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;…
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Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
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,…
With its abundance of high rises and freeways, Toronto has the feel of a big, bustling metropolis. It is Canada's most populated city, North America's fourth after Mexico City, New York, and Los Angeles. It is also the country's business epicenter and the only Canadian city to have an MLB team and an NBA one, the latter the Toronto Raptors, the league's 2019 championship winners.
Among Toronto's abiding successes, an audio show hasn't been one of them. While the city hosted the annual TAVES, established in 2011 as primarily an audio show, the event's attempt to transform itself over the…
Making their North American debut in the Rotel/Monitor Audio room were Rotel's P5 preamp, with built-in 32- bit/768kHz DAC ($CAD5299), and 1080Wpc M8 mono amps ($CAD18,000/pair). Speakers were Monitor Audio Gold 300s, said to employ technology trickled down from the company's flagship Platinum ll model.
The source consisted of the Roksan 20 Plus turntable ($CAD5300) with Sara unipivot tonearm ($CAD3600) and Shiraz cartridge ($CAD5300). Roksan's Caspian VSC S2 speed control/phono stage completed the package. Though lacking in ultimate scale and bloom, the sound of the system was…
My journalistic objectivity be darned! The Goerner Audio/Grandinote room produced the sort of sound that melts my heart, ravishes my senses, and reminds me of why great hi-fi is worth the money.
Was I in a hotel room? Couldn't tell, because the sound coming from a pair of Grandinote Mach 9 speakers with carbon fiber enclosures ($CAD50,000/pair), a Grandinote 37Wpc Shinai integrated amp ($CAD20,000), and a Grandinote Volta music server ($CAD14,000), with cabling by Nordost, completely obliterated the walls around me. I was somewhere else. But I think what surprised me most about…
The first thing I did at the Toronto Audiofest—after eating breakfast and attending some business meetings—was visit the Zesto Audio room, where I was hosted by Zesto Audio President and designer George Counnas. I was eager to hear the just-announced Leto Ultra vacuum tube preamplifier ($9995 US), which features—wait for it—tone controls.
For a while, tone controls had a bad rep in the hi-fi world. We were supposed to prefer minimalist, purist designs—and there is something to be said for simple. But, let's face it: I miss tone controls. I think a lot of people do. They're useful. The…
More great sound was had in retailer Audio Eden's room, where they were showcasing a system fronted by SME's Synergy all-in-one record player, which includes the SME model 12 turntable, SME lV arm with internal Crystal Cable wiring, an Ortofon Windfeld Ti MC cartridge, and a built-in phono stage made by Nagra ($CAD28,000 total cost)—but no kitchen sink.
I hate to say the price of the SME ensemble seems fair, but in hi-fi, where there are so many dubious places on which to plunk down 30 grand, the SME strikes me as a sure investment in musical pleasure. The Synergy was demoed with…
Having never before seen a pair of Klipsch La Scalas ($CAD15,000/pair) in person, I was pleasantly surprised by their appearance when I saw them in the Kennedy HiFi room. Looking stately, dare I say
noble even, with their wide baffles and hardwood enclosures, the Klipsches were coupled to a system that included a Simaudio Moon 393 preamp ($CAD6800), a Moon 330 120Wpc power amp ($CAD4400), and a Pro-Ject 2Xperience turntable ($CAD1700 with arm and cartridge). Though the sound I heard lacked some refinement and air, it possessed great drive and a goodly amount of fun factor.
Looking for a simple, sweet-sounding system that's sure to elicit pride of ownership? If so, I'd like to suggest the one I encountered in the room hosted by retailer Vinyl Sound. It starts with a Ken Micallef fave, the Kuzma Stabi S turntable with Stogi arm ($CAD6400 for both), and an Ortofon Cadenza Blue cartridge ($CAD2000).
Add to this an Aesthetix Rhea phono stage ($CAD6500), a pair of Harbeth 30.1 speakers ($CAD4800–$CAD5200), and a PrimaLuna Evo 400 integrated amp ($CAD6750) capable of 70Wpc in Ultralinear mode or 38Wpc in triode mode. Then throw in an assortment of…
After spending time in the Zesto room, I wandered into the other rooms hosted by Canadian audio importer/distributor Tri-Cell.
First up was the room featuring Harbeth 30.2 40th Anniversary loudspeakers on Beech Black Tontraeger stands, with turntable, phono preamp, and DAC from Brinkmann (the Taurus, Edison MkII, and Nyquist, respectively). Vinyl was playing and those small speakers were making a big sound.
Also in the system were the Goldnote DS-10 streamer, the Aesthetix Mimas integrated amplifier, racks by HRS and cabling by Cardas.