Matching levels: the Quads and the Fathom f113s
Installing two Fathom f113s in my system took a lot more time and careful listening than I'd anticipated. I had to adjust 10 controls on the Master f113, and 10 on the Bryston 10B-SUB electronic crossover. Once I'd listened to the two f113s in the dual-mono Master/Slave configuration, I repeated all setup steps with the two subs configured for stereo operation. For this I used two sets of tools: the signal generator, virtual spectrum analyzer, and microphone built into the Velodyne DD-18 sub; and JL Audio's own ARO system and mike. The…
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Another significant change was my system's increased dynamic range. The Quad electrostatics played passages louder, and didn't "clamp off" during passages of wide dynamic range. Supported by the Fathom f113s, the Quads could now handle bass peaks without overloading in my large listening room, most obviously when playing the massive deep synthesizer opening of "Deeper Wells," from Spyboy. Even more impressive was the f113s' ability to resolve the different tonal qualities of percussion instruments—for instance, the synthesizer and pulsatile bass drum in "Silk Road," from I Ching's Of the…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Powered, sealed-box subwoofer. Drive-unit: 13.5" W7 cone with 3.5"-diameter voice-coil and 4" peak–peak excursion. Magnet weight: not specified. Low-pass filter: variable, 30–130Hz; 12dB or 24dB/octave. High-pass filter: not supplied. Inputs: stereo or mono balanced Neutrix (single XLR connector), stereo or mono unbalanced (single RCA connector). Input modes: Master, Slave. Outputs: single balanced Neutrix (XLR) to additional subwoofer. Input sensitivity: not specified. Input impedance: not specified. Controls: Power (On, Off, Automatic Signal…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog Sources: Linn Sondek LP12 turntable with Lingo power supply, Linn Ittok tonearm, Spectral moving-coil cartridge; Day-Sequerra Classic FM tuner.
Digital Sources: Krell KRC-28 CD player, Sony SCD-C555ES SACD/CD player, Slim Devices SqueezeBox network music player, Bryston B-100DA D/A converter.
Preamplification: VTL TL-6.5, Krell KCT preamplifiers; Bryston 10B-SUB electronic crossover.
Power Amplifiers: Mark Levinson No.334, Krell FPB-600c, VTL S-400; Bryston 28B-SST monoblocks.
Loudspeakers: Quad ESL-989; Velodyne DD-18, REL Studio III…
I had intended that my recent exploration of what was available in the world of high-performance minimonitors—the Era Acoustics Design 4 ($600/pair) in January, the Stirling LS3/5a V2 ($1695/pair) and Harbeth HL-P3ES2 ($1850/pair) in April, the PSB Alpha B1 ($279/pair) in May—was to end in July, with my review of the American Acoustic Development Reference Silver-1 ($1550/pair). But there was one more real-world–priced, stand-mounted model that piqued my interest before I return to cost-no-object floorstanders in the substantial form of Sonus Faber's new Cremona Elipsa ($20,000/pair): the…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Two-way, stand-mounted, reflex-loaded loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" (25mm) gold-anodized, Ceramic-Coated Aluminum Magnesium (C-CAM) alloy dome tweeter; 6.5" (165mm) RST2 metal-cone woofer. Crossover frequency: 2.7kHz. Frequency response: 40Hz–43kHz, ±3dB. Nominal impedance: 8 ohms. Sensitivity: 88dB/2.83V/m. Recommended amplification: 40–100W.
Dimensions: 14 3/16" (360mm) H by 8 1/8" (206mm) W by 10 5/8" (270mm) D. Weight: 18.7 lbs (8.5kg) each.
Finishes: Santos rosewood, walnut, cherry veneers; piano-black lacquer.
Serial Number Of Units…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Digital Sources: Ayre C-5xe universal player; Mark Levinson No.30.6, Benchmark DAC 1usb, Bel Canto DAC 3, Musical Fidelity X-DACV8 D/A processors; Slim Devices Transporter WiFi music player with Apple Mac mini running OSX for media storage.
Preamplifiers: Parasound Halo JC2, Ayre K-5xe.
Power Amplifiers: Mark Levinson No.33H, Parasound Halo JC1 monoblocks.
Loudspeakers: Sonus Faber Cremona Elipsa, AAD Reference Silver-1.
Cables: Digital: Kimber Illuminations Orchid AES/EBU, AudioQuest OptiLink-5 S/PDIF. Interconnect (balanced): AudioQuest…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
The GS10's voltage sensitivity on its tweeter axis was to specification, at an estimated 88dB(B)/2.83V/m. The speaker's impedance remained above 6 ohms over most of the audioband, dropping to a minimum magnitude of 4 ohms at 190Hz (fig.1). The electrical phase angle varies considerably, but as always the most extreme angles occur when the magnitude is high, diminishing the difficulty of the loading. The shape of the magnitude trace suggests that the speaker will sound a bit forward, perhaps even bright, when used with tube amplifiers having a high source impedance…
When folks visit from out of town, they frequently remark that my Brooklyn neighborhood reminds them of "a real neighborhood" from their neck of the woods. "Except that we know all our neighbors and talk to them when we're cutting the grass, watering the lawn, and walking the dog. You probably don't even know the names of any of yours."
I may not know all of their names, but we sweep the sidewalk, put out the trash, and jockey for alternate-side-of-the-street parking together, so we do tend to know each other—and each other's business—pretty intimately. That explains why my neighbor…
If The Sultan's Picnic impressed me, vocal recordings absolutely slayed me. Tierney Sutton's On the Other Side (SACD, Telarc SACD-63650) gave me goose bumps. Added to the Atom's midrange clarity was a top-end sparkle and a tonal balance that were completely relaxed. Vocals, whether male or female, were compelling through the Atom.
Ray Brinker's trapset and the sound of bassists Trey Henry and Kevin Axt weren't quite as slammin' as I would have wished, however. There was quite a bit of bass—certainly enough to let me hear the unstopped 41Hz E, but not as forcefully as notes about an…