Jason Victor Serinus

Munich 2025

Class-A Act: Gryphon’s Antileon Revelation Arrives

Jason Victor Serinus May 29, 2025

Gryphon's long-awaited pure class-A Antileon Revelation amplifier, the successor to the Antileon EVO, will hit dealer shelves late August in both stereo ($39,800) and mono ($45,500/each) versions. We used to say, “It will arrive late August if the creek don’t rise;” these days, we replace creek with tariffs.

Munich 2025

MBL's Marvels Make Munich Magic

Jason Victor Serinus May 29, 2025

A year without an MBL fix is a year incomplete. Hence, off to the spacious MBL suite I went, to experience a complete MBL Reference Line system ($750,000; price approximate, converted from Euros).

Munich 2025

A Net Win: Nordost Improves its Ethernet Switch

Jason Victor Serinus May 29, 2025

The big news in Nordost land was twofold. First, the company has upgraded its entire entry-level Leif line to the new Leif 3 series. The latest offerings, presented by PR representative Meredith Gabor, include Blue Heaven 3 digital interconnects, Ethernet and USB 2.0 cables, and (soon) a White Lightning 3 tonearm cable.

Munich 2025

Moonriver Show Off Its 606 Integrated, Due in Q4

Jason Victor Serinus May 29, 2025

Moonriver brought a prototype of its forthcoming 606 integrated amplifier to Munich. Due in the fourth quarter, with a projected, tariff-dependent price of approximately $12,000, the unit will offer optional modules for phono, DAC, and streaming.

Munich 2025

What a Few Million Bucks Buys: Wilson Audio and D’Agostino Team Up, Aided by dCS and Stromtank

Jason Victor Serinus May 27, 2025

Audio Reference of Hamburg, in collaboration with many of its distributed brands, set up a mind-blowing system at Munich High End, valued at well over $3 million.

Munich 2025

Truth from the Lyre: Orpheus Lab With Wadax and Kroma

Jason Victor Serinus May 26, 2025

Drawn by the lyre emblem on the faceplate and the promise of Swiss engineering, I took note in early April when longtime distributor Jay Rein of Bluebird Music was named exclusive North American distributor for Orpheus Lab. My interest deepened when I learned about Orpheus Lab’s five Absolute components ($12,900–$22,900/each) and the brand’s newer Heritage Opus II lineup.

Munich 2025

Soulnote and YG Acoustics: the Art of Listening Over Measuring

Jason Victor Serinus May 26, 2025

Soulnote, a Japanese brand established in 2004 by former Marantz Japan director Norinaga Nakazawa, made a strong showing at its third Munich High End. Present in Soulnote’s exhibition space were the handsome P-3 preamplifier ($22,990), M-3 monoblocks ($21,990 each), and a turntable outfitted with a DS Audio DS E3 optical cartridge ($2750). A pair of M-3 monoblocks are headed my way for review, so I’ll soon have a handle on what these babies can deliver in my system.

Munich 2025

Thales, Stenheim, Master Fidelity, Boulder, Pink Faun, and the Turntable That Waited

Ken Micallef, Jason Victor Serinus May 24, 2025

Before the show, I’d heard rumblings about the new Swiss-made Thales Reference turntable. Art Dudley had previously reviewed the Thales TTT-Compact turntable and Simplicity II tonearm, writing: “In 34 years of writing about playback gear, I have seen no products better made than the Thales turntable and tonearm, and precious few that equal them.”

Munich 2025

Amphion and NuPrime: In This Quiet Booth, Finland Spoke

Jason Victor Serinus May 24, 2025

Having recently read Tom Fine’s review of Amphion’s flagship floorstanders, the Krypton3X ($25,000/pair), in the June issue of Stereophile, I was eager to hear them. As luck would have it, the Finnish speaker company’s display in one of the MOC’s four huge halls included a small, sound-proofed listening booth. Before heading inside, I encountered Amphion CEO Anssi Hyvönen, who founded the company in 1998.

Munich 2025

Stromtank’s Path to Pure Power

Jason Victor Serinus May 24, 2025

"What is the most important element in a high-end audio set-up?" As much as the question is asked over and over again, as if it were a requisite baseline test for admission into the Holy Fraternity of the High End, most responses start with the end of the chain rather than with the fundamentals.