📬 HiFi and Music Source – August 2026 Newsletter
Welcome to the August update from HiFi and Music Source! This month, we have taken a deep dive into high-end streaming transports, pristine all-analogue integrated amplification, and vinyl mechanical tuning—along with exciting announcements from QUAD and Acoustic Energy.
Here is a recap of everything published on the site this July.
Thank you for reading and for your continued support of HiFi and Music Source!
Happy listening,
Simon & The HF&MS Team
🎧 New Reviews this Month & Test Music
Click on the pictures for the full review.
MUTEC REF10 NANO 10MHz Reference Master Clock (29 July 2026) by Simon Wilce
Reviewed by Simon Wilce, this German-made MUTEC REF10 NANO reference clock drops the digital noise floor to reveal previously undiscovered dynamic range, acoustic space, and timing precision—whether paired with the Eversolo T10 transport, the manaDAC, or the iFi Audio iDSD Phantom.
Highlights: Dramatically lowered noise floor, pitch-black soundstage contrast, extended venue ambience on live recordings, and laser-precise timing without sacrificing natural musicality.
🎵 Tracks used in the review:
Dire Straits – Telegraph Road & Private Investigations (Melco N100 Library): Telegraph Road gained enhanced timing and precision while keeping its organic musicality; Private Investigations delivered striking dynamic contrast against pitch-black backgrounds.
Ryan Adams – Sympathy for the Devil (Live in Edmonton 2023, Qobuz 24-bit/44.1kHz): Unlocked a true “in-the-room” experience, separating auditorium acoustics, guitars, and vocals with exceptional clarity.
Ryan Adams – There Is a Light That Never Goes Out (Qobuz 24-bit/44.1kHz): Captured live intimacy and acoustic realism.
The War on Drugs – Accidentally Like a Martyr (Live, Qobuz 24-bit/96kHz): Displayed impressive live resolution and soundstage scale.
Talking Heads – Burning Down the House (Stop Making Sense, Qobuz 24-bit/44.1kHz): Infectious rhythmic drive and timing precision that had toes tapping instantly.
Fleet Foxes / Robin Pecknold – Solstice (Live at St. Ann & The Holy Trinity Church, Qobuz 24-bit/96kHz): Complex, layered, and spacious—the background silences and church reverberations were stunningly atmospheric with the MUTEC clocked to the iFi Phantom DAC.
MUTEC REF10 NANO Highlights
Eversolo T10 Streaming Transport (22 July 2026) – Review by Simon Wilce
Also reviewed by The Editor, the Eversolo T10 is a dedicated streaming transport built from the ground up to deliver a clean, jitter-free signal to your DAC. Featuring an impressive 8.6” LCD touchscreen, custom linear power supply, SFP optical network input, and advanced PEQ room correction, it sets a new benchmark for ease of use and resolving power.
Highlights: Extremely low noise floor, pitch-black soundstage background, seamless Qobuz/Tidal Connect performance, and zero high-frequency digital glare.
🎵 Tracks used include:
Nirvana – Lake of Fire (MTV Unplugged in New York, Qobuz 16-bit/44.1kHz): Showcased crisp, fast, and lifelike acoustic guitar transients.
Arooj Aftab Album – Vulture Prince (Qobuz 24-bit/96kHz): Demonstrated a smooth, vinyl-like presentation with gentle, spacious imaging.
Eversolo T10 Streaming Transport Highlights
Trilogy Audio 921 Integrated Amplifier (14 July 2026) – Review by Simon Wilce
An in-depth look at Trilogy Audio’s 921 Integrated Amplifier—a pure all-analogue design built to deliver natural timbre, fluid musicality, and effortless authority across demanding speaker loads.
🎵 Tracks used include:
Arooj Aftab – Last Night (Qobuz 24-bit/96kHz): Clean, precise double-bass lines and natural soundstage layering.
Lana Del Rey – A&W (Qobuz 24-bit/48kHz): Crystal-clear central vocal presence with fast, grippy isobaric bass control.
Ryan Adams – New York, New York (Live at Carnegie Hall, Qobuz 16-bit/44.1kHz): Captured live concert atmosphere and piano timbre with real emotional pull.
Fontaines D.C. – Starburster (Qobuz 24-bit/44.1kHz): Laser-clear midrange separation even under high-energy dynamic peaks.
Trilogy 921 Integrated Amplifier Highlights
Titanic Audio Catalyst Cartridge Stabiliser (11 July 2026) – Review by Ian Ringstead
Ian puts Titanic Audio’s Catalyst Cartridge Stabiliser to the test. This dual-stage mechanical filter targets tonearm and cartridge micro-vibrations to unlock higher resolution, tighter image placement, and improved tracking from vinyl setups.
🎵 Albums used include:
Fourplay – Fourplay (Vinyl) Focus: Detailed top-end definition, clean percussion separation, and solid, grounded bass lines from Nathan East and Harvey Mason underneath Bob James and Lee Ritenour.
The Alan Parsons Project – Pyramid (Vinyl) Focus: Micro-vibrational control and tighter dynamic tracking, capturing the building excitement and soundstage focus across the tracks without sonic smearing.
Titanic Audio Catalyst Cartridge Stabiliser Highlights
📰 New News
Click on the pictures for more details.
QUAD Announces Elegan Loudspeakers (24 July 2026)
Coverage of QUAD’s newly revealed Elegan loudspeaker range, expanding their traditional acoustic design ethos into fresh territory.
Acoustic Energy AE2 40th Anniversary Announced (9 July 2026)
Acoustic Energy expands its 40th Anniversary series with the larger AE2, featuring upgraded driver arrays, increased dynamic headroom, and lower midband distortion.
✨Coming Up on HF&MS
This month, we are excited to announce that we will be reviewing the AVID Ingenium SE turntable. This is a rather exciting development since it has been fairly digital-heavy here at HF&MS recently. Some new vinyl is in order; your suggestions are welcome.
The Naim Upgrade piece Part 2 has finally been written with the introduction of a PAIR of REL Planar 1s, which are sensational.
Ian is dotting his i’s and crossing his t’s on his review of the Canor Virtus I4S, Integrated Solid-State Amplifier. Ian also has the Canor Verto D4S Solid-State DAC with the I4S.
We will also be welcoming at least two new reviewers, one gamer and the other a student who will contribute on the leaner side of the HiFi space as needed; look out for these reviews.
🎵 New Music
The featured album this month is by Sienna Spiro; it is titled Visitor (Qobuz 24-bit/44.1kHz). Jack White’s new album Frozen Charlotte was a fraction formulaic in my view, but the guy is a genius, so we can agree to let this one go.
I’ve been posting musical nuggets this month on X; they include;
Stone Roses – Waterfall from the Made of Stone documentary
Tiffany Poon – Arabesque No.1
Lynyrd Skynyrd – Free Bird
Orquesta Akokán – América!
Steely Dan – Aja
New Order – Power, Corruption and Lies
Batu – Exhale
Also, whilst I was in Crete, I was listening to The Kinks’ Village Green Preservation Society, Pet Sounds and Odessey and Oracle by The Zombies on Qobuz. What has caught your ear this summer?
Further Reading
