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Alexander: The MR70 is an unusual machine in that, first of all, it was the last tube machine that Ampex ever made, but second, it was never marketed. They put three years of solid R&D into the project in the mid '60s, selecting parts that would be typical of some high-end audio company today: they used gold connectors, they selected the capacitors, in fact all passive components, on the basis of sound quality as well as long-term reliability. They used the very best components that money could buy at that time. The cast frame on to which the transport is mounted is probably one of the…
The Musicians: Richard Lehnert
The Flutist: Gary Woodward, first a student at USC, where he got his Master's Degree in the flute, has now been teaching flute there for five years. During a break in the recording sessions, Gary and I sat down while JA was carrying out some urgent repair work on one of the tube microphones and talked about how long he had been gigging professionally.
Gary Woodward: My first professional job here in Los Angeles was in 1976, in a Broadway show called Baker's Wife. I did the American Ballet Theater that year as well. That kind of got me started. Now I…
Lehnert: Why would you use a platinum flute instead of a silver, wooden, or gold flute?
Woodward: The sound and character of each of these flutes is very, very different. The platinum has a very solid core to the sound that I really like. Within that core there is also a vast flexibility—a myriad of colors that can be found, interesting colors that you don't find in a silver flute, or even a gold flute. Gold flutes are so popular these days; Rampal, of course, has played on his gold Haynes for so long, as has Galway.
Lehnert: Have you played a modern wooden flute at all?
…
Woodward: Right. I play in a chamber music group called Xtet. "X" can equal any number, from a solo instrument to all 12 members of the group. The main thrust of Xtet is newer pieces, at least 20th-century pieces, and we also try to perform the best of the chamber-music literature of all periods. But one of the things I enjoy most about playing in that group is being exposed to more modern pieces and newer composers. We have two or three composers in our group; they're quite innovative, and it's very enjoyable to work with them. I've done very little with the most recent solo literature. For…
Sidebar: The Music
Poem: Works for Flute and Piano by Griffes, Reinecke, Prokofiev, and Schumann (AAD) STPH001-1(LP), STPH001-2 (CD)
Gary Woodward, flute—Brooks Smith, piano
[1] Griffes: Poem 9:01 (LP, Side One)
Reinecke: Sonata in E ("Undine"), Op.167 19:51 (LP, Side One)
[2] Allegro 6:44
[3]Allegretto vivace 3:36
[4] Andante tranquillo 3:14
[5] Allegro molto agitato 6:04
Prokofiev: Sonata in D for flute & piano, Op.94 23:46 (LP, Side Two)
[6] Moderato 7:55
[7] Presto 5:13
[8] Andante 3:27
[9] Allegro con brio 6:59
Schumann: Three…
Trickle-down technology is a grand thing. It's comparatively easy to build an exceptional audio component when there are no constraints on technology, cost, user-friendliness, or lack thereof, but top designers are now packing more and more of the excellence of damn-the-torpedoes components into more affordable and accessible packages. Which brings us to the Aesthetix Rhea, a tubed phono preamplifier of exceptionally distinguished lineage.
The $4000 Rhea is the direct descendant of the formidable Aesthetix Io and Io Signature phono stages, which put the California company smack…
A new level of couch-potato ecstasy comes courtesy of the Rhea's microprocessor control and remote wand: All of the preamplifier's functions are accessible from the remote. Yes, this means you can change loading and gain on the fly, from the comfort of your chair, while enjoying the beverage of your choice. Not only can you customize the settings without getting up, but the Rhea remembers the individual loading and gain choices for each of the three inputs. Given that you can select seven different levels of gain, from 38dB to 75dB, and nine standard loading settings, there would seem to be…
The Rhea's bass performance was firmly cohesive by any standard. The spatial and tonal bloom of tubes was neatly combined with resolute pitch definition. Each bassist's individual sound and personality were preserved with distinctiveness and particularity, be it Paul Chambers or Jaco Pastorius. Things were just a fraction more loose down low than with the Io Sig or the Steelhead, but there was no shortage of power or pitch certainty.
The Rhea was a shade softer and darker than life in the top half-octave or so of the treble range, perhaps, but there was still more than enough resolution…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Tubed phono preamplifier. Tube complement: V1 & V2, 12AX7LP; V3 & V4, 12AX7WB; V5, 6922 (6DJ8). Functions: standby, input selection, cartridge demagnetizer, gain, loading, mute, display. Gain settings (dB): 75, 68, 62, 56, 50, 44, 38, Off. Loading settings (ohms): 47k, 10k, 5k, 2.5k, 1k, 500, 250, 125, 75. No other specifications given. Power consumption: 20W standby, 100W active.
Dimensions: 18" W by 4 3/8" H by 17 5/8" D. Weight: 39 lbs (17.5kg) shipping.
Serial number of unit reviewed: 1894.
Price: $4000. Approximate number of…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog sources: SOTA Cosmos Series III turntable, Graham 2.2 tonearm, Dynavector XV-1S cartridge; Clearaudio Champion 2 turntable with Unify tonearm, Benz L2 cartridge.
Preamplification: Manley Labs Steelhead, Aesthetix Io Signature phono preamplifiers; VTL TL-7.5, Balanced Audio Technology VK-51 SE, Aesthetix Calypso line stages.
Power amplifiers: Lamm M2.1, Manley 250 Neo-Classic monoblocks; Hovland Radia, Plinius SA-102.
Loudspeakers: Calix Phoenix Grand Signature, EgglestonWorks Andra II.
Cables: Phono: Hovland Music Groove 2 (SOTA),…