Digital Sources: dCS Paganini SACD/CD transport & Network Bridge & Scarlatti clock & Vivaldi DAC, Apple iPad Pro.
Power Amplifiers: Pass Laboratories XA200.8 monoblocks.
Loudspeakers: Wilson Audio Specialties Alexia.
Cables: Digital: AudioQuest Diamond (FireWire, Ethernet), Nordost Odin 1 & Odin 2, Wireworld Platinum Starlight Cat8 (Ethernet). Interconnect, Speaker, AC: Nordost Odin 2.
Accessories: Grand Prix Monaco rack & amp stands, 1.5" Formula platforms, Apex feet; Nordost QB8, QX4, QK1, QV2 power accessories; Isotek…
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Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I measured the Jadis JA200 Mk.II with my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 As We See It"). One point to note is that with 10 KT150 tubes packed closely together on the amplifier chassis, the JA200 Mk.II gets very hot. After a couple of hours, the temperature of the top panel by the output transformer was 169°F (76.2°C)!
The voltage gain into 8 ohms was 30.5dB, and the Jadis preserved absolute polarity (ie, was non-inverting). The input impedance was very high, at >500k ohms at low and middle frequencies, and still 300k ohms at the top…
The XA25 stereo amplifier is the latest addition to Pass Laboratories' XA series of amplifiers and, at $4900, the lowest priced. It weighs only 45 lbs, has single-ended inputs only, and outputs 25Wpc into 8 ohms, 50Wpc into 4 ohms, or 100Wpc (!) into 2 ohms. According the XA25's well-written owner's manual, it will deliver 50W peaks into 2, 4, or 8 ohms—in class-A.
As Nelson Pass, founder of Pass Labs and the XA25's designer, writes in that manual: "The signal path from input to output has been simplified to fewer components. Degeneration, 'the other form of feedback' has been eliminated…
The ancient poetry of El Din's singing is driven and supported by playing of the oud, and the first thing I noticed was how full and authentically wooden his instrument sounded. The second thing I noticed was how the XA25 revealed the vibrations in the spaces between the oud's string courses, sound holes, and soundboard. I could sense the XA25 reproducing a boiling, stream-like continuum of acoustic energy.
This is what high-quality audio is supposed to do: make the energy coming out of the speakers resemble the energy that went into the microphones, so that wooden instruments sound…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Stereo power amplifier using JFETs and MOSFETs. Inputs: 1 pair single-ended (RCA). Outputs: stereo pair of Furutech binding posts. Power output: 25Wpc into 8 ohms (14dBW), 50Wpc into 4 ohms (14dBW). Peak current: 10A (200W peak into 2 ohms). Bandwidth: DC to –2dB at 100kHz. Input impedance: 47k ohms. Voltage gain: 20dB. Distortion: 0.1% at 25W, 8 ohms, 1kHz. Noise: <50µV output, unweighted, 20Hz–20kHz. Damping factor: 500. Slew rate: 100V/µs. Idle power draw: 2.0 amps at 120VAC (240W).
Dimensions: 17" (430mm) W by 6" (150mm) H by 17.3" (…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog Sources: AMG Giro G9, MoFi Electronics Ultradeck turntables/tonearms; AMG Teatro, EMT TSD 75, Hana EL, Koetsu Rosewood Standard, MoFi Electronics MasterTracker cartridges.
Digital Sources: Mytek HiFi Manhattan II, Schiit Audio Yggdrasil DACs; Integra DPS-7.2 DVD player (used as CD transport).
Preamplification: Auditorium 23, Bob's Devices CineMag 1131, Dynavector SUP-200, Lounge Audio Copla JFET-MC step-devices; Lounge Audio LCR Mk.III RIAA, Parasound Halo JC 3+, Tavish Design Adagio phono preamplifiers; Linear Tube Audio microZOTL2.0, Pass…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I measured the Pass Laboratories XA25 with my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 As We See It"). Before performing any tests, I ran it at one-third its clipping power (see later) into 8 ohms for an hour. At the end of that time, the top panel was warm, at 102.3°F (39°C), and the heatsink fins were hotter, at 122.2°F (50.1°C). The gain at the speaker terminals was to spec at 20.4dB, and the output preserved absolute polarity (ie, was non-inverting).
The XA25's unbalanced input impedance was the specified 47k ohms at low and middle…
"Joe Walsh was in a band before the Eagles?"
Yes, oh yes, Walsh not only had a very successful solo career in the mid-to-late 1970s, in the days of "Rocky Mountain Way," but he also played in a band, now rapidly fading into history, called the James Gang.
Formed in Cleveland in the late '60s, the JG went through a number of lineup changes until becoming a trio in 1968. Signed to ABC Records that same year, they released their debut, Yer Album, in 1969. While that album did moderately well, it wasn't until their second effort, James Gang Rides Again —like the first produced by Bill…
Jordi Savall, the gifted viola da gamba player and ensemble founder who, together with his late wife, soprano Montserrat Figueras, infused early music with inestimable life and color, has released his 16th high-resolution musical history book for Alia Vox. As one might expect from an artist dedicated to promoting music as the great unifier, the 37 tracks, copious illustrations, and five comprehensive essays on the two-hybrid SACD set, Venezia Millenaria 700–1797, along with its copious illustrations and five comprehensive essays in six languages, explore the history of the water-surrounded…
Chances are, if you're a regular Stereophile reader, you're already a fan of tenor saxophonist Jerome Sabbagh. How so? Because our astute crew of writers, editors, and all-round trendsetters have their collective fingers on the pulse of music that matters. Stereophile Contributing Editor Fred Kaplan reviewed Sabbagh's 2015 vinyl release, The Turn, bringing his honed insight to bear on a recording he describes as "spectacular. Sabbagh's sax floats palpably between the speakers, Ted Poor's drumkit crashes and sizzles . . .Ben Monder's guitar sparkles or wails. . . and Joe Martin's bass plucks…