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KEF R107 loudspeaker Thomas J. Norton 1995

Thomas J. Norton wrote about KEF's Reference Series "Raymond Cooke Special-Edition" 107/2 in October 1995 (Vol.18 No.10):

It's a little mind-bending to recall that KEF first introduced their Model 107 loudspeaker in 1986. KEF, like most British loudspeaker manufacturers, tends to be conservative when it comes to its high-end models. Why mess with a good thing? The Model 107 has never been a radical design—that wouldn't be KEF's style. But the original 107 built on a solid background of innovation from KEF products in the immediately preceding years.

Take the twin coupled-cavity…

KEF R107 loudspeaker Thomas J. Norton 1995 part 2

"Whoa! What happened?" I blurted aloud to no one in particular as the first bars of music rolled toward me. The left-right spectral balance was now all wrong. One channel appeared to have lost its top end, with a resultant skewing of the sound to the unaffected side. I listened more, to other material. Same result. I pulled the speakers out and set them close together. No change. I reversed the midrange/tweeter heads (they come packed separately and may be easily installed or removed by the user). The problem moved with the change in heads, indicating that it lay with the tweeter itself.…

KEF R107 loudspeaker Thomas J. Norton 1995 part 3

That quality was enhanced by a bottom end that tilted more toward a full, rich quality than punchy tightness. In this respect, it also differed from the Thiel CS7. But when I say "tilted," I really mean it. In my large listening room, the 107/2 was full-bodied through the bass range, but in no way overblown. Bass definition was good. There was no muddle or confusion. The richness did reduce the overall transparency of the sound compared with that from a loudspeaker with a vise-like grip—particularly through the mid- and upper bass.

I did note a slight sonic fog in this region,…

KEF R107 loudspeaker Specifications

Sidebar: Specifications

Description: Three-way, floor-standing loudspeaker with Conjugate Load Matching, Coupled-Cavity bass loading, and line-level equalizer. Drive-units: 1" (25mm) metal-dome tweeter, 5" polypropylene-cone midrange unit, two 10" (250mm) pulp-cone woofers. Crossover frequencies: 160Hz, 2.5kHz. Frequency response: 20Hz-20kHz ±2.5dB (-6dB at 18Hz, Q=0.5). Directional axis characteristics: within 2dB of reference up to 10kHz for ±10 degrees vertically, ±30 degrees horizontally. Position of reference axis: 40" above cabinet base, not including feet. Nominal impedance: 4…

Diapason Adamantes II loudspeaker

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder—but all too often there is little of beauty to be found in high-end audio. In these aesthetic dark ages, we have been indoctrinated to forsake grace and elegance; we all know that every underlying penny should be spent only in the pursuit of superior sonic performance.

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-…

Diapason Adamantes II loudspeaker Specifications

Sidebar 1: Specifications

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…

Diapason Adamantes II loudspeaker Measurements

Sidebar 2: Measurements

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…

Diapason Adamantes II loudspeaker Robert Harley June 1997

Robert Harley wrote about the Adamantes II in June 1997 (Vol.20 No.6):

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…

Classé Omega monoblock power amplifier

Have you ever had one of those conversations with your Significant Other that begins "But I thought you said..." and goes downhill from there? The Other's tone is condescending, and the body language—hands on hips, head slightly tilted—lets you know you're in big trouble.

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…

Classé Omega monoblock power amplifier Page 2

Love at first hearing...but will the honeymoon last?
From the very first notes on the very first album, it was obvious that the Classé Omega was something special—not just good, but extraordinary. Ironically, given its massive size and immense power, it was in the reproduction of the tiniest details and subtlest nuances that the Omega was most, and most obviously and immediately, spectacular.

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…