Once again it is that time of year when we honor those products we tested that most impressed us over the year, and this year the bar has reached higher than ever before. Many of the budget items listed here offer performance that just last year would have commanded top-tier pricing, which in turn, has pushed the bar up further for those products that stand at the top, meaning we had some spectacular experiences this year.

-Gary Alan Barker

2024 DAC/Amplifier System of the Year

dCS Bartók APEX/Lina Ultimate Headphone System

Music lovers who want the best system available at any price should audition for this magnificent system. While 40K is not inexpensive, with modular components, you can write checks individually for the components and always step up listening to headphones completely. People who can write the check for the dCS mega system will be rewarded with the best listening system for headphones currently available. None better I know of, on the mark, and this system is future-proof. Every dCS component is upgradeable via firmware, making this a system that will be fresh and exciting years for years to come.

Consider the cost of an investment that will get you off the musical merry-go-round and last a lifetime. Moon Audio’s fantastic cables gave it more air and transparency, and added the final touches to start your listening session. The dCS Lina Master Clock and Bartók APEX is simply breathtaking and in my opinion is worth the money for your long-term enjoyment. A strong contender for our product of the year, I will surely miss this great system when it leaves, but I will always remember the sessions that brought joy to my soul.

-Frank Iacone

Price:

dCS Bartók APEX DAC/Headphone Amplifier: $22,950

dCS Bartók APEX DAC (DAC only):$20,950

dCS Lina Master Clock: $7,750.00

dCS Lina Headphone Amp: $9,750.00

Manufacturer’s Website: https://dcsaudio.com

2024 Open-Back Headphone of the Year

HIFIMAN SUSVARA UNVEILED Planar Magnetic Headphone

HIFIMAN has certainly succeeded in their upgrade of the SUSVARA, the HIFIMAN SUSVARA UNVEILED Planar Magnetic Headphone is one of the finest if not the finest open-backed planar magnetic headphone I have heard to date. It has a linearity and bass response I only ever heard in an open-back before with the HE6se and it leaves those wanting in both respects. To that, it adds an openness and airiness almost unparalleled in a planar magnetic with rare musicality.

While $8,000 might seem like quite a lot for even a flagship reference headphone I think you will find the HIFIMAN SUSVARA UNVEILED Planar Magnetic Headphone is well worth it especially when you consider that many will be pairing them with electronics costing several times as much, in fact, they may be the only offering out there to really justify the expense of those electronics. I am more than happy to give them a full recommendation.

-Gary Alan Barker

Price: $8,000

Manufacturer’s Webpage: https://hifiman.com/products/detail/347

2024 Closed-Back Headphone of the Year

Dan Clark Audio NOIRE X Closed-Back Planar Magnetic Headphone

True to their word, the sound quality of Dan Clark Audio’s top headphones does trickle down to their most modest offerings and because of this the Dan Clark Audio NOIRE X Closed-Back Planar Magnetic Headphone is now my favorite Dan Clark Audio headphone. Yes, the Dan Clark Audio CORINA is still the best sounding, and the Dan Clark Audio STEALTH steps in just below that, as the Dan Clark Audio E3 is yet another slight dip in performance, but the performance gap becomes ever so much smaller as each new headphone is introduced and the NOIRE X checks off every box making it a reference headphone. Expansive soundstage, ruler flat tonal balance, deep subsonic bass, musical honeyed midrange, extreme clarity, the absence of distortion that you didn’t even realize was there before, masterful speed and transient response, layers of detail, realistic timbre to instruments, excellent three-dimensional imaging, and fantastic build quality. All combined, this makes the NOIRE X not only a top-performing headphone but an incredible value to boot.

As it should be, the NOIRE X is completely genre-agnostic and performed well with every style of music. Well done Dan Clark Audio, as this is close to my last review of the year, I can definitely say that this headphone will get my vote for a Product of the Year Award, and my strongest recommendation.

-Gary Alan Barker

Price: $999.99

Manufacturer’s Website: https://danclarkaudio.com/

2024 Open Air Headphone of the Year

Grado Signature HP100 SE Open Air Headphone

The Grado Signature HP100 SE Open Air Headphone is a true audiophile reference headphone and as such it is not forgiving of source nor electronics, yet the musicality and presentation make for an absolutely pleasurable experience, in fact, the Grados seem to lend something to every genre of music whether it was Classical, Folk, Rock, Jazz, Lounge or even stark New Wave like The B⁵²s. I found myself racing through my playlist looking for new challenges, but felt it redundant to catalog every piece I heard as the experience was the same, massive soundstage, blistering speed, savage impact, epic dynamics, and luscious musicality. Like all Grado headphones in my experience, the HP100 SE is extremely efficient meaning though you want an amplifier of a sound quality commensurate with the Grados, power is not an issue, in fact, you most likely will want something with a low gain option and a significantly low noise floor to take full advantage of them.

Simply put, the Grado Signature HP100 SE is my favorite dynamic headphone I have heard to date and I would happily recommend them to anyone who is a critical listener and looking for a reference headphone.

-Gary Alan Barker

Price: $2,495.

Manufacturer’s Website: www.gradolabs.com

2024 Electrostatic Headphone System of the Year

HIFIMAN Mini Shangri-La Electrostatic Headphone System

HIFIMAN has really outdone themselves with the HIFIMAN Mini Shangri-La Electrostatic Headphone System. It ticks off all of the boxes, linear, dynamic, musical, fast, light, comfortable, and detailed, it is simply the best value in an over-the-ear headphone system I have come across. If I had a budget of $2,500 and could only have one headphone system the HIFIMAN Mini Shangri-La would top my short list.

The HIFIMAN Mini Shangri-La Amplifier reminds me why MOSFET has always been all the rage among solid-state audiophiles, the musicality and dynamics are to die for. And the Mini Shangri-La Headphone is simply one of the best, comparable to headphones that cost twice as much as the whole system. To put it in a sentence, the HIFIMAN Mini Shangri-La Electrostatic Headphone System is now my favorite headphone due to its unparalleled combination of sound, comfort, and value.

-Gary Alan Barker

Price: $2300

Manufacturer’s Website: https://www.hifiman.com/products/detail/348

2024 Wireless Headphone of the Year

NOBLE FoKus APOLLO Hybrid  True Wireless Headphone

Wow, just wow. I expected great things from Noble Audio’s first foray into the world of over-ear headphones to be a success given their long history of making epic IEMs, but the Noble FoKus APOLLO Hybrid True Wireless Headphone exceeded all my expectations. The FoKus APOLLO is not just the best Bluetooth headphone I have heard, it is a great headphone at its price point period. I have literally been listening to this headphone every day since I received it. Dynamic and musical, with a more accurate tonal balance than is normal in its price point and application, plus the speed of a planar with the bottom end of a dynamic the FoKus APOLLO will compete favorably with most headphones under a thousand dollars. Add to that the boom mic and the wired mic capabilities and gamers will wet themselves. As noted above it has the best ANC I have encountered, and I tended to use it whenever I was listening via Bluetooth, after all, what is the point of closed-back over-ear headphones if not to block out unwanted noise? For those who want a little more, there is the FoKus App which includes a 10-band EQ, and for those who are aging and worried they are possibly missing something there is the Personal EQ which performs a quick hearing test across the 10 bands and automatically adjusts the FoKus APOLLO to your personal ability to hear (I do recommend creating separate profiles for with and without ANC). And for audiophiles, the FoKus APOLLO scales up marvelously with wired use without changing the overall sonic profile.

-Gary Alan Barker

Price $649

Manufacturer’s Website: https://nobleaudio.com/collections/over-ear-headphones/products/fokus-apollo

2024 Headphone Cable of the Year

Danacable Lazuli Rêve Headphone Cable

All three of the bespoke Danacable Lazuli Headphone Cables (the Danacable Lazuli Vocalise and Danacable Lazuli™ Voilà Headphone Cable being the other two)are amazing and add incredible value to the headphones they were designed for, but for overall dramatic change and improvement, the Danacable Lazuli Rêve Headphone Cable takes the cake.

If you have a pair of Audeze LCD-5 Headphones the Danacable Lazuli Rêve Headphone Cable is a must-have, even if you love the current sound of your headphone, before you upgrade your DAC or Amplifier, listen to this cable, it will probably make a greater overall improvement in the sound than any other change in the system. It makes a greater improvement, not just change, but actual improvement in sound than it has any right to. Simply put, it converted a great reference headphone that I like into an epic headphone that I love.

We are not talking about a change in tonal balance, or the basic sonic characteristics of the LCD-5, but just more of everything, more detail, more dynamics, more tonality, more soundstage, and significantly tighter bass (not less bass, faster bass, more controlled).

All in all, I consider the Danacable Lazuli Rêve Headphone Cable a sound investment and well worth consideration, two thumbs up.

-Gary Alan Barker

Price: introductory price of $4495 (including free worldwide shipping) for a standard 2m length from October 1 to December 31, 2024, MSRP is $4995 for a 2m length beginning January 1, 2025

Manufacturer’s Website: https://danacables.com/

2024 Accessory of the Year

Vera-Fi Audio LLC Main Stream

The Vera-Fi Audio LLC Main Stream – Master Class Dynamic Parallel AC Line Conditioner was a real eye-opener. It’s not that I didn’t expect it to work, mains voltage is one of the primary sources of noise, especially in tube amps which can be very sensitive to external influences, it’s that it worked for things I didn’t think there was a cure for. It really is a must-have device, particularly if you are using high-power amplifiers that don’t lend themselves to conventional line conditioning, and I’d wager that if it was working in parallel with the Vera-Fi Audio LLC SnubWay the effect would be even more dramatic. On top of that, as audio tweaks go, it is rather unobtrusive and inexpensive.

It should also be noted that though designed for audio, the advantages of the Main Stream and SnubWay can bleed over into other devices such as TVs and Computer Monitors clearing up artifacts that you don’t even realize are there.

All in all, the Main Stream is an incredible value and an extremely simple way to improve your audio system without introducing any negative effects (such as changing the tonal balance, or reducing the dynamic range), two thumbs up, Vera-Fi has done it again.

-Gary Alan Barker

Price: $295.00

Manufacturer’s Website: https://verafiaudiollc.com/products/mainstream

2024 Subwoofer of the Year

Veri-Fi Audio LLC Vanguard Caldera 10 Active Subwoofer

Where to start? The Veri-Fi Audio LLC Vanguard Caldera 10 Active Subwoofer is a perfect match for the Vanguard Loudspeakers with the caveat that I recommend two Caldera 10s, not for lack of power, but for better imaging, and I suspect the same applies to the Vanguard Scout which has an even lower -6dB point which might allow for a single sub. I have owned many subwoofers over the years, my first, back in the ‘80s, was a two-foot cube with a 12” driver and a 200W amplifier with a fixed crossover which I sold, well used for $200, and my last commercially made sub was a Genesis that sold for about $3,000, my current subwoofer is a free-air sub similar to the Celestion 6000 of the late ‘80s ($3,300pr) using the LSA Discovery Warp 1 as an amplifier and 50Hz low pass filters (this works well enough for my speakers that I designed it for, but not at all for the Vanguard Loudspeakers or any speaker of significant efficiency). I won’t say that the Caldera 10 is the best subwoofer I have heard, but it is without question the best value in a subwoofer, and it competes favorably with the subwoofers listed here, being both incredibly fast, with exceptional punch, and still has the power to shake a room. To put it in perspective, the equivalent SVS sub is $900.

While the Vanguard Loudspeaker was an incredible speaker by itself, offering a fantastic image, great timbre, and a wonderful soundstage, after hearing them with the Vanguard Caldera 10 it would be very difficult to go back. Ironically, the Caldera 10 actually increased the soundstage, giving the deep resonance that accompanies a massive hall.

I cannot recommend the Veri-Fi Audio LLC Vanguard Caldera 10 Active Subwoofer enough, buy one, for $200 it is a no brainer, in fact, buy two (I now have two Caldera 10s), or if you want to use them for home theatre buy four, no $800 subwoofer will come close.

-Gary Alan Barker

Price: $199

Manufacturer’s Website: https://verafiaudiollc.com/products/down-valley-active-10-subwoofer

Gary Alan Barker:

2024 Editor’s Choice – Vera-Fi Audio VBH-1 (Vibration Black Hole)

The Vera-Fi Audio VBH-1 was extremely effective at vibration suppression and the most thorough in my experience in covering all the bases when it comes to suppression technology. I would highly recommend this product for tube amps and turntables even in personal audio systems as they can be highly susceptible to outside influences other than the music itself, and subtle changes in noise floor are especially noticeable in headphones, more so if they are closed back.

-Gary Alan Barker

Price: $199

Manufacturer’s Website: www.verafiaudiollc.com