The Anthem Integrated 1 couldn't be more different from the similarly priced Linn Majik-I integrated amplifier that I review…
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Sonic Frontiers makes much of their use of expensive, top-grade components in their products. Though the Integrated 1 doesn't have quite the parts pedigree of Sonic Frontiers' more expensive products, inside are found tweaky parts you wouldn't expect to see in a $1295 integrated amplifier: MIT and WIMA film- and metalized-polypropylene caps, Noble pots, Roderstein and Holco metal-film resistors, high-quality gold-plated RCA jacks, and Kimber internal wiring.
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: All-tube integrated amplifier. Tube complement: four 12AX7, one 12AT7, eight EL84. Inputs: four line, one tape loop, power amplifier in (all unbalanced on RCA jacks); phono input optional. Outputs: preamplifier out (line level, unbalanced), separate 4 ohm and 8 ohm loudspeaker terminals on 5-way binding posts. Power output: 25Wpc continuous into 4 or 8 ohms (14dBW/11dBW) with both channels driven from 30Hz to 15kHz at 1% THD. Frequency response: 15Hz–100kHz (–3dB) at rated power; 15Hz–150kHz (–3dB) at 1W. Signal/Noise ratio (ref. 25W): >83dB A-…
Sidebar 2: System context
I auditioned the amplifiers in my new (and temporary) smaller listening room with two pair of loudspeakers: the Aerial 5 ($1295/pair) and Linn's $795/pair Tukan, both mounted on the Aerial stands. Loudspeaker cables were bi-wired MIT Terminator 2, or a bi-wired run of AudioQuest Midnight/Argent.
The analog source was a heavily modified Well Tempered Turntable and Lary Pederson–modified Well Tempered Arm fitted with an AudioQuest AQ7000nsx cartridge.
Digital front-end was a Sonic Frontiers SFCD-1 CD player feeding the amplifiers through a 1m run…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
As you might expect from an amplifier with 12 tubes, the Integrated 1 ran very hot. The line input impedance measured 49k ohms, the phono impedance 30k ohms. Along with its lowish gain of 44dB, this mandates using a moving-magnet cartridge. Maximum voltage gain from the line input was a very high 33dB. Phono overload at 1kHz was high at 100mV. The Integrated 1's line stage and power-amplifer stage invert polarity; the phono stage does not. That means the Integrated 1 is inverting through the phono and line inputs when used as an integrated amplifier or…
A 50-year-old corroded meter box with aluminum wire.
Rex Hungerford, Edward DeVito, and Craig Bradley rode into town last week and, together with Audioquest's Garth Powell, solved all the electrical problems that have plagued my audio system for years.
Garth Powell, a name familiar to many Stereophile readers, is AudioQuest's electricity guru and designer of the Niagara series of power conditioners; he is also responsible for the company's line of AC and signal cables. Bradley is a local electrician and audio enthusiast who has done electrical work for me in the past, including…
Two circuits would feed a 4-gang AC receptacle box located behind the amplifiers; each amplifier would have its own dedicated 20A circuit. The other two would feed another 4-gang box located behind the equipment rack.
This should have been done 20 years ago when I moved into this house! According to Hungerford's synopsis, the now-corroded electrical infrastructure was assembled in the 1970s and included all-aluminum wire. The subpanel used a decade ago to create the then-new dedicated circuit for the audio system featured 3-wire, metal-clad cabling that does not allow for an isolated…
We audiophiles so frequently get caught up in the pursuit of perfection that some have attempted to rebrand high-end audio as "perfectionist audio." But is it even possible for a single piece of audio gear, let alone an entire audio system, to attain perfection when there's no common agreement as to what "perfection" means? It's easier to cue up a Nirvana track than to find the way to audio nirvana.
Nonetheless, the journey toward sonic perfection continues to grip many of us like a Siren who lures sailors to their death with the sweetness of her song. For some who listen closely and…
After a brief listen, Bill encouraged me to try setting up the Progression M550s and Momentum HD preamp the same way they're set up at D'Agostino's Arizona factory, with the electronics resting on their attached rubber feet. I'd always preferred the effects of aftermarket supports to those rubber feet, but those that sounded best had been discontinued and returned to the distributor. I was curious to learn if returning to the rubber feet might help address some longstanding issues in my system.
During my first listens after Bill departed, I discovered that the lower midrange had lost…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Solid state class-AB mono power amplifier. Inputs: XLR. Outputs: Custom binding posts. Power: 550W into 8 ohms, 1100W into 4 ohm, 2200W into 2 ohms (all 27.4dBW). Frequency response: 1Hz–80kHz, –1dB; 20Hz–20kHz, ±0.01dB. Input impedance: 100k ohms. Output impedance: 0.1 ohm. S/N ratio: 105dB A-weighted, 75dB unweighted. (These are transposed on the manufacturer's website.) Distortion: 0.15% at 1kHz at 550W into 8 ohms. Power draw at idle: 80W.
Dimensions: 17.875" (454mm) W × 9.0" (230 mm) H × 23" (584mm) D. Weight: 115lb (52.2kg).
Finish:…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Digital sources: dCS Rossini SACD/CD transport, Rossini DAC, and Rossini Clock; Synology 5-bay 1019+ NAS, Roon Nucleus+ music server, Uptone Audio etherRegen, Small Green Computer Sonore opticalModules (2) and Deluxe opticalModule, Linksys routers (2), and Arris modem, all powered by HDPlex 300 four-component linear power supplies (3) and HDPlex 200 LPS; Apple 2017 iPad Pro and 2017 Macbook Pro laptop with 2.8 GHz Intel i7, SSD, 16GB RAM.
Preamplifier: Dan D'Agostino Momentum HD.
Power amplifiers: Wilson Audio Specialties Alexia 2 with Acoustic…