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When Garth Leerer of importer Musical Surroundings offered the Clearaudio Champion 2 turntable for review, I asked if he could also supply a typical tonearm and cartridge that a buyer might reasonably pair with the 'table. He responded by including Clearaudio's own Unify arm and a Benz Micro L2 cartridge.

The Unify ($1000) is a slick-looking unipivot tonearm with a sexy carbon-fiber armtube for low resonance and high stiffness. Azimuth and VTA are adjustable, and a length of Clearaudio's SixStream interconnect is…

Analog source: SOTA Cosmos Series III turntable, Graham 2.2 tonearm, Dynavector XV-1S cartridge.
Preamplification: Manley Labs Steelhead, Aesthetix Io Signature, Boulder 2008 phono preamplifiers; Mark Levinson No.32 Reference, VTL TL7.5, Jeff Rowland Design Group Synergy IIi, Ayre K-1x line stages.
Power amplifiers: Lamm M2.1, Manley 250 Neo-Classic, Classé CAM-350 monoblocks; Plinius SA-102.
Loudspeakers: Calix Phoenix Grand Signature.
Cables: Phono: Hovland Music Groove 2 (SOTA). Interconnect: Acoustic Zen Silver Reference, Wireworld Gold…

Description: Belt-drive LP turntable with geometrically resonance-optimized shape. Speeds: 33 1/3, 45rpm, variable to ±0.1%. Drive: standalone motor, belt drive. Bearing: bronze-plated hardened steel, inverted. Platter: acrylic with highly polished surface, 2.75" (70mm) H. S/N Ratio: 84dB (no conditions or reference level given).
Dimensions: 18.33" (470mm) W by 9.33" (240mm) H by 15.25" (390mm) D. Weight: 79 lbs (36kg), including motor.
Serial number of unit reviewed: Not noted.
Price: $2800. Approximate number of dealers: 50. Warranty: 5 years.
…

I lived in a very musical fraternity house in the 1970s—almost everyone bought a new system for his room immediately upon moving in. (Not me—I mooched until I could afford the cash and space for a true high-end system, which was well after graduation.) Our house was evenly divided into three schools: the "boom and sizzle" California school had JBLs; the "reserved and polite" New England school swore by Advents—after all, the school itself was located in Advent's home of New England; and the "creative school," who illegally purchased the parts and plans…

Description: Three-way horizontal, mirror-imaged, magnetically shielded bookshelf speaker. Drive-units: 1" titanium-dome tweeter with rubber surround and Elliptical Oblate Spheroidal® waveguide; 4" polymer-coated, cellulose-fiber midrange cone; 8" polymer-coated, cellulose-fiber woofer cone. Sensitivity: 89dB/2,83V/m. Frequency response: 45Hz-20kHz, -3dB. Crossover Frequencies: 800Hz, 3.2kHz.
Dimensions: 17½" W by 11½" H by 12 7/8" D. Weight: 28 lbs each.
Finishes: Wood-finish vinyl.
Serial numbers of units reviewed: NM0852-004955/6.
Price: $599/pair…

Analog source: Rega Planar 3 turntable with QR Design Ringmat, Syrinx PU-3 tonearm, Clearaudio Aurum Beta and Aurum Beta S cartridges.
Digital source: California Audio Labs Icon Mk.II Power Boss CD player.
Integrated amplifiers: Creek 4240SE and 5350SE.
Cables: Interconnect: MIT MI-330SG. Speaker: Acarian Systems Black Orpheus.
Accessories: Celestion Si speaker stands.—Robert J. Reina

At first glance, the JBL S38 looks old-fashioned, with its side-by-side midrange unit and woofer. But then you notice the metal-finish cones and the tight vertical array of the midrange unit and the tweeter, and it becomes possible, to echo Bob Reina's phraseology, that this isn't your father's JBL. One area, however, where the S38 is definitely a JBL is its high sensitivity: an estimated 91dB(B)/2.83V/m.

In addition, while the speaker's impedance magnitude drops to around 4.1 ohms in the lower mids and the high treble (fig.1), it is generally an easy load…

This can be seen in fig.4,…