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I was planning one of my occasional long drives, for music and photography. I had scheduled two nights in Nashville, so I asked around: Where should I go for live music after a dinner of Hattie B's hot chicken? Art Dudley recommended the Station Inn, perhaps the world's best venue for live bluegrass music. You can read about my experience there in the November 2019 Stereophile. The Station Inn has now added a streaming service. For $8.99/month or $99/year, you get between 10 and 20 live-streamed performances every month plus access to the archives. If you're a bluegrass fan or merely…
Many companies in high-end audio and elsewhere use a trickle-down approach to advance their products. The process begins with the development of a suite of new technologies, capabilities, components, or whatever the relevant entities might be. Typically, it's a flagship product that functions as the impetus, target, and first deployment of the new technologies. Subsequently, the new technologies trickle down to other models, each one incorporating a subset appropriate to its price point.
Looking at Wilson Audio's products, it is natural to assume that they use a trickle-down approach,…
The other comment Hugh made was that he could create deeper, more defined bass and "you know, more bass." He hit the nail on the head here as well. The way I had them set up, I had been a little disappointed with the SabrinaX's bottom end. There wasn't anything wrong with it; it was actually quite good. It just wasn't the killer bass I'd expected after having heard the Yvettes. The two cuts I mentioned in my Yvette review, "First, We Take Manhattan" from Jennifer Warnes's Famous Blue Raincoat (Cypress 661 111-1) and "Racing in the Street" from Bruce Springsteen's Darkness at the Edge of…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Three-way, floorstanding loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" (25mm) doped-silk dome tweeter; 5¾" (146mm) doped paper pulp-cone midrange; 8" (203mm) paper pulp-cone woofer. Enclosure types: rear-ported woofer, rear-vented midrange, tweeter sealed in its own enclosure. Frequency response: 31Hz– 23kHz, ±3dB, room average response (RAR). Sensitivity: 87dB/W/m @ 1kHz. Impedance: 4 ohms nominal, 2.6 ohms minimum at 135Hz. Minimum recommended amplifier power: 50Wpc.
Dimensions: 40 5/16" (1023mm) H (with spikes) × 12" (305mm) W × 15 5/16" (390mm) D. Weight:…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog sources: Spiral Groove SG-2.1 turntable and Centroid tonearm, VPI HR-X turntable and tonearm; Grado Epoch, The Reference, and Signature Reference, Benz Micro SL, Audio-Technica AT-MONO3/LP phono cartridges.
Digital sources: Primare CD35 Prisma CD player, Mytek Brooklyn DAC+.
Preamplification: Sutherland Phono Blocks Refined and Phono Loco phono preamplifiers; Sutherland Line Blocks line stage.
Amplification: VTL Ichiban power amplifiers.
Loudspeakers: Wilson Audio Sasha DAW, Elac Debut 2.0 F6.2.
Cables: Shunyata Alpha v2 NR and…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
For logistical reasons, I measured a different sample (serial number 0384) from those auditioned by Brian Damkroger. Except when stated otherwise, the measurements were performed with the grille removed. Also, to avoid the possibility of damaging the cabinet's finish, I did not remove its protective film (footnote 1). I used DRA Labs' MLSSA system and a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone to measure the Wilson SabrinaX's frequency response in the farfield, and an Earthworks QTC-40 for the nearfield responses of the individual drive-units.
When I measure a…
A few months ago, a friend asked me to recommend a record player. This friend knows and loves music as much as I do; when he visits, we spend our time drinking wine and listening to records. Last time, it was Scott Walker, Fela, Joni Mitchell, Jacques Brel, Burzum, and both glorious sides of The Chronic.
"How much do you want to spend?" I asked cautiously. His answer: $500, tops.
For a sane, music-loving American, that's a reasonable sum to allocate to buying a really good record player, way better than the ones you'll find at big box stores or, God help us, Urban Outfitters. Yet…
Listening
If I expected the Pro-Ject to sound flimsy or polite, I needn't have worried. As soon as I dropped the needle on a 45 of Gladys Knight and the Pips' "Got Myself a Good Man" (Soul S 35063), the congas blasted out of my 1967 Altec Valencias, followed by the tambourine. Soon, the Motown rhythm section locked on. The single sounded dynamically expressive, propulsive, and juicy, just begging to be turned up.
If I expected the Pro-Ject to sound flimsy or polite, I needn't have worried. As soon as I dropped the needle on a 45 of Gladys Knight and the Pips' "Got Myself a Good Man" (Soul S 35063), the congas blasted out of my 1967 Altec Valencias, followed by the tambourine. Soon, the Motown rhythm section locked on. The single sounded dynamically expressive, propulsive, and juicy, just begging to be turned up.
Few records make me as happy as Have Moicy! (Rounder Records 3010), a 1976 collaboration between Michael Hurley, the Unholy Modal Rounders, and Jeffrey Frederick and…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Non-suspended, belt-drive turntable. Speeds: 33.3rpm, 45rpm, 78rpm. Speed adjustment: none. Wow and flutter: 33: ±0.17%; 45: ±0.15%. Pivoted, carbon fiber tonearm with synthetic sapphire bearings. Effective length: 218.5mm; effective mass: 6gm; overhang: 18.5mm. Sumiko Rainier: moving magnet cartridge with elliptical stylus: Frequency range: 15Hz–25kHz; Output voltage: 5.0mV.
Dimensions: 19 1/5" (488mm) × 9¼" (235mm) × 15½" (393mm). Weight: 12.3lb.
Finish: wood veneer.
Serial number of unit reviewed: 20S054562. Handmade in Europe.
…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog sources: Garrard 301 turntable in a Box Furniture Co. plinth; Thomas Schick 12" tonearm; Ortofon SPU Classic G cartridge.
Digital sources: Denafrips Terminator DAC; Denafrips Gaia DDC; Sonore ultraRendu; Small Green Computer sonicTransporter i5 server running Roon Core.
Preamplification: Shindo Aurieges preamplifier; Auditorium 23 SPU step-up transformer.
Power amplifiers: Shindo Montille; single-ended amplifier with triode-wired 307A output tubes built by Oliver Sayes.
Loudspeakers: Altec Valencia 846A.
Cables: Interconnect:…