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 Amplifier: Creek Destiny.
Loudspeakers: Paradigm Atom v.5, Wharfedale Diamond 10.1.
Cables: Interconnect (all MIT): Magnum M3, MI-350 CVTwin Terminator, MI-330SG Terminator. Speaker: Acarian…
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Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I measured the Pioneer SP-BS41-LR's frequency response in the farfield with DRA Labs' MLSSA system and a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone. For the nearfield measurements I used an Earthworks QTC-40 microphone, whose ¼" capsule provides only a minimal obstacle to the flow of air through the port. The Pioneer speaker's B-weighted sensitivity on the tweeter axis was 85.8dB/2.83V/m, which is within experimental error of the specified 85dB. The electrical impedance remained above 6 ohms at all frequencies (fig.1, solid trace). The average was closer to 9 ohms, which both…
Photo: Replica.
Yes! The first track from Oneohtrix Point Never’s upcoming Mexican Summer release, Replica, is now available for our listening pleasure. Simultaneously playful and sensual, the track is called “Sleep Dealer” and showcases Daniel Lopatin’s knack for combining electronic and human sounds in distinct and curious fashion. I love it! If “Sleep Dealer” is any indication of what Replica has to offer—and I believe it is—we are in for a treat.
Oneohtrix Point Never - Sleep Dealer by Mexican Summer
Remember what the press release said:…
No one has ever accused Franc Kuzma of designing glamorous audio jewelry. His turntables and tonearms are industrial-strength examples of engineering know-how and machining excellence. But to those who appreciate such things, his products are truly beautiful, even if they're not adorned with chrome, wood, and sleekly polished surfaces. And if looking at the 4Point tonearm ($6500) in pebbly Darth Vader black doesn't get your analog juices flowing, perhaps its innovative design will. But first, this message:
Whatever the design of a tonearm, there will be practical problems. The problem…
Imagine a unipivot bearing: a polished point sitting in a cup. In VPI's JMW Memorial tonearm, the cup is in the arm's pivot housing; the point is part of the arm base. In Graham Engineering's Phantom arm, these positions are inverted. Kuzma's ingenious design for the 4Point features a shelved horizontal bearing sleeve (a vertical post) that rotates in a unipivot-like cup, and a polished point that permits lateral movement of the arm. The arm doesn't tip over, though: enclosed in and attached to the bearing sleeve is a second point, at 90° to the first, that contacts a polished surface on an…
I also realized how fortuitous it was for Dr. Christian Feickert that I used the 4Point with his Blackbird turntable, reviewed in this month's "Analog Corner." No wonder, when I told Feickert that I planned to pair the products for that review, that his reaction was something like "Oh boy!"
Rather than remove the Ortofon A90 cartridge from the Cobra, I decided to return the Lyra Titan i to service after a lengthy break. I had high expectations, because I know the Lyra's sound so well.
Those expectations were exceeded. The 4Point had an immediacy, a transparency, and an…
Follow-Up from October 2011 (Vol.34 No.10):
I reviewed Kuzma's 4Point tonearm in September (p.99) and concluded "while I'm hesitant to call anything 'the best'. . . I can definitely say that the Kuzma 4Point produced the best performance from the Lyra Titan i that I've ever heard from it in my system: the best tracking, the best tonal balance, the best imaging, the best (and most remarkable) cleanness of vocal sibilants." However, when I compared the $6500 Kuzma with my long-term reference tonearm, the Continuum Audio Labs Cobra ($16,995), the latter was fitted with the Ortofon A90…
Sidebar 1: Associated Equipment
Analog Sources: Continuum Audio Labs Caliburn, Cobra, & Castellon turntable, tonearm, & stand; Graham Engineering Phantom II tonearm; Ortofon A90, Lyra Titan i, Miyajima Labs Kansui cartridges.
Digital Sources: Playback Designs MPS-5 SACD/CD player–DAC, BPT-modified Alesis Masterlink hard-disk recorder, Sooloos music server, Pure Music software.
Preamplification: darTZeel NHB-18NS, Ypsilon PST-100 preamplifiers; Ypsilon VPS-100 phono preamplifier.
Power Amplifier: Soulution 710.
Loudspeakers: Wilson Audio Specialties MAXX 3.
…
Sidebar 2: Specifications
Description: Pivoted tonearm with four-point bearing system.
Dimensions: Effective length: 11" (280mm). Pivot to spindle: 10.3" (264mm). Overhang: 0.6" (16mm). Total weight: 3.63 lbs (1.65kg). Effective mass: 0.4oz (13gm).
Serial Number Of Unit Reviewed: 091.
Price: $6500. Approximate number of dealers: 10.
Manufacturer: Kuzma Ltd., Hotemaze 17/a, SI-4205 Preddvor, Slovenia. Tel: (386) 4-253-54-50. Fax: (386) 4-253-54-54. Web: www.kuzma.si. US distributor: Elite AV Distribution, 1027 N. Orange Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90038. Tel: (323) 466-9694,…
Photo: Replica.
Yes! The first track from Oneohtrix Point Never’s upcoming Mexican Summer release, Replica, is now available for our listening pleasure. Simultaneously playful and sensual, the track is called “Sleep Dealer” and showcases Daniel Lopatin’s knack for combining electronic and human sounds in distinct and curious fashion.
I love it! If “Sleep Dealer” is any indication of what Replica has to offer—and I think it is—we are in for a treat.
Oneohtrix Point Never - Sleep Dealer by Mexican Summer
Remember what the press release…