I used my Audio Precision SYS2722 system to examine the M10 V3's measured performance. Other than the maximum gain being 8dB higher than that of the original M10, at 37.5dB into 8 ohms, the analog line-input performance was very similar to that of the original M10. The source impedance was still impressively low. The maximum power was 150Wpc into 8 ohms (21.75dBW) and 290Wpc into 4 ohms (21.6dBW) compared with the M10 V1's maximum power of 155Wpc into 8 ohms (21.9dBW) and 295Wpc into 4 ohms (21.7dBW). These powers were obtained at 1% THD+noise; the specified continuous…
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Photo: Benton Collins.
In vinyl's heyday, Roy Matthews ran EMI's record-pressing plant in Hayes, Middlesex, in the UK. He even had a hand in designing and building new presses for the company. But when EMI, like most other record labels, shut down their plant and scrapped most of their presses, Matthews retired. In 2000, when Matthews was in his 80s, he was lured out of retirement and found himself once again, to his surprise and delight, running a pressing plant using refurbished presses, many of his own design. You can read my interview with him here, and see photos of the facility,…
In 1991, when Heinz Lichtenegger founded Pro-Ject, part of the Audio Tuning group of companies, he went against the advancing digital onslaught, demonstrating absolute confidence in analog record players, which at the time were in steep decline. He and his team made a remarkable success selling devices to play vinyl discs under the Pro-Ject brand and providing OEM product to other manufacturers. In the decades since, Pro-Ject has expanded to include a wide range of electronics, both digital and analog. One piece of Audio Tuning is Musical Fidelity, which was founded in the UK in 1982 by…
In the context of a modern hi-fi system, phono cartridges are most akin to loudspeakers in that both are electromechanical transducers. Cartridges convert the mechanical movements of a stylus tracing a record groove to an electrical current. Loudspeakers convert an electrical current to vibrations that cause the air to move out into the room as soundwaves that our ears and brain sense as music. [Stereophile's reviews of phono cartridges can be found here.—Ed.].
Between the record grooves and the sound coming out of the speakers, everything is electrical, but music always ends—and usually…
Sidebar 5: Measurements
In practice, the core design and performance metrics of the 600.2 integrated amplifier show closer parallels with Musical Fidelity's four-box Nu-Vista PRE/PAS pre/power combination, itself inspired by the legacy Titan amplifier, than it does with its larger sibling, the Nu-Vista 800.2 integrated.
The 600.2 may be the lower-powered model, but, with power ratings of 160W into 8 ohms and 300W into 4 ohms and in practice delivering 200Wpc and 325Wpc into those loads, respectively (ref. 1kHz at <1% THD), it could never be described correctly as low-powered…
Sidebar 2: What's a Nuvistor?
In his introduction to this review, Martin Colloms describes nuvistors as "small, metal-clad vacuum tubes introduced in 1959 to compete with bipolar-junction transistors." Martin's description is perfectly accurate, but there is more to be said. The nuvistor was created to overcome the shortcomings inherent in run-of-the-mill vacuum tubes: size, reliability, microphony, and so on. If you've heard of vacuum tubes on fighter jets, they were probably nuvistors. The Russian MiG-25, which was famously flown to Japan by a defecting pilot in 1976, used…
Sidebar 3: Specifications
Description: Integrated amplifier with dimmable color display, remote control, dual-mono inputs and preamp circuits, output stage class-AB biased into class-A to about 10W, laser-trimmed volume control with 0.5dB increments. Line inputs: Four stereo pairs single-ended (RCA) and balanced (XLR). Outputs: Two pair 4mm banana plug/binding posts; stereo pair line-level fixed on RCA, stereo pair line-level fixed on XLR; stereo pair line-level variable on RCA. Input impedance: 100k ohms single-ended and balanced. Power output: 160Wpc into 8 ohms (22dBW), 300Wpc into 4…
Sidebar 1: Heinz Lichtenegger and Nu-Vista
The Musical Fidelity Nu-Vista 600.2 is the latest component in what HeinzLichtenegger, CEO of Audio Tuning Vertriebs GmbH, parent company of Musical Fidelity, Pro-Ject, and other brands, describes as a complete range of Nu-Vista products dubbed "Nu-Vista by Musical Fidelity." His 45 years in the hi-fi industry have shown him, he told Stereophile, the benefits of launching complete series, with options at different price points.
The series started off with the flagship PRE preamp and the partnering PAS stereo amplifier, each with…
Sidebar 4: Associated Equipment
Analog sources: Linn Sondek LP12 turntable with Keel chassis, Karousel main bearing, Radikal motor control, Naim ARO tonearm, and Lyra Delos cartridge.
Digital sources: Naim UnitiCore network server and S/PDIF source; Roon Nucleus+; Naim ND555 Streamer-DAC with dual 555PS(DR) power supplies; Ariston CD transport.
Phono preamplifier: Naim SuperLine-SuperCap DR.
Line preamplifier: Townshend Allegri Reference.
Power amplifier: Naim NAP 250 (2023/4 series).
Loudspeakers: BBC LS3/5a 15 ohm (Marshall), FinkTeam KIM, Wilson Audio Specialties…
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SM900:
The SM900 is…