Description: Two-way, bass-reflex loudspeaker with coaxial tweeter/midbass driver and down-firing port with diffuser. Drive-unit complement: 6" (150mm) "IsoFlare" point-source driver with multifiber bass/midrange cone with "FyneFlute" surround, 1" (25mm) magnesium-dome compression tweeter with neodymium magnet system. Crossover frequency: 1.7kHz. Crossover type: Biwired, passive, low-loss, 2nd-order low-pass, 1st-order high-pass. Frequency response (–6dB in a typical room): 42Hz–34kHz. Sensitivity: 90dB/2.83V/m. Nominal impedance: 8 ohms. Recommended amplifier…
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Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog sources: Kuzma Stabi R turntable/4Point tonearm, EMT TSD 15 N Super Fineline moving coil phono cartridge.
Preamplification: Tavish Audio Design Adagio phono.
Integrated amplifiers: Ayre EX-8 2.0, Heed Audio Elixir, Parasound Hint 6 Halo, Audio Ragnarok 2.
Power amplifiers: LKV Research Veros PWR+.
Loudspeakers: GoldenEar BRX, Polk Audio Legend L100.
Cables: Interconnect: Two-meter Triode Wire Labs Spirit II. Speaker: 8' pair Auditorium 23. AC: Triode Wire Labs Obsession NCF, manufacturers' own.
Accessories: One pair 24" Sanus…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I used DRA Labs' MLSSA system, an Earthworks microphone preamplifier, and a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone to measure the Fyne Audio F500SP's farfield behavior, and an Earthworks QTC-40 mike for its nearfield responses. I left off the grille for the measurements. I used Dayton Audio's DATS V2 system to measure the impedance magnitude and electrical phase angle.
Fyne Audio specifies the F500SP's sensitivity as a high 90dB/2.83/m. My estimate was 87dB(B)/2.83V/m. The F500SP's impedance is specified as 8 ohms; I found that the impedance magnitude (fig.1,…
In the annals of jazz, Charles Mingus—bassist, pianist, composer, bandleader, unique, headstrong, and deeply influential in every category—occupies the transit point between Duke Ellington and the post-'60s avant-garde, a station he carved out deliberately. He venerated Ellington—his sophisticated rhythms and tonal colors, but also his attention to melody, harmony, and structure—and went beyond him (careened down a different path) in expressing emotion, chaos, and anger; it's these elements that the avant-gardists took from him, while abandoning (to a degree that intrigued but also…
Called "the phantom" by fellow musicians and dubbed the "bearded, goateed astronaut of the tenor sax" by a close friend, trumpeter Kenny Dorham, the enigmatic Joe Henderson recorded five albums for the Blue Note label that are uniformly regarded as jazz classics. Mosaic Records has gathered those records—Page One, Our Thing, In 'n Out, Inner Urge, Mode for Joe—plus Henderson's sideman dates and alternate takes for Blue Note for a limited-edition, five-CD box set, The Complete Joe Henderson Blue Note Studio Sessions (Mosaic Records MD5-271).
Henderson's music on Blue Note is cerebral but…
There are words that, for reasons I can't fathom, I cannot stand. One such is "dongle." So when Bluebird Music's PR rep emailed me to ask if I would be interested in reviewing a new dongle from Chinese company Questyle Audio, I shuddered. But I must admit that "dongle" rolls off the tongue a lot more readily than "portable USB D/A headphone amplifier." I put aside my grammatical quibble and agreed to a review.
The M12
Priced at $139.99, the tiny, 2"-long M12 Mobile Hi-Fi Headphone Amplifier with DAC features a case machined from aluminum. On one end is a USB-C port. On the other is a…
The Questyle did equally well with hi-rez PCM files. I am slowly ripping my LPs to 24/192 files using the Ayre QA-9 A/D converter. A favorite Beach Boys album is Holland (Brother/Reprise K54008), and the M12 reproduced the dropped-octave synth bass notes on "The Trader" with an excellent combination of low-frequency clarity and weight. The cloud of voices behind Carl Wilson's lead vocal was positioned well back in the soundstage. I was startled anew by the girl saying "Hi" into my left ear before the song starts.
Comparisons
At $139.99, the Questyle M12's price falls…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Portable, USB-powered, MQA-capable digital-to-analog processor/ headphone amplifier with ESS ES9281AC DAC chip. Supported operating systems: Apple MacOS, Apple iOS, Microsoft Windows, Android 5.0 and above. Sample rates supported: 44.1–384kHz (PCM), DSD64, DSD128, DSD256. Digital input: USB Type-C. Analog output: 3.5mm stereo headphone jack. Frequency response: 20Hz–20kHz ±0.1dB. THD+N: 0.0003%. Maximum output voltage: 2V RMS into 100k ohms; gain is adjusted automatically for load impedances <70 ohms, >70 ohms, and >600 ohms. Output power:…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Sources: Roon Nucleus+ server, Mac mini running Roon 1.8, MacBook Pro running Pure Music and Adobe Audition, iPad mini 2, iPhone 11, AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt.
Headphones: Audeze LCD-X, AudioQuest NightHawk, Sennheiser HD 650.
Cables: Headphones: manufacturer's own with AudioQuests and Sennheisers; Nordost Heimdall with Audezes. AC: manufacturers' own.
Accessories: AudioQuest JitterBug FMJ, AudioQuest Niagara 1000 Low-Z Power/Noise-Dissipation System.—John Atkinson
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I measured the Questyle M12 with my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 As We See It). I performed a full set of tests with WAV and AIFF test-tone files played with Pure Music 3.0 and Adobe Audition on my MacBook Pro running on battery power, and on my iPad mini using the Lightning-to-USB-A–to–USB-C cable combination.
Apple's USB Prober utility identified the M12 as "M12" from "Questyle" with the serial number "0." The USB port operated in the optimal isochronous asynchronous mode, and Apple's AudioMIDI utility revealed that the M12…