Description: 3-way bass-reflex standmount with one flared port and one set of binding posts. Drive units: one RAAL Flatfoil 64-10X OEM ribbon tweeter, one 2.5" Balanced Mode Radiator, one SB Acoustics 6" ceramic-cone woofer. Frequency response: 36Hz–20kHz, ±2dB. Nominal impedance: 4 ohms. Sensitivity: 86.5dB/2.83V/m.
Dimensions: 20" (508mm) H × 8" (203.2mm) W × 12.5" (317.5mm) D. Net weight: 32lb (14.5kg) each. Shipping weight: 39lb (17.7kg) each.
Finishes: Rectangle Piano Black ($1800/pair), Rectangle Satin Walnut ($1900/pair), Curved Piano Rosewood ($…
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Sidebar 1: Specifications
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog sources: Rega P5 turntable with RB700 tonearm and Audio MusiKraft Denon DL-103 cartridge.
Digital sources: Simaudio Moon 260D CD transport, iFi iDSD Diablo DAC.
Integrated amplifier: Grandinote Shinai.
Loudspeakers: Focal Aria K2 936, Dynaudio Contour 30i.
Cables: Interconnects: Audience Studio ONE (RCA), Kimber Kable 1016 (RCA). Speaker: Kimber Kable Monocle-XL (w/banana plugs). Digital: Kimber Kable D60 (RCA S/PDIF). Power: Shunyata Research Black Mamba CX, LessLoss DFPC, DR Acoustics Red Fire Ultra.
Accessories: Shunyata…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
When I unpacked the Philharmonic Audio BMR Monitor, there was a rectangular yellow mask protecting the RAAL ribbon tweeter. I followed the instructions printed on the mask to slide it away carefully, before starting the measurements. I used DRA Labs' MLSSA system, a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone, and an Earthworks microphone preamplifier to measure the loudspeaker's quasi-anechoic frequency- and time-domain behavior in the farfield. I used an Earthworks QTC-40 microphone, which has a small, ¼" diameter capsule, for the nearfield responses and Dayton Audio's DATS…
I think I just found the perfect Herb speaker. It uses a hand-crafted 5" wide-range driver with a cone made from Japanese calligraphy paper. It rolls off around 50Hz at the bottom and 30kHz at the top. It has no crossover. Its cabinet is made of MDF that responds loudly when I tap it with my fingernails. Inside is what its designer calls a "short horn," which appears to harmlessly disperse back-cone energy while adding energy below the driver's cutoff frequency. Mainly, though, it's a perfect Herb speaker because it is naturally phase coherent. And sparkplug fast. And completely unmuffled.…
Immediately, the Hagen2's flaunted their transient prowess and ability to track complex, high-velocity signals. Powerful tempos and finely wrought textures came through from both digital formats, but the Voxativ's phase-correct paper cones showed the CD version to have deeper spaces, thicker bones, and more hue-saturated tones.
Accurate-as-possible tone and conspicuously corporal textures are what paper cones activated by powerful magnets specialize in. The strategy behind using paper cones is to impose some measure of forest-nurtured naturalness on instruments and voices. The…
Ernie Fisher, the founder and longtime editor of Canada's The Inner Ear Magazine, passed away at age 89. Through The Inner Ear, Ernie provided audiophiles with hi-fi equipment reviews and commentary focused on achieving faithful musical reproduction. He was a regular fixture at audio shows for many years, always wearing his signature hat.
Fisher's clear writing style and insightful listening notes built trust among his readers, especially within the Canadian hi-fi community. Ernie's passion for music and audio gear is always evident in his writing. He will be missed.
The marriage of little streaming computers to DACs was at first a shotgun thing, a way to add Swiss Army knife capabilities at a price point. That was back when it was cutting-edge to have a NAS server full of digital files on the home network, and when commercial streaming was new, primitive, and lossy. Remember Pandora? Cool idea, but who wants to sit through ads and not be able to skip over more than a handful of disliked tunes every hour. Then Spotify came along. Then Apple and Amazon jumped in, and that's all she wrote. Eventually, streaming even got around to us audiophiles who desired…
Yesterday, I had a brief conversation, by text message, with my 26-year-old son. He had just walked by the Devialet shop at the Shoppes at Columbus Circle here in Manhattan. Knowing my interest in such things, he sent me a photo. The Devialet boutique seems more a design exhibit than a shop, in a high-ceilinged open area.
The shops at the Shoppes at Columbus Circle include Hugo Boss, Eileen Fisher, and Floga, which sells furs, among less-exclusive brands, though even the less-exclusive stores look fancy. Upstairs from the Shoppes is the Mandarin Oriental New York Hotel, where rooms cost…
Synthesis: The String Quartet Sessions
Various composers and musicians
ArtistShare CD. 2024. Ryan Truesdell, prod.; Ryan Streber, eng. (footnote 1).
Performance ****½
Sonics ****
Various composers and musicians
ArtistShare CD. 2024. Ryan Truesdell, prod.; Ryan Streber, eng. (footnote 1).
Performance ****½
Sonics ****
Until now, Ryan Truesdell has been known for producing two of the most important jazz records of the second decade of the current millennium. Centennial, in 2012, and Lines of Color, in 2015, contained newly discovered works by the great composer/arranger Gil Evans. They were lavish productions with huge world-class New York orchestras. The many honors they received included a Grammy award and…
EISA, or the Expert Imaging and Sound Association, is an organisation representing 56 of the most respected special interest publications and websites from 27 countries that cover Hi-Fi, Home Theater Video, Home Theater Audio, Photography, Mobile Devices, and In-Car Electronics. Every year EISA's Expert Group members, including editors from this publication, test a very wide range of new products from their field of expertise before comparing results and voting to decide on the cream of every product category.
To win an EISA award all products undergo a comprehensive multi-step judging…