audioXpress May 2025 Brings the Best in DIY Audio with Tubes

This year’s special Glass Audio issue of audioXpress includes interesting explorations such as the Ultra-Linear Power Amplifier by Rudolf Moers, Micro Details in Push-Pull Output Transformers by Hans Polak, Getting Less Gain From Tubes by Merlin Blencowe, and the Type 3 Mu Stage Breakthrough by Alan Kimmel. This issue also includes two speaker designs from Ben (Wolf) Shaffer and Ken Bird, an article about the intriguing return of 78 rpm records, and Paul Marchese’s Part 2 of his insightful Primer on Class-D Amplifiers. Richard Honeycutt shares how he learned to DIY with Tubes.

Or why not all grounds are created equal. How to mitigate grounding issues in audio equipment, understanding resistance, inductance, and capacitance of ground wiring, and voltage differences between points. Also, how not add to the construction complexity.

It's time for the Glass Audio/Tube Focus edition of audioXpress. In this issue, Michael Boele shares his long-term review of a pair of 2021 new production Western Electric 300Bs, Merlin Blencowe explains how to add Bluetooth to a Tube Amp, and Alan Kimmel introduces us to the possibilities of the Pentriode. There's also a Market Update report on vinyl sales and the latest trends in turntables and cartridges, as well as a review by Stuart Yaniger of the latest Orchard Audio Starkrimson Stereo Ultra GaN-based amplifier.