Consider this: While Ayre calls its new DX-5 ($10,000) a "universal A/V engine," the disc player doesn't have a coaxial or a TosLink S/PDIF input. That…
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The old Saab slogan, "Find Your Own Road," was so good that the old General Motors, which once owned Saab, had to kill it—just as the newly revived GM tried, in a "Call It Chevrolet" memo, to kill "Chevy." GM did a U-turn on that one the very next day, but "Find Your Own Road" never returned, and is available for Ayre Acoustics to use. I can't think of a better slogan for a company that I admire almost as much as I do Saab.
There will be times when you'll want to make configuration changes after the initial setup, so it's a good idea to have a screen handy, especially if you have DVD-A discs, most of which require playback setup via an onscreen display. You'll also need that screen should you wish to hear a hybrid SACD's CD layer (though how often would you want to do that?). Fortunately, you can now buy a little LCD monitor for under $100, from Pyle or Mimo. The DX-5's backlit remote control belongs to a Blu-ray player, so it has many video functions and buttons you won't use. A second, simpler, audio-only…
I compared the DVD-A and SACD of Peter Frampton's Frampton Comes Alive! (The sacrifices I make for you . . . but don't get me wrong: from The Herd to Camel to Humble Pie, I was a big Frampton fan.) That confirmed that the DX-5's SACD playback lacked its DVD-A playback's imaging precision, spaciousness, and three-dimensionality, not to mention bass punch. So if you have those DVD-As hanging around, the DX-5 will play them fully resolved. On the other hand, you can rip them to files to play via your computer and the DX-5's USB port.
The DX-5 as Blu-ray–Audio player
Again, you'll need…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Universal disc player with remote control and asynchronous USB data input. Formats supported: Blu-ray (BD-Video, BD-Audio), DVD-Video, DVD-Audio, AVCHD, SACD, CD, HDCD, Kodak Picture CD, CD-R/RW, DVD±R/RW, DVD±R DL, BD-R/RE. Analog outputs: 1 pair each unbalanced (RCA) and balanced (XLR). Digital outputs: AES/EBU (XLR), HDMI audio, HDMI A/V. Digital inputs: USB, Ethernet LAN. Maximum output levels: 2.0V RMS (single-ended), 4.0V RMS (balanced). DSD: 2.0V RMS (balanced), 1.0V RMS (single-ended). Frequency ranges: DC–20kHz at 44.1kHz, DC–22Hz at 48kHz…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog Sources: Continuum Audio Labs Caliburn,Cobra, Castellon turntable, tonearm, stand; Graham Engineering Phantom II tonearm; Ortofon A90, Lyra Titan i, Miyajima Premium BE mono cartridges.
Digital Sources: Playback Designs MPS-5 SACD/CD player/DAC, Camelot Roundtable Anagram Technologies DAC, BPT-modified Alesis Masterlink hard-disk recorder, Benchmark ADC1 A/D converter, Meridian Sooloos music server, Mac mini computer running Pure Music software.
Preamplification: Einstein Audio Turntable's Choice, Esoteric E-03 phono preamplifiers; darTZeel…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I mostly used Stereophile's loan sample of the top-of-the-line Audio Precision SYS2722 system to perform the measurements on the Ayre Acoustics DX-5 (see the January 2008 "As We See It" and www.ap.com); for some tests, I also used my vintage Audio Precision System One Dual Domain and the Miller Audio Research Jitter Analyzer. I have CDs, DVD-As, and SACDs with test signals, but as of yet I have no Blu-ray test disc. However, it is safe to assume that the Ayre DX-5's performance with 24-bit audio stored on BD-Audio discs will be the same as with 24-bit DVD-As.…
Back in early August, when we were still in the middle of a stunning summer heat wave, I received an interesting call from a man named David Garrett. Garrett explained that he had spent the last 13 years operating his own interior design company, but was looking to change directions and was most excited about his new venture—a simple, sturdy, modular LP shelving system called Nomad Crates.
I was interested, but what really charmed me was Garrett’s attitude, his enthusiasm. “The best part has been the interaction with music lovers,” he said. “The passion is great. I just think…
I still remember 315 Bowery as the dank, old punk club, with the wobbly bar stools and the awful sound system. Last time I was there, I sat in a lopsided booth, in a pool of beer, and had my ears blown out by relentless guitars and a singer dressed in rags. I crouched down into the booth and tried to hide from the sound that came erupting from the old, abused speakers. But I came to the party late. By the time I made it to CB’s, the magic was already gone. The place was an echo of punk rock, a memory of a revolution, a museum shop.
That was a long time ago, and the place is much…
Today’s social networking is a joke, or worse: A death knell. Modern technology and the Internet seem determined to bring humankind to a state of complete separateness, determined to destroy civilization, to destroy our ability to fully connect and properly communicate.
We have eyes to see, but we refuse to use them. We have mouths to speak, but we choose instead to text, to tweet, to “like.” As our language deteriorates into acronyms, initialisms, and emoticons, we move deeper into cyberspace and deeper into ourselves, and farther from the material world. We spend our days…
My column on the best jazz albums of 2010 is in today’s edition of
Slate, replete with strategically selected 30-second sound clips, illustrating my points (to the extent—very limited—that 30-second clips can do that). Here’s the list, minus the mini-essays and the sound clips, but I’ve written about all of these albums over the past year in this blog.
1. Jason Moran, Ten (Blue Note).
2. Keith Jarrett & Charlie Haden, Jasmine (ECM).
3. Geri Allen, Flying Toward the Sound (Motema).
4. Dave Douglas, Spark of Being (Greenleaf).
5. Fred Hersch, Whirl (Palmetto).
6.…