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Definitive Technology StudioMonitor 55 loudspeaker
Of the 25 two-channel loudspeakers Definitive Technology designs (in the US) and manufactures (in China), ranging in price from $290 to $3998 per pair, I chose the StudioMonitor 55 ($598/pair). (You can read Stephen Mejias's thoughts on the SM55's little brother, the StudioMonitor 45, in his "The Entry Level" in the August 2012 issue, with a "Follow-Up" from John Atkinson in October 2012.) This two-way, biwirable bookshelf model has two drivers and a passive bass radiator. Its 1" aluminum-dome tweeter has been heat-treated to relax the crystal structure of the metal, then coated with ceramic to extend its high-frequency response. The 6.5" mid/woofer has a cast aluminum basket and incorporates DefTech's patented Balance Double Surround System (BDSS), which supports the cone at its inner and outer edges for longer, more linear excursions.
Having reviewed several dozen reflex-loaded bookshelf speakers that achieve low-frequency extension via a front- or rear-firing port, I was intrigued by DefTech's unique solution: Instead of a port, the SM55 has a top-firing passive radiator measuring 6" by 10". As DefTech's Paul DiComo explained to me, the company prefers bass radiators over ports because: 1) they effectively block midrange frequencies, which can create midrange smearing; and 2) they produce less distortion and avoiding "chuffing" noises. The bass radiator has a basket and spider but no magnet or voice-coil; its cone is of MDF with a vinyl laminate. DefTech claims that using a passive radiator provides greater control, definition, and speed.
The SM55 has two grilles: one each for the front and top panels. I listened to the speakers with all grilles on, all grilles off, and with the front grilles off but top grilles on. In all three arrangements, the sound was identical—hats off to DefTech for designing a couple of transparent grilles. However, I preferred the SM55's looks with its front grille off and its top grille on. Removing the front grille reveals the sexy, gloss-black baffle while leaving all grilles on gives the black wood-grain SM55 a drab, boxy appearance. Removing only the top grille gives the speaker a ridiculous scalped-cowboy look. I biwired the SM55s and placed them on my Celestion Si stands, which are loaded with sand and lead shot. (DefTech doesn't make a dedicated stand for the SM55.)
Listening
To test a speaker's midrange integrity, I begin most listening sessions with well-recorded voices. With all recordings I sampled, the Definitive Technology StudioMonitor 55 passed with flying colors. In "You Are but a Dream," from the Frank Sinatra singles compilation This Is Sinatra Vol.2 (LP, Capitol W982), the voice of Ol' Blue Eyes was bathed in a reverberant and silkily mellifluous glow. Bob Dylan's voice in "Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands," from a pristine reissue of his Blonde on Blonde (LP, Columbia/Simply Vinyl 0162), was as natural as I've heard through any speakers, regardless of price. Higher in the audioband, Carole King's "You've Got a Friend," from her Tapestry LP (Ode SP 77009), floated in natural holographic splendor throughout her vocal range; and the harmonies in "Twelve-Thirty (Young Girls Are Coming to the Canyon)," from the Mamas and the Papas' Farewell to the First Golden Era (LP, Dunhill 50025), assumed angelic qualities. Finally, the SM55 enabled Louis Armstrong and Velma Middleton's voices in "Honeysuckle Rose," from Satch Plays Fats (LP, Columbia CL708), to seamlessly blend while retaining each artist's unique phrasing.
The SM55's midrange created an open and natural window for jazz recordings. Anat Fort's piano in her A Long Story (CD, ECM 1994) emerged as warm and inviting in its lower register, with perfectly linear low-level dynamics. And John Coltrane's tenor saxophone in Thelonious Monk with John Coltrane (LP, Jazzland 946), and Roland Kirk's tenor in "Oh, Lord, Don't Let Them Drop That Atomic Bomb on Me," from Charles Mingus's Oh, Yeah (LP, Atlantic 1377), generated identical responses for my notes: "forward, natural, and silky."
Jazz recordings also brought out the SM55's greatest strength: its midbass definition. Mingus's double bass in the title track of his Pithecanthropus Erectus (CD, Atlantic AMCY-1036), and in "Theme for Lester (Goodbye Pork Pie Hat)," from Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus (LP, Impulse! AS-51), was rich, woody, open, and airy, with perfect definition.
Satch Plays Fats showcased the DefTech's ability to reproduce natural, extended highs. In his solo in "Ain't Misbehavin'," Armstrong's trumpet was biting and extended but without a trace of harshness. The SM55's high-frequency resolution also showcased its ability to render fast transients with abundant detail and no hint of smearing. It revealed all the subtle details of Monk's piano phrasing in "Epistrophy," from the aforementioned Coltrane-Monk record. Similarly, the SM55 revealed all the subtle nuances of pianist Jesse Stacken's phrasing in his lyrical, fleeting solo in the title track of trumpeter Liam Sillery's Phenomenology (CD, OA2 Records 22061). And I was able to individually follow each of the six percussionists on Tito Puente's Top Percussion (LP, RCA 1617).
However, all the jazz recordings mentioned above also revealed the SM55's single shortcoming. Although its high frequencies were natural, extended, and completely devoid of coloration or smearing, over them was layered a subtle powdery texture, and particularly over the drum kits. This created a slight lack of liquidity and continuousness in the highs that was not a problem in the midrange and bass. This was a minor problem, and I didn't notice it with most recordings.
I found myself unusually engaged and focused when listening to rock music on the SM55s—and my feet wouldn't keep still. Speaking of moving feet, the notes I took—when I could stop moving long enough to write—for "Let a Man Come In and Do the Popcorn," from James Brown's Soul Classics Vol.2 (LP, Polydor SVLP 127) read, "Churning! Coherent!" I then cued up a recent acquisition, The Complete Animals (LP, EMI EM1367), to discover that the compilers of this 40-track set had misled me. I looked for my favorite Animals tune, "Don't Bring Me Down," and found it missing (a royalties problem with songwriter Carole King, perhaps, or perhaps because it had not been produced by Mickie Most. (The collection's subtitle is The Complete Mickie Most Productions for EMI.) So I went to my second choice, "We Gotta Get Out of This Place," which moved me more than when I saw this Newcastle band perform the piece live at a reunion concert in the 1980s.
With other rock recordings, the SM55 favored electric guitars. Jack White's axe in the White Stripes' White Blood Cells (CD, V2 63881-27124-2) was buzzy, raspy, and forward—as it should be. And the interaction of the Ventures' two guitars in "Out of Limits," from The Very Best of the Ventures (LP, Liberty LN-10122), was clearly delineated; it was very easy to follow individual lines and phrasings.
I've saved the best news for last. The StudioMonitor 55 proved to be an awesome classical-music speaker. Louis Andriessen's orchestral blockbuster De Stijl is a combination of subtle delicate orchestral textures and a bombastic sense of drama. When I listened to a recording of this remarkable work by the Schoenberg and ASKO Ensembles conducted by Reinbert de Leeuw (CD, Nonesuch 79342 2), the DefTechs revealed its full dynamic range, from ppp to fff, on a wide, deep stage with gobs of ambience. And Marcel Dupré's solo organ performance of his own Prelude and Fugue in G Minor, from his Organ Recital (LP, Mercury Living Presence SR 90169), revealed delicate, airy highs along with a big, bloomy organ sound and a sense of a real instrument playing in a real space. And for a bookshelf speaker, the SM55's reproduction of the pedal notes in this recording were startlingly realistic.
Comparisons
I compared the Definitive Technology StudioMonitor 55 ($598) with the Epos ELS3 ($350 when last offered), the Epos M5i ($899), and the Wharfedale Diamond 10.1 ($350). (All prices per pair.)
The Epos ELS3 had a silkier midrange, with longer decays and more ambience, than the DefTech SM55. Its highs were also more sophisticated, detailed, and delicate. The ELS3's upper bass was cleaner and its midbass leaner than the SM55's, and the Epos was far inferior in high-level dynamics.
The Wharfedale Diamond 10.1 had a warmer midbass than the DefTech SM55, and more delicate and detailed highs, but its high-level dynamics were slightly inferior.
The Epos M5i had the richest, most detailed midrange of all four speakers, the best low-level dynamics, and the most delicate and sophisticated highs. The M5i's bass went as deep as the DefTech's, but more cleanly. The M5i's and SM55's high-level dynamics were equivalent.
Summing Up
Definitive Technology has produced a detailed and uncolored bookshelf speaker that provides superb value for the money. And in terms of its midbass definition and high-level dynamic drama with orchestral works, you'd probably have to spend more than $1000/pair to exceed its performance. I'm sorry I waited so long to review a Definitive Technology speaker. Next time, I won't wait.
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Source : stereophile[dot]com
Chord's John Franks at Audio High
Source : stereophile[dot]com
Audioquest DragonFly USB Digital-Audio Converter and Sydney Interconnect Sweepstakes
According to AudioQuest:
Beautiful Sound ... From Any Computer: DragonFly is an affordable and easy-to-use device that delivers far superior sound by bypassing the poor quality sound card that is built into your computer. DragonFly is a sleek, flash drive sized Digital-Audio Converter that connects to a USB jack on a Mac or Windows PC, turning any computer into a true high- fidelity music source.Whether you’re on the go or at home, listening on ear buds or connecting your computer to a stereo system, DragonFly reveals all the emotional expression and nuance that makes your favorite music, or movies, so enjoyable. However you connect it, DragonFly simply and easily makes any computer sound better.
Features:
Plays All Music Files: MP3 to 24-bit/192kHz
Drives Headphones Directly
Variable Output Drives Powered Speakers or Power Amp
Fixed Output Feeds Preamp or Receiver
Asynchronous Transfer Ensures Digital Timing Integrity
Two Clocks Enable Native Resolution Up To 24-bit/96kHzFor this special sweepstakes, included with DragonFly is a low-distortion AudioQuest Sydney analog interconnect cable with a 3.5mm "mini" plug at the DragonFly end and stereo RCAs at the other end. From AQ's Bridges & Falls series, Sydney is all that's required to connect DragonFly to a full-blown audio rig just like a traditional DAC or disc player, or directly to a power amplifier. Sydney employs superior materials and design, including solid Perfect-Surface Copper+ conductors, air-tube insulation, and AudioQuest's 3-layer Noise-Dissipation System for low distortion and high performance.
Click here for more info from Audioquest.
To enter the sweepstakes, all you need is an account on this website. If you don't already have one, click on the link labeled "register" at the bottom of this announcement or "Create new account" in the right column (under the ads). Then, enter a username and a valid e-mail address, and click on the "Create new account" button. A message will be automatically sent to the e-mail address you specified, which will include a link to activate the account.
You can enter once on www.analogplanet.com, audiostream.com, hometheater.com, innerfidelity.com and/or stereophile.com. No more than one entry allowed per website.
The final step (and only step for those who already have an account) is to log in and leave a comment right here on this announcement—any comment will do, as long as it's not profane or spam. Then, when the sweepstakes closes, a lucky commenter will be chosen at random to receive the prize. So post a comment, and good luck!
For complete sweepstakes rules, click here.
Source : stereophile[dot]com
Krell KRS-2 preamplifier
The Krell KRS-2 preamplifier is a case in point. I have now spent several months comparing it with every other unit I've been able to find. The end result is that this Krell has emerged as the equal of the Audio Research SP-11 in defining the state of the preamplifier art. Equally importantly, it is the only active preamp I have yet heard which meets the challenge posed by the new generation of passive preamplifiers.
When the output of the Krell KRS-2's high-gain stages are compared with the output of a purely passive preamp like the Mod Squad's Line Drive (reviewed in Vol.10 No.3), it produces a virtually identical degree of transparency. No other active preamp that I have yet been able to find has met this test to the same degree. While this may not be the result of a radical change in technology, it does seem to be an important advance.
Technical Details
Krell's flagship preamplifier is the dual mono, four-chassis KRS-1A, available in conventional unbalanced form for $8250, or completely balanced for $10,000. At $4500, the two-chassis KRS-2 represents designer Dan D'Agostino's assault on the real-world preamplifier market, but with many features in common with the cost-no-object KRS-1A. For example, the KRS-2, like the KRS-1A, is direct-coupled throughout. It does not have to rely on the designer finding the world's best-sounding capacitors—it simply eliminates them. The sound goes directly from the moving-coil cartridge input jacks to the output jacks without passing through a single capacitor in the signal path.
You also get one hell of a power supply, and this may explain a great deal of the KRS-2's transparency. The four 350VA transformers are housed in a separate unit and feed the psu box proper, which contains eight tracking regulators and 200,000µF of decoupling capacitance. The end result is that the Krell preamp's complete power supply outweighs most receivers and at least some high-end power amplifiers. Even so, the preamplifier chassis has another eight discrete tracking regulators and 20,000µF more capacitance.
The styling and construction of the KRS-2 is classic Krell—a Rolls-Royce standard of finish and quality of manufacture that ensures the unit is likely to outlive several generations of owners. As for features, there are inputs and outputs for even the most complex system, the usual controls for balance and volume, and separate controls for the main and tape outputs. The volume control is a top-quality, United Technologies dual instrument control.
The phono front end is an all-FET moving-coil stage, driving a FET/bipolar moving-magnet/RIAA stage. The RIAA compensation is adjusted for maximum error no greater than 0.1dB. There are internal DIP switches to select either moving-coil or moving-magnet operation, and a separate set of DIP switches for selecting the moving-coil load. Only the Audio Research SP-11 offers greater convenience in changing loads, but it offers only about one-third as many settings. If you leave the KRS-2 top panel unscrewed, you can make virtually instantaneous adjustments to loading, ensuring the proper match with a given cartridge to a degree I have seen rivaled only by the Klyne preamps. The high-level circuitry consists of all-FET gain stages, running in class-A, with FET outputs; the output impedance is a mere 6 ohms. As with all Krell designs, all the stages feature complementary symmetry.
In common with the other Krell preamplifiers, the KRS-2 features phase compensation for CD players. The CD input circuitry includes internal dip-switch settings to compensate for the phase error introduced by a CD player's reconstruction filters. Krell recommends different settings for different players, based on a diagnostic disc and computer modeling of the correct filter response. These settings do make an audible difference. They do not restore the fine musical detail missing in CD reproduction, but do make the sound richer, cleaning up some of the harmonics that are there and adding a trace of depth. Given the volatile state of the CD/DAT market, it may be better to have this feature in your preamp than to spring for something similar in an expensive CD player.
Passive vs Active
My experience with the newer CD players and an experimental DAT unit has led me to regard a "passive versus active" preamp test as increasingly important. It has now become clearer that the high-level stages of even the most expensive tube and transistor preamps introduce significant changes in sound character. There is no question that, even when these changes are euphonic, they come at an audible cost.
I should emphasize that I am not arguing that a passive preamp costing several hundred dollars is a proper substitute for an active preamp costing several thousand. Quite aside from the issue of giving up a phono stage and the need to buffer tape recorders, I have never yet been able to hook up a passive preamp in a way that did not slightly affect dynamics or upper octave response. My experience with CD players and open-reel tape units with variable volume controls has shown that the passive components and wiring/circuit board in a passive preamp are audible.
Further, it has shown that audiophiles who care about flat extension from about 1kHz up, or who want the full dynamics of music from the lowest to the loudest passages, are not going to get a "free lunch" by giving up the high-gain stage in an active preamp. Good as the latest passive units can be, the gain, buffering, and impedance matching of active units have important payoffs in allowing music to have the effortless energy present in any live performance.
However, if you use a top-quality passive unit like the Mod Squad Line Drive with very short, low-capacitance cables, you can come very close to the sound of a cheap straight wire without gain. Certainly you can get a neutral device with colorations tending more to be subtractive than additive.
Listening Tests
I have been conducting such comparisons with top-quality preamps ever since I received samples of the PS Audio 4.5 and Mod Squad Line Drive preamps; the results make an important preface to my review of the Krell KRS-2.
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Source : stereophile[dot]com
Richard Vandersteen at Advanced Audio Systems
Photo by chrissy from the Stereophile Galleries.
Saturday, November 3, 12pm: Advanced Audio Systems (6450 Tacoma Mall Boulevard, Tacoma, WA) will host a seminar with iconic loudspeaker designer Richard Vandersteen. The event will consist of product demonstrations and a question and answer session with Vandersteen. To register for the event, follow this link.
Source : stereophile[dot]com
Vapor Audio: Anything but Vaporware
Doing the honors were Vapor Audio’s Joule Black loudspeakers ($8995/pair with stands), pictured beside the smaller Vapor Audio Cirrus Black loudspeakers ($3995/pair). Completing the system, and equally responsible for the sound, were BMC M2 monoblock amps ($7990/each), BMC BDCD1.1 belt-drive CD transport ($4990), and BMC DAC1 preamp ($5690); Antipodes Music Server ($2500), a VortexBox based design that operates headless, and uses an external battery power supply for the USB output to truncate computer power supply noise to the DAC; HB Cable Design PowerStar Horizon power distributor ($3995) and Stage III cabling; and racking from HiFi Racks UK (approx. $1000).
Source : stereophile[dot]com
Mark Levinson/JBL Ear-Opener
Here, by contrast, the sound was some of the best solid-state sound I heard at the show. Home Audio Sound of Colorado paired the JBL speaker with the Mark Levinson No.502 media console ($35,000, discontinued, and being used solely as an analog stereo preamplifier), Mark Levinson No512 CD player ($15,000), and a pair of Mark Levinson No.53 monoblock amplifiers ($50,000/pair, to be reviewed by Mikey Fremer in the December Stereophile). Equally important were the products from Transparent Audio: RXL8–Transparent Reference XL speaker cables ($13,190/set), BRXL1–Transparent Reference XL balanced interconnects (2 pair, $18,530 total), PLMM2–Transparent PowerLink MM power cords (3, $6300 total), and PIR–PowerIsolator Reference power conditioner ($3195). Together, the chain produced a wonderful, big presentation in which lively, beautiful highs mated with impressively deep, admirably solid percussion.
“Bass lovers will have a field day,” I wrote in my notes of a system in which the entire spectrum of sound seemed of one very satisfying piece.
Source : stereophile[dot]com
Audio Feast’s Kenji Furukawa
Originally from Japan, but now living in Nashville, TN, Furukawa used the prototype Finemet TVC volume control, mentioned in Art’s piece, along with a Maekawa TA-300B SET power amplifier ($30,000) to drive the interesting Feastrex loudspeakers.
It would have been fun to hang out with Furukawa for an entire listening session. His enthusiasm for hi-fi was obvious and infectious.
***
And visit TheAudioFeast.com for a very cool look at how Feastrex diaphragm paper is made!
Source : stereophile[dot]com
Odyssey Audio
Odyssey’s Klaus Bunge turned out the lights and played Johnny Cash’s heartbreaking version of “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face,” and the system presented good drama and scale and communicated a very fine sense of space around Cash’s tired, frayed voice. The system also seemed highly resolving, helping me decide that there was too much reverb on Cash’s voice—I would have preferred it to be drier and more honest.
Next up was Joan Baez’s “Diamonds and Rust,” which on this occasion struck me as being one of the most tragic and disturbing songs ever written.
Afterward, Bunge gave credit to the GIK Acoustics room treatments: “I’ve been doing these shows for 18 years, and this is the first time we’ve gotten a hotel room completely under control.”
GIK Scopus Traps ($149 each) “frequency range limiters,” for treating low-end frequencies without damaging highs; Soffit Traps broadband bass traps ($189 each); and Q7d diffusors for taming early reflections ($349 each) were employed.
Source : stereophile[dot]com
OMG: Blue Light's Golden Sound
Then again, we were listening to a master tape, and comparing its sound to a double DSD copy played through the Playback Designs CD player. I didn't have time to linger, but I thought the DSD version sounded a bit warmer and smoother, which sure is a good thing.
I've learned over the years how important component supports and cables are. Here, the system benefitted from Wave Kinetics' A10-U8 Component Control System ($700/set of 4) and 2NS Loudspeaker Interface System ($1600/set of 8), and, from a company new to me, AFSC cabling. The latter included AFSC-S(pades) speaker cables ($1250), AFIC-X(LR) balanced XLR interconnects ($1250), AFSC-S(ource) power cord ($1250), and AFSC-A(mplifier) power cord ($1250).
Source : stereophile[dot]com
Wisdom Audio
At the time, I was marveling over the system’s full-range, large-scale, dramatic sound. I found myself looking up in the air, feeling as though I was seated in a concert hall or movie theater, surrounded by sound.
In the Wisdom L75, a 48” planar-magnetic line source handles frequencies above 275Hz, while four proprietary woofers handle the lows. Behind the curtain, to the left of the image, was a Wisdom Audio subwoofer ($6400). The speaker system was tri-amplified, three Musical Fidelity amplifiers called into service, while dCS Puccini stack accepted signals from a MacBook running iTunes via Pure Music. Transparent cables tied everything together.
You might think that, with all those drivers and the additional sub, you’d notice some discontinuity in the sound, but, to my ears, the sound was very coherent, the sub well integrated with the towers.
“This system is for people who want the ultimate two-channel system,” continued Herron, “but who also want to enjoy the best of multichannel and movies.”
To that end, the Wisdom L75s are also available in on-wall or in-wall configurations.
Source : stereophile[dot]com
Sound and Beauty from Profundo
Clarke put together a distinct and absolutely gorgeous system: the beautifully proportioned, high-sensitivity Trenner & Friedl Pharoah loudspeakers ($12,500/pair); a groovy Funk Firm Vector turntable with FXR tonearm and Transfiguration Axia phono cartridge; Heed Audio Obelisk PRE linestage ($1900), PM monoblock power amplifiers ($4200/pair), and PX power supply ($1400); Clear cables from Cardas Audio; and Trellis equipment rack from Splintr Designs. The digital source was Heed’s Obelisk DT digital transport ($1900) and DA DAC ($1900).
Bob Clarke seems to have an eye for beauty as well as an ear for sound: I love the way his products look, and I also especially enjoyed the golden shine that came with the sound of trumpets and the sweet, sweet delicacy and touch that came with the sound of cymbals.
Source : stereophile[dot]com
Blackbird Audio/Gallery & Colleen Cardas Imports: "Yulunga!"
This system struck me as offering a relaxed, well-controlled sound, with a fine sense of momentum and flow. I happily sat back and nodded my head to the music.
And do you know that creepy, moody Dead Can Dance track—the one with the shaker that comes flying from the left-channel speaker with crazy presence and realism? It’s called “Yulunga,” right?
Well, through the Colleen Cardas system, "Yulunga" wasn’t quite as large or enveloping as I’ve heard it elsewhere, but the vocals sounded lovely, and that crazy, creepy shaker was way more alive than ever before. Whoa!
Source : stereophile[dot]com
TAVES Day 2
I'm a great admirer of Quad electrostatics, but I've been generally disappointed with their sound at audio shows. I don' know why. Maybe it's the large spaces the speakers are usually being asked to fill, or maybe the setups haven't been optimized—and, as a former owner of original Quads, I can tell you that they're finicky to set up. Also, they're always demoed with Quad electronics and, going back to my experience with the Quad 405 amp, I'm not convinced that their amps are as good as their speakers.
Whatever the reason for the Quads' unimpressive performance at shows, Toronto Quad dealer Altronics Stereo 2000 had somehow licked the problem at TAVES. The speakers were actually set up in quite a large room, open to adjoining spaces, so the speakers' job was not an easy one. And yet, the pair of Quad Reference 2905s sounded terrific, playing loud enough not to sound wimpy, and having that clarity and transparency that Quads are known for. The amps were Quad QMP monoblocks (260W)—descendents of the 405, but sounding nothing like the 405 that I remember.
The Elipson Music Center is a "lifestyle" product; the $2500 package includes a CD player/preamp/amp combo and a pair of spherical speakers that use coaxial drivers. It actually sounded pretty good, but what intrigued me was that the importer of this lifestyle product also imports the Phy-HP driver ($1300, see below), an esoteric item with a cult following that's about as un-lifestyle-oriented as they come.
Toronto-area McIntosh dealer Audio Excellence brought to the show a system that they thought would be a good match to their demo space, including a pair of 1.2kW monoblocks ($24,200/pair). Adrian Low of Audio Excellence admitted that this turned out to be overkill in the small room they had, but he said he might have brought these big amps even if he had known how small the room was, because "people want to see and hear the big amps."
Monitor Audio has a new subwoofer/satellite system they call MASS (Monitor Audio Subwoofer Satellite, $1200) that utilizes the C-CAM (ceramic coating) cone technology of their larger speakers. The subwoofer uses a 10" active and a 10" passive driver driven by a 220W amplifier, the five satellites having a 1" tweeter and 4" midrange driver. The satellite that serves as center channel has the same drivers as the front and rear speakers, but it's voiced differently to take into account its positioning in the system One of the satellites is shown here by Monitor Audio's Jeff Ginn.
Canadian loudspeaker manufacturer Paradigm is celebrating its 30th anniversary with—what else?—new speakers! The floor-standing Tribute ($6598/pair, $3299 each) has some new, patented technology, including a corrugated surround for the woofer—see below.
Reference 3A's Tash Goka is a true audiophile: no matter how good the sound of his Reference 3A speakers, he can't help tweaking and tinkering with the design to make the sound even better. The latest version of his Grand Veena is now the Grand Veena B. The B stands for Beryllium, which is now used in the tweeter. The speakers also incorporate the Surreal Acoustic Lens diffusion device that I mentioned in my 2012 CES show report. Despite the various improvements—and Beryllium is not cheap—the price for the Grand Veena B remains $8000/pair.
Source : stereophile[dot]com
Yet Another Show: TAVES Starts Friday in Toronto
"I'm pretty excited about the preponderance of manufacturers, because they tend to have more elaborate set-ups and bring a lot more product with them," Kajko told Stereophile.
Exhibitors will get a sonic boost from the King Edward's larger than average hotel rooms. Because of the building's age and construction, sound dampening between rooms is superior to that in new facilities, and ceilings are an impressive 10'8" high. Kajko has also done his best to spread exhibitors out in the 100% sold-out show.
Among TAVES' highlights will be the display, in the King Edward's historic Sovereign Ballroom, of a 2012 Porsche Carrera S sports car outfitted with an extremely expensive Burmester audio system. Burmester also has a special display awaiting Saturday attendees. Another exhibit from MK Sound, Marantz, and L•G promises a state-of-the-art Home Theater system. No show premieres have been announced—these seem to be saved for the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest, which opens a mere two weeks later, on October 12, a mere 1506.9 miles away in Denver.
A distinct draw for the average consumer is the diversity of exhibitors and product categories. "We're trying to distinguish TAVES from other shows by introducing product categories other than audio and video," says Kajko. "We're making it into more of a consumer audio show. We consider ourselves very lucky, given that this is only the second edition of the show, that we have several new categories, including automobiles, security and lighting systems, and even new commercial products such as L•G's mirror and glass TVs. And we're super-excited that Porsche is our major sponsor, because that has enabled us to connect the categories of entertainment and automobiles."
For entertainment, on early Saturday eve, multi-lingual and multimedia electronic pop, urban, and rock diva Cindy Gomez flies in from Germany to, in Kajko's words, "do something definitely out of the ordinary." For Neanderthals such as myself who don't know Cindy Gomez from Rand Paul, Ms. Gomez made history of sorts when she became the first artist to debut in a mobile game on no less than 40 million mobile handsets worldwide.
Kajko has invested in advertising on three major radio stations, and is enticing people with contests that include radio giveaways of 10 different Paradigm products and TV giveaways of Totem Acoustic loudspeakers. "We are not promoting the show only to those already interested in A/V," he says. "We want to reach out to the main consumer market so they can discover the various high-end products and brands, and realize there's so much more to audio and video than what you can find in a big box store." Such as Cindy Gomez.
While Kajko declined to predict attendance in advance of the show, he expects to attract far more than the impressive 3000 attendees who showed up the first year. Given that he has invited several well-known TV personalities to participate—North American technology expert Marc Saltzman will present a daily seminar designed to introduce people to the realm of digital music file playback, and one of Canada's top interior designers, Yanic Simard, will host daily seminars on entertainment rooms and interior design that culminate in the giveaway of a half-hour entertainment room design consultation—he will surely reach beyond the circle of the already-initiated.
Nor will Saltzman and Simard be the only seminar presenters. This year's offerings have jumped from four to ten, and cover both audio and TV. Mark Waldrep of AIX Records and iTrax.com will discuss "The Future of Music Entertainment," and others will educate people in the realm of TV purchase and calibration. Thanks to Nordost and support from Moon, KEF and Stillpoints, TAVES is even bringing in the UK's Roy Gregory, European Editor for The Audio Beat.com and founding editor of Hi-Fi+ magazine, who will lead folks through the intricacies of set-up and system optimization.
"It's a very young show," says Kajko, "and we still have plenty of work to do. I believe we have the potential to turn TAVES into a major North American show in the next few years."
Source : stereophile[dot]com
Loudspeaker Pioneer Bill Hecht Passes at 89
Hecht's contributions to the consumer electronics industry were numerous. He invented the true soft-dome tweeter (patented in 1962), which is ubiquitous in speaker designs. Later inventions included a manufacturing process for solid flat-piston drivers, a basket-less woofer/midrange driver mounting system, a self-damping woofer voice-coil and silicon-injected drivers.
Hecht remained involved in the speaker industry through the rest of his life and retained an office at United Speaker Systems in Jacksonville. United Speaker Systems produced more than 600 different speaker systems.
"All of us at MSE Audio greatly enjoyed our association with Bill and are deeply saddened at his passing," said Chris Combest, President of MSE Audio. "Bill was a legend in the speaker industry and brought a wealth of ideas to the manufacturing world. We offer our heartfelt condolences to the Hecht family and their friends."
Hecht is survived by his wife of 61 years, Sonia Hecht, his son Kenneth Hecht and wife Joan, his two daughters, Lauren Penny and Diane Hecht and five grandchildren.
Source : stereophile[dot]com
Meet the Innovators: Dan D'Agostino at Innovative Audio
The D'Agostino Master Systems Analog Preamplifier, first seen at the 2011 Rocky Mountain Audio Fest. Photo: John Atkinson
Wednesday, September 19, 6–9pm: Innovative Audio Video (150 East 58th Street, New York) will hold a “Meet the Innovators” event, featuring Dan D’Agostino, who will introduce and demonstrate the new D'Agostino Master Audio Systems Momentum Analog preamplifier. Refreshments will be served. Space is limited. RSVP: (212) 634-4444 or info@iavny.com.
Source : stereophile[dot]com
Magico S5 at David Michael Audio
Photo: Magico LLC
Saturday, September 29, 11am–6pm: David Michael Audio (4341 Delemere Court, Royal Oak, MI) will host a demonstration of the Magico S5 loudspeaker ($28,600/pair), which had impressed John Atkinson at the 2012 Newport Beach Show. Irv Gross, Magico’s director of sales, will be on hand to present the speaker and answer any questions. Refreshments will be served. Seating is limited. For more info, call (586) 244-8479. RSVP: info@davidmichaelaudio.com.
Source : stereophile[dot]com
Audio Alchemy DTI•Pro 32 Jitter Filter
The DTI•Pro, released 18 months later, bore little similarity to the rather simple DTI. The Pro added a more sophisticated dual Phase-Locked Loop (PLL) input receiver for much lower jitter, and also performed a new type of Digital Signal Processing (DSP) that Audio Alchemy called "Resolution Enhancement." This processing reportedly increased the resolution of the compact disc's 16-bit digital words, approximating 18- or even 20-bit resolution. It did this by looking at the 16-bit words over a time window, and calculating the additional bits that would have been present had the signal been originally encoded with higher resolution than 16 bits.
In my November 1994 review of the DTI•Pro (footnote 1), I called it a "breakthrough in digital audio reproduction" and "a musical revelation." When inserted in the playback chain between a transport and digital processor, the DTI•Pro significantly improved the sound of my system. Moreover, experimenting with the output word length suggested that the Pro's benefits were indeed rendered by Resolution Enhancement, not just jitter reduction.
Shortly after the DTI•Pro was launched, Star Semiconductor, the manufacturer of the Pro's DSP engine, temporarily went out of business. Although Audio Alchemy scoured the globe and hoarded all remaining Star DSP chips, it was clear that the DTI•Pro's days were numbered.
Audio Alchemy took the opportunity to redesign the Pro with a 32-bit DSP chip from Texas Instruments, hence the product's new name, the DTI•Pro 32. The new chip reportedly has 50% more computing horsepower to run the Resolution Enhancement algorithm. The Pro 32 also includes some operating improvements over the Pro. Fortunately, I still have an original DTI•Pro on hand for comparison with its successor.
Description
The DTI•Pro 32 is housed in Alchemy's standard 8.5" wide and 2" high chassis. From the front panel, the DTI•Pro 32 looks identical to the DTI•Pro. The front panel's 10 LEDs indicate the input selected, power to the 32's three main sections, when the unit is locked to a source, and whether the phase or polarity has been inverted.
The lock indicator actually requires two LEDs, marked "Primary" and "Secondary." The Primary lock shows that the Pro 32's first PLL stage has locked to the source, and the Secondary LED indicates the low-jitter "double-lock" condition. The Pro 32 should double-lock to most CD transports. More on this dual PLL later.
The tiny rear panel is consumed by input and output jacks. Input is via coaxial (BNC) jack, TosLink optical, or Alchemy's I2S bus. The addition of the I2S bus input is new on the Pro 32, and is included to accept I2S output from Alchemy's forthcoming CD transport. For an additional $179 you can swap the TosLink input for an ST-Type optical jack. The Pro 32's output appears on a BNC jack, AES/EBU connector, ST-Type glass optical jack, and I2S bus. A DC input connector, which accepts a plug from the Pro 32's small external power supply, finishes the rear panel.
An I2S connector looks like an S-Video jack, but has five pins rather than S-Video's four. The five pins carry left and right audio data on one line, bit clock, word clock, master clock, and the emphasis flag. By separating the clock and transmitting it independently of the audio data, the unit receiving an I2S-formatted signal need not "lock" to the incoming datastream and "recover" a clock. The result is nearly total immunity to interface-induced jitter. Indeed, the whole idea of extracting a clock signal from the audio data is a fundamentally flawed approach to transmitting digital audio. Note that when one of Alchemy's processors with I2S input is connected to the DTI•Pro 32's I2S output, the familiar and comforting "lock" LED doesn't illuminate on the processor's front panel. Don't worry; the processor will still decode the I2S data.
Seven user-selectable operating modes optimize the Pro 32's output for your digital/analog converter. These modes set the output word length (16, 18, 20, 22, or 24 bits) and other output conditions. One mode turns off the dither, but performs Resolution Enhancement. The output word length in this no-dither mode changes with the program source, with the algorithm deciding how many additional bits it can reliably interpolate. Turning off the DTI•Pro's dither can be a benefit with some digital processors that are already dithered internally.
The seventh mode turns off the Resolution Enhancement processing for HDCD$r playback. HDCD decoding requires that the control code buried in the least significant bit of the CD's 16-bit words arrive at the HDCD filter in your digital processor. Any change in the data—such as that introduced by Resolution Enhancement—corrupts this control code and prevents HDCD decoding. This is why the Pro 32 offers the HDCD bypass mode. Note that this HDCD bypass option wasn't offered on early versions of the Pro.
Choosing the correct output word length is crucial to getting the best performance from the DTI•Pro 32. Let's say you have a digital processor with 18-bit DACs, and you set the Pro 32's output word length to 20 or more bits. The DACs will simply truncate (cut off) any bits below 18, introducing noise and distortion. As JA described in his review of the Meridian 518 Mastering Processor in the January '96 Stereophile, truncation also hardens midrange textures and reduces the sense of space.
Conversely, setting the Pro 32's output word length to 18 bits if you have a true 20-bit processor prevents you from experiencing the full benefits of Resolution Enhancement.
Just because your digital processor has 20-bit DACs doesn't mean that it will pass 20-bit data from input to output. The NPC 5813 and 5813 digital filters, for example, truncate the incoming data to 18 bits. The older Yamaha YM3623 input receiver chip will pass only 16-bit data. For comparison, the Crystal Semiconductor CS8412 and UltraAnalog AES21 input receivers will pass up to 24-bit data, as will the Pacific Microsonics PMD100 HDCD decoder/filter.
There's yet another trap to be aware of. Digital processors with the Crystal or UltraAnalog input receivers, the PMD100 filter, and 20-bit DACs still may not pass 20-bit data. Some processors that have been retrofitted with the PMD100 weren't redesigned to pass the PMD100's full resolution to the DACs. Two such examples are the PS Audio UltraLink Two and Enlightened Audio Designs DSP7000 Series III. Each of these processors has only a 16-bit data path from the digital filter to the DACs. Consequently, they'll truncate 20-bit input data, even though they have a 24-bit input receiver, 24-bit digital filter, and 20-bit DACs. Any processor designed from the ground up around the PMD100 (as opposed to an existing design retrofitted with the PMD100) should pass at least 20-bit data. The only way of finding out which "20-bit" processors truly pass 20-bit data is by the measurements included in reviews. Reports from readers suggest that some processor manufacturers either aren't aware of their products' capabilities, or provide misleading information.
Footnote 1: See my review of the DTI in Vol.16 No.5, DTI measurements in Vol.16 No.11, and DTI•Pro review in Vol.17 No.11.
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Source : stereophile[dot]com
