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A full set of measurements was taken in the Accuphase M-2000's balanced mode, with selected measurements repeated in the unbalanced configuration. Unless otherwise noted, the measurements presented here are of balanced operation.

Following the M-2000's 1/3-power, one-hour preconditioning test, its heatsinks were merely warm. The input impedance measured 49.4k ohms (24.4k ohms unbalanced). The output impedance was a extremely low 0.035 ohm at 1kHz, increasing to a measured maximum of 0.038 ohm at 20Hz into an 8 ohm load, and 0.063 ohm at 20kHz into 4 ohms.…

If the AVR-4800 is correctly set on Auto, then it independently sends the signals to its THX Surround EX processors when The Haunting DVD is put in the player. The THX…

Description: Three-way, reflex-loaded, floorstanding loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" (25mm) soft-dome tweeter, 5" (130mm) plastic-cone midrange unit, two 8" (200mm) plastic-cone woofers. Crossover frequencies: 200Hz, 2.25kHz. Frequency response: 30Hz–20kHz ±2dB, –3dB at 27Hz and 22kHz. Sensitivity: 89dB/W/m (2.83V). Nominal impedance: 4 ohms (3 ohms minimum). Amplifier requirements: 50–300W.
Dimensions: 42" (1065mm) H by 15.75" (400mm) W by 23.4" (593mm) D. Weight: 145 lbs (65.8kg) each.
Serial numbers of review samples: 8000034/35.
Price: $3500/pair (1996…

My relatively small room in Santa Fe measures around 19' by 16.5', with a 9' 3" ceiling broken up by 9" vigas—raw pine logs. The room is carpeted, and there are patches of Sonex foam on the ceiling to damp primary reflections of the sound. The other wall has RPG Abffusors behind the listening seat to absorb and diffuse what would otherwise be early rear-wall reflections of the sound that might blur the stereo imaging precision. Tube Traps are used in the room corners to even out the room's bass resonances, the result being a relatively uniform reverberation…

The SS-M9 will go quite loud with only a few amplifier watts; its B-weighted sensitivity weighed in at a calculated 89dB/2.83V/m, the same as specified. However, its impedance (fig.1) remains between 4 ohms and 6 ohms through almost all the bass and midrange, and drops to 3 ohms and below above the audioband, meaning that the matching amplifier should not be fazed by low impedances. The small rise in the magnitude trace just below 200Hz is due to the crossover between the dual woofers and the midrange unit; the slight saddle at 24Hz is a clue to the tuning of the…

But isn't sonic neutrality supposed to represent the ultimate measure of the designer's art? Though high-end designers may, by and large, have abandoned tone controls, the manner in which each of us perceives tonal quality cuts to the heart of the issue of individual…

It offers listeners an aural parfait…

Description: Class-A push-pull dual-monoblock vacuum-tube integrated amplifier with auto-bias. Tube complement per side: two 12AX7, two 6V6, four EL84. Inputs: four line-level. Outputs: one fixed, one variable buffered with dedicated attenuator. Adjustable negative feedback from Zero Feedback to Stage III (5dB–8dB–12dB in full pentode, 4dB–7dB–10dB in two-thirds pentode, 3dB–5dB–8dB in two-thirds triode). Eight-pole industrial switch converts amplifier into dedicated headphone amplifier using entire array of output power tubes. Patented Tandem State Imaging;r…

Analog source: Rega Planar 3 turntable and RB300 tonearm, Grado Reference Master cartridge, EAR 834P tube phono preamp.
Digital source: CAL CL-15 CD player, CAL Delta transport, CAL Alpha 24/96 tube D/A converter.
Loudspeakers: Celestion A3, Joseph RM22si.
Cables: Synergistic Research and JPS Labs interconnects, speaker cables, power cords.
Accessories: Argent RoomLenses, EchoBusters room treatments, PolyCrystal brass speaker spikes, Shakti Stones, Upscale Audio NOS 6V6 and EL84 power tubes.—Chip Stern