The Majik 140's high dynamic range capability and realistic bass made it an excellent…
search
The Majik 140's reproduction of the low end was superb: every bass instrument was reproduced with depth, forcefulness, speed, and no trace of coloration. I analyzed in detail Chuck Israels' solo in "Our Love Is Here to Stay," from Bill Evans's Live at Shelly's Manne Hole (CD, JVC JVCXR-0036-3). His double bass was warm and woody, with no overhang, and with a sense of drama in its lower register. Moreover, there was nary a trace of timbral change as Israels traversed the instrument's entire range.
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Four-way, ported, floorstanding loudspeaker. Drive-units: 0.75" (19mm) fabric-dome supertweeter, 1.17" (30mm) polyurethane elastomer-dome tweeter, 6.5" doped-paper-cone mid/woofer in sealed enclosure, 6.5" glass-fiber-and-composite-cone woofer in vented enclosure. Crossover frequencies: 1.6kHz, 6kHz. Frequency range: 55Hz–20kHz. Sensitivity: 88dB/2.83V/m (1kHz). Nominal impedance: 4 ohms.
Dimensions: 38" (975mm) H by 9.75" (250mm) W by 13.1" (335mm) D. Weight: 47 lbs (21.3kg).
Finishes: Rosenut, Walnut, Cherry, Oak, Black Ash, White,…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog Sources: VPI TNT IV, Rega Planar 3 turntables; Immedia, Syrinx PU-3 tonearms; Koetsu Urushi, Clearaudio Virtuoso Wood cartridges.
Digital Sources: Lector CDP-7T, Creek Destiny CD players.
Preamplification: Vendetta Research SCP-2D phono stage, Audio Valve Eclipse line stage.
Power Amplifier: Audio Research Reference 110.
Integrated Amplifiers: Linn Majik DS-I, Creek Destiny.
Loudspeakers: Linn Majik 109, Epos M16i.
Cables: Interconnect (all MIT): Magnum M3, MI-350 CVTwin Terminator, MI-330SG Terminator. Speaker: Acarian…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I used DRA Labs' MLSSA system and a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone to measure the Linn Majik 140's frequency response in the farfield. For the nearfield responses, I used an Earthworks QTC-40. All farfield measurements were taken on the supertweeter axis, which is 36" from the floor—a typical ear height for seated listeners, we've found. I estimated the Majik 140's voltage sensitivity on this axis as 88.1dB(B)/2.83V/m, which is slightly above average but conforms with Linn's specification. However, the Linn is drawing more than 1W from the amplifier at this…
As photographer Lewis Hine once said, "If I could tell the story in words, I wouldn't need to lug around a camera."
Which is why, though it took longer than expected, the Stereophile Galleries are back online. You can once again check out reader's listening rooms, live music shots, photos from Stereophile's past and present, and more.
Anybody can post a photo into one of the categories. Sign up for a free account and upload away. If you already have an account, log in and you'll see the "Upload Photos" button at the top right on every gallery page.
Photos can be sorted by…
Axpona New York, held at Manhattan's Affinia Hotel opposite Madison Square Garden June 24–25, was my daughter Julia's first audio Show. She and I followed the sound of Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young singing "Déjà Vu"—more real music!—to the Empire Room, where Wharfedale Airedale loudspeakers were being driven by monoblock amps from a new company called Audio Power Labs. Each 833TNT amplifier uses a pair of 833 transmitter tubes, operated in push-pull and driven by a 6550 pentode. Inter-stage transformers take the place of coupling capacitors, and replacement tubes are said to be plentiful—…
The DP-77 D/A converter ($4995) from the English firm AMR that had impressed JA at the Atlanta Axpona in April made its New York debut at the Show, playing music files streamed from a German Purist NAS ($3000), with iPad-based controller software from the same firm. Amps were solid-state monoblocks from Absoluta (approximately $14,000/pair), and the loudspeakers were a fascinating design called the Ray ($6000/pair) from the Danish firm Davone, which are shown on the photo. The Ray is a two-way reflex-loaded speaker using coaxial driver—it sounded amazingly well-balanced and musical in the…
Cardas Audio used Axpona NY to introduce their new Clear cable line, with loudspeaker cables ranging in price from $1200 to $6000 for an 8' pair, and interconnects ranging from $695 to $1200 for a 1m pair. The cables at the top of that range—called Clear Beyond—were put to good use in a system comprising the Unison Research CDE CD player ($4000) and S6 integrated amplifier ($5000). The latter, which uses parallel single-ended EL-34s, seemed to be a lot of amp for the money—and sounded fine driving a pair of Opera Grand Callas loudspeakers ($10,000/pair).
As with other Shows, the New York Axpona was an opportunity for music-lovers to sock up on audiophile recordings. The Affinia's Hotel's mezzanine floor was packed with vendors, from HDTracks and Chesky on the left in my photograph to MA on the right. (That's MA's Todd Garfinkle, whose prowess as a recording engineer has little equal, on the right at the back. The gentleman in the green shirt with his back to the camera is none other than audio writer Steve Guttenberg, who both contributes to Stereophile and has an entertaining audio blog on CNet.
Steinway-Lyngdorf's S-Series loudspeaker is tiny, at just 10.2" H by 7.8" W and 3.1" D. (My apologies for the grainy photo but the battery in my camera gave out and I had to resort to my iPhone 3GS for this shot.)