The Absolute Sound March 2022

Editor’s Note: The following three letters are in reference to the letter from Dr. Bruce Scotton in Issue 323 (January cover date) in which Dr. Scotton opined that The Absolute Sound publishes too many review compilations. In my response, I asked for readers to weigh in on the subject. Here’s a small sampling of the letters I received. Rolling His Eyes As you inquired in the Jan 2022 TAS, I must admit that I kind of roll my eyes when I see the buyers’ guides coming throughout the subscription year. With all the online resources available these days, one printed Buyers’ Guide, Editors’ Choice, or Product of the Year is plenty with an annual subscription. Actually, I could do without these re-compilations completely, but I realize you probably need one of them…

“When it comes to audio systems and our perception of reproduced music, it’s The Law of Accelerating Returns that prevails.” The Law of Diminishing Returns is a commonly held belief that says spending increasingly more for something results in less and less return in performance for that increasing expenditure. To use audio as an example, if you buy a system for $900 versus $1000, the quality difference that last $100 buys you is less than the quality increase when going from an $800 system to a $900 system. And the performance benefit that $100 buys you is less than the $100 difference between a $700 system and an $800 system. Similarly, with a million-dollar system, the last $100k gets you very little sonic improvement, according to the conventional wisdom. The Law of…

T+A Series 200 T+A’s new collection consists of the MP 200 multi-source player, the DAC 200 D/A converter/preamp, and the A 200 amplifier. The advantage of the Series 200 components lies in their strength as individual high-end reference devices and as a team when used in combination. In technical terms, T+A is exploiting its modular high-end architecture (MHA), which in the case of the DAC 200 includes the capability to convert DSD 1024 and PCM 768 files, as well as amplifier sections utilizing Class A and HV (High Voltage) technology. This makes the DAC 200 the perfect choice for customers with active loudspeakers. The MP 200 provides access to services such as Tidal, Deezer, Qobuz, and Roon as well as convenient system control using the T+A MusicNavigator app. For passive loudspeaker…

TAS has been printing the TAS SuperLP List on a more or less regular basis for decades. The feature has always been popular with record-buying vinyl lovers, but what about those readers who prefer (or are exclusively wedded to) digital sources, or who regularly listen to a mix of analog and digital recordings? Which titles (and what formats) should they buy? Though HP once attempted to compile a list of recommended digital recordings (then only available on CDs and SACDs), he was unable to make consistent progress and eventually abandoned the effort. Over the next few years, I will attempt to pick up where Harry left off. For various reasons, I’m going to begin with media available via the Internet, starting with high-resolution downloads from HDtracks (hdtracks.com). In time, I will…

When the Sony SA-Z1 speaker system I reviewed in issue 312 was packed up I looked at the empty space left behind and wondered, “How close to that reference-level sound can I get from other more conventional components in the same limited space?” And so, my trip down the rabbit hole with mini-sized desktop-based stereo systems began...and multiple months in, things are getting interesting with my tabletop time machine. The Goal When I reviewed the Sony SA-Z1 audio system I wrote, “The Sony system creates a three-dimensional soundfield that envelops the listener in the same way a finely tuned room-based system can, but it does it in a much more confined space.” The spatial precision of the SA-Z1’s soundstage presentation was state of the art. With small groups, such as my recordings…

WELCOME to the 2022 edition of TAS’ Editors’ Choice Awards, our annual recommended products feature. On the following pages we present the gear that our editors and writers have selected as most worthy of your consideration. These are components that we ourselves would buy—or recommend to friends and family. Each product category is divided into prices ranges, with components listed in order of ascending cost (though some items, like accessories, are listed alphabetically). Each recommendation is accompanied by a capsule review, the original reviewer’s name or initials, and the issue number the review appeared in. Note that, in some cases, a product may have been reviewed, but the review has not yet been published; in other cases, a product may not have been formally reviewed, but has still earned a…