One of their latest, and greatest, is Andrew Hill’s Point of Departure, a jaw-dropper from 1964 that sounds as fresh as tomorrow.
Hill, 33 at the time (he died in 2007, active till the end), was a precisely adventurous pianist and one of the most inventive composers of that transition era, pushing metric rhythms and chord-based harmonies right up to the edge…
In his July 2010 review, Wes Phillips was charmed by this speaker’s superb imaging, unmatched dynamic range, holographic soundstaging, and overall musicality, deciding that the G1 Giya was the “best” loudspeaker he’d ever heard. A few months later, in our October 2010 issue, John Marks was similarly impressed by Vivid’s less expensive V1.5 ($7650/pair).
JM: “Now that I’ve heard the V1.5, I can readily…
The boxed set of Michael Tilson Thomas conducting the San Francisco Symphony in their cycle of the symphonies of Gustav Mahler, pressed on 180gm virgin vinyl in a limited edition of 1000 copies, is in its final phase of preproduction. Complete with, on a bonus 45rpm disc, a…
I was impressed by how far its 10W could go without stressing out too much, even when partnered to a pair of 88dB loudspeakers. How might the amp sound when mated to something more efficient?
Jolida’s Michael Allen told me that the amp was geared toward a younger audience—besides being cute and…
STRAUSS: Also Sprach Zarathustra, Tod und Verklärung
André Previn, Vienna Philharmonic
Telarc CD-80167 (CD only). Jack Renner, eng.; James Mallinson, prod. DDD. TT: 61:35
These are two very fine discs. Both convey to perfection the full weight of Richard Strauss's opulent orchestration for Zarathustra without the slightest hint of distortion, despite the huge dynamic range both employ. Both have the…
Description: CD transport with remote control. Drive mechanism: Philips CDM9 Pro. Outputs: one coaxial on RCA jack, one AES/EBU; ST and Theta's Single Mode optical output are optional.
Dimensions: 17" W by 3.25" H by 15" D. Weight: 18.5 lbs.
Price: $1750 (1994); no longer available (2010). ST-type optical adds $300, Theta's Single Mode optical output adds $800. Approximate number of dealers: 65. Warranty: 3 years parts and labor, 1 year on drive mechanism.
Manufacturer: Theta Digital Corporation, Agoura Hills, CA 91301 (1994); 1749 Chapin Road,…
I listened to the Data Basic driving the PS Audio UltraLink, Adcom GDA-600, Meridian 263, and Mark Levinson No.35 processors. The processors fed an Audio Research LS5 preamp, which drove Audio Research's VT-150 tubed monoblocks. Loudspeakers were Thiel CS3.6es, connected by 8' runs of AudioQuest Sterling. Interconnects included AudioQuest Diamond, Monster Cable Sigma, and Expressive Technologies IC-1.—Robert Harley
The Data Basic's S/PDIF jitter measured from the RCA jack was very low, measuring 30 picoseconds with an input signal of all zeros, 36ps with a full-scale 1kHz sinewave, and 123ps when outputting a –90dB, 1kHz sinewave (footnote 1). Fig.1 shows the jitter spectrum with these three test signals. With music (fig.2), the Data Basic's jitter was 71ps (a very quiet passage—the first 30 seconds from Sheffield's recording of The Firebird Suite) and 42ps (with full-scale music).
Fig.1 Theta Data Basic, jitter in coaxial S/PDIF data signal, 20Hz–50kHz,…