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As John Atkinson wrote in the December 1992 issue of Stereophile about the relationship between measurement and sound quality ("If It Sounds Good..." p.15) a product should offer good engineering as well as good sound. This was certainly the case with the IDAT: its measured performance was superb.

The IDAT's output level when decoding a full-scale, 1kHz sinewave was 3.094V (left channel) and 3.122V (right) when driving a 100k ohm load. This is nearly 3.8dB higher than the standard 2V output level. From the balanced outputs, I measured 4.669V (left channel)…

It is dreamlike when the opening track, "Punjab," begins so softly, with the tapping of a tabla. Exotic woodwinds, perhaps English horn and bassoon, murmur in the left channel, whisper in…

It wasn't just any part of the Mahler Ninth: It happened during the exceedingly quiet closing measures of the final movement.

It wasn't just any symphony orchestra: It was the New York Philharmonic, which Gustav Mahler directed during the last two years of his life.

It wasn't just any interruption: According to Paul Pelkonen, an insightful blogger on all…

Initially, I had planned on enjoying a low-key Record Store Day, visiting my local independent shop, Iris Records, and simply leaving it at that. But things never go the way I plan. The allure of J&R Music World in Lower Manhattan, just a short trip across the Hudson, was too great to resist. And if I was going to be in Manhattan, how could I not head over to In Living Stereo? The hi-fi shop was hosting an all-day event with live music, sales on used records,…

Even when Loudon Wainwright III (left in photo with Ramblin' Jack Elliot) was a young man he was writing autobiographical songs, and his old themes of family, sex, and death resonate more deeply on his new record, Older Than My Old Man Now. He usually performs solo, armed with just an acoustic guitar or a banjo, but most of his recordings present more heavily produced versions of LWIII's music. When I chatted with LWIII in late April I wanted to explore that dichotomy and how those transformations take place.

Steve Guttenberg: The on-stage Loudon is a very…

Candeias has…

When I asked if the Amp C1 used any feedback at all, he said there's a problem with using the term local feedback—but he assured me that a type of feedback was used in the Amp C1, otherwise it would produce "crazy gains."

Candeias then talked about the difference between a standard attenuator and what he's done in the Amp C1: "…

Description: Two-channel integrated amplifier. Line inputs: 2 balanced (XLR), 3 single-ended (RCA). Output power: 175Wpc into 8 ohms (22.4dBW), 330Wpc into 4 ohms (22.1dBW). Frequency range: 20Hz–20kHz. Bandwidth at 1W: 2Hz–180kHz –3dB. Total harmonic distortion+noise at 1W, 1kHz: 0.01%. Signal/noise at DIGM57 (relative to Pmax): 110dB. Input impedance: 50k ohms (RCA), 100k ohms (XLR).
Dimensions: 17.1" (435mm) W by 5.9" (138mm) H by 15.9" (405mm) D. Weight: 88 lbs (40kg).
Serial Number of Unit Reviewed: AC11010009309.
Price: $7990. Approximate…

Analog Sources: Continuum Audio Labs Caliburn turntable with Cobra tonearm & Castellon stand; Graham Phantom II, Kuzma 4Point tonearms; Ortofon A90, Lyra Atlas, Miyajima Labs Premium BE mono cartridges.
Preamplification: Ypsilon VPS-100 phono preamplifier, darTZeel NHB-18ns preamplifier.
Digital Sources: Simaudio Moon Evolution 650D DAC/CD player, BPT-modified Alesis Masterlink hard-disk recorder, Meridian Sooloos Digital Media System, Pure Music software.
Power Amplifiers: darTZeel NHB-458 monoblocks.
Loudspeakers: Wilson Audio…