First Review of the Crescendo CHORUS by Steve Guttenberg: "Definitely Smitten"
- Laiv
- 3 days ago
- 2 min read
Big thanks to Steve Guttenberg for putting the Crescendo CHORUS through its paces. If you follow hi-fi on YouTube, Steve needs no introduction. With 276,000 subscribers and nearly 1,500 videos on the Audiophiliac channel, he is one of the most trusted voices in the audiophile community. When Steve picks up an amplifier, people pay attention.
What makes this review especially telling is how Steve chose to test the CHORUS. He did not just hook it up to one pair of speakers and call it a day. He ran it through four very different loads: the KEF LS50 Meta, the Buchardt S400 MK2, the Magnepan SMG (a notoriously difficult planar magnetic speaker from 1986), and the Pure Audio Project Duet 15 open baffle. He tested it in stereo and mono configurations with each. That level of thoroughness says a lot about the care Steve brings to every review.
His verdict? In his own words, he is "definitely smitten." He kept returning to the same question throughout the video: how can something this small sound this big? The CHORUS delivered clarity, resolution, and low-level detail that surprised him across every speaker pairing. In mono configuration, the soundstage opened up even further, with what Steve described as more spring in its step and a bigger, more expansive presentation.
Steve also made it clear that the CHORUS is not trying to be everything to every listener. He noted that some amplifiers offer more warmth and a more analog quality, while the CHORUS leans into speed, openness, and resolving power. That honesty is part of why his audience trusts him, and frankly, we appreciate it. The CHORUS was designed to let the music through with as little in the way as possible, and hearing Steve confirm that it does exactly that means a great deal to us.
One highlight worth mentioning: he drove those 40-year-old Magnepan SMGs, speakers that are famously hard to power, and the CHORUS handled them with ease. That is the kind of real-world test that specs alone cannot tell you.
Watch the full review at Steve Guttenberg Audiophiliac. He goes deep across four speakers and both configurations, and it is absolutely worth your time.
Watch the full review: Steve Guttenberg on Audiophiliac | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DoY09FPQ4g
🎶 Designing dreams, yours specifically.
Credit: Steve Guttenberg @ Audiophiliac
Comments