Favourite Headphone in 2022 - Audeze LCD-X 2021. I loved my LCD-2C but wanted that “Audeze sound” with more overall detail and a bit more clarity up top. Every bit of research I did pointed me to the LCD-X, and it was spot on.
Favourite Amp in 2022 - The only one I own – the JDS Labs Atom+. Works great for me with all of my headphones. Ample, CLEAN power.
Favourite DAC in 2022 - The only one I own – the JDS Labs Atom+. Works great for me with all headphones, with very neutral sound. I don’t want coloring from my DAC, and the Atom+ doesn’t break out the Crayolas to change the sound of my cans.
Favourite purchase in 2022 (does not have to be audio related) - Specialized Stumpjumper Alloy mountain bike. I’ve been an avid mountain biker for 35 years, and this is my first full-suspension bike. Wow. What a scoot.
Top 3 favourite songs in 2022 - “Tired of Taking It Out on You,” Wilco; “Hungersite,” Goose; “Bronco,” Orville Peck. These were all released in 2022, as I interpreted this question as our favorite new songs of 2022.
Favourite thing that happened in 2022 - Hiking to the base of Mount Rainier with my daughter and oldest son. Epic, 12-mile hike on a perfect day. Will cherish until my last breath.
Thing you’re looking forward to in 2023 - Buffalo Bills winning the Super Bowl! Lifelong Bills’ fan. I don’t cry about much, but I will weep tears of joy when this LONGGGGGG wait for an NFL championship ends. GO BILLS!
Last year I bought a mid-range GIANT brand E-Bike. Now I can scoot better than some of the younger folks - as long as the charge holds. No suspension, so light duty trails only, and really nice on roads.
At age 57, my Stumpjumper Alloy probably will be my last non-eBike.
I rode an eBike for the first time last summer, and it was fun as hell. It was a model that allowed variable assist, as I do NOT yet want a bike on which I do no pedaling. That’s a motocross or enduro motorcycle, not a bike.
The days of full assist will come, but I want to hold them off as long as possible! Just hope to need a little help with my next bike, but that probably will be three to five years away, at least.
Yes, variable assist - and from the crank, not the rear hub. Bikes with rear hub motors feel strange - like someone is pushing you. I can switch from no assist through 5 customizable levels of assist, or a smart assist that tries to figure it out automatically. It’s a class 3, so limited to about 29 MPH rather than 20. You have to pedal like hell to get to 29 mph on a flat road.
Class 2 is the usual one where you don’t have to pedal, and usually has a 20 MPH limit. Classes above 3 are for off-road in most states, and are essentially electric motorcycles.
When it came to choosing Headphones of the Year 2022, the Meze 109 Pro, which I prefer, once again had real competition at the very last moment of the year.
The iBasso SR3 is at least as good when it comes to comfort, also very easy to drive, on par when it comes to imaging, stage and spatial depth are comparable, in terms of timbre I even see the SR3 a little on the more natural side.
The SR3 sounds incredibly relaxed, without once having the impression for even a second of even missing anything musically.
The problem is, the SR3 is a full €200 cheaper, but the Meze 109 Pro looks better.
