Last year I liked these HRT (High Resolution Technologies) Stage loudspeakers ($500/pair, plus $800 for companion Sound Anchor stands), and this year I love them. They're the same very pro-audio-style modular loudspeaker—you can assemble them in multiple pairs for more power output in larger rooms—but this year, two pairs combined sounded perfectly large and super-articulate playing Mahler's Symphony 3 conducted by Zubin Mehta (on Decca). What was most impressive was the easy way the $500 HRT Stage integrated amp/DAC drove these little beauties.
A good measure of the ease and resolution I heard from this system might be credited to the Kuzma Stabi M turntable ($19,225) with 4-Point tonearm ($8995) and Kuzma CAR-30 MC cartridge ($3200). No matter what the price of the amp and speaker, your source can never be too good—right?
