Description: Two-channel D/A processor in an extruded aluminum chassis. Conversion is effected by an AD1862 R-2R ladder DAC chip, which converts PCM format files up to 24/192 via femto-clocked USB, coaxial S/PDIF, or balanced AES3. Nude Vishay TX2575 resistors matched to 0.1% in analog signal path. Schurter AC input module and medical-grade AC input filtering. Ground lift switch to isolate DC signal ground from earth, chassis, and AC grounds. USB lift switch to optimize S/PDIF inputs and eliminate clocking noise. 3-point Herbie's Audio Lab Fat Dot antiresonance…
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Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Digital sources: Roon Nucleus+ music server; Denafrips Terminator Plus and HoloAudio May and Spring3 D/A processors; dCS Bartók DAC/streamer.
Preamplifier: Lab 12 Pre1.
Power amplifiers: First Watt SIT-3, Parasound Halo A 21+, Elekit TU-8900.
Loudspeakers: Falcon Acoustics LS3/5a Gold Badge, Heretic AD614 (with custom stands).
Cables: Digital: AudioQuest Diamond USB. Interconnect: AudioQuest ThunderBird, Cardas Clear Beyond, Triode Wire Labs Spirit II. Speaker: Cardas Clear Beyond, Triode Wire Labs American. AC: AudioQuest Tornado,…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I measured the Mojo Mystique X SE with my Audio Precision SYS2722 system after leaving the processor decoding AES3 data for several hours to make sure it was fully warmed up. A slide switch on the processor's back panel lifts the DC ground from the AC, chassis, and Earth grounds. The manual recommends lifting the DC ground; it also says that most people prefer the single-ended analog output. So I performed a complete set of tests using AES3 data with these outputs with the DC ground lifted. I repeated some tests with the balanced outputs, with USB and coaxial S/…
Weyes Blood: And in the Darkness, Hearts Aglow
Sub Pop (16/44.1, Qobuz). 2022. Natalie Mering and Jonathan Rado, prods.; Kenny Gilmore, eng.
Performance *****
Sonics ****
Sub Pop (16/44.1, Qobuz). 2022. Natalie Mering and Jonathan Rado, prods.; Kenny Gilmore, eng.
Performance *****
Sonics ****
"These songs may not be manifestos or solutions, but I know they shed light on the meaning of our contemporary disillusionment." So says singer-songwriter Natalie Mering about her latest album under the name Weyes Blood (pronounced like "wise," a tribute to a novel by Flannery O'Connor).
And in the Darkness, Hearts Aglow, her fifth album, is the second part of a planned trilogy. Its 2019 predecessor,…
The Art Ensemble Of Chicago: The Sixth Decade: From Paris to Paris
Roscoe Mitchell, saxophones; Famoudou Don Moye, drums, percussion; 18 others
RogueArt ROG-0123 (LP). 2023. Sons d'hiver, prod.; Olivier Gascion, eng.
Performance *****
Sonics ****
Roscoe Mitchell, saxophones; Famoudou Don Moye, drums, percussion; 18 others
RogueArt ROG-0123 (LP). 2023. Sons d'hiver, prod.; Olivier Gascion, eng.
Performance *****
Sonics ****
It's often said that you can never go home again. Places change, and you won't be the same person you were when you left. The Art Ensemble of Chicago's 1972 album Live at Mandel Hall documented their return home after a two-year stay in Paris, during which the quartet gained a drummer and honed its sound into something completely…
Dvořák: Violin Concerto, Trio Op.65
Isabelle Faust, violin; Jean-Guihen Queyras, cello; Alexander Melnikov, piano; Prague Philharmonia/Jiří Bělohlávek.
Harmonia Mundi HMM931833 (CD). 2023. Martin Sauer, prod.; Philipp Knop, eng.
Performance ****½
Sonics *****
Isabelle Faust, violin; Jean-Guihen Queyras, cello; Alexander Melnikov, piano; Prague Philharmonia/Jiří Bělohlávek.
Harmonia Mundi HMM931833 (CD). 2023. Martin Sauer, prod.; Philipp Knop, eng.
Performance ****½
Sonics *****
Isabelle Faust makes a fine impression in the Dvořák concerto. She answers the orchestra's opening phrases with firm-bowed flourishes, impeccably tuned, both in the "little notes" and when sailing in alt. Without sacrificing polish, she makes the second theme feel shaggy and untamed. The curlicued cadenzas on the lead…
Although NAD was founded in England in 1972 as New Acoustic Dimension, my introduction to the brand was in 1980. I bought an NAD 3020 integrated amplifier after hearing it successfully drive Acoustic Research's current-hungry AR9 loudspeakers. Designed in England by Bjørn-Erik Edvardsen (footnote 1) and manufactured in Taiwan, the ridiculously inexpensive 3020—it cost just $135 back then—showed that an amplifier didn't need machined faceplates, intimidating heatsinks, or technically glamorous components to be able to drive real-world speakers. In 2002, the 3020 was nominated by Stereophile's…
Listening
To get a handle on the C 3050 LE's baseline sound quality, I started my auditioning streaming audio with the BluOS app and with Dirac Live turned off. With my usual go-to recordings—Jerome Harris Quintet's "The Mooche" from the Stereophile label's Rendezvous album (16/44.1 Bandcamp stream), the 24/96 masters for the Portland State Chamber Choir's Translations, Patricia Barber's "The Beat Goes On" from Companion (16/44.1 Tidal stream), the late Lars Vogt's performance of the first Brahms Piano Concerto (24/48 Qobuz stream)—the presentation was very similar to that of the more…
To get a handle on the C 3050 LE's baseline sound quality, I started my auditioning streaming audio with the BluOS app and with Dirac Live turned off. With my usual go-to recordings—Jerome Harris Quintet's "The Mooche" from the Stereophile label's Rendezvous album (16/44.1 Bandcamp stream), the 24/96 masters for the Portland State Chamber Choir's Translations, Patricia Barber's "The Beat Goes On" from Companion (16/44.1 Tidal stream), the late Lars Vogt's performance of the first Brahms Piano Concerto (24/48 Qobuz stream)—the presentation was very similar to that of the more…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Remote-controlled, network-connected, class-D D/A integrated amplifier with Dirac Live LE Room Correction, tone controls, and front-panel meters. Analog inputs: 3 pair RCA (line, MM phono, power amplifier direct). Digital inputs: 1 TosLink, 1 coaxial S/PDIF, 1 HDMI, USB Type A, Wi-Fi, Ethernet, Two-way Qualcomm aptX HD Bluetooth. Supported formats: MP3, AAC, WMA, OGG, WMA-L, ALAC, OPUS, MQA, DSD, FLAC, WAV, AIFF. Supported sample rates: up to 192kHz, bit depths 16–24. Supported cloud services: Amazon Music, Deezer, IDAGIO, Napster, Neil Young…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Digital sources: Roon Nucleus+ file server with HDPlex linear power supply; iPad mini 2 running BluOS app; Ayre Acoustics C-5xeMP disc player, Z-Systems RDP-1; MBL N31 CD player-DAC; NetGear Nighthawk router.
Integrated amplifier: NAD M10.
Power amplifiers: Parasound Halo JC 1+ monoblocks.
Loudspeakers: KEF LS50.
Headphones: Audeze LCD-X, Sennheiser HD-650.
Cables: Digital: AudioQuest Vodka (Ethernet), DH Labs (AES3), generic plastic TosLink optical (15'). Interconnect: Canare (3m unbalanced). Speaker: AudioQuest 10' Robin Hood. AC:…