Newsletter #29, June 2023
Welcome to this Newsletter #29, a look back at HF&MS over the last month at reviews you may have missed and a look forward to reviews coming up.
North West Show
This month HF&MS went to the North West Audio Show at Cranage Hall. The NWAS was a more relaxed affair than Bristol (Review video here) and certainly more affordable than Whittlebury (Walkthrough video here) and there were some nice new bits of kit, notably from PMC with their new Prodigy range and Cyrus with their new Streamer XR. The review video here includes interviews with Chord Electronics, Node Loudspeakers and iFi, talking about their new ifi iCAN Phantom headphone amplifier. If you missed the Audio Show, there is a walkthrough video here too.
Glastonbury
We’ve watched a load of Glastonbury in these few days, one undeniable highlight was Rik Astley with Blossoms doing a full Smiths set, incredible and fantastic! Watch it here! I cannot imagine Morrissey being impressed with this show, but boy it was fun!
Other highlights included The War on Drugs, Elton John, of course, and the wonderful Lolye Carner’s set on the West Holt stage. He really does have something to say. You can watch his performance here, though if you have sensitive ears you’ll have to steer clear!
Reviews
This month we have reviewed the ‘Outstanding’ Serhan Swift Mu2 MkII loudspeakers, a real highlight of Bristol 2023, not to mention the Leema room at the North West Audio Show.
The Serhan Swift loudspeakers were undoubtedly lifted by the stunningly powerful and fast REL Carbon Special. The REL review is here. Look out for a REL video later this month and also one for the Serhan Swift loudspeakers.
Finally this month there was a review of the Tozo Golden X1 wireless earbuds, offering a brilliant noise-cancelling App and exceptional value for money at their price point.
Coming Up
Coming up in the next few weeks we will have a review of the Edifier D12 Bluetooth Speaker, a kitchen/patio style box. It arrived just in time for The Ashes!
There will also be a review of the absolutely stunningly brilliant Chord Poly, that turns the Chord Mojo 2 into a wireless travel companion. Also due is a review of the Vertere DG-1S, an update to the DG-1 with a slew of improvements, as described by Touraj in the Whittlebury Review video. We also produced a build video for the DG-1S, here.
Look out for reviews of the Audiovector QR-1 loudspeakers in the coming weeks and the T+A 200 Series, that are here at HF&MS. We have also just taken delivery of the new Limited Edition Bluesound Node X!
Strummer Rooms
There is good news in Warwickshire as Strummer Room Records has moved, they are at the same commercial site but now they have their own front door. It is still a treasure trove of vinyl records. Good Luck Chris!
Musical Interludes
The Musical Interludes are becoming quite popular, if you look in Tidal or Qobuz, these Playlists are now public for you to explore. The latest one, with advance notice before the review, is the Chord Poly Playlist, inspired by travel, here, on Tidal.
The REL Carbon Special Playlist is here featuring bass-heavy tracks for both setting up and testing your subwoofer.
The slightly jazzy Serhan Swift playlist is getting a frequent listen, even though the speakers have gone home.
New Music
There has been a lot of good music in the last month, notably from Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds (Council Skies), Jack Johnson (In Between Dub), Ben Howard (Is It?), and Lloyd Cole (On Pain). The Jack Johnson album, In Between Dub, is absolutely fantastic, though you’ll need to turn down your subwoofer if you want to keep the glass in your windows.
Finally, a couple of music notes, The Smile’s new single Bending Hectic came out this month and I have this Astrud Gilberto Playlist on repeat, following her recent passing.
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