I brought it on myself. I asked to review Joseph Audio's stand-mounted, two-way Pulsar because I felt an obligation to step down from the rarified air of some of the absurdly priced gear I've been reviewing lately and sample something more "affordable." The Pulsar costs $7000/pair.
Also, I'd heard the Pulsars in Pure Vinyl's room at an audio show last year and was incredulous at their sound—how could such small boxes produce that much bass? I…
In preparation for writing a review for my website, MusicAngle.com, I'd been concentrating on a recent reissue…
Description: Two-way, ported, stand-mounted loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" Sonatex-dome tweeter, 5.5" cast magnesium-cone woofer. Crossover frequency: 2kHz. Frequency range: 42Hz–20kHz. Sensitivity: unspecified. Nominal impedance: 8 ohms. Power handling: 25–300W without clipping.
Dimensions: 15" (381mm) H by 9" (229mm) W by 13" (333mm) D. Weight: 36 lbs (16.3kg).
Finishes: Sapele, Rosewood, Cherry, Maple, Black.
Serial numbers of units reviewed: P-00067L & 'R.
Price: $7000/pair. Approximate number of dealers: 20.
Manufacturer: Joseph Audio…
Analog Sources: Continuum Audio Labs Caliburn turntable, Cobra tonearm, Castellon stand; OneDoF turntable; Graham Phantom II, Kuzma 4Point tonearms; Lyra Atlas, Ortofon A90, Miyajima Labs Premium BE mono, Ice Blue cartridges.
Digital Sources: Simaudio Moon Evolution 650D DAC/CD transport, BPT-modified Alesis Masterlink hard-disk recorder, Meridian (Sooloos) Digital Media System, Pure Music software.
Preamplification: Ypsilon Electronics VPS-100 phono preamplifier, darTZeel NHB-18ns preamplifier.
Power Amplifiers: Music Reference RM-200 Mk.II,…
I used DRA Labs' MLSSA system and a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone to measure the Joseph Audio Pulsar's frequency response in the farfield, and an Earthworks QTC-40 for the nearfield and spatially averaged room responses. As Michael Fremer conjectured, the Pulsar is relatively insensitive, my estimate of its voltage sensitivity coming in at 83.5dB(B)/2.83V/m. However, as indicated by its plot of impedance magnitude and electrical phase against frequency (fig.1), the Pulsar is an easy load for the partnering amplifier to drive. Not only is the phase angle relatively…
In the 20 years since the 300B reappeared on the home audio stage, the tube has appeared in a few thoroughly original designs; of those few, the ones I've heard have sounded magnificent. The 300B has…
Description: Single-ended tubed monophonic power amplifier. Tube complement: one each CV1673, 3A/110B, 300B, 5U4G. Output power: 10Wpc into 8 ohms at 1kHz (10dBW). Input sensitivity: ca 0.6V for rated power. Input impedance: 100k ohms. Output impedance: 8 or 16 ohms (selectable). Damping factor: 4.7 at 1kHz into 8 ohms. Voltage gain: 24dB. Distortion: 0.5% at 1kHz into 8 ohms, 2.83V output. Frequency range: 20–20kHz, flat.
Dimensions: 17" (435mm) W by 9.5" (245mm) H by 12.5" (320mm) D. Weight: 44 lbs (20kg).
Serial numbers of units reviewed: 24035, 24036…
Analog Sources: Garrard 301, Thorens TD 124 turntables; EMT 997, Schick tonearms; Ortofon SPU, EMT TSD 15 70th Anniversary & OFD 25 pickup heads, Miyajima Premium Mono BE cartridge (in Yamamoto headshell).
Digital Sources: Wavelength Proton USB D/A converter; Apple iMac G5 computer running Apple iTunes v.10.2.2, Decibel v.1.0.2 playback software; Sony SCD-777ES SACD/CD player.
Preamplification: Auditorium 23 Standard (SPU version), Robyatt Mono, Silvercore One-to-Ten step-up transformers; Shindo Masseto preamplifier.
Power Amplifiers:…
The measurements of the Allnic A-5000 DHT (serial no.24036) were performed with Stereophile's loan sample of the top-of-the-line Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 "As We See It," and www.ap.com). The needle of the front-panel bias switch rested on the C of the Allnic logo, which is within the limits for output-tube bias current. I didn't need to adjust it, therefore.
The voltage gain into 8 ohms for single-ended sources was both on the low side for a power amplifier, and slightly lower than specified, at 23.7dB from the 16 ohm output-…