search
Eduardo Fernandez's Music of Turina, Segovia, & Llobet CD (London 417 618-2) convinced me otherwise. Miguel Llobet's creative arrangement of the wistful Catalan song "El testament d'Amelia," though short, illustrates the possibilities of touch. Fernandez exploits the pads of his fingers as well as the sides and nails, caressing or stroking the strings, striking overtones that linger in the room. The presentation of both touch and overtone decay mitigated against any loss of extreme high-frequency information. It was, quite simply, all there. As always, listening to the Monitors I was…
Stravinsky, as though responding, said, "The trouble with music appreciation in general is that people are taught to have too much respect for music; they should be taught to love it instead." Or, as Confucius really did say, "Those who know the truth are not equal to those who love it."
Quite a dialog we've got going here, eh? But pertinent, I think, to my high regard for the Studio 2s—the degree to which I received musical meaning, emotional response, and aesthetic reaction is directly attributable to the strengths of these speakers. No, I'll go further: that is the strength of these…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Two-way, reflex-loaded, stand-mounted loudspeaker. Drive-units: 5" (125mm) aluminum-alloy–cone woofer, 1" (25mm) gold-anodized alloy-dome tweeter. Crossover frequency: 3.2kHz. Crossover slopes: first-order, 6dB/octave low-pass; second-order, 12dB/octave high-pass. Frequency response: 55Hz–30kHz ±3dB. Impedance: 8 ohms nominal. Sensitivity: 89dB/W/m. Recommended power: 20W–100W.
Dimensions: 10½" H by 6½" W by 7 7/8" D. Weight: 24.2 lbs (11kg)/pair.
Finishes: black oak, light oak, rosewood (standard).
Serial numbers of units tested: 1605 A/B.…
Sidebar 2: Measurements
Although the Studio 2's sensitivity is nowhere near the specified 89dB/W/m—I estimated it at 84.5dB/W/m, B-weighted—it's still quite high for such a small loudspeaker. Coupled with a highish impedance magnitude, which only drops below 6 ohms in the lower midrange (fig.1), the Studio 2 will give the partnering amplifier an easy time. The low-frequency trough in the traces in fig.1 reveals that the port is tuned to 65Hz. A slight wrinkle in the magnitude trace at 320Hz is probably due to a cabinet resonance.
Fig.1 Monitor Audio Studio 2, electrical…
My stepfather wore only second-hand clothes as a child and never understood why anyone would deliberately wash the color out of his new dungarees. By the same token, the senior members of our hobby, many of whom recall with fondness the transistor's advent, don't understand why anyone would now wish to throw away their newfound power. Some people deserve to be blessed for their point of view, even as the world moves away from it.
Whatever our world is heading toward, I'm certain that single-ended triode (SET) tube amplifiers of intentionally low power have become a part of the…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Two-channel, single-ended, tube power amplifier. Tube complement: two 717A pentodes, two 45 triodes, and one 5U4G. Maximum output power: 2Wpc into 8 ohms (3dBW) at 5% THD. Frequency range: 18Hz–30kHz at 1W. Voltage gain: 15dB. Input impedance: 200k ohms.
Dimensions: 16" (410mm) W by 8.5" (220mm) H by 12" (310mm) D. Weight: 19 lbs (8.6kg).
Serial Number of Unit Reviewed: 05010060.
Price: $2250. Approximate number of dealers: 1 (sold direct only).
Manufacturer: Yamamoto Sound Craft, Inc., 726 Sakaki-tyo, Ono-city, Hyogo 675-1323, Japan.…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog Sources: Linn LP12 turntable, Naim Armageddon power supply, Naim Aro tonearm; Rega Planar 3 turntable, Rega RB-300 tonearm; Miyabi 47, Linn Akiva, Lyra Helikon Mono, Incognito Shibui cartridges; Tamura TKS-83 moving-coil step-up transformer.
Digital Sources: Naim CD5x, Ayre CX-7e CD players.
Preamplification: Audio Note M3 Phono, Sonic Euphoria PLC passive line stages; Linn Linto phono preamplifier.
Power Amplifiers: Lamm ML2.1 monoblocks, Fi 2A3 Stereo.
Loudspeakers: Audio Note AN-E Lexus, Lowther Medallion.
Cables: Interconnect:…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
The Yamamoto A-08's two channels differed significantly in their voltage gains. Into 8 ohms at 1kHz, the right channel measured 19.85dB, the left 17.04dB. The circuit is mounted underneath the smart-looking wooden chassis. The review sample was missing the protective bottom plate; perhaps something had become misadjusted. The two channels also differed slightly when it came to output impedance. The right channel measured 3.2 ohms at 20Hz, dropping to 2.85 ohms at 1kHz and 2.16 ohms at 20kHz. The corresponding figures for the right channel were a little lower, at 3…
There is no better time than now to invest in audiophile-quality vinyl playback gear. I'll bet even Mikey Fremer would be surprised at the amount of new vinyl releases and reissues and used vinyl available to music-lovers today. And the choices available to audiophiles seeking turntables, tonearms, phono cartridges, and phono preamps is greater than it's been in a decade.
As far as cartridges are concerned, I doubt you can beat the high resolution, delicacy, and transparency of today's best low-output moving-coil designs, despite their high prices (as well as those of suitably hi-rez,…
I immediately noticed the Virtuoso Wood's superiority in the midrange, particularly on vocals, both male (Mighty Sam McClain, Give It Up to Love, AudioQuest AQLO1015) and female (Janis Ian, Breaking Silence, Analogue Productions APP027). Voices were reproduced with more detail and delicacy, and had a much richer presentation, with more dimensional body but with no trace of euphonic coloration. I noted superior detail resolution and transient articulation on piano and guitar passages, with improved ambience and air as well as longer decay times. This improvement extended into the high…