Then I replaced the Z10e with the…
search
I was listening with Linear Tube Audio's $4990 Z10e headphone and speaker amp (see GD #36) powering Focal's $2999 Stellia closed-backs when I realized: A sound system can reach a high-enough point that most "improvements" are just lateral moves, changing sound character, not quality. The Z10e and Stellia were functioning at that high level. Together, they separated every molecule of every tone and every singer; every instrument was perfectly, liquid clear. More clarity would have seemed forced, in an undesirable, hi-fi way. Less would have been lens blur.
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Hybrid tube headphone amplifier and preamplifier employing one 6BQ7A/6DJ8/6922 dual-triode tube. Inputs: 1 pair single-ended (RCA). Outputs: 1 pair line-level (RCA) and one ¼" headphone jack. Power output: 1500mW into 32 ohms, 1000mW into 50 ohms, 400mW into 300 ohms, 200mW into 600 ohms. Input impedance: 50k ohms. Voltage gain: 5× (14dB), or 1× (0 dB). Output impedance: 1.8 ohms (headphone output).
Dimensions: 2.75" (70mm) H × 5" (127mm) W × 3.5" (90mm) D. Weight: 1lb (0.453kg).
Finish: Silver.
Serial number of unit reviewed: 122+01026…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog sources: Dr. Feickert Analogue Blackbird turntable with Schick 10.5" tonearm; Koetsu Rosewood Signature, My Sonic Lab Ultra Eminent Ex, Hana Umami and ML moving coil cartridges.
Digital sources: Apple Mac mini running Audirvana+; HoloAudio May (Level 3) D/A processor with Itona USB 3.0 Isolator; Mytek HiFi Brooklyn DAC+.
Headphones: Sony MDR-Z1R, HiFiMan Susvara, JPS Labs Abyss AB-1266 Phi TC, T+A Solitaire P, ZMF Vérité, Focal Clear and Stellia.
Headphone amplifiers: Ampsandsound Bigger Ben, Schiit Asgard (original) and Jotunheim 2,…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
After installing the single GE 6BZ7 dual-triode tube, I measured the Schiit Vali 2+ with my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 "As We See It"), repeating some tests with the magazine's sample of Audio Precision's current top-line APx555. I took a full set of measurements from both the front-panel headphone jack and the single-ended preamplifier outputs on the rear panel in both the High and Low gain settings.
The Schiit's input impedance is specified as 50k ohms. I measured 45k ohms at 20Hz and 1Hz, and an inconsequential drop to 40k ohms…
Daniel Lanois: Heavy Sun
eOne Music EMC-CD-28392 (CD). 2021. Daniel Lanois, Wayne Lorenz, prods.; Daniel Lanois, Wayne Lorenz, engs.; Noah Mintz, mastering.
Performance ****½
Sonics ****½
eOne Music EMC-CD-28392 (CD). 2021. Daniel Lanois, Wayne Lorenz, prods.; Daniel Lanois, Wayne Lorenz, engs.; Noah Mintz, mastering.
Performance ****½
Sonics ****½
Daniel Lanois may not be a household name as a solo artist, but over four decades he has gained great notoriety as a producer. After serendipitously catching Brian Eno's attention with his homespun recording projects in the late '70s, Quebec-born, Ontario-based Lanois became protégé and then partner to the ambient/pop tastemaker; together, they innovated sonic techniques and worked with such…
Etymotic Tuning
As I said at the very top, Etymotic is a hearing health company and come to the design of IEMs from a particular angle. One might say from the perspective of a hearing aid maker—they don't make the hearing aids, but they do make equipment hearing aid manufacturers use in their development work. Etymotic's idea of accurate, from my understanding, is to be able to perfectly reproduce at the ear drum what you would hear if you were listening to a person three feet away outdoors. And I firmly believe they're able to achieve that.
The problem is that's not the way…
ER4XR Measurements
Click on graphs image to download .pdf for closer inspection.
Click on graphs image to download .pdf for closer inspection.
ER4SR Measurements
Raw frequency response plots of these earphones show they are essentially identical above about 800Hz, where they follow the neutral target well. Below 800Hz, the XR is very flat until it begins to gently roll-off around 80Hz; the XR starts a gentle rise at around 500Hz to a broad peak centered at 45Hz about 3dB higher. While I like the extra bass of the XR, the bump is too broad extending into the mids. If…
Brand-fan excitement ran high among consumers and reviewers alike when Wilson Audio Specialties announced that it would roll out a nonfunctioning prototype of the Chronosonic XVX at the 2019 Rocky Mountain Audio Fest (RMAF). The Chronosonic XVX was rumored to be a replacement for the $210,000/pair Alexandria XLF, offering performance similar to that of the $850,000 WAMM Master Chronosonic system (including two Master Subsonics and a controller) at a less breathtaking price. (You won't catch me writing "affordable" here.) The static unveiling at RMAF intensified anticipation.
XVX rumors,…
Though the rear of both speakers ended up almost touching the corner Tube Traps, there was more placement flexibility than I expected. Using Christy Moore's song "So Do I" from the MQA version of his album This Is the Day (released on CD in 2001 as Columbia/Sony 503255.2), Peugh and Hall moved the XVXes, still on casters, until vocal clarity had been achieved. Minute movements produced surprising shifts in clarity. The speakers sounded better, with the rear-firing ports, which was also true with the Alexxes.
Next came the procedure for adjusting time alignment, which I won't go into here…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Four-way floorstanding loudspeaker. Drive-units: (2) 1" (25.4mm) silk-dome tweeters (one rear-firing), 4" (102mm) upper-midrange driver, (2) 7" (178mm) paper/pulp-cone midrange driver, 10.5" (267mm), and 12.5" (318mm) paper/pulp-cone woofers. Crossover frequencies: not disclosed. Frequency response: 20Hz–30kHz ±2dB. Impedance: 4 ohms nominal, 1.6 ohms minimum at 326Hz. Sensitivity: 92dB/W/m.
Dimensions: 73.6" (1800mm) H × 16.5" (420mm) W × 33" (840mm) D. Weight: 685lb (311.4kg).
Finish: Several automotive paint colors, custom options.
…