The TC-60 is significantly less sensitive than the Dunlavy SC-I, its B-weighted figure being around 85dB/2.83V/1m. It's easier to drive, however, its impedance (fig.1) remaining above 7 ohms other than in the high treble, where it drops to a still-kind minimum of 6.2 ohms. Note the slight wrinkle in the traces just under 300Hz—this implies the existence of a cabinet resonance at this frequency. The port tuning is indicated by the saddle in the magnitude trace at 29Hz. This is very low for the size of the speaker; it's difficult to predict what the actual bass…
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Manufacturer's Comments
Editor: Thanks for the excellent review of our TC-60 speaker, my latest attempt to coax a quart of juice out of a pint jar. John Atkinson did an amazingly good job of delineating the many tradeoffs involved in this (and any other) design. It is such a relief to have been reviewed by someone who actually has a real understanding and appreciation of what goes on under the veneers.
It is also a joy to be working with Richard Schram, Ric Mancuso, and everyone else at Parasound Products. Working with people who are as capable and enthusiastic as they are makes…
If reviewers can be believed, the diminutive, $995/pair Epos ES11 loudspeaker has been a phenomenal success worldwide since its 1990 introduction. Stereophile added its voice to this hallelujah chorus in Vol.14 No.7, when the '11 kicked butt in a blind-listening-panel evaluation of inexpensive small speakers. While the ES11 did plenty of things extremely well, it was inevitable that it was limited in terms of ultimate sound-pressure levels (spls), deep-bass extension, and dynamic persuasiveness. While the ES11 was an unqualified success given its modest size and price, one couldn't help but…
While the bass performance of the '25s did reach deeper and tighten up during break-in, it nonetheless remained mildly loose. The midrange, while always musical, remained polite-sounding. In part, the brilliant clarity of the tweeter threw the bass looseness and midrange politeness into relief. Even great tube amplification (eg, the Conrad-Johnson Premier Eight monoblocks) did little to alleviate these nagging, albeit mild, problems. But good solid-state amplification provided a much more synergistic match. With a single Classé One Thousand, the bass was noticeably tighter and midrange…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Floorstanding, three-way, reflex-loaded dynamic loudspeaker. Drive-units: 8" (200mm) Cobex-coned woofer, 6.5" (165mm) polypropylene-cone midrange unit, 1" (25mm) aluminum-dome tweeter. Connections: three separate inputs for tri-wiring; jumper included for single wiring. Frequency response: 25Hz–22kHz, ±3dB. Impedance: 6 ohms nominal. Sensitivity: 88dB/1W/1m. Power handling: 200W.
Dimensions: 35.5" (900mm) H by 9.2" (233mm) W by 13.5" (343mm) D. Weight: 66 lbs (30kg).
Finishes available: dark cherry or walnut.
Serial numbers of review…
Sidebar 2: Measurements
I calculated the ES25's sensitivity to be a little lower than specified, at 86.5dB/2.83V/1m (B-weighted). Its impedance (fig.1) is also moderately demanding, dropping to 5 ohms throughout the midrange, with a relatively severe electrical phase angle in the upper bass. The tuning of the large port is revealed by the impedance "saddle" at 33Hz, while the wrinkle in the fig.1 traces between 600Hz and 700Hz indicates some kind of resonant behavior. Indeed, the cabinet did prove to be very lively in this region, but it appears to be high enough in frequency to not have…
Stereophile editor John Atkinson said one evening in 1995, "What I find fascinating is that, in an industry as mature as audio cables, a new company can appear out of the blue and upset everything." He was gently poking fun at my admission that I found cable design fascinating, in particular the practice of combining different conductor materials.
JA's comment was understandable. After all, in 1995 we already had round, flat, and tubular conductors made of silver, gold, and copper, as well as various alloys and combinations of different core and plating materials. There were…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Silver-conductor interconnects and speaker cables. Interconnects available in single-ended and balanced configurations, terminated with Xhadow Reference RCA connectors or XLR connectors. Speaker cables terminated with Xhadow banana plugs; snap-on spade-lug adapters available.
Prices: Interconnect, either configuration: $1500/1m pair. Speaker cable: $2500/2m pair. Custom lengths: $1000/1m pair plus $500 for termination. Approximate number of dealers: 10. Warranty: lifetime.
Manufacturer: Signals-SuperFi, LLC, 828 Ralph McGill Blvd., Studio W-3…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog Source: VPI HR-X turntable & tonearm, Lyra Titan cartridge.
Digital Sources: Simaudio Andromeda, Primare 31 CD players.
Preamplification: Sutherland PhD phono preamp; VTL TL-7.5, Placette Active, Sutherland Direct line stages; Halcro dm10 preamplifier.
Power Amplifiers: VTL Ichiban, Halcro dm58 & dm88.
Loudspeakers: Thiel CS6, Wilson Audio Sophia & Sophia 2.
Cables: Nordost Valhalla, Nirvana SX-Ltd, Audience Au24, Silversmith Silver. AC: Audience PowerChord, Shunyata Research.
Accessories: Finite Elemente Reference…
What's 1/16" narrower, over 1/2" shallower, and 3/16" higher than the Mirage M-3 loudspeaker? The new Mirage M-3si, that's what. Though the published dimensions for the old and new speakers are the same, my eyes told me there was a difference between them when I had them side-by-side in my listening room in Santa Fe. Being the compulsive type, I got out my trusty tape measure. No, my eyes had not deceived me—the M-3si is skinnier and taller. As I waltzed them into position, I sensed they weighed about the same as their predecessors; close enough that setting them on Arcici Super Spikes is a…