After I'd been happily listening for a few months to the Marantz SA-11S2's warm, detailed, emotionally involving sound, John Atkinson sent along Cary Audio Design's CD 306 Professional Version SACD player ($8000) that he had reviewed in November 2008 (Vol.31 No.11). He suggested I use it as a benchmark against which to evaluate the Marantz. Direct comparisons of the players' sounds proved enlightening and constructive; the differences remained consistent through the playing of a wide variety of CDs and SACDs. In…
search
Michael Fremer wrote about the Cary CD 306 in February 2009 (Vol.32 No.2):
Sidebar: MF's Associated Equipment
Analog Sources: Continuum Audio Labs Caliburn, Cobra, & Castellon turntable, tonearm & 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, BPT-modified Alesis Masterlink hard-disk recorder.
Preamplification: Manley Steelhead, Einstein Turntable's Choice phono preamplifiers; darTZeel NHB-18NS preamplifier.
Power Amplifiers: Musical Fidelity kW monoblocks.
Loudspeakers: Wilson MAXX 2.
Cables:…
When Audio Advisor's Wayne Schuurman contacted me about reviewing the Vincent Audio KHV-1pre headphone amplifier, I felt confident that I had everything I needed to handle the task, owning, as I do, both the AKG K701 and Sennheiser HD-650 headphones, which have long been my references. That oughta get 'er done, I thought.
Then I got a phone call from HeadRoom's Tyll Hertsens. "Dude! You have got to hear the rewiring job we've done on the '701s. We hardwire a four-conductor Cardas cable directly to the drivers, eliminating at least two solder joints—then we put a Cardas ¼" plug on the end…
Sidebar: Specifications
Description: Cable upgrades for AKG and Sennheiser headphones.
Price: AKG Fatpipe: $322/10' set terminated with a ¼ plug, $285/5' set terminated with an 1/8" miniplug. Sennheiser upgrade: $222/10' set with ¼" plug, $185/4' with 1/8" miniplug.
US Distributor: HeadRoom Corporation, 2020 Gilkerson Drive, Bozeman, MT 59715. Tel: (800) 828-8184, (406) 587-9466. Fax: (406) 587-9484. Web: www.headphone.com.
You know me. I'm not perzackly an audio slut, but I am easy. When Audio Advisor's Wayne Schuurman called me to pitch the Vincent KHV-1pre tube-transistor headphone amplifier, he pretty much had me at "tube" and "headphone." But I wasn't familiar with Vincent Audio.
"That's why I called you," Schuurman said. "I know you were impressed by the Cayin HA-1A (footnote 1). Vincent is also manufactured in China, but it's designed in Germany. Vincent, in turn, is a branch of Thorens. You're going to be impressed with its build quality."
I was.
Paint your palette blue and…
During my auditioning of the Vincent KHV-1pre, I was never able to remotely tax it with either the AKG 701s or Sennheiser HD-650s. Even if I needed headbanging volume levels driving both pair of cans, I could barely get the Vincent's volume control a little past 9 o'clock. Maybe you have a pair of headphones that could stress the KHV-1pre's output capabilities, but I never came close. It had plenty of headroom.
Perhaps they'll listen now
The Cayin HA-1A, which sort of started this whole thing, was still on hand, so it seemed only natural to compare it to the Vincent. Both have…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Hybrid headphone amplifier with two line-level inputs, one ¼" headphone output and one pair of RCA preamplifier outputs. Tube complement: two 12AX7B. Frequency response: 20Hz–50kHz, ±0.5dB. Nominal output power: 400mW into 300 ohms, 1.75W into 32 ohms. THD: 0.1% max (1kHz, 100mW). Input impedance, 47k ohms. Input sensitivity: 600mV for maximum output. Signal/noise ratio: >90dB.
Dimensions: 10.4" (265mm) H by 6.2" (160mm) W by 8.2" (210mm) D. Weight: 8 lbs (3.6kg).
Finishes: Black, silver.
Serial Number Of Units Reviewed: 20050415079,…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Digital Sources: Ayre C-5xe universal player; Simaudio Moon Evolution SuperNova CD player.
Headphone Amplifier: Cayin HA-1A.
Power Amplifier: Musical Fidelity Nu-Vista 300.
Headphones: AKG K701, Cardas AKG K701/Fat Pipe cable; Sennheiser HD-650, Sennheiser HD-650 Cardas Cable mod.
Loudspeakers: Definitive Technology Mythos STS.
Cables: Interconnect: Audience Conductor. Speaker: Audience Conductor.
Accessories: Furutech eTP-609 distribution box, APC APCS15 AC line conditioner; Furutech RDP panels, RealTraps Mini & Mondo Traps.—Wes…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I measured the Vincent Audio KHV-1pre using Audio Precision's top-model SYS2722 system (see www.ap.com) for most of the tests, with some use made of the magazine's original AP System One. Both the preamplifier and the headphone outputs preserved absolute polarity; ie, were non-inverting. The maximum gain assessed at the preamp output jacks was 17.1dB; this increased to 25.8dB at the headphone jacks. Both figures are higher than required for real-world listening, meaning that the volume control will be used mainly at the lower end of its range, as WP found.…
It isn't enough to say that engineer Denis N. Morecroft is one of contemporary audio's few visionaries: He's one of a very few mature designers whose passion for doing things a certain way hasn't abandoned him in the least, and whose well-argued convictions seem stronger than ever. Thus, as others cave in to commerce—the tube-amp designer who offers a solid-state product just to help his dealers fill a price niche, the source-component manufacturer who rails against digital audio one day and starts cranking out CD players the next—DNM Design remains the likeliest of all modern companies to…