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Dan D'Agostino Master Audio Systems Momentum line preamplifier Page 2

Setup and Connections
While RCA-to-XLR adapters can be used for source components, D'Agostino cautions that the Momentum should be connected only to power amplifiers with XLR balanced cables.

I ran the my Simaudio Moon Evolution 650D player balanced, and my single-ended Ypsilon VPS-100 phono preamplifier from its "convenience" XLR output. During the review period I also auditioned a variety of balanced and single-ended phono preamplifiers, ranging in price from the balanced LKV Research 2-SB ($2500) to the Phasemation EA-1000, which also has single-ended, "convenience" XLR-outputs…

Dan D'Agostino Master Audio Systems Momentum line preamplifier Specifications

Sidebar 1: Specifications

Description: Solid-state line preamplifier with separate power supply/base and tone controls. Inputs: 6 balanced (XLR). Outputs: 2 balanced (XLR). Frequency response: 0.1Hz–1MHz, –1dB (20Hz–20kHz, ±0dB). THD, full output: <0.006%, 20Hz–20kHz. Signal/noise (unweighted): 105dB (no reference level quoted). Channel separation: not specified. Maximum output: not specified. Gain: +6 to +12dB, adjustable. Input and output impedances: not specified.
Dimensions: Preamplifier: 18" (450mm) W by 4.3" (108mm) H by 12" (300mm) D. Power supply and base: 11" (275mm) W by…

Dan D'Agostino Master Audio Systems Momentum line preamplifier Associated Equipment

Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment

Analog Sources: Continuum Audio Labs Caliburn, Cobra & Castellon turntable, tonearm, & stand; VPI Classic Direct Drive turntable & 3D 12" tonearm; Kuzma 4Point tonearm; Lyra Atlas & Etna, Ortofon Anna, Transfiguration Proteus, Miyajima Labs Zero (mono) cartridges.
Digital Sources: Simaudio Moon Evolution 650D CD player, BPT-modified Alesis Masterlink hard-disk recorder; Meridian Digital Media System; Pure Music, Vinyl Studio software.
Preamplification: Ypsilon MC-10L & MC-16L step-up transformers; PBN Audio Olympia CPS/Pi,…

Dan D'Agostino Master Audio Systems Momentum line preamplifier Measurements

Sidebar 3: Measurements

I measured the Dan D'Agostino Master Audio Systems Momentum preamplifier in balanced mode using my top-of-the-line Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see www.ap.com and the January 2008 "As We See It"). The Momentum's maximum gain was a modest 8dB, which is fine—so many line preamplifiers offer way too much gain—and the preamp preserved absolute polarity (ie, was non-inverting), the front-panel meter glowing green. Pressing the Phase button on the remote control inverted polarity, and the meter now glowed pink. The input impedance was a usefully high 95k ohms at low…

2014 Capital Audio Fest: Day One

Stalking the halls to experience 38 rooms at Capital AudioFest in three days feels like trying to see the whole Smithsonian in one day. When I got back to my room tonight my ears were ringing from the rock-concert volume levels played in most rooms. My eyes were spinning from trying to read upside down name tags scribbled with Sharpies. But because I have been an exhibitor so many times, I remember that the most important thing I can do is recognize and respect the hope and effort (and money) all these exhibitors and organizers have invested.

Deciding to participate, making all the…

2014 Capital Audio Fest: Day Two

Hold an audio show in a hotel? VPI's Mat Weisfeld was snapped taking full advantage of the amenities and listening to music courtesy of VPI's new Nomad record player!

At the end of a long day of standing in halls and sneaking into converted bedrooms with little rows of chairs I find myself wondering—are there any other trade shows or hobby fairs that take place in the sleeping-rooms part of hotels? Certainly there are no others where so many are hoping so much—for a seat in the middle! This was a very intense Saturday at the Capital AudioFest. Today, the middle seats were all filled and…

2014 Capital Audio Fest: Day Two, Evening

Room 708–710: Most of the exhibitors at CAF are not big brandnames with factories employing more than 100 persons. Most are highly inspired and maximally driven "ma & pa" operations like Klaus Bunge's Odyssey Audio. What is unique about Klaus is that he appears to begin designing with a very clear idea of what he wants (precision, dynamics, and laser-clear soundstages). Starting with a cost-is-no-object design, Mr. Bunge distills it over and over making it simpler and less costly each step of the way. When he finishes, he ends up with a roughly $1000amp/preamp combination and a $2200…

Capital Audio Fest: Day 3

Room 615: I always learn something when I chat with Gary Dews and I always enjoy listening to music in the Border Patrol room. I met Gary in Hove, England back in 1994. Even then he was a fully formed individualist and working on some very sophisticated projects. He was then and remains committed to some of my favorite amp-design strategies: transformer coupling, tube rectification and choke-filtered power supplies.

The sound Gary was getting from the Border Patrol P21 push-pull 20W 300B amp ($12,750) driving the Living Voice Avatar loudspeakers ($11,850/pair) with Gary's own non…

2014 Capital Audio Fest: Day Three, The End

Room 515: Every picture tells a story don't it? Well, not really. Like I mentioned earlier Capital Audiofest has been wrongly pegged by some as a "DIY gathering," not a big-time mainstream audio show. This is my first CAF but I have attended most of the audio shows in Europe and America and I did not see it like that. Clearly, this is not a show for Dave & Dan and the people at Sony probably never heard of CAF. What I saw and heard was something very unique and necessary—a show where a group of small manufacturers could pool their resources, make good sound, and maybe get connected to a…

Listening #140

Has it really been 30 years since an engineer named William H. Firebaugh unleashed on the audio world his radical and decidedly affordable Well Tempered Arm? (footnote 1) Indeed it has—and today, at 82, Bill Firebaugh seems busier than ever, with so many irons in the fire that he's been forced to give up the noble game of golf—an irony, as you'll see in a moment.

Firebaugh started down this road in the 1970s, while working at Ford Aerospace. "That was the time when FFT analyzers were appearing on the scene," he says. "We used a lot of Brüel & Kjaer gear in our work, so we received…