Sidebar 2: Review System
Analog front end: Lingo'd Linn, Ittok, and AudioQuest AQ7000, replaced in the latter half of the review period by the new AQ7000nsx (footnote 1), which, believe it or not, is even better than the cartridge it supplants. Digital: McCormack Signature (footnote 2) CD player, and, for most of the listening, the same player acting as transport, feeding a PS Audio UltraLink via TARA Labs Digimaster coax. Late in the auditioning period, I had to return the McCormack Signature to its manufacturer, and so had to regress to using my old Philips CD-650 as transport. Don't tell me "bits is bits"!
Not feeling ready to actually buy a high-end transport, I borrowed an Audio Alchemy DTI, a $349 black box that's supposed to clean up a transport's output and reduce jitter. Result: a major improvement. I can't say what it would do to the sound of higher-quality transports (I look forward to reading Bob Harley's evaluation in this issue), but the DTI is probably the most cost-effective way to improve the transport performance of an inexpensive CD player.
Preamplifier: Conrad-Johnson EV20 (review in progress). Amplifiers: VTL Deluxe 225s, Sonic Frontiers SFM-160s, and Bryston 7Bs. Most of the listening was done via the Brystons. The power amps were plugged directly into a dedicated AC line; the rest of the analog electronics were fed from a Series II Tice Power Block, which, in turn, was plugged into a PAC IDOS (one of the analog outlets), with the digital transport and D/A converter plugged into the IDOS digital outlets. The IDOS got its power from a second dedicated AC line.
Cables included 15' runs of AudioQuest Lapis, Purist Audio Colossus, and TARA RSC interconnects, and bi-wire 8' speaker cable pairs of AudioQuest Sterling/Sterling 2, Purist Audio Colossus, and TARA Labs RSC. All three interconnects worked well as the preamp–amp link, the new TARA Labs RSC slightly edging out the others. The preferred connection from D/A converter to preamp was the TARA Labs RSC; in this application, it was simply peerless. Among the speaker cables, the Purist Audio Colossus proved to be a particularly synergistic match, providing the most neutral tonal balance and the widest dynamics. (The Signature 1's internal wiring is by Purist, and Unity Audio specifically recommends Purist cables for use with their speakers. Sometimes, the manufacturer does know best.)
My 16' by 14' by 7.5' listening room is outfitted with CornerTunes, EchoTunes, and RoomTunes arranged strategically. A 4' by 6' shag rug hangs on the wall behind the listening area.—Robert Deutsch
Footnote 1: Thanks to Carmine Gitto of Brack Electronics for the fine installation job. Footnote 2: For those interested in a "personal" approach to audio, I recommend the following system: McCormack Signature CD player, CAT SL1 Signature preamp, YBA Signature amp, and Unity Audio Signature 1 speakers. What's a good record to play on such a system? John Denver's Autograph, of course!
Footnote 1: Thanks to Carmine Gitto of Brack Electronics for the fine installation job. Footnote 2: For those interested in a "personal" approach to audio, I recommend the following system: McCormack Signature CD player, CAT SL1 Signature preamp, YBA Signature amp, and Unity Audio Signature 1 speakers. What's a good record to play on such a system? John Denver's Autograph, of course!
