Description: Solid-state monophonic power amplifier. Inputs: one balanced. Output power: 300Wpc into 8 ohms (24.8dBW), 600Wpc into 4 ohms (24.8dBW). Frequency range: 0Hz–250kHz. Voltage gain: 26dB. Input impedance: 2 megohms. Power consumption: 34W (standby), 120W (operating/no signal).
Dimensions: 11" (280mm) W by 3.75" (96mm) H by 18.75" (480mm) D. Weight: 52 lbs (23.6 kg).
Finishes: Silver, Black (add $500/pair).
Serial Numbers of Units Reviewed: 14A0197, 14A0198.
Price: $16,500/pair. Approximate number of dealers: 30. Warranty: 5 years,…
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Sidebar 1: Specifications
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Digital Sources: Ayre C-5xe universal player, Krell Evolution 505 SACD/CD player.
Preamplifiers: Ayre K-1xe, Krell Evolution 202.
Power Amplifiers: Krell Evolution 600 monoblocks.
Loudspeakers: Dynaudio Confidence C4 & C1, Vandersteen Quatro Wood.
Cables: Interconnect: Shunyata Research Aries & Antares. Speaker: Shunyata Research Lyra.
Accessories: Ayre L-5xe AC filter; Furutech eTP-609 distribution box, FP-20A (R) duplex AC outlets, RDP acoustic panels; OSAR Selway/Magruder equipment racks; Ayre Myrtle Wood Blocks.— Wes Phillips
Sidebar 3: Measurements
Before performing any measurements, I preconditioned the Ayre MX-R by running it for 60 minutes at one-third the specified power into 8 ohms, which is very much the worst case for an amplifier with a class-B output stage. The amplifier got almost too hot to touch at the end of that period, implying a temperature of around 60°C, but the curiously shaped heatsink is obviously efficient enough. It, however, was too hot to touch. Given that the MX-R's circuitry is completely enclosed by the metal chassis and heatsink, I was concerned that raising its temperature might…
Almost immediately on entering the analog marketplace in 1982, Franc Kuzma, a mechanical engineer based in Slovenia, then part of the former Yugoslavia, established a reputation for manufacturing finely engineered, high-performance products that sold at reasonable prices. Kuzma's early industrial designs, however, while serviceable, looked less than distinguished.
Nothing in Kuzma's previous work, not even the pipe-bomb of the Stabi S, which had been introduced two years earlier, could have predicted the visually enticing, curvaceous design of the Stabi XL. Big and literally "…
My experiment was to use the Stabi XL/Air Line and Caliburn/Cobra, both with the same Lyra Titan i cartridge and Manley Steelhead phono preamp, to record (with an Alesis MasterLink) a CD-R of difficult-to-reproduce musical passages (solo piano, violin, orchestral crescendos, female vocals), all of which had been cut near the lead-out groove areas of various LPs—and then play the two recordings of the same passage back to back to see if discerning audiophiles could tell which had been played by the pivoted arm, which by the tangential tracker.
When I'd conducted an earlier version of this…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Mass-loaded turntable with two speeds (331/3rpm, 45rpm), two motors, height-adjustable tonearm tower, and air-bearing, tangential-tracking tonearm.
Dimensions: 17.5" (450mm) W by 11.7" (300mm) H by 15.6" (400mm) D. Weight: 169.4 lbs (77kg) total. Platter: 48.4 lbs (22kg). Base: 59.4 lbs (27kg). Motor towers: 15.4 lbs (7kg) each. Tonearm tower: 30.8 lbs (14kg).
Serial Numbers Of Units Reviewed: Not noted.
Prices: Stabi XL turntable, $18,000. Air Line tonearm, $8000. Approximate number of dealers: 15.
Manufacturer: Kuzma Ltd., Hotemaze 17/…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog Sources: Continuum Audio Labs Caliburn turntable; Continuum Cobra, Graham Phantom tonearms; Lyra Titan i, Air Tight PC-1, Transfiguration Orpheus cartridges.
Digital Sources: Musical Fidelity kW DM25 DAC & transport, Alesis Masterlink BPT-modified hard-disk recorder.
Preamplification: Manley Steelhead, Blue Amp MC 42 phono preamplifiers; Musical Fidelity kWP, DartZeel NHB-18NS preamplifiers.
Power Amplifiers: Musical Fidelity kW monoblocks.
Loudspeakers: Wilson Audio Specialties MAXX2, Peak Consult El Diablo.
Cables: Interconnect…
Taken together, these unusual interconnect, loudspeaker, and AC cables brought a new measure of spaciousness, scale, smoothness, heretofore unimagined detail, and overall musical ease and naturalness to my music system. And they did it while sounding neither dull nor bright—just right.
I start with that observation not in an effort to be cute, but as a good-natured warning to ill-natured skeptics: Unless you're open to the idea that such a thing is possible, the 2300 words that follow will be little more than nonsense, howsoever differently I intend them.
There's more:…
Weight was more of an issue with the speaker cables than the other Aluminata models: Their stranded termination leads were, of course, significantly more flexible than the rest of the cable; in my system, with the Quad ESLs raised somewhat inelegantly off the floor, the combination of heavy cables and floppy leads made hooking up a clumsier procedure than usual. Those WBT locking bananas weren't just a luxury, they were a necessity—without them, the Aluminata speaker cables disconnected themselves.
During their stay here, the JPS Aluminatas all worked without a hitch. I should also…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Solid-core alloy conductors with granular aluminum shielding, configured as interconnect pairs, single-wire speaker cables, and AC cords.
Dimensions: Interconnect: 1m, 2m, 6m. Speaker cables: 8'. AC cord: 2m. Other lengths available.
Serial Numbers Of Units Reviewed: Interconnect pairs: 1m, 63068, 63069; 2m, 63066, 63067; 6m, 63070, 63071. Speaker-cable pair: 54353, 54354. AC cords: 32304, 32305.
Prices: Aluminata interconnect: $2999/1m pair with WBT locking phono plugs; $600 each additional 0.5m. Aluminata speaker cable: $6099/4' pair with…