Bruckner: Symphony 9
Claudio Abbado, Lucerne Festival Orchestra
Deutsche Grammophon 479 3441 (CD, 48/24 download from HDTracks). 2014. Georg Obermayer, prod., ed.; Urs Dürr, Toine Mertens, engs. DDD. TT: 63:09
Performance *****
Sonics ****½
This performance of Bruckner's last, all-but-finished composition was recorded at the last concert conducted by Claudio Abbado. It is a fitting final statement by an interpreter of unparalleled sensitivity, intelligence, and taste.
The Ninth is no serene work, and Abbado's earlier recording, with the Vienna Philharmonic, is a…
Hunter S. Thompson once wrote, "If you work in either journalism or politics . . . you will be flogged for being right and flogged for being wrong." I was reminded of Thompson's words when I read a forum post on our website. "Why is Stereophile way behind the other magazines?" asked "rs350z," explaining that, among things, he objected to Stereophile's supporting its reviews with measurements. "why waste the ink on doing measurements on each product reviewed," he wrote, with a disregard for capital letters. "There is no need to. I don't care if the distortion is 0.00005 or 0.00007, nor do i…
Some among us remember a time when audio was divided into rival interests. On the left side of the pond was the New World, where left-brainers believed that vanishing harmonic distortion meant that "all amplifiers sound the same," and that good loudspeakers are a high-fidelity audio system's most important components. Across the waves, so-called flat-earthers claimed that the most important part of the playback chain was the turntable. (Of secondary importance were the tonearm and cartridge, followed by the preamp and amplifier. Loudspeakers were deemed relatively unimportant.) In the 1980s,…
The NAIT 5si sells for under a thousand quid in the Mother Country, $1895 on the left side of the pond, so I figured I should switch to the similarly priced (and British-designed) KEF LS50 speakers ($1499.99/pair) for most of my listening. When it comes to speakers, I am totally new-world/left-brain. I believe that we audiophiles should start building our systems with precisely the right loudspeaker—the one that locks in to our room, makes us happy, and plays the most recordings well. I have a small listening room (13' long by 12' wide by 9' high) that lets all of my speakers play without…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Integrated line amplifier. Analog inputs: 2 pairs DIN/RCA, 2 pairs RCA. Audio outputs: HDD (RCA pair), 170mV, sourced from 470 ohms. Headphone outputs: ¼" (6.35mm) jack. Maximum output power: 60Wpc into 8 ohms (17.8dBW), 90Wpc into 4 ohms (16.5dBW). Input level: suitable for 2V sources (0.5–5.0V). Input sensitivity: 170mV. Power requirements: 100/115/230V, 50/60Hz.
Dimensions: 16.9" (432mm) W by 2.75" (70mm) H by 12.3" (314mm) D. Weight: 14.1 lbs (6.4kg).
Serial number of unit reviewed: 372940.
Price: $1895. Approximate number of dealers…
In the March 2010 issue I reviewed Dynaudio's Excite X12 bookshelf speaker ($1200/pair), then the least expensive speaker in Dynaudio's line. It mightily impressed me, and I wrote that it had "become my new benchmark for speakers costing under $2000/pair." Despite the many newer, competing bookshelf speakers costing somewhere between $1000 and $2000/pair that have visited my listening room since then, my enthusiasm for the Excite X12 has not waned—I've used it as a reference against which to compare all of those of those models. So when Dynaudio USA's Michael Manousselis contacted…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Two-way, ported, stand-mounted loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" (26mm) silk-dome tweeter, 5.7" (145mm) magnesium-silicate polymer-cone woofer. Frequency response: 50Hz–23kHz, ±3dB. Sensitivity: 85dB/2.83V/m. Impedance: 8 ohms. IEC power handling: >150W.
Dimensions: 6.7" (170mm) W by 11.2" (285mm) H by 10" (255mm) D. Weight: 14.3 lbs (6.5kg).
Finishes: Rosewood, Walnut real-wood veneers; Satin Black or White lacquers.
Serial numbers of units reviewed: 03777754/55.
Price: $1500/pair. Approximate number of dealers: 63.
Manufacturer:…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog Sources: Thorens TD-124 turntable, SME 3009 II tonearm; VPI Traveler turntable & tonearm; Miyajima Spirit (mono), Ortofon 2M Black & 2M Red, Shure M44-78 cartridges.
Digital Sources: Oppo DV-980H SACD/CD player; Puresound A-8000 CD player; Halide DAC HD, Line Magnetic LM 502CA DACs; HifiMan HM-101USB soundcard.
Preamplification: April Sound BB1, Fi Yph, Sentec EQ11 moving-magnet phono stages; Audio Note S1H+S1L, Intact Audio moving-coil step-up transformers.
Integrated Amplifiers: Creek 4330, Line Magnetic LM518, Rogue Audio…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I measured the Naim NAIT 5si using my top-of-the-line Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see www.ap.com, and the January 2008 "As We See It"). Before performing any measurements on an amplifier, I run it for an hour with both channels operating at one-third its specified maximum power into 8 ohms. Thermally, this is the worst case for an amplifier with a class-B or -AB output stage as it results in the highest-possible heat dissipation in the output devices. As the NAIT 5si's specified output power is 60Wpc into 8 ohms, I set it running at 20Wpc into that load.…
Sidebar 2: Associated Components
Analog Sources: VPI TNT IV, Rega Planar 3 turntables; Immedia, Syrinx PU-3 tonearms; Koetsu Urushi, Clearaudio Virtuoso Wood cartridges.
Digital Sources: Lector CDP-7T, Creek Destiny CD players.
Preamplification: Vendetta Research SCP-2D phono stage, Audio Valve Eclipse line stage.
Power Amplifier: Audio Research Reference 75.
Loudspeakers: Dynaudio Excite X12, Epos Elan 10.
Cables: Interconnect (all MIT): Magnum M3, MI-350 CVTwin Terminator, MI-330SG Terminator. Speaker: Accent Speaker Technology Blue Thunder. AC: manufacturers' own.…
