Description: Mono class-A power amplifier with "Smart Current" biasing. Analog inputs: 3-pin XLR. Digital inputs: USB (for software updates). Loudspeaker outputs: two stereo pair 0.025" (6mm) binding posts for biwired loudspeakers. Maximum input voltage: 1.14V for maximum rated output at full rated power. Power output: 250W continuous into 8 ohms (24dBW), 350W peak power into 8 ohms, 600W peak power into 4 ohms, 750W peak power into 2 ohms. THD, 8 or 4 ohms, 250W: 0.002%, 20kHz: 0.01% THD, 2 ohms 250W: 0.0003%, 20kHz: 0.02%. Equivalent input noise, 20kHz: 2.2µV.…
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Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Digital sources: dCS Varèse five-piece music system, Vivaldi Apex three-piece music system, Rossini CD/SACD transport, EMM Labs DV2i DAC, Meitner MA3 Integrated DAC; Innuos Statement Next-Gen Music Server and PhoenixNET network switch; Small Green Computer Sonore opticalModule Deluxe (2); Broadcom/ Avago AFBR-5718PZ 1GB SX-SFP, Gen 5 fiberoptic modules (2); Nordost QNet switch and QSource linear power supply (2); Sonore Audiophile Linear Power Supply; Synology 5-bay 1019+ NAS with Ferrum Hypsos linear/switching hybrid power supply; Linksys MR9000 mesh…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I performed a complete set of measurements on one of the Boulder 1151 amplifiers (serial number 14142) with my Audio Precision SYS2722, then repeated some of the tests with the magazine's higher-resolution Audio Precision APx555. I preconditioned the 1151 by following the CEA's recommendation of running it at one-eighth the specified power into 8 ohms for 30 minutes. At the end of that time, the temperature of the top panel was just 89.8°F (32.1°C) and that of the side-mounted heatsinks 97.3°F (36.3°C).
"What is the most important element in a high-end audio set-up?" As much as the question is asked over and over again, as if it were a requisite baseline test for admission into the Holy Fraternity of the High End, most responses start with the end of the chain rather than with the fundamentals.
It's like asking which comes first, the cart or the horse, while ignoring what's in the cart. For audio, the cargo is music. Without music, there's just noise (as in test signals and chatrooms).
After music come the medium (cart) that contains it, e.g. the file, platter, or disc, and the…
Stereophile has favorably reviewed three loudspeakers from Swiss manufacturer Stenheim. Art Dudley reviewed the Alumine standmount in April 2012 and the Alumine Five floorstander in March 2018. More recently, Herb Reichert reviewed Stenheim's three-and-a-half-way Alumine Three tower in October 2021. My assignment for this month's issue was to review the company's Alumine Two. Five floorstander, which, at $23,500/pair, fits neatly between the Alumine Two ($13,500/pair) and Three ($36,500/pair).
Stenheim was founded by four engineers who previously had worked at Goldmund. A couple of years…
Listening to music
Straight out of their flight cases, the Alumine Two.Fives sounded bright. The manual recommends 200–300 hours of break-in, but the treble balance became more neutral after only a few days of casual listening. (The review samples had been previously used at a hi-fi show, so I figured that they already had plenty of hours on them.) Nevertheless, while the Stenheim's midrange was impressively uncolored, its low-treble balance was not an optimal match with the Ayre preamplifier, which itself sounds somewhat forward. So I performed all my critical auditioning with the MBL…
Straight out of their flight cases, the Alumine Two.Fives sounded bright. The manual recommends 200–300 hours of break-in, but the treble balance became more neutral after only a few days of casual listening. (The review samples had been previously used at a hi-fi show, so I figured that they already had plenty of hours on them.) Nevertheless, while the Stenheim's midrange was impressively uncolored, its low-treble balance was not an optimal match with the Ayre preamplifier, which itself sounds somewhat forward. So I performed all my critical auditioning with the MBL…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Two-way, reflex-loaded, floorstanding loudspeaker with aluminum enclosure. Drive units: two 6.5" (170mm) coated cellulose-cone woofers, 1" (26mm) soft-dome tweeter. Frequency range: 35Hz–30kHz. Nominal impedance: 8 ohms. Sensitivity: 93dB (half-space). Maximum power handling: 125W, 250W peak. Minimum recommended power: 10W. Supplied accessories: precision mounting spikes, floor-saver discs, and a spanner.
Dimensions: 37.2" (945mm) H × 9" (230mm) W × 10.8" (275mm) D. Weight: 100lb (45kg) each.
Finish: Metallic Light Gray, Dark Gray, with black…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Digital sources: Roon Nucleus+ file server; Ayre Acoustics C-5xeMP universal player; MBL N31 CD player/DAC; Ayre Acoustics QA-9 A/D converter; NetGear Nighthawk router.
Preamplifier: Ayre Acoustics KX-8.
Power amplifiers: Ayre Acoustics VX-8, Parasound JCA100 Tribute monoblocks.
Loudspeakers: MoFi SourcePoint 888.
Cables: Digital: AudioQuest Vodka (Ethernet), AudioQuest Coffee (USB), DH Labs (1m, AES3). Interconnect: Ayre/Cardas (balanced). Speaker: AudioQuest Robin Hood. AC: AudioQuest Dragon Source & High Current; manufacturers' own.…
Before the show, I’d heard rumblings about the new Swiss-made Thales Reference turntable. Art Dudley had previously reviewed the Thales TTT-Compact turntable and Simplicity II tonearm, writing: “In 34 years of writing about playback gear, I have seen no products better made than the Thales turntable and tonearm, and precious few that equal them.”
So I walked into room 4.2 F213 expecting to love the Reference model (approx. $28,500), paired with the Thales Simplicity II tonearm ($9900) and the new Thales Magnifier phono preamplifier ($42,000, all prices approximate, converted…
At the Munich show, I ran into familiar faces: Mark Sossa of Well Pleased AV and Vinnie Rossi of Vinnie Rossi Audio, both far from their usual American stomping grounds. Seeing them overseas gave me a flicker of homesickness, but a journalist's job is to focus on the gear, not the friendships.
Sossa represents Merason DACs and QLN speakers; Rossi, his namesake electronics. Their Munich system included the new Merason Mountain DAC ($22,000), which had debuted at AXPONA; an Innuos Statement music server ($21,700); and an Innuos PhoenixNET network switch ($4250; all prices approximate,…