Description: Three-way, floorstanding, reflex-loaded loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" (25.4mm) MPD tweeter, 2.5" (63.5mm) C-CAMcone midrange unit, two 8" (203mm) RDT II woofers. Crossover frequencies: 650Hz, 3kHz. Frequency response: 30Hz–50kHz, –6dB. Sensitivity: 90dB/W/m. Nominal impedance: 4 ohms. Minimum impedance: 3.5 ohms at 1kHz. Power handling: 250W (RMS). Recommended amplifier power: 100–250W. Maximum spl: 117dBA (pair).
Dimensions: (including feet and spikes): 42.1" (1069.3mm) H by 12.9" (327.7mm) W by 16.5" (419.1mm) D. Weight: 67.25lb (30.5kg).
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Sidebar 1: Specifications
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Source: Marantz UD7007 universal disc player.
Preamplifier: Marantz AV8805 preamp-processor.
Power Amplifier: Parasound Halo A 52+.
Cables: Kimber AGDL (coaxial digital from source to AV8805), Cardas Hexlink (preamps to power amp), QED Silver Anniversary XT speaker cable, generic IEC power cords.—Thomas J. Norton
Sidebar 3: In-Room Measurements
The following measurements were made at a single mike position at ear height (for a seated listener) using the OmniMic measurement system from Parts Express. Averaging multiple readings around the listening position has not been shown to offer more revealing results in my room than a single reading point, apart from smoothing out some minor ripples in the graph. All the graphs here were smoothed to 1/6th octave. While these results will not be as precise as those made with the tools used for our full suite of measurements (which dial out the effects of the…
Sidebar 4: Measurements
I used DRA Labs' MLSSA system and a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone to measure the Monitor Audio Gold 300'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.
Although Monitor Audio specifies the Gold 300's sensitivity as 90dB/W/m, my estimate was almost 3dB lower, at 87.3dB(B)/2.83V/m, perhaps due to the fact that the Gold 300's impedance is specified as 4 ohms. (An input of 2.83V is equivalent to 2W into 4 ohms.) The impedance magnitude (fig.1, solid trace…
The Hi-Fi Show Live 2019, U.K’s largest specialty high-end audio event, will take place this Saturday and Sunday at the Ascot Racecourse Grandstand in Ascot, England.
Organized by the editors of Stereophile's sister publication Hi-Fi News & Record Review, the show will feature more than 200 brand exhibits, product demonstrations across all audio categories, listening sessions, interactive workshops, seminars on vintage gear, live music performances, and scheduled presentations and demonstrations by famous designers, engineers, and audio personalities, including a vinyl session hosted…
The Doors: The Soft Parade (50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition)
Rhino Records R2-596001 (3CDs, 1LP). 1969–2019. Paul A. Rothchild, prod.; Bruce Botnick, eng. ADD. TT: 146:47
Performance ****
Sonics ****
Rhino Records R2-596001 (3CDs, 1LP). 1969–2019. Paul A. Rothchild, prod.; Bruce Botnick, eng. ADD. TT: 146:47
Performance ****
Sonics ****
The Soft Parade has long been the Doors' most under-valued album. After the revolutionary impact of the band's first two LPs, The Doors and Strange Days, and the commercial consolidation of the band's popularity on the third, Waiting for the Sun, Soft Parade was perceived as a fall from grace. The charismatic Jim Morrison, famously dubbed "The Lizard King" by Crawdaddy! guru…
"Stirring the stew" is what I've heard it called when a company introduces a new version of a product every three or four years. When a new product is launched, sales generally rise rapidly to a maximum and then slowly decline. If the stew is stirred every few years, plotting the product's sales volume against time results in a sawtooth wave, without sales ever dropping close to zero.
Richard Vandersteen doesn't appear to believe in stews or stirring. Vandersteen loudspeakers stay on the market for a long time, with infrequent updates. Consider the Vandersteen Quatro loudspeaker. The…
With the low-frequency performance optimized, the next step was to fine-tune each speaker's tilt-back with its three spiked feet—two at the front, one at the back. Whereas the original Wood gave its flattest measured response on the woofer axis, I found that sitting with my ears level with the Wood CT's midrange driver gave the most even treble balance. (The higher I sat, the more the top octaves started to stick out.) Then it was time to adjust toe-in: Each speaker ended up offset 10° to the outside edge of my head.
Listening
Despite its relatively modest size, the Quatro Wood CT…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Vandersteen Quatro Wood CT
Description: Three-way loudspeaker with integral powered subwoofer. Drive-units: 1" dual-chamber, carbon-fiber sandwich, composite-dome tweeter; 4.5" woven composite-cone midrange unit; 6.5" woven, composite-cone mid/woofer; two 8" paper-cone subwoofers. Crossover frequencies: 100Hz, 900Hz, 5kHz. Crossover slopes: first-order, 6dB/ octave. Subwoofer amplifier: built-in, 250W, with 11-band room-response compensation. Frequency response: 24Hz–40kHz, ±2dB. Nominal impedance: 8 ohms (±3 ohms). Sensitivity: 87dB/2.83V/m.
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Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog Source: Linn Sondek LP12 turntable with Lingo power supply, Linn Ekos tonearm, Linn Arkiv B cartridge, Channel D Seta L phono preamplifier.
Digital Sources: Roon Nucleus+ music server; Ayre Acoustics C-5xeMP universal player; PS Audio PerfectWave DirectStream D/A converter; Ayre Acoustics QA-9 USB A/D converter.
Power Amplifiers: Lamm Industries M1.2 Reference (monoblocks).
Cables: AudioQuest Vodka (Ethernet), DH Labs (1m, AES/EBU). Interconnect: AudioQuest Wild Blue (balanced). Speaker: AudioQuest William Tell Zero Bi-Wire (with M5-HPAs…