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Minnesota pride is a funny thing. As Garrison Keillor points out weekly on A Prairie Home Companion, to be a Minnesotan, the first and crucial step to be taken is that of self-effacement. It is unclear to me whether this is the cause or symptom of Minnesotans ability to endure brutal winters, excel at the creation and consumption of hot dish (which the rest of the God-fearing world knows as casseroles), or their miraculous lineage from generations of Norwegian bachelor farmers. Whatever it is, Minnesotans tend to quietly get their jobs done with little more fanfare than a cup of coffee and a…
The DAC3.5VB has one universal button/ volume control on its faceplate; however, the DAC is more easily and completely operate with the remote control. The remote, though functional, is not in the same league of elegance or cachet as the DAC itself—a piece of plastic with too many buttons, it occasionally frustrated me. An eight-character programmable display on the front of the DAC lets you keep track of which input you've selected. You can also temporarily disable inputs you're not using, so you can cycle through them faster with the remote. The DAC3.5VB's display is defeatable—you can…
The DAC3.5VB truly excelled in two areas: soundstaging and quietness. It produced broad, deep soundstages on which there was great separation between instruments, and the proper perspective of texture between instruments miked closely and those farther off. This was very evident with Roy Halee's beautiful engineering of the title track of Simon and Garfunkel's Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme, collected in The Columbia Studio Recordings 1964–1970 (CD, Columbia/Legacy C5K 63815). Through the DAC3.5VB, the track's distant, duple-timed glockenspiel was both a point source of unreflected…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
e.One DAC3.5VB: DC-powered digital-to-analog converter (needs 12V DC supply). Inputs: AES XLR, S/PDIF BNC/RCA, ST fiber-optic, TosLink, RCA analog. Maximum data input rate: 24-bit data at 192ks/s. Master clock jitter: 2 picoseconds RMS. Maximum output level: 5.5V RMS (balanced XLR), 2.5V RMS (RCA). Output impedance: 200 ohms (balanced XLR), 100 ohms (RCA). Frequency response: 20Hz–20kHz, ±0.25dB. THD+N: <0.0015%, 5.5V RMS, balanced out, 1kHz. Output noise: 3µV RMS, A-weighted, 20Hz–20kHz. Dynamic range: 126dB, A-weighted, 20Hz–20kHz. Power usage, on: 8W.
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Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Digital Sources: Theta Digital Miles and Bel Canto e.One CD2 CD players (S/PDIF output); CEntrance DACport, Benchmark DAC1 and DAC1 HDR D/A converters; Sony Vaio laptop computer.
Power Amplifiers: Pass Labs Aleph 3, Plinius SA103; Rogue Audio M180 monoblocks.
Integrated Amplifier: Mystère ia21, Simaudio Moon i3.3.
Loudspeakers: Revel Performa F30.
Cables: Digital: Stereovox HDVX coaxial, Wireworld Gold Starlight 5 AES/EBU, Silver Sonic D-110 AES/EBU, Illuminati Orchid, Canare DA 205. Interconnect: Sain Line Systems Pure Balanced & Pure…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I used Stereophile's loan sample of the top-of-the-line Audio Precision SYS2722 system to perform the measurements on the Bel Canto e.One DAC3.5VB (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. For these tests, the DAC3.5VB was powered by Bel Canto's e.One VBS1 12V DC supply.
The DAC3.5VB successfully locked on to datastreams with sample rates of up to 192kHz. The volume control operated in accurate 0.5dB steps. The Bel Canto'…
In the May 2009 issue, I gushed over the performance of Linn Products' remarkable little bookshelf speaker, the Majik 109 ($1590/pair). In particular, I was struck by how I'd never heard any speaker at any price whose high frequencies sounded more natural, detailed, or pure than the 109's. Then, wondering what a pricier Linn speaker might sound like in my system, I asked Linn which was their most expensive model that also incorporates the 2K tweeter-supertweeter array used in the Majik 109. The answer: the floorstanding Majik 140 ($2995/pair). Once I'd worked through my reviewing backlog,…
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.
The Majik 140's high dynamic range capability and realistic bass made it an excellent…
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…