This can be seen in fig.4,…
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A primary reason you almost always see modern speakers using a vertical array of drive-units is that this places any crossover interference effects in the vertical plane, where they will be both predictable and have minimal effect on the speaker's perceived balance. When you place drive-units side by side, however, there will be suckouts to the speaker's sides, due to destructive interference when the path difference to the listening or measuring position combines with the phase shift due to the crossover to give cancellation of the two drive-units' outputs.
The following letter was received in response:
The JBL heritage
Editor: I was very pleasantly surprised to find the review of the JBL S38 in the June 2001 Stereophile. I can't help but think that this brand has been unfairly written off as "mid-fi" for the past two decades. In fact, Lansing speakers defined the High End as early as 1930s and JBL has never left that market. James B Lansing's Iconic of 1937 was the laboratory reference standard for loudspeakers at CBS, NBC, and UCLA, and was recognized as the finest speaker available for home use. The 1950s saw the JBL Hartsfield…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Linn Sondek LP12: Two-speed (33 1/3, 45rpm), belt-drive turntable with three-point sprung subchassis.
Dimensions: 17.5" (450mm) W by 6" (155mm) H by 14" (360mm) D. Weight: 28.6 lbs (13kg).
Serial number of unit reviewed: 093956.
Price: $2030 without power supply. (Version with internal Valhalla power supply, not reviewed, costs $2275-$2350.)
Linn Lingo: Outboard power supply for Linn Sondek LP12 turntable.
Dimensions: 12.5" (320mm) W by 3.1" (80mm) H by 12.5" (320mm) D. Weight: 3.3 lbs (1.5kg).
Serial number of unit reviewed: 722671.
Price…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog sources: Simon Yorke turntable; Graham 2.2, Immedia RPM2 tonearms; Lyra Transfiguration Temper W, Lyra Titan cartridges.
Digital source: Musical Fidelity Tri-Vista SACD player.
Preamplification: Manley Steelhead, ASR Basis Exclusive phono preamplifiers; Halcro dm10 preamplifier.
Power amplifiers: Pass Labs XA160 and Musical Fidelity KW monoblocks.
Loudspeakers: Audio Physic Avanti III, Wilson WATT/Puppy 7.
Cables: Phono: Hovland Music Groove, Graham IC-70. Interconnect: Harmonic Technology Pro-Silway III, Magic; Shunyata Research Aries…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
Other than the new Akiva cartridge, all the Linn Products products reviewed by Mikey this month have been reviewed before in Stereophile. Wes Phillips favorably reviewed the Linto phono preamplifier in June 1998 (Vol.21 No.6), and my measurements accompanying that review revealed that it was extremely quiet, even in its high-gain mode, with an A-weighted signal/noise ratio of 85.3dB (ref. 500µV input at 1kHz), and an unweighted, wideband ratio of 66.5dB, which is still excellent. The voltage gain at 1kHz was 62dB, and the RIAA error showed a very slight (0.25dB)…
Like the $29,000 Boulder 2008 phono preamplifier, the new Whest PhonoStage.20 with its MsU.20 power supply costs as much as a car. Fortunately for you, that car happens to be my first new Saab, which cost exactly $2737 back in 1972. The solid-state Whest costs $2595, so it's a few hundred dollars cheaper. But at only a tenth the cost, it comes closer to the Boulder 2008's performance than it has any right to. That it's good enough to be mentioned in the same paragraph should tell you something about how good I think it is. Nor did it come to me hyped by the manufacturer—it took me by surprise…
Brian Damkroger reviewed the Whest in December 2005 (Vol.28 No.12):
As regular Stereophile readers know, I rely heavily on vinyl for listening and reviewing. So, like untold millions of similar-minded music lovers, I anxiously await each new issue of Stereophile. When it arrives, I suspend normal life while I pore over the latest installment of Michael Fremer's "Analog Corner" column, voraciously absorbing all the hot news and descriptions of the latest and greatest. As anyone who actually knows me will attest, I'm not fabulously wealthy, so I pay particular attention when MF raves about…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Phono preamplifier with outboard power supply. Inputs & outputs: 1 each, unbalanced (RCA). Input impedance user-adjustable via loading plugs: 50, 100, 220, 500 ohms, 47k ohms supplied; others available or easily fabricated. RIAA equalization accuracy: 18Hz–22kHz, ±0.2dB. Distortion (THD+noise): 0.01%. Gain: 40dB MM, 69dB MC (dealer adjustable).
Dimensions: Each chassis: 4" (107mm) W by 2.5" (62mm) H by 6.5" (165mm) D. Weight: 7.7 lbs (3.5kg) net, 8.8 lbs (4kg) shipping.
Serial numbers of units reviewed: PS.20: 07.01.010201.21. MSU.20: 08.…
Sidebar 2: Measurements
Following his auditioning of the Whest PhonoStage.20 + MSU.20 (serial numbers 07.01.010201.21 and 08.01.0201.21, respectively), BD sent me the units to measure. The PhonoStage proved relatively immune to grounding issues between it and my test equipment. The 1kHz voltage gain in moving-magnet (MM) mode measured 40.9dB; switching to moving-coil (MC) mode increased the gain to 64.3dB. The MM mode was noninverting; the MC mode inverted absolute polarity. The input impedance in MM mode appeared to be much higher than the specified 47k ohms, although it's possible that…
With its high-end heart and home-theater brain, Chord's powerful CPM 3300 integrated amplifier ($9500 with the aluminum-cylinder Integra leg option, $8950 without) is a uniquely fascinating audio product well worth considering. High-tech innards and magazine-cover good looks don't hurt either, but what originally got me interested was the superlative sound Chord products have consistently delivered at trade and consumer shows when paired with Wilson-Benesch loudspeakers.
Those combos always seem to produce exciting and, to my ears, musically honest sound from familiar demo discs…