The nest
I installed the S300iu in my smaller dedicated listening room, driving the Usher Be-718 speakers (reviewed in the May issue), using my Apple G4 iBook as…
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The S300iu is completely straight-ahead in terms of setup. It doesn't produce much in the way of heat, so placement isn't a problem—and the remote means you can even put it where it's hard to reach. Bel Canto suggests that its "performance starts to stabilize after about 100 hours of continuous power up." Perhaps it did, but the difference wasn't as drastic as some I've heard—primarily in components with Teflon capacitors.
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Integrated amplifier with optional USB DAC or phono stage. Preamplifier section: Frequency range: DC–200kHz. Signal/noise (A-weighted, ref. 2V RMS): >95dB, Input overload: 10V. Input impedance: 10k ohms. Output impedance: 500 ohms. Maximum gain: 20dB. Maximum output level: 9.5V. Amplifier section: Maximum output power: 150Wpc into 8 ohms (21.75dBW), 300Wpc into 4 ohms (21.75dBW). Minimum rated load impedance: 4 ohms. Frequency response: 20Hz–20kHz, ±0.5dB. Voltage gain: 27dB. Damping factor: >1000. Output impedance: <8 milliohms. THD+noise…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Digital Source: Apple G4 iBook computer, McIntosh Laboratory MS750 music server, Bel Canto e.One DAC3 D/A converter.
Integrated Amplifier: Ayre AX-7e.
Loudspeakers: KEF Reference 201/2, Usher Be-718.
Cables: Interconnect: Shunyata Research Aries & Antares. Speaker: Shunyata Research Lyra.
Accessories: Ayre L-5xe line filter; Furutech eTP-609 distribution box; APC S15 AC line conditioner; Furutech RDP panels, RealTraps Mini & Mondo Traps.—Wes Phillips
Sidebar 3: Measurements
As I usually do with amplifiers, I preconditioned the Bel Canto e.One S300iu by running both channels at one-third the maximum power into 8 ohms for one hour. Thermally, this maximally stresses an amplifier with a class-B or -AB output stage. But with its class-D output stage, the Bel Canto hardly got warm.
I measured the S300iu using Audio Precision's top-model SYS2722 system (see www.ap.com) for most of the tests, with the obsolete AP System One bringing up the rear. The S300iu's maximum gain into 8 ohms was 46.5dB, which is a little higher than usual for…
Reality check number one. Tired of reading about the latest and greatest $65,000 loudspeakers? Or even the current hot ticket at $2500? Such loudspeakers promise to bring you the audio truth, or the golly-gee-whiz, honest-to-gosh, absolutely positively real sound. And some of them do seem to come awfully close, though truth be told, we're still a long way from replicating reality—and will never do it with just two channels.
The truth may be "out there," but we're in here. And the truth has always included the fact that, beyond a certain point, doubling the price buys an increasingly…
I was equally impressed with the Energy's midrange. It was notably uncolored, particularly on vocal material. Only once—on the above-mentioned Chieftains recording, did I hear what might have been a trace of boxiness. And that was on the instruments, not on the vocals. Since I am not intimately familiar with the live sound of the traditional Irish instruments used by the Chieftains, I can only say that these sounded a little nasal on the C-2 in comparison with their sound on the big Veritas v2.8.
But voices and more familiar instruments did not sound colored through the C-2s. My favorite…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Decription: Two-way, reflex-loaded, stand-mounted loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" aluminum-dome tweeter, 6.5" woofer with injection-molded, aluminum/polypropylene cone. Crossover frequency: 1.8kHz. Frequency response: 40Hz–25kHz ±3dB. Sensitivity: 88dB/W/m, anechoic. Nominal impedance: 8 ohms (4.5 ohms, minimum). Recommended amplifier power: 30–130Wpc.
Dimensions: 17.75" H by 9.7" W by 9.75" D. Weight: 38 lbs/pair.
Serial numbers of units reviewed: 005866/7, 009248/9.
Price: $700/pair (1996); no longer available (2008). Approximate number of dealers: not…
Sidebar 2: System
Associated equipment used in the review included the Theta Data III CD transport, Mark Levinson No.36 D/A converter, Rowland Consummate preamplifier, and Carver AV-806x amplifier, with some use made of the Aragon 8008. Cables consisted of Kimber AGDL digital from transport to D/A, TARA Labs RSC Reference from D/A to preamp, Cardas Hexlink from preamp to power amp, and Monster M1.5 (bi-wire) loudspeaker cables. Additional equipment was used as noted.
Initially, the C-2s were set up on solid 20" stands from Merrill, and while the performance on the Merrills was…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
John Atkinson measured the Energy C-2 and provided me with the results after I had completed my listening tests.
The Energy's sensitivity measured to specification at 88dB/W/m (B-weighted). Its impedance characteristic is shown in fig.1. This is an undemanding load, with a minimum impedance of 4.6 ohms at about 160Hz. The port is tuned to 40Hz, visible on the curve as the typical tuned-port saddle dip. The small wrinkles in the curve at just over 200Hz indicate possible cabinet resonances, and the small discontinuity at 23kHz is the ultrasonic tweeter…
Ah, Miss Julie.
One of my 2008 "Records To Die For" picks was the 1991 compilation Time for Love: The Best of Julie London (CD, Rhino R2 70737). The source material runs from London's mono 1955 debut LP to her last stereo album, of 1967. Originally a Hollywood B-movie actress who had to be cajoled into singing in public, London (1926–2000) later enjoyed a successful third career as a television actress in the late 1960s and '70s, and played Nurse Dixie McCall in the drama series Emergency!
As far as I can tell, the Rhino remaster is the most readily available CD…