Top Magazines and Websites for Audiophiles

Audio Asylum is an independent American discussion community for audio enthusiasts. Online since 1999, it belongs to the first generation of specialist web forums that moved hi-fi conversation beyond local clubs, dealer listening rooms and printed letters pages. Its deliberately simple interface has changed little, making the site feel more like a searchable public archive than a modern social network.

Discussion is organised into focused “asylums” for subjects such as vinyl, tubes, digital audio, speakers, home theater, music and system setup. That structure keeps technical questions and listening impressions close to the relevant topic, while a separate database search makes older posts useful long after their original threads have ended. The value lies in accumulated experience: troubleshooting notes, comparisons and historical product information often cover equipment that no longer receives current editorial attention.

Audio Asylum is community-led rather than a conventional magazine, so posts reflect individual knowledge and opinion rather than a single house verdict. It remains active and user-supported, and its longevity gives researchers and collectors an unusually deep record of English-language audiophile discussion from the turn of the millennium onward.

Audioholics is an American online publication and community founded in 1999 by electrical engineer Gene DellaSala. It was created to bring technical scrutiny to audio and home-theater claims at a time when online product coverage was still emerging, and it has remained closely associated with DellaSala and co-owner Berta DellaSala.

The site covers loudspeakers, subwoofers, AV receivers, amplifiers, processors, displays, room acoustics and installation. Reviews commonly combine listening or viewing impressions with laboratory measurements, while educational articles explain amplifier power, impedance, bass management, placement and common marketing misconceptions. Its video channels and forums extend that work into interviews, debates and direct troubleshooting with readers.

Audioholics is not limited to expensive two-channel systems: much of its usefulness comes from practical guidance for complete rooms and multichannel setups at different budgets. The publication remains active, and its historical role is significant because it helped establish measurement-supported, web-native home-theater journalism outside the older print-magazine structure.

Head-Fi is an international headphone and personal-audio community founded in 2001 by Jude Mansilla. It emerged just before portable digital listening and premium headphones became major product categories, giving enthusiasts a dedicated place to discuss equipment that traditional loudspeaker-focused magazines often treated as secondary.

The site combines forums, member reviews, editorial features, measurements, buying discussions and classified listings. Its coverage extends from headphones and in-ear monitors to amplifiers, DACs, portable players, cables and streaming sources. Long product threads preserve impressions across revisions and system combinations, while measurements and event reports provide reference points beyond individual posts.

Head-Fi also created CanJam, a series of public headphone-audio shows that grew from community meetings into international events where listeners can compare equipment directly and meet designers. The platform remains active and influential, though its forum content should be read as a mixture of editorial work, industry participation and member opinion. Its historical significance lies in helping turn headphone listening from a niche topic into a distinct global audio culture.

Hi-Fi Engine is an online reference archive for vintage and discontinued audio equipment. Established in 2006, it organises service manuals, user manuals, brochures, specifications and selected contemporary reviews around individual product and manufacturer records.

The archive is especially useful to owners, collectors and repair technicians working with amplifiers, receivers, turntables, tape machines, loudspeakers and other components whose original documentation is difficult to find. Model pages link technical data and available downloads, while user contributions have helped preserve material that might otherwise disappear when manufacturers close or discontinue support.

Hi-Fi Engine remains online, but access is more restricted than a normal public magazine: account creation has periodically been closed or tightly controlled because of scraping and abuse, and downloads require compliance with site limits. It should therefore be described as an active archival resource rather than a current review publication. Its historical value comes from consolidating primary product documents across decades of consumer audio, with access conditions that users should check before relying on a specific file.

Home Theater Review is an American online publication founded in 2008 by Jerry Del Colliano. It was developed as a web-native source for home-cinema and audio reviews, buying guidance and industry commentary at a time when several established American AV print titles were shrinking or closing.

Coverage includes loudspeakers, subwoofers, amplifiers, AV receivers, processors, televisions, projectors, streaming devices and smart-home products. Reviews are supported by explanatory features, system advice and comparisons intended to help readers understand how a component fits into a complete room rather than judge it only from a specification sheet.

The publication was acquired by JRW Publishing around the end of 2019, with Eric Walasek leading the business in its next phase. It remains active online. Its history is useful because it illustrates the shift of American specialist AV journalism from monthly print cycles to continuously updated digital publishing, while retaining long-form product evaluation as the centre of the site.