Digital sources: Sony SCD-XA777ES SACD player, Toshiba SD-9200 DVD-Audio player, BAT VK-D5SE CD player.
Preamplifiers: Mark Levinson No.32 Reference, BAT VK-50SE, Lamm L2.
Power amplifiers: Linn Klimax Solo 500, Krell FPB 350MC, BAT VK-150SE (all monoblocks).
Loudspeakers: JMlab Utopia, Linn Komri.
Cables: Interconnects: Synergistic Research Designer's Reference Discrete and Active Shielding, Cardas Golden Reference and Neutral Reference, Linn Silver. Speaker: Cardas Golden Cross, AudioQuest Everest, XLO The Limited, Linn. AC: PS Audio Lab…
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Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I measured the Pioneer from its main L and R outputs, mostly from the balanced XLR jacks, with some repeated measurements from the unbalanced RCAs. The output was non-inverting from both sets of jacks, the XLRs apparently wired with pin 2 "hot." The source impedance was a moderate 455 ohms from the RCAs across most of the audioband, this rising inconsequentially to 477 ohms at 20Hz. As usual, the balanced output impedance was exactly twice that of the unbalanced. The maximum unbalanced output level from CD and DVD was 2.3V, 1.2dB above the CD Standard's 2V RMS.…
Fig.6 compares the same CD spectrum with that for 24-bit DVD playback. The drop in the noise floor with the hi-rez medium is even greater than with SACD, at almost 20dB over much of the band—more than 19 bits' D/A resolution, one of the best I have ever measured! However, some suspicious spikes appear in the DVD output at low frequencies; I usually suspect the test gear of introducing this kind of spuriae, but they were consistent and repeatable, which implies that they are characteristic of the Pioneer.
Fig.6 Pioneer DV-AX10, 1/3-octave spectrum of dithered 1kHz tone at -90dBFS…
Scratch an audiophile and, chances are, you'll find a closet Wilson Audio fan. The Wilson WATT/Puppy would probably make almost anyone's list of the most significant high-end loudspeaker designs. David Wilson first built his reputation with the custom-built WAMM loudspeaker—a monumental piece invariably included with products like the Infinity IRS, Genesis I, and Apogee Grand when the world's most awesome loudspeakers are discussed. But it was the WATT, followed by the WATT/Puppy—the latter now several generations improved over the original design—that really put the company on the high-end…
I was, however, troubled in the music-room system by a degree of forwardness and what I can only describe as "shout," particularly evident on closely miked vocals located at the center of the soundstage. This had been, surprisingly, much less apparent in the home-theater system—in which the center channel was represented by a real loudspeaker—than with the phantom center of two-channel stereo. After some tweaking involving power amps, cables, and placement, I was able to reduce this quality to the point where it no longer bothered me much, though I still occasionally heard it.
Once more…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Two-way, reflex-loaded loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" inverted metal-dome tweeter, two 6.5" treated-paper cone woofers. Crossover frequency: 1.8kHz. Frequency response: 50Hz–25kHz, ±3dB; 55Hz–22kHz, ±1.5dB. Sensitivity: 94dB/W/m. Nominal/Minimum Impedance: 4 ohms/2.8 ohms at 400Hz. Recommended minimum amplifier power: 7W.
Dimensions: 22" H by 10" W by 22" D (to nearest inch, including crossover cups). Weight: 75 lbs each.
Finishes: black laminate, standard; painted, add $400; wood veneer, add $640.
Serial numbers of units reviewed: 0131…
Sidebar 2: System
The associated equipment used to review the Wilson CUB consisted of the Mark Levinson No.36S D/A converter and No.37 CD transport, the Rowland Consummate preamplifier, and the Aragon 8008 ST and Krell KAV-500 power amplifiers (the latter in two-channel mode). Interconnects in the music system were TARA Labs RSC Reference from D/A to preamp and Cardas Hexlink from preamp to power amp. The loudspeaker cables were Monster M1.5s. Transparent Audio MusicLink Plus interconnects and MusicWave Plus loudspeaker cables were also briefly pressed into service. The digital link…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
John Atkinson performed the measurements on the Wilson CUB. Because the loudspeakers were initially reviewed for Stereophile Guide to Home Theater, I was unavoidably familiar with these measurements when I performed the final listening tests for the present review, though not when I made the observations for SGHT, which I summarize here.
The Wilson's sensitivity measured 93dB/W/m (B-weighted), a very high figure. Its impedance is shown in fig.1. The enclosure is tuned to just above 50Hz, with the magnitude plot displaying the saddle shape typical of ported…
Ideally, through the medium of a synergistically balanced set of high-resolution components, we seek to re-create an acoustic event with a palpable sense of realism—as in timbre, dynamics, room cues, and dimensionality. Have I ever experienced a system commensurate with the experience of sitting 12th-row-center at Carnegie Hall for Boulez conducting Stravinsky? Close, but...
By the same token, I've enjoyed musical epiphanies—a sense of otherness—in my own humble listening abode that were sonically far more intimate, detailed, and satisfying than the average live presentation. Thus, over…
Likewise, Yeung's insistence on the simplest feasible circuitry influenced his choice of the 6922 tube, which contributes to the Galatea's singular voicing and performance parameters—with interesting implications for audiophiles with a yen for tube rolling.
"The 6922 has a higher current gain, and higher current capability, than the 12AX or AT, so it would drive a longer cable without any loss. So I chose that as the buffer stage. In the gain stage, because the 6922 is medium-mu and medium-gain, I can have a slightly lower gain on the preamp—which means you could have a higher…