The hackneyed but not inappropriate comparison to a Swiss Army knife comes to mind—but where that well-loved tool does a great many things with less than perfection, I've now heard the Aura Note V2 do at least two different things well enough that no excuses need be made on its behalf. (By…
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Described by manufacturer April Music as an "all-in-one music center," the Aura Note Version 2 ($2500) is a 125Wpc integrated amplifier with a built-in CD player, USB DAC, and FM tuner. The Aura Note is further enhanced by a Bluetooth receiver, a pair of line-level output jacks, and a headphone jack.
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Portable music player with WiFi, Tidal and Spotify apps, 64GB internal memory, and one microSD slot capable of storing up to 128GB. Compatible file formats: FLAC, ALAC, WAV, AIFF, DXD. Compatible sample rates: up to 192kHz and DSD128. Compatible bit depths: 16–24. Outputs: headphone (3.5mm jack), line (3.5mm jack). Maximum output power: 319mWpc into 16 ohms, 248mWpc into 32 ohms, 43mWpc into 300 ohms. THD+N: <0.001% at maximum output. Measured output impedance: 10 ohms (headphone jack), 100 ohms (line jack). Power supply: 4200mAH rechargeable…
Using the front panel's source-selector switch, I toggled through the inputs until I came to PC. I went back to my iMac's Sound/Output window, and there it was: "Aura note V2." From that moment forward, all was well. The only curious thing about the V2's computer-audio performance was the fact that it did not display the sampling rates of the files I played.
Incidentally, setting up Bluetooth—which I actually attempted before computer-audio setup, also without benefit of instructions—was a breeze: In the Settings/Bluetooth window of my iPhone 6 Plus, the paired device came up as "Aura…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Digital Sources: Astell&Kern AK100 & AK240, Pono Music PonoPlayer portable players.
Headphones: Audeze LCD-X, AudioQuest NightHawk, Ultimate Ears 18 Pro.—John Atkinson
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Solid-state integrated amplifier with built-in CD player, DAC, FM tuner, and Bluetooth receiver. Digital inputs: TosLink (up to 24-bit/192kHz), USB Type A (MP3, WMA, FLAC up to 24/96k, WAV up to 16/44.1k), USB Type B (up to 24/192k). Digital filter: proprietary, third-order. Analog line output: 1 RCA. Output power: 125Wpc at 8 ohms (21dBW). Frequency response: 20Hz–25kHz, ±0.5dB. No other specifications given.
Dimensions: 10.8" (278mm) W by 3.9" (100mm) H by 10.8" (278mm) D. Weight: 16.5 lbs (7.5kg).
Serial number of unit reviewed:…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I measured the Acoustic Research AR-M2 with my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 "As We See It"). Source materials were WAV and AIFF test-tone files, as well as DSD64 and DSD128 files of test tones prepared for me by Malcolm Hawksford. The AR-M2's battery was fully charged at the start of the testing.
The maximum output level was 1.89V from the line output jack and 3.71V from the headphone jack, both with the volume set to its maximum. The output impedance was 100 ohms from the line-out jack and 10 ohms from the headphone jack, both…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog Sources: Garrard 301, Thorens TD 124 turntables; Abis SA-1.2, EMT 997 tonearms; EMT OFD 25 & OFD 15 & TSD 15 pickup heads; Denon DL-103, Miyajima Premium BE Mono II cartridges.
Digital Sources: Halide Designs DAC HD USB D/A converter; Apple iMac G5 computer running Audirvana Plus 1.5.12; Sony SCD-777ES SACD/CD player.
Preamplification: Hommage T2 step-up transformer, Shindo Laboratory Aurieges Equalizer Amplifier phono preamplifier & Masseto preamplifier.
Power Amplifiers: Shindo Laboratory Corton-Charlemagne monoblocks.
…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I performed a full set of measurements on the April Music Aura Note V2 using my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 "As We See It"). I looked first at the behavior of the digital inputs, using either S/PDIF data sourced from the Audio Precision via an optical link, or USB data from my MacBook Pro running on battery power. To avoid overloading the April's power-amplifier section, I examined the signals at its line-output jacks without any load attached to the speaker terminals. (Plugging headphones into the headphone jack mutes both the speaker and…
Retailer Audio Den (pictured above, 2845 Middle Country Rd, Lake Grove, NY 11755) is holding an open house Thursday, March 31, from 6pm–pm, to preview the iconic Technics SL-1200GAE turntable. Representatives from Technics will be hand and attendees can enter a raffle to win an Okki Nokki record cleaning machine. More details from Audio Den: (631) 585-5600.
Graham Nash, digging the DeVore Gibbon X speakers at the 2016 CES. (Photo: Jon Iverson)
Saturday April 2, from 11am–7pm, Whetstone Audio (2401 E. 6th St #1001, Austin, TX 78702) are presenting John DeVore of DeVore Fidelity and Mike Pranka of Well Tempered Lab playing the new Gibbon X loudspeakers and Royale 400 turntable. There'll be food, drinks, and a Rega RP1 turntable for a lucky winner! Please RSVP: (512) 477-8503 or brian@whetstoneaudio.com.