I have a Liquid Links Venom cable which has stiffened up over time, perhaps due to the PVC insulation reacting to humidity. Are there any known treatments out there for softening up cables?

IEMs & DAPs are portable audio devices by nature, but like mobiles & tablets I wonder how many of us spend most of our time using them at home rather than on the go? Particularly with work-from-home becoming a bigger part of our lives during Covid. Has there been a cultural shift in the...

Which camp are you in? Are you completely happy or would you consider switching? That's what I did a fortnight ago, purchasing my first Mac after decades of using Windows. The initial learning curve wasn't terribly steep since the differences between OS'es (coming from Win10) aren't as dramatic...

After reading numerous cable threads and reviews I have seen it mentioned several times that 2.5mm balanced connectors are regarded by some as physically inferior to standard 3.5mm jacks, and this is driving the industry towards adopting the 4.4mm standard. Are 2.5mm jacks really so fragile...

Hey guys, I'm running a 12V SLA battery system consisting of a DAC-AH and tripath amp. I'd like to wire up a power on/off switch just after the bulldog clips which connect to the battery's terminals. Is it enough to use a SPST switch on the Positive (hot) cable? Or must I use a double...

Just wondering, is there an especially good method used to solder two wires of different gauges together? By that I mean soldering wires directly to each other, not through a PCB or terminal.

I'm planning on upgrading the electrolytics in the power sections of my DAC-AH and t-amp, and I'd ideally like to replace them with higher value uF (larger size) versions. Eg. the 2200uF caps in the DAC-AH I was thinking of swapping for some 4700uF or 8200uF caps depending on what I can get to...

I've read that Carbon Film resistors sound better than Metal Films, is there any truth in this? Second question, is the tolerance % of a resistor more important than who makes it, or is it the other way round?

Simple question, do you hear a tangible difference using expensive audiophile solders like WBT / Cardas / Mundorf compared with standard 60/40 stuff? How about any difference in sound using lead vs lead-free solders? Final question, how would you rate this difference in sonic performance...

Now that Blackgates are no longer readily available, what gets your vote as the #1 sounding Electrolytic capacitors available for use in electronics? (not crossovers)

Hey guys, I'm a newbie to the DIY scene and would like to embark on performing the passive mod on my DAC-AH as my first ever mod. I'm a tad confused regarding some aspects of the mod though, and was hoping someone with a little more experience could lend me some advice please? Here are...

Hi guys, I'm just curious to know if those of you who have heard or built high end amps feel that the type of volume knob used will affect the sound of a potentiometer or stepped attenuator? For instance, is there any sonic advantage to having a volume knob machined out of a tone wood...

Hey guys. I'm planning on getting started making my own DIY cables for the first time, and am trying to decide what kinds of cables to build. I need a pair of .5m interconnects & 1m speaker cables for my computer-based speaker system, which consists of the following gear: Chaintech...

I'm planning on buying a new flash player and have been considering the 4GB Nano but with rumours of a 6GB Nano floating around I might hold off instead. Any ideas when the next iPod (most likely a Nano) will arrive?

Just wondering if ayone has tried Silclear -or any other contact enhancers for that matter- and if so how you found the results? I'm thinking of buying some, mainly for the treatment of tube pins.

I'm looking to buy a new MP3 player but since I use FLAC exclusively nowdays I need to know which portable players are compatible with the format. I know many of the iPods are thanks to Rockbox, but what are my other options? Cheers.

I've read that these are the very best sounding CD-R's around, does anyone know where I can buy them online? Apparantly they're available at Wal-Mart, but I'm in Australia so that doesn't help me too much.

Hi guys, I need some help getting started in the DIY side of things. I have no real ambition to build amps or other DIY projects but I'd like to acquire enough basic electronics skills to be able to mod my existing components and thereby save money instead of upgrading them. I'm only...

I've heard so many great things about the 'naturalness' of NOS DACs that I'm curious if there are any CD or SACD players out there which use them. I know the DAC-AH is a NOS DAC, but I'm not looking for another external DAC right now.

I'm planning on upgrading my CD player in the near future and have been toying with the idea of buying a SACD player, perhaps one of the Shanling offerings. My question is, if you had to spend an extra $100 or $200 to get a CD+SACD source instead of just a CD source, and assuming they both...

I know some of you have been looking forward to images of the new Darkvoice for some time so I figured I'd be kind and get to work posting them ASAP. Enjoy! Hey it's a box from China! But I don't know anyone in China! Who could have sent it?? I think there's...

(holds up dentist drill) "Is it safe?" Seriously, I've been thinking about buying a CD-player/transport used from Audiogon instead of new, but have never bought or sold there before. I use eBay from time to time, and if Audiogon is similar then I'm guessing it has it's share of dodgy...

I'm not sure if this has been posted before but I just stumbled upon Jungson's official site and noticed they have a new flagship CD player, the Impression. This very Shanling-looking behemoth includes eight PCM1704K DACs, a Philips CD-PRO2M transport and a seperate tube buffer module...

I just spotted this Zhaolu imitator on eBay going for US$300. Not sure I could live with myself if I ever bought a DAC called "Cha Cha".

Hi guys, On a whim I recently dampened the innards of a cheap Aiwa DVD player I own with a bunch of Blu Tack and modeling clay, and was pleasantly surprised with the results - a slightly blacker background, better imaging and focus among other things. I'd like to get serious with this and...