Digital sources: Sonic Frontiers SFCD-1 CD player, Audio Alchemy DDSPro/DTIPro 32/DDE v.3.
Preamplifiers: Klyne 6L3P, Sonic Frontiers Line-2 (via Cardas Golden Cross interconnects).
Power amplifiers: Simaudio Moon W-5, McCormack DNA-1 (one or two), Sonic Frontiers Power-2 (via Cardas Cross or Straight Wire Virtuoso interconnects).
Loudspeakers: EOS Signature+Base Module, Apogee Duetta II, PMC IB-1S (via Straight Wire Maestro speaker cables).—Kalman Rubinson
search
Sidebar 1: Associated Equipment
Sidebar 2: Measurements
All measurements were performed with the Uther powered by AC rather than by batteries. The balanced analog outputs measured as having a very low source impedance—just 3 ohms—except in the low bass, where this rose to a still low 27 ohms. By contrast, the single-ended outputs featured a slightly higher 13 ohms at mid and high frequencies, 20 ohms at 20Hz. The polarity was noninverting from both sets of outputs with the phase control set to normal. (The XLRs appeared to be wired with pin 2 "hot.") The output level with the volume control set to "100" or "Out" was a…
Sidebar 3: Specifications
Description: D/A converter with eight inputs: two I2S, two S/PDIF coax, two AES/EBU, one TosLink, and one AT&T glass. PMD-100 digital filter with HDCD capability. Dual-differential Burr-Brown PCM-63 DAC chips. Eight user-accessible dither modes. Analog-domain volume/balance controls. Full-function IR remote control. Remote power supply.
Dimensions: 16" W by 4.5" H by 11½" D. Weight: 14 lbs.
Serial number of unit reviewed: 099466.
Price: $2995 (1998); no longer availabe (2011). Approximate number of dealers: 50.
Manufacturer: Camelot…
Twin Sister meets Twin Peaks in the video for “Kimmi in a Rice Field,” from the band’s charming, soulful, and often lovely debut full-length, In Heaven. Like a real dream, the video, directed by Bryan Ujueta and Dan Devine and starring vocalist Andrea Estella, is sort of beautiful, sort of creepy, and sort of ridiculous.
Twin Sister celebrates the release of In Heaven with an early show (7:30pm) tomorrow night at the Mercury Lounge. The band held a captivating and intimate in-store performance at Other Music on Monday night. I was impressed by their skill and their sound&#…
Art returned to the EMT TSD 15 in September 2011 (Vol.34 No.9):
Love them though I do, I can't imagine there's very much money to be made in the manufacture of spherical (as opposed to elliptical, hyper-elliptical, or just plain fanciful) phonograph styli; consequently, I can't imagine there are many people left in the world who ply that trade. In fact, until recently, I would have guessed that all contemporary spherical tips come from the same place—like meals at any of the fine Indian restaurants on New York's E. Sixth Street, which are rumored to share a single tandoor.
And…
Decibel 1.2.3 & Pure Music 1.8, September 2011 (Vol.34 No.9)
In "Listening" in the July 2011 issue, Art Dudley wrote about his experiences with three digital music players for Macintosh computers: Amarra, Decibel, and Pure Music, each of which ensures that the bits it presents to the DAC are the same bits as those stored in the file, and at the same sample rate (footnote 1). That column was prepared in early April; when new versions of Decibel and Pure Music became available in June, I thought it useful to write a short Follow-Up.
Decibel, a bare-bones, playlist-oriented…
Jane Siberry: The Walking
Reprise/Duke Street 25678-1 (LP), 25678-2 (CD). John Naslen, eng.; Jane Siberry, John Switzer, John Naslen, prods. DDD. TT: 53:03
Reprise/Duke Street 25678-1 (LP), 25678-2 (CD). John Naslen, eng.; Jane Siberry, John Switzer, John Naslen, prods. DDD. TT: 53:03
I came to Jane Siberry's music pretty late in the game. This is her fourth album, and the third released by a major label—No Borders Here and The Speckless Sky were released by Open Sky/Windham Hill a few years ago. Hadn't heard 'em (footnote 1). Didn't need to. On the basis of The Walking alone, it was clear Siberry is one of the most important singer/songwriters we've got.
Had to laugh when I read Reprise's promo…
If analog disc is fading, it is a twilight of the gods. Tonearms, cartridges, and turntables get steadily better; the overall quality of the best analog disc systems today is far better than it was two years ago. Bruce Thigpen and Edison Price's new Eminent Technology Two tonearm is a case in point. It has evolved from a highly specialized product for only the bravest of audiophiles to a reference quality arm that any dealer can install, and any audiophile can safely use. More importantly, it may have no sonic equal at any price.
The Technical Background
Bruce Thigpen was one of the…
Guy Lemcoe offered some ruminations in November 1989 (Vol.12 No.11):
When I travel to larger cities, the first thing I do after checking into my room is to consult the Yellow Pages under "Records, Tapes & Compact Discs"—for a certified vinyl junkie, discovering a source of used records in a strange city can be economically disastrous as well as socially alienating. Be upfront with your friends about your addiction, or you may find yourself returning home alone! Not empty-handed, though! If you extend your search to used-bookstores (which usually have a few records stashed away…
Martin Colloms wrote about the Eminent Technology Two in March 1990 (Vol.13 No.3):
Much has been written in these pages on Eminent Technology's parallel-tracking, air-bearing tonearm ($950), so I will only be brief. I must report that I find the Series Two ET to be a most creditable product, overcoming my earlier mixed feelings about it which were based on my auditioning of the original model. It does need a highly stable support and in these series of tests, it worked well in combination with the Roksan Xerxes turntable (footnote 1).
I was never entirely comfortable with the…