There are dissenters, of course. In audio, some scoff at the notion of audible differences between, say, aluminum and steel amplifier cases, or between shellac and polymer coatings for transformer windings. In lutherie, the skeptics would have us know that a…
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At present, my writing chores are divided between two fields: domestic audio and lutherie. Having invested considerable time in both, and having by now met a number of builders who are distinguished in one or the other, I can say with all confidence that the best share a simple, single point of view: Everything makes a difference.
The Evolution stand is also a great deal fancier than average in the aesthetic sense, with an angled lower base of Italian marble and a circle of decorative elastic cords, fastened at top and bottom, that echo the loudspeaker's decidedly baleen-esque removable grille.
Setup and installation
On the one hand, the Sonus Faber carton—actually, a wooden crate tucked inside an unprepossessing cardboard box—was the heaviest thing I've ever lifted by myself. On the other hand, no prospective Sonus Faber owner should be deprived of the pleasure of unpacking these speakers for himself. The…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Two-way, port-loaded, stand-mounted loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" fabric-dome tweeter, 7" pulp-cone woofer. Crossover frequency: 2800Hz. Frequency range: 40Hz–30kHz. Sensitivity: 86dB/W/m. Nominal impedance: 4 ohms. Power handling: 25–200W, without clipping.
Dimensions: 16.25" (410mm) H by 9.25" (235mm) W by 16.2" (412mm) D. Weight: 40.8 lbs (18.5kg).
Finish: Okoume wood in Red or Graphite.
Serial numbers of units reviewed: 017, 018.
Price: $22,000/pair including stands; "stand-delete" option saves $2000/pair. Approximate number of…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog Sources: Garrard 301, Thorens TD 124 turntables; EMT 997, Schick tonearms; Ortofon SPU, EMT OFD 25 & OFD 65 pickup heads.
Digital Sources: Wavelength Proton USB D/A converter; Apple iMac G5 computer with Apple iTunes v.10.2.2, Decibel v.1.0.2 playback software; Sony SCD-777ES SACD/CD player.
Preamplification: Auditorium 23 Standard (SPU version), Silvercore One-to-Ten step-up transformers; Shindo Masseto preamplifier.
Power Amplifier: Shindo Corton-Charlemagne.
Loudspeakers: Audio Note AN-E/SPe HE, Quad ESL.
Cables: USB:…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
The Sonus Faber Guarneri Evolution's B-weighted sensitivity on its tweeter axis was 85dB/2.83V/m, which is slightly lower than the specified 86dB and significantly lower than the norm. The electrical impedance (fig.1) remains above 5 ohms from the bass through the low treble, but drops to a minimum value of 4 ohms between 4 and 5kHz. The electrical phase angle is generally benign, but there is a combination of 5 ohms and –45° at 3200Hz that will require the use of a good, 4 ohm-rated amplifier with this speaker. A small wrinkle between 200 and 300Hz in the…
One of the better digital front-ends I've ever heard was demonstrated for me a number of years ago at the house of an audiophile friend: a Weiss Engineering combo of Jason CD transport and Medea digital-to-analog converter. That front-end remains in my mind as one of the only digital systems I've heard that could compete with the very best that vinyl has to offer while still doing what digital does best. In other words, there were warmth and musicality, staggering dynamics, and real silent backgrounds. When, recently, I saw that the Swiss company had come out with a DAC featuring onboard…
The FireWire connection worked as advertised. Via FireWire, "Red Book" files sounded about as good as CDs, and hi-rez files sounded much better. Perhaps even greater performance can be had from the DAC202 with a different computer setup and fancier FireWire cables. What I know for sure is that the DAC202 maintained its easygoing quality via FireWire, presenting each recording as an organic whole.
Which brings me to the DAC202's shortcomings. While it succeeded at presenting music with no trace of traditional "digital" sound, the Weiss lacked a bit of jump factor, excitement, and…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Digital/analog converter with FireWire connectivity. Compatible sampling rates: 32–192kHz. Compatible word length: 16–24 bits. Digital inputs: FireWire, AES/EBU on XLR, or S/PDIF on RCA and TosLink,. Digital outputs: AES/EBU on XLR, S/PDIF on RCA, FireWire. TTL word sync input/output on BNC connectors. Main analog outputs: 2 stereo (1 XLR, 1 RCA). Headphone output: ¼" jack. Level control, main output: 4 coarse settings via relays (analog domain)—8.15V, 4.15V, 2.12V, 1.06V—fine setting via rotary encoder (digital domain); can be defeated for main…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Digital Sources: Bel Canto Design e.One CD2 CD player–DAC; Sony Vaio laptop computer; dCS Debussy, Benchmark DAC1 & DAC1 HDR, Bel Canto Design e.One DAC3.5VB (with VBS1 power supply) D/A converters.
Power Amplifiers: Rogue Audio M180 monoblocks, Plinius SA-103.
Loudspeakers: Revel Performa F30, Atlantic Technology AT-1.
Cables: Digital: Stereovox HDVX coaxial, Silver Sonic D-110 AES/EBU. USB: Cardas Clear. Interconnect: Sain Line Systems Pure (balanced & single-ended). Speaker: Kimber Kable BiFocal X. AC: Sain Line Systems Reference.…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I used Stereophile's loan sample of the top-of-the-line Audio Precision SYS2722 system to measure the Weiss DAC202 (see www.ap.com and the January 2008 "As We See It"); for some tests, I also used my vintage Audio Precision System One Dual Domain and the Miller Audio Research Jitter Analyzer. As well as driving the DAC202 with AES/EBU and TosLink S/PDIF data from the Audio Precision analyzers, I used a MacBook running Mac OS 10.6.8 and Pure Music 1.8 to play test-signal files via FireWire, using the Weiss Control Panel and driver program to check such settings as…