Traditional gold, copper, and palladium galvanic electroplating baths are not only toxic and high consumers of energy, Thoerner told me, they also…
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Ray Kimber of KimberK able was in “You gotta” mode. After he told me that WBT, the 34-year-old German company that supplies connectors and cable terminations to hundreds of manufacturers worldwide, had a new, environmentally friendly facing process that made for better sound, I arranged to meet with WBT founder and CEO Wolfgang Thoerner on Sunday morning to discuss their new "WBT-PlasmaProtect" PVD (Physical Vapor Deposition) plasma process.
After talking with a number of exhibitors and attendees, I’d have to call the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest’s daring move to a new and very different venue—a controversial if also inevitable move—a success. Everyone I spoke to was happy with attendance, and the sound in the hotel rooms was generally excellent.
For people who stayed at the hotel, food in the two restaurants I visited was quite good, if pricey. The Marketplace had some excellent salads and enough goodies and caffeinated beverages to keep everyone happy. The amenities, including a large gym and pool, were excellent. So was the…
While it can't exactly be said that the folks from The Mod Squad invented the game of audiophile modifications of existing, current-production hardware, they certainly have grown to be one of the major leaguers. Their mods have a reputation for being well-thought-out, nearly always offering improvements over the originals. And while they weren't the originators of the concept (footnote 1), any company which brought the world Tiptoes (probably their most famous product) will probably have a niche in the 21st-Century Museum of High-End Audio.
It's hardly surprising, therefore, that the…
Sidebar 1: Associated Equipment
The system included the Klyne SK-5A preamp, Aragon 4004 power amplifier, and VMPS Tower II/R loudspeakers.
Connecting cables were by Monster: M-1000 interconnects and M-1 loudspeaker cable. There was one exception: Straight Wire LSI was used with the Audio Concepts player in the comparisons. An explanation is in order for this. Recall that in my recent review of several CD players, I determined that the solid-state Audio Concepts player sounded best with Straight Wire LSI cables, while the California Audio Labs Aria seemed to prefer the Monster M-…
Sidebar 2: Measurements (from March 1989, Vol.12 No.3)
We have started to include in Stereophile's CD player reviews the 1/3-octave analyzed spectrum of a player's output while it reproduces the dithered –90.31dB tone from the CBS CD-1 test CD. With an undithered signal, a tone at this level only crosses three quantizing levels and therefore is not sufficiently described for it to be reproduced as a sinewave. However, as the code representing this tone on track 19 on the CBS disc has had an appropriate amount of dither noise added when the CD was cut, it should reproduce as a pure, if…
Sidebar 3: Specifications
Description: 16-bit, 4x-oversampled CD player with remote control and separate transformer.
Dimensions: 16.5" W by 3.5" H by 12.75" D. Weight: 8 lb.
Price: $1200 inc. remote control and disc damper (1988); no longer available (2019). Approximate number of dealers: 90.
Manufacturer: The Mod Squad, Leucadia, CA 92024 (1988); company no longer in existence (2019).
One measure of a high-end product designer's talent is the musical success of his top-of-the-line product. This is his statement to the world of what he can accomplish—a kind of "personal best" that defines the upper limits of his talent. Because he knows of no way to make the product better, the component stands as the ultimate testimonial to his skill.
Another, perhaps more interesting, way of assessing a high-end designer's talent is to examine what he can do with the lowest budget. The designer trying to make champagne sound on a beer budget must stretch his skills to the limit when…
Oddly, the Theorem seemed to have as much extension in the lowest octave; the Cobalt's weightier presentation came more from the midbass rather than the lowest frequencies.
The combination of the Cobalt's hefty presentation and good dynamics teamed up to present a real sense of slam. Kick drum had a nice punch and drive, adding to the Cobalt's excellent pace. Moreover, the bass was taut and fast rather than slow and bloated. Some processors with weighty presentations tend to put a drag on the rhythm—the Cobalt achieved LF heft with speed and definition. As good as the Cobalt's bass was,…
Sidebar 1: Associated Equipment
I auditioned the Cobalt 307 DAC through my usual reference system: Audio Research LS2B line-stage preamp, Mark Levinson No.23.5 or VTL 225W monoblock power amplifiers, and Hales System Two Signature loudspeakers with a Muse Model 18 subwoofer. The Cobalt also saw time with the superb Thiel CS3.6 loudspeakers.
Interconnects were primarily AudioQuest Lapis and Diamond or Monster Cable Sigma; loudspeaker cables were 8' bi-wired runs of AudioQuest Sterling/Midnight. Digital interconnects included the excellent Aural Symphonics Digital Standard or TARA…
Sidebar 2: Measurements
Unlike the very high output levels of other Theta products, the Cobalt 307 DAC had a maximum output of 2.027V (left channel) and 2.059V (right). This is very close to the 2V CD standard. Output impedance was 50 ohms across the band. This low value suggests the 307 DAC should have no trouble driving a power amplifier through a passive level control.
Frequency response and de-emphasis error are shown in fig.1. The right channel's 0.3dB higher output can be seen in the top trace. There is less HF rolloff than is usually measured in digital processors; the 307…