As the Purcell and the 972 are D/D processors, all listening impressions were, of necessity, in combination with the Elgar Plus.
Sonus Upsamplus
Even maximized for audiophile needs, the 972 imparted a slightly different character—or lack…
search
That's what I heard—no doubt about it—and clearly. Why it should have been so I can't imagine, unless the additional mass on top and the vibration-absorbent footers mimicked the overall lower resonant signature of the very solidly built Purcell. Less shakin' goin' on, less "mechanical jitter" to muddy the sound? I suppose it's possible...
It's difficult to characterize the overall SACD-like liquidity of the 24/192 presentation, a bit less obvious with the 972 than the Purcell. Imagine making a casting of the music with a material whose very atoms are liquid, filling every tiny nook and cranny of the mold with the sound. Pull it off, and you've got a perfect replica of the notes, down to what seems like way below the noise floor, so the music emerges whole. In direct comparison, the 972 sounded slightly less liquid and lacked a certain musically ebullient character that the Purcell embodied. The audiophile version of the…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Digital/digital converter. Input sample rates: 32, 44.1, 48, 88, and 96kHz. Output sample rates: 32, 44.1, 48, 88, 96, 176.4, and 192kHz. Output word lengths: 16, 18, 20, 22, and 24 bits. Noiseshaping options: first-, third-, and ninth-order. Dither options: Triangular, Noise Shaped Triangular, Top Hat PDF. Digital interfaces: S/PDIF (RCA and BNC), AES (XLR), and ST (optional extra). Output digital interfaces: S/PDIF (RCA and BNC), AES, dual AES (XLR).
Dimensions: 18" (461mm) W by 2.4" (62mm) H by 15.8" (406mm) D. Weight: not noted.
Serial…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Digital sources: Accuphase DP-100 SACD/CD transport and DC-101 upsampling DAC, Technics DVD-A10 DVD-Audio/Video player.
Preamplifiers: Audio Research Reference Two, Balanced Audio Technology VJ-50SE, Mark Levinson No.32 Reference.
Power amplifiers: Krell FPB 350mc and Linn Klimax Solo 500 monoblocks, Forsell Statement.
Loudspeakers: JMlab Utopia.
Cables: Digital: XLO The Limited RCA and AES/EBU. Interconnects: TARA Labs The One/Air One, Synergistic Research Designer's Reference. Speaker: TARA Labs The One, Cardas Golden Cross, XLO The Limited,…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
There are only three questions to be asked of a digital/digital converter set to upsample "Red Book" CD data: 1) does it add high-frequency information above the Nyquist Frequency (half the sample rate) of the original data? 2) Does it add low-level information below the original word-length limit of the original data? and 3) does it increase or decrease the level of word-clock jitter in the datastream? If it does increase the jitter level, then, regardless of any other effect it has, the sound may well be worse.
As you can read in our February 1999 review…
Inserting the Purcell in Cloning mode (in which it does nothing to the data) into the datastream and connecting it to the Elgar via a single AES/EBU link negligibly increased the measured level of word-clock jitter, to 188.5ps, but did raise the analog noise floor slightly at the low-frequency end of the graph.
Setting the Purcell to upsample the CD data to 24-bit/96kHz and driving the Elgar with a double-speed AES/EBU link almost doubled the jitter level, to 325ps. This is still low, but reflects the fact that the effect of jitter in the datalink increases with increased sample rate. I…
Checked my e-mail and a message from one Thomas J. Zukowski (tjzhighendaudio@snet.net) caught my eye. I sensed something...friendly. The subject line was "Re: August & September Fine Tunes." A reader, great, and on my birthday no less.
"Dear Mr. Scull," it began. Okay. So far, it didn't feel like an e-mail written with a hot temper and clenched teeth. "I look forward to 'Fine Tunes' each month when I receive my copy of Stereophile..."
Something about the August and September installments had resonated with TJZ regarding laser-alignment tools, and he had a great tweak he…
Before the advent of big-screen projection televisions, manhood was measured more conventionally: by the size of one's crate-sized, boat-anchor-heavy, brushed-aluminum-fronted power amplifiers. Those days are long gone.
Or are they? While the industry-feminizing tiny triode set has made a great deal of noise in the past few years (I can hear them hissing now), soft-walking, big-stick-carrying, mega-power amplifiers still circle the globe.
Softspoken audio veteran Nelson Pass has been building such behemoths for years. Between 1993 and 1998, his Pass Laboratories marketed…
You don't want to hear Jacintha sing a jazzified version of the Doors' "Light My Fire" backed by flute, seven-string guitar, and congas? Maybe that's because it sounds worse on paper than it does in the ear, which is surprisingly good. Should you listen, you might like it (though right now I'm more in the mood for musical assaults from groups like MarsVa and Melt-Banana). But you'll definitely appreciate the buttery-rich recording. Through the XA160s, the flute had a bit less air and a bit more roundness than through some of the other amps I tried, the congas had more wood and less hand slap…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Solid-state monoblock power amplifier with class-A output stage. Output power: 160W into 8 ohms at 1kHz, 1% THD (22dBW). Frequency response: 1.5Hz-100kHz, -3dB. Distortion at 1kHz: 0.01% at 10W and 100W, 1% at 160W. Maximum output voltage: approximately ±50V. Maximum output current: approximately ±12 amps. Input impedance: 22k ohms balanced, 11k ohms unbalanced. Voltage gain: 26dB. Damping factor: 30 ref. 8 ohms nominal (equivalent to an output impedance of 0.27 ohm). Slew rate: approximately ±50V/µs. Dynamic range: 155dB (random noise floor to peak…