search
Credible causes & cables
Editor: Point: "As We See It," January 1992.
Take a good objective look at some of the high-end audiophile claims, explanations of some claims (if any are given), and prices charged for some high-end products. Add in subjective reviewing as a whole. Total everything up. Are you really surprised that people like Dan Dugan can find followers and believers for his "crusade"?
I'm not surprised at all.
I wonder: Who appears to have a more credible case to the lawmakers, Dan Dugan or…
Editor: Robert Harley's 26-page obfuscation entitled "The Listeners' Manifesto" [January 1992, Vol.15 No.1] best illustrates the subjectivists' refusal to address the objectivists' singular objection: the lack of blindness in listening evaluations.
Rather than addressing this primary issue, Harley concocts a litany of straw-man arguments: blast instantaneous A/B comparisons, chuck the purportedly "nontransparent" ABX comparator, eschew a "test" protocol. Instead, sit in the comfort of your home before your own familiar playback system, request a friend to install the audio…
The ESP-9 is dual-powered: from the AC line, or from the input signal itself, The power supply is rather large and heavy, and appropriate in appearance to the phones. Amplifier connections are via wires with spade lugs attached, and speaker connections are made to the rear of the power supply. A front-panel switch selects speaker or headphone operation, and terminates the amplifier outputs with 10 ohms in the Phones position.
…
Description: AC- or signal-powered electrostatic. Impedance: 4 to 16 ohms. Max input signal: 12W continuous program.
Dimensions: Headset weight, 19 oz. Cord length: 5½.
Price: $150 (1973); no longer available (2016).
Manufacturer: Koss Corporation, 4129 N. Port Washington Road, Milwaukee, WI 53212. Tel: (800) 872-5677, (414) 964-5000. Web: www.koss.com.
Most of you have noticed the hyphenated numbers on your address labels, and most of you guessed what they were: Expiration codes. If your label has a 1-12 number on it (or no hyphenated code at all), the next issue of The Stereophile, Issue Number 12 [published in September 1966—Ed.], will be the last one that will arrive on your present subscription.
Statistically, you 1-12'ers comprise almost a half of our total circulation, so your decision at this point will very likely determine the future,…
Experience 1
On August 25, 2016, John Atkinson, Michael Lavorgna, and I attended an event at Battery Studios, Sony's Manhattan-based music production facility.
The event itself was very personal, as we three were the only non-Sony people present at this particular session. (There were multiple sessions held that day.) We were introduced to Sony's latest hi-res personal audio products—the "Signature Series," which consists of the MDR-Z1R headphones $2199.99), NW-WM1Z ($3199.99) and NW-WM1A Walkman players, and the TA-ZH1ES headphone amplifier ($2199.99…
The Revelation seems to offer slightly greater depth and detail than the Source, although it is not quite so mellow…
When I first heard the original Superphon Revelation Basic a year or so ago, I was impressed with its sound, if not its features. At $399, it was, indeed, a revelation—one of those rare cases in which a product name that sounds like hype simply isn't.
The Revelation delivers a superb sense of spaciousness, excellent imaging and detail, and tonal neutrality. The original Revelation (which I call simply the "Basic") makes a number of more expensive preamps sound like poor values.
On the other hand, there…
1985 seems to be a particularly vintage year for high fidelity equipment, including some that's actually affordable. I recently had to help some impoverished "friends" put affordable systems together, and was horrified to find them quite good. Nothing, it seems, can be kept from the masses.
Here, to my consternation, is some truly high class equipment which is declasse only in price. If you are looking for rock bottom prices in the high end, I would strongly recommend the Superphon Revelation Basic Preamp ($329) and the DH-120 ($…