One of the most user-friendly and well-designed apps on the market, JPLAY is evolving with significant modularity by becoming available on CarPlay.
Thanks to this development, JPLAY users who enjoy sharing their favorite sounds on streaming, playlists and local music at home can now enjoy the same experience behind the wheel.
To make it safer to use than UPnP sharing, this new JPLAY feature allows all albums and playlists to be displayed on the navigation screen with the interface of cars equipped with CarPlay – which is the vast majority of recent models. This Tag display function is in addition to a new ‘Last Played Period’ filter, which is often used by music lovers to find the last tracks they listened to.
Partnering with Qobuz, Tidal, HQPlayer and others, JPLAY has the advantage of bringing together several streaming platforms in a single application, along with music stored on local drives. It is still only available on iOS (i.e. Apple iPhone and iPad) and is sold at a price of $199 for a lifetime license.
While retaining the name Mojo 2, Chord Electronics’ high-performance mini DAC has evolved in two major keys.
Listening to its customers’ needs, Chord Electronics has upgraded its Mojo 2 by replacing one of the 3.5 mm unbalanced inputs with a 4.4 mm balanced output. This is because more and more headphones (including the recent Sigva and Meze models) allow listening via a 4.4 mm jack. However, when switching from a 3.5 mm input to a 4.4 mm output, the adapter often causes signal loss. So, to ensure reliable listening for users of balanced headphones, Chord has simply replaced one of the two 3.5 mm sockets with a 4.4 mm output.
At the same time, on the other side of the case, the USB-C input, which was initially intended only for data transfer, now also allows the battery to be charged. Proven thanks to a new FPGA compared to the first Mojo, charging is further accelerated by the USB-C input, which is now much more conventional among users than the original micro-USB input, which is still available. The operating time remains around 8 hours after a complete charge.
For the rest, the Mojo 2 can still be integrated optically, micro-USB and coaxially in addition to USB-C, and can be connected to a smartphone, computer or any other digital source to be converted to headphones. It is still manufactured in England and sold at the same price as the previous Mojo 2, i.e. £395/499€.
Adapted from the Vinyl 2, the Nu-Vista Vinyl S uses the same Nuvistor 7586 tubes (per 8), with slight revisions to the circuitry and, above all, the chassis of the previous model.
Now designed to match the front panels of the 600.2 and 800.2 integrated amplifiers, the Vinyl S reduces its mechanical footprint by 45% thanks to optimized components and revised PCB boards, which limit the space required inside and therefore the overall dimensions of the device. The Class A topology around the tubes that have made Musical Fidelity’s high-end brand famous remains unchanged, despite modifications that also point to financial savings, as the new model is launched at £5 499, almost half the price of the Vinyl 2 at £9 999.
Made entirely of discrete components and completely symmetrical, the phono equalization curve management circuit is based on three stages. The first two are completely passive, allowing for optimal impedance adaptation and minimal deviation. The third stage amplifies and corrects the signal with a gain of 20 or 26 dB. In addition to the RIAA curve, the Vinyl S supports the COLUMBIA and DECCA curves (this last label which launch a new Pure Analogue vinyl series, but under the RIAA curve).
With two pairs of RCA or XLR inputs to integrate the signal, the Vinyl S is capable of reading MM and MC cartridges over a wide range from 40 dB to 69 dB, with capacitance and impedance adjustments made using relay circuits. This new Nu-Vista phono stage is very quiet and benefits from special care in its power supply, with the current being handled by two ultra-quiet transformers before being filtered by EMI filters. To output from the device, you can choose between balanced XLR or unbalanced RCA connectors, depending on your system.
With its new, slimmer S remote control, the Vinyl S is expected to arrive in Europe soon at a price almost half that of the Vinyl 2, normally around 6 000 €/6 500 €.
Three weekends after the Paris Audio Video Show, the Provence Audio Show was held on the other side of France.
Like last year at the Mariott Renaissance Hotel in Aix-en-Provence, the second edition of this show allowed more than a thousand enthusiasts and audiophiles from the south of France to discover a range of more than 70 brands.
Spanning two floors and 300 m2, this Provençal show, with around twenty exhibitors, is distinctive in that it brings together big names in hi-fi with many traditional manufacturers, offering a wide selection of French speakers and electronics.
Over the weekend, we were able to listen to and rediscover Riffaud, Michell and Thrax turntables, Tsakiridis, TD Audio, Helixir, Ultrafide, Boulder and Bryston amplifiers, a wide selection of headphones and cables, and Martin Logan Neolith, PMC, Kudos, ACL, Solen, Microphase Audio Design, La Manufacture d’Orphée, La Rosita and Thrax speakers.
Particularly rich in analogue reissues, 2025 saw the launch of the new Verve Vault and Muse Master Edition series, reissues from the Strata East catalogue, and the excellent Rhino High Fidelity and Rhino Reserve series.
No doubt motivated by the success of the Original Source series from its Deutsche Grammophon catalogue, Universal Music is continuing the adventure by announcing the launch of a series of Decca Pure Analogue vinyl records, featuring iconic recordings from the Decca and Philips catalogues. Like the DG series, it is mastered by Rainer Maillard and cut by Sidney C. Meyer at the famous Emil Berliner Studios, which guarantee that only 100% analogue (AAA) techniques are used and that no additional devices (i.e. no digital processing) are involved in the signal transfer.
Only analogue sources from the original stereo and quadraphonic master tapes are approved, including recently discovered analogue masters from the label’s early digital recordings. The set will be pressed on 180g vinyl at Pallas and presented in deluxe gatefold sleeves in limited, hand-numbered editions. The entire series is supervised by Dominic Fyfe, director of the label, who will also provide historical and technical annotations for these reissues.
With this announcement, Decca is opening new opportunities to showcase its catalogue and that of Philips, thereby satisfying the desires of classical music enthusiasts who are still drawn to analogue listening.
The first Decca Pure Analogue selection will include three titles, available from 16 January:
* Igor Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring by Sir Georg Solti, recorded in Chicago in 1974, mastered from the original Decca stereo tapes released in two ¼-inch tracks and pressed for the first time at 45 rpm to achieve a wider high-frequency response and best reproduce all the “fury and clarity ” (Chicago Tribune) of the original recording.
* Jean Sibelius’s 5th& 7thSymphonies conducted by Colin Davis, recorded in 1975 for Philips with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, mixed and pressed directly from the original quadraphonic master tapes released in four ½-inch tracks. Spread over two vinyl discs for optimal duration, this recording now also includes the symphonic poem Tapiola, taken from the original multitrack (4-track) master tape.
* The 1979 New Year’s Concert in Vienna, with Willi Boskovsky conducting the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, long celebrated as Decca’s first digital recording. Recent research has uncovered a set of previously unreleased ¼-inch 2-track analogue masters, allowing this famous recording to be heard in analogue for the first time.
Following this promising introduction, we will try to get hold of one of the three LPs as soon as possible so that we can tell you about it in issue 63, if possible.26/11/2025
