Van Lear Rose is the most heart-grabbing recording I've heard in the 21st century. One of its songs, "Women's Prison," begins with Loretta shooting her lover, and ends with her in the electric chair—symbolized by White's guitar solo. The Harbeths…
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A small wooden house in Butcher Hollow, in Van Lear, Kentucky, was the birthplace of country-music megastar Loretta Lynn, in 1932. Artist, musician, and record producer Jack White was born in 1975, in Detroit. Van Lear Rose, the album White produced for Lynn in 2004, was nominated for five Grammys and won two (CD, Interscope 80002513-02).
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Two-way, bass-reflex, stand-mounted, ported loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" (25mm) soft-dome tweeter, 7.9" (200mm) bass/midrange. Frequency response: 50Hz–20kHz, ±3dB. Sensitivity: 85dB/W/m. Nominal impedance: 6 ohms. Power handling: 150W. Recommended amplification: >25W.
Dimensions: 18.1" (460mm) H by 10.9" (277mm) W by 10.8" (275mm) D. Weight 25.6 lbs (11.6kg).
Finish: Silver Eucalyptus.
Serial numbers of units reviewed: 40THX 135R & 135L.
Price: $6495/pair. Approximate number of dealers: 30. Warranty: 3 years.
Manufacturer…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog Sources: AMG Giro G9 LP player, Linn Sondek LP12 Valhalla turntable with SME M-2 tonearm; Dynavector DV20X2, EMT TSD 75SFL, Koetsu Rosewood Standard, Miyajima Laboratory Saboten cartridges.
Digital Sources: Holo Audio Spring Kitsuné Tuned Edition, Mytek HiFi Manhattan II, Schiit Audio Yggdrasil DACs; Integra DPS-7.2 DVD player (used as CD transport).
Preamplification: Auditorium 23 (for EMT TSD 75), Bob's Devices CineMag 1131, Dynavector SUP-200 step-up transformers; Lounge Audio LCR Mk.III RIAA, Parasound Halo JC 3+, Tavish Design Adagio…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I used DRA Labs' MLSSA system and a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone to measure the Harbeth Monitor 30.2's frequency response in the farfield, and an Earthworks QTC-40 for the nearfield responses. My estimate of the Harbeth's sensitivity was 87.3dB(B)/2.83V/m, which is usefully higher than the specified 85dB. The Monitor 30.2's nominal impedance is specified as 6 ohms, and its impedance magnitude (fig.1, solid trace) actually remains at or above 6 ohms throughout the audioband. I would have specified this speaker as an 8 ohm design; it should be an easy load for…
AVTech Media Ltd (UK) has purchased the Home Tech Network from TEN: The Enthusiast Network, it was announced today. The Home Tech Network's six brands including Stereophile, Sound & Vision, Shutterbug, AnalogPlanet, Audiostream, and Innerfidelity will join with AVTech Media's Hi-Fi News, Hi-Fi Choice, Home Cinema Choice and the Hi-Fi Show Live. The new company creates a global powerhouse delivering the largest single specialized AV group on the planet, reaching more than three million enthusiasts/CE consumers through print, digital, social, video and events.
"The synergy between these…
When Michael McCormick, president of Bel Canto Design, suggested that I review their Black ACI 600 integrated amplifier, I accepted without hesitation. As wonderful as my reference system may sound, its dCS digital front end alone comprises four boxes and a web of cables complex enough to send many a spider spinning. Given the choice between connecting that front end to a pair of expensive, enormous monoblocks—with their similarly expensive AC cords and equipment racks/isolation platforms—or to a single, visually elegant, 45-lb box that costs $25,000, produces 300Wpc into 8 ohms, and requires…
I stuck with the USB-A and Ethernet inputs for digital playback. While I couldn't play DSD128 via USB-A—when I tried, the ACI 600 went silent—I could use Roon to convert DSD128 to PCM 24/176.4 before transmitting it via Ethernet.
Seek and ye shall find
Bel Canto's downloadable Seek iOS app lets you stream music from Tidal to a networked Bel Canto Black system, create and manage playlists, control volume via an iOS smartphone or tablet, and play MQA, DSD, and PCM files from a computer, external drive, or USB stick. Alas, Bel Canto offers but a single page of instructions remarkable…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Solid-state, class-D integrated amplifier. Digital inputs: AES, S/PDIF, TosLink to 24/192; Ethernet to 24/192, DSD64, MQA; USB 2 to 24/384, DSD128, MQA. Analog inputs: line 1/2, MM/MC phono. Outputs: line/subwoofer, 4.5V RMS; headphones, 4.5V RMS maximum, 32 ohms minimum impedance. Two pairs WBT NextGen five-way speaker binding posts. Power output: 300W into 8 ohms (24.8dBW), 600W into 4 ohms (24.8dBW). Peak output current: 27A. Minimum load: 2 ohms. Frequency response: 0.5Hz–50kHz, ±3dB, all loads. THD+N: 0.001%, 1W, 1kHz, 4 ohms (overall); 0.003…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Digital Sources: dCS Paganini SACD/CD transport & Scarlatti clock & Vivaldi DAC & Network Bridge network player; Mytek HiFi Manhattan II DAC; Intel NUC7i7BNH computer with 8GB RAM, 128GB SSD running Roon; iPad Pro, external hard drives, USB sticks.
Power Amplifiers: Pass Laboratories XA200.8 monoblocks.
Loudspeakers: Wilson Audio Specialties Alexia.
Cables: Digital: AudioQuest Diamond (FireWire, Ethernet), Wireworld Platinum Starlight Cat8 (Ethernet), Nordost Odin 1 & Odin 2 & Valhalla 2 (USB). Interconnect, Speaker, AC:…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I measured Bel Canto Design's Black ACI 600 using my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 "As We See It"). Usually, before I test an amplifier, I precondition it with both channels driving a 1kHz tone at one-third power into 8 ohms for an hour, but this is relevant only for an amplifier with a conventional output stage. As the ACI 600 uses class-D output modules, I began testing it soon after turning it on. However, as class-D amplifiers produce RF noise that could drive my analyzer's input circuitry into slew-rate limiting, I inserted, between the…