The Axiss Audio/Soulution/Critical Mass Systems room featured a wealth of electronics unknown to me, as well as Magico's S1 Mk II speakers ($16,500/pair). Also on tap: Accuphase DP720 CD player ($27,000), Soulution 725 preamplifier ($5500), Soulution 560 D/A converter ($3500), and…
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I hit the ground running on Sunday, the final day of the show, joining audio pals from far and wide and enjoying the company of inspired product reps and dealers—and their beautiful audio systems. I'm grateful for this year's New York Audio Show: an oasis of friends, music-loving family, and mostly good sound.
Note: As our coverage of the 2016 New York Audio Show has just been posted, I thought it would be interesting to post our report from the 1965 show, in particular to see which brands are still around 50 years later.—John Atkinson
The 1965 New York hi-fi show was, to these observers, most notable for the marked increase in the number of exhibits which featured good—ie, classical—music for demonstration purposes. In the past, only about a half dozen of the exhibitors played anything of musical worth, the rest of them evidently figuring they could make more noise with wild brass-and-…
Like every sensible publication, The Stereophile keeps track of the questions raised by readers who write to us, so we can get some idea of what most of you would like to see in future issues of the magazine. To date, the list looks like this, in order of diminishing interest: transistor amps and preamps, loudspeakers, pickups, tape equipment, tuners and, way at the bottom of the list, recordings. We are devoting most of the August 1964 issue to a discussion of commercial recording practices.
This is not because we are just naturally perverse. It is because we have the unusual (in…
Like its Prism I predecessor, which I reviewed in May 1988, the Mod Squad Prism II is based on a Philips player: the same 16-bit, 4x-oversampling converter, the same general control layout. But The Mod Squad does their own extensive remanufacture, both on the internal circuitry and on the cosmetics—the latter involving a handsomely sculptured case and metal front trim-panel surrounding Philips's command center.
Despite its front trim-panel and upgraded case, the Mod Squad Prism II has all of the ergonomic strengths and weaknesses of a relatively modestly priced Philips machine. The front…
Sidebar 1: Reference System
All of the players were auditioned in a system which consisted of the Jeff Rowland Design Group Consonance preamp, Threshold SA/12e monoblock power amplifiers, and Apogee Stage loudspeakers (on their optional stands). The connection from preamp to all players was via 1.5m lengths of AudioQuest Lapis. Balanced Cardas Hexlink cable was used from preamp to amplifiers. The Stages were bi-wired with Symo cable.
Playback levels were adjusted to compensate for the different outputs of the various players when comparison listening was done—a particularly easy…
Sidebar 2: Measurements
I checked the AC voltage from chassis ground to main (house) ground to determine the correct line-cord orientation (footnote 1). The Prism II measured 11.5V with the correct orientation (12.5V the other way—an insignificant difference). I checked the player's tracking with the dropout tests on the Pierre Verany Digital Test CD. The Prism II mistracked when the dropout reached 3.0mm, though with a slight glitch at 2.5mm. The CD standard only requires tracking of a 0.2mm gap, although theoretically the error-correction codes make regeneration of gaps of up to 2.47mm…
Sidebar 3: Specifications
Description: Solid-state CD player with 16-bit D/A converter and 4x-oversampling digital filter. Frequency response: 0.1Hz–20kHz ±0.5dB. THD: 0.005%. S/N: 100dB (A-Weighted).
Dimensions: 17.7" (450mm) W by 11.8" (298mm) D by 4.9" (124mm) H. Weight: 12 lbs.
Price: $1895 (1991); no longer available (2016). Approximate number of dealers: 90.
Manufacturer: The Mod Squad, Leucadia, CA 92024 (1991). Company no longer in existence (2016).
I still remember reading about my first Mark Levinson product 14 or 15 years ago. It was a preamp. The model number escapes me, but it sold for over $2000. It was soon followed by the JC-2, designed by John Curl, which was a bit less pricey but still astonishingly expensive for a mid-'70s preamp. We've come a long way since then. The man, Mark Levinson, left the company that bore his name in the early 1980s and founded a new company, Cello. The company Mark Levinson became the core of Madrigal. It is a mark of their continued dedication to uncompromising high-end products that their bread-…
Sidebar 1: System
The reference-system equipment used with both amplifiers included the Rowland Consonance preamp and the Apogee Stage loudspeakers. Program sources were the Oracle Delphi Mk.IV turntable and Oracle 345 tonearm with the Dynavector XX-1L cartridge and the Sony CDP-X77ES CD player. Other equipment used included the Mirage M-3 loudspeakers and (briefly) the Coda Technologies FET Preamplifier 01.
The Rowland Model 1, Threshold SA/12e and Muse 100 amplifiers were pressed into service where needed. Loudspeaker cables were Symo (for the Stages) and AudioQuest Clear (for…
Sidebar 2: Measurements
As can be seen from fig.1, the Levinson No.29 exhibits a very slight rolloff at the frequency extremes, to a degree which should be audibly insignificant. The 10kHz squarewave (fig.2) indicates a small rise-time, with very slight rounding of the leading edge reflecting the gentle HF rolloff above 20kHz. Polarity of the Levinson was non-inverting, the 1kHz input impedance of 57k ohms was just slightly above spec, and 140.2mV were required to give 1W into 8 ohms—a gain of 26.1dB. Unweighted noise was 89dB below 1W into 8 ohms. Channel separation was better than…