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The $1699/pair Joseph Audio RM7si Signature is a special edition of the RM7si, which I auditioned in February 1996 (Vol.19 No.2). Because full descriptions of the speaker was included in the original review, I will only touch briefly on the differences between the original version and the sample reviewed this month.

Whereas the standard RM7si's woofer uses a bright yellow fiber-glass cone, the Signature's woofer has a much more discreet aluminum cone. But as with the '7si, a stationary phase plug is used…

It's all been good news so far, but you'll note that I haven't mentioned the lower frequencies. In my 1996 review of the basic RM7si, I mentioned the generous lows;…

Office System
Digital source: Meridian 500 CD transport, Panasonic A-120 CD/DVD player, Musical Fidelity X-24K 24/96 D/A processor.
Amplification: Yamaha @PET RP-U100 desktop receiver.
Cables: Canare interconnects, AudioQuest CV-4 and Symo loudspeaker cables.
Accessories: Pentium MMX 166MHz with Digital Audio Labs CardDeluxe soundcard connected to D/A via 75 ohm S/PDIF link, running Windows 98, WinAmp 2.5, and CoolEdit 2000.

Home system
Digital source: Mark Levinson No.31.5 CD transport and No.30.6 D/A processor, connected with…

The Joseph's sensitivity was an estimated 84.5dB(B)/2.83V/m, a little lower than specified. However, the impedance (fig.1) was generally high in magnitude, dipping below 8 ohms only in the midrange and reaching a minimum of 6.8 ohms at 184Hz. The phase angle is generally moderate, implying that tube amplifiers rated at 8 ohms would have no difficulty driving this speaker. The saddle at 45Hz in the magnitude trace indicates the port's tuning frequency.

Fig.1 Joseph RM7si Signature, electrical impedance (solid) and phase (dashed). (2 ohms/…

Editor: We'd like to thank John Atkinson for his review of our RM7si Signature loudspeaker. We were very happy to see that "The '7 Signature laid bare all manner of recorded detail." Perhaps this is why it's been the editing and mastering monitor used by Chesky Records for the last three years.

And JA's vertical-response measurements look superb—most speakers show large response errors within a small 15 degrees window. Thanks to John Atkinson, we can see how little the response changes over a much broader 90 degrees window (45 degrees in each…

Description: Two-way, stand-mounted, reflex-loaded loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" (25mm) silk-dome tweeter, 6.5" (165mm) fiberglass-cone woofer (RM7si), 6.5" (165mm) aluminum-cone woofer (Signature). Crossover frequency: 2kHz. Crossover slopes: patented "Infinite-Slope," >100dB/octave. Frequency response: 42Hz-20kHz, ±2dB. Sensitivity: 86dB/2.83V/m. Impedance: 8 ohms nominal. Recommended power: up to 150W.
Dimensions: 15" (380mm) H by 9" (229mm) W by 12" (305mm) D. Weight: 27 lbs (12.3kg) each.
Serial numbers of units reviewed: none (RM7si, first pair); 7…

I have used the stand-mounted, sweet-sounding RM7si Signature ($1799/pair-$1999/pair, reviewed by John Atkinson in August 2000), as my reference speaker because of its realistic timbre and dynamics, spatial depth, precise imaging, high-frequency clarity, and revealing midband. While I remained a big fan of the original Siggie '7, over time I found its highs to be somewhat subdued for my tastes; and when I pushed the speaker hard (as is my wont), certain notes in the transitional zone between the upper mids…

He began building these when he was an active member of a high-school band in the 1960s. At that time he used the legendary 300B, a directly heated triode tube dating from the 1930s and already something of an antique. As a young musician,…

As my ears became accustomed to this affordable power amplifier, it was hard not to be aware of the performance gap between it and the cost-no-object CAD805C reference. As is…