Analog Sources: Acoustic Signature WOW XL turntable & TA-1000 tonearm, Ortofon 2M Black cartridge; VPI Scout Jr. turntable & tonearm, Ortofon 2M Red cartridge; Technics SL1200 Mk.2 turntable, SME M2-9 tonearm, Soundsmith Carmen cartridge.
Digital Sources: Line Magnetic LM-502 CA, Halide DAC HD D/A processors.
Phono preamplifiers: Blue Horizon Profono, Schiit Audio Mani, Soundsmith MMP3, LFD MMC.
Integrated Amplifiers: Hegel Music Systems H160, Line Magnetic LM518IA, Rogue Audio Sphinx, Simaudio Moon Neo 340i.
Loudspeakers: Dynaudio…
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Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I used DRA Labs' MLSSA system and a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone to measure the Morel Octave 6 Bookshelf's frequency response in the farfield; for the nearfield frequency response, I used an Earthworks QTC-40, which has a ¼" capsule and thus doesn't present a significant obstacle to the sound.
My estimate of the Octave 6's voltage sensitivity was 85.1dB/2.83V/m. Though this is what I would have expected from a small two-way speaker having a 6" mid/woofer, it's significantly lower than the specified 88dB/2.83V/m. The speaker's nominal impedance is 4 ohms…
Chicagoland dealer Musical Artisans (8335 N. Keeler Avenuem Skokie,) and Maryland dealer JS Audio (4919 St. Elmo Avenue, Bethesda) are both having open houses this weekend: JS Audio presenting Wilson Audio's Peter McGrath playing his 4-channel recordings on a system featuring new components from Wilson, D'Agostino, dCS, and Nordost starting at 5pm, and Musical Artisans presenting the Midwest debut of DeVore Fidelity's new Gibbon X loudspeaker from 6:30–9:30pm.
John DeVore will be at the Musical Artisans event; as well as Peter McGrath, the JS evening will feature Bill McKiegan of Dan D'…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I measured the Ayre Acoustics KX-R Twenty's electrical performance with my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see www.ap.com and the January 2008 "As We See It"). The volume control operated in accurate 1dB steps with the maximum gain obtained when it was set to "60." The sensitivity of each input can be independently adjusted with the Set-Up Menu, up to a maximum of +6dB. However, in that case the maximum setting of the volume control is reduced by the gain offset; eg, with an offset of +6dB, the maximum volume-control setting is now "54." The maximum gain for both…
Musical Surroundings' Jesse Luna (left) and Garth Leerer (right) flank Nuts About HiFi's Jim Lee.
If that title hasn't gotten your attention, nothing will . . . except, perhaps, the Northwest preview of: 1) the forthcoming Aesthetix Metis linestage preamplifier (est. price $20,000–$25,000), which is expected by the second quarter of 2015; 2) Clearaudio Concept Wood turntable with tonearm ($2200); and 3) DS Audio DS-W1 "Nightrider" Optical phono cartridge with dedicated phono equalizer ($8500). This tempting trio of coming outs, arranged by Garth Leerer and Jesse Luna of Oakland, CA-based…
A few times, while watching the Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra at New York City's Jazz Standard last week (and, by the way, they were as wondrous as ever), I reflected how central the pianist, Frank Kimbrough, is to her sound: his lush improv intros, the rich harmonies he infuses even in the most routine comping. (I once told him that he was Bernadette Peters to Schneider's Stephen Sondheim, a remark that, understandably, he didn't quite know how to take.)
But Kimbrough is a protean artist; his voices are myriad, adaptable to the occasion, as a musician, bandleader, sideman, and composer…
Soundings Fine Audio Video are having an open house Thursday, December 4, from 6 to 9pm, celebrating the Colorado debut of Boulder's 3060 and 2160 stereo amplifiers and the 2110 preamplifier. Representatives from Soundings and Boulder Amplifiers will be on hand to demonstrate and talk about these new products and to answer questions you may have about them. Adult beverages will be served alongside fine food provided by Great Northern Tavern. Click here for more details.
Soundings Fine Audio Video is located in the Marina Square shopping center on the NE corner of Belleview & Ulster:…
Register to win a pair of AudioEngine 5+ Speakers (MSRP $399.00) from Needle Doctor we are giving away.
According to the company:
Audioengine continues to manufacture powered speakers that are among the best you’ll find for the money. They’re a very focused company, and for that, we’re lucky. With resources pouring into a relatively centralized field, Audioengine is able to dream of and produce poignant products that entirely meet the needs of many listeners.
The A5+ powered speakers sound bold and brilliant. They seem unbothered by challenges holding other powered…
Devialet's new Ensemble system will be featured at Overture Audio/Video, 2423 Concord Pike, Wilmington, DE this Saturday, December 6. Shows are from 12–4pm.
Devialet's Julien Bergère and John Bevier will be on hand to both demonstrate and answer questions about the Devialet Ensemble System, which features Devialet's SAM (Speaker Active Matching) technology. SAM processes the music signal in real- time to ensure that the sound pressure reproduced by the speaker, matches exactly the one recorded by the microphone.
Devialet says that there are now 150 speaker systems that can…
No doubt every model in the current Jaguar lineup is at least good, if not great. Their specs speak of high power, nimble handling, blinky acceleration, and no shortage of creature comforts. Yet for all that, modern Jags don't interest me in the least, partly because I know I'll never have the money to buy one, and partly because the Jaguars of the 21st century lack the character of their mid-20th century forebears. It seems to me that Jaguars have, over the years, gone from being in a class of their own to being scarcely more than upmarket versions of everydamnthing else.
But imagine if…