Pilium Electronics Alexander Preamplifier and Achilles Power Amplifier 

$50,000/$50,000

I was exposed to Pilium Electronics when I visited Rhapsody Audio in NYC and reported on it in the blog section of our website. I have been back several times to Rhapsody since then to hear various and sundry other components (Bob is always a terrific host), and the Pilium always impressed—like really impressed. Eventually, I requested a home audition and was even more impressed. The Pilium Achilles (300Wpc stereo amp) and matching Alexander two-chassis preamp have since become my ultra-references. Unlimited power combined with the finesse of a neurosurgeon, the dexterity of a magician, the accuracy of a NASA astrophysicist, and the majesty of the entire Himalayan mountain range about sums it up. No-brainer Golden Ear Award!

And as an aside, although I have temporarily talked myself out of going down the reel-to-reel rabbit hole, Merrill’s Element Master Trident Tape Head preamplifier wired directly off the main tape head is the single best source I have ever heard in audio. As Kuiil says, ”I have spoken!”

I won’t be greedy. I’ll call that three. But, if I could have one more, it would be my VPI HW40 (with Lyra Atlas cartridge), for two simple reasons. First, it sounds the way it looks—heavenly. Second, just look at it! It’s classic and beautiful and luxurious and, and, and…. it is everything that a direct-drive table that took 40 years of experience to give birth to should be. That’s one hell of a long labor!

Revel Performa3 M126 Be loudspeaker
$4000/pr.
To describe the M126 Be as merely the hot-rodded version of the nifty little two-way M106 does not adequately give it its sonic due. There are fireworks and ass-kicking dynamics, yes, but more importantly there’s a degree of silken, shimmering refinement that’s rare in this cost-conscious segment. Tricked out with a new 1″ beryllium dome tweeter that’s paired with a ceramic-coated, cast-aluminum acoustic-lens waveguide, and a 6.5″ ceramic/aluminum mid/bass, the M126 Be offers low-level resolution, timbral realism, and top-end air and speed that are improved across the board. The low-end response from this bass-reflex design is quick with little indication of nefarious port artifacts—acoustic bass, for example, is richly defined in extension and grip. Relatively easy to drive at 86dB/8 ohms, the M126 Be still craves good amplification. Revel’s philosophy has always mandated great in-room power response, and this leads to perhaps the most impressive aspect of this excellent compact—its continuity of soundstage presentation, which weaves an unbroken tapestry of images into the ambient soundspace.

Critical Mass Systems Sotto Voce equipment stand
$4500 (38″ tall, four-level standard shelf version)
Can an attractive piece of audio furniture ascend to the level of an active component? That’s exactly what happened when my system boarded the CMS Sotto Voce equipment rack.  Sonic improvements were neither subtle nor trivial—bass tightened, low-frequency notes were unearthed, and pitch ambiguity was dissolved. On the macro front the Sotto Voce so fully conjured up a sense of weight and permanence with recording venues that my listening room seemed to fall away and fill with the presence and air of the given concert hall. On LPs it just seemed to drill down into the soundstage much deeper, mining larger amounts of ambient information. This in turn assisted in clarifying micro information. Perhaps most significantly, near-subliminal low-level noise plummeted. It’s that last aspect, a stillness factor, that opens the soundstage and releases low-level orchestral cues; it is the key to the SV’s remarkable ability to elicit dimensionality from a recording. The SV anchors my system like no other component in my experience. Plus, all CMS racks are upgradeable.

Parasound JC 3+ phonostage
$2950
If there’s one constant in the high end, it is that pretty much anything wizard John Curl signs off on is likely to be remarkable. And so it goes with the evergreen JC 3+. Although it is now a few years old, time hasn’t dampened its sonic bona fides one iota. A dual-mono design, with colossal chassis isolation, beefy power supply, massive power transformer, and isolated circuitry, the 3+ kicks low-level resolution up a notch over most of the competition by extracting the innermost dimensional aspects and low-level minutiae of music on LPs. Its ability to see into a symphony orchestra and define each section is uncanny. Backgrounds remain eerily quiet, instrumental timbres ripe as plums, and channel separation exquisite. As it is highly configurable, those who are prone to swapping exotic cartridges and seeking the last word in resolution will find it exceedingly appealing.

MBL C51 integrated amplifier
$11,100
Even as the segment of no-holds-barred integrated amplifiers continues to swell, MBL’s C51 endures. The first amp using MBL designer Jürgen Reis’ hybrid Class D topology known as LASA, the 180Wpc amp remains a sonic tour de force. I’ve lived with the C51 for a long while, and it’s easy to misjudge its depth, complexity and profound solidity. It has the touch of the classicist in terms of the import it places on the finest inner details, and its resolution of acoustic space is almost eerie in its specificity. Its airily extended top end is nothing like early-era Class D, which often squeezed and shrouded these octaves. Timbral and textural details are unerringly correct—sweet where appropriate, yet highly charged and aggressive when called for. Its key strength is the way it integrates individual criteria—pitches, imaging, dynamics, transients—and stitches them together into a seamless curtain of reproduced sound. With its soft, understated lines, svelte controls, generous connectivity, and jewelry-like finish, the C51 remains triumphant in its category.

Basis Superarm 9 Tonearm
$15,750
Although Basis Audio’s Vector IV tonearm is outstanding, the company’s Superarm 9 plays in an entirely different league. This arm’s ultra-low resonance gives it a relaxed ease, particularly through the midrange. Instrumental timbres are clean, liquid, and free from glare. One listen to vocals through the Superarm 9, and there’s no going back. Fine details are vividly brought to life, particularly transients, giving the presentation greater density of information without added forwardness. The bass is phenomenal, combining great heft and weight with dynamic agility. A reference-quality tonearm.

Meridian 808v6 CD Player and Explorer2 DAC
$22,000/$299
This update to Meridian’s flagship CD player/DAC incorporates several performance improvements, but more significantly, adds decoding of Master Quality Authenticated (MQA) files. Even when decoding conventional digital, the 808v6 is in the top echelon of digital playback, with a smooth tonal balance, superb dynamics, and absolutely rock-solid and extended bass. But feed it an MQA-encoded file and the 808v6 takes on a whole new life, with tremendous dimensionality, tangible air between images, utter liquidity of timbre, and more realistic transient reproduction. The 808v6’s substantial price puts it out of range of most listeners, but fortunately you can hear what MQA is all about in Meridian’s $299 Explorer² DAC, which also is deserving of a Golden Ear Award. The Explorer²’s sound quality when decoding MQA files is exceptional by any measure, and all the more so when considering its price.

Constellation Audio Altair II Preamplifier and Hercules II Monoblock Power Amplifier
$80,000 (Altair II), $180,000 per pair (Hercules II)
Constellation Audio took what was already the highest resolution and most transparent solid-state electronics I’ve heard, the original Altair preamplifier and Hercules monoblock power amplifiers, and vaulted them to a new level of performance in the Series II. The original Hercules delivered reference-quality midrange and treble, but with a somewhat polite bottom end. The II’s bass is now outstanding, with plenty of heft, weight, and dynamic impact. Surprisingly, the qualities for which Constellation is known—exceedingly high resolution, transparency, treble delicacy—are even more apparent in the new Hercules. The Altair II is also improved, in both sound quality and user interface. As colorless a piece of electronics as you’re ever likely to hear, with no sonic flavor of its own, the Altair II allows the finest micro-details of timbre, transient information, and spatial cues to pass through without imposing its own signature on the music. These are world-class, reference-quality electronics that would be at home in the most demanding systems.

T+A PDP 3000 HV CD/SACD Player and DAC
$22,500
This CD/SACD player and DAC from Germany’s T+A may be the best all-around value in digital today. Solidly built and a joy to use, the PDP 3000 HV features a custom-made transport mechanism made mostly from metal, rather than plastic, parts. As part of its no-compromise approach, the PDP 3000 HV features completely separate signal paths, DACs, and even analog-output stages for PCM and DSD sources. When playing DSD, the PDP 3000 HV uses different filters depending on the DSD rate. Sonically, the T+A performs with the best of them when decoding PCM sources, and offers the finest SACD playback I’ve heard.

MartinLogan Neolith Loudspeaker
$80,000
The Neolith may be the greatest bargain in upper-end loudspeakers today. MartinLogan swung for the fences with this new electrostatic/dynamic hybrid, mounting a roughly 4′ x 2′ XStat electrostatic panel atop an enclosure that houses a front-firing 12″ driver and a 15″ rear-firing woofer. If a loudspeaker is judged by how realistically it renders the sounds of instruments and voices in your living room, then the Neolith is surely the state of the art. The Neolith is simply sensational in its ability to present instruments and vocalists as tangible objects in space. This palpability of images is as good as it gets. The resolution of fine detail, ability to portray transient speed (both starting and stopping), and reproduction of the scale and grandeur of large-scale classical music are also beyond reproach. Surprisingly, the cone woofers integrate seamlessly with the electrostatic panel. The bottom end is not as tight and controlled as some other state-of-the-art contenders, but that’s picking nits in the context of the Neolith’s stunning musicality.