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Brinkmann Audio Nyquist D/A processor

What? Johnny-come-lately turntable manufacturer Brinkmann Audio now makes a DAC? Are they desperate? What sampling rates does it support—162/3, 331/3, 45, and 78? I guess the vinyl resurgence is over! Why else would Brinkmann make a DAC?

If that's what you're thinking, consider that Helmut Brinkmann began designing, manufacturing, and marketing electronics well before he made the first of the turntables for which his company is best known in the US.

The Nyquist is a thoroughly (almost) modern streaming DAC and headphone amplifier in a surprisingly small case, its compactness…

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However, as is all too common in computer audio, the Nyquist's instruction manual is sketchy in terms of overall connectability and use. Although the manual tries to be Roon friendly, what's printed there isn't exactly what appeared on the Roon setup screen. If you're at all experienced with streaming, you'll figure it out.

Sound
Before reading my description of the Nyquist's sound, remember the words of a former audio writer who famously wrote that tubes do not belong in an audio system "unless you are a tweako cultist. There is nothing in audio electronics that cannot be done…

Brinkmann Audio Nyquist D/A processor Specifications

Sidebar 1: Specifications

Description: Streaming digital-to-analog converter and headphone amplifier with tubed output stage. Tube complement: four Telefunken PCF803 (NOS, two per channel). Digital inputs: AES/EBU (XLR), S/PDIF (RCA), optical (TosLink), Ethernet (RJ45), USB Type B (high-resolution audio). Analog outputs: balanced (XLR), single-ended (RCA). Formats supported: MQA and PCM up to 384kHz (DXD), DSD64 and DSD128 via DoP (DSD over PCM), DSD256 natively. Frequency response: N/A. THD, I/M: <0.01%. Signal/noise: >100dBA. Channel separation: N/S. Maximum output voltage: ±12V…

Brinkmann Audio Nyquist D/A processor Associated Equipment

Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment

Analog Sources: Continuum Audio Labs Caliburn turntable & Castellon stand; Kuzma 4Point, SAT tonearms; Lyra Atlas & Atlas SL & Etna & Etna SL, Ortofon Anna & A95, Miyajima Labs Zero (mono) & Madake cartridges.
Digital Sources: Audio Alchemy DDSPro CD transport; Moon by Simaudio Evolution 780D DAC; Lynx Hilo A/D-D/A converter; Meridian Sooloos Digital Media System; MacBook Air running Roon, Pure Vinyl, & Vinyl Studio software.
Preamplification: Ypsilon MC-10L & MC-16L step-up transformers; CH Precision P1, TruLife…

Brinkmann Audio Nyquist D/A processor Measurements

Sidebar 3: Measurements

I measured the second sample of the Brinkmann Nyquist with my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 "As We See It"), using both the Audio Precision's optical and electrical digital outputs, and USB data sourced from my MacBook Pro running on battery power with Pure Music 3.0 playing WAV and AIFF test-tone files. Apple's USB Prober utility identified the DAC as "Nyquist" from "Brinkmann Audio," and confirmed that the USB port operated in the optimal isochronous asynchronous mode. Apple's AudioMIDI utility revealed that, via USB, the Nyquist accepted…

Industry Profile: Kate Koeppel, Record Dividers

Kate Koeppel (pronounced kep-ul) is a San Francisco-based graphic designer. Her product design studio, Koeppel Design, is most well known for producing clean, minimally designed record dividers made of European Birch. They can be found in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, at Seattle radio station KEXP, and in local businesses in San Francisco. Stephen Mejias showed me Kate's Instagram account last year, and I've since been a fan of her aesthetic taste and organizational prowess. Her company's motto says it all: "We make record-hoarding look damn good."

Last month, our sister…

Vinyl Apocalypse: the LP Shelving Dilemma

The three most traumatic events anyone can experience in life? The death of a loved one? A surprise audit by the IRS? Your entire LP collection purloined by a disgruntled ex-lover?

And, oh yes—moving.

As 2016 turned to 2017, my wife and I were forced to move from an apartment we wrongly assumed we'd never ever have to leave, which in New York City means a lot. Perhaps we were just a tad naïve?

In any case, moving meant not only throwing away shirts I hadn't worn since high school and deciding how many Led Zeppelin T-shirts was too many, but also packing up every last…

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"If designers or individuals want a custom job," Didaskalou says, "they specify a color on their own, we will match it and they can have their furniture finished in this color."

For LP collectors who have spaces where modularity is not a concern, Urbangreen also builds larger record cabinets that can be anywhere from two to five shelves high ($239–$789). Each bay holds 60–70 LPs. They can also make shelves for CDs, DVDs, and other physical media. Custom work for bigger jobs, which Didaskalou says are the bulk of his business, is also available. He's covered entire walls of New York…

Listening #176: MusiKraft Cartridge Bodies & EMIA Phono Transformer

How can you tell a classic product from the hi-fi hoi polloi? One sure sign is when third-party developers spring up around the thing, offering parts and service intended to maximize its performance—or just to keep it on the road. Thus regarded, a few true classics emerge: Quad's ESL and ESL-63 loudspeakers. Altec's 802 and 806 compression drivers. The Linn LP12 and Garrard 301/401 turntables. The Rega RB-300 tonearm and its direct descendants.

Younger than some of the above and a lot less British than most is the Denon DL-103 phono cartridge, which has been in continuous production…

Listening #176: MusiKraft Cartridge Bodies & EMIA Phono Transformer Page 2

Similarly, with my EMT cartridge, "Just Like You," from Roxy Music's Stranded (Japanese Polydor MPF 1142), was as captivating as could be. With the MusiKraft, it was perhaps 75% as captivating—again, not bad for less than half the price. With the MusiKraft, drummer Paul Thompson's floor toms weren't as deep or resonant, Bryan Ferry's electronically treated piano not as crisp and colorful and deliberate, the sound of his voice not as meaty and present, Eddie Jobson's violin Mellotron not as hypnotic—but it was still pretty damn good, and ultimately very charming and very involving.

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