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The Yamaha A-S3200 is a strikingly beautiful, all-analog integrated amplifier. When switched on, it gives off a brilliant, slightly warm light from its dual glass-fronted VU/Watt meters. Looking at it makes me feel good but also reminds me how much of a baby boomer I really am.

The A-S3200's sleek, knob-and-switch–lined silver faceplate triggered clear-as-yesterday memories of my youth reading Audio, Stereo Review, and High Fidelity magazines, then going to J&R Music on Park Row here in New York City…

In his September 2020 Gramophone Dreams, Herb Reichert reported on two D/A processors from Chinese manufacturer Denafrips: their flagship Terminator, which costs $4498, and their least expensive model, the Ares II ($768). Like the Holo Audio May (Level 3 version, $4998), which Herb reviewed in August 2020 and which I wrote about in September 2020, the Denafrips converters employ R-2R D/A conversion schemes. Both offer two oversampling modes—OS Slow and OS Sharp—as well as a NOS (NonOverSampling) mode.

HR was impressed by the…

In his original review of Yamaha's new flagship integrated amplifier in the September 2020 issue, self-confessed digiphile Jason Victor Serinus didn't examine the sound of the A-S3200's phono stage. It was also an open question whether the amplifier would get the best from his current-hungry Wilson Alexia 2 loudspeakers,…

Forget almost everything you know about Vivaldi performance practice, authentic and otherwise, and shush all "shoulds." Banish from your mind any thoughts that all Vivaldi sounds the same. Prepare your ears to hear Vivaldi as you've never heard him before.

Blame what pours forth, if blame you must, on the…

Join us when T+A discusses their strategy, history and future, along with an in-depth look at their HA 200 headphone amp, HV Series technology, and Solitaire P headphones.

On hand to present the products and answer your questions during the live webinar:

Siegfried Amft: Founder and CEO
Lothar Wiemann: Director of R&D
Conradin Amft: Marketing Director
Max Kirschke: Transducer and Loudspeaker Development Engineer

UPDATE:…

We Get Requests
I own several versions of Sonny Rollins's Way Out West, including an original Stereo Records pressing (Stereo Records S7017) and the recent one from The Electric Recording Company, but the one I played is the 24/192 Qobuz version.

To my surprise, the Duos reproduced the full weight,…

Description: Two-way reflex-loaded, stand-mounted loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" ceramic-diaphragm tweeter, 7" ceramic-diaphragm mid/woofer. Crossover: second-order, 2.5kHz. Frequency response: 37Hz–20kHz ±3dB. Sensitivity: 86dB/2.83V/m. Impedance: 6 ohms nominal, 3.1 ohms minimum. Power rating: 150W. Terminals: single-wired WBT. Internal wiring: Jorma Design. Supplied accessories: optional MDF stands.
Dimensions: 7.9" (200mm) H × 15.7" (400mm) W × 12.6" (320mm) D. Weight: 29lb (13kg).
Finishes: Piano Black, White, and Matte Walnut.
Serial numbers of…

Analog sources: Continuum Audio Labs Caliburn, & Castellon turntable & stand; SAT XD1 direct-drive turntable, CF1-09 and Kuzma 4Point tonearms; Lyra Atlas Lambda SL, Ortofon MC Century, Anna Diamond, A95, A90, Grado Epoch3, Miyajima Labs Infinity (mono), Grado Epoch (mono) phono cartridges.
Digital sources: dCS Vivaldi One SACD player/DAC, Lynx Hilo A/D–D/A converter, Roon Nucleus, Pure Vinyl and Vinyl Studio software.
Preamplification: darTZeel NHB-18S, Ypsilon MC-10L, MC-16L step-up transformers; Ypsilon VPS-100, CH Precision P1 with X1…

I measured the Marten Oscar Duo's farfield behavior with DRA Labs' MLSSA system and a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone. I used an Earthworks QTC-40 mike for the speaker's nearfield and spatially averaged in-room responses. I didn't have the optional magnetically attached covers, so I didn't use them. The Oscar Duo's drive-units are protected with individual metal-mesh grilles.

My estimate of the Oscar Duo's sensitivity was 85.3dB/2.83V/m, which is within experimental error of the specified 86dB/2.83V/m. Marten specifies the Oscar Duo's impedance as 6 ohms,…