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July 23, 2011 - 4:31pm
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The Fifth Element
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Hi-
Thanks for reading, and for posting. There are no reasons in particular that I am aware of for the omissions you mention. I would have loved for the Bricasti M1 to have been the cover photo, but I also admit that it looks like a black-and-silver piece of electronic gear, whereas the Voxativ horn speaker is visually arresting. It could be that making a cover blurb that was both catchy and comprehensible meant that it came out too long for the available space. No big deal, and I am certainly not offended.
The Bricasti is amazing. Diehard analog friends actually can listen to it for an entire CD or more! But it does not sound cosmetically rolled-off in an effort to sound "analog." The combination of the Bricasti's speed and the speed from Vivid loudspeaker drivers is not hard to listen to at all, it is just more like a mic feed or like live music.
I first heard the M1 at a pro audio fair; it was feeding a headphone amp. I asked to hear one of my own recordings, and the guy running the exhibit obliged. Within 3 seconds I knew that it was special. He allowed me to scroll through the filter options, and when I ended up with "4," he said that most people chose that. A friend who was at that same pro audio fair became a dealer, and the first time he demo'ed his demo unit, he sold it--the customer would not wait for a new one.
John Atkinson is the lucky dog who now has custody of the loaner M1. His measurements will appear by the end of the year.
All the best,
John
Perhaps the most interesting thing about the M1 is that although it costs nearly $8K it is still less than half the price of the Linn Klimax DS, which is still widely regarded as the best DAC available. But the price difference is not the only important difference since the Bricasti M1 is much more flexible and therefore easier to add to an existing system. Now where to find a spare $8K besides underneath the sofa cushions?
Question: should Linn be worried?
Also I forgot to add: You're quite right about a picture of the Voxativ making for a more interesting cover but come on there should at least have been a short blurb about it on the cover. Something along the lines "New State of the Art DAC from Bricasti".
Hi-
It's entirely possible that the people who put together the cover agonize over it less than some readers might agonize over what it all means. Cover blurbs don't merit Kremlinology, as far as I am concerned.
I don't think anyone should be worried, especially about a new DAC. Established companies have their established dealers and an installed base of equipment, and someone might decide not to change out his Audio Research DAC for something that looks like a cross between Lexicon and Levinson, and that is fine with me.
I am very wary about going out on a limb for new companies, but Bricasti is not a new company and all the top mastering people own or admire their reverb. The M1 is totally ready for prime time, IMHO. But if someone's whole-house system in all-Linn, I don't think that person is likely to track down a Bricasti on my say-so. (And a person with a whole-house system pretty much by definition is not dedicated to the best sound, regardless of cost or practicality.)
I think that the Bricasti M1 can fill a niche. BTW, don't hold your breath, but, in the fullness of time, they will offer another new product. Except we in the pro arena are already arguing about whether it should be an analog-to-digital converter, or a mic preamp. The nice thing about a mic preamp is that that accomplishes most of the work for a consumer linestage preamp.
ATB,
JM