I've chosen roughly 85% of the components I've reviewed for Stereophile, those choices made on the bases of what I find interesting, and what I think readers would like to know about. It's as simple as that.
I'd never heard of Octave Audio until JA e-mailed to ask if I'd like to review one of their amps. The RE 290 intrigued me because it was built around the new KT120…
Description: Tubed stereo power amplifier with push-pull pentode, class-A/B output stage and adjustable bias for each tube. Tube complement: four KT120 or KT88, three ECC82. Inputs: 1 RCA, 1 XLR. Outputs: 1 speaker terminal suitable for 4mm banana connectors and spades. Maximum output power: High Power mode: 100Wpc into 4 ohms (17dBW); Low Power mode: 70Wpc into 4 ohms (15.5dBW); (power output decreases by 20% into 8 ohms). Power bandwidth: 25Hz–70kHz, –3dB at full power; frequency response 5Hz–80kHz, –3dB. Total harmonic distortion: <0.1% at 10W into 4 ohms…
Digital Sources: Benchmark DAC1 HDR D/A processor/headphone amplifier; Bel Canto Design e.One DAC 3.5 VB Mk.II DAC & e.One CD 2 CD transport with e.One VB-1 power supply; Sony Vaio laptop computer running JRiver Media Center 17, Bel Canto Design Light Link USB-optical bridge.
Analog Sources: Clearaudio Ovation turntable/tonearm, Talisman V2 cartridge.
Preamplification: Clearaudio Basic+ phono preamplifier.
Power Amplifiers: Rogue Audio M180 monoblocks, Audio Research Reference 150.
Loudspeakers: Revel Performa F30.
Headphones:…
I measured the Octave Audio RE 290 using Stereophile's loan sample of the top-of-the-line Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 "As We See It" and www.ap.com). As Erick Lichte reviewed the RE 290 with KT120 tubes and the Super Black Box capacitor bank, that's how I measured it, with its rear-panel switch set to High Power, as recommended for these tubes. After warming up the amplifier for an hour, I checked the bias for each of the four output tubes using the central LED array and the right-hand rotary switch on the front panel. All the tubes were…
Description: Three-way, stand-mounted, reflex-ported loudspeaker. Drive-units: 0.8" fabric-dome tweeter, 7" polymer-cone midrange, 11.8" Bextrene-cone woofer. Crossover frequencies: 500Hz, 5kHz. Frequency response: 45Hz–20kHz, ±3dB (anechoic). Sensitivity: 89dB/W/m. Impedance: 8 ohms nominal, 5.5 ohms minimum.
Dimensions: 27.3" (700mm) H by 14.4" (370mm) W by 16.8" (430mm) D. Weight: 79 lbs (36kg).
Finishes: Cherry; Black Ash or Dark Walnut available by special order.
Serial numbers of units reviewed: 220B06507, 220B06508.
Price: $11,495/pair,…
Analog Sources: Garrard 301, Thorens TD 124 turntables; EMT 997, Ortofon TA-210 tonearms; Ortofon SPU, EMT TSD 15 70th Anniversary & OFD 25 & OFD 65 pickup heads; Denon DL-103 cartridge.
Digital Sources: AudioQuest DragonFly USB D/A converter; Apple iMac G5 computer with iTunes v.10.6, Decibel v.1.0.2 playback software.
Preamplification: Auditorium 23 Standard (SPU version), Silvercore One-to-Ten, Hommage T2 step-up transformers; Shindo Masseto preamplifier.
Power Amplifiers: Shindo Corton-Charlemagne monoblocks & Haut-Brion, Fi…
The Spendor Classic SP100R2 loudspeaker was measured with DRA Labs' MLSSA system, using a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone to measure the speaker's frequency response in the farfield, and an Earthworks QTC-40 mike for the nearfield responses. The Spendor's voltage sensitivity is specified as 89dB/W/m, a little higher than my estimate of 88.2dB(B)/2.83V/m. The impedance is specified as 8 ohms with a minimum of 5.5 ohms; the solid trace in fig.1 indicates that the impedance remains above 8 ohms for almost all of the audioband, with a minimum magnitude of 5.95 ohms at…