:

What Is The Absolute Sound?

The Absolute Sound magazine has been a leading publication in high-end audio since 1972. Since the early 2000s, The Absolute Sound has expanded to include web, newsletter, digital magazine, social media, YouTube and Substack platforms. The Absolute Sound platforms have a global audience of over 500,000 audiophiles.

#hifi #audiophile #theabsolutesound

Copyright 2025, Nextscreen LLC, all rights reserved

The E-3 is strictly for playback of DS audio optical cartridges. Does its refined purpose lead to refined sound? Listen in to Robert's review to find out.

This video is sponsored by: https://hifirose.com/

00:00 Soul Note E-3 Phono Equalizer

00:49 Specs & Design

02:39 Sound Quality

08:45 Summary

Newsletter: https://www.theabsolutesound.com/newsletter

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theabsolutesound

Substack: https://www.theabsolutesound.substack.com

Robert's Reference Equipment:

VPI Classic signature turntable

Technics SL1300G turntable

DS audio 003 Optical cartridge

Ortofon MC Quintet Mono cartridge

Synergistic Research Voodoo server

Synergistic Research router

Synergistic Research network switch

DCS Bartok Apex edition DAC

Macintosh C2700 Preamp

PS audio Stellar gain cell Preamp/DAC

DS Audio 003 phono energizer

Parasound JCM 250 Power Amps

PS Audio M700 Power Amps

Wilson audio Watt Puppy Speakers

Magnepan LRS Speakers

Synergistic Research SRX interconnects,speaker cables and power cables

Synergistic Research Foundation XL Interconnects, speaker cables, and power cables

Synergistic Research Power Cell 14 Power conditioner

What Is The Absolute Sound?

The Absolute Sound magazine has been a leading publication in high-end audio since 1972. Since the early 2000s, The Absolute Sound has expanded to include web, newsletter, digital magazine, social media, YouTube and Substack platforms. The Absolute Sound platforms have a global audience of over 500,000 audiophiles.

#hifi #audiophile #theabsolutesound

Copyright 2025, Nextscreen LLC, all rights reserved

Ahead of his review of the https://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/alsyvox-caravaggio-xx-loudspeaker/ Editor-in-Chief of The Absolute Sound hosted Alsyvox founder and owner Daniele Cohen at his listening room to gather some expository information on the Caravaggio and Alsyvox as a company.

The Absolute Sound’s Review Methodology: https://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/the-absolute-sounds-review-methodology-first-principles/

Newsletter: https://www.theabsolutesound.com/newsletter

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theabsolutesound

Substack: https://www.theabsolutesound.substack.com

What Is The Absolute Sound?

The Absolute Sound magazine has been a leading publication in high-end audio since 1972. Since the early 2000s, The Absolute Sound has expanded to include web, newsletter, digital magazine, social media, YouTube and Substack platforms. The Absolute Sound platforms have a global audience of over 500,000 audiophiles.

#hifi #audiophile #theabsolutesound

Copyright 2025, Nextscreen LLC, all rights reserved

What can 80 watts per channel of American tube muscle do for your system in 2025? And further, what can a storied heritage brand like Audio Research bring to the table in a field increasingly dominated by foreign competitors? Hello viewers, I'm Michael Johnson with the Absolute Sound and I am lucky enough to have an early look and listen to Audio Research’s new D-80 stereo tube amplifier, so let’s just dive in.

The Absolute Sound’s Review Methodology: https://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/the-absolute-sounds-review-methodology-first-principles/

Newsletter: https://www.theabsolutesound.com/newsletter

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theabsolutesound

Substack: https://www.theabsolutesound.substack.com

Tom Martin's Audio Research new products factory visit: https://youtu.be/R5K0FlSDHl8?si=SOyNqq9zci7Q7-_O

00:00 Audio Research D-80 stereo tube amplifier

00:58 Overview

03:07 Specs & Design

05:12 Power

09:04 Sound Quality

15:44 Vinyl

18:00 Is it for you?

20:34 Summary

What Is The Absolute Sound?

The Absolute Sound magazine has been a leading publication in high-end audio since 1972. Since the early 2000s, The Absolute Sound has expanded to include web, newsletter, digital magazine, social media, YouTube and Substack platforms. The Absolute Sound platforms have a global audience of over 500,000 audiophiles.

#hifi #audiophile #theabsolutesound

Copyright 2025, Nextscreen LLC, all rights reserved

For a long time, electrostatic driver technology has been at the apex of headphone performance. Audeze, famous for their planar magnetic headphones, has recently updated their electrostatic flagship to create the CRBN2. Let’s take a look.

This video is sponsored by: https://www.perlistenaudio.com/products/r210s/

The Absolute Sound’s Review Methodology: https://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/the-absolute-sounds-review-methodology-first-principles/

Newsletter: https://www.theabsolutesound.com/newsletter

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theabsolutesound

Substack: https://www.theabsolutesound.substack.com

00:00 Audeze CRBN2

01:24 Overview

04:22 Sound Quality

09:27 A Few Comparisons

10:42 Summary

Tom's reference system:

Aurender N20 Streamer/Server

Roon Nucleus server

Mac Mini (M2) server

Wiim Pro server/DAC

Bluesound Node server/DAC

Topping D70 Pro DAC

dCS Lina DAC/Master clock

Berkeley Alpha DAC Reference Series 3 with Alpha USB Series 2 input module

MSB Premier DAC

J Sikora Initial Max turntable

Technics SL-1210G turntable

Kuzma 4Point 9” arm

J Sikora KV12 tone arm

DS Audio 003 cartridge

Benz Gullwing SLR cartridge

Hana Umami Blue cartridge

Hegel V10 phono preamp

Musical Surroundings Phonomena III phono preamp

DS Audio 003 optical cartridge energizer

PS Audio BHK 600 mono power amps

MBL N51 integrated amp

Audio Research 160S power amp

Magico A5 speakers

Perlisten S7t speakers

Wireworld Platinum Electra speaker and line cables

Shunyata Omega digital cables

Shunyata Venom power cables and director

Audioquest Niagara 3000 power conditioner (for analog)

Audioquest Niagra 7000 power conditioning

Rediacoustic diffusers and absorbers

Rediacoustic bass traps

PSI Audio AVAA active traps

Salamander racks

Solidsteel Turntable rack

What Is The Absolute Sound?

The Absolute Sound magazine has been a leading publication in high-end audio since 1972. Since the early 2000s, The Absolute Sound has expanded to include web, newsletter, digital magazine, social media, YouTube and Substack platforms. The Absolute Sound platforms have a global audience of over 500,000 audiophiles.

#hifi #audiophile #theabsolutesound

Copyright 2025, Nextscreen LLC, all rights reserved

Some products that we review do special things that are almost immediately obvious in a controlled environment like we use for testing. Some products also present a challenge to our preconceived notions of what works in audio. The Esoteric F-01 integrated amp does both. Let’s take a look.

This video is sponsored by: https://fidelityimports.com/

6 Major Problems of Believability: https://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/the-six-major-problems-of-audio-believability/

00:00 Esoteric F-01

00:51 Overview

04:13 Sound Quality

07:55 Voicing

10:43 External Power Supply

12:16 Features

14:07 Summary

Tom's reference system:

Aurender N20 Streamer/Server

Roon Nucleus server

Mac Mini (M2) server

Wiim Pro server/DAC

Bluesound Node server/DAC

Topping D70 Pro DAC

dCS Lina DAC/Master clock

Berkeley Alpha DAC Reference Series 3 with Alpha USB Series 2 input module

MSB Premier DAC

J Sikora Initial Max turntable

Technics SL-1210G turntable

Kuzma 4Point 9” arm

J Sikora KV12 tone arm

DS Audio 003 cartridge

Benz Gullwing SLR cartridge

Hana Umami Blue cartridge

Hegel V10 phono preamp

Musical Surroundings Phonomena III phono preamp

DS Audio 003 optical cartridge energizer

PS Audio BHK 600 mono power amps

MBL N51 integrated amp

Audio Research 160S power amp

Magico A5 speakers

Perlisten S7t speakers

Wireworld Platinum Electra speaker and line cables

Shunyata Omega digital cables

Shunyata Venom power cables and director

Audioquest Niagara 3000 power conditioner (for analog)

Audioquest Niagra 7000 power conditioning

Rediacoustic diffusers and absorbers

Rediacoustic bass traps

PSI Audio AVAA active traps

Salamander racks

Solidsteel Turntable rack

Newsletter: https://www.theabsolutesound.com/newsletter

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theabsolutesound

Substack: https://www.theabsolutesound.substack.com

What Is The Absolute Sound?

The Absolute Sound magazine has been a leading publication in high-end audio since 1972. Since the early 2000s, The Absolute Sound has expanded to include web, newsletter, digital magazine, social media, YouTube and Substack platforms. The Absolute Sound platforms have a global audience of over 500,000 audiophiles.

#hifi #audiophile #theabsolutesound

Copyright 2025, Nextscreen LLC, all rights reserved

Robert Taylor reviews the versatile yet simple Bricasti M21 Platinum Series DAC, with its sleek, timeless platinum faceplate.

This video is sponsored by: https://www.perlistenaudio.com/products/r210s/

00:00 Bricasti M21 Platinum Series DAC

00:38 Specs & Design

02:23 Reference Equipment

2:49 Sound Quality

08:48 Summary

Newsletter: https://www.theabsolutesound.com/newsletter

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theabsolutesound

Substack: https://www.theabsolutesound.substack.com

Robert's Reference Equipment:

VPI Classic signature turntable

Technics SL1300G turntable

DS audio 003 Optical cartridge

Ortofon MC Quintet Mono cartridge

Synergistic Research Voodoo server

Synergistic Research router

Synergistic Research network switch

DCS Bartok Apex edition DAC

Macintosh C2700 Preamp

PS audio Stellar gain cell Preamp/DAC

DS Audio 003 phono energizer

Parasound JCM 250 Power Amps

PS Audio M700 Power Amps

Wilson audio Watt Puppy Speakers

Magnepan LRS Speakers

Synergistic Research SRX interconnects,speaker cables and power cables

Synergistic Research Foundation XL Interconnects, speaker cables, and power cables

Synergistic Research Power Cell 14 Power conditioner

What Is The Absolute Sound?

The Absolute Sound magazine has been a leading publication in high-end audio since 1972. Since the early 2000s, The Absolute Sound has expanded to include web, newsletter, digital magazine, social media, YouTube and Substack platforms. The Absolute Sound platforms have a global audience of over 500,000 audiophiles.

#hifi #audiophile #theabsolutesound

Copyright 2025, Nextscreen LLC, all rights reserved