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Rockport Technologies Merak II loudspeaker & Sheritan II subwoofer Measurements

Sidebar 3: Measurements

For practical reasons, most of the measurements were performed on the Rockport Merak II alone, sitting on its dedicated stand (which carries the crossover). Where measurements include the contribution of the Sheritan II subwoofer, this is indicated in the text.

The Merak's voltage sensitivity was to specification, at an estimated 87dB(B)/2.83V/m, which is the average figure for the 550 or so speakers I have measured in the past 15 years. The speaker's impedance graph (fig.1) reveals a rather lower magnitude in the treble than in the midrange and bass, with…

Jim Fosgate: Of (Surround) Sound Mind

Jim Fosgate fits the category of Classic American Inventor to a T. This softspoken, quietly intense man has earned 18 patents and founded three successful electronics companies. In the late 1970s, he pulled out of the car audio business to follow his quadraphonic bliss, and designed the Fosgate Tate 101, arguably the finest quad decoder of the era. He also created the best-selling matrix surround processor of all time, Dolby's Pro Logic II, and in 2003 won an Emmy for the Development of Surround Sound for Television. He now serves as a senior executive consultant for Fosgate Audionics, a…

Jim Fosgate: Of (Surround) Sound Mind Page 2

Guttenberg: Jim, this is getting a little weird...

Fosgate: My working method is a little unusual. The first thing I do with any design is program the circuit into my brain and emotional system. Mind you, I don't actually build prototypes or put any of this down on paper—at this point I'm working through the details of the circuit in my head. I had to finally force myself to build the first Dolby Pro Logic II prototype. I guess I was afraid that it wouldn't work, or that the whole thing was just a head trip.

Guttenberg: I've heard the first prototype was an all-tube design.

…

Audio Odyssey: Ken Kreisel of M&K

With 25 years of experience in sound recording, audio retailing, and loudspeaker design and manufacturing, Ken Kreisel has insightful things to say about just about any audio-related subject. The president of Miller & Kreisel Sound Corp. (M&K), Kreisel pioneered the satellite/subwoofer speaker concept that laid the groundwork for the home theaters of today. M&K's most recent offering—the S-150THX surround speaker system—is reviewed in this issue (see archived article).

Kreisel wasn't content to simply ship his latest offspring to Santa Fe for review; he took us up on a…

Audio Odyssey: Ken Kreisel of M&K Page 2

We had our ultra-high-end audio demo room next to our audiophile-quality recording studio and disc-cutting monitoring room, so we could record something and then go next-door and listen on the best equipment available. I discovered that there was no one system that did everything well. So I set about designing a loudspeaker that recreated the sound I heard when I made my recordings. The result was the original S-1 loudspeaker, which had a narrow baffle and was vertically directional to minimize reflections off the ceiling and floor. It was the first truly high-end satellite/subwoofer system…

Audio Odyssey: Ken Kreisel of M&K Page 3

We know that the ear hears differently as a function of volume, and we know that a lot of well-respected audiophile speakers are not accurate. So when people say that a THX speaker system sounds harsh, I'd say that there are a variety of reasons for this perception. The first is that the Home THX specification demands that a speaker play at 105dB SPL in a 3000 cubic-foot room, which is a lot louder than most audiophile speakers can play. Some designers meet this spec by crossing the midrange over at a high frequency in order to prevent the tweeter from having to deal with more power than it…

Sutherland PhD MC phono preamplifier

The $3000 moving-coil (MC) PhD, available from Chad Kassem's Acoustic Sounds operation, is a monumental achievement that, for me, sets new standards for the cleanness and transparency possible in a phono preamp—and I've had a lot of experience with phono preamps.

The PhD runs on 16 alkaline "D" cells. (I didn't compare the sound of Energizers to the sound of Duracells, but you're welcome to do so and report back.) As we all know, and as Ron Sutherland explains in the instructions, an amplifier doesn't make a signal "bigger," but basically modulates the output of the power supply—…

Sutherland PhD MC phono preamplifier Brian Damkroger Review

Brian Damkroger wrote about the PhD in May 2005 (Vol.28 No.5):

In his "Analog Corner" in the January 2004 Stereophile (Vol.27 No.1), Michael Fremer found a lot to like about Ron Sutherland's ultraslick PhD phono preamplifier, calling it "one of the best-sounding phono preamplifiers I've heard" and noting that, in some areas, he'd "not heard better performance from any phono preamp." In particular, MF was taken by the PhD's transparency and its lack of background noise and electronic detritus, and pointed out its purity of tone and "luscious, liquid, velvety midband response, and ultra-…

Sutherland PhD MC phono preamplifier Specifications

Sidebar 1: Specifications

Description: Battery-powered phono preamplifier. Inputs/outputs: 1 each, unbalanced (RCA). Input impedance: user-adjustable, 100 or 200 ohms, 1k or 47k ohms. THD+noise: <0.02%, A-weighted. Noise: <150µV, A-weighted, 47k ohms @ 50dB gain. Battery life: >800 hours actual listening time. Status indicators: Green (power on), Yellow (standby/signal monitor), Red (low batteries).
Dimensions: 17" (431mm) W by 4" (101mm) H by 14" (355mm) D. Weight: 38 lbs (17.3kg).
Serial number of unit reviewed: None indicated.
Price: $3000. Approximate number of…

Sutherland PhD MC phono preamplifier BD's Associated Components

Sidebar 2: BD's Associated Components

Analog Source: VPI HR-X turntable & tonearm; Lyra Titan, Grado Statement Reference cartridges.
Digital Sources: Burmester 001, Ensemble Dirondo CD players.
Preamplification: VTL TL-7.5 line stage; Sonic Euphoria PLC, Placette Remote Volume Control passive line stages; Ensemble Fonobrio phono preamp; Burmester 011 preamplifier.
Power Amplifiers: VTL S-400, Simaudio Moon Rock, Mark Levinson No.20.6 monoblocks.
Loudspeakers: Thiel CS6.
Cables: Nirvana S-X Ltd., Audience Au24, Nordost Valhalla, Silversmith Silver interconnects and…