The importance of Toole's project is hard to overstate. His goal was to provide a scientifically…
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After completing a PhD in electrical engineering at Imperial College London, Floyd E. Toole joined Canada's National Research Council (NRC), where he would stay for more than 26 years doing audio-related research. He continued his research at Harman International after leaving the NRC in 1991. When Toole left Harman in 2007 (footnote 1), Harman kept the work up under NRC alum Sean Olive (footnote 2)—which fact surely has much to do with the excellence of their current loudspeaker lineup.
Volti Audio's room at the 2020 Florida Audio Expo showcased the company's newest offering, the $20k/pair Rival Special Edition hybrid horn loudspeaker. With a custom cabinet and exotic Bubinga wood veneer, it easily counted among the best-looking loudspeakers I saw at the show. I also found the Rival SE's sound, powered by Border Patrol amplification, intoxicating. I placed it near the top of my shortlist for Best Sound at Show.
Not that a good Volti performance came as a surprise: Stereophile's Ken Micallef was impressed, in his 2017 review, with the ability of the Volti Audio Rival to…
Once everything was ready, Greg used my Android tablet to access some favorite demo music from Tidal and Qobuz. First up was "Chocolate Chip Trip" from Tool's recent album, Fear Inoculum (24/96 FLAC, Volcano/RCA 0886447855874)—essentially a Danny Carey drum solo. As the track began, the sounds I heard—chimes, bells, acoustic and electronic drums—were coming from all around me; some from the walls directly to my sides. The bombast of percussion continued to build, and soon I was enveloped by a soundstage that seemed, well, preternatural, while the music itself seemed natural indeed—very real…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Three-way, hybrid bass reflex/horn floorstanding loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" (25mm) horn-loaded tweeter with neodymium magnet; large-throated, wide-dispersion midrange horn with 2" (51mm) composite diaphragm compression driver with neodymium magnet; 12" (305mm) high-power, high-sensitivity woofer. Crossover frequencies: not specified. Frequency range: 35Hz–20kHz. Nominal impedance: 6 ohms. Minimum impedance: not specified. Sensitivity: 97dB/2.83V/1m. Recommended amplifier power: 8–80Wpc. Peak power handling: 80W.
Dimensions: 40" (1016mm) H × 15…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog sources: Pro-Ject Classic SB turntable with Hana SL moving-coil cartridge.
Digital sources: Yamaha BD-A1060 universal disc player; Euphony Audio Summus: Intel NUC-based music server/player/streamer running Roon/Qobuz/Tidal.
Preamplifiers: PS Audio Stellar Gain Cell preamp/DAC; Musical Surroundings Phonomena II+ phono preamp with Musical Surroundings LPS.
Power amplifier: Bel Canto e1X.
Integrated amplifier: PrimaLuna EVO 300.
Loudspeakers: Zu Audio Omen with Mk.II tweeter/cap upgrade.
Cables: Interconnects: AudioQuest Yukon (…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
For logistical reasons, I measured a different sample of the Volti Audio Razz (serial number V1, 007) to those auditioned by Tom Gibbs. (There wasn't a grille supplied with this sample.) I measured the loudspeaker'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 responses. I repeated some of the testing with Dayton Audio's OmniMic V2 and DATS V2 systems.
Volti specifies the Razz's sensitivity as "97dB." My estimate was 93dB(B)/2.83V/m—while this is lower than…
Alice Phoebe Lou: Live at Funkhaus Berlin
Alice Phoebe Lou, no catalog number. Auditioned as 24/44.1 FLAC stream, also available for download at Qobuz and streaming at 16/44.1 on Tidal. Vinyl can be purchased at merchbar.com. 2020. Alice Phoebe Lou, prod.; Paul Scheffler, Noah Georgeson, Zino Mikorey, engs.
Performance ****½
Sonics ***½
Alice Phoebe Lou, no catalog number. Auditioned as 24/44.1 FLAC stream, also available for download at Qobuz and streaming at 16/44.1 on Tidal. Vinyl can be purchased at merchbar.com. 2020. Alice Phoebe Lou, prod.; Paul Scheffler, Noah Georgeson, Zino Mikorey, engs.
Performance ****½
Sonics ***½
Nothing about Alice Phoebe Lou's musical career reflects industry norms. She maintains complete control over every aspect of her work, from creation to release. The result is always original and fascinating. Lou is at her best when she has an…
For the first time in the two years I've been living in this apartment building, I've received a noise complaint from a neighbor. Coincidence?
As it happened, yes it was a coincidence. True, my music was pretty loud, and the bass from the Piega Premium Wireless 701 loudspeaker system ($7495/pair) was anything but reticent, especially considering the tower's sleek appearance. But I was not the source of the specific noise that caused the complaint. That was the sloppy bass from another neighbor's inferior sound system. (The bass from this Piega system isn't sloppy.)
And yet, when…
Other built-in DSP functions automatically control and limit the excursion of the mid/woofer drivers to provide clean bass and avoid damage. ("It's done by algorithms where we more or less are aware of the movement of the cones and we can limit this movement, so it doesn't hit its max," Züger told me during our Skype call.) DSP is also used for loudness correction, adjusting the frequency response at low volume to compensate for the ear's frequency-dependent sensitivity (footnote 1).
As mentioned earlier, in regular use, the active 701 speakers receive wireless input from the Connect…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Piega 701 wireless active loudspeaker: Two-and-a-half–way active, reflex-loaded loudspeaker system. Drive-units: LDR 3056 ribbon tweeter; (2) 140mm MDS midrange/bass. Frequency range: 34Hz–35kHz. Amplifier power: 200W. Inputs: Wi-Fi and unbalanced analog line-level (RCA).
Dimensions: 41.7" (1060mm) × 7.1" (180mm) × 9.1" (230mm). Weight: 62lb (28kg).
Finishes: Anodized, Black, White.
Serial numbers of units reviewed: 8192, 8194. Designed and built in Switzerland.
Price: $7495/pair. (For US market, price includes one Connect). Approximate number of…