Listening to the R952MDs finally started to make clear what Harry Pearson means by "transparency."…
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Initially, the speakers sounded rather bass-shy, with too much energy in the presence region. Maybe the '952s aren't intended for free-space placement. I moved them so that they were 15" or so from the rear wall, and, suspicious of that presence-band lift, fired the speakers straight ahead so that I was listening 15° or so off the horizontal axis. Vertically, my listening position was level with the top of the cabinet. All the comments on the sound relate to the '952s used in this manner.
Sidebar 1: System
The test procedure followed, with minor changes, that established for my previous loudspeaker reviews: the speakers were used both with Audio Research SP-10 II/Motif MS-100 and Krell KRS2/KSA-50 amplification. A Mission Cyrus 2 integrated amplifier was also used, being more representative of the kind of hardware to be found driving speakers at this price level. Source components included a Mission PCM 7000 CD player, and both a 1987 Linn Sondek/Ittok/Troika combination sitting on a Sound Organisation table and an LP12/SME V/Koetsu Red player sitting on a RATA Torlyte…
Sidebar 2: Measurements
The frequency response of the speakers was measured in the room—spatially averaged across the listening window in order to minimize the effects of low-frequency standing waves—using 1/3-octave pink noise; this also gives an idea of a speaker's dispersion characteristic in the upper midrange and treble. In addition, the nearfield low-frequency response was measured with a sinewave sweep to get an idea of the true bass extension relative to the level at 100Hz.
With the speakers positioned well away from room boundaries, the in-room response gently rolled off…
Sidebar 3: Recommended Loudspeakers 1988
My personal list, in order of price per pair—but only very approximately of merit—now consists of: Monitor Audio R952MD ($1349), Vandersteen 2C ($1150), Spendor SP1 ($950), Synthesis LM-210 ($950), Thiel CS1 ($950), Celestion SL6S ($900), Monitor Audio R652MD ($859), Siefert Magnum III ($833), AR 35T ($700), ARC CS2 ($700), Quadrant Q-250 ($695), and Spendor SP2 ($650). To be considered by those on a more restricted budget are the Siefert Maxim IIID ($599), JBL 18Ti ($590), Monitor Audio R352 ($559), Magnepan SMGa ($495), Spica TC50 ($450), Rogers…
Sidebar 4: Specifications
Description: Two-way, sealed-box, floor-standing loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" (25mm) metal-dome tweeter, two 165mm polypropylene-cone bass/midrange drivers. Crossover frequency: 4.2kHz. Frequency response: 45Hz–20kHz ±3dB. Sensitivity: 89dB/W/m. Nominal impedance: 8 ohms. Amplifier requirements: 15–180W.
Dimensions: 31.5" (800mm) H by 8.9" (225mm) W by 12.6" (320mm) D. Weight: 44 lbs each.
Finish: walnut/black ash/Kenya black/oak standard, rosewood/teak/mahogany available at extra cost.
Price: $1349/pair (1988); no longer available (2008). Approximate…
John Atkinson wrote again about the R952MD in February 1988 (Vol.11 No.2):
I reviewed this modest-looking, two-way (but three-driver), floorstanding loudspeaker last month. I concluded that the combination of high sensitivity, superb transparency, excellent imaging and, for me, optimally aligned bass, made them well worth the $1349/pair asking price, offsetting the rather forward mid-treble which is due, I am sure, to the intrinsically rising response of the twin woofers in this region. Prolonged listening has not changed my opinion of the speakers' sound quality. However, the overall…
Sam Tellig wrote about the R952MD in May 1988 (Vol.11 No.5):
I was in my local mid-fi store the other day to look at the used equipment shelf (you never know when you might see some old Marantz tube gear). A customer—I'd say he was in his early 30s and very much a burn-out case—was grooving on a Grateful Dead tape.
The speakers were by the man in the white coat—you know . . . the genius.
"Great sound, huh?" the customer asked.
I nodded, trying to hide the fact my eyeballs had rolled into the back of my head.
The sound was all bass. And lots of it.
…
In January, I reported on my experiences with the Integra DTC-9.8 preamplifier-processor, which I found to be outstanding with digital sources. That assessment was due, in no small part, to the performance of the Audyssey MultEQ XT room-correction system, which is included in the DTC-9.8. With only a little serious effort, MultEQ opened up the entire soundstage, making possible a better appreciation of the hi-rez sources now available on all sorts of discs. I have no doubt that any careful user can achieve similar satisfaction.
Nonetheless, part of the buzz about the DTC-9.8 was…
Sidebar: Recordings in the Round
Multichannel recordings have been most successful, in my experience, for three categories of music: 1) expansive and dynamic music for large ensembles sounds less constrained through 5.1 channels than through two; 2) the typically small ensembles of chamber music can be almost completely encompassed with high-resolution multichannel; and 3) complex polyphonic music whose intricacies demand as much transparency and detail as possible. Here are three fine examples of the third category.
ROMA TRIUMPHANS
Christopher Jackson, Studio de musique…
The Oakland fluker said, "You mean we should lug our Connie Companion layout all that way? It's too heavy and something might happen to it."
"No, just to discuss rules and stakes," Norman said.
Dubiously, the Oakland fluker said, "Well, I guess we could do that. But you better understand—we take our Connie Companion doll pretty damn seriously."
—Philip K. Dick, "The Days of Perky Pat" (1963)For days I've found myself walking back and forth past my vintage Thorens TD 124 turntable, the platter of which is temporarily unbolted from its main bearing. Thus, the thing I've been…