Bull! Where tradeoffs are necessary, sonic performance should indeed come first. Design decisions such as the ones which led to the inclusion of inconvenient dual volume pots on the Audible Illusions Modulus 3 preamp and to the innocuous grille/sock over the price/performance-…
Description: Two-way, reflex-loaded, stand-mounted loudspeaker. Drive-units: 6.7" (170mm) plastic-cone woofer; 0.85" (20mm) soft-dome tweeter. Frequency range: 34Hz–20kHz (no limits given). Crossover frequency: 2.5kHz. Sensitivity: 91dB/W/m. Nominal impedance: 6 ohms. Minimum impedance: 3.7 ohms at 300Hz.
Dimensions: 14.4" (365mm) H by 9.5" (240mm) W by 15" (380mm) D. Weight: 21 lbs each (9.5kg).
Serial numbers of review samples: 1020A/B.
Price: $3998/pair (matching stands cost $750/pair), 1996. Approximate number of dealers: 15 (1996).
Manufacturer…
While my estimate of the Adamantes' B-weighted sensitivity was below specification at 88.5dB/2.83V/m, this is still high for a small speaker. Its plot of impedance magnitude and phase (fig.1) dropped to 3.75 ohms at 230Hz, but the speaker is otherwise a moderate load for an amplifier to drive. The tuning of the rear-mounted port can be seen from the saddle in the bass to lie at 49Hz.
Note that a couple of wrinkles between 300Hz and 500Hz can be seen in the fig.1 traces, indicating some resonance problems in this region. This is confirmed by fig.2, which…
When Wes Phillips read Jack English's lukewarm review of the Diapason Adamantes II loudspeaker in the September 1996 Stereophile (p.153), he suspected that Jack's large room may not have been ideal for this Italian minimonitor. The Adamantes II had sounded promising at shows, suggesting it deserved a second chance in a room better suited to its size. Wes therefore arranged for me to do a Follow-Up audition of the Adamantes IIs in my current 15' by 11' listening room. Although I had vowed to review only budget products…
Trish and I had just closed on our dream house, which, for all its magic, necessitated a few compromises. One was that my listening room would have to double as our living room—or vice versa, depending on your point of view—so I had agreed to concentrate my reviewing on physically smaller gear. The ink was barely dry on…
One evening I put on the Stokowski reading of Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody No.2 (LP, RCA/Classic LSC-2471), lowered the lights, and sat back. The opening crescendos were stunning, emerging from a…
I think part of it was that there was so much more information with the Omega that I ended up…
Description: Solid-state monoblock power amplifier with unbalanced (RCA) and balanced (XLR) inputs and two pairs of 4mm output binding posts. Rated output power: 500W into 8 ohms, 1000W into 4 ohms, 2000W into 2 ohms, 4000W into 1 ohm (all 27.0dBW). Sensitivity: 2.25V for rated output, balanced or unbalanced. Voltage gain: 29.0dB. Input impedance: 100k ohms. Output impedance: 0.017 ohm. Frequency response: 20Hz-2kHz, ±0.1dB. THD+noise: 0.002%. S/N Ratio: 135dB ref. rated output (no other conditions listed).
Dimensions: 19.5" (495mm) H by 11.5" (292mm) W by 23…
Analog source: VPI TNT V-HR turntable-tonearm; Grado Statement, Benz Micro L04 cartridges.
Digital sources: GamuT CD 1, Simaudio Moon Eclipse CD players.
Preamplifier: VAC CPA-1 Mk.III.
Power amplifiers: VTL Ichiban and Mark Levinson No.20.6 monoblocks, VAC Renaissance 70/70.
Loudspeakers: Audio Physic Virgo III, Kirksaeter Silverline 60, Castle Severn.
Cables: Interconnect: Nirvana S-X Ltd. & SL, Nordost Valhalla, Audience Au24, AudioQuest Anaconda, Monster Cable Sigma Retro. Speaker: AudioQuest Gibraltar, Silversmith Silver, Monster…
No—I didn't try swapping in nonmagnetic screws in the Omegas' chassis, or suspend them in a pool of mercury, or anything like that. I set them up, turned them on, and forgot about them. But I found, not surprisingly, that they provided a crystal-clear window into whatever else was happening in the system. Any—and I do mean any—changes were immediately and clearly audible. As a result, I was able to quickly and easily tweak my system to a significantly higher level of performance.
I did quite a bit of cable work during the Omegas' stay, and it was always…