search

Harbeth M40.1 loudspeaker JA November 2008

John Atkinson wrote about the Harbeth M40.1 in November 2008 (Vol.31 No.11):

Art Dudley reviewed the Harbeth M40.1 loudspeaker in October (p.153). A large, stand-mounted design in the British BBC tradition, the M40.1 costs $12,995/pair, plus $595/pair for its substantial, 14"-tall stands.

Art was extremely positive about the M40.1's performance. "Harbeth has the rare ability to bundle tonal neutrality with excellent performance in virtually every other regard that matters," he said, and concluded that, "Here, finally, is a loudspeaker that achieves flat frequency response without…

Harbeth M40.1 loudspeaker Manufacturer's Comment Again

Manufacturer's Comment (From December 2008, Vol.31 No.2)

Editor: Art Dudley's rave review of the Harbeth Monitor 40.1 in the October issue, and its swift placement in Class A of your "Recommended Components" section, is most gratifying. Three cheers to AD and John Atkinson for their efforts. Critical acclaim is wonderful, but what is even more important to us is the unanimously positive feedback from customers, both consumer and professional, affirming our belief that we have achieved our design objective: to take all the strengths of the previous generation of the BBC-style three-way…

MBL 6010 D preamplifier

Don't be confused by the MBL 6010 D's oddly baroque, even retro looks. Behind all the glitz—the oversize, perfectly finished, black-lacquered faáade; the two big, solid brass knobs plated with 24-karat gold; the ornate lettering; and the incongruous digital volume display—resides a thoroughly modern, remote-controlled, unusually versatile, and well-thought-out solid-state preamplifier. Not that the 6010 is a new design. It's been around for a long time, and the current "D" iteration is at least five years old.

Why review it now? Well, I'd been wowed by MBL's 101E Radialstrahler…

MBL 6010 D preamplifier Page 2

The review sample included the balanced-input and MC-only phono-preamp modules, which brought its total price to a breathtaking $26,490. Yes, the 6010 D is a beautifully finished, well-built, full-function preamplifier in a large, heavy chassis, and MBL cites for it some eye-popping specs—but could its sonic performance possibly justify the price?

Using the 6010 D
I suspect that few audiophiles will use the 6010 D's second set of outputs to route their signals to another room, but if you're one of them, you'll welcome MBL's dual system. Everyone else will pay for a feature they don…

MBL 6010 D preamplifier Specifications

Sidebar 1: Specifications

Description: Solid-state, remote-controlled preamplifier. Inputs: 5 unbalanced line-level, 1 processor pass-through, 1 optional unbalanced phono (RCA), 1 optional balanced (XLR). Outputs: 2 independent sets, each comprising 2 pairs unbalanced (RCA), 1 pair balanced (XLR); 2 buffered Tape Out (RCA). Frequency ranges: DC–1MHz (CD), DC–600kHz (high-level). Distortion (1kHz/2V): <0.0006%. Signal/noise: 103/109dB, 1V/25 ohms (CD); 102/108dB, 1V/25 ohms (high-level). Input sensitivity (high-level): 315mV. Maximum output: 11V. Input impedances: 5k ohms (CD), 50k ohms…

MBL 6010 D preamplifier Associated Equipment

Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment

Analog Sources: Continuum Audio Labs Caliburn, Cobra, and Castellon turntable, tonearm, and stand; Graham Phantom tonearm; Lyra Titan i, Koetsu Coralstone Platinum mono cartridges.
Digital Sources: Musical Fidelity kW DM25 CD transport & DAC, Marantz SA-11S2 SACD player, dCS 904 A/D converter, BPT-modified Alesis Masterlink hard-disk recorder.
Preamplification: Manley Steelhead, Naim SuperLine/SuperCap phono preamplifiers; darTZeel NHB-18NS, Luxman C-800f preamplifiers.
Power Amplifiers: Musical Fidelity kW monoblocks, Luxman M-800A.
…

MBL 6010 D preamplifier Measurements

Sidebar 3: Measurements

I examined the MBL preamplifier's measured behavior primarily using Stereophile's loaner sample of the top-of-the-line Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 "As We See It" and www.ap.com), with my vintage Audio Precision System One Dual Domain also seeing some use.

The MBL's optional phono module offered a high gain of 68.4dB (measured at the Tape Out jacks), which, in conjunction with the module's excellent signal/noise ratio—66.6dB, audioband, unweighted, ref. 500µV at 1kHz—will make it suitable for use with low-output moving-coil…

Surrealistic Sound

Toward the end of the 1992 Summer CES in Chicago, J. Gordon Holt ambled into Audio Influx's demonstration room. He was curious about which PDQ Bach CD we were playing, as a fitting end to the show. We chatted about PDQ Bach live concerts and the grand-spoof entrances made by Professor Peter Schickele. Suddenly he said, "You know, these speakers sound real," going on to mention that he hadn't heard many real-sounding systems. I told JGH that most of what I heard at shows and in dealer showrooms nowadays was surrealistic sound.

Gordon got me thinking about what's been bothering me about…

The Fifth Element #50

In a moment, I will resume my ongoing quest to put together a music lover's stereo system for about half the cost of my last such effort (see my columns in the October and December 2005 issues): $3750 rather than $7500. But first I want to urge everyone who hasn't already done so to check out the results of the Five Great Art Songs of the Rock Era write-in competition announced in my February 2008 column. The winning entries are great—really thought-provoking. Indeed, some of the lists, plus an unaccountably belated recollection, prompted me to put together my own alternate list. This list…

The Fifth Element #50 Page 2

The Trio has a rotary volume knob (it's just a controller; it's not connected to a potentiometer), and a click-detented knob for source selection. I find rotary knobs far more intuitive than up/down buttons. My only beef is that the Trio's rotary volume knob is inboard of the source selector; I prefer the volume knob to be all the way to the right.

Beyond ergonomics, I preferred the Trio's design. I like a disc tray to look like a disc tray and not hide among the buttons, and I like square corners on a faceplate. Whether it was Plinius or Classé or someone else who first came…