Installation and setup
My review sample of the dps turntable was installed by Willi Bauer, during a time when he and Ayre Acoustics' Steve Silberman were traveling…
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That turned out to be a good thing. Ultimately, Ayre developed a pure analog oscillator—a digital supply would have been a snap, but it would have dumped RFI into the system—with three outputs, spaced 120° from one another and amplified by a zero-feedback amp (an Ayre hallmark, after all). And because no motor is perfect, the individual levels for all three sets of windings can be adjusted to match the motor. Neat.
The dps was also, as far as I could tell, the most completely uncolored turntable I've heard. Similarly, it was among the most spatially amazing source components I've had in my home: Playing stereo records, its ability to suggest depth and the precise layering and positioning of voices and instruments was almost revelatory. (On that count I'll go back on my word, briefly, and say that the combination of dps turntable and dps tonearm was superior, although the German 'table wrung a lot more spatial performance from the musically solid Naim Aro than I'd imagined was there.) On Leonard Cohen'…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Two-speed belt-drive turntable. Motor: three-phase AC synchronous. Speeds: 33.33, 45rpm. Motor frequency accuracy: ±0.1%.
Dimensions: 17.7" (450mm) W by 7.2" (183mm) H by 13.8" (350mm) D. Weight: 50 lbs (22.7kg).
Serial Number Of Unit Reviewed: USA08004.
Price: $9250. Approximate number of dealers: 50.
Manufacturer: Bauer Audio, Pollinger Strasse 4, 81377 Munich, Germany. Tel: (49) (0)89-719-39-80. Web: www.bauer-audio.de. US distributor: Ayre Acoustics, Inc., 2300-B Central Avenue, Boulder, CO 80301. Tel: (303) 442-7300. Fax: (303) 442-…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog Sources: Thorens TD-124 Mk.II, Linn Sondek LP12 turntables; EMT 997, Thomas Schick, Naim Aro, dps tonearms; Shindo SPU, Ortofon SPU 90th Anniversary, EMT OFD 25, Edison Spirit 78, Miyabi 47, Grace F9E cartridges.
Digital Sources: Sony SCD-777ES SACD/CD player; Ayre QB-9 USB DAC (with Apple iTunes).
Preamplification: Auditorium 23 Hommage T1 step-up transformer; Ayre Acoustics P-5x phono preamplifier; Shindo Masseto, Tempo Electric Arthur Loesch 1.1 preamplifiers.
Power Amplifiers: Shindo Haut-Brion & Corton-Charlemagne, Quad II.
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A few years ago, I had a phone call from a marketing organization. I was asked, as a member of the audiophile press, to participate in a survey dealing with the "images" of various brands of loudspeakers.
I declined to participate in the survey—Stereophile editorial policy does not allow writers to act as consultants, and this was tantamount to being a consultant, albeit an unpaid one. However, if one of the brands in the survey had been Monitor Audio, my answers would not have been terribly helpful: I had no very clear "image" of Monitor Audio speakers. British, well-made, uses…
The solution presented itself when I remembered that Monitor Audio has exhibited very successfully with Simaudio electronics. A loan of the Moon Evolution W-7 amplifier (150Wpc) was arranged, and the folks at Simaudio also suggested that I use the matching Moon Evolution P-7 preamplifier as well—which, in combination with my Ayre CX-7eMP CD player, would result in a fully balanced system. Well, why not? Besides, the P-7 and CX-7eMP are both listed in Class A of Stereophile's "Recommended Components," and the W-7 is a lower-powered version of the Moon W-8, another Class A denizen. In terms of…
Another way to assess a speaker's resolution is to listen to how it reproduces any changes in sound produced by changes in other components or tweaks. This opportunity presented itself when I was replacing my interconnects and AC cords with Nordost Valhalla products. Because I wasn't doing a cable review as such, I didn't spend a lot of time switching cables back and forth, but I did listen carefully before and after each swap (having first unplugged and replugged the original cable, to make sure that any sonic difference was not merely a function of cleaning the contacts, a natural…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Three-way, reflex-loaded, floorstanding loudspeaker. Drive-units: 21/4" tall C-CAM (magnesium) ribbon tweeter, 4" RDT (metal-coated Nomex)-cone midrange driver, two 6.5" RDT-cone woofers. Crossover frequencies: 600Hz, 3.6kHz. Frequency range: 35Hz–100kHz. Sensitivity: 90dB/2.83V/m. Nominal impedance: 4 ohms. Maximum SPL (per pair in room): 117.8dB. Power handling: 250W. Recommended amplification: 100–250W.
Dimensions: 39" (998mm) H by 10" (255mm) W by 111/4" (285mm) D (including fixed plinth). Weight (including plinth): 72.7 lbs (33kg).
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Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog Source: Linn LP12 turntable with Lingo power supply, Ittok tonearm, AudioQuest AQ7000nsx cartridge.
Digital Source: Ayre CX-7eMP CD player.
Preamplifiers: Simaudio Moon Evolution P-7, Convergent Audio Technology SL-1 Renaissance.
Power Amplifiers: Simaudio Moon Evolution W-7, PrimaLuna ProLogue Seven.
Loudspeakers: Avantgarde Uno Nano.
Cables: Interconnect, Speaker, AC: Nordost Valhalla.
Accessories: PS Audio Power Plant Premier AC conditioner, Arcici Suspense Rack, PolyCrystal amplifier stands, Furutech RD-2 CD demagnetizer.—…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I performed the quasi-anechoic measurements of the Monitor Audio Platinum PL200 with DRA Labs' MLSSA system and a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone. The grille was left off for the measurements, as that was how Bob Deutsch auditioned the speakers. The Platinum PL200's sensitivity is specified as a usefully high 90dB/2.83V/m; my estimate was actually a little higher, at 90.4dB(B)/2.83V/m, though this is within experimental error of the specification. This speaker will play loud when driven by amplifiers of low or moderate power. However, its electrical impedance (fig.…