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A Different Perspextive

Sumiko had a new Pro-Ject turntable on display, the "approximately $2000" Perspex, which sports the new 9CC Evolution tonearm.

The table has a mag-lev suspension and tunable sub-platter assembly and plinth.

The tonearm is called "9CC" because it's a 9" model using continuous carbon fiber. The bearing assembly seems monstrously overbuilt. "That gives it remarkable rigidity," said Norbert Schmidt.

We're stunned at how few exhibitors spend money for the larger rooms on the 35th floor of the Venetian, since they are so sonically impressive. Sumiko's room with the $28,000 SME 2012, $6000 Audio Research PH7, $10,000 Audio Research Reference 3, Audio Research Reference 210 monoblock amplifiers ($9000/each), and brand-spanking new $25,000/pair Vienna Acoustic Die Musik loudspeakers had us glued to the sweet spot.

There's just something about a big, open room—and when a system has a price tag the size of that in Sumiko's room, why would you compromise the sound by jamming it in a…

Bolder Boulder

We'd been told to check out Boulder's new music server, but that's not exactly what the $24,000 1021 Disc Player is. It's a CD player (with a few other formats "to be announced") that uses a computer disc drive to feed a one-minute buffer to "preserve the integrity of the audio signal delivered from the drive. "Also," confided Steve Rockwell, "the clock is about this far [pinches fingers together], so jitter is phenomenally low."

Raw data is dumped from the buffer to a Boulder-designed Eigen-value DSP oversampling filter—which itself, has a data buffer to eliminate timing glitches…

Where'd I Go?

Why off to CES2008, of course. Check out Stereophile's coverage at our Show blog.

And check out Stereophilia on Friday for cat-blogging—with a CES twist.

No Sharp Edges Here

It's hardly the same as clicking your heels three times and finding yourself back in Kansas, but Stereophile's metaphoric Good Witch of the High End, John Atkinson, has granted me my big wish for CES. Instead of finding myself wandering around and around in circles, following my ears, I’ve been assigned specific turf: T.H.E. Show. And since T.H.E. Show’s two venues, the St. Tropez and adjacent Alexis Park, are literally across the street from our bloggers' home for four nights, the newly and quite tastefully refurbished, remarkably low-key Hyatt Place Las Vegas (formerly the…

The Hallographic Dead (bad pun)

One of the highlights of RMAF 2007 was encountering Lou Hinkley's Daedalus Audio Ulysses loudspeakers ($8800/pair) in the ART Audio room. Here, paired with Gill Audio Designs Alana preamp ($5000) and Elise DAC ($6000), an Ensemble transport, Clayton M-200 power amps ($9500/pair), and relatively inexpensive Empirical Design cabling, the system was arresting in its transparency and three-dimensionality.

Equal credit, I feel, should go to Ben Piazza's amazing Shakti Hallographic Soundfield Optimizers and Shakti Stones, which respectively tamed the room and conquered EMI. (John…

Magic

The Jadis magic is hard to explain. But once you hear it, you can recognize it again and again. It has to do with the beauty of the midrange, the accuracy of timbres, and an inherent musicality that is less about detail than essence.

Not that the PA-88S 60Wpc, remote-control, class-A integrated amplifier with KT-88 tubes ($13,500) and JD-3 Evo CD player ($8000) being demmed at THE Show were without detail. On the contrary, they had just begun to open up after breaking in for less than 24 hours. They were already sounding clear, warm, and revealing. Paired with Pierre Gabriel's…

What Time It Is

Back home, at the end of a long day, John Atkinson will often come into my office and wish me a good evening. It's very sweet.

"Well, Stephen," he says, "we've reached the end of another perfect day."

"Yes," I say.

"And do you know what time it is?"

"What time is it?"

"It's beer o'clock," he says, slowly and with a smile. "Beer o'clock."

But here, in Vegas, things are just a little bit different. John and I spent much of the first morning handing out the awards for our Products of the Year. It was a real pleasure. Apparently, when we…

Glorious Highs

Apparently, you can also smoke Mordaunt-Short's Aspirated Tweeter. It is said to produce glorious highs.

Mordaunt-Short's Aspirated Tweeter

And here is Adam Shaw-Cotterill licking the Mezzo 1's Aspirated Tweeter. I'm not sure why he's licking it. He must really love it.