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The Uncertainty Principle Postscript February 2020

Postscript—February 2020

A quarter of a century later, we can ask what has changed and what was missed out?

The article was focused on components used in hi-fi electronics, mainly analog. The levels of conformity that could be achieved a quarter century back have not been greatly increased today. A maturity has been reached. Meantime, the audio industry (high-end, the bastion of analog) is dependent on, by and large, standard parts, that are, or were, made in high volumes. But today, many close-tolerance parts, made for analog electronics and central to high-end signal paths, are…

Credo Audio EV Reference One Speaker, EMM Labs MTRX/2 Monoblock Amp, DV2 DAC/Pre, Reference Stereo Preamp, and NS1 Streamer, van den Hul Grail SE+ Phono Stage, VPI HW-40 40th Anniversary Turntable, Wolf Audio Alpha 3 SX Audio Server

AudioShield, now the distributor for Credo Audio of Switzerland, partnered with Florida dealer House of Stereo to introduce the Swiss maker’s EV Reference One speaker ($40,000/pair) in a system driven by a full suite of EMM Labs high-end electronics, with EMM’s DV2 integrated DAC with preamp stage and volume control ($30,000) and NS1 streamer ($4500) and Wolf Audio Systems Alpha 3 SX Audio Server ($9895) as digital sources. A van den Hul Grail SE+ phono stage and a VPI HW-40 40th Anniversary turntable served as the analog front end.

The Credo EV (as in Evolution) Reference One three-way…

AMG Giro Turntable, DS Audio E1 Optical Phono Cartridge System, Rogue Audio Cronus Magnum III Integrated Amplifier, Magnepan .7 Speakers, Wireworld Cables

On Sunday morning I eased into my rounds with the Musical Surroundings folks: In conjunction with local dealer Sweet Home Audio, they presented a sweet-sounding, straight-up analog setup that featured several products at (relatively) more affordable price points than is sometimes the case.

If it isn't apparent by now, I'm kind of a sucker for good design and gear with aesthetic appeal in addition to (of course) good sound. So yeah, I was loving the made-in-Germany AMG Giro belt-drive turntable with its shiny sapphire blue base/plinth of machined aircraft-grade aluminum in a "…

Tandberg 3015A CD player

Tandberg of Norway has a rather ambiguous corporate image among audio perfectionists. Long considered to make some of the best tape-recording equipment around, the firm has never been seen as a leader in electronics, despite some bold—and reportedly good-sounding—forays into the realm of $2000 preamps and $3500 power amplifiers. Perhaps this is why, when Tandberg started making CD players, high-enders were uncertain how to respond. A CD player is not a tape recorder, and (according to belief, which proved wrong) a digital signal is uncorruptible until it becomes audio—an area where Tandberg…

Tandberg 3015A CD player Anthony H. Cordesman, from January 1987

Sidebar 1: Anthony H. Cordesman, from January 1987 (Vol.10 No.1):

The Tandberg CD player is in a state of transition, and a 16-bit, 4-times oversampling machine might be out by the time you read this. Based on preliminary listening, I suspect that Tandberg may be the first to solve the problems in the Philips 16-bit machines.

The existing Tandberg machines, however, are quite good. They have excellent phase response, use top quality components, and use a direct-coupled signal path—no capacitors—from the output of the D/A converter to the output sockets. The Tandberg uses zero…

Tandberg 3015A CD player Laser Pickups

Sidebar 2: Laser Pickups

In a three-beam laser system (fig.1, left), the first and third beams are directed at the disc ahead of and behind the signal beam, at opposite edges of the pit track. Their reflections are picked up by photo cells that are physically separated from the main-signal pickup cell. When both tracking cells "see" the same proportion of the total track width, their equal-but-antiphase outputs cancel. When they are displaced to either side of the signal track, their outputs are of different amplitude, cancellation is incomplete, and the resulting + or – offset voltage…

Tandberg 3015A CD player Specifications

Sidebar 3: Specifications

Description: CD player with optional remote and 14- then 16-bit, 4×-oversampled D/A conversion. Frequency response: 2Hz–20kHz ±0.3dB. THD: 0.005% at 1kHz. Signal/noise ratio: 100dB. Output: 2V. Power consumption: 30W.
Dimensions: 17.125" W by 3.5" H by 13.75" D. Weight: 12.5 lb.
Price: $1895 (1988); no longer available (2020). Approximate number of dealers: 200–250.
Manufacturer: Tandberg of America, Inc., Plainview, NY 11803 (1988); company no longer in existence (2020)

Endow Audio T35 Speaker, Hegel H590 Integrated Amplifier, VAC Sigma 170i Integrated Amplifier

Offering a "sneak preview" before the official debut at AXPONA 2020, Endow Audio introduced the latest iteration of its speaker, the piano-black T35 ($19,900), a two-way with a patent-pending Point Array and a 12-inch woofer. It may be rather otherworldly in appearance (grilles are included) but rather unique in its approach. Basically, it consists of an array of nine full-range 3" drivers configured with a single 8" loading driver to create a point source. The woofer takes over frequencies at 100Hz (and below) via an inboard passive crossover. The T35 also contains patent-pending Passive…

Rupert Neve Fidelice Precision DAC, Phono Preamplifier, and Headphone Amplifier, Rosson Audio Designs RAD-0 Headphones, Focal Stellia Headphones, Massdrop x Sennheiser 6XX Headphones

Rupert Neve Designs, the legendary pro-audio maker of recording studio consoles and other equipment for concert halls and beyond, has expanded its product offerings for the home-audio market—ie, music lovers and audiophiles—with its new Fidelice series, including a full-featured DAC/controller with Neve's analog circuitry and an AKM-based DAC chip inside, a phono preamp, and a headphone amp. The three Fidelice components share a retro-modern look with matte aluminum casings with inlayed mahogany wood on top, red-accented control dials, little throw switches, LED lights, and tiny text that…

Kimber PBJ interconnect

It's always a jolting, life-renewing Ka-BLAM when a new experience shatters your preconceptions of the order of things. From the moment you realize your dad isn't running right alongside you as you fly down the sidewalk on your first two-wheeler, to when you become a made man, these experiences forever alter how you view yourself and the world around you.

Okay, so maybe cable isn't in the same white-knuckled league as riding your first Schwinn. But I just had one of my longtime preconceived notions blasted apart like a clay pigeon, and all it took was five seconds of listening to realize…