Description: Solid-state D/A processor with outboard power supply. Inputs (three slots): choice of coaxial, TosLink, balanced AES/EBU, MSB network PROi2S, or USB; one pair of analog inputs on RCA jacks. Analog outputs: one pair single-ended RCAs, one pair balanced on XLRs. Volume control (optional): 1dB stepped attenuator (78 steps). Sampling frequency: 32–384kHz. Bit depth: 32. DSD: 64x, 128x. Maximum output level: 2.62V RMS, single-ended and balanced. Output impedance: 53 ohms, single-ended, 106 ohms, balanced, without volume control; 38 ohms, single-ended, 76…
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Sidebar 1: Specifications
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Digital Sources: Apple MacBook Pro computer (2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4GB RAM, 320GB HDD) running OS 10.6.7, iTunes 11.1.3, Sonic Studios Amarra 2.5, Songbird 1.9.3, XLD; Western Digital 2TB NAS device; Oppo BDP-103 universal Blu-ray player; Meridian (formerly Sooloos) Digital Media System Control 15, TwinStore (3); Universal Media Transport plus; Apple iPad Air, mini; Apple iPod Touch 1G; Apple iPhone 4S. Digital processors: Benchmark DAC1 USB & DAC2 HGC, AudioQuest DragonFly USB DAC.
Preamplifier: Marantz AV7005 in Pure Direct mode.
Power…
Sidebar 2: Measurements
I examined the MSB Analog DAC's measured behavior with Stereophile's loan sample of the top-of-the-line Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see www.ap.com and the January 2008 "As We See It"). All measurements were taken with the Analog DAC powered by the Analog Power Base and with the DAC's volume control, which operates in accurate 1dB steps, set to "0"—its maximum setting is "9," equivalent to 9dB higher than the nominal output level of 2.65V, this measured from both balanced and single-ended outputs. Both sets of outputs preserved absolute polarity (ie, were non-…
In February 2013, I was taking part in a "Music Matters" evening at Seattle retailer Definitive Audio, playing some of my recordings and talking about my audio philosophy. I love taking part in these events—in addition to Definitive's, in recent years I've participated in evenings organized by North Carolina's Audio Advice, Colorado's Listen-Up, and Atlanta's Audio Alternatives—but, as might be obvious, at each one I use a system provided by the retailer. The February 2013 system comprised Classé electronics and, to my surprise, Bowers & Wilkins Nautilus loudspeakers.
I flashed back…
And the G3s could indeed play at high levels without the sound saturating or coarsening. I could play at insanely loud levels the cleanly recorded drum samples in "Fit Song," from Cornelius's Sensuous: la musique de 21° siäcle (ALAC files ripped from CD, Warner Japan EVE016). In fact, my ears gave up while the speakers were still rolling up their shirtsleeves and asking for more!
For reasons that remain mysterious, I missed the English band XTC in their early-1980s heyday, but my friend Casey McKee recently decided to remedy that situation by sending me three of their CDs. (Thanks,…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Four-way, five-driver, floorstanding loudspeaker with vented enclosure. Drive-units: 1" (25mm) aluminum-dome tweeter, 2" (50mm) aluminum-dome upper-midrange driver, 4.9" (125mm) aluminum-cone lower-midrange unit, two 5.5" (135mm) aluminum-cone woofers. Crossover frequencies: 220Hz, 880Hz, 3.5kHz. Frequency response: 36Hz–33kHz, ±2dB on reference axis. Frequency range (–6dB): 33Hz–36kHz. Sensitivity: 87dB/2.83V/m. Impedance: 6 ohms nominal, 4 ohms minimum. Harmonic distortion: <0.5% second and third harmonic over frequency range. Power handling:…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog Sources: Linn Sondek LP12 turntable with Lingo power supply, Linn Ekos tonearm, Linn Arkiv B cartridge.
Digital Sources: Marantz NA-11S1 media server; Astell&Kern AK100 media player; Ayre Acoustics C-5xeMP universal player; Apple 2.7GHz i7 Mac mini running OS10.7, iTunes 10, Pure Music 1.89; dCS Vivaldi SACD/CD player–D/A system; Auralic Vega, NAD M51, D/A converters; Ayre Acoustics QA-9 USB A/D converter.
Preamplification: Channel D Seta L phono preamplifier; Pass Labs XP-30 line preamplifier.
Power Amplifiers: MBL Corona C15, Pass…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I used DRA Labs' MLSSA system and a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone to measure the Vivid Giya G3's frequency response in the farfield, and an Earthworks QTC-40 for the nearfield and spatially averaged room responses. The G3 is specified as having a voltage sensitivity of 87dB/2.83V/m; my estimate was slightly lower than this, at 86dB(B). How the Giya G3's impedance magnitude and electrical phase angle vary with frequency is shown in fig.1. The impedance drops below 6 ohms only in the bass, otherwise remaining above 4 ohms, as specified. There is a current-hungry…
It's Friday, March 28, about 11 am. I'm on the Toronto-to-Montreal train, checking the Stereophile website. Art Dudley has a SSI 2014 show report posting up already! A travelogue is a good idea; I'll try to follow Art's lead. Alas, the scenery is not the most photogenic, and shooting from a moving train has its challenges. For me, travelling by train has an association with Hitchcock: North by Northwest and The Lady Vanishes. I look at my fellow passengers; none of them bears a resemblance to Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint, or Margaret Lockwood. There seems to be nothing sinister going on.
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I’ve reported from Salon Son et Image almost every year since joining Stereophile in 2003, and as much as I enjoy the show itself, my favorite part remains the evening before the opening day. That’s when, in accordance with an informal tradition, members of the industry and the press gather together at the Hilton Bonaventure’s hotel bar—which also happens to serve the best food of any hotel bar in my experience—to shake the dust of the town from our boots, as it were. Pictured here, from left to right, are Peter McGrath (Wilson Audio), Mike Manousselis (Dynaudio), Lionel Goodfield (Simaudio…