Jason Victor Serinus

Munich 2024

Göbel’s Divin Comtesse Loudspeakers and Sovereign Subs with Wadax Studio • Player, Pilium, and Kronos

Jason Victor Serinus May 21, 2024

Bad me. For the past two or three years, knowing that it would run too late, I’ve begged off the evening Göbel press dinner / factory visit. From what I understand, it was my loss. According to Adam Mokrzycki, the mastermind of the Warsaw Audio Show, Oliver Göbel’s factory set-up is among the most impressive he’s ever heard. I stand chastised, Oliver and Adam.

Munich 2024

Innuos, Gryphon, Nagra, Kroma, and Stromtank elicit wows

Jason Victor Serinus May 21, 2024

Less than a week after visiting the Innuos factory in Portugal—report and video forthcoming—I had the opportunity to audition their products again in Munich. This time, the speakers were more full-range and superior in quality, and the associated electronics all top-level.

Munich 2024

Tidal’s Bugatti and “Regular” lines

Jason Victor Serinus May 20, 2024

Time and again at AXPONA and Munich, I’ve seemed to play tag with Robert Harley and Tom Martin of TAS. In the Tidal room, my appointment followed theirs; at the Ideon press conference and Peter McGrath's CH Precision / Wilson demos, Tom and I sat close to each other. Clearly, we’re drawn to the same quality gear.

Munich 2024

High End Munich Sneak Peek (Video)

Jason Victor Serinus May 11, 2024

When Jason Victor Serinus arrived at High End Munich 2024, he found that scale and scope of the show to be truly impressive, as you'd expect from the world's largest two-channel audio expo.

Room reports are now posting so check our homepage for more coverage.

Munich 2024

Daryl Wilson (re)introduces the re-envisioned WATT/Puppy (Video)

Jason Victor Serinus May 10, 2024

Mansour Mamaghani’s Audio Reference, one of Munich’s top high-end showrooms, again filled a massive exhibit space in the MOC with multiple display areas dedicated to major brands.

Music and Recording Reviews

May 2024 Classical Record Reviews

Jason Victor Serinus, Stephen Francis Vasta May 09, 2024

Takács Assad Labro: Pieces for bandoneón, string quartet, piano, and voice; Smetana: Má vlast; Tchaikovsky, Korngold: Souvenir de Florence, String Sextet.

AXPONA 2024

The Sound Organisation presents Rega, Chord, and ProAc with HRS

Jason Victor Serinus May 08, 2024

What a nice little system. The LP version of Paul Simon’s “Something So Right” sounded exactly that on TSO’s system, with an exceptionally smooth midrange and lovely bloom to the sound.

AXPONA 2024

Zellaton and LTA with anything but grim Grimm Audio and Great Music

Jason Victor Serinus May 08, 2024

What a perfect way to say goodbye AXPONA 2024. In a simple system consisting of Zellaton Emotion Evo speakers ($44,750/pair), LTA Ultralinear amplification ($7000), and a Grimm Audio MU2 ($17,500) serving as preamp and streaming DAC with a Roon core and analog volume control, we began with a 16/44.1 mastering of Janis Ian’s “Guess You Had to Be There.” Given my age, I expect I was.

AXPONA 2024

High Water Sound Earns High Marks with TW-Acustic, Fuuga, Cessaro, Alieno, Dalby, Stein, ADD-Powr and more

Jason Victor Serinus May 07, 2024

When everything arrives intact and Jeffrey Catalano has the time to create a set-up as stunning visually as it was aurally, High Water Sound’s systems invariably earn accolades as a Best of Show. This one certainly won my vote, as well as my applause and heart.

Audacious Audio Solid State Power Amp Reviews

Linn Klimax Solo 800 monoblock power amplifier

Jason Victor Serinus May 06, 2024

For reasons that have as much to do with why the creek does or doesn't rise as anything, almost all the UK-manufactured electronics I've reviewed over the years were from dCS of Cambridge. Through 2023, no electronics from Linn or a host of other UK-based companies have crossed the threshold of my music room.

That situation changed when, soon after New Year's, a pair of Linn's 60lb Klimax Solo 800 monoblock amplifiers ($90,000/pair) arrived from Scotland. Right away, they delighted me with their ease of maneuverability, handsome, uncluttered look, and relative compactness. Given their impressive power output400W into 8 ohms, 800W into 4 ohms, and a whopping 1.2kW into 2 ohmsthe Klimax Solo 800s set a record for highest price per watt and per pound among class-AB monoblocks I've reviewed.