Hi-Fi News & Record Review

It's the same magazine with a revamped format. They just dropped the "Record Review" from the title some time ago. Whether it's the same quality as it used to be is debatable although I confess I still quite enjoy it. Others on this board seem less impressed.

I think the quality of the reveiws have gone downhill somewhat, however I still find it a good read. It keeps me up to date with whats happening in the hi-fi world.


I also find Hi-fi+ a very good read,

Regards


NB

Thanks for your help
Terry

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Originally posted by NB:
I also find Hi-fi+ a very good read,

Regards


NB

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I agree entirely. Thanks to this forum, I was steered to Hi-Fi + and enjoy it immensely. I find it preferable to The Absolute Sound, which I also regard highly, and far preferable to Stereophile, which although I subscribe and occasionally enjoy, I often find disappointing. Besides, from what I can see, Hi-Fi + does a great job reviewing Naim gear, something that cannot be said about the US mags!

MBM

Seems like wherever Ken Kessler goes, things begin to go south. The magazine is OK otherwise, just can't stomach Kessler.

One plus for me this month was that they as god as panned the Halcro pre-amp as having a great spec but (reading between Martin Colloms' lines) clinical and boring with a questionable phono stage.
I believe that the fact that Stereophile raved about it this month may say a lot for HFN credibility.

Nice to see that the CDS3 is pretty much the reference source in all reviews now.

Jeremy

Yes, I agree that Hifi+ is the pick of the bunch at the moment although it's never available from newsagents in my area. For some reason I've an aversion to subscribing to hifi mags as I like to pick one up in a shop and digest the contents over a couple of pints in the pub.

"I like to pick one up in a shop and digest the contents over a couple of pints in the pub."

Is the pub food that bad up there?

....I too am a fan of HiFi+, their review of the CDS3 in October was spot on IMO....they also had an excellent article on JMLab and the whole Berylium thing in the same issue....

Re: panning the Halcro - I noticed that too. Thought it was interesting to see in print the bald statement that merely plugging it in to the mains had a perceptible, negative impact on the rest of the review system(s).

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I noticed that too. Thought it was interesting to see in print the bald statement that merely plugging it in to the mains had a perceptible, negative impact on the rest of the review system(s).

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Yes.I read the review. I believe it has a SMPS

Makes a good case for dedicated spurs, sinc emost TVs, VCRs and PCs use them too

Laurie S

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Originally posted by undertone:
Seems like wherever Ken Kessler goes, things begin to go south. The magazine is OK otherwise, just can't stomach Kessler.

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I agree entirely. A very unpleasant fellow.

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just can't stomach Kessler

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...A very unpleasant fellow.

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Guys

What's KK done to bring on such criticism? Always seemed like a decent enough chap to me, or am I missing some dark secret?

J

His taste in music?

Nime

Everyone has the right to be wrong.

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Originally posted by JeremyB:
Nice to see that the CDS3 is pretty much the reference source in all reviews now.

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It is?

This month:
SF Stradivari (pretentious name or what - makes you want to run several miles in the opposite direction)
Halcro DM10
reviews used the CDS3 as reference.

Ok, they were both by Martin Colloms which could explain it.

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Originally posted by JeremyB:
This month:
SF Stradivari (pretentious name or what - makes you want to run several miles in the opposite direction)
Halcro DM10
reviews used the CDS3 as reference.

Ok, they were both by Martin Colloms which could explain it.

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I think MC still keeps Krell kps25s along with cds3 for some reasons.

but on the US side, no reviewers would use naim or krell as a reference digital playback. ( they are simply too much fun for 'em )

I tend to read more classical music mags (such as Grammophone and Diapason) than hi-fi mags these days and I find their equipment reviews concentrate more on what really matters: sound and music.

By the way, both mags are typically very appreciative of Naim (which proves these guys can listen!)

Could somebody explain why Ken Kessler seems to arouse such hostile emotions? I confess I've often agreed with much of what he says.

TomK,

From what I remember of reading KK's articles, he did not care much for the Naim sound due to the lack of soundstage, detailing and other, what he obviously regards, as more muscial virtues of other kit. I think he used a 250 as a reference amp and on the odd occasion a CDS2.

Bit of a Marmite man when it came to Naim kit!

His reviews always seem to spawn letters querying his reviews.


Phil

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Could somebody explain why Ken Kessler seems to arouse such hostile emotions? I confess I've often agreed with much of what he says.

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Apart from his opinions, which I`ve always found usually at odds with my own, his writing style can sometimes stray into ill judged flamboyance, or just bad taste IMHO

laurie S

To be honest I'd got a bit out of touch for many years until about this time last year and hadn't really spotted the trends you describe. I gave up buying all the mags every month back about April 84 or 85, when they were all full of pseudo-mystical mumbo-jumbo involving bits of silver paper round the house and stuff like that. I couldn't tell the April Fool spoof articles from the real ones so decided enough was enough.

I think KK:s writing style, as opposed to most HiFi reviewers, shows some humor. Maybe this is what some people don't like, they want a HiFi review to be completely dry and boring.

As of his musical taste, a man who never listens to, so called, classical music and detests Dire Straits can't be that wrong, can he?

When it comes to HiFi, he loves my old favourite speakers, LS3/5a:s. Yes, he is a Round Earther, obsessed with tubes, but, hey, nobody is perfect...

JohanR