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As my "Mystery Train" obsession lifted, editor Jim Austin posted a YouTube link on Facebook that immediately rekindled my love for the most colorful and iconic band of New Orleans in general and Mardi Gras in specific: the Wild Tchoupitoulas. I went immediately to their eponymous album, featuring the Meters and the Neville Brothers, which I bought when it blasted onto the downtown art scene in 1976 (LP, Island ILPS 9360). I have played this well-recorded vinyl disc 100 times, but now I was enjoying it in streaming digital (44.1/16 FLAC, Island Records/Tidal).
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: 2.5-way, floorstanding, reflex-loaded loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" aluminum-dome tweeter, two 5.25" polycellulose-cone midwoofers. Crossover frequencies: 1.8kHz, 2.8kHz. Frequency range: 44Hz–40kHz. Sensitivity: 89dB/2.83V/m. Nominal impedance: 6 ohms. Recommended amplifier power: 20–200W.
Dimensions: 7.5" (190mm) W by 36.7" (930mm) H by 10" (255mm) D. Weight: 31.6lb (14.3kg).
Finish: Pantone black or two-tone wood.
Serial numbers of units tested: TR0050-G30002167 & '2130. ("Designed and Manufactured in the USA. Made in China").
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Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog sources: Dr. Feickert Analogue Blackbird turntable with Jelco KT-850L tonearm, Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue cartridge or (alternatively) My Sonic Lab Ultra Eminent Ex MC cartridge; AMG Giro G9 turntable & 9W Turbo tonearm and Hana ML MC cartridge.
Digital sources: Mac mini computer running Audirvana Plus 3.2; Integra DPS-72 CD player (transport only); Schiit Bifrost Multibit, Chord Qutest DACs.
Preamplification: Excel Sound ET-U50, EMIA Phono step-up transformers; Tavish Design Adagio phono preamplifier; Rogue RP-7 line preamplifier.
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Sidebar 3: Measurements
I used DRA Labs' MLSSA system and a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone to measure the JBL Stage A170's frequency response in the farfield, and an Earthworks QTC-40 mike for the nearfield responses. I left off the loudspeaker's grille for the measurements.
JBL specifies the A170's sensitivity as 89dB/2.83V/m, which is both higher than average and confirmed by my measurements. Props to JBL for an honest sensitivity specification. The impedance is specified as 6 ohms; while the solid trace in fig.1 shows that the impedance does drop below 6 ohms in the lower…
Romantics rejoice! In an age where ice seems to melt faster than hearts, there are still great musicians who uphold the Russian tradition of romantic music. Vadim Gluzman, Johannes Moser, and Yevgeny Sudbin may not (yet) have the cachet of David Oistrakh, Mstislav Rostropovich, and Sviatoslav Richter, who famously came together with Herbert von Karajan to record Beethoven’s Triple Concerto, but their new SACD of Tchaikovsky’s Piano Trio in A minor, Op. 50, and Arno Babajanian’s sole Piano Trio (BIS-2372) places them firmly in the grand Russian tradition of emotive, give-it-all-you’ve-got…
What's the point of reviewing a pair of monoblock amplifiers that costs more than most people spend on two or even several cars— and far more than most audiophiles spend on an entire music system? That's a good question. Another is: Why should I write this review when, just seven years ago, I reviewed a pair of darTZeel monoblocks that look exactly like this new pair?
I realize that products such as the darTZeel NHB-468 ($170,000/pair) are for the very few, but the very few include far more people throughout the world than you may realize— people who can afford such costly audio products…
I'd had on repeat vinyl play the Jamie Saft Quartet's Blue Dream (Rare Noise RNR095LP), preparing to write a review that unfortunately hasn't materialized yet but will. It's beautifully recorded, as is everything produced by this label, whether recorded on tape or computer. The music might remind you of the classic Coltrane quartet, but with Saft in place of McCoy Tyner, Nasheet Waits subbing for Elvin Jones, Brad Jones for Jimmy Giuffre, and Bill McHenry for the big C.
With the NHB-468s swapped in, cold out of the box, I listened again. Big sonic change! All for the better, building on…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Solid-state monoblock power amplifier. Inputs: one unbalanced (RCA); one unbalanced Zeel (BNC); one balanced (XLR). Output power: 475W (26.8dBW, 550W peak) into 8 ohms, 625W (25.0dBW, 700W peak) into 4 ohms, 222W into 2 ohms (17.45dBW, 300W peak)—"design limited because CP2C power is delivered differently into speakers than when statically measured." Voltage gain (user selectable): 26 or 32dB into 8 ohms. Input impedance: >30k ohms, (RCA); 50 ohms, ±1 ohm (Zeel); 10k ohms per phase (XLR). Output impedance: <0.28 ohm, 20Hz–20kHz (into 8 ohms).…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog sources: Continuum Audio Labs Caliburn, & Castellon turntable & stand; SAT CF1-09 and Kuzma 4Point tonearms ; SME Synergy turntable, Lyra Atlas, Atlas SL, Atlas SL mono, Etna, and Etna SL, Ortofon MC Century, Anna Diamond, A95, Miyajima Labs Infinity (mono) and Destiny (stereo) Grado Epoch (mono).
Digital sources: dCS Vivaldi One SACD player DAC; Lynx Hilo A/D-D/A converter, Roon Nucleus; Pure Vinyl and Vinyl Studio software.
Preamplification: darTZeel NHB-18S, Ypsilon MC-10L, MC-16L, Consolidated Audio SUTs step-up transformers;…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
Because of the darTZeel NHB-468's bulk and weight, and also because the amplifiers needed to be picked up for photography as soon as Michael Fremer had finished his auditioning, I drove my Audio Precision SYS2722 system—see the January 2008 "As We See It"—its host computer, my digital and analog oscilloscopes, cables, and all the rest of my test gear to his New Jersey home to perform the measurements.
Prior to trekking to Mikey's, I had received several emails from designer Hervé Delétraz about the new circuit topology he had incorporated in ?the NHB-468,…