Mark Levinson № 5105 Turntable Review
September 21, 2021 Comments Off on Mark Levinson № 5105 Turntable Review
https://www.audiophilia.com/reviews/2021/7/30/mark-levinson-5105-turntable
A parallel experience came right after with the 2M Blue. This needle belts out clean-cut sound, no nonsense openness in dynamics. This time I wanted different instruments that could test the soundstage. Beirut’s The Flying Club Cup made an appearance with its folk-like rhythms and tempo. The carnivalesque atmosphere was engaging and the euphonium, big brass section and accordions filled my room with sounds that helped me recollect the glowing lights of fairs I used to visit as a child. That feeling of innocence and unrelenting fun of childhood is rare, but the 5105 was salient in inspiring it. Why? I think it’s because when I let the needle go, I didn’t worry at all, I could focus on the sound and imaging—letting go was easy. Next was Mingus at Carnegie Hall new Deluxe Ed, which was so good I had to listen to all three LPs in one sitting. The talent Mingus brought with him for this concert was unfair. The 5105 delivered the goods with the Ortofon Blue.
Mysphere 3 Headphones and Auris Audio Euterpe Headphone Amplifier Review
September 20, 2021 Comments Off on Mysphere 3 Headphones and Auris Audio Euterpe Headphone Amplifier Review
Design wise, Mysphere 3 and Auris Euterpe couldn’t be more of a polar opposite. Mysphere 3 leads with a form follows function design, a definite progression, if far more advanced, of the theme the thirty year old K1000 first pioneered. Modern stylistic elements, clean lines, stainless steel and aluminum with a uniquely tekk-y design, yield ear speakers, nay, headphones, that are sure to spark a conversation or three. Take Andy for example, who’s name has been changed to protect the guilty. “Hey, what are these things?” He quipped as he sat down to listen to some new records whilst on a recent visit to chez K. “Ear speakers these are”, I fired back. “Eh?” Picture a dazzled, otherwise healthy audiophile, my friend seemed to not know what I was speaking of. Well, you can’t blame the lad. Sort of. Mysphere 3 are definitely space-y looking, the very clean, lean lines of the headband and by comparison, small-ish looking and angled drivers provoke a certain sense of I-have-never-seen-anything-like-it sort of moment for the uninitiated
Triangle 40th Anniversary Comète Loudspeakers
September 20, 2021 Comments Off on Triangle 40th Anniversary Comète Loudspeakers
I investigated the bass further by taking an in-room averaged frequency-response measurement of the Comètes using my calibrated miniDSP UMIK-1 microphone and Room EQ Wizard, and I compared the results directly with my earlier measurements taken with Triangle’s Borea BR03s in the same positions. I found that, relative to 2kHz, the BR03s not only had 2dB more output than the Comètes at 50Hz, but also a measured -3dB point of 33Hz compared to the Comètes’ 38Hz. As a matter of comparison, most two-way standmounts with 6.5″ midrange-woofers that I measure in my room (always in the same positions) yield -3dB points around 32-35Hz. These measurements confirmed what I was hearing, or rather missing, in the bass with the Comètes—they lacked some extension not only in comparison to the BR03s, but to other speakers that had been in
HRS VXR Stand, Vortex and Helix Footers, and DPII Damping Plate $24,475 Review
September 19, 2021 Comments Off on HRS VXR Stand, Vortex and Helix Footers, and DPII Damping Plate $24,475 Review
I can only give an enthusiastic thumbs-up to the superb products that HRS is manufacturing. Latvis’ consummate devotion to his craft has resulted in a range of devices that is more than worth auditioning. His HRS products offer a useful reminder that the task of isolating audio equipment cannot be dismissed as an ancillary consideration. It’s essential.
AGD Gran Vivace Monoblock Amplifier Review
September 19, 2021 Comments Off on AGD Gran Vivace Monoblock Amplifier Review
https://www.hifinews.com/content/agd-gran-vivace-monoblock-amplifier
My only concern is the vulnerability of the GaNTube, exposed and waiting to be smashed or knocked over. I would ask AGD to fashion a cage as per the smaller AGD Audion, but obviously more in keeping with the Gran Vivace’s modern look, rather than the Audion’s ‘steam punk’ plumage.
Most listening was undertaken sans preamp, as I’m currently fixated on sources with output controls, eg, most tape decks, phono stages for LP-only systems, etc. And why not? It eliminates all that circuitry, a set of interconnects and shortens the path; the only sacrifice is extra inputs. As the Gran Vivace has two selectable inputs, I fed the Otari MX5050 directly via XLRs, and used the single-ended input for other sources. Also, the partnering Andante preamplifier never made it past PM‘s lab tests, it proving faulty and was rejected.
Clearaudio Concept Dark Wood Active Turntable Review
September 18, 2021 Comments Off on Clearaudio Concept Dark Wood Active Turntable Review
And don’t be misled by Concept Active’s compact visage. There’s a misconception in audio circles that normal-scale components somehow “play small” in comparison to their big, brawny, and yes, sometime pretentious siblings. The Concept Active laid that assumption to rest from the very first slamming groove of “Come Together” to the final operatic fade out of “Her Majesty.”
From groove-one onward, I understood immediately why the Clearaudio distributor Musical Surroundings shipped the Concept Active with the low-output moving-coil option rather than the higher-output moving magnet. If the idea was to demonstrate how quiet and grunge-free a small discrete phono preamp could be (and how it might compare to a full-size stand-alone phonostage like my Pass Labs XP-17 or Parasound JC3+), then point taken. A dynamic, all-analog piano recording like Nojima Plays Liszt [Reference Recordings] exposes system nuances and system noises like few recordings I know. But this on-board phono rose to the occasion, expressing low-level detail and dynamic energy that knocked on the door of what the aforementioned “stand-alones” had to offer. Its character skewed slightly to a softer and rounder presentation, but overall it was superbly listenable and musically satisfying.
Circle Labs A200 Integrated Amplifier Review
September 18, 2021 Comments Off on Circle Labs A200 Integrated Amplifier Review
Rosewood is eclectic, too. Varying solo instruments including piano, melodica, Spanish guitar, and even accordion lace themselves well through what appears to be a soundtrack full of purpose. Unfortunately, I have not seen the movie. Regardless of how large the orchestra, or well-recorded, breathy strings would get, the A200 was able to hold the integrity of the delicate details in the music.
With my largest and most dynamic loudspeakers, “The Town Burns” was able to push the A200 to its limit where I felt the dynamics were not quite as extreme as they needed to be. It took ungodly volume levels to get there (peaks over 105dB at three meters) in an over-driven room, so I cannot feel bad about this miss. At all reasonable and high volumes, save the most extreme, the A200 truly shows what it means to be an extremely well-engineered piece.
Wilson Audio SabrinaX Loudspeaker $18,900 Review
September 17, 2021 Comments Off on Wilson Audio SabrinaX Loudspeaker $18,900 Review
The new sound of Wilson is warm, but not in a bad way. Think warm as a result of energy—like molecules being excited, not like sitting by a fireplace drinking scotch on the rocks with a blanket over your legs. The SabrinaX’s ability to convey weight and impact, with surprising power and depth, is wonderful for its size. But I will warn that ¼” movements in placement have dramatic effects on these qualities, and on timbre, as well, harkening back to my set-up warnings above. These things demand meticulous placement, but, boy, do they deliver when everything’s done right. I found that the SabrinaX played all genres of music well, without softening, cleaning, or warming anything up. It was quiet and nuanced, but bold and powerful when called upon. At the same time, it also allowed me to resolve the smallest details and easily identify upstream changes. I was constantly searching for new music, different music than my routine listening lists. And listened to it not just for a song or two, but for entire albums. I have to specifically highlight vocal transitions as exceptional, and the driver integration left this 3-way sounding like a 2-way bookshelf speaker. Cohesive and seamless. And with proper power, it can play loud without losing its composure
Fono Acustica Armónico Speaker Cables Review
September 17, 2021 Comments Off on Fono Acustica Armónico Speaker Cables Review
I looked around, searching for a better understanding. My gaze takes in my beloved YG Acoustics Anat Signature loudspeakers. Dynamic driver speakers do so many things excellently, but they are not noted for having a full-bodied midrange and the sweetest treble. Then I shift to the array of CH Precision components. I’m sure they all measure beautifully on the test bench in Switzerland, but flat response in the lab is no guarantee of what will happen in my room. Either of these may be complicit, but it’s unlikely.
I settle on the room itself. This is the big one. Sound behavior in a real room always presents issues. Now, I’m going to surprise you by suggesting that the second biggest challenge for the audiophile is RF pollution. Oh, man, it’s all over—the modern domicile is a swamp. No one grasps the full extent, but, from what I’ve read, it’s easy to imagine RFI could be responsible for an artifact-laden treble and a blurry, or thin, midrange. (It’s a working hypothesis, at any rate.)
TechDAS Air Force Zero turntable $450,000 Review
September 16, 2021 Comments Off on TechDAS Air Force Zero turntable $450,000 Review
https://www.stereophile.com/content/techdas-air-force-zero-turntable
It may seem contradictory to note that a turntable with a base price of $450,000 has a recognizable sound, but if you get to hear the Air Force Zero under conditions commensurate with its performance capabilities, you’ll quickly understand that it’s not contradictory at all. The turntable is recognizable because no other turntable, or none that I’ve yet reviewed, so effectively sinks unwanted and extraneous noise while passing the musical goods with effortless ease, often in the most subtle and nuanced ways. The AF Zero is not a flashy-sounding “show off” turntable.
The Zero is the most speed-consistent belt-drive turntable I’ve reviewed, and with its air-bearing platters and air suspension, also the quietest, best isolated, and most inert, with stable sonics, quiet, and exceptional detail resolution with no added grain or unnatural, mechanical edge definition. The Zero was also trouble- and hassle-free for six months and as much fun to use as it was to hear.
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