Country of Origin
This review appeared in February 2025 on HifiKnights.com. By permission of the author and request of the manufacturer it is herewith syndicated to reach a broader audience. – Ed.
Reviewer: Dawid Grzyb
Transport: Innuos Statement, fidata HFAS1-S10U
DAC: LampizatOr Pacific (KR Audio T-100 / Living Voice 300B + KR Audio 5U4G Ltd. Ed.)
USB components: iFi audio Mercury3.0
Network: Fidelizer EtherStream, Linksys WRT160N
Preamplifier: Trilogy 915R, Thöress DFP
Amplifier: Trilogy 995R, FirstWatt F7, Enleum AMP-²3R
Speakers: Boenicke Audio W11 SE+, sound|kaos Vox 3afw
Headphones: HifiMan Susvara
Interconnects: LessLoss Entropic Process C-MARC, Boenicke Audio IC3 CG
Speaker cables: Boenicke Audio S3, LessLoss C-MARC
Speaker signal conditioning: LessLoss Firewall for Loudspeakers, Boenicke ComDev
Anti-vibration conditioning: 1²x Carbide Audio Carbide Base under DAC, preamp and speakers
Power delivery: Gigawatt PC-3 SE EVO+/LC-3 EVO, LessLoss C-MARC, LessLoss Entropic Process C-MARC, Boenicke Audio Power Gate, ISOL-8 Prometheus
Equipment rack: Franc Audio Accessories Wood Block Rack 1+3
Music: NativeDSD
Retail price of reviewed component in EU (incl. VAT): $2'348/4
Less bang for your buck! Make bang into noise—what else would it be?—and my clickbait phrasing becomes the trick fate of your loudspeakers. Confused? Think skin-filtering tech from Lithuania's hifi house LessLoss. It's available for a variety of applications, be it power delivery, low- or high-level signal. As the award-winning Firewall for Loudspeakers, it's this external pigtail with a translucent barrel containing the passive filter element wherein already high-purity copper has undergone advanced laboratory treatment to alter its molecular makeup. That chemical (?) treatment also renders it super soft so the see-thru housing stabilizes it. We simply insert that inline with our existing speaker cables which can seat either via banana or spade. Before reaching our voice coils, the music signal now passes through the extremely surface-enhanced ribbed copper modules whereby textbook skin filtering removes high-frequency hash which secretly rides on our music signal like a stowaway.
The original OEM modules of this tech sit inside my wife's sound|kaos Vox 3awf desktop monitors—the suffix 'wf' is short for 'with firewall'—and so also in Warsaw contributor Dawid's pair. They also build into his floorstanding Boenicke speakers so you could say, he's well versed in this Eastern European voodoo officially endorsed by two well-known Swiss speaker brands.
With today's review, the same tech has scaled up its pigtail's conductive surface area to gain the moniker Stellar. It also doubles up on the firm's Entropic-processed proprietary 'rapid aging' treatment which isn't classic cryogenics. Calling cryo classic no longer jerks but 15 years ago, any mention of liquid-nitrogen submersion as a means to alter a metal's molecular consistency and with it, its conductivity was still treated with snake-oil outrage. Of course the military and space flight exploited cryo well before Joe Sixpack ever heard of it so as usual, our audiophile niche industry was just late to the party. Today musical instruments get cryo treated to change their sound, vacuum tubes do to extend their life expectancy. Audio Group Denmark bought two cryo tanks for their Danish factory where entire driver assemblies for Børresen speakers undergo in-house cryo. This tech has long since shed its iridescent snake skin and become normal. In Dawid's review, we find out how upping the noise-filtering potency of the original external Firewall for Loudspeakers presents at the ear when it becomes the Stellar version. Ed
I've been using LessLoss Firewall for Loudspeakers signal conditioners for nearly five years. I consider them one of the very best designs of this Lithuanian audio house. Their recently released Stellar version thus instantly had my attention. The older we get, the wiser, more aware and mindful we should become. Along the way rises confidence in our cognitive abilities. Despite that, at some point the understanding dawns on how little we really know and how limited our past experiences are. To some this is a nice motivator to step outside their comfort zone and venture even deeper into the unknown, no matter how intimidating it may seem. Others prefer to venture nowhere. Personal choice. I'm not here to judge. However, if I as a reviewer were to remain in my cozy bubble, about a third of my content wouldn't publish. Being curious, keen to sample even the most far-out stuff our industry has to offer, see what it does for me and report on that is all part of my job description. Doing it full time, I've learnt that many conceptually radical if externally inconspicuous designs often pack very large surprises. This is why I'm on very good terms with accessories.
I imagine that a 15-years younger version of me would be amused by my recent accessory reviews. The younger less experienced me didn't yet understand that context is king and how many levels there are to this hobby. After sampling a €35'000 power cord, €3'500 footers, €20'000 outlet multiplier and such, that guy now knows more about what's attainable. As for context, that's no rocket science. My advice to those fully satisfied with their budget systems is to spend money on music not hardware. Should at some point the upgrade itch develop, there's no shortage of affordable tweaks to try out and see whether they make a difference. Worst case, refunds apply. That seems a far smarter play that listening to forum know-it-alls stuck in ridicule mode who won't ever bother walking their own talk. The perspective of a financially capable audiophile interested in upscaling an already luxurious system is vastly different. While a €35'000 power cord is pure insanity to most and rightfully so, systems built upon components at €150K/ea. make it an in-line expense if a noticeable performance hike follows. Context matters. My three-piece analog rig currently weighs in at ~€69'000. To enjoy a significant sound boost without changing speakers or room or detouring into a simply different aural aesthetics, I'd have to spend roughly twice as much. Instead of forking over that kind of cheddar, I prefer chasing tweaks which support what I already own at a significantly lower cost and just the right dosage of progress. That's not the best part yet. If I were to transition from my current system to one comprised of a new DAC, amp and speakers, all my inherently universal accessories would tag along and call it a new home. Once they're sorted to our liking, they'll easily outlast any big kit and happily serve us for years to come. That's a solid investment.
