Innehållsförteckning för Jan-18 från Stereophile

I have not been attending audio shows as often as I used to, and this January, for the first time in more than 20 years, I’m skipping the annual Consumer Electronics Show. My personal return on investment has become hard to justify, especially when attendance at each annual CES requires a round trip from New York City to Las Vegas, Nevada. More important, audio shows now seem focused mostly on either two-channel music playback or multichannel home theater, whereas what interests me is listening to music in surround sound. Sure, I can be excited by the introduction of new speakers and new power amplifiers, which have obvious application in any music system. On the other hand, the vast majority of analog preamplifiers and DACs are two-channel only, while preamplifier-processors and…

I used DRA Labs’ MLSSA system and a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone to measure the Totem Acoustic Signature One’s frequency response in the farfield, and an Earthworks QTC-40 for the nearfield responses. The Totem’s specified sensitivity is 87dB/2.83V/m, which is the same as that of the earlier Model 1 Signature; my estimate, however, was much lower, at 83.5dB(B)/2.83V/m, which is 3dB lower than that of the 2008 speaker.1 Fig.1 shows how the impedance and electrical phase vary with frequency. The impedance is significantly higher than that of the Model 1 and Model 1 Signature. While those speakers had an impedance that dropped to 3.8 ohms between 200 and 300Hz, the new speaker drops below 8 ohms in only one region, with a minimum magnitude of 7.4 ohms at 200Hz. And…

The S-2 is fabulously dynamic, well extended, pure and clean in its revealing upper-frequency range. One of the better things about bookshelf loudspeakers is that they’re innately portable. Though not generally considered the sort of music-reproduction machines you’d bring to a party, a 12-step group, or a Burning Man rave (though you certainly could), high-quality bookshelf speakers are overlooked tools in the eternal work-in-progress of introducing lovers, friends, and family to our beloved lifestyle. So during the first week or three of breaking in the Quad S-2 bookshelf speakers, I thought, Why keep these to myself? It’s strict Stereophile policy that all gear be evaluated in the context of the reviewer’s reference hi-fi rig(s), but there’s no law against sharing the joy. In their single shipping box, the S-2s together…

I measured the Aurender A10 with my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 “As We See It,” http://tinyurl.com/4ffpve4), using the Audio Precision’s optical digital outputs, and data stored on the A10’s internal hard disk and sourced from a NAS on my network. The serial number of the sample I’d been sent for measurement was ASA4A0096A10, its system software was v.5.10.16, and the Conductor app running on my iPad mini was v.2.8.6 (1730). The optical inputs accepted data sampled up to 96kHz, the internal drive and the network connection files sampled at up to 384kHz. The A10’s maximum output level at 1kHz was 4.04V from the balanced output jacks, and 2.02V from the unbalanced jacks with the output level set to Fixed or with the volume control set to…

In 2010, down in the East Village, on Delancey Street, at the NYC debut party for Robert Plant’s Band of Joy, the assembled rock press, assorted hangers-on, and wannabe VIPs patiently sipped drinks as we waited for the guest of honor. Suddenly, with no fanfare or even announcement, he stepped out of a hidden room into a roomful of astonished smiles. He’d been there all along. EDITOR’S PICK RECORDING OF THE MONTH ROBERT PLANT Carry Fire Nonesuch 563057-1 (2 LPs). 2017. Robert Plant, prod.; Justin Adams, John Baggott, Ben Findlay, Billy Fuller, Dave McCracken, Liam “Skin” Tyson, engs.; Joe Jones, Oli Middleton, Tim Oliver, asst. engs. DDA? TT: 49:07 PERFORMANCE  SONICS  In the rock world, it seems as if Robert Plant and his former band, Led Zeppelin, are always hovering…

It was great fun having our editorial coordinator, Jana Dagdagan, shoot a video profile of me in my listening room.1 As I write this, it’s had more than 88,000 views. While the ratio of thumbs up to thumbs down has remained consistently around 10:1, some of the negative comments, particularly about our industry and about this magazine, do enrage me. Being called a “snake oil peddler” and a “haberdasher to emperors” is bad enough, but having high-end audio characterized as “the biggest shill industry ever to hit humanity since the age of alchemy,” and as one based solely on greed, sets me off. I don’t know anyone who got into this business to become rich. I get angry when people write that they prefer science to observational reviewing, and that…

With a loudspeaker as large and bulky and heavy as Vivid’s Giya G1 Spirit, I decided to measure them at Jon Iverson’s home in central California rather than have them shipped to my Brooklyn lab. I therefore used a test setup different from my usual system of MLSSA software and hardware, which is not readily transportable. When I visited Jon, I took with me my MacBook Pro running SMUGSoftware’s Fuzzmeasure 3 app, along with an Earthworks QTC-40 microphone and a FireWire-connected Metric Halo MIO2882 audio interface, the latter sampling at 96kHz. Because of the combination of uncalibrated test gear, I couldn’t measure the Vivid’s absolute voltage sensitivity. However, when I played pink noise and used the Studio Six Sound Pressure Level app with my iPhone 6’s internal mike (C weighting,…

I used DRA Labs’ MLSSA system and a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone to measure the Quad S-2’s frequency response in the farfield, and an Earthworks QTC-40 for the nearfield responses. My estimate of the Quad’s sensitivity was 86.9dB(B)/2.83V/m, confirming the specified figure of 87dB. Fig.1 shows how the impedance and electrical phase vary with frequency. Though the impedance has a minimum value of 4.17 ohms at 190Hz and there’s a combination of 5.8 ohms and –37° phase angle at 117Hz, the S-2 is a relatively easy load for amplifiers to drive. The traces in fig.1 are free from the small discontinuities that would suggest the presence of panel resonances. However, when I investigated the enclosure’s vibrational behavior with a plastic-tape accelerometer, I did find a strong mode at 500Hz on…

In February 2017, Bryston1 announced the latest upgrade of their Digital Player, introduced in 2011 as the BDP-1 ($2195),2 and upgraded in 2013 to the BDP-2, with a faster Atom N450 processor.3 The new BDP-3 Digital Player comes equipped with an even faster Intel Quad-core processor; a Bryston-manufactured integrated audio device (IAD) in place of a third-party sound card; a custom Intel Celeron motherboard; a bigger power supply; and two additional USB ports, for a total of eight—three of which use the faster USB 3.0 protocol. Two USB 3.0 ports run on an entirely separate USB bus, making the BDP-3 compatible with the Streamlength protocols used by DACs from Ayre Acoustics and Berkeley Audio Design. The BDP-3 can handle files of resolutions up to 32-bit/384kHz PCM and DSD128 (both via…

Vivid Audio Giya G1 Spirit Editor: Thank you, Jon Iverson, for such an in-depth review, and for highlighting the many aspects of the engineering that underpin the design of these loudspeakers. It’s good that you explored the potential to play the Spirits loud when the fancy took you! I’ve always believed that it’s important to have plenty of power handling in reserve, to be able to deliver an effortless performance at all levels. I’m pleased you got on with the voicing of the Spirits, as it is such a personal matter. I was a little surprised by the 100Hz peak, as I make every effort to achieve a smooth response from every element of the system, but I will revisit this aspect and try to understand what was going on…

UK: LONDON Paul Messenger Although getting a new high-end audio show up and running is no easy task, you’d think that a city as large and important as London would have had at least one such event every year since the mid-1950s. But for several years of the last decade, it didn’t. That situation may have changed with the second annual Indulgence Show: The Luxury Audio & Lifestyle Exhibition took place Friday–Sunday, September 29–October 1, 2017. One of Indulgence’s biggest strengths was its location, the Novotel London West, at the Hammersmith International Centre—essentially the same hotel as the Cunard International, which in the 1970s was the venue for the hi-fi shows organized by Don Quillan. The organizers claim success for the Indulgence’s “difficult second album,” claiming a 20% increase in…

The company appears to be long gone, but throughout the 1970s, virtually every Sunday, there was an ad in the New York Times Magazine for a manufacturer of whole-house music systems—I recollect the name as Bolton, but that gets no hits on Google, so perhaps I’ve misremembered—with a headline that went something like: “ENJOY MOZART IN THE DINING ROOM, BEETHOVEN IN THE LIVING ROOM, AND THE ROLLING STONES IN THE CHILDREN’S ROOM.” I remember wondering even then, as a distinctly unworldly teenager in upstate New York: Who in God’s name would want such a thing? Why squirt background music everywhere—and make no mistake, any system in which the user has less than complete, hands-on control of playback media is a background-music system—when, for a lot less money, you could fill…

IS CLASSICAL MUSIC REALLY ON THE ROPES? LIVING IN NEW YORK CITY, IT’S EASY TO THINK THAT IS A MYTH COOKED UP IN THE PROVINCES. Recently, at a performance of the Metropolitan Opera’s fabulous current production of Jacques Offenbach’s The Tales of Hoffmann, directed by Bartlett Sher, I experienced Classical Music 2017 up close and personal. In the audience, multicolored sequined jackets and cheetah-print slip-on sneakers mixed with tuxedos. Merrell hiking shoes and Patagonia down jackets crossed with slim-fit outfits from Billy Reid and Hermes bags. Between bravura tenor Vittorio Grigolo in the title role and soprano Erin Morley’s absolutely wonderful portrayal of the doll, Olympia (Bravo!!!), it was a performance for the ages. None of the recordings I’ve heard come close. But such momentary and very local glories aside,…

I used DRA Labs’ MLSSA system and a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone to measure the GoldenEar Triton Reference’s frequency response in the farfield, and an Earthworks QTC-40 for the nearfield and in-room responses. The GoldenEar’s sensitivity is specified as a very high 93.25dB/2.83V/m; my estimate was close to that at 92.5dB(B)/2.83V/m, which places the Triton Reference in exalted company. Speakers this sensitive are rare. Fig.1 shows how the impedance and electrical phase vary with frequency. The magnitude does dip below 6 ohms in the midrange and high treble, with a minimum value of 3.4 ohms at 320Hz and a combination of 4 ohms and –45° phase angle at 73Hz. Though GoldenEar specifies the Triton Reference’s impedance as “compatible with 8 ohms,” I would use an amplifier with this loudspeaker that…

I used DRA Labs’ MLSSA system and a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone to measure the Alta Hestia Titanium’s frequency response in the farfield, and an Earthworks QTC-40 for the nearfield responses. (I measured S/N HST02706.) The Alta’s voltage sensitivity is specified as a higher-than-average 90dB/2.83V/m; my estimate was much lower, at 82.5dB(B)/2.83V/m. In part, this will be due to the fact that my figure is based only on the speaker’s frontal radiation, whereas the Hestia Titanium, being a dipole design in the midrange, will also be putting out almost as much energy behind it as in front of it. But this is still a low sensitivity, and will be exacerbated by the speaker’s impedance magnitude, which drops to just 1.75 ohms at 264Hz (fig.1). There are also demanding combinations of…

A huge fuss was made over Aurender’s first music server, the S10, when it premiered in 2011 at the California Audio Show. While I didn’t feel that the room acoustics and setup were good enough at CAS to permit an honest appraisal, the looks and features of the S10 (now discontinued) thrust Aurender into the spotlight. So when John Atkinson, who had very favorably reviewed Aurender’s N10 server in April 2016,1 asked if I would evaluate Aurender’s new A10, the opportunity to serve so many audiophiles with a single review elicited from me an unequivocal “Yes!” Its strong suits were bass, speed, and ability to play multiple formats. What have we here? As part of a product line that includes multiple streamer/servers and a “lifestyle” DAC-integrated amp, the A10 is…

I don’t think I’ve ever seen an audio debate as nasty as the one over Master Quality Authenticated (MQA), the audio-encoding/decoding technology from industry veterans Bob Stuart, formerly of Meridian and now CEO of MQA Ltd., and Peter Craven. Stuart is the company’s public face, and that face has been the target of many a mud pie thrown since the technology went public two years ago. Some of MQA’s critics are courteous—a few are even well informed—but the nastiness on-line is unprecedented, in my experience. It’s reasonable to be concerned about MQA. It’s a big deal. There’s already much support from record labels and DAC manufacturers. It’s clear to me that MQA’s developers see it as an idealistic venture designed to fix what digital broke, sound-wise and within the music…