In our November 2010 issue, Erick Lichte did an outstanding job of evaluating the sound of Simaudio's Moon i3.3 integrated amplifier (base price, $3300; fully loaded, $4000), listening to CDs through both single-ended and balanced inputs as well as testing the Sim's coaxial inputs and USB input. However, because young Erick has yet to discover the life-changing joys and pure ecstasy of vinyl, he was unable to evaluate the i3.3's optional phono stage (add $300 to base price). Vinyl lover that I am, I jumped at…
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Stephen Mejias reviewed Moon i3.3's phono stage in February 2011 (Vol.34 No.2):
Stephen Mejias' Associated Equipment
Analog: Rega P3-24 turntable with RB 301 tonearm, Rega Elys 2 phono cartridge, and Rega drive-belt upgrade. Boston Audio Design Mat 1 platter mat.
Phono Preamplifier: NAD PP 3.
Integrated Amplifier: Exposure 2010S.
Loudspeakers: DeVore Fidelity Gibbon 3.
Cables: Furutech Evolution.
Accessories: Furutech e-TP60 power distributor, Polycrystal equipment rack.—Stephen Mejias
John Atkinson remeasured the NuForce CDP-8 in February 2011 (Vol.34 No.2):
"The NuForce CDP-8 is a remarkably good CD player, one of the best I've heard in years," summed up Wes Phillips in his November 2010 review of this slim, attractive-looking CD player from California company NuForce. However, when I got the $1500 CDP-8 on my test bench, I found some serious shortcomings in its measured performance. The player's level of background noise and the spectrum of that noise were related to the signal—this is called "noise modulation," and human hearing is sensitive to it. In addition, the…
I had a quality hang the other night with friend and musical hero of mine, the great Willie Nile. As always Willie was a powerhouse of energy and enthusiasm going as far as singing me several new songs (and keeping time by banging his rings on the table) at a table in a crowded subterranean bar in Manhattan. It’s always wonderful when life and karma and any and all forms of omnipotence (or not) coalesce and a genuinely good and deserving person finally has good things happen to them. In Willie’s case rock and roll fame, which in many ways thankfully eluded him in the 1980s, has now begun to…
I know it's stupid of me, but I can't avoid feeling that, through a simple shared experience, I know these girls. So, when I see this video, I can only smile and feel proud.
Because, like a good fan, I pre-ordered the Vivian Girls' new album, Share the Joy, I can download the entire thing in MP3 form (320kbps, DRM-free) right now. And that is what I'm going to do.
The March 2011 issue of Stereophile is now on newsstands. This is a powerful, action-packed issue, and we come at you from several directions with in-depth equipment reports on a wide range of products.
Fred Kaplan strikes first with a review of Simaudio’s Moon Evolution 700i integrated amplifier. John Atkinson follows with a review of the powerful (700Wpc into 8 ohms at clipping) Classe CT-M600 & CA-M600 monoblock power amplifiers. Up next is Bob Reina, our budget audio guru, with a rave review of the overachieving Marantz CD5004 CD player. Art Dudley gets down and…
When I reviewed the M5 bookshelf speaker from British manufacturer Epos (Stereophile, April 2005, Vol.28 No.4), I was sufficiently impressed with that $650/pair design by Mike Creek that I chose it as a benchmark for bookshelf speakers in the sub-$1000 price range. In late 2007, Creek redesigned the entire M series, incorporating more rigid handmade cabinet construction with real-wood veneers, an improved tweeter, and upgraded capacitors and resistors in the crossover. The new line was dubbed the Mi series (i for improved).
When I reviewed the M16i floorstander ($1998/pair) in…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Two-way shielded, stand-mounted loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" (25mm) dome tweeter with aluminum-alloy diaphragm, 5.4" (137.5mm) mineral-loaded polymer-cone woofer. Frequency range: 60Hz–20kHz. Impedance: 4 ohm nominal. Sensitivity: 87dB/W/m. Power handling: 100W. Recommended amplification: 25–100W.
Dimensions: 12.7" (325mm) H by 6.8" (174mm) W by 8.2" (210mm) D. Weight: 12.3 lbs (5.6kg).
Serial numbers of units reviewed: M5i-0109-1144a and 'b.
Price: $899/pair. Approximate number of dealers: 50.
Manufacturer: Epos Ltd., 12 Avebury…
Sidebar 2: Measurements
Robert J. Reina comments on the sound of the two-way, port-loaded Epos M5i ($899/pair), and compares it with its predecessor, the M5, which he favorably reviewed in April 2005. Although the M5i looks very similar to the M5, its drive-units are new and derived from those used in the floorstanding M16i. Given Bob's enthusiastic response to the new version's sound, I thought it worthwhile to examine the measured performance of the review samples (serial nos. M5i-0109-1144a and 'b). I used DRA Labs' MLSSA system and a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone to measure the…
Why no batteries?
It seemed a simple and obvious question, but I couldn't get an answer out of Ron Sutherland. Why did his new 20/20 phono preamp use an AC power supply instead of batteries? I asked directly, I asked repeatedly, I tried framing the question in different ways, all to no avail. Did the AC supply make it sound better? Was it less expensive to build? Were potential customers turned off by having to replace batteries once every year or two?
After all, his other phono preamps—the less expensive Ph3D ($1000), his more expensive Hubble ($3800), and his instant classic,…