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At home, I heard stereo imaging that was equal to, if not even more exciting than, what I'd heard at the CAS, but the overall sound was softer and more opaque, the jagged edges of "Lost & Found" somewhat dulled—not necessarily a bad thing. The biggest difference between the two systems' sounds, however, was in the low end. Whereas the demo rig had produced magnificent blasts of deep-bass energy that coursed through the room and into our bellies, seeming even to make the walls, floor, and ceiling expand and contract, here, at home, there was merely a whisper of that wonderful, physical…
Spectral Audio , the northern California company whose director of engineering is Prof. Keith O. Johnson, gave the first public preview of its SDR-4000SL Master CD Processor on September 24, at Music Lovers Audio, in Berkeley. Introduced by Johnson and Spectral founder Richard (Rick) Fryer, the $19,000 Spectral Digital Resolution (SDR) model sounded sensational playing 16-bit/44.1kHz, HDCD-encoded files Johnson had made for Reference Recordings, through a system that included Spectral's DMC-30SS preamplifier and monoblock amplifiers, Wilson Audio MAXX 3 speakers, Spectral Ultralink II speaker…
Bruckner Symphonies 4, 7, 9
(Finale of 9 completed by Carragan, ed. 2010)
Gerd Schaller, Philharmonie Festiva
Profil PH11028 (4 CDs). 2008/2009/2011. Ememkut Zaotschnyj (4, 7), Lutz Wildner (9), prods.; Sandro Binetti (4, 7), Herbert Fr ühbauer (9), engs. DDD. TTs: 65:43 (4), 64:52 (7), 83:41 (9)
Performance *****
Sonics ***** (4, 7), ****½ (9)
(Finale of 9 completed by Carragan, ed. 2010)
Gerd Schaller, Philharmonie Festiva
Profil PH11028 (4 CDs). 2008/2009/2011. Ememkut Zaotschnyj (4, 7), Lutz Wildner (9), prods.; Sandro Binetti (4, 7), Herbert Fr ühbauer (9), engs. DDD. TTs: 65:43 (4), 64:52 (7), 83:41 (9)
Performance *****
Sonics ***** (4, 7), ****½ (9)
These performances were recorded at the Ebrach Festival, held annually in the small town of Ebrach, Germany (an hour's drive north from Nuremberg or west from Bayreuth), in the former Abbey Church of Ebrach, which comprised a…
My "As We See It" in the July 2011 issue seems to have touched a nerve. At the AXPONA NYC audio show last June, more than one person stopped me in a corridor to take issue with what they thought I'd written.
That column certainly brought the Beethoven worshippers out of the woodwork. Look, I revere Beethoven, and I stand by what I wrote in the July issue: There can be little doubt, in terms of his impact on the course that Western music would follow, that Beethoven was the most important composer. But "most important" in terms of music history is not the same thing as the composer whose…
Revised for 2012, the Stereophile Buyer’s Guide is now on newsstands. In its 188 pages, you’ll find the complete specs and prices for over 4500 audio components—everything from turntables, tonearms, and cartridges to amplification, digital components, loudspeakers, headphones, and cables. The Guide also includes an index to manufacturers on the Web to help you locate the products you’re most interested in.
Editorial assistant, Ariel Bitran, was largely responsible for hunting down and collecting the data that makes up the Guide. He says, “Whether you’re looking for a…
Lately, I’ve been listening almost exclusively to CDs and CD players. It hasn’t been bad at all. In our December issue, I’ll talk about the Emotiva ERC-2 CD player ($449); in January, I’ll compare the Emotiva to Michael Lavorgna’s longtime digital reference, the original Sony Playstation 1 (typically $15–$75, used); and, in February, I’ll listen to NAD’s C 515BEE ($300), the disc-spinning counterpart to that company’s awesome C 316BEE integrated amplifier.
It’s been the perfect time for me to listen to CD players because my old band, The Multi-Purpose Solution, is reuniting to play a…
The Random House Dictionary of the English Language defines "myriad," derived from a Greek word meaning "ten thousand," as "a very great number of persons or things." British and unabashedly ambitious, Myryad Systems has set itself myriad design goals for its M-series stereo components: audiophile performance, real-world pricing, convenience, circuit simplicity, common remote-control function, and physical beauty.
Myryad's designer and technical director, Chris Evans, highlighted the MT 100 stereo FM tuner during a press conference at the 1999 International Consumer Electronic Show.…
Eight of the stations received were very strong, had no multipath, and provided complete tuner quieting: classical, WQXR (96.3) and WNYC (93.9); jazz, WBGO (88.3) and WCWP (88.1); classic rock, WXRX (92.3); standard rock, WNEW (102.7); multiethnic/reggae, WNWK (105.9) and WFUV (90.7); and easy listening, WCTO (94.3). I also tuned in Michael Fremer's favorite East Orange, New Jersey station, WFMU (91.1).
The MT 100 provided easy, intuitive tuning. I simply tapped on the remote's Preset button after I'd loaded the frequencies of my favorite stations into the MT 100's memory. While the MT…
Sidebar 1: Associated Equipment
Tuners: Day-Sequerra FM Reference Classic, Rotel RH-10, Magnum Dynalab MD 108, Model 205 Sleuth RF amplifier.
Antenna: Nine-element Yagi Channel Master Stereo Probe 9 (12.5dB gain), rotor-mounted to chimney 25' above ground. Feed: 75 ohm Channel Master 9540 low-loss coaxial cable.
Analog source: Linn Sondek LP12 turntable, Lingo power supply, Ittok tonearm, Spectral moving-coil cartridge.
Digital source: Krell MD-1 CD transport, Adcom GDA-700 D/A processor.
Preamplification: Krell KBL, Mark Levinson ML-7A with L-2 phono section, Duntech MX…
Sidebar 2: Specifications
Description: Solid-state, remote-controllable, digitally synthesized FM stereo tuner with digital frequency display and one IF bandwidth. Tuning range: 87.5–108.0MHz. Display tuning range: 87.70–108.30MHz. De-emphasis: 75µ;s. Number of presets: 29. IHF usable sensitivity: 1.5µV mono, 20µV stereo for 50dB quieting. Capture ratio: not given. Alternate-channel selectivity: 70dB. THD at 1kHz, 100% modulation: 0.1% mono, 0.2% stereo. Frequency response: 20Hz–15kHz, !X0.5dB. Stereo separation at 1kHz: 45dB. Image rejection: 88dB. IF rejection: 100dB. SCA rejection:…