I used the Sigma 6.2s while assembling Stereophile's Editor's Choice CD (STPH0016-2), due to…
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The Sigma 6.2 had a slight tendency to brightness that was more apparent the farther away I sat, and made the speaker very revealing of recorded detail. I am leery of calling this analytical quality "accuracy"; strictly speaking, it is something that can be associated with a departure from a truly accurate tonal balance. Stereophile columnist John Marks refers to such speakers as being more "intelligible," a usage I think more appropriate. Certainly it is an essential quality in a studio monitor.
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Two-way, reflex-loaded, stand-mounted, magnetically shielded loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" (25mm) ring-radiator tweeter, 6.5" (165mm) plastic-cone woofer. Crossover frequency: 2.1kHz (measured). Crossover slopes: 6dB/octave, first-order. Frequency response: 40Hz->40kHz, ±2dB. Sensitivity: 87dB/2.83V/m. Nominal impedance: 8 ohms. Power handling: 150W continuous, 400W peak.
Dimensions: 16.75" (425mm) H by 9.5" (240mm) W by 15.5" (395mm) D. Weight: 32 lbs (14.5kg) each.
Finishes: Black MDF, blonde solid cherry.
Serial numbers of units…
Sidebar 2: System
Analog source: Linn Sondek LP12/Cirkus/Trampolin/Lingo/Ekos/Arkiv LP player on a Sound Organisation table.
Digital sources: Mark Levinson No.31.5 CD transport; Mark Levinson No.30.6 D/A processor; dCS 972 upsampler; Ayre CX-7 CD player; Technics DVD-A10 DVD-Audio player; Musical Fidelity Nu-Vista 3D CD player and Musical Fidelity Tri-Vista SACD player.
Preamplification: Linn Linto phono preamp, Mark Levinson No.380S line preamp, Z-Systems rdp-1 digital control center (updated to handle 96kHz sources).
Power amplifiers: Mark Levinson No.33H and Lamm M2.1…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
The Sigma 6.2 was of just-below-average voltage sensitivity, at an estimated 86dB(B)/2.83V/m. However, its impedance plot of magnitude and phase against frequency (fig.1), which stays between 7 and 8 ohms across much of the audioband with very little electrical phase shift, indicates that the speaker is an easy load for the partnering amplifier to drive. The impedance minimum at 43Hz indicates the tuning of the rectangular port, which in turn implies modest bass extension.
Fig.1 Earthworks Sigma 6.2, electrical impedance (solid) and phase (dashed…
Along with speakers and their placement, the greatest influence on the sound of a music system are the acoustics of the room itself. With two-channel stereo, some reflections and reverberations are necessary in order to maintain the perception that one is listening in a real space. So, while many experts recommend having a "dead" end behind and near the speakers that absorbs most sound, few suggest such treatment for the rest of the room. With too few sonic reflections, the stereo image would narrow; without the aid of "room gain" to enrich the bass, the sounds of instruments and voices…
The RealTraps are the real thing. For a hypothetical investment of $2000, they so improved the room's acoustics that every recording and piece of electronics sounded better. I doubt if a similar investment in any other component could yield as much satisfaction. However, they do impose their presence visually, and the stand-mounted HF MiniTraps, so essential to the imaging, are in the way all the time. Still, even my wife grudgingly admits their value. Mebbe there's still hope . . .
SOS: Getting to the bottom
But for all the RealTraps' blandishments, I simply could not use enough of…
Sidebar: Recordings in the Round
Following the recent transfers of classic RCA Living Stereo masters to SACD, the original Mercury Living Presence recordings are now becoming available on SACD in the original three channels as well as in two. So far, I've been less impressed with improvements in the Mercurys, but only because these wonderful recordings have already shown so much detail and transparency in other formats. Here are four of my favorites from the first batch:
STRAVINSKY: The Firebird (complete), Fireworks, The Song of the Nightingale, Tango, Scherzo à la Russe Antal…
VARIOUS ARTISTS: Los Super Seven
Radv/RCA Nashville 67689-2 (CD). 1998. Dan Goodman, exec. prod.; Steve Berlin, prod.; Dave McNair, eng.; Fred Rennert, Steve Gamberoni, asst. engs. AAD? TT: 41:36
Performance ****?
Sonics ****
Radv/RCA Nashville 67689-2 (CD). 1998. Dan Goodman, exec. prod.; Steve Berlin, prod.; Dave McNair, eng.; Fred Rennert, Steve Gamberoni, asst. engs. AAD? TT: 41:36
Performance ****?
Sonics ****
Supergroups often turn out to be anything but. One notable exception was the Texas Tornados, a Tex-Mex quartet featuring Doug Sahm, Freddy Fender, Flaco Jimenez, and Augie Meyers, that recorded three albums for Warner Bros. in the late '80s/early '90s.
Three of those...ah, inimitable personalities, are involved in this new and very…
The night after we got home from the 1999 Consumer Electronics Show in January—see the report in this issue—my dear companion and I attended a performance of Madama Butterfly at San Francisco's beautifully refurbished War Memorial Opera House. It was a Tuesday evening, traditionally a big event for the Opera's benefactors. From our box seats, we had an excellent view of a production musically sumptuous and visually austere—and of a sea of gray and balding heads.
During intermission, I attempted a rough estimation of the crowd's age. My guess: the majority were well beyond 60, and a…
Letters in response appeared in the June and July 1999 issues of Stereophile
Can you blame Gen-Xers?
Editor: My compliments on two excellent columns in your April issue: "As We See It" and "The Final Word." I think Larry Archibald's "Final Word" answered some of the questions posed in Barry Willis' "As We See It." I'm 38, but I know many Gen-Xers, and know for a fact that the bitterness that Archibald comments on turns away many new adopters. Post a question on a website or ask any two audiophiles and, more often than not, one winds up with a verbal slugfest over who knows best. It…