2 minute read

MAGICAL SYNERGIES

from AudioKeyREVIEWS! Magazine - MAY 2023 - Issue 10

by audiokeyreviews

from AudioKeyREVIEWS! Magazine - MAY 2023 - Issue 10, page 158

Article from: AudioKeyREVIEWS! Magazine - MAY 2023 - Issue 10

MAGICAL SYNERGIES

UNDER $70k

AUDIONET PRE G2 & AMP/VIVID AUDIO KAYA 45

Spectacular! Not everyday does a preamp and amplifier duo come into your life and raise the ‘living dead,’ figuratively speaking. Well, if you’ve gotten this far, the reference to the ‘living dead’ is clear They are wonderfully intimate, personal, and sweet when called for. Spatial recreation—horizontal positioning, layering, relative space, air and ambiance are, truly, outstanding! I listened to the Audionet amplification for nearly a full day and went to bed smiling, energized, and shaking my head. The Audionet PRE G2 preamp and AMP monoblocks are, if you will, velvet hammers. Should the program material require them to access the stygian depths of the Holy-BassHead-Grail, they will take you there easily and swiftly, as it is a path they know well. And in this Audionet PRE G2 preamp and AMP monoblocks are hammers. Yet should the material require a stratospheric rise to tip-top, treble heights, know you will be there in a flash and beautifully so and the material will be very well resolved.

The VIVID AUDIO KAYA 45s came in with little expectation from me. They sat patiently while the other in-house speakers were put through their paces. And when their turn came, well, they astonished and continue to astonish. Additionally, the Kaya raised the bar of performance and award citation for not only speakers but all other equipment as well. No small task. And this speaks to the profound abilities of the Vivid Audio Kaya 45. That said, the Vivid Audio Kaya 45s win our highest award, the DIAMOND AWARD, while making it look easy.

MAGICAL SYNERGIES UNDER $25k

STAX SR-X9000 & VIVA EGOISTA STX

Did I mention how extraordinarily immersive the STAX SR-X9000 is? Well, you will experience the sounds, the emotion, the ambiance, the ease, and even the ‘sights’—silverware and dishes clinking, the muttered voices of the inconsiderate, a waitress taking orders, muffled coughs, miscues, etc. It will all seem tangible and will be incredibly new to a great many. It was new to me and I have ‘mad’ years and much experience in this hi-fi thing. One listen. “You-are-there” describes succinctly my experience with the Viva Egoista STX electrostatic headphone amplifier. And it is an experience that will not soon be forgotten. As mentioned, the Top-Of-the-Line STAX SRM-T8000 is not a contender, though at approximately one third the price, it shouldn’t be. It isn’t. As I write this, there is no competition for the Viva Egoista STX electrostatic headphone amplifier. Where that contender may come from has yet to be discovered, but then competition is good, especially when the competition provides a different yet compelling perspective.

Sublime musical playback from these two components that will challenge easily systems at twice their price if not more. In my experience there isn’t a better headphone system, to date, than this combination with TOTL components.