search
GamuT’s impressive-sounding RS7 tower graces the cover, while inside the issue, the full reviews feature Vinnie Rossi’s unique LIO integrated amplifier, AudioQuest’s intriguing JitterBug, B&W’s affordable 683 S2 speaker, and the high-performance Acoustic Signature Triple X turntable. We take a second look at Wilson Benesch's high-performance minimonitor; assemble three high-performance desktop systems at three price levels; offer three cost-free tips for getting the best from your system; and interview iconic English singer/songwriter/guitarist Richard Thompson. And there’s more—much more…
While the AT-OC9 bears the Audio-Technica logo, you won't find a sample of this moving-coil cartridge at your friendly Audio-Technica dealership. The US distributor of Audio-Technica products has apparently decided that their market does not include high-end cartridges. A quick perusal of the latest Audio directory issue (October 1988) lists the most expensive AT cartridge at $295, with no moving-coils in sight. When I first heard of the AT-OC9, the only reasonably accessible source, short of Japan, was Audio-Technica in the UK. A quick phone call and follow-up letter resulted in a review…
The availability of the Pacific Microsonics High Definition Compatible Digital (HDCD®) PMD100 decoder chip, manufactured by San Jose's VLSI Technology, has brought about a minor revolution in Compact Disc playback. It brings sonic improvements in imaging, soundstaging, and resolution of detail. In the past six months, Stereophile has published a number of reports on the HDCD decoder's operation, what HDCD recordings are available, and the improvements brought by the HDCD chip to specific digital audio processors (footnote 1). High-end manufacturers are incorporating the $40 HDCD chip in their…
Sidebar 1: Associated Equipment
This included the Well-Tempered Arm, VPI HW-19 turntable (this time sans the mat I have used in previous tests), Klyne SK-5a preamp, PS Audio 200cx power amp, and B&W 801F Matrix loudspeakers on 11" Sound Anchor stands. (The production version of these stands is about 4" shorter. I'll have more on this subject at a later date.) Interconnects were Monster M-1000, speaker wire Monster M-1 (mono-wired).
The Well-Tempered Arm was chosen for this review because it is known to be well suited to a wide variety of pickups. VTA was adjusted as required—…
Sidebar 1: System
For this review, I compared the Adcom GFA-700 with the EAD DSP-1000 and the Audio Alchemy DDE v3.0 HDCD decoder fed through its I2S bus by a DTI 2.0 digital jitter reduction unit. Both standard and HDCD-encoded CDs were played on a Krell turntable. For an overall collection of superbly recorded HDCD-encoded music, I used the HDCD Sampler Volume 2 (Reference RR-90CD), which includes classical, jazz, and a selection of three musical samples recorded with and without HDCD for comparison. A single 75 ohm digital-specific Silver Starlight coaxial cable was run from the…
Sidebar 2: Measurements:
Measurements were made with the spot frequency bands on the new CBS STR-330 test disc, backed up by the older CBS STR-100. The latter generally showed a greater high-end rise than the former in the frequency-response readings, and the results presented in the reviews are those given by the more recent recording. Test-record results provide useful information, but they are not an absolute. Test records from different sources invariably give slightly different results. STR-100 was used to assess crosstalk, and trackability was measured at 300Hz using the Audio-…
Sidebar 2: Measurements
The Adcom GDA-700 had a maximum output level of 4.44V from the balanced outputs and 2.1V from the single-ended jacks. The output impedance was a low 78 ohms (unbalanced) and 156 ohms (balanced). DC levels were low (2.9mV left channel, 1.3mV right channel), and the unit doesn't invert absolute polarity. The GDA-700 also had no trouble decoding 32kHz and 48kHz sampling frequencies.
Fig.1 shows the GDA-700's flat frequency response and perfect de-emphasis tracking. The rolloff of 0.5dB at 20kHz is slightly steeper than in many processors, but should be…
Sidebar 3: Specifications
Description: Digital/analog converter with multi-bit DACs. Inputs: two S/PDIF on RCA jacks, one AES/EBU, one TosLink. Outputs: one S/PDIF on RCA jack, one pair analog outputs on RCA jacks. Frequency response: 20Hz–20kHz, +0, –0.5dB. THD: <0.009%, 20Hz–20kHz, full-scale. S/N ratio: 106db (20–20kHz, unweighted), 112dB (A-weighted). Dynamic range: 98dB. Crosstalk: –106db (20Hz–20kHz). Linearity: >1dB at –100dB. Filtering: Pacific Microsonics PMD100 oversampling with HDCD decoding. Analog output voltage: 2.234V RMS at full scale. Power consumption: 25W.
…
Miles Davis has been dead for nearly a quarter century, but, as he predicted in his rowdy memoir, the record companies keep rolling out product in his name. Not that there's anything wrong with that. We're talking, after all, about the great protean figure in jazz, a man who changed the music four times in as many decades and played at the top of his game at some point in each phase, often for years at a time.
News of yet another boxed-set of previously unissued Miles recordings never fails to zap the juices of anticipatory pleasure—and Sony's vaults, in particular, hold a lot of them.…
On paper, the 6th annual California Audio Show, taking place this weekend at the Westin SFO in Millbrae, CA just south of San Francisco, qualifies as the smallest consumer audio show in the United States. But you wouldn't have known it from the lines at the registration table at 10:30am on opening day. The place looked packed. And the reality was, given 29 active exhibit rooms, some with multiple systems, plus other active exhibits in the lobby, Friday's turnout felt perfect.
On Friday, August 14, only once did I find myself the sole visitor in a room. Often, in fact, every seat in the…