search
Since writing about Manhattan's renovated Geffen Hall in this space in our January issue, I've attended two concerts there. I thought I'd report back. The first of the two performances—the hall's "Grand Gala" concert, though they didn't invite me to the fancy dinner afterward—included works by young Puerto Rico–born composer Angélica Negrón (You Are the Prelude) and Ludwig van Beethoven (Symphony No.9). The second included works by Stravinsky (Symphonies of Wind Instruments), Bartók (Concerto for Two Pianos, Percussion and Orchestra, with Daniil Trifonov and Sergei Babayan), and Sibelius (…
Caroline Shaw: The Wheel
I Giardini: Shuichi Okada, violin; Léa Hennino, viola; Pauline Buet, cello; Eriko Minami, percussion; David Violi, piano
Alpha 881 (24/192 WAV download). 2022. Olivier Rosset, prod., edit., mastering.
Performance *****
Sonics *****
I Giardini: Shuichi Okada, violin; Léa Hennino, viola; Pauline Buet, cello; Eriko Minami, percussion; David Violi, piano
Alpha 881 (24/192 WAV download). 2022. Olivier Rosset, prod., edit., mastering.
Performance *****
Sonics *****
Prolific composer, vocalist, and violinist Caroline Shaw, who turned 40 just last year, possesses a unique gift—one that earned her the 2013 Pulitzer Prize in Music. Shaw has translated the old performer edict "Don't let them see you sweat" into her compositional craft and mastered the art of expressing complex thoughts…
"A 10" two-way?!?!" I couldn't help gasping in surprise when I unboxed the MoFi Electronics SourcePoint 10 standmounted loudspeakers, which cost $3699/pair.
Some background is in order. Using a large-diameter woofer endows a conventional two-way speaker with potentially high sensitivity and extended low frequencies. However, the large woofer's radiation pattern narrows at the top of its passband, whereas that of a tweeter mounted on a flat baffle is at its widest at the bottom of its passband. Even if the drive units' outputs are well-matched in the speaker's on-axis response, this…
Andrew talked about how he linearized the concentric motor system and by doing so stabilized the fixed field so it doesn't get modulated by the signal current, which leads to nonlinearities, ie, distortion products that, because they occur after the crossover, will not be attenuated. (The crossover filters the signal going into the cone, not the sounds coming out of it.) He also discussed how, in a concentric drive unit, there's always a limit to how much magnetic energy you can get to the tweeter, which you need for it to have a high sensitivity. Andrew came up with a structure where the…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Decription: Two-way, reflex-loaded, standmounted loudspeaker. Drive units: 10" (254mm) paper-cone woofer with concentrically mounted 1.25" (32mm) soft-dome tweeter. Crossover frequency: 1.6kHz. Frequency range: 42Hz–30kHz. Nominal impedance: 8 ohms. Minimum impedance: 6.2 ohms. Sensitivity: 91dB/2.83V/m. Minimum recommended power: 30W. Maximum power handling: 200W. Supplied accessories: magnetically attached grilles, adhesive rubber feet.
Dimensions: 22.5" (571.5mm) H × 14.5" (368.3mm) W × 16" (406.4mm) D (without grille). Internal volume: 50l. Weight: 46.…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog source: Linn Sondek LP12 turntable with Lingo power supply, Linn Ekos tonearm, Linn Arkiv B cartridge, Channel D Seta L phono preamplifier.
Digital sources: Roon Nucleus+ file server; Ayre Acoustics C-5xeMP universal player; MBL N31 CD player/DAC; Ayre Acoustics QA-9 A/D converter; NetGear Nighthawk router.
Power amplifiers: Parasound Halo JC 1+ and Schiit Tyr monoblocks, Benchmark AHB2.
Loudspeakers: KEF LS50, Mission 770.
Cables: Digital: AudioQuest Vodka (Ethernet), AudioQuest Coffee (USB), DH Labs (1m, AES3). Interconnect:…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I used DRA Labs' MLSSA system and a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone with an Earthworks microphone preamplifier to measure the MoFi SourcePoint 10's farfield frequency behavior and dispersion. I used an Earthworks QTC-40 mike for the nearfield and in-room responses and Dayton Audio's DATS V2 system to measure the impedance magnitude and electrical phase angle.
MoFi specifies the SourcePoint 10's anechoic sensitivity as a high 91dB/2.83V/m. My estimate was within experimental error of that figure, at 90.3dB(B)/2.83V/m. The SourcePoint 10's impedance,…
Once each year, since 1991, we've asked our writers, both hi-fi and music, to name two of their favorite albums of all time—albums that are, to them, "to die for." It has long been one of our most popular features.
Originally a light-hearted conceit based on a phrase that was popular at the time (footnote 1), there never was a real implication that anyone would give up their life for this music. Yet, for many of us, it has always carried that baggage. So, while this has long been my favorite Stereophile feature, I've never cared for the name.
Immediately after I became Stereophile…
John Atkinson
Brahms: Piano Concerto No.1; Four Ballades & Piano Concerto No.2; Handel Variations
Royal Northern Sinfonia. Lars Vogt, piano, cond.
Ondine ODE 1330-2 & ODE 1346-2 (CDs; 24/48 FLAC, Qobuz). 2019 & 2020. Jochen Hubmacher, Reijo Kiilunen, Susann El Kassar, exec. prod.; Julian Schwenkner, Richard Halling (Concerto Nos.1 & 2), eng., Michael Morawietz (Ballades, Handel Variations), eng.
I first encountered German pianist Lars Vogt in the complete set of Brahms piano trios with violinist Christian Tetzlaff and cellist Tanja Tetzlaff (…
Tom Conrad
Ryan Truesdell: Lines of Color: Gil Evans Project Live at Jazz Standard
Orchestra with varied combinations of 25 musicians, Ryan Truesdell, cond.
Blue Note/ArtistShare ASBN 0133 (CD/download). 2015. Ryan Truesdell, Dave Rivello, prods.; James Farber, Tyler McDiarmid, Geoff Countryman, engs.
Over the last 10 years, Ryan Truesdell has devoted much of his life to keeping the music of a great composer/ arranger alive. His Gil Evans Project has made two albums that are indisputably records to die for. The first, Centennial, gets the most attention. But…