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Product Reviews – Updated Wednesday, September 8 2021
Audiophile Style hosts a product review page where customers weigh in on the products they've tried. Take a minute to check out our 5 star reviews.
– Karen, Musikfan, & Bgchz – audiophilestyle.com
The Audio Beatnik
Product Review – Monday, June 1 2020
“With the A Cappella III in my system, the first thing I noticed is that my “sweet spot” had gotten larger and more stable. I could move my head around several inches without the imaging wavering or shifting. This seamless soundstage meant I didn’t have to be in such an exact spot in order to obtain satisfying performance. Other elements like the rhythmic timing, bass performance, and inner details were all satisfyingly reproduced. Unfortunately, the first review sample developed a problem with intermittent dropouts, but the second unit I received worked perfectly.”
“Aside from my observation regarding the sweet spot, it’s not about what the A Cappella III does, but what it doesn’t do. After spending over two months listening, I determined the Musica Pristina ‘house sound’ is actually a complete lack of any house sound. There was no obvious EQing, euphoric overtones, or other processing being applied to the music. The A Cappella III doesn’t up-sample or use digital filtering. It successfully demonstrates that less is more, and achieves its goal of not imparting any sonic character of its own.”
– Drew Gagliano | The Audio Beatnik – theaudiobeatnik.com
The Audio Beatnik
California Audio Show, Oakland, CA
“With digital streaming, the transport is of utmost importance. Musica Pristina’s A Cappella III streaming transport performs at such a high level, that even with 16bit/44.1k tracks via Tidal, it elevates what digital streaming is capable of. For me, this exemplary streaming transport raised the Selah Audio and Musica Pristina room’s performance past the others to make it my favorite of the show.”
– Drew Gagliano | The Audio Beatnik – theaudiobeatnik.com
California Audio Show 2019
Sunday, July 28 2019
Lot’s of people had great things to say about our room (Selah Audio Cali 4 speakers, Benchmark AHB2 amp, WireWorld cables and Acoustic Sciences Corporation room treatment.) Russ did it on camera.
– Russ | a Bay Area audiphile
AudioStream
Thanks goes out to Steve Plaskin at Audio Stream for taking the time to write this wonderful review of the Virtuoso Network DAC. “The Virtuoso network DAC is a perfectionist product that focuses on musical performance.”
– Steven Plaskin | Audio Stream – www.audiostream.com
Roon Labs
Musica Pristina is officially notified that the Virtuoso Network DAC is Roon Ready.
– Roon Labs – http://roonlabs.com/
Roon Labs
Thursday, April 7 2016
Musica Pristina is officially notified that the A Cappella is Roon Ready.
– Roon Labs – http://roonlabs.com/
6 Moons
Product Review
“The overall motto upon full inspection might be, insufficient power corrupts, absolute power doesn’t. Or better, inferior voltage regulation compromises the sound. Real estate’s location, location, location becomes hifi’s power supply, power supply, power supply. Here the Virtuoso’s got major curb appeal…
Disaster or delicious delight? Turkish all the way! The feisty fresh Job 225 tipped the balance decisively in the Virtuoso’s favour. Now the sound had perfect vigour and spunk, associated in-room rather than balcony presence and a certain glossiness which made for better separation than before. Had I harboured secret concerns that the top end of the Job/Mythology combo might turn too explicit, I had to strike ‘too’ from the equation. It was explicit but no no less than the truly cracking powerful bass on the counter side. In other words, just right if you’re no fan of pipe’n’slippers sound.”– Srajan Ebaen | 6 Moons – 6moons.com
The Absolute Sound
AXPONA, Chicago, IL
“This system produced an engrossingly delicate and intricately layered soundstage, with extended, effortless, and airy high frequencies. Voices were vibrantly lifelike, thanks in part the Allnic’s exquisite portrayal of microdynamics, reproducing all tracks with a delightful immediacy and intimacy.”
– Greg Weaver | The Absolute Sound – www.theabsolutesound.com
PFO Audio Oasis! Award
T.H.E. Show, Newport Beach, CA
Lotus Group Room (with Musica Pristina A Cappella server) received the prestigious Positive Feedback Audio Oasis! Award:
“…superb room, with exceptionally musical presentation. I am delighted to give them a PFO Audio Oasis! Award… it’s well deserved!”
“I could hear immediately that I was in the presence of ‘very special!’”
– David W. Robinson | Positive Feedback – www.positive-feedback.com
Another tip of the hat to The Lotus Group and their stunning performance from a system which included the always impressive G2 open baffle, DSP cross-over speakers, an SMc VRE-1C preamplifier, PranaWire Cables, Hanss T-60 Turntable (with Durand Telos 12″ tonearm/Ortofon MC Anna cartridge. dSC Scarlatti stack and the Musica Pristina Music Server and Esoteric A3 Stereo power. As I was seated they were playing the Eagles’ “Hotel California” from the band’s Live LP [Editor’s note: this was a WAV file playing on the Musica Pristina A Cappella]. It features Don “Fingers” Felder with an acoustic 12 string that sounded so riveting, colorful and lively with micro dynamic energy that in spite of my weariness of this track I didn’t move a muscle.”
– Neil Gador | The Absolute Sound – www.theabsolutesound.com
“…the Musica Pristina software is easier to use than JRiver, and MUCH less prone to bugs…. Musica Pristina allows me to… avoid the inevitable problems of metadata that simply does not work for classical listeners in many instances…
…most important, the Musica Pristina software (and hardware) support is on an entirely different level …. First, the technical people assisted greatly with determining my needs and the precise configuration I needed before I placed an order. For someone who is not already extremely knowledgeable about computer audio, this is invaluable. Once the computer arrived, it got even better….”
Read the full review >>
– Dennis G. – San Francisco, CA
After few hours – extremely easy to operate…. The support is just outstanding – seven days a week….The thing I noticed first of was a glorious sense of space and effortlessness to the presentation. The palette of colors was there, but so was a sense of almost limitless power and dynamic range… the strings section was scary in its immediacy…. The music has far more of a human quality… the piano more percussive, the bass warm and sensuous. Macrodynamics is simply spectacular – Sounds pop out of a velvet black background and then explode into the mix. It’s so addicting! There is tremendous speed across the entire spectrum, yet it manages to sound relaxed and natural . On the other end of spectrum the human voices sound intimate and seductive
Read the full review >>
– Mike F. – Manassas, VA
Here’s the problem…. I have no reason not to turn it up. There’s no grain. No glare. No edge. It’s clean and fresh and real… If I listen hard enough, I can tell you what color lipstick she’s wearing.
– Jim B. – New Berlin, WI
Even the first time using my A Cappella I was shocked—I had no idea there was that much information in the recording. The music flows out of the room by itself, I no longer have the sense that the speakers are making the sound. There’s so much more bass, yet there’s less boom. I can locate where the bass is coming from, and hear cleanly separated notes. It is not just a vibration in the room, it’s actual music. Love it!
– Phillip R. – Sacramento, CA
… The sound is UNBELIEVABLE, simply astonishing! I honestly didn’t think it could get any better. The bass notes are a lot punchier than before. The sound is just effortless from top to bottom. Another attribute of Virtuoso is vastly improved three-dimensionality of the soundstage representation. “there” is really there and in a such degree that its simply stunning.
– John P. – Baltimore, MD
There’s not just width and depth to the soundstage, but a truly holographic realism to the music. Each instrument is present in the room, and they sound true to life… Love the way you can get the percussive sounds of the guitar string being strummed. That’s often lost.
– Aaron C. – Clute , TX
…Last night put Peterson on Telarc. WOW they were right there in front of me I must be blind I couldn’t see them…
– Richard E. – Santa Fe, NM
The overriding impression… an outstanding sense of speed and control from top to bottom… much more layered front to back and minute details are resolved while remaining part of the whole, all of them staying in their proper place and balance. Over time the treble has become sweet and distended, voices are beautifully rendered, as are instrument timbres and spacial information. When sudden dynamic changes occur they pop like never before, and the sense of rhythmic drive your server can whip up is thrilling to say the least. Bass is controlled and resolved to a degree I have not dared hope for or thought my speakers capable of
-Nick G. – New York, NY
Here’s a clip of Kevin, along with Sunil Lehki of Care Audio, showcasing the setup at the New York Audio Show.