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Exquisite. That’s the word that came to mind when we first pulled the Romanian-made MEZE 99 Classics out of their carrier case. It’s not a reaction that most audio equipment inspires, and definitely not a reaction inspired by most headphones.

To call the world of floorstanding speakers competitive would be a massive understatement. We could do this job for decades and only hear a fraction of the models available. We always get excited, however, when Q Acoustics drops a new product.

Sonos rules the world of home audio. They make the best-sounding smart speakers you can buy, even despite challengers from the likes of Bose and Apple. But the one thing they’ve never done is create a portable Bluetooth speaker you can take outside.

Audio companies are getting smarter. Virtually every piece of gear that crosses the threshold of our office is capable of connecting to Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, handling hi-res audio,or adjusting the sound to fit our unique hearing profiles. Not Onkyo.

If you’re an audio company, thinking of sending us (or anybody else) product for review, here’s a super handy pro tip for how to catch our attention, and make whatever you’re sending stand out from the massive pile of gadgets we have...

Everything you need to know about headphone specs. if it doesn’t involve any of the following, you probably don’t need to worry about it. Consider this the ultimate explainer.

Sometimes, you need to take a step back, look at how you’re listening to music, and improve it. Sometimes, you just need to break the bank.

To more established headphone companies like Sennheiser and AUDEZE, it must have felt like getting hit with a freight train. When French speaker manufacturer Focal made the decision to push deep into the market, few would have predicted their success.

Beats by Dre certainly don’t have a great reputation. Despite their purchase by Apple, the headphones they’ve released have been almost universally terrible. But boy, did the Powerbeats Pro surprise us...

Floorstanding speakers have one of the most recognizable profiles of all speaker types. They're designed to slot in next to bookcases and TV cabinets, and their shape has two major advantages...

A good pair of in-ear monitors (IEMs) can be a revelation. They can take your music to truly incredible places, far beyond what regular earbuds can do.

One of the most common questions we get here at The Master Switch is whether someone should buy an A/V receiver or an amplifier for their setup.

A great stereo amp is the key to a great hi-fi system, but there are thousands of amps available and picking one can be tricky. That’s where we come in, with our full guide to choosing the right amp.

Picking the best stereo amplifier for your setup can be a huge challenge. We know this all too well. There are quite literally thousands of amps available, from tiny desktop models to massive, five-figure beasts.

An amp should be the center of your hi-fi world. It should be the focus point for all your efforts, the piece of equipment that can make or break your sound. Everything flows into it, and everything flows out of it...