Description: Micro-monofilament speaker cables and interconnects.
Serial numbers of units reviewed: N/A.
Prices: Speaker cables: $4200/m pair with banana-plug or spade termination; additional length, $1900/m. Interconnect: $3300/m pair with RCA termination; balanced (XLR) configuration, $60 extra; additional length, $1000/m. Approximate number of dealers: 100. Warranty: Lifetime.
Manufacturer: Nordost Corporation, 420 Franklin Street, Framingham, MA 01702. Tel: (800) 836-2750. Fax: (508) 879-8197. Web: www.nordost.com.
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Sidebar 1: Specifications
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog source: VPI TNT-V Hot Rod turntable, JMW Memorial tonearm, Benz-Micro LO4 cartridge.
Digital source: Wadia 861, Simaudio Moon Eclipse CD players.
Preamplifier: VAC CPA1 Mk.III.
Power amplifiers: Classé CAM-350 and VTL Ichiban monoblocks, VAC Renaissance 70/70.
Loudspeakers: Magnepan MG3.6/R.
Accessories: Duo-Tech Cable Burn-In device, Bright Star isolation systems, MIT Z Systems, PAC Super IDOS and Nirvana AC isolation and delivery systems, VPI HW16.5 record cleaner, Nordost ECO3 and Music Fidelity DiskSolution CD treatments, Tiptoes…
Recently, we've seen the digital "horsepower" race accelerate with the arrival of digital sources and devices with 24-bit and 96kHz sampling capability. Much of this has been spurred by the 24/96 labels emblazoned on the newer DVD players—and, within the purer confines of the audio community, by high-end DACs with this same ability. Indeed, it's possible that the dCS Elgar DAC, near and dear to John Atkinson's heart and a perennial Class A selection in Stereophile's "Recommended Components," performs so well with standard 16-bit/44.1kHz sources because its wider digital bandwidth permits…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Arcam Alpha 9: CD player with 24-bit/96kHz DACs, HDCD capability, and remote control. Low-jitter master clock at the DAC. Analog stages use AD797 low-noise op-amps and precision passive components. Ten power-supply regulators. Outputs: two pairs analog, one S/PDIF digital (RCA). Frequency range: 20Hz-20kHz. S/N ratio: >110dB. Output level (0dBFS): 2.3V. Output impedance: 50 ohms.
Dimensions: 16.75" (430mm) W by 3.33" (85mm) H by 11.33" (290mm) D. Weight: 9 lbs net.
Serial number of unit reviewed: C9PX00010.
Price: $1599 (1999); no longer available (…
Sidebar 2: Climbing the Arcam Upgrade Ladder?
Arcam is unusual among audio manufacturers in providing the user with the ability to upgrade his or her own component with the capabilities of newer models without having to trade in and buy anew. All current Arcam single-CD players share the same transport and control system; the owner of any Alpha CDP can upgrade to a more advanced model simply by exchanging the old DAC for a new one.
The line consists of four models: The Alpha 7 ($649) has a dual 16-bit, delta-sigma DAC; the Alpha 8 ($999) has a 20-bit digital filter, 1-bit PWM…
Sidebar 3: Associated Equipment
Despite the temptation to find optimum mating components for each of these devices, I felt it was necessary to confine these auditions to a fixed context: Beyond the source components that are the topic of this review, everything in the system was held constant.
The balanced outputs of a Simaudio Moon P-5 preamp were connected to the balanced inputs of a Simaudio Moon W-5 amp by 20' of JPS Balanced Conductors. The amp drove a pair of Genesis 500 speakers via 6' of Straight Wire Maestro II cables. The players or DACs under test were connected by 1m…
Sidebar 4: Measurements
The Arcam Alpha 9's maximum output was 2.36V at 1kHz, some 1.45dB higher than the standard CD level of 2V. This was sourced from a low impedance of 47 ohms across the audio band, with positive (noninverting) absolute polarity. The error correction was excellent, the Alpha 9 playing without a problem through the Pierre Verany Test CD's track 32, which has a 1mm gap in its data.
The Arcam's frequency response was ruler-flat, as was its de-emphasis error, so I have not shown them. Its crosstalk was below -90dB in both directions below 2kHz, and was still…
When I was a young amateur photographer, I subscribed to all the major photo magazines and avidly read all the articles. However, I was bugged when I realized there was a cycle of repetition—that I was reading about the basics of Ansel Adams' Zone System for the third time.
Nowadays, almost all accumulated knowledge, opinions, and mistakes remain accessible on the Web. What's often missing, however, is perspective about what's important and what's not. Newcomers might get the impression that massive breakthroughs are reported in every issue of Stereophile; actually, we spend most of our…
I found much the same difference with Walter Susskind and the St. Louis Symphony's SACD of Holst's The Planets (Mobile Fidelity USACD 4005). This remarkably detailed yet spacious recording sounded great through both players, but the McCormack put the emphasis on power at the expense of some detail. The Orbiter was just a bit less forward, but the instruments were even clearer, as were their placements. In the final diminuendo of the Neptune section, both players trailed off into noise at about the same time—but with the Orbiter, the transition from wordless chorus to indistinct signal…
Sidebar: Recordings in the Round
Of eight new RCA Living Stereo transfers to three-channel SACD I've received (I don't yet have the Ravel-Debussy or Berlioz discs), the two listed below stood out.
RIMSKY-KORSAKOV: Scheherazade STRAVINSKY: The Song of the Nightingale Fritz Reiner, Chicago Symphony RCA Living Stereo 66376-2 (SACD)
Two immortal recordings. Reiner's familiar Scheherazade is, on this SACD, unrivaled in breadth of soundstage and instrumental detail. His brilliant Nightingale is more powerful and colorful than even the Dorati/LSO on the Mercury Living Presence…