Digital Sources: Primary: dCS Verdi SACD/CD transport, dCS Elgar Plus D/A processor, connected with dCS FireWire cable for SACD playback, and for CD playback, the dCS Purcell upsampler connected to the Verdi with a DH Labs AES/EBU cable, the Elgar with FireWire. For reference: Mark Levinson No.31.5 CD transport and No.30.6 Reference or Benchmark DAC1 D/A processors connected with Illuminati Orchid AES/EBU link.
Preamplifiers: Mark Levinson No.380S, Z-Systems rdp-1.
Power Amplifiers: Mark Levinson No.33H monoblocks, Halcro dm38.
Loudspeakers: Paradigm…
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Sidebar 2: Review System
Sidebar 3: Measurements
Full sets of measurements of the dCS Elgar Plus playing back CDs and of the upsampling effect of the dCS Purcell were published in their original reviews in July 1997 and January 2001, respectively. Measurements of the Verdi SACD transport driving the Elgar Plus via dCS's proprietary IEEE1394 FireWire link accompanied Michael Fremer's review in April 2003.
To examine the effect of the Verona on the dCS system, I first looked at the Elgar's jitter performance with the Miller Audio Research Jitter Analyzer while the DAC decoded CD data from the Verdi,…
I suppose that most high-end designers dream about making a Statement Product—their best effort, without regard for price. Victor Khomenko, majordomo of Balanced Audio Technology, got the bug and came up with the VK-50SE. This hugely full-functioned line-stage preamp derives its Special Edition (SE) moniker from the eight hot-running, super-hush-hush Russian 6H30 Reflector SuperTubes that populate the circuit board.
But Victor is, by nature, a frugal man who savors quality while enjoying a particular disdain for overindulgence. Coming from St. Petersburg, Russia has made him a…
The 6H30's plate resistance is four times lower than the 6922's (800 ohms), and its transconductance is higher (18mA/V), to deliver just a touch lower gain than the ubiquitous 6DJ8/6922. The SuperTube can't be used as a direct replacement for the 6922, but BAT developed a proprietary circuit to "unleash its true potential." Amazingly, this tall, sturdy tube delivers up to 6A of "pulse current" per section, and can withstand 1050V of plate voltage. Because of its low impedance characteristic, the 6H30 allows a much lower output resistance in the gain stage without resorting to "crutch…
"Wish (Komm zu mir)" set out a female vocal palpably suspended between the utterly invisible JMlab Utopia loudspeakers—very organic, a real reach-out-and-touch-me experience. The powerful, transient-rich bottom end swayed and hip-hopped along, drawing me smack into the ambience of the film again, as if I were back in the movie theater. Perhaps it wasn't real instruments in real space, but listening to Run Lola Run that day evoked the experience of seeing the film. Something to think about.
As CD followed CD on the upsampling dCS front-end and the Sony SCD-1 SACD player, it became…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Tubed line-stage preamplifier. Tube complement: 8 BAT 6H30 Reflector SuperTubes. Inputs: 5 balanced on XLRs. Outputs: 2 balanced on XLRs (pin 2 hot). Tape output: 1 on XLRs. Maximum voltage gain: 17dB. Volume-control resolution: 0.5dB steps, 140 steps total. Frequency range: 2Hz-300kHz. Minimum input impedance, each phase: 100k ohms. Output impedance: 200 ohms. Minimum power-amplifier input impedance (with optional Six-Pak): 3k ohms. Noise: -110dB unweighted. Distortion: 0.005% at 2V RMS output. Crosstalk: -95dB at 10kHz. Maximum output: 50V RMS.…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog source: La Luce turntable; SpJ tonearm; Koetsu Rosewood Signature Platinum, Forsell Air Force One, van den Hul Grasshopper IV Gold cartridges.
Digital sources: dCS 972 D/D converter, dCS Elgar (at 24/192), Sony SCD-1 SACD player, Burmester 969 and Forsell Air Reference CD transports.
Power amplifiers: Linn Klimax Solo 500 monoblocks, Accuphase M2000, Forsell The Statement.
Loudspeakers: JMlab Utopia.
Cables: Interconnects: Cardas Golden Reference, Synergistic Research Designer's Reference Active Shielding, XLO The Limited, TARA The One…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
The VK-50SE didn't invert signal polarity unless its polarity button was pressed, meaning that the XLR jacks are wired with pin 2 hot. Into a 100k ohm load, the maximum voltage gain was a little higher than specified at 18.55dB, which is inconsequential. The volume-control setting for unity gain was "106." The tape outputs didn't appear to be actively buffered, just isolated with series resistors, so tape recorders should be left on or disconnected when not in use.
The BAT's input impedance measured a high 220k ohms, and its output impedance at 1kHz was…
Someone once said that if you build a better mousetrap, the world will beat a path to your door. Well, this month, we will see not one but two better mousetraps, in the form of Sony's and Philips' Super Audio CD and the DVD Forum's DVD-Audio. Both are intended to replace the humble CD, now in its seventeenth year; both offer higher-resolution digital audio; and both offer multiple channels. To accompany SACD, Sony's $5000 SCD-1 two-channel player is now on sale (and will be reviewed in the November Stereophile), while Panasonic has announced October sale dates for two DVD-A players, the $1000…
The CD-303/200 is a stout, handsome unit with a thick front panel of black-anodized aluminum (silver is also available) and a beefy, epoxy-coated aluminum chassis. Even the remote control—a heavy aluminum unit with multi-function, backlit buttons—screams "Quality!" Curiously, however, the remote is clad in chrome plate, rather than brushed aluminum or anodized black to match the player. The coup de grace is the CD-303/200's transport mechanism, a Philips CDM12, which is good enough as is; Cary addition of a thick, machined drawer warmed this metallurgist's heart.
The Cary is…