STEREOPHILE 2005 500 RECOMMENDED COMPONENTS PUBLISHED!

[Welly Wu]

Headphones & Headphone Accessories:

A-List:
AKG K-1000
Benchmark Media Systems DAC1
Channel Islands Audio VHP*1
Grace Design m902
Musical Fidelity X-Can V3
Sennheiser HD-600 & HD-650
SHURE E5c
Sugden HeadMaster
ULTIMATE EARS Ue-5c!!!

b:
Grado SR125
Grado SR325i
Ray Samuels Audio Emmeline SR-71
Sennheiser HD-580

c:
Grado SR60
HeadRoom Total BitHead
Shure E3c

K-LIST (means that they are still currently promising components that will make the future Stereophile 500 Recommended Components list next year)
ULTIMATE EARS Ue-10c?!!!
SONY mDR-7506
HeadRoom Desktop & Desktop Portable amplifiers

GO BUY YOUR COPY or SUBSCRIBE!

Thanks.

 

[Welly Wu]

In the October 2005 Stereophile:

Cary Audio Design CD-303/300 CD/SACD player review
Channel Islands Audio VHP*1 & VAC*1 Headphone amplifier and power supply
Eastern Electric MiniMax
Ray Samuels Emmeline XR-10B

 

[bhd812]

lol B-list...

cool! when does it hit stands?

 

[Welly Wu]

As a subscriber and head casher @ Barnes & Noble:

Subscribers should get it now
It should go on the news stand in about two weeks.

 

[rsaavedra]

Used to be a Stereophile subscriber while living in the US, but now in Venezuela I will have to buy the issue alone. That will go for around $10 here OOOOUUUUCH!!!!!, just for one issue! The yearly subscription in the US is around that price, but anyway I'll get it.

Interestingly, if I remember well Stereophile has reviewed the Etymotics, but they didn't make the list. Or maybe they haven't been reviewed by Stereophile and my memory fails me?

Also interestingly, no Sony SA in the list, not even in the K cat.

 

[acs236]

And yet the Sony 7506, which has been out for the better part of two decades (no?), is on the K list.

Eh, no matter -- Stereophile is on my "list."

 

[mulveling]

Hey wow, the sugden headmaster is on the A list. It's a great (except when internal parts come loose and cause a short circuit

), versatile amp that doesn't get enough attention around these parts anymore. Good to see it get some deserved recognition, though it's not quite at the highest level of headphone amps (ala Singlepower SDS, etc). I guess Stereophile hasn't reviewed any killer headphone amps yet - many headfiers have much more impressive amp inventories than their entire A list

.

Sort of scratching my head about:
- How the hd600 made the A list (doesn't belong there IMO, should be B)
- How the sr71 didn't make the A list, unless they're not taking its portability into consideration (even then, considering the competition...)

 

[SptsNaz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mulveling - How the hd600 made the A list (doesn't belong there IMO, should be B) - How the sr71 didn't make the A list, unless they're not taking its portability into consideration (even then, considering the competition...)

I think the HD600's do belong, especially when mated with the right amp

 

[radrd]

Congratulations?

 

[Jasper994]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SptsNaz I think the HD600's do belong, especially when mated with the right amp

John Atkinson has them mated to the Blockhead IIRC...

He uses that setup along with a 7506 and stax system when recording/mixing/mastering. I think he's got an xcans v3 as well, but don't quote me on that.

 

[cosmopragma]

I own 4 items listed in the A category.
Benchmark, E5, HD 600, K1000.
None of them is on my A list.
I guess I should sell the stuff to Stereophile readers.

 

[chadbang]

E3s? I thought guys around here didn't dig them much. Hm.

Is this a real list, Welly Wu?


Of course, I see my old nemesis the X-Can's made the "A" list. Yeah, right!

 

[rsaavedra]

Yes the Etys had been reviewed by Stereophile, in 1995, and they didn't make it to the list, at least not this time. It's not that it was too long ago for staying in the list, because check that same link, the Grado SR-60's were reviewed in 1994!

 

[Mikey01]

STEREOPHILE needs to take a real hard look at the HeadFi "A-LIST" and get up to date with things. That is, if they can get their heads out of the sand. We are technically proificient around here and hold ourselves to a higher standard. You think they would sit up and take notice of that.

 

[elrod-tom]

Baby steps people...baby steps...