Alan Sircom

Malaysia

Editor at Hi-Fi+

Chartered and certifiable journalist with no interest in ironing whatsoever

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Articles

Shunyata Research Altaira

2 weeks ago | hifiplus.com | Alan Sircom

In a remarkably short time, Shunyata Research has become high-end royalty. The brand’s power products and cables are synonymous with high-performance audio systems. And now, with Altaira, the same approach comes to system grounding. ‘Altaira’ is an Arabic girl’s name meaning ‘high-flying bird’; the first-magnitude star ‘Altair’ is derived from the same root. However, due to persistent autocorrect issues, ‘Altaira’ was repeatedly changed to ‘Altair’.
Analog Relax EX500

3 weeks ago | hifiplus.com | Alan Sircom

How we make things often follows country stereotypes. Americans make ‘em ‘big.’ The English… ‘quirky.’ Germans… ‘reliable.’ Russians… ‘can be repaired with hammers.’ And a big part of the Japanese manufacturing zeitgeist is ‘artisan.’ It’s hand-crafting sword-making or pottery for the last 700 years, handing down the skills through the generations. Analog Relax is a part of that artisan tradition, yet it is not bound by it. This makes the brand one of the exciting newer brands on the vinyl scene.
Ideon Audio IΩN+: The Smart Digital Choice for Audiophiles

4 weeks ago | hifiplus.com | Alan Sircom

The Ideon Audio Absolute ε range of products is an unparalleled collection of digital audio products. The full range (tested here) can stand toe-to-toe with the best of them. The Absolute ε DAC (itself tested here) has recently received a ‘Meta’ upgrade. This will be the subject of a review later. But, as the name suggests, ‘Absolute’ has a large price tag. For those who can’t quite reach Absolute levels, there’s Ideon Audio IΩN+.
Dynamic Range And Price Range Is it great audio gear just because it is expensive? Editorial By Alan Sircom Hi-Fi+ February 2025

1 month ago | enjoythemusic.com | Alan Sircom

Home| High-End Audio Reviews| Audiophile Show Reports| Partner Mags | Hi-Fi / Music News High-Performance Audio Reviews Music News, Show Reports, And More! Celebrating 30 Years Of Service To Music Lovers February 2025Dynamic Range And Price RangeIs it great audio gear just because it is expensive? Editorial By Alan Sircom Oneof the great joys of good audio is dynamic range. But not necessarily in the wayyou think.
HSE Masterline 7

1 month ago | hifiplus.com | Alan Sircom

Founded in Switzerland by ex-Studer legend Robert Huber in 1987, HSE makes a small but extraordinary range of audio electronics, of which the Masterline 7 phono preamplifier is arguably the most famous.
Innuos ZEN Next-Gen

1 month ago | hifiplus.com | Alan Sircom

For many years, the Innuos ZEN has been a cornerstone of the brand’s servers. Now in Mk3 form, this server offers 1TB, 2TB, or 4TB of hard disk drive capacity. It strikes an ideal balance between performance and economy. The ZENith Mk3 is the ‘performance’ option, while the ZENmini Mk3 represents the ‘economy’ entry point into Innuos music serving. Towering above these is the Statement Next-Gen.
Hegel H190v integrated amplifier

2 months ago | hifiplus.com | Alan Sircom

Here’s a ‘fourth wall’ secret: all audio reviewers have a Pile of Shame. Our equipment racks are filled to burst with benchmarking products, devices under test, and products running in before their test. Then, there’s the room full of boxes and crates, some empty, some not. And when this Pile of Shame gets to heroic proportions, there’s a burning desire to throw everything out. And with that comes the inevitable philosophical noodling: if you stripped everything away, what would we be happy with?
conrad-johnson Classic Phono

2 months ago | hifiplus.com | Alan Sircom

Historically speaking, any product called ‘Classic’ isn’t going to champion bold new industrial design. But in the conrad-johnson Classic Phono preamplifier, the company walks a very well-trodden design path. Everything from the colour scheme, the control surfaces, even the graphics and fonts on the front and rear panel, have changed little since the earliest days of c-j. You could easily mistake the Classic Phono for the TEA2 or even the EV1 phono preamplifier from 24 years ago on looks alone.
Burmester 111 streamer server revisited

2 months ago | hifiplus.com | Alan Sircom

In issue 97, we reviewed the original Burmester 111 music server and streamer. That was almost 12 years ago, and the 111 is still in production. In fairness, the 111 has held up well over the years. It’s surprising how much modern heavy-lifting an audio platform from the early 2010s can muster. However, Burmester has this covered for future-proofing. The platform is upgradable in hardware, software, and firmware.
Audiobyte SuperHUB streamer

Jan 16, 2025 | hifiplus.com | Alan Sircom

The previous generation of Audiobyte products showed the world that the people behind high-end superstar Rockna can bring their best game to a more down-to-earth price.