Art's ATM-1S was a step in a long succession of tube amplifiers produced…
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Closing his review of the AirTight ATM-1S amplifier in the November 2014 Stereophile, Art Dudley wrote, "The AirTight ATM-1S is right up there with the best I've heard: the artisanal, the small, the artistically sensitive, the colorful and characterful, the smart. The AirTight is as serious an EL34 amplifier as I've heard, offering texture, color, poise, musical drive, and rightness, all in good proportion to one another. It also looks nice and represents at least decent if not outrageously good value for the money."
The ATM-1E has just four main user controls: a pushbutton for power, separate attenuation knobs for the left and right channels, and an identical-looking knob for checking and bias, labeled "IP Monitor" ("I" for current, "P" for plate). This five-position knob—"Operate" plus a position for each power tube—lets you adjust the plate current using a meter and four trim pots on the top panel, adjacent to the choke enclosure.
Installation and setup
I positioned the easy-to-lift ATM-1E on top of four A/V RoomService Ltd. Equipment Vibration Protectors (EVPs). Norman Varney's EVPs…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Tubed stereo power amplifier. Tube complement: One 12AT7/(ECC81), two 6CG7/(6FQ7), four EL34/(6CA7). Inputs: Stereo pair single-ended (RCA). Output power: 35Wpc into 4 or 8 ohms (15.3dBW & 12.3dBW). Input sensitivity: 700mV (35W). Input impedance: 100k ohms. Output impedance: two taps, 4 ohms and 8 ohms. Frequency response: 20Hz– 30kHz (–1dB). THD (1kHz) <5%. Damping factor: 6.7. Power consumption: 250VA.
Dimensions: 14.37" (365mm) W × 8.85" (225mm) H × 12" (305mm) D. Weight: 47.39lb (21.5kg).
Serial number of unit reviewed: R06006.…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog sources: Thorens TD 124 turntable, Korf TA-SF9R tonearm, Kuzma CAR-30 MC cart; J.Sikora Standard Max Supreme turntable, J.Sikora 9" KV9 MAX Tonearm, EMT JSD Pure Black MC cartridge.
Digital sources: HoloAudio May DAC, Sonore opticalRendu, Roon Nucleus+, Small Green Computer power supply, TRENDnet switch, Apple iPad mini.
Preamplifiers: Shindo Allegro line; PrimaLuna EVO 100 phono, Manley Chinook phono, Tavish Audio Design Adagio phono.
Power amplifier: Rogue Stereo 100.
Loudspeakers: Volti Audio Razz, Voxativ Ampeggio 2024, DeVore…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I performed the measurements of the AirTight ATM-1E with my Audio Precision SYS2722 system. Before I started the testing, I followed the instructions in the manual to optimize the bias for the four EL34 output tubes. There are two output transformer taps, labeled High and Low instead of the usual 8 ohms and 4 ohms. I performed a complete set of measurements at each of the taps. The attenuation controls (one for each channel) were set to the minimum for the tests, ie, to the highest gain.
The ATM-1E's voltage gain into 8 ohms was 29.4dB from the High tap and…
NLH’s Aaron Sherrick was busy, yet oddly calm, as he sat and directed the action in the Executive Lounge. NLH’s Matt Early (an old friend of mine from Tower Records on 66th St. NYC) controlled the iPad, while Qobuz’s David Solomon offered support, emotional and otherwise!
In the Executive Lounge, a new Pure Fidelity Symphony turntable ($21,995) with a DS Audio W3 cartridge ($5000) juiced the new EMM Labs DS-EQ1 V2 optical equalizer ($12,500), with digits relayed via a new Bel Canto Design Black DAC ($40,000), balanced by an Innuos ZEN NG server ($12,000).
The Pure…
MC Audiotech's Mark Conti, ever the gentleman, even when confronted by a rabid reporter, unveiled a system of such sweet tone and dynamic might that it soothed my inner beast.
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Even if audio isn’t your thing, I always advise everyone within earshot to visit Jeffrey Catalano’s hi-fi rooms, the world over. ‘Cause more than a smart-witted audiophile, Jeffrey is a seasoned musician and experienced listener, his vinyl collection spreading to the many thousands. This man has serious taste in music, an influencer, you might say, of the highest degree. He’s a sonic seer, a tonal truth-teller, a man who can discern the subtle nuances of a recording that most of us miss. His systems are not mere machines, but musical instruments, capable of revealing the soul of a performance…
Mark Sossa, the best-dressed and best-mannered exhibitor at CAF 2024, under the banner of Well Pleased AV, had new gear to play for me and I was all ears.
A Merason Reuss DAC ($6000) and Innuos Pulsar streamer ($8000) rolled out the digits while the new Qualiton 300B integrated amplifier, a lovely push-pull amp delivering 25Wpc via two 12AX7EH Gold, four 12AT7EH Gold, and four 300B EH tubes ($11,000) drove the new QLN One v7 standmount loudspeakers ($12,000/pair), using a proprietary 5.5” mid-woofer and a 25mm “wide surround” tweeter.
Conditioning and cabling consisted of a…
In Gramophone Dreams #88, I described the sound of TEAC's VRDS-701T CD transport as "dense and precise in a way I had never previously heard from digital." I went on to explain, "by 'dense,' I mean there was a tangible corporeality effected by seemingly infinite quantities of small, tightly packed molecules of musical information."
What I noticed most during the review period was the extraordinary volume of data the 701T was vacuuming off those pits and lands and turning into music. As I have gotten to know it better, what I've noticed most is how the 701T sorts and delivers all that data…