he original plan was completely different: the Old Pinacotheca (German: Alte Pinakothek - collections of paintings from the 14th to the 18th century), the New Pinacotheca (German: Neue Pinakothek - a collection of European art from classicism to art nouveau), perhaps even the Deutsches Museum (Masterpieces of Science and Technology) – the largest museum of this type in the world. The Pinacotheca , as it is known, houses Rafael’s and Dürer’s works, as well as the largest collection of Rubens’s art. The Deutsches Museum is equally interesting, with its three main city departments: the main collection with over 650 thematic sections, as well as two specialist departments – the automobile museum (Deutsches Museum Verkehrszentrum) and the museum of aviation (Deutsches Museum Flugwerft Schleißheim). This is what the whole area of the English Garden more or less looks like.. (Source Wikimedia) The end result was folk, as usual, i.e. an open-air restaurant that can hold 7000 people, located next to the Chinesischer Turm (the Chinese Pagoda) in the Englischer Garten (English Garden). There were 7000 seats and all of them had actually been taken. Nevertheless, the atmosphere was nice, and the place was clean and pleasant. People drink lots of beer, both downstairs and upstairs in the pagoda where a brass band in Bavarian folk costumes plays music. Already the day before, when we were standing on the terrace of the Swiss Consulate, we heard people shouting and, from time to time, we saw surfers running with their boards. Surfers? Oh yeah, there is a little river producing an artificial wave at the rim of the garden, right next to the Consulate, where surfers train. The whole complex covers the area of 3.7 km2 (370 ha) and consists of a lot of smaller spatial elements: a lake, small forests, meadows, an observation tower, the Pagoda, etc. (for comparison: the area of the Błonia Park in Cracow is 48 ha). The garden can be accessed on foot in ca. 15 minutes from the city centre. As you can imagine, we also used the opportunity to get to know the charms of the place. I will begin my story by writing about the city which is simply fantastic, as I cannot stop thinking about the High End Exhibition 2016: it resembles the Englischer Garten. It is a place for entertainment and meetings, only secondarily treated as a venue for listening sessions. Not everyone will agree with me, I think, as I saw many zealous music lovers who would sit down and remain still for a long while, but I cannot help it – this is the way I see it. The exhibition was held during a long weekend, starting with the Father’s Day and a celebration of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary – both are treated very seriously in the capital of Bavaria. So, there is nothing strange about the fact that the four days are ludic and resemble a big Polish celebration of the long May weekend. Surfers in the city? – Why not! (Photo: Wikimedia) Of course, I am talking about visitors, not exhibitors. For the latter, that was a week of grind involving equipment transport, arrangement and setup, as well as a fight with acoustics. Even though after several years, often in the same rooms, many of them achieve excellent results, the fact is that we listen to music in rooms that are completely inadequate for the purpose. The best places are rooms with an area of a few dozen square meters each, in the so-called Atriums where the walls are quite thick and the door can be closed. However, even those rooms have two glass walls each. It is much harder for those who are seated in the enormous Halls (Halle) of the size of a football pitch, in which some exhibitors have open boxes and some have rooms with several square meters of floor space and thin walls. So, it might seem that those who said the exhibition would not work, right after the organizer (the High End Society) had moved it from the Kempinsky Hotel in Frankfurt, were right. However, the numbers prove otherwise. As we informed in our news, a long time before the exhibition started, all the available exhibition stands had been booked. We are talking about over 500 companies (manufacturers and distributors). Branko Glisovic, the CEO of the High End Exhibition, said: “Naturally, you try to get as many exhibitors as possible. However, when you reach the limit of 28,361 square meters of the exhibition venue, then it is all about capacity.” A view of Atrium 4 from a little gallery which connects two parts of Atrium 4.2 Most new exhibitors (316) were from outside Germany this year. They constituted 63% of all exhibitors, i.e. 2% more compared to last year. Obviously, most of the companies have a German passport. The second most numerous group were 40 companies from the UK which was ahead of the USA, Italy, France, China, Japan and Switzerland. Polish exhibitors have also been taking part in the event for years. This year we were represented by Albedo, Bauta, Fezz Audio, Franc Audio Accessories, LampizatOr, Pylon, Taga and others. Kurt Hecker, the Chief Executive of the High End Society, said: “It means that the High End offers not only a broad, but also an international range of companies, thus serving everyone as a place with innovative energy for the whole audio industry. It is a basis for the growing importance and brand recognition of the High End. We are delighted with the faith of exhibitors in our exhibition.” The High End Exhibition reached the maximum capacity offered by the M.O.C. Now, one can only keep on dividing it. This is of no importance for visitors, but it is a slaughterhouse the press, music lovers and audiophiles. I take full responsibility for what I say, based on my experience of attending all High End exhibitions in Munich and a few in Frankfurt. Obviously, I could not reach all the exhibitors, not to mention listening to all the systems for longer than 10 seconds. The people I talked to, including press representatives such as Matthias Böde from the “Stereo” magazine and Stuart Smith from “HiFiPig” (interview HERE), and exhibitors, had exactly the same impressions. So, what I already noticed a few years ago and strongly stressed last year, i.e. the fact that High End exhibitions are turning into a fair, is becoming reality. It is a venue for meetings, talks and presentations of new technologies and solutions. One needs to prepare a schedule in advance, with the exact times and locations, to make the most of the event. The times when it was possible to see and hear everything are gone. Now it is time for specialization and reduction. This year, rather than run from one room to another, I preferred to get to know a few new firms and products better, and talk longer to those of my friends and acquaintances that I see once a year. Nevertheless, I had the impression that I did not devote enough time to them and that the effort they had put into preparing the stand and presentation deserved more than just a few or several minutes. The respect that I feel towards their work deserves more. So, I am not going to include a description of the highest possible number of devices and systems. It is a more and more subjective selection of trends and places worth talking about – in my opinion, of course. But, who knows, perhaps such a presentation of the exhibition makes the most sense and is going to provide some specific information, not only banal remarks? Our readers will judge that. THE SOURCE ISSUE In my opinion, the most interesting information is connected with trends that could be observed this year. They are not new, as they have been developing for years, but, perhaps, as it seems, now it is time for logical solutions. Number one in all the discussions was the “source issue” that is especially close to my heart. Digital revolution 3.0 (after the CD and mp3) that we are dealing with has reached its saturation phase. The pursuit of higher and higher sampling frequencies and word length has reached the limit of the available technology and common sense – we are talking about the DXD (32/384) on the one hand and the Octuple DSD (DSD512, 22.5792 MHz) on the other hand. Even though there are virtually no DXD and DSD512 recordings and not much is going to change in this matter in the future, DAC manufacturers have been involved in a war of numbers, as if their survival depends on it. However, the exhibitors that I talked to said that the madness has made them lose money – people do not want to buy new products, as they are afraid that next year even more innovative products are going to be made, characterized by even better performance (in theory). René Laflamme and Nagra – a perfect combination :) Taking it all into consideration, it is worth stressing a common sense approach of some retailers selling Nagra products, for example. It is a company which has been developing products based on PCM coding for years – first in the form of digital reel tape, then CD players and now recorders and hard disk players. Its latest product is the cute excellent two-in-one recorder and player – Seven. As René Laflamme, the company’s representative and sound director (Fidelio Musique, 2 x HD) told me, despite its small size, the device is really transparent and very musical. On the other hand, the same amount of common sense is demonstrated by the DSD “camp”. Gerhard Hirt (Ayon Audio) has prepared a new file player which plays DSD Direct files through an Ethernet connection. However, this is not everything – the player is equipped with a digital-to-analog converter which… is not there. DSD signal does not require anything else apart from a simple analog filter for conversion. I have heard about a similar concept of the Polish company Amare Audio, but Gerhard told me that he was the first person in the world to come up with the idea. He developed it in cooperation with the Stream Unlimited company. Even though it might seem that the approaches adapted by both of the “camps” are mutually exclusive or that you need to choose one, it is not so. Both perspectives are equal, but different results are achieved in each case. People have been asking me for some time, also during the exhibition, what I think about DSD – whether it is the format that is going to “win”. Well, to cut a long story short, nothing is going to “win” and, anyway, almost everyone will listen to PCM recordings for the simple reason that, roughly speaking, 99.9% of recording and mastering studios work on the basis of digital PCM equipment. Even if the end product is converted to DSD, it is still going to be PCM, but “broken down”. However, this coding method is characterized by such important sound qualities that those who care about this type of sound will always find a way to reach analog recordings converted to DSD or simple recorded in DSD. So, if I were to look into a crystal ball, I would probably see the absolute dominance of PCM – first in CD quality and then perhaps in 24/96 and 24/192 quality. Right next to it, in a really small safe niche, one would find DSD as the format for the “initiated”. Not possible? – Of course it is possible! – The vertical Pro-Ject VTE turntable that can be put on a desk or hanged on a wall. The turntable is based on the Elemental model construction. A spring in the arm ensures needle pressure. Vinyl is going to be much more popular than DSD. Even though it still accounts for only a few per cent of overall sales, it is the only medium which shows an increase of a few dozen per cent year-to-year, while turntable sales are growing as well. During the exhibition, the Pro-Ject company officially celebrated its 25th anniversary. During a celebration meeting, the company owner and CEO – Mr. Heinz Lichtenegger – said they are now building their sixth manufacturing facility in the Czech Republic, in Austria they are moving to new headquarters and employing 600 new people. When it comes to the audio industry and the turntable, which is a really niche product, the information is really surprising. The turntable is trendy again and one could see many of its versions at the exhibition – from every price range and for every user: both for connoisseurs and those who want to stay up-to-date. Perhaps this is part of something bigger, e.g. a significant swing of the pendulum towards physical formats. There was a turntale in most of the rooms. However, in many of them music was played from a reel-to-reel tape recorder, from master tape copies. That was real music, not just boring audiophile stuff, little bells and noise made by moving chairs. At the stand of the Horh Audio company, which was the guest of “High Fidelity” during the Audio Show exhibition in Warsaw, one could see, listen to and buy analog copies of Deutsche Gramophone mother tapes, but also of the Yello band, as well as the Star Wars soundtrack. Tape represents an ultra-niche market, but a very influential one that speaks to people’s imagination. Apart from that, in many rooms there were again Compact Disc and Super Audio CD players. Metronome Technologies, Cambridge Audio, Audiolab, DPS EAR Yoshino, CEC, Musical Fidelity, Accustic Arts, Trigon, Neodio (CD), dCS, CH Precision, Luxman, Marantz, Denon, TAD and EMM Labs (SACD) – all the companies presented new or improved versions of 12-cm optical disc players and used them during demonstrations (a new version of the CD Red Reference was also announced by Chord). Many companies – Gryphon, YBA, LOIT, Viva Audio and Pathos simply used devices that they have had on offer for some time. A CD player could even be found as one of the sources in Van den Hul’s room! I do not want to convince anyone, of course, that physical media are returning in full glory, as it is obviously not true. The future looks bright for HD files playing. Even though it is not clear yet whether this is going to be streaming, which is strongly supported by MQA coding, or playing files from local constant memory, the trend has been set. I want to show a certain principle: the audio industry is incredibly conservative. So, if it is possible to retain something that has already been achieved, it tries to preserve it. So, the Renaissance of the cassette tape, which was also present at the exhibition, is not a coincidence. It seems to me that the editorial staff of the “Gramophone” magazine is right. In the article entitled The Vinyl Revolution they write that if BPI survey results that they quote in the text are correct, the future of the audio industry is “cross-media” music consumption (May 2016, Volume 93, p. 15). I have nothing else to add. What did I miss at the exhibition? Stands with recordings from small record labels – the ones present at the exhibition were big stores. I also lacked devices which would really change things when it comes to technology, looks and workmanship, not to mention the fact that I had little time for everything. Apart from that, that was a very successful exhibition and an even better trip. BEST OF THE SHOW An attempt to point out the best sound at such a big exhibition, when you need four days to get to know everything (without listening to any given sound too carefully), is doomed to fail. It is like throwing darts at a rotating dartboard. Anyway, I would like to mention a few presentations that kept us in the rooms for a longer time and where everything was really ok. This year, we gave the BEST SOUND High End 2016 award only to six rooms, we honored three more and we would also like to give a special award to one company for its achievements to date. We are also going to tell you about the (probably) most important presentation at the exhibition. I: Best Sound Pluto Audio | Air Tight | Blumenhofer | Cammino The room had virtually no acoustic sound control elements. It was equipped with tube Air Tight devices placed on charming (yet industrial) stands with adjustable height, as well as with asymmetrically arranged speakers. All of this resulted in dense dark (i.e. natural) sound. High dynamics and excellent space management completed the impression of “finished”, polished and well thought-out sound. Nagra | Kronos | Wilson Audio The new Nagra Classic PRE preamplifier and Classic AMP power amplifiers, in cooperation with the Classic DAC produce powerful trustworthy sound. René Laflamme presented his recordings from an SD card to us, played using the professional recorder/player Seven. A Kronos turntable also sounded perfect. However, the highlight of the show was the sound of an analog master tape and it was what finally convinced us. C.E.C. | Thrax | Silberstatic | Trinnov | Emiral | Absolue Créations The CEC TL 0 3.0 is the best Compact Disc transport that I know. However, it lacked an equally good digital-to-analog converter. Munich was the place where we first saw the DA 0 3.0. Some of its features include two digital filters, reclocking, upsampling and a discreet multi-bit converter of 25 bit resolution, built on resistors arranged in an R/2R ladder, as well as a USB 32/384 input. Together with the Thrax Dionysos preamplifier, Thrax Heros power amplifiers, electrostatic Silberstatic Nr. 8 speakers, Trinnov Amethyst room/speaker optimizer and Absolue Créations cables, the CEC transport produced sweet, smooth and incredibly pleasant sound. Audiovector | Gryphon | Arcam Who has said that speakers must be expensive to produce good sound? Audiovector demonstrated that good engineering, manufacturing the product in one’s own factory and the taste of creators result in an incredible combination. Mads Klifoth, the son of the Audiovector’s founder, is especially proud of the new speakers from the QR series – as he says, it is the first product prepared by him from start to finish. Regardless of excellent workmanship and very good converters used (including a modified AMT), the speaker prices start from €810 (+ VAT) for the QR1bookshelf speakers. It is true that signal amplification during the session was provided by the (costly) excellent Gryphon Diablo 300, but I test speakers for “High Fidelity” in the same way. The source, i.e. the Arcam CDS27 SACD/file player was also not too expensive. In the picture you can see Mr. and Mr. Klifoth – the father and the son. Kondo | Kaiser Acoustics Marek Dyba, our editorial colleague, spent most of his Munich time in this room. No wonder – it is an excellent combination of warmth, softness and resolution. The sound was very close to what you hear live. The demonstrated finished version of the Kondo C-1000 line preamplifier worked with a yet not complete version of a phono stage. The Keiser speakers used are specially dedicated for Kondo amplifiers. Bauta | Accuphase | Siltech | Wireworld | Base At the end of our visit to the exhibition we went to Jacek Gawłowski to listen to his Bauta speakers. Jacek was probably the only person who has won the Grammy Award for sound design, presenting music at the High End 2016 exhibition. So, it is a pity that he did not write the information on a huge banner and did not boast about the Polish Jazz series – both the award and the records are praiseworthy :) I remember listening to these speakers in his mastering studio and I must say that the exhibition sound was even better in some respects – mainly when it came to the smoothness and velvetiness of the midrange and treble. The bass was not bad, especially considering the fact that the 2-meter speakers were placed at the corners of a small room. Even though the speakers can normally do much more – well done! The Accuphase A-200 amplifiers, Siltech Triple Crown cables, top-class WireWorld cables, and an Accuphase player and preamp contributed to the overall success as much as the speakers did. II: Additional awards Gryphon The Mephisto amplifier and Kodo speakers – the new company flagship products undoubtedly represent the first audio league. The workmanship is excellent and the sound – fantastic. The exhibition room was a little too small for these monsters, but when they are provided with lots of space, they may produce the best sound in someone’s life. The signal source was the Mikado Signature Compact Disc player. DPS EAR Yoshino | Rockport Technology | ISOL-8 Tim de Paravicini is one of the most important constructors who are still running their own companies. During the exhibition, he used three sources – the EAR Disc Master turntable, the EAR Acute Classic Compact Disc player and a Denon reel-to-reel tape recorder. Frankly speaking, all of them convinced me the room deserved a reward, but the analog tape was the most powerful. Einstein | TechDAS The Einstein Audio company is the German distributor of the TechDAS brand. The company room featured a new, better version of the flagship Air Force One Premium turntable. There were also other, equally interesting premiere products with the Einstein Audio logo, i.e.: The Tonearm, The Phonostage and a total novelty –The Speaker (speakers). Three words: taste, culture and knowledge provide a good short description of these devices. III: Special award Pro-Ject Heinz Lichtenegger during the 25th anniversary meeting. At the background, on the right – his wife, Josefina Krahulcova (wearing a red flower dress) who runs the EAT company. The hair on the left belongs to Ken Kessler, the editor of “Hi-Fi News & RR”, while the hair on the right – to Michael Fremer working for “Stereophile” and “Analog Planet”. An anniversary party of a turntable manufacturer in digital times might be associated with the owner’s retirement anniversary. The pension would not be too high as even Salomon cannot pour from an empty jug. However, Heinz Lichtenegger’s business intuition and market knowledge allowed him to see something behind the green curtain of falling digits – something that made him invest in a technology older than anyone who is alive. Twenty five years later, Pro-Ject is one of the largest, if not the largest, manufacturer of turntables and associated devices in the world. One might say this is a company which has helped to maintain the beautiful combination of art and technology for future generations. We wish them all the best! IV: Event Bowers & Wilkins: premiere of the Diamond series Time and place: 5.05.2016 Bayerischer Hof Hotel Promenadepl. 2-6, 80333 Munich Text: Bartosz Pacuła Photos: Bartosz Pacuła | Bowers & Wilkins Translation: Ewa Muszczynko Bowers & Wilkins speakers from the top Diamond series can safely be regarded as one of the flagships of modern high-end. They are stylish, stand out from the crowd and at the same time avoid cheap controversy. People may think whatever they like about them (and about the sound they offer), but no one who knows at least a little about audio is going to deny the speakers their place in the history of the audio industry. That increased my satisfaction when I accepted an invitation to the world premiere of the reference 800 D3 model which completes the completely upgraded 800 Diamond series launched last year. Initially, the series included six models (three floor, one monitor and two central speaker models), as well as two dedicated stands. We had to wait for the top representative of the 800 series for a year. During this time, the company has managed to come to terms with the success of its new products and got used to hard work that was needed to maintain that success. As it is officially declared by B&W representatives, over 15,000 speakers from the 800 series have been sold all over the world so far, which is an amazing achievement, considering high-end audio prices. The premiere of the reference 800 D3 model took place on May 5th at the Bayerischer Hof Hotel in Munich, exactly at the time when the High End 2016 exhibition was held at the MOC centre. The organizers did not dramatically unveil their treasure during the presentation, but put their new flagship speakers in a kind of a “waiting room” where people could enjoy looking at them. After inviting us, i.e. journalists and distributors from all over the world, to another room, Bower’s employees shortly described the philosophy behind the 800 series, talked about the company’s achievements and tried to prove that the 800 D3 model are the best speakers that have ever been manufactured by the company. Undoubtedly, “dismantling” the speaker was a very interesting idea. Every participant was given each component for a moment, thanks to which I could closely look at the new midrange driver, as well as hold the Turbine head (I had not known it is so heavy!). Then the time came for the most important thing, i.e. demonstrating the performance of the speakers and allowing the participants to verify what had been said about them. I can call this listening session successful. It was coherent, full of meaning and helped me understand what the 800 D3 is all about. The first thing to mention is the power of sound that cannot be ensured by the top Bowers & Wilkins floor speakers. Thanks to the 800 D3, everything is big, powerful and mighty – there is no place for any audiophile forest or guitar sounds (unfortunately, there was also time for that) – what matters is the energy, dynamics and power. It was really well demonstrated by one electronic music track, where everything “settled” as it should. The 800 D3 also played other kinds of music really well (including the audiophile guitar, I must admit), but it was clearly visible that these columns want something completely different. Bowers & Wilkins 800 D3 speakers are a real product. It is based on specific philosophy, technology and joy of music. The model really comes across as beautiful live (ditching yellow Kevlar was like hitting the bull’s eye from the point o view of design) and its sound demonstrates really well what high end is. It is not a product for everyone, but fans of the type of sound described above should feel delighted. A few final words The Consulate General of Switzerland in Munich is located at Prinzregentenstraße 20. When you are at a terrace situated at the top floor, you can see both the adjacent English Garden and admire a panoramic view of the old town. A sunset watched from that perspective was breathtaking, the more that it became part of a meeting held to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Swiss Soulution company whose product – the 710 power amplifier – has been the basis of my audio system for a few years now. The meeting, organized in cooperation with Vovox, was a pretext for bringing together people connected with Soulution and demonstrating the latest product – the integrated amplifier from the ‘300’ series. It is going to be the cheapest series from that manufacturer, two times less expensive than the ‘500’ series. We spent the evening in the company of Matthias Böde, the editor-in-chief of the “Stereo” magazine, as well as Chatzidimitriou Athanase, a Greek brand distributor and his wife. There were Poles, Greeks and a German in the middle :) So, the outcome was naturally a conversation about politics. I was surprised by how well Matthias knows the Polish reality. However, Chatzidimitriou’s point of view also gave us some food for thought, as it came directly from a person who had experienced crisis. sometimes the atmosphere was heated, but, fortunately, “music has charms to soothe a savage Breast” – Heidi Happy, a Swiss artist known from her cooperation with Yello (among others), gave us a special, almost private concert – “One Woman Show” with guitars and a loop station. Only that and also – so much! That was an example of the purest music. Then, I just bought a few records and got a few autographs, and… Goodbye, Munich! [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/18.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/18.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/18.jpg" desc="Hideaki Nishikawa-san, the TechDAS constructor, is signing a printout with the May “High Fidelity” cover. “Japanese style? – Sure, with pleasure…”"] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/19.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/19.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/19.jpg" desc="Einstein has prepared a premiere – The Tonearm, presented on the Air Force III turntable."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6436.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6436.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6436.jpg" desc="The German Trigon company does not often surprise us with new products, but now demonstrated a few novelties at once, including the Exxceed integrated amplifier."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6439.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6439.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6439.jpg" desc="Powerful horns from the German company Blumenhofer Acoustics (just for decoration, unfortunately)."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6443.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6443.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6443.jpg" desc="Blumenhofer speakers were equipped with Air Tight electronics – the ATE-2 preamp and the AM-3 power amplifier – in the photo you can see the equally good-looking Pluto Audio 10A Reference turntable."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6445.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6445.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6445.jpg" desc="One of the observable trends is building bigger and bigger speakers. Not all of them look as nice as the Alecta speakers in the picture. These are the flagship Albedo speakers with an innovative transmission line system. Powered by VTL monoblocks, they produced really interesting sound."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6452.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6452.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6452.jpg" desc="Another sign of vinyl domination – the Jadis Thalie turntable. Even though it was already presented in 2014, its 80 kilos of weight are really impressive…"] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6454.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6454.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6454.jpg" desc="If there was a competition to find the technologically perfect system, the CH Precision (electronics) with the TechDAS (turntable) and Vivid Audio (speakers) would definitely win it. This is top-class engineering."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6458.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6458.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6458.jpg" desc="A year ago, when I was listening to the flagship dCS Vivaldi set, I thought achieving anything better was impossible. However, the company has developed a new signal decoding algorithm, changed the upsampler in the transport (DSD128) and improved the file player. The first two changes are available as a software update for free. Unfortunately, the upsampler board requires replacing."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6461.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6461.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6461.jpg" desc="The Nagra Classic INT – a new integrated amplifier (2 x 100 W/8 Ω)."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6466.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6466.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6466.jpg" desc="The Nagra Seven (on a CDP Compact Disc player) – I must buy something like this for myself: a two-in-one professional recorder and file player. Nagra specializes in PCM coding and that is why the device is not dedicated for DSD. However, what it does is excellent, not to mention its great design!"] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6470.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6470.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6470.jpg" desc="MSB Technology surprised everyone with an ultimate amplifier for electrostatic headphones. Shown as a prototype in January at the CES in Munich, now it was a finished product."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6474.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6474.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6474.jpg" desc="If everything goes well, I will soon be testing some of these devices – even though Luxman belongs to a Chinese company (the IAG Group), the board and production are Japanese. In the photo you can see the PD-171A, new SACD D-08u and D-06u players, as well as the tube amplifier MQ-300 (premiere) based on the 300B triodes."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6480.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6480.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6480.jpg" desc="A CEC DAC, the DA 0 3.0 model, partner for the CD TL 0 3.0 transport."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6484.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6484.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6484.jpg" desc="In the Vitus Audio company room, the source was a file player manufactured by Alluxity, a company which belongs to Ole Vitus’s son, even though Vitus himself has just launched a new version of his top Compact Disc player. However, as Ole told me – “mechanical players belong to the past.”"] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6490.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6490.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6490.jpg" desc="The bookshelf Raidho D1 speakers were excellent. Their new D1.1 version looks even better."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6491.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6491.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6491.jpg" desc="The QR1, bookshelf Audiovector speakers, opening the company’s new series – everything is assembled in Denmark."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6501.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6501.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6501.jpg" desc="Anne Bisson is a jazz vocalist from Montreal. She has recorded music for Fidelio, among others, and has always taken care of high quality of her recordings. Her Blue Mind album is available on vinyl, but also in the form of a USB 96/24 card. The recordings were made using two Neumann tube microphones and almost no tracks were added afterwards."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6504.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6504.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6504.jpg" desc="Two years ago, Thorens showed its 1960s-style turntables for the first time. This year there were new models, like the TD-907 in the picture."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6510.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6510.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6510.jpg" desc="The turntable that started it all is the smallest of all – this year, Avid HiFi presented its Reference Pre preamplifier, Reference Mono power amplifiers and three speaker models; the Reference Three bookshelf speaker model is presented in the picture."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6512.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6512.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6512.jpg" desc="Shortly before the exhibition, the Naim Label informed the public about a change of its managing director, name (now it is called Naim Records) and logo – now the slogan is: Independent. Uncompromising. Eclectic."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6516.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6516.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6516.jpg" desc="The new Denon PMA-2500NE amplifier has a small display with input names. However, it is still based on a single pair of MOSFET transistors per channel."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6530.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6530.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6530.jpg" desc="In the room of the Korean Silbatone company, one can see more than just the company’s own products: there are also vintage products, like the one in the picture. It is the PA 2s – Georg Neumann’s turntablewith Frank Schröder beautiful tonearm. It constituted the main source in that system."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6531.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6531.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6531.jpg" desc="Silbatone once again and its main attraction – the tube Western Electric 11A speakers from the year1924, originally designed to be used in cinemas."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6540.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6540.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6540.jpg" desc="The Italians from Pathos have a sense of style – in the photo there is the new INPOL Heritage integrated amplifier, which resembles the INPOL topology developed by the company. In the system there was also the Endorphine CD player and Frontiers speakers."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6543.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6543.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6543.jpg" desc="The inexpensive TEAC TN-300 turntables in any color and with a USB output. "] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6549.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6549.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6549.jpg" desc="Mark Levinson presented a few novelties, including the No. 526 preamp and power amplifiers. For me, however, the most interesting product was the No. 519 – an all-in-one file player, streamer, DAC, preamp and CD player. As a company representative said, its CD playing function is secondary to its other functions."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6570.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6570.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6570.jpg" desc="Korean people from KL Audio, known so far for their excellent LP vinyl record ultrasonic cleaners, presented incredibly good-looking turntable arms designed similarly to Thales arms. In the picture you can see the Linear Tangential Tracking Tonearm which looks like a classic arm and in which the head is always parallel to the record grooves."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6576.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6576.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6576.jpg" desc="When wood is appropriately used, it always looks good, also as a housing – like in Rumee amplifiers."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6578.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6578.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6578.jpg" desc="Even though this looks like a truck radiator, in reality it is a Delta Sigma amplifier."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6583.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6583.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6583.jpg" desc="There are a few available versions of the Elipson α 100 turntable – with a USB output, Bluetooth connection or a classic analog output. Simple, nice, inexpensive."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6587.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6587.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6587.jpg" desc="The monster is a turntable integrated with the base."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6589.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6589.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6589.jpg" desc="The turntable is operated using a pull-out hydraulic control platform that is turned on using a key."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6595.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6595.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6595.jpg" desc="La Boite Concept – a return of the music console in a new form. The French company dedicates its products for the designer market, but it must be admitted that they have also taken proper care of sound. The photo presents the LD 130 CS model."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6598.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6598.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6598.jpg" desc="A Rike Audio amplifier and oil capacitors that are used in it."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6599.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6599.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6599.jpg" desc="Mr. Michał Jurewicz (on the left) talked about the Mytek Brooklyn converter, but the exhibition was also an occasion to present the new Manhattan II DAC for the first time."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6607.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6607.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6607.jpg" desc="A new product from HiFiMAN, the Edition S headphones."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6611.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6611.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6611.jpg" desc="Another edition, this time with a longer history – the Ultrasone Tribute 7, celebrating an anniversary of the creation of the first Edition 7 headphones by the company. Next to them, a very interesting and professional two-in-one AD/DA and headphone amplifier, the RME ADI-2 Pro."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6619.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6619.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6619.jpg" desc="The Kondo and Kaiser Acoustics room that we gave our award to. The picture shows Mr. Rainer Weber, the Technical Director of Keiser Acoustics, showing recesses in a statue situated in the room. The most space was offered by the… Anyway, you can see it yourselves…"] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6621.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6621.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6621.jpg" desc="The beautiful Kondo C-1000 preamplifier coveted by everyone, in two boxes. The Keiser stand presented in the picture is also used in “High Fidelity” B system."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6626.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6626.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6626.jpg" desc="One of the two new integrated Soulution amplifiers, the 511 model: an impulse amplifier 4 x 600 W, 500 000 μF capacitors, over 3000 W in an impulse…"] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6635.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6635.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6635.jpg" desc="Johnnie Bergmann with his new turntable equipped with a classic arm, showing the place where one can connect one of the four arms. This year’s trend required a turntable to have at least two."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6638.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6638.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6638.jpg" desc="The LUMI 3 speaker cable from the Finnish Graditech company, whose parameters can be changed by manipulating its ends. Three conductor pairs made of different materials allow for a total of 49 different combinations."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6642.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6642.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6642.jpg" desc="For me, it is one of the most interesting sound sources – a new two-piece EMM Labs SACD player – the TX2 transport and the DAC DA2. Next to them there is the MTRX2 power amplifier. All the elements are representative of the company’s new design line."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6650.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6650.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6650.jpg" desc="The Gryphon Diablo 300 – an integrated amplifier built like a tank. How does it sound? I will soon test it for “High Fidelity”."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6655.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6655.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6655.jpg" desc="The French Advance Acoustics company comes back with small components, now in a new Smart series. The photo shows a complete set – the AX1 preamp/DAC and the BX1 power amplifier."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6663.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6663.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6663.jpg" desc="The Edward Audio Apprentice TT mk2 turntable with the EA202 arm and the C50 cartridge looked really nice. As it can be seen, it is produced by Rega."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6674.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6674.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6674.jpg" desc="Last year, during the Audio Video Show 2015 exhibition in Warsaw, Gerhard Hirt (Ayon Audio) presented the top company preamp – the Conquistador – for the first time. Now the company has a finished version of the device. It consists of two parts, but one of them (in the picture) has a double casing to house powerful Ayon triodes."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6678.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6678.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6678.jpg" desc="Saidi Audio is a company from China, which manufactures almost all turntable and amplifier components by itself. The photo shows the SD-30 turntable."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6681.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6681.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6681.jpg" desc="A bit of retro? Here you are: a clock manufactured by the Russian company VacuumGlow, with electron Nixie tubes. Prices starting from 1200 USD :)"] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6682.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6682.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6682.jpg" desc="The Dynaco company, established by David Hafler and Ed Laurent in 1955, known for the ST70 kit, is living its second life now. The photo shows its ST-7 integrated amplifier."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6691.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6691.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6691.jpg" desc="Tape cassettes recorded directly from an analog master tape, the so-called “Master Compact Cassette”. And the box! The Hemiola Records company specializes in reel analog tapes that are master tape copies."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6693.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6693.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6693.jpg" desc="The Tone Tool turntable, Sprocket model. Prices starting from €108 900 :) – without the arm, of course."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6701.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6701.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6701.jpg" desc="The Swiss Goldmund is a synonym for high-end. The person behind its success is the company director – Mr. Michel Reverchon (in the photo)."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6703.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6703.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6703.jpg" desc="Pro-Ject has prepared new versions of finish for devices from the Box Design series. The photo shows the MaiA DS2 amplifier with 1970s-style wooden sides."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6706.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6706.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6706.jpg" desc="The Polish Pylon company presented its Emerald speakers in Munich – a special model prepared with the help of “High Fidelity” editorial staff. The work has almost finished."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6707.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6707.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6707.jpg" desc="The Polish Fezz Audio company presented its two new amplifiers – a push-pull one based on KT88 tubes and a single-ended one based on 300B tubes. Special features – output transformers on a toroidal core."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6713.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6713.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6713.jpg" desc="Pylon and Fezz Audio again – natural veneer on the speakers, even though these are inexpensive models."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6716.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6716.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6716.jpg" desc="That obscure object of desire: the Horh Audio copy of the master tape with the Star Wars movie soundtrack. The soundtrack available from episodes IV, V and VI."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6717.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6717.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6717.jpg" desc="Up to now, the Playback Designs company has been concentrating on playing SACDs – its CEO, Mr. Andreas Koch, is one of the most well-known advocates of this format. However, the firm presented a new product series at the exhibition, mostly designed for streaming. The photo shows the Merlot – a two-in-one DAC and headphone amplifier."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6722.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6722.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6722.jpg" desc="Another Polish accent, this time representative of high end – the LampizatOr company accompanied by, among others, a Kronos turntable, Skogrand Cables and Italian EMMESpeakers."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6729.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6729.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6729.jpg" desc="Franc Audio Accessories, a Polish manufacturer of anti-vibration equipment and the Power On-E power strip, has prepared its version plated with 24 Karat gold. The strip is integrated with an anti-vibration base. It is sold under the Franc Audio Power brand."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6732.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6732.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6732.jpg" desc="The Japanese Triode company presented a prototype of its new Musashi amplifier with the KT150 tubes."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6740.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6740.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6740.jpg" desc="Furutech and a new method of vibration damping in power sockets and plugs – the NCF. It makes use of the piezoelectric properties of certain materials – vibrations are transformed in them into electrostatic charges, while the charges are then transformed into heat."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6741.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6741.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6741.jpg" desc="Another Compact Disc player presented at the exhibition – the Accustic Arts Player I. Of course, it is equipped with a fully functional DAC."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6748.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6748.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6748.jpg" desc="A fantastic-looking presentation with Dan D’Agostino, Sonus Faber and Meridian electronics – signal was transmitted from an EAT turntable, through a new Dan preamp, from its streamer or from a Meridian CD player."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6761.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6761.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6761.jpg" desc="I think nobody had been expecting that – a new series of Contour Dynaudio speakers looks quite ordinary. The front is still a thick aluminum cast and there are top-class speakers, but there is a classic housing. A clear influence of the softer sex…"] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6764.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6764.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6764.jpg" desc="One of Chord’s new products was the TToby power amplifier that was supposed to be part of a system based on the Hugo TT DAC."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6772.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6772.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6772.jpg" desc="The Transrotor company has also changed its design, at least when it comes to the Massimo model. The streamlined edges reminded me of the 1960s."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6779.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6779.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6779.jpg" desc="A new version of a cleaner that I have been using for two years – the Vinyl Cleaner PRO from the German company AudiodeskSysteme Gläss. Its main features are a more powerful ultrasound generating system and a range of available colors."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6780.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6780.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6780.jpg" desc="Vintage? – Of course, but only on the outside – the Old School Studio Monitor M2 for €2490."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6782.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6782.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6782.jpg" desc="This year, the symbols of “High Fidelity” rewards could be found at many places, such as the Harbeth company room. However, CEC, Einstein and other companies also willingly used them."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6811.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6811.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6811.jpg" desc="YG Acoustic speakers will soon be available in Poland. We talked about it with the company representatives and we agreed to arrange the first tests in “High Fidelity”. On the right there is Mr. Kerry St. James, Senior Account Executive, on the left – Mr. Alexander Kostyria, a distributor."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6820.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6820.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6820.jpg" desc="Trinnov Audio, a company specializing in room acoustics correction, presented the Atlitude32. It is a digital preamplifier designed for home theater systems, equipped with the latest decoders: the Dolby Atmos, Auro-3D and DTS:X."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6824.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6824.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6824.jpg" desc="The HF award on the door of the Blumenhofer Acoustics company room."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6829.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6829.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6829.jpg" desc="Vermeer Audio with the “Universal Control Center” Two – an all-in-one preamp, DAC and LAN streamer."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6839.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6839.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6839.jpg" desc="Powerful Zellaton Statement speakers. Sources: a Loit Passeri CD player and Reed Muse 3C turntable."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6840.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6840.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6840.jpg" desc="The Zellaton speakers were powered by the Sueskindaudio Frans de Wit Signature Century power amplifier on a Schnerzinger platform."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6845.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6845.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6845.jpg" desc="Files rule here: the Lindemann company – devices from the Musicbook series – with Wiener Lautsprecher Manufactur speakers."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6854.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6854.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6854.jpg" desc="One of the most interesting CD players at the exhibition – the Viva Numerico with a transformer analog output."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6855.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6855.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6855.jpg" desc="Another new CD player – the two-piece EAR DAC4 + Drive, both pieces with chrome finish."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6863.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6863.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6863.jpg" desc="Gabi van den Kley (Crystal Cable) is showing an element made of milled aluminum to Ken Kessler (“Hi-Fi News & RR”), thanks to which the treble is better dispersed in the Arabesque speakers."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6883.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6883.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6883.jpg" desc="The Bauta speakers and Jacek Gawłowski, their constructor, behind the door."] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6888.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6888.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6888.jpg" desc="KR Audio – the P130 preamp and the VA910 power amplifiers. The latter are a new product which uses 4 KT120 lamps per channel. "] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/m2016/th/6890.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6890.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/m2016/6890.jpg" desc="Turntables of the Czech 440 Audio company in G1-G5 series; their special Art Edition versions above. Acryl plates, bases made of different materials, excellent workmanship."] [/hfgallery]

xpensive cabling systems have become something 'common' - both for you, the readers of "High Fidelity", and for us, the members of the Cracow Sonic Society. On one hand one might consider it a 'sign of our times', the average price of products of high-end companies sky-rocketed, but it's also also a sign of catching up with the rest of the audio world; now we have face exactly the same situation as everyone else. Nevertheless, the release of the next stratospheric set causes an ejection of adrenaline into the blood, goose-bumps and blushing of the cheeks. When additionally this set comes from the brand, which we know and respect, with the products we use, we can't help ourselves, we need to check it out. Do I exaggerate? - Of course, but don't we go overboard each time when a small improvement unnoticeable for 'regular' people is named by us a revolutionary, ground breaking and so on? Isn't is so that every small change noticed in our system gives us sleepless nights? Well, duh... But that's what we are, that's what makes us tick and just as every mood swing of the person we are in relationship or some noticeable change in the behavior of a friend, also these changes affect us in an intense manner. Because listening, active listening, ie. One that thrives on the essence and form, is an extremely personal experience that touches us in places where no one and nothing else is allowed. After all it's been known for a long time that music is the most powerful natural medium of emotions. TARA LABS EVOLUTION A great example illustrating what I just wrote was the arrival of long-awaited set of TARA Labs cables from the Evolution series, The Zero interconnect Evolution (72 000 PLN/1 m) and speaker cable The Omega Evolution (126 000 PLN/2 x 2.4 m) ( TARA = The Absolute Reference Audio). The fact that I had been using the almost top model, Tara Labs Omega Onyx speaker cable in my reference system for the long seven years and until recently, when I heard SILTECH Triple Crown, I had no doubt that it was the best cable I had a chance to listen to in my system and one of the few best available on the market. The new version of the reference product is a challenge and a threat. Because we never know if the painstakingly built balance in our system will not be destroyed by it, even if objectively it will be a better product (I understand "reference" as a reference point, not necessarily the best, but well known). So in order to be sure of what I hear and to describe the Evolution series properly for you I divided this test into two parts. You're just reading the first part describing our impressions from Cracow Sonic Society meeting. The second will be a description of a test in my own reference system, and these two cables will be also accompanied by The Omega Evolution Power Cable (46 000 PLN / 1.8 m). TARA Labs products have a special personal significance to me. But for members of the CSS they are not a stranger either. I recall that already in 2006 we listened to The Zero interconnect (KSS # 67, see HERE) and Janusz, one of our members who hosted most of our meetings, has been using the original version of the Omega speaker cable for almost 10 years now. HOW DID WE LISTEN The meeting was divided into two parts. During the first one we compared the Onyx Omega and Omega Evolution speaker cables; CD player and power amplifier were connected using The Evolution Zero IC. During the second part we compared sets of TARA Labs Evolution and Siltech Double Crown cables. We chose these particular Siltechs for this comparison for obvious reasons – Janek has been using Double Crown interconnect for 2 years now, and recently he also added the speaker cable. In addition, the Evolution series is not the most expensive within TARA Labs offer. Although one might find it hard to believe, this company with their The Grand Master Evolution series offers even more expensive cables - interconnect for 112 000 PLN/1 m, and the speaker cable for 159 000 PLN/2 x 2.4 m. Same goes for Siltech – there is still the more expensive Triple Crown line. So a comparison of the products of the second most expensive lines of these two brands seemed to make sense. Recordings used for the test: Carlo Gesualdo de Venosa, The Complete Madrigals, Delitiae Musicae, Marco Longhini, Naxos 8.507013, 7 x CD (2013) David Oistrakh, Violin, wyk. London Symphon Orchestra, Decca/Lasting Impression Music LIM XR24015, XRCD24 (1968/2006) Jean-Michel Jarre, Electronica. Vol. 1: The Time Machine, Sony Music Labels SICP-30788, BSCD2 (2015) Jerzy Milian Trio, Bazaar, Polskie Nagrania „Muza”/GAD Records GAD CD 017, „Polish Jazz | vol 17”, CD (1069/2014) King Crimson, In The Court of the Crimson King, Atlantic/Discipline Global Mobile/Wowow Entertainment, Inc. IEDG-01, 7” Platinum SHM-CD (1969/2016) Mieczysław Weinberg, Concertos, wyk. Göteborgs Symfoniker, Chandos Records CHSA 5064, SACD/CD (2009) Siciliane, The Songs of an Island, Glossa GCD P33001, CD (2013) Comparison #1 TARA Labs Omega Onyx vs TARA Labs Omega Evolution Wiktor I was very surprised. At first, with an older cable, Omega Onyx, I heard that something bad was happening at the lower end, as if the upper band was out of control. It didn't really match the class of the rest of the system. Also, the distribution in space was not especially good, especially with the vocals on the album with Gesualdo Madrigals. With the new version of Evolution an order was restored, sound became complete. But still, the whole presentation was focused on abundance of details and I still missed more 'body' in the sound. On the other hand the performance was incredibly spatial. Here was the biggest difference - Evolution is doing in this regard everything as it should be. Tomek For me the new Evolution cables were more convincing, at least in most cases. With classics everything was so beautiful, natural and interesting that I simply loved what I heard. But the difference was not equivalent to doubling of the price, so each potential buyer has to consider himself whether he wants to pay extra so much money for this scope of improvement. The second thing – when we played Milan, the recording sounded so much more energetic with the new Evolution cable. There was a proper pulse, energy and speed. Voices a cappella of Gesualdo sounded with this cable much better. With Jarre I did not hear much difference. Tonally it seems to me a very similar sound - better, but the same type of presentation - it's simply better cable, but surely of the same sonic family. Bartek I also like this new cable of the Evolution series more, although - as Tom said - the aesthetics of the sound is almost the same. TARA Labs Evolution, which is a new edition of the cable takes a step further up the quality ladder. I didn't notice any deficiencies in the bass area, I do not know why Wiktor pointed it out. I think it's a characteristic of this system – there is a lot of low end in the presentation and yet the whole presentation is not so "physical" as in systems with large loudspeakers. But what I noticed, was this particularly this energetic presentation of Milian's recording - every strike, every attack with the new Evolution cable was incomparably better. The smallest difference I heard from Gesualdo - if we had finished with this recording I wouldn't have been able to tell the difference between cables; and the largest difference was with David Oistrakh's recording - this albums would make a great 'seller' of the new Tara Labs cables. Violin sounded ingeniously. I like it when system does not present weaknesses of the recording - TARA Labs Evolution does not. I don't listen to music to hear mistakes made while recording. That's why I loved these new cables so much and they were an obvious choice for me. Rysiek B. It seems easy and difficult at the same time to evaluate these cables. Difficult, because the sound of Omega and Omega Onyx (I'm talking about Janusz cable on one hand and Wojtek's on the other), which are similar to each other, gave me a strong bases for such assessment as I have been listening to them in this system for seven years or more. I also don't really want to assess their performance, because it's a very individual choice, but I will try to give you the most important qualities that I noticed during this listening session. Older cables (Wojtek's cables), ie. the Omega Onyx deliver a little chaotic sound. It is, however, also more tonally differentiated, and there is this aura around instruments, which isn't there with the new Evolution cable. TARA Evolution is very dynamic, has a great bass impact, is closer to the dynamics of a real concert. The second thing is smoothness - the new cable delivers pastel, pleasant, analog, particularly enjoyable performance. But I also claim that it features a specific sound signature – it attempts to treat each tune in the same way: performance is always enjoyable, smooth, clean, extremely clean. It is very pleasant, and the vocals are excellent. This cable offers a great focus, it brings instruments closer to the listener, focuses them, so that they are more visible/audible. And there is this unique quality, a thing that I have never heard before in my life – an amazing presentation of what happens behind the front of the soundstage - TARA Evolution shows the depth of the stage and everything happening there better than any cable I've ever heard. Their resolution and clarity is astounding. Both cables are fantastic, but the choice depends on the preferences of the listener: TARA Labs Omega Onyx differentiates music collection in a better way, and the new TARA Labs Evolution makes it even more beautiful, more enjoyable. Janusz I have to second everything that Rysiek said. In general, I will say this – it is a remarkable cable, I'm delighted with this new Tara. But I also would like to emphasize what Ryszard said, namely, that the Evolution series shows everything equally nice, smooth, clean, and so on – it's undoubtedly true. Therefore, if someone wants to have all his records sounded just like that, buy this cable and don't even think twice about it. It's just that this cable dies not properly differentiate. Timbre, pace, dynamics are always somewhat similar. When compared with Siltech Double Crown, TARA Evolution seems colorless, monochromatic. In addition, I noticed the lack of proper vividness of the sound (I mean as for an absolute high-end level), also dynamics in terms of attack and decay phases of the sound, pace changes within a phrase (those who know Verdi's Choruses on XRCD24 should know what I mean). Simply those aspects that go beyond the typical, though phenomenally presented high-end features such as: space, planes, dynamics, scale of the sound, are virtually absent in TARA Evolution's performance. Therefore, in my opinion TARA, unfortunately, can not quite match the level of Siltech's performance. I still believe that these cables are great, but at this price range I would expect a greater sophistication. Simply put: what TARA offers is nothing new. Without a doubt, it is presented in a better, but still familiar way. Well, maybe my opinion is 'contaminated' by the extended period of three week that I spent with these cables listening to them in different configurations, with different albums at various time of night and day. After this long period of listening and comparing I finally decided to purchase Siltech Double Crown. It offers exactly what I expect from such a 'high-end plus' level product. On the other hand the older cable, TARA Omega Onyx, is a little chaotic, but is capable of presenting differences in a better way. A huge advantage of the new Evolution series is how well balanced its sound is. With Milian it was sensational, it is the recorded which with Tara Omega Onyx sounded horribly. This, of course, is a matter of this particular recording, but also of how it is played. On the other hand the TARA Evolution presented this recording in a fantastic way – so that it was actually enjoyable. A proper balance for me is an ability to show everything in accurate proportions to each other, in sync, so to speak. Nothing should stand out, nothing should overshadow other elements, nothing should overwhelm - and that's how TARA Evolution sounded like. All these percussion instruments that sounded so bad before now were acceptable, didn't bother me at all. Because they did not dominate the presentation, and the resolution was even better, which really surprised me. Another issue were voices, like on Jarre's tune – performance was even beyond comparison, at totally different level with Evolution cable, especially when it came to breathing, voice physiology and so on. The difference in voices presentation was huge. And finally - the cello played with its full sound spectrum, it was CELLO, and with an older cable, Tara Omega Onyx, only cello. Now it had a real body, sound was rich and timbre accurate. Kind of like the violin on Oistrakh recording - the Omega Onyx was a little sharper, more flashy. With Evolution it was softer, smoother, more beautiful. And voices on Gesualdo? - with Evolution a differentiation of voices was incredibly good. But the progress is linear – these are the same cables, but the better ones do everything better - higher, deeper, farther, but in exactly the same direction. But, I must say - it's a beautiful cable. I want to hear the beauty of music and that's what TARA Labs Evolution has to offer. In this particular respect it might be the best cable there is. Wojtek Pacuła I agree with everything Rysiek said, but I'd like to add a bit too. TARA Labs Evolution is, in my opinion, much more resolving cable and maybe that's why it shifts the focus towards upper part of the range. What struck me is the gap between the Omega Onyx and Evolution in terms of openness and dynamics in favor of a new cable. I've been listening to music with Onyx for years and I tested hundreds of devices with him and I always considered it to be particularly open and resolving cable. Even more so since here we did compare even its previous version, Omega, with many other top cables and conclusions we had drawn aligned with mine. Because TARA Omega Onyx IS unmistakably dynamic and open. And TARA Evolution is even many times better. These are not small shift, changes, but a completely different performance. In this respect, the Omega Onyx sounded warm, showed large phantom images. But at the same time treble seemed dull so there was this wide stage, enjoyable sound but a dull one. It is clear that we are talking about the absolute top product, about comparison with the best cables in the world, and above all with a live sound. But that's how I perceived this presentation. As if little has happened. Evolution offers so open sound, so smooth, clean, that it makes you want to listen more and more. Also with Jarre it sounded much better - everything opened up, straightened out. But also, in my opinion, Evolution has a smaller body. Bass goes deeper, and yet I felt it in a less “physical” way. Comparison #2 TARA Labs Evolution vs Siltech Double Crown Wiktor The first thing is that the Siltech should play in this system. Gesualdo sounded brilliantly with it. Very good balance, great positioning on the stage. Weinberg, that to me with Tara Omega Onyx sounded as if it was poorly recorded, now I heard almost as if I was sitting in the middle of orchestra (Victor is an active musician - Ed.). With Milian it also seemed to me that this was a very bad recording, as I could barely hear as marimba passed over to a vibraphone, and yet SILTECH was better. But with Jarre, Lang Lang's piano sounded closest to what I know from real life. This setup with SILTECH cable become one I could listen to 3.00 a.m. every night. Tomek TARA cables were very easy for me to describe using few words – they present the audiophile world with a lot of nuances, etc. SILTECH cables deliver darker sound and the one that suits me. So for myself I would choose Siltech. Although, perhaps they deliver less detail, less nuances. I like this type of sound. Bartosz I agree with Tomek that Siltech offers more natural sound, ie. less spectacular. That is why I would choose TARA Evolution – I repeat myself, but after all there is no such thing as "natural sound" of the recording. We all know that the recording is a creation that does not have much in common with live music. The TARA Evolution sells its own vision of sound, has its own idea about its sonic signature, sounding as a component, rather than trying to be "natural". When I feel like listening to a natural sound, I go to a concert or to the Philharmonic. And I want to listen to music played by an audio system I play it with a system. And TARA Evolution offers me more pleasant and better way to do so. I'm surprised by what you say, because I was convinced that everyone participating in this presentation would criticize SILTECH, because what I said was very obvious to me. And I'm a SILTECH fan, I love these people, because they are great guys, I love their work, because they do great job, but in this case the choice was obvious – I choose Tara Evolution. Rysiek B. I have a problem with the assessment of these cables, because each of them - TARA Evolution and SILTECH Double Crown - has its advantages and its drawbacks. For a start I will say about the advantages of Tara – it is analogue, smooth, resolving, enjoyable even during long listening sessions and is great at manipulating / creating further planes and large scale dynamics. These are its advantages over SILTECH. On the other hand, Siltech offers a more colorful sound, it differentiates it better, is more musical, it swings better... Although I can hear a slight chill, this sort of 'studio-sound' signature. However, it provides more information about the recording. Everything will probably depend on the preferences of the listener. And it can also be so that with some other recordings I my assessment would be quite opposite. After individual listening of 5 different albums my subjective rating says: 5:2 for SILTECH. Wojtek Pacuła Listening to SILTECH I felt like I went back to listening sessions from a few years ago. It's a dark, dense sound, which sometimes has a tendency to emphasize the colder part of the band, in which I agree with Rysiek. TARA Evolution delivers much more pleasant sound, in the sense that it does not allow certain recording errors to listener's attention. And all that while it is also clearly brighter, with more emphasis on upper part of the range. I imagine that wherever there is a need to illuminate sound, but without making it brighter, TARA Evolution will be the perfect fit, I do not know any better cable for such purpose. Siltech sounded more "vintage-like". There is a shift of tonal balance towards lower end. That and not so great perceptible dynamics made it sound smaller. Probably a large role here played a not so great presentation of the events happening in the back layers of the soundstage, so fantastically portrayed by Tara Evolution. Despite the less sound energy Siltech differentiates recordings in a better way, showing more differences between various realizations, also between the various instruments. In this particular system it is the right way and that is why I understand why you liked it. But I have to repeat that TARA Evolution offers such a beautiful sound, that if we do not focus on the differences, but simply want to truly enjoy the music, then there is no better choice. However, if you want to know what's going on in the recording, know exactly, you should rather choose Siltech. Janusz TARA Labs Evolution is a phenomenal cable, it is unbelievable what it is able to do. But I have a feeling that with it we hit the wall, as I can't imagine even better treble, higher dynamics and so on, because one can not play the music in a better way than it is written on the disc. I have an utmost respect for Rysiek and I want to emphasize that already ten years ago he was telling me here not to look at how detailed sound is, but on how musical, how the presentation is built. For me Siltech Double Crown is more akin to what he then said. Color richness, saturation, presence – all that was, in my opinion, better with SILTECH. Performance might not be so pleasant, so smooth, but it is more homogeneous and organic. Summary I believe that a division between members of the CSS becomes more and more clear. It first started with our listening session of dCS Rossini SACD player, continued while listening to the MSB CD player, and finally clarified when listening to Evolution series by TARA Labs. These initially incomprehensible differences in opinions, often even contradictory ones regarding the same product seems to be based on individual visions of what a high-end sound should be like. Because that's what we are talking about here. These are all phenomenal products of absolutely top sound quality, and if someone says that "it doesn't perform as I expected" it does not mean that the device for 1000 PLN that 'sounds as expected' is actually a better one. One shouldn't understand such statement this way. Saying that some top quality product doesn't “sound well” members of CSS refer to their own expectations towards the product; so they actually say, "it doesn't sound the way I wanted it to." If one of us says that he likes the sound he doesn't mean that this is the best performing product in the world but simply that he would like to have such sound at home. Obviously, everyone will defend his opinion, believing that his is the right and valid one. But in reality it's only an expression of his subjective opinion. The value of such opinions should helps Readers to figure out what they want themselves. Meetings are not supposed to validate products, which Rysiek pointed out, but describe them. It is only natural that each participant makes his choice, because that's what listening to the music is about. But Readers' choices don't have to be the same. Texts that you read are supposed to make you think, to search best options for yourself. The more people feel offended, or surprised - the better. The search is about confronting opinions with those of others which helps us to form our own opinions. Summary of this meeting is therefore extremely simple and should not raise many emotions as the previous two meetings, despite the fact that after all we are dealing with the same situation. TARA Labs Evolution is a brilliant cable. It will work perfectly if one wants to get a nice, smooth, detailed, but at the same time completely devoid of shrill elements sound. The dynamics and events in the back of the stage are presented in an absolutely remarkable way. I have never heard anything like it. Siltech Double Crown delivers darker sound, it seems to be less dynamic. Sometimes it may seem that it also sounds colder. But it also differentiates sound and recordings in a better way. Although the energy of the top and lower end is lower than with TARA, but the tonality range of both range extremes is wider. Soundstage with SILTECH is smaller, it is not so deep, but also varies in different recordings; TARA Evolution presents everything in an impressive, big way. Which way is more real? As Bartek said, there is no truth in the recording, there is a creation. It has to have a semblance of truth, and is performed to sound like a real event, but it never is. So we have a choice, and every choice is the right one, provided that we are talking about high-end products. TARA Labs Evolution is a system of absolutely top-quality, which can be compared only a few other top cables and in many regards it will come out victorious of many such comparisons. So if you are looking for beautiful presentation and we want to get it of all the recordings that we have, without fear that something will sound badly, you can start to sell our real-estate property, and tell your children that they shall inherit not a house with a garage, but a set of cables of similar value. SYSTEM USED FOR THE TEST CD Player / preamplifier: Ancient Audio LEKTOR GRAND SE Power amplifier: Ancient Audio SILVER GRAND MONO Power conditioner: Ancient Audio Re-GENERATOR Loudspeakers: Sonus faber ELECTA AMATOR Interconnect: Siltech DOUBLE CROWN (1 m) Speaker cable: Tara Labs OMEGA ONYX (2 x 3 m) + Siltech DOUBLE CROWN (2 x 2,5 m) Power cables (for all components): Acrolink MEXCEL 7N-PC9500 Rack: Base Anti-vibration elements: Acoustic Revive Wine: delivered by LocusVini.pl and by participants [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/kts103/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/kts103/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/kts103/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/kts103/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/kts103/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/kts103/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/kts103/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/kts103/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/kts103/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/kts103/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/kts103/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/kts103/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/kts103/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/kts103/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/kts103/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/kts103/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/kts103/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/kts103/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/kts103/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/kts103/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/kts103/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/kts103/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/kts103/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/kts103/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/kts103/th/13.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/kts103/13.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/kts103/13.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/kts103/th/14.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/kts103/14.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/kts103/14.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1605/kts103/th/15.jpg" big="foto_testy/1605/kts103/15.jpg" src="foto_testy/1605/kts103/15.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

siris is a small, free-standing loudspeaker made by the Austrian company Trenner & Friedl. It's not the most expensive in its offer, and still following all the basic design objectives of its creators - Peter Trenner and Andreas Friedl. Firstly, when designing their enclosures T&F used the so-called "Golden Ratio" (Lat. Sectio aurea), in which the section is divided into two parts so that the ratio of the length of the longer ones to the shorter was the same as the entire section's to the longer part. The ratio referred to in the definition, is called the golden number and represents the Greek letter φ (pronounced "Fi"). Its value is approximately 1.618. Among other things, Greek temples were build using this ratio. These proportions give a harmonious body, that makes looking at it highly enjoyable. T & F didn't want their columns to look ostentatious, however, they wanted them to create a good aesthetic impression. The Osiris speakers while standing in my room had true class, and although small, did not disappear in the room. Their proportions are one thing, but equally important are the technical details. The cabinets are made of birch plywood of varying thickness , damped with natural wool of Australian sheep and finished with natural veneer. The wide front panel is intended to improve the directivity of transducers, and thus reduce the reflections from the walls of the room. And this in turn has lead to improved tonal balance and imaging. These loudspeakers look extremely elegant. Their cabinets are tilted slightly to the rear, and even though they look a lot like their bigger brother, Pharoah, they are surely sleeker. At both sides there are two stabilizing bars fixed to the cabinet, each of them equipped with two screws going down through these bars that act as speaker's feet. In the middle of the front wall one usually sees an array of drivers - but not here. As in the other columns of this manufacturer's also here drivers are hidden from our eyes. The coaxial driver with a paper cone is hidden under black grille flush with the front baffle – that's how these speakers are supposed to play. The membrane has been coated in Austria with several layers of Italian balsamic oil, which is to improve the damping. In its center a short plastic horn is mounted, which improves the directivity of titanium diaphragm tweeter. As you can see, designers wanted to achieve the best phase alignment of the drivers, hence coaxial driver (same type of driver was used for Encore! ENC-5) and tilted front baffle. φ in the case of the loudspeakers under review means not only their proportions. This ratio has been also applied in the construction of wiring used for Osiris. T & F are not the first nor probably the last company that uses this, 2.400 years old, rule. One of the best-known audio companies that adopted golden ratio for its hallmark is the American brand Cardas. Their cables are used for internal wiring of these speakers, also their speaker terminals that accept only spades are placed on the rear panel. The above mentioned cables one can not see, just as one can't really see the unique design of Osiris cabinets. These speakers combine bass-reflex design and horn, whose symmetrical port is located on the bottom of the cabinet. The combination of these two techniques is to bring the advantages of both methods, i.e. Ensure better extension at the lower end of the range, but with a better impulse response (the point is to avoid that “boomy” bass effect). Let me repeat once again – these loudspeakers have class. ANDREAS FRIEDL Owner, designer Osiris is a point source with a coaxial driver; 6,5 woofer 1" compression driver, horn loaded. The paper cone of the woofer is coated with violin lacquer to make it stiffer, minimize resonances. But since Oil lacquer never gets totally stiff, it does not add extra resonances (like other lacquers do) The radiator of the HF compression driver is made of titanium. Its a vented box, with a down firing horn/reflex system. This optimizes the matching to the rooms, meaning, it is very easy to place; close to walls or corners, is the best, but it's not problematic to place it a little away from walls. But, of course this always depends on the room and system. We use sheep wool as damping material, Mundorf crossover components (hard wired) and fine Cardas cables and connectors. Cabinet is made of birch plywood. Osiris fills the gap between Art and Pharoah, and finally replaces the Dizzy, which has been out of program since a while. When designing Osiris the target was to make a kind of Panacea. These speakers should be able to fulfill the most of needs. They should perform well in small rooms but also in larger ones. It should be easy to drive (approx 89dB is a good value for a 17cm woofer system, the impedance is very easy for even tube amps). It should become a music machine, which had priority over all other characteristics. TRENNER&FRIEDL in "High Fidelity” TEST: Trenner & Friedl ISIS – loudspeakers, see HERE TEST: Trenner & Friedl ART – loudspeakers, see HERE TEST: Trenner & Friedl PHAROAH – loudspeakers, see HERE Recordings used in the test (a selection): Andrzej Kurylewicz Quintet, Go Right, Polskie Nagrania „Muza”/Warner Music Poland 4 64880 9, „Polish Jazz vol. 0”, CD (1963/2016) J.S. Bach, Num Komm’ Der Heiden Heiland, wyk. Edna Stern, Zig-Zag Territories ZZT090104, CD (2008) J.S. Bach, Suite Francaise No. 5, wyk. Piotr Anderszewski, Harmonia Mundi HMA 1951679, CD (1999/2010) Jacques Kuba Séguin, Litania Projekt, Odd Sound, CD (2013) Jeff Lynne’s ELO, Alone in the Universe, Columbia/Sony Music Labels (Japan) SICP-30890, Blu-spec CD2 (2015); John Coltrane, Coltrane, Prestige/Analogue Productions CPRJ 7105 SA, SACD/CD (1956/2012) Marilyn Manson, The Pale Emperor. Tour Edition, Cooking Vinyl/JVCKenwood Victor VIZP-138, CD + DVD (2015) Ptaszyn Wróblewski Septet, Bielska Zadymka Jazzowa, Jazz Forum Records 030, CD (2001) Sławek Jaskułke Trio, On, Sławek Jaskułke, CD (2015); Tame Impala, Currents, Universal Music Australia/Hostess 4730676J, CD (2015); Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] It seems that the term "musical machine" which Andreas used in A few simple words... perfectly describes these loudspeakers. Indeed it is so that when listening to Osiris one forgets about the mechanics behind music reproduction. I'm not talking about the "naturalness" of the sound, because whenever music registration is involved naturalness is arbitrary (whatever you've been told), but of such a form of music presentation, that makes it easy to "forget" that one sits in front of a pair of loudspeakers; listening to the music comes so easy with these speakers. Like any "machine", also this one has its own characteristics, its properties, and before it takes us to our goal, we will feel this and that. Do you remember SF films, telling stories about people traveling in time or space? Cases in which we would have to deal with the "zero-crossing", disregarding the very moment of transition are extremely rare. Nevertheless, anyone who wants to get from point A to point B does not hesitate. Osiris also may hit a few bumps on the way, in the sense that they have their own character, and that with them we fell the moment "in between”. But when we finally get there, we immediately forget about any inconvenience that happened along the way. In their presentation one can clearly hear the emphasis placed on the range called "projection octave" or frequencies between 600 and 1000Hz. It's the part of the midrange, which determines the vocals, especially their central and upper part. When listening to these loudspeakers after exposure to other models for some time it seems that the lower midrange, bass, and treble are rather withdrawn, that these loudspeakers deliver a “lighter” sound than others. This is not true, it's just a moment "of transition" that allows us to accommodate to a bit different presentation. We think for a moment that this is so, because in the presentation Osiris there is no clear the emphasis on attack of the sound, or the separation of images. If I hear it correctly, it's about delivering harmonics compliant with the basic sound, which would be difficult with an emphasis on the leading edge. These loudspeakers sound incredibly coherent, and their sound is so easily and fully absorbed. As if in their performance there was no manipulation. The effect of which I spoke earlier involves the disappearance of any emphasis points intended by designers to attract listeners attention. Already after a few hours of exposure to the sound of these speakers one can hear a lot of bass and treble. Actually there is everything in this sound but nothing that could distract listener. I was particularly curious about bass performance. It is quite dry and fast but when needed it is also nicely saturated. It's not particularly well extended, but it works quite well for acoustic instruments. Even such a strong left hand, as on the Nun Komm '... album in Busoni transcription sounded very well. In this transcription the left hand imitates playing on organ pedals, which makes it sounds deeper and more powerful than usual. Trenner showed that perfectly, without adding any 'weight' to it, presenting clearly a difference between right and left hand play, and not shortening the bass. It seems that this speakers were designed for this and no other type of music. Not that different genres sound bad. If only you're ready to accept this type of presentation - less aggressive and more coherent, without underlined dynamic contrasts and without space engulfing us – we can listen to any album from our collection. But even then, as soon as one returns to jazz and classics, one shall realize that there is something more to this presentation, some additional value, flavor. These are loudspeakers for long listening session, for enjoying performance, not necessarily for trips to hi-fi world. On the contrary, these are very non-hi-fi speakers. They do not extract images, do not serve a wide soundscape, mainly focusing on what's in front of us. This is why the mono recordings sounded so lively, instruments had the right size and nice depth. The whole presentation tasted legato. The volume of sound is not very big and in this respect, larger model Pharoah is more capable. A lot will also depend on how speakers are placed in the room. I'm pretty sure these were conceived to be placed close to the wall. The closer I placed them to the shelves of books and CDs, which stands in my room behind speakers, the richer was the lower midrange and the greater the volume of sound. Bass, still fast and without boomy effect, was even more coherent. Double bass, which was previously presented with emphasis placed on wood, now had a low "envelope", conferred to it by a closely placed microphone. Because I enjoyed listening to these speakers more when sitting near them with my ears placed slightly higher than the axes of the drivers, I assume that Osiris will be the perfect for small rooms where nothing else wants to play for either bass rumbles, or there is not enough of it. Summary I know from experience that it is not easy to convince music lovers to manufacturer's own vision of sound, especially if it is far from just the current standard. And "naturalness" has actually many names. In Trenner & Friedl loudspeakers' case, not only the Osiris but also other ones, it is closer to how 'naturalness' was understood in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. It was not about the lack of coloration, because these were present, nor for the highest perceived dynamics and maximum bandwidth extension; but rather about coherency, about delivering natural harmonics, about the essence of the sound and not just its envelope. I'm not saying that what is offered today is bad, it is not, but surely a well executed idea in question is still extremely attractive, especially if you listen to mostly acoustic instruments and naturally generated sounds. These are beautifully crafted small size loudspeakers that are extremely friendly to the eye. They sound coherent and smooth, delivering music in a seemingly relaxed but in fact internally tense (emotionally) manner. You have to listen to them a while before you can free yourself from the urge of looking for traditional attributes of hi-fi sound - which are not bad or wrong themselves, but become so when they replace the music. We can use these loudspeakers with a high-end solid-state amplifier (e.g. Lavardin), and with a good tube amp. Each of them will yield slightly different sonic results. Osiris will do great job in some rooms no other speakers can. Osiris is a floor-standing loudspeaker model by Trenner & Friedl. Their cabinet is made of thick birch plywood, veneered and oiled. The cabinet is a combination of bass-reflex and horn, with the outlet on the bottom. By screwing or unscrewing the screws which support speaker, one can adjust the amount of bass. The front baffle and back sides are tilted to the rear. The speakers are quite wide, and the depth of the cabinet is small, so in order to improve the stability one screws wooden bars on the sides of the speaker. The coaxial driver used by T&F is modified in house. It is a 170 mm bass-midrange transducer with a paper diaphragm, coated with several layers of balsamic oil. In its center there is a 25 mm Titanium diaphragm tweeter loaded with a plastic horn. Finest crossover elements come from Mundorf. Internal wiring and speaker terminals on the other hand come from Cardas. Terminals are made of pure copper coated with rhodium. Their patented design allows clamping of both spades with equal force. Technical parameters (according to manufacturer) Frequency range: 38Hz (-6dB) - 3 kHz (-3dB) Sensitivity: 88,7dB (2,83V/1m) Nominal impedance: 8Ω Dimensions: H 850 mm x W 360 mm x D 370 mm Weight: 25kg/pc Veneers: walnut nature, walnut amaranth, walnut mocca [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/trenner/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/trenner/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/trenner/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/trenner/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/trenner/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/trenner/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/trenner/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/trenner/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/trenner/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/trenner/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/trenner/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/trenner/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/trenner/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/trenner/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/trenner/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/trenner/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/trenner/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/trenner/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/trenner/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/trenner/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/trenner/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/trenner/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/trenner/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/trenner/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/trenner/th/13.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/trenner/13.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/trenner/13.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/trenner/th/14.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/trenner/14.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/trenner/14.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/trenner/th/15.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/trenner/15.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/trenner/15.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/trenner/th/16.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/trenner/16.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/trenner/16.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

ven though Haiku-Audio has just recently made its debut as a manufacturer of complete audio amplifiers, it has already become part of the perfectionist (i.e. audiophile) part of the audio industry. However, it was not so certain that it is possible to move from a company offering DIY kits (Est. 2003), run by an active musician who is mentally closer, perhaps, to a recording studio than to a listening room, to a rightful manufacturer of audio equipment with a classical approach. Haiku-Audio still offers DIY kits, as well as microphone preamplifiers, but it has clearly made itself at home in home audio. With a twist, however; as Wiktor, the owner of Haiku-Audio said when he brought a heavy, big and new amplifier called Iovita (do you remember Stanisław Dygat’s novel Disneyland?) to my place, the majority of orders that he now gets are the so-called “custom” orders, i.e. devices normally offered by the company, but adapted to the needs of specific users. Sometimes, devices not included in the company offer are sold , things like “working prototypes”. What would seem to be an unnecessary distraction a few years ago, is now within reach for us, consumers. The advantage of small firms is that they are close to their clients and that they can provide tailor-made products. There has to be some basic offer, but this is how it works. As regards Wiktor’s company, the invariables are: focus on amplification + using tubes and field transistors as active amplifying elements, without using feedback. So, he offers tube (Williamson and Ganymede), hybrid (the Bright series) and transistor (SOL) amplifiers and preamplifiers. Similarly to products that we have already tested (RT Audio Design and sinusAudio), he uses modules produced by the Italian company Modu for housings. It is a reliable and trustworthy manufacturer. Haiku-Audio offers housings assembled using top-class components, i.e. full aluminum boards and not bent steel sheets. What makes the company’s amplifiers special, apart from their electrical design, is the front panel made in Wrocław. It is an aluminum board with an elongated “window” in the middle, where a darkened acrylic board is placed. There is a large convenient volume knob on the right and input change on the left. It was also decided that the three elements, i.e. the board, notch and knobs would become part of the company logo. iovita While studying the Haiku price list, we notice a certain regularity: apart from made-to-order tube devices, all amplifiers are inexpensive or quite inexpensive. This is the legacy of DIY in which every penny mattered, but also an advantage of direct sales where the distributor’s and dealer’s profit margins are shared between the producer and the customer. However, such a sales model makes development impossible. A company falls into the trap of low income and a lack of a distribution network. So, perhaps the iovita (the original manufacturer’s spelling) is the first device whose price has been calculated in the same way as prices offered by other manufacturers who have been longer in the industry. It is an integrated hybrid amplifier with a tube preamplifier section and a transistor power amplifier section. Although the front panel belongs to the idiom developed by the company, here we have its modification – it is as if two Bright amplifiers were put one on the another, with two “windows.” One of them houses buttons, while tubes should be visible under the other one – this is how such “windows” work in tube amplifiers. However, not much is visible here – if we take a close look, we will see the slight glow of input tubes and, perhaps, of LEDs that are used in the circuit as voltage reference standards. McIntosh has dealt with this problem by illuminating tubes with green LEDs. It looks nice, but for many it is an exaggeration – it is not possible to satisfy everyone… WIKTOR KRZAK Owner, designer IOVITA is the latest Haiku-Audio design which summarizes the experience gained by the company so far in the field of hybrid amplifiers. It has fairly high output power (60W/8Ω or 110W/4Ω) and works without negative feedback. Its input selector uses air-tight signal relays with gold-plated contacts, placed on a printed circuit board with gold-plated traces. Volume is controlled using a classical “navy blue” ALPS potentiometer. A single ECC832 tube deals with voltage amplification, while the power stage consists of industrial HEX-FET transformers. Despite high output power, it is a class-A amplifier. Such a solution has made it necessary to use enormous radiators (h = 165mm) that are placed on both sides of the housing. An ECC832 tube is a rare thing to have in audio equipment. Classic double triodes (ECC and 6SN7 tubes, etc.) contain two identical triodes. It is often the case that the quality of a tube is determined by equal parameters of both halves. The ECC832 is different, as it contains two completely different triodes. It is a tube dedicated for unsymmetrical circuits where each of the tube halves has a different task to do in the amplifier. The first triode is delicate (low anode current) and it is loaded by a dynamic current source, which allows it to obtain maximum amplification and operation within the most linear range. The second triode is much more powerful. It works with huge signal and its task is to drive the difficult load of a strong transistor stage. Until recently, ECC832 tubes were hardly available and their quality left much to be desired, but the Gold version of the ECC832-JJ has lately been released, which can be successfully applied in top-quality devices. It proved ideal for a hybrid amplifier having an unsymmetrical design. It is worth noting that the IOVITA has as many as seven separate power supply units and that each of them is individually stabilized. Power is supplied separately to transistor stages of each channel and to tube components. Tube glow is separately stabilized in each channel. The seventh amplifier supports a processor which controls input relays and switching on/off all sections in the correct order.. I have already mentioned the principles which Wiktor uses while designing his devices. Another axiom is that he does not use remote control, assuming that it always spoils sound. It seems that even axioms change with time, as the iovita has been equipped with such a receiver located behind the upper “window”. The driver was not ready yet when I conducted the test, but the device will work with any remote control working with RC-5 code (e.g. Arcama). Input is not changed by turning a knob, but by pressing a button. Wiktor chose very nice buttons for this purpose, with a subtly illuminated rim. The input-changing sockets are green and the remaining two buttons (mute and standby) – amber. There are four linear inputs and there are no outputs apart from speaker outputs. So, I missed a hole at the front a bit (you cannot find one at the back, either) – I am thinking about a headphone output, of course. The amplifier stands on aluminum feet, but I placed it on three very good HiFiStay Gyrotension VEGA feet during the test, based on sintered ceramic balls and soft suspension (I wrote about them in connection with my test of the Audio Alto DMI 3H amplifier). All the cables were Tellurium Q Silver Diamond series cables. The power cable was connected to a separate KBL Audio Reference Power Distributor power strip with a Himalaya power cable from the same manufacturer, connected to a separate dedicated Furutech wall power socket. HAIKU-AUDIO in “High Fidelity” TEST: Haiku-Audio GANYMEDE + BRIGHT Mk3 POWER – line preamplifier/phono stage + power amplifier, read HERE AWARD OF THE YEAR 2015: Haiku-Audio HAIKU BRIGHT Mk3 – integrated amplifier, read HERE TEST: Haiku-Audio HAIKU BRIGHT Mk3 – integrated amplifier, read HERE Recordings used in the test (a selection): Paganini For Two, Gil Shaham, Göran Söllscher, Deutsche Grammophon/Universal Music Ltd, Taiwan 480 246-5, XRCD24 (1993/2009) Archie Shepp, Blasé/Live at the Pan-African Festival, BYG Actuel/Charly SNAD 534 CD, 2 x CD (1969/2004) Billy Cobham, Spectrum, Atlantic Records/Audio Fidelity AFZ5 234, SACD/CD (1973/2016) Bottleneck John, All Around Man, Opus3 CD 23001, SACD/CD (2013) Hilary Hahn, Hilary Hahn Plays Bach, Sony Classical/Sony Music Japan Entertainment SICC 30087, „Best Classics 100 | No. 78", BSCD2 (1997/2012). Jean-Michel Jarre, Electronica. Vol. 1: The Time Machine, Sony Music Labels SICP-30788, BSCD2 (2015) Joseph Haydn, Septem Verba Christi in Cruce, wyk. Le Concert Des Nations, dyr. Jordi Savall, AliaVox AVSA 9854, SACD/CD (2007) Megadeth, Dystopia, Universal Music Japan UICY-15449, SHM-CD (2016) Mikołaj Hertel, Epizod A, GAD Records GAD CD 035, CD (2015) Pieter Nooten & Michael Brook, Sleeps With The Fishes, 4AD GAD 710 CD, CD (1987) Renee Rosnes, Written in the Rocks, Smoke Sessions Records SSR-1601, CD (2016) Thelonious Monk, Solo 1954-1961, Le Chant du Monde CMJ 874 2376.77, 2 x CD (2015) Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] While thinking of audio devices, we tend to be reductionist. In the case of a high-power amplifier we assume that it is a small amplifier, but with a bigger power supply unit and more amplifying elements, thanks to which it is louder. What is funny, it is so in most cases. However, a huge (high-power) amp does not sound the same as a small (lower power) one. It usually sounds worse and its only advantage is high current which it can pump into speakers, as well as (most often) higher output attenuation, resulting from a parallel connection of output transistors. That is why it is not surprising that the iovita does not sound as if it was an enlarged Haiku Bright Mk3 First things first, however: power was the underlying cause for creating it. There is no doubt this device will easily drive most currently available speakers, playing loud with a high SPL, with no signs of overdrive. What is more, we can make it work in difficult conditions, i.e. in large rooms, as well as at places with a lot of hard surfaces that reflect sound (I will come back to this topic later in the article). The power that we are talking about is mostly the freedom with which the new Wiktor’s device approaches music. We hear no effort being put into the process of developing a piece of music, building its structure by applying one layer after another – tone, dynamics or harmonics. Everything sounds equally open and does not get hardened or sharpened when we turn the volume knob to the right. As far as I am concerned, volume was much too high before the knob reached the 12 o’clock position. Such a huge power reserve also makes it possible to build a musical message with good differentiation of tones and positions, no matter if we are talking about a violin solo, piano solo or the rhythms from Billy Cobham’s Spectrum. It is a message without internal “jamming”. Usually, an amp that is “asked for more” starts to compress sound, hardens and sharpens the message, which indicates clipping of the peaks of the signal sinusoid. I have never reached that stage with the iovita. I do not say it is impossible, as everything is possible, but I also claim that few people will have that kind of experience (probably only if they decide to prove something to themselves). High power almost always means compromise. It results in lower resolution, closing the sound and, most often, hardening it. None of these elements is present here – not because it is an ideal “no compromise” amplifier, but because care has been taken to make them the least bothersome. However, they are going to be the key factor when it comes to deciding whether or not to take the device. The iovita provides huge, full and broad sound. It is soft and this is, perhaps, they key distinguishing feature of this design. Other transistor amps that I value, from within the same price range, such as Hegel, Accuphase and AbysSound, are harder and have a stronger and more accurately conducted sound attack. So, the Haiku amplifier is closer to tube amps, e.g. Leben and D-class amps, but designed by people who love tubes, representing elinsAudio and SPEC, for example. The softness that I am talking about is mostly the velvet tone. It is something that strikes our ears already when we listen to the amp for a moment and remains with us all the time we listen to it. If the recording itself is like this, i.e. devoid of unpleasant artifacts, let it be Archie Shepp’s Blasé – ultra-smooth, soft and pulsating. When the percussion feet strikes in it, it is a deep, low strike with long sustain. The whole album is a bit black, but this is what it sounds like. When the piano enters, like in the Thelonious Monk Solo album released in France last year, it has a “finite” size and can be further defined, but not through sharpening the edges, but naturally constructing its 3D image through tone, dynamics and harmonics. When it comes to the naturalness, it is some kind of an assumption and not something that we could relate to reality. I wrote about it in my April’s editorial, but I remembered it when I was listening to Joseph Haydn’s Septem Verba Christi in Cruce performed by Le Concert Des Nations conducted by Jordie Savall. It so happens that, quite recently, the same piece played by the same people opened the 13th Misteria Paschalia festival. I had an ideal location right in front of the orchestra, in the seventh row of the ground floor hall of the ICE Conference Center in Cracow (more about the ICE HERE). Ten years have passed since the album was recorded – it is one variable. Another one are slight changes in the orchestra. The third one is another reciter – here: Radosław Krzyżowski. The fourth and probably the most important one is a completely different room. It was the first time I had ever left dissatisfied after a performance during this festival. I reckon the choice of the reciter was bad and his voice was not well-rendered by the sound system. It was also not the best Savall’s day. The biggest problem was, I think, the interaction of the orchestra with the interior in which they were performing. The ICE has a very large room decorated with wooden panels – one that is “dry” and with short reverberation. Savall’s performances that I had heard before, both solo and with orchestras, took place either in churches or in the Tempel synagogue in Cracow – and this is where he should perform. At the ICE, each (even the smallest) mistake is instantly heard, as it is not covered by reverberation. Apart from that, such a place provides different conditions for performing, in which you hear yourself and other musicians in a different way. So, the “not the best” disposition of the orchestra was obvious. However, this is not something I wanted to write about – the thing is that the recording sounds completely different from and much better than what I heard live, during the concert. So, one cannot talk about the “naturalness” of sound in an absolute way without the context. That is why the context in which I recalled this category while describing the iovita is rather closer to my expectations concerning the features that such sound should have. Wiktor’s amp sounds natural in the sense that it shows the attack, but stretches it in time so that it instantly leads to sustain. So, this is not about blurring the attack, but smoothing and rounding it. This mostly relates to bass which is not especially controlled in any way. The device draws huge sound sources of a huge volume and there is a lot of swing at the bottom of the scale. However, this is where decay is not sharpened as much as in other amps that I recalled earlier. If speakers are not full-range, i.e. do not render sound below 30 Hz, this is going to be an advantage, as they will be filled, energized and brought to life. However, if speakers are big, you need to make sure if control is not going to be too weak with the music you listen to. So, rock music did not impress me as much as with the Bright Mk3. I missed the wildness, control and attack. Even in the case of highly compressed albums that should benefit from such shaping of sound, sound was too “legato.” It was different in the case of jazz and classical music. The foreground is presented slightly behind the line joining the speakers, which is beneficial for live recordings. They come across extremely natural, freely developing into the depth, effortlessly building up accumulations and concluding them with beautiful reverberation. It was similar in the case of electronic music that is not based on clear bit – Mikołaj Hertel’s recordings sounded better than Jarre’s, although the sound of the latter was not so bad, either. It was not about beautifully rendered planes and events clearly presented in the foreground, but about the low bass. This is not warm sound, as high tones are open and present. They also have high energy if a recording “asks” for it. However, we do not perceive them in the same way as with AbysSound and Accuphase devices, for example, where their level is lower than in the iovita, but, as they are more emphasized, it seems that there are more of them. So, the Haiku amp will prove perfect where most amps fail – in large rooms with poor acoustics, i.e. where we have large flat surfaces such as glass panes, floors and furniture. Using some tube amps may bring similar benefits, but such amps lack power to fill a lot of space with music without distortions. At such places, the tested amp will prove invaluable. Conclusion Of course, the iovita is not only suitable for modern sterile rooms. It is a simplification which clearly shows the pros and cons of its sound. It is nicely “set” sound in which it is hard to point out the dominance of any range. The amp does not sound bright or dark, but rather soft and generous. It is useful in the case of a big orchestra, but also when it comes to an instrumental solo that will gain incredible tone and dynamics, no matter how loud we will listen to it. The selectivity of the device is not high, as it rather focuses on huge assumptions. Its resolution is really good, as the amp clearly differentiates recordings, showing changes in the acoustics, tone and dynamics. A lot happens in this musical message – it is top-class sound, indeed. iovita has a purist design – it is a stereophonic integrated amp with only four line inputs and with no outputs. It is a big device with a solid rigid housing consisting of aluminum boards and huge radiators on its both sides. The radiators have sharp edges, so you need to be careful while moving the device. An additional “floor” provided by an assembly board for power supply units additionally increases the amp’s rigidity. To minimize vibrations even further, General Music System sheets have been placed on the bottom and top panel. It is aluminum with a flexible, sticky material which resembles a similar Arcam product from many years ago. The front and rear panel At the front there is a huge volume control knob and six buttons – four to change the input, one mute and one standby mode button. The input buttons have a green-illuminated rim and the two remaining ones – an amber-illuminated rim. At the back there are two pairs of speaker inputs and four pairs of RCA inputs – all of them are gold-plated and solid. The power socket has been integrated with a mechanical power switch. The device stands on four aluminum feet. The inside One look at the inside and we know that it is a dual-mono design, from power supply to the output. The only elements common for the whole amp are: the input board, potentiometer and the standby circuit. Individual boards differ when it comes to the manufacturing method and the color – two of them have been made by the Projekt company and the rest – by Haiku itself. The amp boards called the “hybrid module” have the name “Bright Mk4” on them. So, it can be supposed that the circuit is a stronger version of the Bright Mk3 model. The inside is not as packed as in a smaller amp and I am sure that the iovita would fit in a housing having the height of 1W (1W = 1 Wiktor). However, perhaps this is about doubling the cooling surface of the radiators – in the end, they have to deal with twice as much power. From the input board where signal is selected in relays, it is transmitted to the front of the device by long interconnects to a malachite Alpsa potentiometer. After attenuation, it gets to a tube – a JJ double low-power triode ECC832. Yes, this is no mistake – it is a unique tube independently produced by the Slovakian company. JJ calls it the “Combined double triode for special purposes”. There are two versions – one with pins soldered in the same way as in the ECC82 or ECC83 – it can operate in both circuit types. In the tested amp, its gold-plated pins were placed in a nice additional stand with gold-plated contacts, placed in a classic ceramic one, in turn. In the power amp section, there are two pairs of transistors per channel. These are complementary AB-class HEXFET International Rectifier IRFP140N + IRFP9140N field transistors operating in a push-pull mode. We can find really nice passive elements on the board, e.g. polypropylene coupling capacitors and precise resistors. Power supply has been divided into three elements. One is for the semi-conductor section and is located with amplifiers on the same board, another one with the anode stabilizing circuit and one more (with a rectifier and glow voltage stabilizer for tubes) are placed on smaller boards attached to the bottom of the housing. This is where we also see two large toroidal transformers and two very big Jamicon capacitors with screw clamps. However, most capacitors in the circuit are Japanese Nichicon capacitors. It is a clean nice design with good components and a solid amplifier. Technical specifications (according to the manufacturer) Tubes: 2x ECC832-JJ Gold Output power (8 Ω): 60 W Output power (4 Ω): 110 W Frequency response (-1 dB): 14 Hz-52 kHz Frequency response (-3 dB): 8 Hz-84 kHz Class A/AB Input sensitivity: 600 mV Power consumption when off: 100 W Maximum power consumption: 400 W Dimensions: 450 x 360 x 190 mm Weight: 20 kg Previous panel versions: black or silver [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/haiku/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/haiku/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/haiku/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/haiku/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/haiku/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/haiku/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/haiku/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/haiku/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/haiku/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/haiku/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/haiku/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/haiku/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/haiku/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/haiku/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/haiku/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/haiku/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/haiku/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/haiku/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/haiku/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/haiku/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/haiku/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

n this particular case one word explains it all - Wadia (www.wadia.com). This iconic American brand for years has been synonymous with high-end digital source, as it specialized in Compact Disc players, both integrated and separates. Later they were joined by SACD players, for example, Model 581. Wadia Players used the best available transports, i.e. VRDS and then VRDS-NEO from Teac, but it was DAC section of their Players that was the pride and joy of their designers. Even more so because they were always accompanied with the variable output featuring digital volume control. The process developed by DigiMaster included a digital signal filters, signal's upsampling (also adding bigger bit depth) and adjusting the volume. The latter requires a reduction of bit resolution, thus upsampling was necessary so that the signal from a 16-bit CD, and late also from 24-bit signal from SACD, could be restored without loss. However, Wadia's engineers believed in the principle of a short signal paths, and eliminating the preamp section significantly shortens it (not to mention cost reduction involved). Exogal It is no secret that - founded in 1988 - Wadia did really do so well in the XXI century. Huge money invested in Power Wadia DAC 790, a digital amplifier, or actually a high power DAC, did not bring an expected return, because the project was introduced ahead of proper time (2000-2002, it was the first digital amplifier in the world). Sale of the company to an external investor was only a matter of time. In 2011 the company was bought by the Italian capital fund Fine Sounds, which previously acquired such brands as: Sonus Faber (2007) Audio Research (2009) and Sumiko (2010), and a year after Wadia also McIntosh (2012). The change of ownership caused a change in business profile. The designers, who were not able to accept that fact left the company and founded their - Exogal. Its name was created from the "exo" meaning "out" and the abbreviated form of the word "galaxy" (source: Vade Forrester Auspicious Debut , "The Absolute Sound" June 24, 2015). In other words, they make products "not of this Earth." The company was registered in 2013, not by rookies but by veterans of audio world. The people behind the brand are: Larry Jacoby (Vice President of Manufacturing Engineering), Jeff Haagenstad (Chief Executive Officer), Jim Kinne (Chief Technology Officer) and John Larsen (Chief Operating Officer). Technical brains of the operation is Jim Kinne, author of such iconic devices as "decoding computer" Wadia 27, Wadia 270 CD transport and Power DAC Wadia 790. They declare that they want to produce devices delivering optimal listening experience and those that just measure well in the laboratory. Products have to be designed by them from the scratch using latest technologies. They are to be manufactured in the USA, as close to their headquarters in Minnesota as possible. They have to be small and nice looking. They are to have an open architecture, allowing simple software upgrades whenever these are available. And they have to be easy to control, eg. through your home computer wireless network. Comet Their first product is a digital-to-analog converter, Comet. Recently company presented also its complementary, digital amplifier, Ion Power DAC. It is pretty peculiar and it features only a HDMI input to which the signal can be sent only from Comet, in digital form. But back to the DAC. It is a small, great-looking digital-to-analog converter, which offers a variety of inputs: asynchronous USB (32/384 | DSD128), AES / EBU (24/192), S/PDIF (24/192), Toslink (24/96) and analog RCA. In the latter signal is converted to digital 24/96 signal. This is necessary because Comet is also a preamplifier - the analog outputs signal level can be adjusted in 100 increments and the adjustment is done in the digital domain. The heart of this device is the six-core DSP featuring software written in Exogal. The company does not want to reveal exactly what does it do, but with a high probability we can assume that it includes digital filters, performs upsampling and so on. There are two relevant digital to analog converters: TI PCM 4104 for the main outputs and TI PCM 5122 for the headphone output. As, however, says Jeff Haagenstad, CEO of the company, they do not have too much to do, because most of the activities that usually take place in the modern digital-to-analog converter chips are actually performed by DSP before signal is sent to DAC. I do not know if you remember, but once it was standard - DAC consisted of two elements: a chip with digital filter and another one performing actual D/A conversion. There are two analogue outputs - a pair of unbalanced RCA outputs and a pair of balanced XLRs. Both outputs can work simultaneously - RCA can be reprogrammed to work in stereo mode, as output for a center channel (I assume that this is an option for multi-channel systems – company's materials are not unambiguous in this respect) or for a subwoofer. Then one can set a delay of the signal for this output, as it is common with AV receivers. The device can be controlled in two ways: with a remote or by an application for a smartphone or tablet. Remote looks like one for a garage door, but it is quite convenient to use – one can adjust volume, switch inputs and outputs (main or headphones) and activate "mute". Unlike most other applications in this case signal is not completely muted (that's how the "Attenuator" mode in Accuphase amplifiers works). The Exogal Remote App is designed for smartphones and tablets with Android (4.3 and above, with support for BLE) and Apple (iPad, iPhone 4s or later, iPod Touch). Comet is also a headphone amplifier - the headphone output socket (a large jack 6.3 mm) sits on the side of the device and it features a separately adjustable volume and a separate DAC, a different one that the one delivering signal to the main outputs. Is High-Resolution Digital Audio for You? Comet, if we use USB input, accepts almost all types of files available on the market; other inputs are limited to PCM signal. The concept of "Hi-Res" or "High Resolution Audio" familiar to this device then. Yet, the main strength, or main focus of people who created this DAC were always Compact Discs (and PCM signal). Even when the SACD entered the game, signal from it was trans-coded to 88.4/24 PCM. Nowadays, when the "hi-res" is a so catchy phrase opening the hearts and wallets of customers, telling the truth, or what one really thinks is an act of courage, especially if it is said by a small company. And yet – on the manufacturer's website we can find a paragraph entitled: "Is the High-Resolution Digital Audio for You?". Which in itself is not unusual - 99.999999% of manufacturers' answer is: "yes, it is." Exogen answers this question in accordance with their conscience, "Frankly, that's not for us to say." Why? - My personal answer would be:: because it (16/44,1) is still the best-sounding digital format. As the guys from Exogal say: "even if you use more "low-quality" formats such as CD resolution (44.1kHz sampling rate with 16-bit depth) our processing algorithms will make your music sound as good as it can possibly sound”. So during the test CD format was my priority. This was so easy for me as this format always is my priority. The beautiful reissues of King Crimson catalog on Platinum SHM-CD in 7" format, with boxes being a perfect reproduction of the printing of the first Japanese analogue editions (the first two editions, i.e. two covers for each disc!), the first UHQCD discs (Ultimate HiQuality CD), with, among others, King Crimson concert, many albums prepared by Mr. Winston Ma, also ones with personal dedications for me, which I listened to pay tribute to and thank him for everything he did for us - rest in peace my friend! - all these wonderful releases were my primary signal sources for Comet. Lektor AIR V-edition, with Philips CD Pro2 LF mechanism acted as CD transport connected with DAC using Acrolink Mexcel 7N-DA6100 digital interconnect. The device played in a system with an active tube preamplifier, Ayon Audio Spheris III, because I think the high-end preamp in the system is necessary. However I spent also some time to assess the quality of volume control in Comet, connecting the balanced outputs directly to the inputs in the power amplifier Soulution 710. A separate test was conducted with headphones driven directly by this DAC. Right at the beginning it turned out that the headphone amplifier had too low power in order to drive HiFiMAN HE-6 properly, which happens to be a standard for most headphone amps. So for the test I used Audeze LCD-3, AKG K701 and Sennheiser HD800 - primarily the latter. Audeze and Sennheiser played with Noir Hybrid HPC Forza Audio Works cables. Compact discs were demagnetized prior to listening using Acoustic Revive RD-3. Recordings used for the test (a selection) Arne Domnérus, Jazz at the Pawnshop. Vol. I, II & III, Proprius/Lasting Impression Music LIM UHD 071 LE, 3 x Ultra HD CD + DVD (1976/2012) Brian Eno, Another Green World, Island Records/Toshiba-EMI VJCP-68658, CD (1975/2004) David Cross & Robert Fripp, Starless Starlight, Noisy Records/Inter Art Committees | Vivid Sound Corporation VSCD4294, SHM-CD (2015) Frank Sinatra, Lost & Found | The Radio Years, Sony Music 8875147142, CD (2015); King Crimson, In The Court of the Crimson King, Atlantic/WOWOW Entertainment [Japan] IEDG-01, 7” Platinum SHM-CD + DVD-Audio (1969/2016) King Crimson, Live in Toronto, Penegyric/WOWOW Enterteinment IECP-20252/253, „King Crimson Collectors’ Club: Special Edition”, 2 x Ultimate HiQuality CD (2016) Lisa Gerard & Pieter Bourke, Duality, 4AD/Sonic SON 139, CD (1998) Maanam, Miłość jest cudowna, Kamiling Co | Pomaton 4601869, 2 x CD (2015); Mendelssohn & Brahms, Violin Concerto, wiol. Hilary Hahn, „Best Classics 100”, Sony Classical/Sony Music Japan SICC 30088, Blu-spec CD2 (1997/2012) Niccolò Paganini, 24 Caprices for solo violin. Op.1, wyk. Mayuko Kamo, BMG Japan BVCC 40003, „RCA Red Seal”, CD (2009/2012) Paul Bley, Ramblin’, BYG Records/Sunspots SPOT 528, „Actuel 13”, CD (1966/2002) Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] I will not elaborate, I will try to keep the description of the Comet DAC short - I still have a lot of albums to listen to and the day (and night) are short (there's nothing like spectacular start to the test, right?). This is an absolute coincidence, but in a short period of time I had to deal with three products, which caused flushed face and excitement because of the way they enhanced my system's ability to play music. These were: set of TARA Labs Evolution cables that cost approx. 200 000 PLN, Kronos Sparta turntable for about 130 000 PLN (test will be presented in the July issue of "High Fidelity") and now it is this digital-to-analog Exogal Comet Converter for $ 3,500. Sorry, not my fault that this American DAC is so cheap and yet so potent in fulfilling my high expectations. This is not the best device of this type I know, that I had at home, but definitely one of the most interesting ones. The last DAC that impressed me that much was Chord Dave with a price tag of 47 000 PLN. Comet might not be so refined as the latter, but I did not miss anything with it in my system. It is also different. Its sound can be more easily compared to the sound of TARA Series Evolution cables. It offers also a very similar level of quality - even if I exaggerate a little, it is in good faith, as that's how I feel at the moment. If you know and remember the sound of Wadia CD Players, you have to throw it out of your head, this DAC sounds completely different. Or maybe it doesn't, maybe it just develops in a virtuosic way what Wadia guys were already doing before? Let leave it at that for now. Important thing is to forget the stereotypical Wadia sound. Comet delivers extremely open, fresh sound. After switching from AIR V-edition CD Player it seemed as if the Polish unit's sound was veiled. But not for lack of treble, nor its little energy – it surely did not lack that – but because of a smaller amount of details that are a natural result of higher energy and quantity of high tones. Even the dCS Rossini, after all, very open, great player, seemed to be a little less "informative" than the tested DAC. I am deliberately not talking about "abundance of details" because it is an enemy of differentiation and richness; the excess leads to depletion of sound and its grayness, and consequently deadness. I'm talking about the real wealth of natural reverbs, harmonics and beautiful communication of all sub-ranges; not only the high and mid tones, but also low ones: the quality of the treble depends on the quality of the bass - you can't help, it is simply true. Low range is very clear, but at the same time naturally soft. DAC does not prolong sustain and decay, it doesn't try to pump air, thus retaining the tautness of bass whether high or somewhat poorer quality albums are being played. It is rich and fat, but internally and not for show. If I were to relate it to other devices, it was closer to the bass CD9 Audio Research Reference than to dCS Rossini; one could find also lot of similarities with the top separate MBS Player. And yet it does not sound like any of the above. It offers softness and tautness, it is fast, but rich. That's also how this DAC performs as a whole, without analyzing the sub-ranges. When we play some disc of real dynamics, let it be the fifth and final version of Jazz at the Pawnshop. Vol. I, II & III by the late Mr Winston Ma, we will find out that this small box has the firepower of a brick of C4 - it sounds as if it was loaded with it. Also Polish discs, such as the Kurylewicz Go Right played from Master CD-R, remastered by Jacek Gawłowski was outstanding (more HERE). It happened effortlessly, in a very natural way, which automatically brings to mind the reel-to-reel playback of a “mastertape". I'm talking about subcutaneous dynamics, which does not transform into parody by emphasizing the attack, or the emphasis on the bass parts. It's real, incredible dynamics. Let me bear with reel-to-reel reference for a moment longer while I describe the soundstage. Spacing and imaging that Comet offers is not so distinct. One would like to have a more tangible sound, but it is the domain of sources playing a little differently - as above mentioned AIR V-edition CD Player, or its better version, Lektor Grand SE. Also CD9 Reference will present images and planes more distinctly, in a more sensual way, although at lower resolution and a with lesser dynamics. Comet unifies planes and images, at least according to the "audiophile" terminology. The whole message is a wholeness, and a picture of the instruments, with their weight, spaciousness, shapes, is "created" in our heads based on minor changes in perspective, different colors, something elusive. It's a much more real way of presentation, ie. more like what's on analog master-tapes. With the American DAC CDs sound in a more exciting, spirited way. It encourages listener to reach for another and another disc, to buy new ones to compare them with others, to find something new excitements. For this reason, it seems extremely well differentiating device. But it is not. This is a paradox, because all of these features suggest great differentiation, but Comet is trying to make all the recordings without exception, to sound equally well. A little, but only a little bit, it reminded me of my encounter with a four-box dCS Vivaldi Player. I had a similar impression of feeling, of flow of music with any CD. I wrote about a collision of beauty and differentiation in my test of Evolution TARA Labs cables, so I will not repeat myself. Comet shows everything what once Wadia did, but in a much better way. However, this is still a “Wadia-style” presentation in a sense that all recordings sound fresh, full, smooth, vibrant. The internal differentiation i.e. within a single recording is very good, as it is of dynamics and timbre. When on Lost & Found | The Radio Years Frank Sinatra sings with a dark, warm, big voice, and he's followed by quite bright orchestra lacking bass foundation, this distinction stemming from a different miking and mixing, is presented extremely clearly. The voice is rich and low and the orchestra is bright and high. But not artificially brighter - it never sound unpleasant, and the voice is also not artificially warmed up nor approximated. But lets listen to another disc, let it be, for example, King Crimson, and the differentiation is carried out in the same manner as on Sinatra. It sounds beautiful and addictive, but you have to reckon with the fact that it is not a universal type presentation, it won't be to everyone's liking. If you're a strict “high fidelity” guy and you put this type of approach above the listening pleasure, then you should even try the Comet. However, if you do not care about high fidelity and you listen to the music to enjoy its beauty go ahead and listen to this American DAC – it might be a perfect complement for your system. Comet as a preamplifier My assessment of the Comet's volume control was based on a comparison of a direct connection between Comet's XLR outputs and XLR inputs of my Soulution 710 amplifier with RCA output of Comet and RCA input of the amplifier, but with Ayon Audio Spheris III preamplifier between them. So the system without preamp was fully balanced and with preamplifier it was unbalanced. But the it was the only way I could compare the two systems at once, switching inputs in my power amp, and reducing/increasing volume in the DAC. Volume level was every time the same - without the preamplifier Comet's display read '86'. The volume control implemented in this DAC is of high quality. I say this reluctantly, but the immediacy and palpability of the sound without preamp were higher. Also, the dynamics and the "immediacy" of the presentation without Ayon were better. Comet connected directly to the Soulution's input sounded a little brighter and defined images differently. The instruments were presented closer and more in the foreground. Volume control introduces to the sound a little bit of dryness, because it brings out the instruments from their acoustic envelope and brings them closer to us. You have to consider that when building a system around Comet. I did not notice any loss of resolution in the low range. Bass was a bit more compact and focused bit higher up the range than with the preamplifier. But it also didn't go as softly deep down as it did with preamplifier. It was treble area where a slight reduction in resolution could be found, as evidenced by a lower saturation of sound and a small decrease in its richness. But this is how the digital volume control works, whether it is a simple system in Accuphase Players or sophisticated one in dCS system, or this one in Exogal. The latter deals with this very well, much better than most other manufacturers. So although I would prefer it to listen to it with addition of a preamplifier, the cost of such a device, which would be up to the task, will be high. Perhaps spending more money on loudspeakers, power amp of acoustic treatment for the room would be a better way to spend money. Comet as a headphone amplifier The Comet's headphone output is in part independent form the main output – common elements are power supply and digital signal processing in a DSP. The sound it offers is therefore bit different. It has slightly mitigated attack, slightly lower resolution and generally more pastel-like performance. The differences in the resolution, however, are small, as they are in differentiation - but at this level of quality (because it's not about the price), they are important. But I do not really see the point of investing in a separate headphone amp. Unless you have at least 6,000 PLN to spare so such amp and proper cables. Then it could improve aspects I described above user will benefit from all the advantages of linear output. Otherwise it does not make sense. Comet paired with headphones delivers a very enjoyable performance. This is a multi-dimensional, open sound with a pleasant, "analog" clang to it. There is no fleshy, low bass, but in no case did it bother me, because the presentation as a whole is cohesive, pleasant and fun to listen to. It is a very good performer. Summary Comet is a device that plays almost all (except extreme versions DSD) types of audio files, and it does very well, with grace. For me, its real value is how capable it is when playing material from CDs. And it is doing it extremely well, with a feeling. Its dynamics, and so is the sound's opening for information (and not the details). All recordings sound better, more natural with it, a bit like the analog tape. But, as I say, all of them, all recordings, sound very well even though sometimes they do not deserve it. I shall put it aside, because in music you have make some choices. Anyway, for the money such a performance does not happen. I'd be happy present Comet with the GOLD Fingerprint award, were it not that it is a reward not only for a product, but also for its manufacturer's long-standing quest for excellence. Therefore, for now it is "only" the RED Fingerprint. In a few years, GOLD will be granted automatically :) Exogal Comet is a D/A Converter with variable output and headphone amplifier. When "100" value is displayed the digital display volume control is disabled, and the device behaves as a DAC with fixed output. The volume can be adjusted independently for the line-out and headphone output, but it each time you switch between them, it returns to "65" level. We can read all indications on a small, square LCD display (no backlit). The idea is interesting, the display is completely different than what you see in other devices. The problem is that it is completely unreadable already form short distance and a small angle. The values can be read on a tablet or smartphone, but who turns one of these devices to find out current volume setting? The display is located on the front side in the recess. The housing is mostly made of an aluminum cutter forming four side walls. The top is made of dark acrylic and a very nice company's logo is applied on it. Underneath a transparent acrylic plate is fixes, with four metal balls piercing through it constituting four feet on which the device stands. A Korean company already offers a modification for Comet - bottom and legs made of braided carbon fiber (more HERE ). The headphone output is located on the right side, and the other connectors on the rear. Because there is only a little space there, RCA jacks with analog inputs and outputs are not of very high quality and are placed much too close together. That is why I couldn't use Siltech Triple Crown cables, which I normally use, in this test. Fortunately, I have also Tellurium Q Silver Diamond, that worked perfectly. Apart from the usual input and outputs there are also HDMI input and output described as "Exonet." They are intended for the connection with company's power amplifier. And there is a slot for a small antenna wi-fi. This is not a Bluetooth receiver, it allows user to control DAC over home network wi-fi. Coaxial input occurs only as BNC. It is of course technically much better than the RCA socket, as it is true 75 ohms. But it is much less frequently used in home audio. A BNC-RCA adapter is included, but it adds more contact areas. I think there should be so jacks - RCA and BNC. The electronic circuitry is mounted on one PCB. At its center sits a large DSP Altera Cyclone IV, and next to it there are two very nice clocks. Right behind it one finds the Burr Brown SRC4192 upsampler - it looks so that the DSP includes only digital filters. The signal then is sent separately into the line-out and headphone output. The TI PCM 4104 DAC works at the linear output, behind which you can see a row of six large integrated circuits - amplifiers and buffers. These are 6-leg LME99600 chips. There are separate ones for balanced and unbalanced outputs, so you can use them at the same time. The TI PCM 5122 DAC delivers signal to the headphone output, working with two such chips. The entire circuit is an example of modern technology, surface mount, without any exotic components. I noticed an advanced voltage regulation system with multiple gears. There is also a small, complete Bluegig wi-fi receiver. The housing is available in two colors - black and silver. The power supply was placed in a small, black aluminum box. The LED on its front lights up in green, which I liked a lot. The 12V DC is sent to the DAC via not particularly nice-looking, but apparently fulfilling its task, cable. Only the plug, taken from some popular household appliance, does not fit the quality of the device itself. It is, surprise surprise, a switching power supply. The filtration stage sports several small capacitors with a total capacity of 85 000μF and many cascading voltage regulators. I assume that designers know well what they are doing, because the results speak for themselves. One of the advantages of such a power supply is the ability to work with virtually any supply voltage (85VAC - 264VAC) - no need to use different power supplies for different countries. Technical specifications (according to manufacturer): Comet Digital inputs: • AES/EBU 24/192 • BNC 24/192 • Toslink 24/96 • USB-B 32/384 DSD128 Dimensions (W x H x D): 47,6 x 19 x 292mm Weight: 4,2kg Power supply Voltage: 85VAC - 264VAC Power consumption: 25W Output voltage: 15VDC Output current: 1.7A Filtering capacity: 85 000μF Noise (typical):   [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/exogal/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/exogal/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/exogal/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/exogal/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/exogal/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/exogal/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/exogal/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/exogal/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/exogal/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/exogal/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/exogal/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/exogal/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/exogal/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/exogal/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/exogal/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/exogal/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/exogal/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/exogal/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/exogal/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/exogal/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/exogal/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/exogal/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/exogal/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/exogal/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

t may be hard to believe, but Ancient Audio's first products were relatively inexpensive hybrid amplifiers. It is particularly difficult to believe for those who associate this company with the top system used by Krakow Sonic Society, or those who see the Lektor AIR V-edition CD Player in my reference system, as these are very expensive representatives of high-end or even top-high-end level. The first amplifiers designed by Jarek Waszczyszyn featured elongated, narrow housings, without classic metal sheet covering the entire interior. Their appearance referred to that of tube amplifiers, as well as to the first McIntosh solid-state amps. On a low-profile chassis which housed electronic circuits, visible components were placed, such as shielded power transformer, filtering capacitors and radiator. Connections between them were not visible, and the device was safe to use. The latest Ancient Audio products obviously refer to the aesthetics of those first ever made by this brand. One shall easily recognize the resemblance looking at P-3 signal processor, headphone amplifier P-1 and the product currently under review, the A-3 integrated amplifier. The appearance of A-3 is not the only thing that makes it “different”, Jarek would not be himself if he had not offered something distinctly different from the rest. We are talking about a solid-state amplifier but since Ancient Audio specializes in tube amps in single-ended configuration (single tube, or, if necessary, two working in parallel, amplifying the signal), the first few watts are amplified in SE config, but then amplifier switches to a classic push-pull configuration, with one transistor amplifying the positive half of the signal and the other one the negative one. Even then the point where signal is crossing zero is amplified by a single-ended configuration. Jarek says that the greatest enemy of all push-pull circuits are cross-distortions arising at the zero crossing point and that he tried to avoid this issue in his new amplifier. Ancient Audio A-3 differs from older projects also by its price. This is something that everybody has to consider for himself: the so-called perceived value has little to do with how much we have to actually pay for the device. In other words, looking at the A-3 we do not see what we are paying for. This device offers only a moderate power output and low functionality, it is Made in Poland by a micro-manufacturer and a look that is not easily acceptable for everyone. When we know how it is built, how long it takes to build one we gain other perspective, but I guess most people will still have their reservations about it. For similar money one can buy Accuphase E-260 (21 600 PLN), and if one wants to have the same high quality and even better components than E-260 has to offer without sacrificing the functionality of Japanese amp then one can purchase the Polish amplifier Abyssound ASA-1600 (19 000 PLN). On the other hand, if the functionality is not a priority, but what one requires is a sophisticated performance and high output that allows to drive even such a difficult loads as large Magnepans, one could decide for a 17 000 PLN elinsAudio Concerto amplifier. How is P-3 to fight such a strong competition? Only through sound quality, as otherwise A-3 does not stand a chance. So you know about P-3's appearance already, now it's time to say a few words about his micro-functionality. The amplifier has only three line inputs and an output of 40W at 8Ω and 70W at 4Ω. There is no line output (no pre-out, record-out nor an output that could be used to connect it with an external headphone amplifier), or headphone output, not to mention a dedicated headphone amplifier. No phonostage nor DAC modules can be installed inside. Additionally the unit under review features no remote control, which for many potential customers is simply not acceptable. Fortunately Jarek declared that the next production units (starting from August) will have a remote control, which will allow used to change the volume remotely. A-3 offers some interesting features and solutions. One of them is a switch, which changes input's # 1 working mode - it be used either in the classic mode, or in another one where input selector, cables and potentiometer are actually bypassed. This input is usually called "direct" or "HT" and it is most often used to integrate stereo integrated amplifier with a multi-channel system, eg. Home theater one. But not in this case. Can you remember the fact that the Ancient Audio CD Players feature adjustable output? It is them this input was designed for to shorten the signal's path - from 64 to 4 cm. One can connect also other brands' Players the same way such as: CD-07s and CD-1SX by Ayon Audio, or sources from Pro-Ject, QUAD and Audiolab, to name a few. The second possibility to improve the sound quality comes from a particular selection of the coupling capacitors used in the circuit. This possibility, however, requires an additional fee - the unit under review instead of classic capacitors features V-Caps. It is a pity that one can not choose between different anti-vibration feet anymore. The amplifier was placed on small rubber feet, that I would love to see replaced with ones by Franc Audio Accessories or Pro Audio Bono. Finally, let's notice that in addition to the "Integra / Power" switch on the rear panel, the front ones hosts three small knobs – input selector, volume control and on/off switch. Above the middle one there is a small red LED. JAREK WASZCZYSZYN, story about A-3 project The very first Ancient Audio product was the Hybrid amplifier (1995) The very first product ever made by Ancient Audio was the Hybrid amplifier presented in 1995. The idea was to make a simple, audiophile design. After many trials I decided use a circuit without feedback loop. At that time the loop was considered to be a source of all the 'evil' especially after Matti Otali articles on TIM distortion. For amplifier to have low distortion without feedback loop, its every stage had to be very linear. Hence the voltage gain performed by ECC88 tubes, a solution I am loyal to till this day. The output stage was based on the transistors working in class A. It required using considerable heat sinks, because, as we all know, heat loss in such a case is quite big. Used elements actually created the appearance of the amplifier and its vintage appeal. And the name, Ancient Audio, too. Hybrid featuring a FM tuner Hybrid was quite a successful debut, some units traveled all the way to USA, Denmark and Norway. One of them was additionally equipped with a FM tuner. The natural beauty of tubes, and their sound pushed me in completely different direction, one that involved purely tube designs, such as: Triode, Triode Mono, Silver 300, Silver Integra, Silver Grand Mono, Single Six. These were always single-ended amplifiers. Their sound was excellent so semiconductors became obsolete (in my case they ended in my garage). In 2015, the company celebrated its 20 years on the market. This is this sort of anniversary one should celebrate with something special. It had to be something that would refer to my first product, which was the Hybrid. I have to admit that I had a high quality transistor amplifier in the back of my head for quite some time. Tubes provide a wonderful sound, but they are demanding for loudspeakers and their operation is sometimes tricky. And there is the huge weight always involved with such designs... But how could I make a transistor sound really good? Here I have applaud Nelson Pass who with his very simple First Watt designs challenged many stereotypes. These were good sounding solid-state Single Ended amps operating in Class A. Their limitation was the small output power - it was not only the First Watt, but also the Last Watt... One can't fight laws of physics that say that the efficiency of a Single Ended Class A amplifier is at most 25%. The rest, meaning 75% or even more, is converted into heat. Such considerations are carried out when thinking about the easiest, pure acoustic signal - a sine wave. In reality music is something else - below you can see a graphic representation of a piano sound. This is a graphic representation of a piano's sound As one can see, music is sometimes loud impulses, but mostly a silence, or small signals. The human ear is perfectly trained for analysis of small signals, even those close to zero. This, in turn, is a weakness of push-pull amplifiers, since at zero level there is a switch between elements amplifying positive and negative part of the signal. And in this aspect Single Ended Class A amplifier is unrivaled, because one element or set of elements (like in Silver Grand Mono), amplify positive and negative parts of the signal; no switch = no distortion. Thus a new amplifier was born: Class A, Single Ended and transistors inside. And a compact chassis, just as with the first Hybrid. For an amplifier to be versatile it has to offer high output. To deliver output of 2 x 70 W a Single Ended class A amplifier would have to consume 600W or more. And it would convert most of this power into heat, which would preclude a relatively small, neat form. Therefore, I worked out a compromise: when small output is required amplifier operates as a single-ended, because then the musical fidelity counts most. More power is needed? It smoothly enters a push-pull mode, providing much more power to the loudspeakers. For test and when building prototypes I utilized elements of my previous designs Last but not least, the form. A year ago I presented a processor/preamplifier P-3. The new product complements it. Therefore I added a feature that allows to switch between the power amplifier/integrated modes. A-3's performance turned out, in some respects, comparable to the famous 300B triode. Other tubes, such as the famous 6C33S, it simply put, outclassed. Hence it was worth to try the best V-Cap capacitors in the signal path, and to make it manually using point-to-point assembly of the whole audio circuit using audiophile-grade cables. The key to this project was a compactness of the circuit and a short signal path. This required a large amount of manual labor, and creates a nightmare for a servicemen. In the event of failure a whole block of the amplifier has to be replaced. But, in my opinion, it's worth it. The amplifier replaced in my reference system Spheris III preamplifier and Soulution 710 power amp combination. It was powered using Tellurium Q Silver Diamond power cord, speaker cables came from the same line. At first I intended to use TARA Labs The Omega Evolution SP cables that came for the review at the same time, but it was not possible because of A-3's speakers posts. These are very solid, gold-plated, but distance between them is small, which prevents plugging in cables terminated with thick connectors. I would be careful also with spades - terminals are located vertically and it could be easily shorted. Banana connectors are the best choice. I used though Tara Zero Evolution IC with HFX. I put amplifier on Franc Audio Accessories feet with Acoustic Revive discs. I used Ancient Audio Lektor AIR V-edition CD Player as a source of the signal. I tried amplifier in both, classic integrated mode, and as a power amplifier using adjustable output of my CD Player. I learned that the power amp features high input sensitivity as I had to decrease volume by as much as 20 dB to get to a similar sound level as when using P-3 in integrated mode. Recordings used for this test (a selection): Rival Queens. Vivica Genaux & Simone Kermes, wyk. Capella Gabetta, dyr. Andrés Gabetta, Sony Classical 30236622, CD (2014) Andrzej Kurylewicz Quintet, Go Right, Polskie Nagrania „Muza”/Warner Music Poland 4 64880 9, „Polish Jazz vol. 0”, CD (1963/2016) Art Ensemble of Chicago, A Jackson in Your Home/Message To Our Folks/Reese and the Smooth Ones, Actuel/Charly 649X, 2 x CD (1969/2013) Bill Evans Trio, Portrait in Jazz, Riverside/Victor Entertainment, VICJ-61322, K2HD CD (1959/2005) Billie Holiday, Body and Soul, PolyGram/Mobile Fidelity UDCD 658, gold-CD (1957/1996) Enrico Rava, The Pilgrim and the Stars, ECM Records ECM 1063, „ECM Touchstones”, CD (1975/2008) Ewa Bem with Swing Session, Be a Man, Polskie Nagrania „Muza”/Warner Music Poland 4 64885 1, „Polish Jazz vol. 65”, CD (1981/2016) Jamie xx, In Colour, Young Turks/Hostess YTCD122J, CD (2015/2016) ; SBB, Hofors 1975, GAD Records GAD CD 042, CD (2016) Schubert, Lieder, wyk. Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, dyr. Gerald Moore, „Signature Collection", EMI 55962 2, 4 x SACD/CD (1955, 1957, 1958,1959/2012) Tame Impala, Currents, Universal Music Australia/Hostess 4730676J, CD (2015); Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] It would simply be a lie if I tried to prove that the Ancient blew away all other amplifiers in the vicinity of 20 000 PLN and more. It's surely not so. The amplifiers cited by me below and a few others too, like Octave, Ayon Audio, are really high quality, reliable devices, each designed to offer a slightly different set of features that together make up a product best suited for people with various needs. Each of them when used in an "empathetic" system will be a star. But then I would be an idiot if I, in the name of political correctness, taking into account the long-term relationship with Jarek Waszczyszyn and frequent meetings with him within the framework of the Krakow Sonic Society, tried to downplay what he achieved with this product. I would like to be properly understood - all post-Ancient products (this category refers to the time of after-super-expensive tube products, Wing speakers and CD players), such as Oslo monitors, P-3 sound processor and P-1 headphone amplifier were interesting and within really successful. But these do not really represent the type of products Ancient Audio is associated with, at least not by me. If something were to change in this perception of the brand, the A-3 is a step in the right direction. This amplifier generates a big sound. With both, my Harbeths and Trenner & Friedl Osiris I received a beautiful depiction of what has been recorded on CDs from my collection and it was done in a way that ignited true emotions. The main feature of the amplifier is fullness of its sound. That's something one sometimes hears delivered by good tube amplifiers, and sometimes by good solid-states. This degree of saturation, we have with A-3 however, is usually a quality of much more expensive products offered by brands such as: Lavardin Technologies and its IT-15 or elinsAudio Mille. The instruments have proper height, depth and width, have distinct bodies surrounded by other distinct elements of the soundstage. Changes in the dynamics and tone clearly influence our interpretation of what we hear – they don't exist for themselves, nor distract our attention from the music. The sound is dense, rich, saturated. There is no trace of aggression, because there is no emphasis in treble nor upper midrange is accentuated. I would call it a “warm” sounding amplifier because it is not 'warmed up', but it should fulfill expectations of those who search for a warm sound, and still would like to have something more than that. "Something more" in this case will be a resolution. This amplifier reacts to all changes introduced to the system, to differences between recordings, showing them in a clear, direct way. But it's doing it “casually”. It does not focus on the recording techniques. It differentiates tone, soundstage, dynamics only in conjunction with the presentation, never just next to it, or instead of it. All this adds up to the "beauty" of this presentation I started my description with. A-3 in a very comfortable way takes us to another world, generating deep, low bass. It is not so well differentiated, as midrange and treble are, and even as the upper bass is, but on contrary to what we got used to, it is fantastically controlled. It is a rare case that these two features occur together, because the soft, not quite so well differentiated bass is associated with this 'boomy' effect, with insufficiently fast beginning and ending of each sound. Ancient behaves in this regard as some much more powerful devices, reminding me what Naim amps do. Yet, Polish amplifier does not deliver particularly taut or contoured bass notes as the English amplifiers do. The three-dimensional image opening between the loudspeakers has its own character. I had to think a little, to define it and describe it properly. But I finally got it mainly thanks to classical vocal recordings. It is about some emphasis in the lower midrange. Listening to Vivia Genaux (mezzo-soprano) and Simone Kermes (soprano) album Rival Queens, I heard an open, sweet voice of Kermes (who delighted us singing during the 2012 Mysteria Paschalia festival) and a slightly darker, both in terms of timbre of the singer, but also of the way it was presented by the amplifier, voice of Genaux. Interestingly I couldn't notice similar influence when listening to males voices. Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau's voice in Schubert's repertoire sounded powerful, dense, deep, but there wasn't an impression of emphasizing lower range of the voice. The accent placed this way, combined with fantastic resolution and imaging, promotes recordings of acoustic instruments on the one hand, and on the other the music with electric guitars playing an important role. The new album with SBB group's concert recorded in Sweden in 1975 sounded wonderful. Equally beautiful was the presentation of Kurylewicz Quintet's album Go Right, with an amazing spacing and excellent timbre accuracy. The density and high resolution - a combination of these features makes the A-3 sound as a huge, powerful amplifier from the top shelf. One of the AA amplifier's features is a possibility to shorten the signal path and use adjustable output of the CD Player to control volume. Comparison of the potentiometer in the A-3 and AIR V-edition's variable output gave a very clear outcome: if your player has adjustable output you have to try it. It should give you a bit more 'present' performance and better defined sound. The difference is not large, it'd say it is about 3-4% improvement, but it is worth it to fight for it. But I think it will work only when the CD Player features analogue volume control. Digital volume control might work well to but only in the really expensive equipment, where it is just an added function to make a device more attractive, but rather where it is a full-fledged feature. SECOND OPINION Text: Bartosz Pacuła I divided my listening session with Ancient Audio A-3 amplifier into three parts. In the first I spun some of my favorite vinyl records (the source was the Pro-Ject Xpression Carbon Classic turntable) and just listened to the music, while trying to feel out what sort of device this integrated was. In the second part I compared its capabilities with my Japanese masterpiece, the Leben CS300XS Custom version made for "High Fidelity" by Mr. Taku. Last but not least I decided to listen to some music files (both PCM and DSD) played from the Lumin T1 player. Writing these words I have no idea how much the latest product by Ancient Audio costs - I tried to just familiarize myself with its performance and features. During the test I used it only as an integrated amplifier. After listening to several albums I was ready to honestly say that I liked the A-3 very much. It fit my personal sound philosophy, preference very well, gave me what I was looking for and did it for the music genres I listen to most. This amplifier is in fact incredibly energetic especially in the midrange area. It worked damn well for rock recordings, it felt as if Mr Waszczyszyn's integrated was created for this type of music. I enjoyed listening to the Vinyl TV show's soundtrack, with Mick Jagger's excellent compilation of rock and roll and rock. The most important part of these recordings was the midrange and all the 'attractions' included in it - guitars, part of a drum kit and vocals. All this was served by A-3 in an excellent way, exactly as it should be: powerful, uncompromising, with unbridled energy. Similarly sounded Led Zeppelin from the Led Zeppelin II album, or the Fleetwood Mac's Tango in the Night. Also lower end on these records did not give me any reason to complain - he was nicely defined and very "present." What I did miss in these presentations was a bit more of information at the top end. Perhaps it was due to the specific sound features of my test system, or poor sound quality of rock albums? Yet, the absence of the top treble did not really bother me while I was listening – who cares about some details when the presentation as a whole is simply on fire? Of course, I did not limit my test to listening to above mentioned records. I also spun some other albums, such as: my favorite album of Miles Davis, In a Silent Way, Beatles Abbey Road (I chose from this album some mellow songs like Come Together or Because or Here Comes the Sun) or acoustic Nirvana's concert of the MTV Unplugged series. And this time A-3 also performed well, I felt, however, that this is not the material best suited for this amplifier. There was not too much “action” here (at least compared to eg. Led Zeppelin), which this latest integrated by Ancient Audio played so well. Having said all these praises about A-3 I have to make clear that this is not a device for everyone. In comparison the Leben integrated played everything with more grace, inner peace, while offering a more nuanced, wider soundstage and smoother (and - presumably - for some people much more pleasant) sound. This worked perfectly in the case of albums, where fine emotions play great role, where there is a lot of nuances that make particular recording truly great. But I also have to admit that after returning to the Japanese amplifier I began to miss the dynamics and the richness of the sound so lavishly served to me by the Polish device. Leben simply falls behind in these regards, which is obviously not its shortcoming, but its feature. Just as in the case of the A- 3 amplifier, which is did not quite match its Japanese counterpart when playing calmer tracks and albums, and which presented its best performance with different type of music. A setup combined of the A-3 and the Lumin T1 turned out to be a really impressive one. All the Lumin devices I am familiar with deliver a warm, massive sound, especially in the midband area, which the Ancient Audio integrated was able to enrich with huge energy. I simply loved Rolling Stones screaming at me about brown sugar (Brown Sugar from Sticky Fingers album), also Deep Purple from Fireball gave me a truly enjoyable ride. However, also now the situation described earlier happened - rock music was played in a fantastic way, but I missed some elements while listening to quieter recordings such as acoustic Aerial Boundaries by Michael Hedges (version re-issued recently by Audio Fidelity) or Enya's album. I do realize that I'm repeating myself, but I would like to clearly emphasize this - A-3 is a good amplifier. And when it comes to recordings of live, energetic music (and not only rock, but metal, pop or soul too) it becomes even a very good one. However, this is an amplifier for people who know exactly what they expect from their system, what sort of presentation they are after. If someone appreciates a more balanced and open sound, smoother sound attack or a greater amount of details he should look for something else. However, if the energy, power, dynamics and delightful midrange are favorable sound features A-3 will be, most likely, the device you're looking for. Summary If you are able to stop calculate for a moment, A-3 will prove to be an amplifier capable of delivering a sensual, rich presentation with almost any loudspeakers. Its sound offers everything we value tube devices for, so wonderful 'golden' treble, powerful, rich midrange and a full, rich bass. You will find in its performance a unique depth of sound and soundstage. Even a bit soft character of the sounds from the bottom of the scale played into this bit 'tube-like' sound – it is a device made by a 'tube' guy after all. Solid state design adds to this large-scale sound, saturated, deep bass and high, although imperceptible dynamics, working 'from the shadows'. An amplifier at this price point should not perform that well. The calculation should, however, take into account all aspects of the A-3, and when done it pulls the device out of the orbit of the Earth more down to the ground. Any foreign competitor, whether British or Japanese or German (eg. Trigon amplifiers) offers incomparably greater functionality and better finish. You have to decide yourself what is it that you really want in life - safety (calculation), or a rush (emotions). Whatever your decision it will be a good one. As for me – I have to award this amplifier with RED Fingerprint. A-3 is a small integrated amplifier offering with an average output power. The aspect ratio is different than normal, i.e. the width of the front panel is smaller than the depth of the device. The whole device is placed on a thick granite slate. This is a characteristic feature of this manufacturer's products, because all of his devices use this form of vibration reduction. However, while the tube amps and players (eg. Lektor AIR V-edition) electronics is enclosed in a metal housing suspended under the plate, in this case granite is the base the electronic circuits are installed on. Front made of brass patch with engraved inscriptions. You'll find three aluminum knobs responsible for: input selection, volume control and turning the device on and off, and a red LED that indicates when power is on. On the back we have three pairs of RCA inputs, two pairs of speaker outputs, a small toggle switch and an IEC socket. The switch toggles the first input's working mode from a linear with adjustable volume to a direct one (power in). Designer decided to use gold-plated, good quality RCA connectors, but nothing fancy so no WBT, Furutech, or even Cardas. The speaker terminals are also robust, also gold-plated. The electronic circuit is divided into three parts. Potentiometer and input switch are placed in a small chamber by the vertical front panel. The second, identical one, located in the back of the device, there are input relays and - in the upgraded, V-Cap version - TFTF capacitors (also OIMP version is also available with oil capacitors). The entire amplifier circuit is located under the backside of an aluminum heat sink. What is known about the design is that it is a solid-state one, it features coupling capacitors, and that has been assembled using point-to-point assembly, without a printed circuit board – another reference to high quality tube amplifiers. Since such type of montage is time and effort consuming it is rarely seen in solid-state devices. The heat sink heats up quite a bit, but won't burn you if you touch it. The system features thermal protection and if the temperature exceeds 70 ° C, the amplifier is switched off. I think that no relays were used for speaker outputs, because when you turn off the amplifier you can hear a muffled "poof" in your speakers. The unit is nicely made, but not as precisely as amplifiers offered by large companies. The radiator, for example, has uneven edges, and screws used to fix power supply and transformer surely do not contribute to this amplifier's appearance positively. And these rubber feet ... Technical specifications (according to manufacturer): Output power: 2 x 70W/4Ω | 2 x 40W/8Ω Unbalanced inputs: 3 x RCA Dimensions ( S x W x G): 220 x 106 x 380mm Weight: 13kg [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/ancient/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/ancient/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/ancient/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/ancient/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/ancient/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/ancient/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/ancient/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/ancient/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/ancient/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/ancient/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/ancient/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/ancient/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/ancient/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/ancient/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/ancient/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

he impact of tests in trade magazines is either described as none or of a sort that can change everything; it depends on whether or not the one who expresses such an opinion likes or does not like the press and/or reviews. But if you want to form your own opinion, it would be best if you base it on concrete examples. The argument FOR could be the story of the, at the time Australian company with headquarters in Sydney, the TARA Labs (TARA is written in capital letters, because it is an abbreviation of The Absolute Reference Audio). The company launched on the other side of the globe in 1986, with their Phase II cable. In 1988 they managed to organize its test in the American magazine "Stereophile". The cable proved to be so interesting that the magazine gave him an extremely positive feedback. The response from the press, distributors and consumers was so great that a year later the company moved to the United States and since then is a US company. It was not the first nor the last such Aussie transfer – one could point out some other examples such as: AC/DC and Dead Can Dance. But as far as audio industry is concerned this was the most famous transfer. The world of cables is divided into those who use copper and those who use other metals, mainly silver. TARA Labs belongs to the former. But this is not the only distinguishing feature of their designs. The second is a commitment to the use of solid core cables, i.e. single, separately insulated wires, in TARA Labs version placed in the tubes filled with air; as air is one of the best insulators. Except for vacuum of course - the company boasted that for the, until recently top interconnect in company's lineup, model The Zero, they managed to get the pressure inside the pipes that is similar to vacuum. Was it really so? Hard to say, but the message was released out into the world. The conductors utilized by the company were not ordinary round ones. Already in 1992, TARA used wires with a rectangular cross section (Rectangular Solid Core). Today such non-round wires are used also by other brands such as: Acrolink or Acoustic Revive that uses oval ones, but back then it was a true novelty. As for newer ideas introduced by TARA there are some worth mentioning such as: passive float screen that is connected to a special "base" (Isolated Shield Matrix). Currently, TARA Labs is one of the largest manufacturers of specialized wiring. All of its products are made in the USA, which emphasizes the engraving on connectors that reads: "All cables made in U.S.A.". TARA LABS EVOLUTION For a long time the top TARA models were The Zero interconnect and The Omega speaker cable. A few years ago, however, American brand diversified top of their lineup and divided cables into two sub-series: Onyx and more expensive, Gold. Although in both cases it was a step forward, it were still variations on the theme, and not a true new quality. The latter was introduced in 2014 with a completely new series called Evolution, with two sub-series: Evolution and Grandmaster Evolution. The first was twice as expensive as the Omega series, and the second is much more expensive than Evolution. Grandmaster Series Evolution, as we read on the official website of the manufacturer, is not available for review. So we do a test of The Evolution Zero interconnect, The Omega Evolution SP speaker cable and The Omega AC Evolution power cable. If you know previous models offered by the company and you see and read bout its new products a few things will immediately catch your attention. Let me begin with the least important, or it would seem so, element, its appearance. And this is because it turns out to be extremely important in everyday use, and is a result of particular mechanical design, which is a fundamental building block for sonic performance of the cable. The Zero Evolution The Zero Evolution interconnect is not advertised as using "vacuum" as a dielectric. Maintenance of the model that actually used vacuum was extremely difficult and any, even the slightest damage to the cord or plug was tantamount to saying goodbye to the key feature without even knowing about it. The new interconnect uses the classical solution, i.e. solid-core conductors in tubes filled with air. These are rectangle second-generation RCS wires made of SAOF-8N copper. The abbreviation reads: Super Annealed (subjected to aging), Oxygen Free (cleared of oxygen), with a purity of 8N (99.999999%) - the highest, that is achievable today. Wires are polished and coated with a thin layer of a liquid dielectric, which solidifies over time. This coating is intended as a barrier against oxidation of the metal. Each of the wires is a long single crystal, the solution known from the OCC. The wires are wrapped around a thick inner core and mechanically stabilized so that bending the cable would not change their arrangement, and thus their electrical parameters. Sophisticated design and high quality materials - tube and core made of Teflon and coating wires with a polyethylene used in the aerospace industry - made it possible to achieve extremely low capacitance of the cable, at the level of 2 pF and conductivity 75% higher (I'm quoting manufacturer) than the one of The Zero Gold. A derivative of these changes, but a very important one, is the incredible flexibility – it Is extremely easy to install cable in the system. After "vacuum" cable Evolution inherited an important component - fantastic plugs, particularly impressive in the RCA version. They constitute a superb termination of thick cables (thick, not because of the number of conductors but because of the mechanical design) and allow for precise clamping them in the socket. Another 'inherited' element is the virtual ground "station", called HFX (High Frequency eXtendened). This block of aluminum filled with mixture of granules of different kinds of minerals. The solution is similar to ones made by other brands such as: Acoustic Revive, Entreq and Verictum. In this case cables screens are connected to it. Normally, the screen is connected on both sides of the cable to ground, or just on the source side, if negative signal run has a separate cable (it's called: pseudo-balanced design). In the Zero Evolution case screen is not connected on any end, but only to this virtual ground, which extends the frequency response of the cable – with a screen a capacity is introduced, and it blocks high frequencies. The Omega Evolution SP The Evolution speaker cables are constructed similarly to the interconnect, the main difference is a greater number of conductors (224). But while The Zero Evolution from the outside – apart from a greater flexibility – does not differ much from The Zero Gold, inasmuch The Omega Evolution is a completely different breed than The Omega Gold and Onyx. They differ primarily with their diameter. Already before some people unrelated to the audio when they saw in my room two hoses running to the loudspeakers, laughed, saying that apparently I took them from the welding machine. With Evolution on my floor they will have to change the repertoire of jokes and go to those about hoses used in hydraulics or irrigation - the new cables are so thick that they could pass for the main system irrigation bus of a large size farm. Another important difference that goes in opposition to their thickness, is, again, their flexibility - the cables are extremely easy to install in the system and place them whatever way we want. The connects are screwed on – so one can use spades or bananas, and then change one's mind, one is not limited by anything. This is an additional point of contact, which in itself is not beneficial, but I know from experience that the idea works in real life, not in the imaginary world of audiophiles. I do have two sets of plugs and occasionally interchange them. The Omega Evolution AC The power chord The Omega AC Evolution is much stiffer than the speaker cable, although it is similar in diameter. The thing is that manufacturer used of a screen with very high coverage, which protects against electromagnetic radiation and RF noise. Also ferrite cores placed at both connectors serve the same purpose. The new cable features twice as much conductors as the previous flagship – there are 18 rectangular SAOF-8N copper wires for the "hot" run, 18 for the "cold" and 18 for protective run. In run three thick wires were added to improve conductivity. As it turns out, this stiffness stems also from the fact that each of the runs is separately shielded. Plugs come from the Japanese company Oyaide. In „High Fidelity's” May issue I presented the first part of this test, an assessment of the Krakow Sonic Society (meeting #103, see HERE). The Evolution series was compared to TARA Labs The Omega speaker cable, TARA Labs The Omega Onyx and Siltech Double Crown IC and speaker cable. In my own system for comparison I used Siltech Triple Crown and Crystal Cable Absolute Dream interconnects, TARA Labs The Omega Onyx speaker cable and Acrolink Mexcel 7N-PC9500 and Acoustic Revive Power Reference Triple-C power chords. Recordings used for the test (a selection) Debussy. Complete Piano Works, wyk. Walter Gieseking, „Signature Collection", EMI 55917 2, 4 x SACD/CD For Ever Fortune. Scottish Music In The 18th Century, wyk. Les Musiciens de Saint-Julien, dyr. Robert Getchell, Alpha, 531, CD (2012) Istanbul, wyk. Hespèrion XXI, Jordi Savall, Alia Vox, AVSA 9870, „Raices & Memoria, vol. IX", SACD/CD (2009) Andrzej Kurylewicz Quintet, Go Right, Polskie Nagrania „Muza”/Warner Music Poland 4648809, „Polish Jazz vol. 0”, CD (1963/2016) Andrzej Kurylewicz Quintet, Go Right, Polskie Nagrania „Muza”/Warner Music Poland 4648809, „Polish Jazz vol. 0”, Master CD-R (1963/2016) Duke Ellington, Duke Ellington Live!, Nippon Phonogram | EmArcy 842071-2, CD (1989) Lucy Ann, Lucky Lucy Ann, Mode Records/Muzak MZCS-1121, „Mode Vocal Collection”, CD (1957/2007) Ludwig van Beethoven, Overtures, dyr. Sir Colin Davis, Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Sony Music Direct (Japan) TDGD-90013, „Esoteric 20th Anniversary", SACD/CD (1986/2007) Manuel Göttsching, E2-E4. 30th Anniversary, MGART, 404, CD (1981/2012) Ornette Coleman, The Shape of Jazz to Come, Atlantic Records/ORG Music ORGM-1081, SACD/CD (1959/2013) Wolfgang Dauners/Et Cetera, Knirsch, MPS Records/HGBS Musikproduktion UG HGBS 20013, CD (1972/2013) Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] The Zero Evolution The TARA Labs interconnects of the top series have always been my own “analog sound' role model, i.e. very smooth, warm, without underlined edges. I understood it this way, that the developers wanted to avoid the problems which recordings provide in abundance. The mission was a success, because with The Zero I never heard any harshness, distortion, dirt, or unpleasant elements in the sound. A very similar behavior to worshiped Wadia's CD Player, model 861. I do not know how TARA guys did it, but the new The Evolution Zero interconnect is even smoother, more enjoyable, and yet its tone is significantly more open, treble is nicely extended and it never lacks the energy and brilliance. Everything that is happening there, whether it is cymbals, or trumpet and saxophone harmonics, and finally sibilants - everything shines wonderfully, is particularly vivid, and yet smooth. I know I repeat myself, but I have to say it again - I do not know how the company did it, but presentation is even smoother than the one of Siltech Triple Crown IC. I thought smoother was no longer possible, until I heard The Evolution Zero. The tonal balance of the performance is placed quite high, and yet it initially one has an impression of it being shifted down - a phenomenon that I try to explain with quite powerful bass delivered by TARA that resonates for a long time and always tries to be present. Siltech presents larger images, bigger volume, but it is TARA that provides listener with more relaxed presentation of the recorded music, it's Tara that enchants listener from the very first minute of listening. I mentioned the bass already, not let me elaborate. A way of showing double bass, organ, piano, electronic instruments, is very pleasant. It's slightly warm presentation, without clear edge forming, and therefore very safe. And if it was another cable from a lower shelf, then one could speak of a slight rounding of shapes and "releasing" sound towards decay phase. In any other case I could indicate a slight remission of control. I'd talk about rounded attack resulting in less precision. But not here, not in this case. Yes, it's true, it's not a perfect control, there is no precise determination of the attack and stop. But this gives the impression of the presence, density and fullness, while there is no rumble in the room, listener never complains about the extended bass notes, despite the high energy of the whole lower end. The message is perfectly coherent, we do not track individual elements of the performance by simply listen to music. The soundstage is wide and deep. But quite different from that which I have heard with other top level cables. Let me spoil it for you and tell you right now that I will tell you the same about other elements of the Evolution series: rear plans are as important as the front one, they are shown equally clearly with the same, high level of energy. Volume (size) of instruments, vocals, and non-musical elements placed there are comparable with those on the front. I have no idea how this is achieved, but I can not deny the facts: the Evolution shows a change of timbre, dynamics, emphasis shifts, change of drums pace that is set at the back of the stage as well as of the leading instrument. I mean that both arouse similar emotions, involve listener in the same way. And they demand the same level of attention. So there is this impression of incredible richness of sound. It comes at a cost, obviously but I'll tell you about it bit later. First, let me tell you about dynamics - a fantastic, explosive, powerful one. Always equally exciting without tempering in less important moments, and by that generating huge excitement. This is one of the few cables that show this aspect of music intimately, as if we were sitting in front of a stage at a concert. It's a beautiful, exciting performance even smoother than what we get from SILTECH Triple Crown, which took me completely off guard. How they achieved that, how did they combine energy and open treble with such an excellent smoothness - I do not know. Just as I have no idea how they managed to show back plans so perfectly without adding any brightness to the sound, without damping the attack. The Omega Evolution SP If you start listening from the interconnect, it will prepare you for most of the changes that will happen after the change of speaker cable. Even this, however, does not prepare listener for the incredible dynamics of this cable with which the it delivers music. This is amazing, because until now I believed that Omega Onyx, which I was familiar with like with almost any other element of my system, will crush every competitor and won't be taken by a surprise by none. And here come a surprise - Omega Evolution is clearly faster and much more dynamic. These are not minor changes but a significant improvement. This applies to both the foreground and what is behind. I would even say that the latter constitutes its performance, because I have not experienced so far anything like that with any other cable. Hitting drumroll, kettledrum, double bass' solo, guitars are with the new TARA speaker cable simply outstanding. An older version of the cable, Omega Onyx, was phenomenal in this respect. The new cable slightly improves what is happening in the front, but completely changes the rules of the game by showing as clearly dynamic shifts in the rear of the stage. Omega Evolution is a cable with a much wider bandwidth (perceived) than the old Omega Onyx. It has firmly extended treble and more meaty bass. With the older version nothing was missing at least until I heard Evolution. Also Siltechs – both Double and Triple - Crown seem less "present" at the top of the band, their sound is more "vintage". Powerful treble performance itself is not a feat, I know a lot of expensive cables, which have a high treble energy. But none of them is at the same time so smooth, so - I'm exaggerating, but I want to show it clearly as possible - warm. This is not a "warm" sound in the sense in which we use the word to describe the majority of tube amplifiers. It is "warm" through lack of aggression, smoothing of all irritating elements of the recording, and combining everything into a fluid whole. It all doesn't mean that the Omega Onyx just gives up without a fight. Despite the fact the its performance is less open, a little more chaotic and there is no the same incredible smoothness and fluidity that Evolution has, it excels however when it comes to slightest shifts in timbre, and instruments placement on the stage. This is the price that the new series pays for the excitement, for the beauty, for "gold" ambiance the Evolution cables present music with. The world portrayed by the interconnect and speaker cable is always more beautiful, more interesting than one delivered by other cables. Just as a well taken, cropped and processed image in a top shelf color magazine. The Omega Evolution AC The Evolution Zero interconnect and The Omega Evolution SP speaker cable have a very similar sonic signature, contribute very similar changes to the signal. The Omega AC Evolution power cable is different. Strongly emphasizes the treble, adds weight to the lower end and slightly withdraws the upper midrange. In combination with the two other cables of this series it allows the system to present the elements in the back of the stage in even clearer, more distinct way. They are clearly displayed, as clearly as what is happening in the front, but without bringing them forward. It is clear that TARA Labs is a champion of spacing and imaging, the soundstage is extremely wide and deep. Dynamics is another surprise, again. It is very high and again I had the impression that Tara delivers more live-like performance, that other cables present more "studio-like performance" in this respect, ie. they average dynamics to allow user to use higher volume level. With TARA sound seems louder. One puts these cable in, touches nothing else and it gives an impression of a volume level higher by 1-2 dB. Summary TARA Labs Evolution is one of two or three sets of ultra high-end cables, which impressed me THAT much. Among them these offer most beautiful sound. Beauty is an extremely imprecise category, but in this case it best captures my feelings and thoughts. These cable allow user to enjoy his whole music library, regardless of the genre and even quality of the recording. With each album they create an amazing spectacle and a draw listener into their world. But it is always their world. A fantastic differentiation provided by top Siltechs, even if they sound a bit more "roughly" (again, I'm exaggerating, but that's life), clearly shows the differences between recordings in a more distinct way; so recordings of lesser quality will sound worse then those of high quality. But even they can not do what TARA can – they are not able to present in such an exciting and energetic way the events in the back of the stage. Other cables, in comparison, appear to hide what happens back there. I assume that this is due to the phenomenal dynamics of the reviewed cables. Writing about the performance of a high quality audio component I emphasize that you have to test it in your own system, because the composition of the individual components is an individual matter. When it comes to TARA Labs Evolution my recommendation becomes even more important. This time it's not even about them delivering poor performance in some systems because they will sound in equally spectacular way in every system. So the question here is only whether they to suit your tastes and approach to music listening or not. On the one hand, these are brilliant cables, especially the interconnect and speaker cable, as they transform listening to the music into a true musical feast. But then all recordings are gaining the same excitement, the same beautiful refinement, which makes them more alike. So if you are more interested in listening to music in comfort, with continual pleasure, with the same level of fun - TARA Labs is for you, and once you have them you shall never again even think about any other cables. However, if you are willing to sacrifice a peace of mind for the sake of getting to the truth about each recording, if you are more interested in how they were prepared, then you will have to look somewhere else. Anyway, TARA Labs Evolution is a wonderful, amazing set of cables made by the people who know how to turn a great product into outstanding one. How many more such magicians are still walking around in this world? GOLD Fingerprint Award for the interconnect and speaker cable – there is no way around it. GOLD Fingerprint TARA Labs EVOLUTION SERIES The GOLD Fingerprint Award is an expression of our highest appreciation for the product and the people behind it. It is awarded extremely rarely, within 12 years of our operation it has been awarded only a few times. But knowing the TARA Labs company, using their product every day, I got used to the idea that sooner or later it would happen. Cables from the Evolution series deliver everything that top-high-end cables should do, because they present the music the way that makes one wanted to listen more and more, also in the top systems. They achieve that in a different way than other top cables, but that's the beauty of audio – there always different ways to achieve an objective. Team TARA Labs did it in its own way and achieved remarkable final effect. [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/tara/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/tara/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/tara/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/tara/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/tara/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/tara/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/tara/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/tara/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/tara/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/tara/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/tara/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/tara/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/tara/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/tara/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/tara/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/tara/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/tara/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/tara/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/tara/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/tara/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/tara/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/tara/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/tara/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/tara/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/tara/th/13.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/tara/13.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/tara/13.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1606/tara/th/14.jpg" big="foto_testy/1606/tara/14.jpg" src="foto_testy/1606/tara/14.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

hen the heads of Warner's headquarters learned of the sale of Polish Recordings, then - as Bartek Chaciński writes in the article Marka dużej wagi - they asked only whether it is a company that has Krzysztof Komeda's Astigmatic in their portfolio. This album is still among the best jazz recordings - not only in Poland but all over the world. Released with number 5 in the Polish Jazz series perfectly endured the passage of time, which can not be said for all 76 albums included in this series. The series was an idea of the composer and artistic director of the Polish Recordings, Ryszard Sielicki, but it actually realized for years by musicologist Andrzej Karpinski. Covers were designed by the best of the best - Rosław Szaybo and Marek Karewicz. The series was preceded by the Go Right album by Andrzej Kurylewicz quintet, which was unofficially called "vol. 0", and was being officially released since 1963, when the album with traditional jazz music by Warsaw Stompers, New Orleans Stompers, vol. 1 was released. The series ended in 1989, when they released the last album - Lonesome Dancer by Lora Szafran. PJ was obviously not the only jazz series released in Poland. Different albums were released under the PolJazz name by the Polish Jazz Association, and since the late 1970's Polish jazz was also released on Helicon Records discs, founded by the International Federation of Jazz. However, it was the most prestigious one. Most PJ albums were reissued, first on LP, and after 1989 some were also reissued on CD, but not all of these new issues offered good quality. Therefore, the decision of Warner Music Poland to release ALL Polish Jazz series, both on Compact Discs and Long Plays (180 g) is highly appreciated. Even more so as a large part of the titles released as part of this series today is not particularly attractive (so expected sales might not be too big). As Paweł Brodowski says, the editor-in-chief of the "Jazz Forum" magazine, an expert on jazz, the main editor of the series relaunched by the new owner, it includes albums of exceptional artists such as: Namysłowski, Komeda, Kurylewicz Trzaskowski, Wroblewski, with traditional, innovative and experimental jazz. But many of them are the result of knowing right people or were recorded (almost) by coincident. And yet ... "It is difficult to indicate equally important, valuable music series in our part of Europe" - says Brodowski cited above, and it is hard to argue with that. All the more respect to Warner for this decision. In early April the first group of six Polish Jazz albums remastered by Jack Gawłowski JG Master Lab were released. It is the same man who was responsible for, among others, Niemen's, Maanam's etc. remasters, that we wrote about in the our May issue (see HERE). Pawel Brodowski was responsible for the merits of the reissues and he came up with the idea about in what order should these albums be released. The simplest method would be to issue them one after the other, but it would probably not be particularly attractive for music lovers and probably would not guarantee financial success – these are two sides of the same coin. So he came up with the idea of releasing albums in groups of six and each such group will include traditional, experimental, vocal etc. jazz in such a way that each group will also include recordings from different periods. By the end of this year dozens of titles will be released. The first group includes following albums: ANDRZEJ KURYLEWICZ, Go Right, Polskie Nagrania 1963/ Warner Music Poland 2016 | Vol. 0 KRZYSZTOF KOMEDA QUINTET, Astigmatic, Polskie Nagrania 1965/Warner Music Poland 2016 | Vol. 5 NOVI SINGERS, Bossa Nova, Polskie Nagrania 1967/ Warner Music Poland 2016 | Vol. 13 TOMASZ STAŃKO, TOMASZ SZUKALSKI, EDVARD VESALA, PETER WARREN TWET, Polskie Nagrania 1974/ Warner Music Poland 2016 | Vol. 39 EXTRA BALL, Birthday, Polskie Nagrania 1976/ Warner Music Poland 2016 | Vol. 48 EWA BEM WITH SWING SESSION, Be a Man, Polskie Nagrania 1981/ Warner Music Poland 2016 | Vol. 65 Since this is the first batch of new remasters, I feel I owe Readers an introduction and I should also outline the context, which significantly extends this test. The next parts will be much shorter :) This article has been divided into two parts: Part 1. titled: Polish Jazz - editions and Part 2.: Remaster 2016 – sound quality. You can start from the first one, or you from the second, read them separately or together – I leave the choice to you. We would like it to be a solid basis for the remaining parts of this cycle. PART 1. Polish Jazz – editions Given the importance of a large part of the albums issued with PJ logo, as well as their popularity, a small number of reissues come as a surprise. Most of them concern the Komeda's ASTIGMATIC album and there is something to boast about: there are seven Polish editions on vinyl (plus one Czech and one German release) and nine editions on the CD. No other item from the catalog of Polish Recordings come even close to these numbers. Usually there are two, rarely three, LP releases and one, or even no CD release. The problem is that in fact they never managed to reissue all the items of Polish Jazz series. In the next part of Polish Jazz Forever I'll write about vinyl editions, but this time I would like to focus on digital editions. One must know that, although the CD and LP versions are released simultaneously, the new remaster was prepared in the digital domain for the Compact Disc release. Reissue 1989 The first attempt took place already in 1989, so soon after the Polish Recordings began selling CDs. Fifteen albums were released labeled "Polish Jazz," with recordings of Komeda, Trzaskowski, Ptaszyn Wroblewski, Novi Singers and so on. But this is not a full-fledged re-release, because the discs contained a variety of tracks taken from different albums of the artist, although they used only albums released as part of PJ series. In the case of Komeda they resorted to full ASTIGMATIC album, adding eight additional tracks to it. Recordings were transferred to the digital domain from analog tapes, but it is unclear whether these were the master tapes or copies, and if these were "master-tape" then of which generation. Covers used for all discs were identical and today they could only arouse nostalgia - for many years they were considered to be extremely ugly. Reissue 2004: „so called Anex” Polish Recordings performed another attempt only in 2004. This was the first time when the Polish Jazz albums were reissued with their original covers. Unfortunately only 16 albums were released and the project was abandoned. Among the selected titles there were such albums as: Go Right by Kurylewicz, Astigmatic by Krzysztof Komeda Quintet, TWET by Tomasz Stanko, Winobranie by Zbigniew Namysłowski, Unit by Adam Makowicz, Scant by Andrzej Trzaskowski Sextet and Modern Pentathlon by Laboratory. Discs were issued in digipak boxes, with the first opened page that was a copy of an analogue edition - on the front page there was a cover, and the other (internal) a back side of the cover. The CDs were imitations of LP albums, with a vinyl-like label in the middle and with a black edge. The label had nothing to do with the original issue, though. The cover artwork was pretty good. Under the clear plastic inside all the PJ titles were listed, including Kurylewicz Go Right, but without a number. It is worth noting that for the first time the publisher officially included Andrzej Kurylewicz and his trio's album to the canon, although originally it was released without PJ logo and a series number. It is only corrected by Warner Music Poland, that at its remaster of 2016 gives this album a number, "vol. 0". Sound quality was also better – Ms Joanna Szczepańska and Mr Wojciech Marzec, both representing the Mastering Studio of Polish Recordings, prepared a new mastering from the original master tapes in 24-bit resolution. Mr Jarek Nowak was responsible for scanning and editing of the artwork. The problem with this issue is that after some time digipak began to bend, as if gluing of paper covers and plastic interior wasn't properly done. On the discs and the back cover a logo was applied with a note inside a frame, ie. one that was used since 1979. Reissue 2005: „Polskie Radio poleca” A year later another, by far the most beautiful, reissue of selected PJ titles is released - unfortunately, only twelve of them. Bartek Chaciński wrote recently in the "Polityka" that this issue was on the verge of legality, though still the "right" side of things; as the most of the releases of that time were. The series included: Laboratory, Extra Ball, Tomasz Stanko and Zbigniew Namysłowski albums. These albums were issued by the Polish Radio in very nice digipaks. In their cover they cut out a "window" (hence it is known as the "windowed" release), in which we could see a reduced cover. One could pull this insert out and read an essay by Józef Balcerzak, the editor of the “Jazz” magazine referring to the particular artist. Printing using colors white, red and black and spot varnish was of high quality, which ensured a very nice aesthetics effect for these releases. CDs did not pretend vinyl records and had a uniform, white print on them. The albums could be purchased separately or together, in a tasteful box – that's a very rare version. It is interesting that just a year after the previous remaster they decided to make a new one. It was prepared by Ms Katarzyna Gleinert, whom a year later I interviewed for the "Audio" magazine. As she told me, she had at her disposal the original master tapes that she transferred to a digital domain in 24-bit resolution, with a 44,1 kHz sampling rate. Only then a noise reduction was performed using CEDAR noise cancelers and correct the defects of the tapes. She noted a poor condition of some tapes. The body responsible for the whole process was Polish Recordings Mastering Studio. This edition repeated only one title - Scant by Andrzej Trzaskowski Sextet, which in total gave us 28 titles already available on the Polish Jazz CDs. Remaster 2006-2007: „Polish Jazz Deluxe” Promotional materials for Polish Jazz Deluxe series reads: A starting point is an iconic collection of analog records issued under the Polish Jazz Series name, which since the early 1960s documented the achievements of Polish jazz artists. Its originators were Ryszard Sielicki (then artistic director of the Polish Recordings) and Andrzej Karpinski (the most famous editor of the company). The latter piloted the series until late 1980s, editing a total of 76 albums. The albums of the Polish Jazz series, especially in the 1960s, were an objective chronicle of Polish jazz. Without favoring individual styles of jazz it played first and foremost an important role of a historical document. source: ONET.pl 36 titles were released, of which only 21 came from the catalog of Polish Jazz. For the first time it was decided to expand the canon and to complement it with a series of titles that for some reason were not included in it before. And these were such great albums as: Easy by Wojciech Karolak, Bemowe frazy by Bemibem, or The Killers by Karolak / Szukalski / Bartkowski. CDs were released in digipak resembling a re-release of 2004, but instead of two elements it featured three. Again a person responsible for the remaster was Ms Karolina Gleinert. The graphic design is a "work" of L. Carnelli (MEMO). Word 'work' is placed in quotes on purpose, because the printing of this series is widely considered the least successful one. The small reproductions of covers with a record in the background or in case of Time Killers of a tape did not, and after all these years still do not make a good impression. It helped that on the third part of a digipak a reproduction of the cover was placed, but the not so favorable impression remained. The disc itself was again a reference to the vinyl record with a colored label in the middle. Reissue 2016: Warner Music Poland Anna Zając on behalf of Warner Music Poland is an executive producer of the new re-issue. I do not know who chose these particular people to do particular tasks, but I would like to bow to all of them deeply, because the albums were issued with great care obviously taken in all aspects: editorial, printing and sonic too (I'll get back to it in a moment). Anyone who remembers the three previous attempts of Polish Jazz CD releases will surely highly appreciate the latest one. The release has the form of a three-part digipak with a booklet and thick covers. For the first time an exact reproduction of the album's is used for a CD release - on the previous ones cover reproductions were either too small (Polish Jazz Deluxe), or had wrong proportions because digipak's shape is rectangle, not square. Printing has a pleasant matte finish, and a spot varnish was applied on covers, making them stand out even more. The space left on the first page of digipak was used to apply a Polish Jazz logo and a following number in the series. I mentioned already that o Right finally received an official number, "vol. 0 ", but obviously only on the vinyl edition - on the CD for some reason it is missing, shame. Person responsible for the graphical concept of the series is Łukasz Hernik, and for photo editing Przemysław Pomarański. I bow to them deeply. Typography, layout, choice of colors - everything is perfect and I feel jealous that I did not come up with something like that... Lets add to this a little rooster on the front page and nicely matched printing on the discs and you'll have a complete idea about how it looks like. Inside, you get a beautifully restored photos of artists and an essay – for each album someone else wrote one. Introduction to Go Right was written by Michał Wilczyński, head of GAD Records label. For the first time a person from the outside is responsible for the remastering of the whole material - it's Jacek Gawłowski of JG Master Lab Studio./p> Others Karolak/Szukalski/Bartkowski, Time Killers, Milo Records, „Polish Jazz Masters vol. 3” (2003) And finally I would just like to indicate that in addition to Polish Recordings reissues also Power Bro company released its own Polish Jazz reissues, although with altered cover art. Milo Kurtis (via his Milo Records) released several albums in 2003 as part of the Polish Jazz Masters series (eg Time Killers Karolak / Szukalski / Bartkowski). Reissues of Laboratory albums such as: Modern Pentathlon (vol. 49), and Quasimodo (vol. 58) were included in the box titled Anthology 1971-1988. All recordings released by Metal Mind Production in 2006 ("digital remaster 24-bit"); these featured "carboard sleeve" covers. These featured additional tracks from the period, but the downside was their decision to edit out the logo of Polish Recordings from the covers. In 2008 the same label released several titles from the Tomasz Stańko Tomasz Stanko in a the box named 1970/1976/1984/1986/1988. Laboratorium,Modern Pentathlon (vol. 49) and Quasimodo (vol. 58), in: Antologia 1971-1988. Nagrania wszystkie, Metal Mind Production (2006) On the other hand, already mentioned, Marek Wilczynski of GAD Records released two titles: Jerzy Milian Trio Baazaar (vol. 17, 2015) and Krzysztof Sadowski and His Group Three Thousands Points (vol. 47, 2015). The Jerzy Milian album was released not only on CD, but also on vinyl with black and color version. The digital releases featured classic jewelcase boxes (or so-called. "plastics"). You can find a review of both versions in issue no. 129 of "High Fidelity" of January 16th 2015. (see HERE). Jerzy Milian Trio Baazaar (vol. 17, 2015) and Krzysztof Sadowski and His Group Three Thousands Points (vol. 47, 2015), GAD Records However, this was a single publication and not the whole series. So a longer series was welcome in even more enthusiastic way. The "Polish Radio Jazz Archives" of Polish Radio, launched on April 21st included three titles: Stan Getz / Andrzej Trzaskowski Trio (vol. 01), Don Ellis / Wojciech Karolak Trio (vol. 2), and Jazz Jamboree'62 (vol. 3). It was described as: These recordings are an amazing document of a collaboration between the best Polish jazz musicians and international stars. Concerts have been recorded by accident and due to determination. Although some of the tracks were already known, such as saxophonist Stan Getz's, who agreed to release five tracks. These were released on the Polish Recordings mini LP Stan Getz in Poland. They were re-issued arousing the interest of fans around the world. Now we get a big dose of great music that, in addition to its documentary nature, shows artistry and class of Polish musicians. source: wPolityce.pl PART 2. Remaster 2016: sound Kurylewicz Quintet GO RIGHT | vol. 0 Polskie Nagrania „Muza” XL 0186/Warner Music Poland 4648802 1963/2016 In the first part of the PJ remasters I could not miss the true treasure of Polish jazz music, ie. the Astigmatic album by Krzysztof Komeda Quintet. I'll get to it in a moment, but first I have to admit, that I personally enjoyed listening to this Polish Jazz album most. I also believe that this is one of the best Polish recordings ever made. What's more – with this recording the mastery of Jack Gawłowski is fully expressed. On what do I base this opinion? - Please note captured by producers, and carefully reconstructed by Jacek (that's how I understand his role) space. It reminded me of the best Prestige, Contemporary Records, or Blue Note's recordings. Imaging is full-bodied, dense, natural. The instruments are placed close to the microphones but can "hear" other instruments too (the so-called "leaks"). I have not heard anything like in any Polish recordings for a long time. Even more so as I know the mono release of this album and for a long time I believed that there was no other version (stereo version is not available on the second-hand market). Another thing is the timbre. Jacek when I talked to him, which I shared with you writing about Niemen's, or Maanam's remasters, said his goal was to return to natural sounds, rather than an attempt to get closer to the first edition, which - he said - was most often a result of compromise. Therefore, Go Right features a dense timbre, saturated and filled. A double bass sound really great which on most Polish albums sounds lifeless, empty. Here it offers a very convincing timbre, volume, and large "box". The cymbals are saturated, but do not go too far up, what must a result of microphones, tape recorders and the type of tape that were used, as well as the age of the recording itself - 53 years passed from the moment this music was actually recorded! Let's add excellent dynamics to all that, and it turns out that Vol. 0 in the Polish Jazz series, thanks to Jacek Gawłowski, set the bar incredibly high. The Compact Disc version is the best version of this album, I know. In secret I can tell you that I liked it more than the original analog one - but let's keep it between us ... Sound quality: REFERENCE Award: BIG RED Button Krzysztof Komeda Quintet ASTIGMATIC | vol. 5 Polskie Nagrania „Muza” XL 0298 | SXL0298/Warner Music Poland 4648860 1965/2016 The ASTIGMATIC album is one of the most frequently re-issued titles of Polish jazz. So there is a lot one can choose from when it comes to comparison. Originally it was published as mono and stereo LP. On CD it is known only by stereo version. For the purpose of this comparison I chose the 2011 re-release remastered by Ms Carolina Gleinert, because until now it was the last one, and secondly because it is a really good re-release (I am working on an article comparing all editions of Astigmatic). Ms Karolina decided on it a little deeper compression, so the sound is bigger and closer to the listener, and therefore very catchy. Her second, equally important choice was a strong compensation of bass (an emphasis of lower end) that added more seriousness and depth to the music. Perhaps that's why the 2016 version by Jacek Gawłowski seem more dry to me. It is quieter by about 1-1.5 dB, so you have to compensate for the difference with volume knob. Then you will realize that the new version is much more dynamic and more multidimensional. I respect the work of Ms Gleinert, I understand what she did, but I also have to say that the new version - largely thanks incomparably better equipment Jacek has at his disposal – reminded me more of the first vinyl edition of the album. This single fact alone doesn't have to make this version better - see Go Right which in Jacek's version is even better than the original - but in the particular case of Astigmaic the first vinyl release still sets the bar. The new remaster sound more like live music and not studio recording. And the older versions sound just like that, like studio recording - in a sense that the instruments are close to us, playing very directly and for example the double bass and bass drum are presented in a distinct, powerful way, which we perceive as a "presence". The problem of such type of presentation is the disappearance of the air between musicians and sort of dominance of the mid-bass. This translates to a large volume of sound, but only on a small loudspeakers that do not reproduce lower bass. When played using Harbeth M40.1 with their 30-cm woofer that was too much of it. Having said that I have to add that this is not the best recording in itself. Comparing with the later recordings of Polish Jazz, especially after vol. 15 it appears to be excellent, but listened after Kurylewicz leaves listener unsatisfied, which is caused by a clear separation of instruments, upon which a reverb was later imposed. Their sound is also not so rich and full, it is not so saturated with harmonics. But I'm not going to complain, after all - the sound of the new version of ASTIGMATIC is convincing, we have a lot of air in it, and high dynamics too. The colors are set so that the whole presentation is coherent, we do not focus attention on something just because it is louder. This is by far the best digital version of this album I know. Differences between covers of 2004 (below) and 2016 (above) releases And finally: it is not most important, but it must be said that the album cover is not the exact depiction of the original release, but a revised version of the digital 2011 reissue. The vertical line separating the logo and title of the album was on the original cover shifted towards the title and artist, as if by mistake. In 2011 edition it was adjusted, leaving the same space on both sides - the cover of 2016 issue looks the same. Sound quality: 9/10 Award: RED Fingerprint Novi Singers BOSSA NOVA | vol. 13 Polskie Nagrania „Muza” XL 0415 | SXL 0415/Warner Music Poland 4648858 1967/2016 The Novi Singers album is not the best recorded album in the series of Polish Jazz, even though it belongs to the so-called "golden" group of the first, the most sought after releases. I compared the new remaster to the original analog release and 2004 CD. The latter sounds more powerful and is some 2-3 dB louder. This shows the depth of compression that was applied to it. The use of such a large compression gives certain advantages, such as bringing performers closer to listener, better separation of instruments' bodies and increased tangibility. In 2004 remaster there must be quite significant emphasis in the treble because the percussion cymbals can be heard as if the microphone was placed very close during recording. The new remaster presents everything from a distance, with a much more air. Yes, directness disappears, but the harmonic relations between voices appears, also original reverb can be heard more distinctly. The vocals are not as clearly separated by highlighting their bodies, as in the 2004 version, but are more like what I know from vinyl. They sound like an ensemble, not a group of soloists. The treble is much more resolving, percussion cymbals are better differentiated, also upper part of vocals sounds nicer. Sure, it's still not some super-audiophile quality recording – it's is simply not particularly well made recording from technical point of view. There is no distinct panorama, because the producers set up vocalists close and didn't give them distinct "bodies". The new remaster helps to restore naturalness by leaving more air and more space to breathe around the instruments, as well as by better differentiation of their timbre. I think that this album did not 'age' well, neither musically nor sonically. Jacek Gawłowski's version, the new remaster, gives one the opportunity to listen to it comfortably, with the air, the space without emphasis in the upper midrange or treble. But the older version also has something to it, because the emphasized lower part of the range vocals have a greater volume and are more present. After all this is one of these items from the catalog of Polish Jazz, which belong to the “chronicle" group and not to the "best of...” Let me finish with an editorial trifle – the vocal ensemble NOVI's name is an abbreviation of: "New Original Vocal Instruments". For some discs they used the NOVI name, and sometimes, for example, on Torpedo, there is Novi Singers. The original LP edition of Bossa Nova was marked with an abbreviated name NOVI, still on the crest of a new remaster its full name: NOVI Singers is given. Sound quality: 6-7/10 Tomasz Stańko TWET | vol. 39 Polskie Nagrania „Muza” SX 1138/Warner Music Poland 4648855 1974/2016 TWET years later still sound pretty good and still impresses with music quality. The latter is still, like eg. Music of The Art Ensamble of Chicago, exciting and still is avant-garde. It's another album, on which much less compression was used for the new version, than the previous digital edition, because it is quieter by about 2-3 dB. At the earlier release they added bass and treble, but that's not what I wanted to talk about. I think it all starts to create some sort of pattern that can be seen in the new remasters. Sound of TWET is very resolving, differentiated and has great saturation depth. An older version, and even the original analog seem to be a bit more “empty”. While the 2004 Compact Disc release is louder and therefore more 'showy', its sound is more "coarse" and therefore simpler. The A.D. 2016 version has all elements synchronized in a better way, which in turn resembles the original analog version. Music has a flow, it flows and takes listener with it. You can, of course, point to various elements of hi-fi, which are responsible for it, but we should stop at this: the resolution, dynamics, taste, are the elements that make the new remaster shines. It's a must-have. For comparison – a 2004 version disc And a word on the edition itself - on the cover of 2004 logo was applied, in which the catalog number reads: "SXL 1138". In fact, since 1971 (Ultima Thule site speaks of 1973) Polish Recordings albums appeared with catalog numbers that begin with the letters SX and that's the only edition of TWET that I know. And such correct logo was used on the cover of the new remaster. Sound quality: 8-9/10 Extra Ball BIRTHDAY | vol. 48 Polskie Nagrania „Muza” SX 1414/Warner Music Poland 4648853 1976/2016 Birthday is one of those Jarek Smetana's recordings I always liked her and still occasionally listen to it. Although in 1976, when it was released, it was not especially revealing, one can hear a lot of power in this music and strong personality of the leader. Sound quality belongs to a group in the "middle" between the less successful projects, such as Bossa Nova and better one as Astigmatic. It lacks proper midrange richness, strong top and bass. And dynamics could be better too. Jacek Gawłowski extracted some color of it. If there is no top and bottom, there is no use to pretend that these are there, same goes for dynamics. The album sounds best on good quality system where there is nothing to prove or emphasize; on systems of lesser quality it might sound too "flat". A good layout of the instruments in space is worth mentioning, which is especially audible with Jacek's remaster. The front of the stage is most important here, and we don't enter too deep into the stage. Differentiation of colors and lack of constraints set by the imperfection of technology are on the upside. This new remaster, I say this with some reservation and I wish that it is understood this way, sounds very "analogue" in the sense that is usually used for a vinyl record. Sound is soft, saturated and smooth. This is the best digital version of these recordings, I know. Sound quality: 7/10 Ewa Bem with Swing Session BE A MAN | vol. 65 Polskie Nagrania „Muza” SX 2365/Warner Music Poland 4648851 1981/2016 The Be a Man album has two faces, cause by the choice of material. The A side of the original analogue edition included English-language jazz standards arranged by Henryk Majewski, the B side included Polish songs including Be a man, with the lyrics written by late Maria Czubaszek and beautiful Good morning, Mr. Blues by Jerzy Wasowski. It just so happens that the album is devided into to part also by the way sound was produced for them. Nothing is known about the session in which it was recorded, but one can hear that both sides of the vinyl sound differently. Jacek's remaster 'preserved' these differences really well, he did not try to adjust anything. 1980s for music, also Polish one, when it comes to sound quality was a really dark period. The Ewa Bem's album is not all bad in this respect, but you can hear all the ills of a new way of sound production and deficiencies in studio's equipment. Let me add that almost all the reissues of older albums appearing in the 1980s with a yellow label in the middle sound much worse than their previous releases, primarily due to the lower quality vinyl. And so the first editions of the records released in these years do not offer particular sound quality. The sound is quite bright and not particularly three-dimensional. I do not know if noise correction was used, but it sound a bit as it was. Vocal on the A-side is more piercing and less rich with clearly underlined upper-mid. Drums are not really present with subdued, matte cymbals. In this respect, side B is much better because it is more open, less suppressed, and the vocal is richer has better tonal balance. The new digital version does not bring any breakthrough, but it is still the best version, regardless of the medium, which is currently on the market. There's a fluidity, brevity and coherency. It might sound as not much but trust me, that's a lot. It is worth to have it primarily because of the music - a new remaster will allow us to enjoy it in a nicer way than before. A comparison of logotypes: original vinyl issue of 1981 and a new remaster And a word about the logotype - the new remaster was marked with a wrong logo. At the turn of the 1970s and 1980s they began to use a rectangular logo with a note inscribed in a circle and the words "Polish Recordings" above it, and "Muza" underneath. It is with this logo the Be a Man was originally released, and here they used an earlier version of the logo, from the pre-1979 period. Sound quality: 6/10 Summary I think it can be seen what type of modification is brought by the new remaster and the direction which Jacek Gawłowski took. It seems that he minimized the intervention, but did not withdraw completely and where it was necessary he did add some things. The new versions are much more resolving, offer more dynamics and have better captured tonal balance. Older versions, especially those prepared by Ms Caroline Gleinert, are richer, with an emphasis in the bass area, which makes them also sound attractive. And yet the 2016 remaster is simply unrivaled. The most important elements of this whole process is the analog-to-digital conversion and Jacek using Apogee converters did it perfectly. This new version of Polish jazz in the digital edition really, really speaks to me - thanks a lot! I would like to end now the first meeting with the Polish Jazz 2016 REMASTER. The next meeting will be devoted to comparison between vinyl editions and perhaps another six digital ones. It will also include some general conclusions and my wishes for the special editions PJ (imagined by myself).

anguage is a very imprecise tool. But also thanks to it the evolution of apes resulted in an Aristotle, Michelangelo and Fangor. Still, however, we struggle with ambiguities, gaps, misunderstandings. Often, we ourselves are to blame, because the economics of language causes simplification of a lot of things, eliminating what is not commonly used, similar to something else, etc. Such, for example, "DAC" - on one hand, we know what it is, if only we have anything to do with audio, on the other... DAC stands for "Digital to Analog Converter". However, it actually has two meanings: it's a means to convert digital signal to its analog form, usually a small chip, and the second meaning is the whole device used to convert digital signal to analog one of which this small chip is the main component. Hence we are talking about two different things here. DAC for a common man DAC which is an element (chip) converting digital signal to analog and it is a part of the device that converts digital signal to analog. But in order to being able to convert signal and make it useful for the audio system, "Dac" has to be surrounded/supported with other circuits and components. Typically, in the input stage there is a digital receiver. Almost always it is a chip of one of the specialized brands, such as: Burr Brown, AKM, Analog Devices. Sometimes a programmable DSP is used instead with its own software written by the DAC's manufacturer. The receiver works as sort of “interpreter” of the input signal for the DAC chip. If the device features USB input it is followed by a specialized receiver that converts USB signal to PCM, which is “understandable” for the D/A converter. Often, especially in recent times, between the receiver and the converter one places digital filters, for example, upsampler ("Sample Rate Converter") that converts 16-bit words to 24-bit (this is how the K2 used by Reymio works, as well as the Advanced al32 by Denon), or to DSD signal, or, finally, a DSP with implemented filters. DAC is also almost always a chip from one of the above listed expert manufacturers, that was joined few years back by the current leader of the market, the ESS Technology with their SABRE32 DAC. This is an eight-channel system, ready for use in multi-channel systems, which can, however, be turned into a stereo one, by combining four parallel channels. This provides a significant reduction in distortion, higher signal-to-noise ratio, etc .; Accuphase, for example, achieves the same using a few, stereo chips. After signal is converted in DAC it is further processed in the analog domain. First, the current signal is converted to a voltage one, because it's the only kind "understood" by the preamplifiers and power amplifiers. This is called a I/U converter, or a current/voltage one. Usually these are active systems, but sometimes the purist designs feature passive one. And finally there is a gain section and output buffer reducing output impedance. This section is made either by means of integrated circuits, or transistors, or tubes. At the very end of signal's path there are output jacks. As you can see, the possibilities are plenty, and apart from the said DAC section there are also other elements, such as: oscillators, power supply, enclosure, assembly and so on – a designer must demonstrate creativity, skills, and have his own idea; he can make mistakes in each of the mentioned elements. d1-single-mk2 d1-single-mk2 is a digital-to-analog converter with variable output (in the digital domain). It is a simplified version of d1-six - instead of three, working in parallel, discrete converters per channel, there is one. This is an unbalanced device and in the XLR output only the “hot” pin is active. But the idea is the same as for the other converters of this brand: instead of a small of-the-shelve chip from an external company, designer uses discrete circuitry, with precise, metalized resistors, switched by integrated circuits. This is so called: R2R DAC. The signal is prepared for it by a programmable DSP, that performs re-clocking and that also features (two) digital filters, including one without oversampling. The user can choose which one suits him best. The digital signal can be delivered to DAC using one of the four inputs, including the asynchronous USB. All of them accept PCM signal up to 24 bits and 192 kHz. Manufacturer offers an optional DSD (DoP) functionality for all inputs at extra cost. In fact there are even more options available: BNC input can replace RCA, a massive silver front might be used instead of acrylic one, d2-single-mk2 and d3-single-mk2, 69 bit 2 way or 3 way active crossover with RCA analog outputs including a digital preamp for the main volume control and also for the relative level between bass and treble. The crossover slope can be 6dB/oct, 12dB/oct or 18dB/oct. All parameters, crossover frequency, filter slope, relative volume, main volume, relative digital delay... can be controlled from the remote while listening to music. bass boost might be added that is useful especially for users of loudspeakers with a single fullrange driver. One of the things we get as sort of bonus is a headphone amplifier. Headphone output, placed on the rear panel, is suitable for cans of impedance between 32 and 600 Ω; it will provide maximum signal of 3 V. VINCENT BRIENT Designer, owner WOJCIECH PACUŁA: d1-single-mk2 replaces d1-single? VINCENT BRIENT: No, it's not like that – it's a completely new converter that now is an entry-level product in our range. It replaces d1-core. What are the differences between d1-core and d1-single-mk2? d1-single-mk2 features completely new output stage. It is still a Class-A stage based on transistors but topology has been change resulting in a different sound. I also introduced many other changes in the digital section but these are not as significant as the one in the output. Also headphone output features transistors in Class-A but now its output impedance is lower. So one can use different headphones without a risk or running out of power to drive them. How do you minimize jitter? I don't use oscillators working in USB and S/PDIF inputs. I generate a completely new signal using asynchronous process performed by FPGA (FIFO). As a result sound is more natural, without any “metallic signature” of the sound present in a performance of many other D/A Converters. TOTALDAC in „High Fidelity” BEST SOUND 2015 AWARD: totaldac d1-twelve DAC – digital-to-analog converter, see HERE TEST: totaldac d1-twelve DAC - digital-to-analog converter, see HERE TEST: totaldac d1-dual DAC - digital-to-analog converter, see HERE Recordings used for the test (a selection): Okihiko Sugano Record Collection, Victor Edition/Trio Edition, Audio Meister XRCG-30025-8, 4 x XRCD24 (2012); Andrzej Kurylewicz Quintet, Go Right, Polskie Nagrania „Muza”/Warner Music Poland 4648809, „Polish Jazz vol. 0”, Master CD-R (1963/2016); Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers, The Big Beat, Blue Note/Audio Wave AWMXR-0020, XRCD24 (1960/2013) Billie Holiday, Body and Soul, PolyGram/Mobile Fidelity UDCD 658, gold-CD (1957/1996) Bob Dylan, Live 1964, Columbia Records/Audio Fidelity AFZ5 230, „Limited Edition No. 0115”, 2 x SACD/CD (1964/2016) Enya, The Memory of Trees, Warner Music UK/Warner Music [Japan] WPCR-13300, SHM-CD (2009) Franc Schubert, 4 Impromptus D899 & D935, wyk. Maria João Pires, Deutsche Grammophon/Universal Music Japan UCCG-50095, SHM-CD (1997/2011) Janusz Muniak Quartet, Question Mark, Polskie Nagrania „Muza”/Warner Music Poland, „Polish Jazz vol. 54”, Master CD-R (1978/2016) Pet Shop Boys, Super, Columbia | Sony Music Japan SICX-41, CD (2016) Polish Jazz Quartet, Polish Jazz Quartet, Polskie Nagrania „Muza”/Warner Music Poland, „Polish Jazz vol. 3”, Master CD-R (1965/2016) Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] If the quality of high-end device is to be measured by a difficulty in determining its own character, at least initially, the new Vincent's DAC excels. Moving from an integrated CD player Lektor AIR V-edition to the d1-single-mk2, sound character took a different direction. But I had to listen to several tracks to get some idea, that I could later elaborate on and observe. It was easier after replacing a two-box CEC Player (TL0 3.0 + DA 3.0) with totaldac as the differences were more significant. But even after realizing actual differences between these devices, the nature of the French unit was not at all so clear, as it usually is with other devices. The first sonic feature of the d1-single-mk2 is the transparency. It's this kind of transparency that acts as sort of a "window" giving us better insight to the recording, not impoverishing the sound, but rather enriching it by a very good tonal, dynamics, transients presentation, by rendering a reliable, large soundstage. The second feature is differentiation. At the same time as d1-single-mk2 I also got to review two other fantastic D/A converters, representing different price ranges: Exogal Comet Plus and CEC DA0 3.0. It may not be an objective truth but it is certainly my truth, that among these three totaldac was the most difficult to understand, describe and evaluate. A differentiation that I mentioned focused mostly on the resolution and tone; dynamics was always high, and the soundstage quite big, mostly deep, not enveloping the listener. How did this differentiation manifest? First of all by precise presentation of all microphone setup's changes, in clearly presented different recording methods, choices made by producers and sound engineers and limitations of both, recording and studio. For example - the Franc Schubert music performed by Maria João Pires on 4 Impromptus D899 & D935 album was actually recorded in two separate session, made at different times, in different places. The first offers a deep, full sound, and was made with close-set microphones. The second is more "dull", although it seems more open; there is more room reverb, which creates an impression of a further distance between listener and instrument. The former was much more convincing to me. These are not big differences, Deutsche Grammophon engineers tried to make them sound as similar as possible leveling both parts during mastering, or so at least, as I can hear it - their tonality. Still totaldac showed what they are. It didn't infringed track's structures, it was still from the very beginning to the very end a beautiful album, but it worked as it is expected from high-end product - showed the truth about the recording After all mechanically recorded music is a combination of an intent and its implementation. Each of them individual is deficient and only when these two elements come together they form a new quality. He would be wrong, who based on these few paragraphs would find that it is a unremarkable, clinical, and even "neutral" sounding device. Vincent's converters, including the d1-single-mk2, interpret recordings in a soft, gentle way. They do not add lowest bass notes if these are absent in the recording, they do not wow listener with unnaturally vibrant bells, when it does not make sense. Most of our attention is focused on the middle part of the range. I think it is so mainly due to the best resolution for this part of the range. Plenty of information that is delivered to our ears make up a warm whole. The top and bottom of the range are also a little warm, but to a much lesser extent than the mids, especially its lower part. There works the law of multiplication by cooperating - in this case with the upper bass. This part of the band is powerful, deep and beautiful. The lowest bass does not appear often in its full glory. With classical music, also with piano, with jazz, it seems that there is exactly as much bass as needed. But when we play something with more power, for example Kendrick Lamaara, we want to have more of even richer bass. The quality of the bass is outstanding, it is not too taut, but the focus and control are great. But then, just as the upper treble, it has a lower energy. This will matter mainly when club music, dub, electronic is played - where it matters musically. Already with the new Pet Shop Boys album Super, there was as much of everything as this music needed. Once again the ability to deliver fantastic midrange including its upper part was confirmed. d1-single-mk2 as a headphone amplifier When I was ordering the converter for the review, I was asked by Vincent to specify which headphones would I use. He immediately rejected the HiFiMAN HE-6 due to the very low efficiency, so a natural candidate were so Sennheiser HD800. Knowing that totaldac owner could matched output impedance of the internal amplifier to the impedance of said cans. Such a setup sounded differently than what I've heard using loudspeakers. The tonal balance shifted up, with a strong emphasis on upper midrange, without the low bass. It was not a bad sound, it was actually very good. First of all due to the extraordinary purity across the whole band and high dynamic range. But the high energy elements playing above 800 Hz were presented more in the front, like a trumpet with a silencer on the Kurylewicz Quintet Go Right album, or snare drum in the Twenty-something by Pet Shop Boys. One of our Readers pointed out to me that I have in my collection also another excellent headphones - AKG K701 – so I had to use them too, despite the fact that totaldac was not “prepared” for them. Apparently it is a versatile design, because this combination proved to be the best. It delivered a denser, lower based sound, with more tangible instruments. The spacing was not as spectacular as before, but just in this respect Sennheisers are unique. Everything else improved. It's a good quality, solid headphone amplifier. It can easily replace separate units that cost 2000-3000 PLN (remember that to that cost one must add a price of a good quality interconnect). d1-single-mk2 as a preamplifier My reluctance towards sources with variable output comes from the fact that a separate, high quality preamplifier contributes to the dynamics and richness of the sound, saturates it. There are, of course, systems designed from the start to work without a separate preamplifier. How well they work with devices from other brands is sort of lottery though, so it's hard to call this solution versatile. Vincent's DAC though sounded great when combined with my Soulution 710 power amplifier. Was it just a coincident that these two devices worked so well together? I don't know, but this power amp usually sound better paired with active preamps. This time, the elimination of the Ayon Spheris III from signal's path resulted in a more direct sound. The leading edge was faster and clearer. The front of the soundstage was brought closer to me and the back even further away, which created the effect of extended soundstage. Using separate preamplifier gave denser presentation with lower, deeper bass foundation. Vocals with it were delivered with slightly warmer upper part and with tempered sibilant. The dynamics was not, however, higher and bass focus was not as good. Also transparency was not as good as with the direct connection between DAC and power amplifier. Therefore, I'd say one needs no separate preamplifier between d1-single-mk2 and power amp, one will lose a bit but gain much more. Summary d1-single-mk2 is an extremely good DAC. It delivers a precise, resolving sound, but also slightly warm and vivid. It is very clean and differentiates recordings really well. It has a tonal balance placed slightly higher than Exogal Comet Plus and CEC DA0 3.0, but still delivers a substantial, rich sound that is simply more open. Headphone amplifier is a nice feature, and the volume control is good enough for one to give up using a separate preamplifier. It's a DAC for all music fans – those who love rock, jazz, and classical music; it does not discriminate against any kind of music. It does not fall far behind my Lektor AIR V-edition CD Player in terms of sound quality. It is just slightly less detailed, it is also not so expansive and renders a narrower soundstage. In direct connection with a power amplifier it offers faster sound and a better focus in lower midrange and bass. It is also more resolving. This is really something. d1-single-mk2 is a two-box digital-to-analog converter with integrated headphone amplifier and adjustable (in the digital domain) line output. It features four digital inputs and an unbalanced analog output on RCA and XLR jacks. The digital inputs: AES/EBU, RCA, Toslink and USB - support PCM signal from 16 to 24 bits and up to 192 kHz; USB input is asynchronous. One can also order (at extra charge) an option of DSD (DoP) compatibility for all (!) inputs. Front and rear The shape of the chassis is characteristic for totaldac, it's sort of a low trapeze. Front is made of black acrylic, but an optional silver aluminum is also available upon request (for additional fee). In the middle sits an amber display, which deliver information on: selected input, the sampling frequency of the input signal and the volume level - in the form of a bar (bar graph) and numerically. There is no information however about headphone output being active. Manufacturer used sockets of high quality, all are gold plated and really solid. You see also sealed openings – this chassis is used for all totaldac devices, and it is "customized" for a particular model. On the far right side there is a multi-pin socket – one connects there the cable from the power supply, that sits inside the second, much smaller enclosure. That enclosure is made of aluminum, with double walls. At the bottom it features a thick copper plate, that shields the circuits and adds weight to the device. Inside The whole converter's circuit is built on two PCB mounted one above the other: the top one is the actual converter, and on the lower one there are power supply and output circuits. The digital signal is received through a matching transformer and goes to the large FIFO chip where it is re-clocked. The user can choose between two digital filters - one of them is without oversampling. Thus prepared, the signal goes to the advance circuit, occupying the entire PCB - is the actual D/A Converter. It is based on discrete resistors - precise metalized resistors from Vishay (0.01% VAR). Two channels consists of 100 such resistors. One can see that only one of the three sections is used - the remaining ones work in d1-six version. The DSP has a graphite plate glued over it and is additionally shielded. The lower PCB is planted with lots of voltage regulators and a whole network of voltage ripple filtering capacitors. There are as many as six separate power supplies, with fast diodes in the rectifier bridges. At the output one can see two "Discrete Totaldac-B" modules – these are the voltage amplifiers and buffers, built with transistors working in class A. A similar configuration works in the headphone output. Remote The remote control is small and made of plastic. Apart from operating input selector and volume control it allows user also to change the phase of the input signal and choose the type of digital filter used. Power supply The power supply for the reference-d1 is quite small, features an aluminum housing and tiny plastic feet. The main switch sits on the rear panel, and when power is on it is indicated by an amber LED. Term "power supply" seems in this case to be sort of an abuse - this is only a small toroidal transformer. The actual power supply is located inside the main converter's chassis. The transformer features six secondary windings. Just as in the DAC, also here designer took care of proper noise reduction - the power cord sports a ferrite core; another identical one is used inside converter behind power inlet. Specifications (according to manufacturer) Dimensions (H x W x D): 110 x 360 x 290mm Weight: 6.5kg External power supply dimensions (H x W x D): 65 x 122 x 180mm Power consumption: 18W [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/totaldac/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

he Austrian Pro-Ject company, celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, with factories in the Czech Republic (turntables) and Slovakia (electronics), is also known outside our small domain. Thanks to a well-thought approach and focus on high-class products for “ordinary” people who do not want to spend more on their audio equipment than they would pay for a car, it has become the leading manufacturer of audio products from the basic and medium price range. To a large extent, the company owes its status to its small electronic devices sold in the Box Design series. We have been writing about this series and the RS sub-series for many years. The latter one includes the Head Box RS headphone amplifier and the Power Box RS Uni 1 power supply unit; it is enough to mention the two-piece CD BOX RS + PRE BOX RS DIGITAL CD player and the PRE BOX RS digital-to-analog converter. They all have a very similar housing half the size of a classic device, really well-made using aluminum plates and a steel chassis. The Head Box RS is a headphone amplifier with XLR and RCA inputs, and a hybrid design with tubes on the input and A-class FET transistors on the output. The amplifier is powered by a small impulse power supply unit, but the company also offers a large linear Power Box RS power supply unit in two versions: for a single device (Uni 1) and for four RS series devices at the same time (Uni 4). We tested the amplifier with the Uni 1 version. There is a single non-balanced headphone output in the Head Box RS. The manufacturer has equipped us with an important tool to optimize sound – a switch which can change the output impedance of the amplifier. Three positions: 5, 20 and 50 Ω are available. Sound is a bit different with each of them and it is best to select the setting which suits us the most. The so-called signal “pass through” will also be useful in many situations – apart from inputs, the amp also has RCA and XLR outputs with the same signal as on the input. So, if we cannot connect the headphone amplifier to our system, it is enough to connect the signal source to it and to connect the output to a line input of the amp. Then we will avoid cable switching. Although the company writes about “a fully balanced signal path”, only the input buffer is balanced and the rest of the circuit is not. In my system, the amp worked best with RCA cables. PRO-JECT in “High Fidelity” TEST: Pro-Ject RPM-5.1 CARBON – turntable TEST: Pro-Ject PRIMARY THE ROLLING STONES EDITION | PHONO BOX E – turntable TEST: Pro-Ject PRE BOX RS – DAC, read HERE TEST: Pro-Ject BOX DESIGN MaiA – integrated amplifier, read HERE AWARD OF THE YEAR 2014: CD BOX RS + PRE BOX RS DIGITAL – Compact Disc transport + D/A converter/preamplifier, read HERE TEST: CD BOX RS + PRE BOX RS DIGITAL – Compact Disc transport + D/A converter/preamplifier, read HERE AWARD OF THE YEAR 2014: Pro-Ject 1XPRESSION CARBON CLASSIC + Ortofon M SILVER - turntable + cartridge, read HERE TEST: Pro-Ject 1XPRESSION CARBON CLASSIC + Ortofon M SILVER – turntable + cartridge, read HERE TEST: Pro-Ject Box CD SE + DAC Box FL - CD player + D/A converter, read HERE TEST: Pro-Ject ART-1 (+ Denon DL-A100) – turntable (+ cartridge), read HERE TEST: Pro-Ject RPM6 SB + PRO-JECT PHONO BOX SE – turntable + phonostage, read HERE http://www.highfidelity.pl/artykuly/0503/pj.html TEST: Pro-Ject 2XPERIENCE – turntable, read HERE TEST: Pro-Ject RPM5 SUPERPACK – turntable, read HERE TEST: Pro-Ject HEAD BOX MkII – headphone amplifier, read HERE TEST: The Π Ject Family Saga vol. 1, read HERE TEST: The Π Ject Family Saga vol. 2, read HERE Recordings used during the session (a selection) Arne Domnérus, Jazz at the Pawnshop. Vol. I, II & III, Proprius/Lasting Impression Music LIM UHD 071 LE, 3 x Ultra HD CD + DVD (1976/2012) David Darling, 8-String Religion, Wind Over The Earth Music/Lasting Impression Music LIM DXD 041, silver-CD (2009); Jean-Michel Jarre, Electronica 2: The Heart of Noise, Columbia/Sony Music Japan SICP-30956, BSCD2 (2016); King Crimson, Live in Toronto, Panegyric/WOWOW Enterteinment IECP-20252/253, „King Crimson Collectors’ Club: Special Edition”, 2 x Ultimate HiQuality CD (2016) Pet Shop Boys, Super, Sony Music Labels (Japan) SICX-41, CD (2016) Shota Osabe Piano Trio, Happy Coat, Lasting Impression Music LIM K2HD 031, K2HD CD (2002) Zbigniew Namysłowski & Modern Jazz Quartet, Lola, Decca/Universal Music Japan UCCM-9173, „From Europe With Jazz. Vol. 2”, CD (1964/2003) Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] The Pro-Ject headphone amplifier is really well-made and nicely designed, and it inspires trust. It is a great advantage in the world of single-use plastic devices. If I can make a reference to architecture, the amp’s design is “international”, so it will be suitable for any place on Earth. The device heats up a lot, so I would not put anything on it. In order to improve ventilation, it is worth placing the amp itself on something – I used Pathe Wings feet made of beautifully finished wood. The PSU also heats up, so let us buy two sets of feet (three pieces each). The Synergistic Research HOT transducer will also be helpful, making sound more open and resonant. It is a universal device. It does not emphasize the drawbacks of the source and does not discriminate headphones. However, with time, having tested different headphone models and designs, I have come to the conclusion that Austrian headphones – Sennheiser and AKG suit the amp best. These are just speculations, but I bet that they were used in the design stage and when the final product was assessed. The amp does not fit headphones of low sensivity, so I would look for something else for the top HiFiMAN HE-6 model. The Audeze LCD-3 also did not fully show their potential and the amp was unable to break free from their individuality. However, if we choose to use dynamic headphones, these may be both the expensive HD800, as well as the inexpensive AKG Y50, headphones of low or high impedance – the Pro-Ject will produce nice, pleasant and coherent sound each time. It is an amp which celebrates the midrange. The treble is clear, undistorted and quite resonant, but lacks high energy and serves only to open the midrange. The low bass is nice but it is not as energetic as from, for example, the headphone input of the Exogen Comet DAC, not to mention the Bakoon HPA-21 amp. There are tubes inside the Pro-Ject amp and, in this case, they define the overall sound, giving it the specific “tube” quality. I have already said this is a really pleasant musical message. The pleasure comes from a lack of dominance of attack, soft decay and lack of emphases. We can adjust the tone using the output impedance switch, mainly in the treble. I obtained the best coherence at ‘50’. However, I will not be surprised if someone is going to need a stronger high midrange – ‘5’ is probably going to be THE right setting then. The amp is equally democratic for headphones (in the selected range) and recordings. When I had it in my system, I got the new Jean-Michel Jarre’s album – Electronica 2: The Heart of Noise on Blu Spec CD2, King Crimson – Live in Toronto on Ultimate HiQuality CD, the Japanese edition of Super Pet Shop Boys and others. The better the recording, the better the sound was, but there were no problems with any of the albums. The warm and soft treble makes even highly compressed recordings, such as the latest Megadeth album, sound sensible, nothing “bawls” or attacks with a hard attack. It is a very egalitarian amp which does not exclude anything or anyone. The stereophonic panorama is very well set in the amp. Of course, writing about the “sound stage” is a bit of an exaggeration in the case of headphones, but it can be heard especially clearly with binaural recordings, for example. The Pro-Ject amp lays everything out in a hemisphere in front of us. In this respect, a lot depends on headphones, but the amp did not stand in their way, neither in the case of Sennheiser headphones with their mechanically angled membranes, nor the electric (passive) circuit in the Beyerdynamic DT-990 Pro (600 Ω) headphones. What we do not get can be summarized in two words: resolution and selectivity. OK, I am exaggerating a bit, but this is not an amp which assigns the highest priority to these two elements – they are of secondary or, perhaps, tertiary importance. So, the tested device is not to be used for “overexposing” recordings, or master monitoring. When I compared a copy of a Master CD-R made on a workstation in Jacek Gawłowski’s mastering studio and the same recordings from Polish Jazz, the differences were clear, but not critical. Summary Summarizing this test is easy. Pro-Ject is a brand in itself and it has its own unique style. It promotes nicely made, solid devices which never go below a good quality level, which is also the case this time. The Head Box RS headphone amp produces even, clear, warm and pleasant sound. It works best with headphones of moderate impedance and effectiveness, and, when it comes to brands, with AKG and Sennheiser devices. It does not mean it will sound worse with other headphones – I am simply unable to check that. However, I would avoid headphones of low effectiveness and, generally speaking, planar ones. It is not a transparent device and it leaves its mark on sound, in the form of softness, a layer of warmth and fluidity. However, not everyone wants to have “monitor” sound on their head, as some prefer to enjoy recordings no matter what their origin is. Also a turntable listened to through the Head Box will sound better because crackling will not disturb us too much. Let me repeat myself: it is a solid and good headphone amplifier to be used for many years. It sounds really good with an ordinary impulse amplifier, but I would think the Uni 1 amp is not an option but the target element. The RS series belongs to Box Design, part of the Audio Tuning Vertriebs empire, where “small” means “suitable”. Both devices – the amp and the PSU – are small and measure 206 x 72 x 200 mm. They are made really well from aluminum and steel elements – aluminum plates are attached to a steel chassis. Housings are available in two colors – natural aluminum and black anodized aluminum. We used the latter one in our test and it looks especially elegant. The amp has few buttons or knobs. In the middle there is a small, manually-controlled aluminum volume control knob. On the left there is a single large headphone jack (6.3 mm in diameter) and a small power toggle switch with a miniature blue LED over it. On the other side of the knob there are two similar toggle switches. One of them lets us adjust the output impedance of the amp and the other one – the active input (RCA or XLR). The Head Box RS has two input types – a balanced XLR and an unbalanced RCA input. Although some people will say that this is a balanced dual-mono circuit, it is not true (see below). The sockets, including the output ones, are good quality. They have the same signal as on the input, so we can connect our main sound source directly to the amp and then send output signal to a power amplifier. Alternatively, one can use an output for recording in an integrated amplifier (preamp). However, these are usually preceded by buffers that seriously change sound. So, it is best to deliver signal to the Head Box directly from source outputs. Power supply (20 V DC voltage) is delivered from the outside – either from a small impulse power supply unit which is part of the set or the optional external Uni PSU. There are two kinds of the latter – Uni 1 for a single device and Uni 4 for four devices at the same time. Nice low-voltage sockets deserve praise – they are so nice that the thin dull cable that is connected to them seems inappropriate. The electronic circuit is placed on one printed circuit board. It is a hybrid circuit – there are tubes (double Electro-Harmonix 6922EH triodes, one per channel) on the input and transistors on the output (class A MOSFET transistors attached to small radiators). Signal has to be desymmetrized right after the input stage, as the nice volume control black Alps potentiometer is a two-channel device. Large polypropylene Wim capacitors (one per channel) deal with coupling the tube and transistor sections – another sign that signal is unsymmetrical already here. What is interesting, the potentiometer is integrated with a small control engine, but its power supply and an infrared receiver are missing. The PSU is as heavy as the amp itself, due to both the rigid housing and a large toroidal transformer from the well-known Talema company, with the inside filled with epoxy resin. It works with a large rectifier and two integrated voltage stabilizers attached to a large radiator. Noise is initially removed from voltage on the transformer input in a “double Pi” filter with a choke and condensers. Technical specifications (according to the manufacturer) Power output: 350 mW/32 Ω | 60 mW/300 Ω Crosstalk: -58 dB Signal-to-noise ratio: -99 dB Frequency response: 30 Hz – 20 kHz/(+0.2 dB; -0.05 dB) THD (IMD): 0.17% (XLR in, output impedance setting 5 Ω, load 32 Ω) Gain: 9 dB Outboard power supply: 20 V/3A DC Power consumption: 1.3A DC Dimensions (W x H x D): 206 x 72 x 200 (209) mm (D with sockets) Weight (without the power supply unit): 2.15 kg [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/project/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/project/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/project/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/project/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/project/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/project/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/project/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/project/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/project/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/project/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/project/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/project/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/project/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/project/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/project/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/project/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/project/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/project/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/project/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/project/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/project/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

t takes time for new solutions to find supporters, to settle in, so to speak. After some time they confirm their worth, they are simply widely accepted. It is even more difficult if they in any way call into question the current status quo, or even just look differently from what we, customers, are used to. Like to the fact, that turntable features one platter, sometimes a sub-platter too, if necessary. But what if the turntable sports not one, but two platters? Do we actually need two of them? - It's not about listening to two records at the same time, right? (unless one wants to build an analog, turntable-based multi-room system :)). The first thing that makes the Kronos turntable stand out are two identical platters of a large mass, rotating in opposite directions. We call this solution "dual platter counter-rotating revolution" (a revolution of two platters revolving in different directions). www.kronosaudio.com If that is how a description of the solutions used in his product is begun by an already widely known and respected manufacturer, then it must be an “axis” around which everything else revolves in this particular design. So, while the Sparta model of Canadian company Kronos features also many other equally interesting solutions, techniques and ideas, one, while getting to stand in front of it, still gets hypnotized by the two platters, placed one above the other and rotating in opposite directions. When one places a record clamp on the top platter one's attention shifts to even more mesmerizing logo with two connected rings (the symbol of the main feature of Kronos decks), engraved on the top of it. But at first, what surely attracts attention most are the two platters. In so called „white papers”, titled: The Limitations of Traditional Turntable Design available on manufacturer's website one reads: All turntables currently on the market are constructed either with or without a suspension system. Suspended turntables are better isolated from both mechanical and sound vibrations emitted from the speakers. These turntables are often preferred to rigid ones as they deliver a more organic sound and a softer presentation. However, the suspended platter and tone arm present a significant downside – a pronounced blurring of the musical signal. This is caused by TORSIONAL FORCES, a natural tendency of the sub platter frame to rotate in sync with the platter. Although this rotation is controlled by springs, or other elastic parts found in the suspension, at this new point of equilibrium, the slightest vibration coming from the stylus reading the groove is echoed back to the stylus, out of phase. The result: the stereo image produced is blurred and distorted. Critical musical information is permanently lost. To solve the problem of torsional forces, some manufacturers build a rigid turntable and completely eliminate the suspension. But vibrations produced naturally by mechanical components and the environment are fed back to the platter and tone arm, causing yet another type of blurring and distortion of the music signal. The resulting sound is often described as harsh, aggressive and glassy. "KRONOS… employs two identical, high-mass platters, one above the other rotating in opposite directions and moving at precisely the same speed. This engineering completely eliminates torsional forces. Since the turntable is protected from mechanical and environmental vibrations, it can therefore be suspended without any negative outcomes." The Limitations of Traditional Turntable Design, Kronos Audio Products, www.kronosaudio.com Ones of the best non-suspended decks I know are: Air Force One by TechDAS and Transrotor Argos (let me remind you that “suspension” here means decoupling platter and tonearm base from the chassis and motor), and the best suspended ones are: SME 30/12 and Avid Hi-Fi Acutus Reference. Each of them delivered outstanding performance and I could live with any of them a being happy about it. But one can not simply deny Louis Desjardins, the owner and designer of Kronos, when he claims that both types of turntable designs have their own intrinsic sound characteristics that allow listener to recognize one from another easily. The lower the price the easier it is to distinct a suspended deck from non-suspended, but even at the very top of the range one always has to make a choice of either - or. Using one of these types, while eliminating its drawbacks, seems therefore a great idea. Except it is an unrealistic one. It could be the ultimate goal for a designer, but only one to pursue, not a strictly technical one that actually could be achieved. But when one sees such an interesting idea, and in addition as simple as the one applied in Sparta, also carried out in a precise and consistent way, one might start to think: "maybe it is doable after all?" Not that the idea of the two platters is unique for Kronos, as there is the Japanese Koma offered by 47 Labs, sold with Tsurube tonearm (12 000 USD + 2,250 USD). In that case the two platters are driven with one belt and one motor. Also this solution is widely used in other industries especially when high speeds are involved. For example, as pointed out in his Sparta review by Greg Weaver, in 1982 the Soviet Army started to use attack helicopters featuring a contra-rotating coaxial rotor system, employing a pair of rotors mounted one above the other on concentric shafts with the same axis of rotation, but turning in opposite directions (contra-rotation). It was called Kamov Ka-50 „Black Shark”, and later, in 1997, a two-man Ka-52 „Alligator” (Greg Weaver, Kronos Sparta Turntable. A New Concept in Turntables, „The Absolute Sound” Feb. 2016, see HERE [accessed on May 30th 2016]). Sparta And so Sparta is a suspended turntable with two concentrically arranged platters and two motors, rotating in opposite directions. The motors are fully synchronized with a precise, discrete, linear power supply, operating in class A. The aluminum, CNC machined sub-chassis features two levels instead of one, and each of them holds a platter and a motor. The sub-chassis represents a so called "skeletal" design, known, for example, from the latest Rega models. The whole design is suspended on high pillars and decoupled from them with rubber rings - four are applied on each pillar. It's a very similar solution to the one of SME decks, but British manufacturer uses much longer rings and there are more of them. In Sparta, due to the fact that it has two motors placed on the opposite sides of the platters, one has no need for additional pull that is necessary for SME. Note that Avid's turntables are decoupled in a different way, in a horizontal plane, and using even thicker rings. The deck looks fantastic. It is a tall, substantial piece of equipment, but it has a "light" structure and one doesn't get overwhelmed by it. Every detail has been thought out five times and perfectly made – I believe it is sets a make&finish bar really high at the moment for the whole industry. All components are made in North America. Helena Equally interesting, as the deck itself, is the accompanying tonearm. During the shows Louis Desjardins offers 5000$ to anyone who using his bare hands could break the arm's tube. As far as I know, the money still hasn't change the owner. The arm is in fact quite particular. Designed by the artist more than an engineer (one, of course, does not exclude the other), who lives in Montreal, André Theriault, has a length of 10.5" and it features a damped carbon fiber tube. The tube sports three layers - fiber, wood and fiber, and it is tapering towards the integrated, carbon fiber head-shell. An interesting fact - the arm features no anti-skating. And the second one – tonearm is delivered with a protractor but Wojciech Hrabia, who works for Kronos distributor, RCM, suggested using a more accurate version, which from now one will be delivered with all Helena arms. The arm is also noteworthy - nominally it's a uni-pivot design, ie. with a support in a single point. To reduce the swinging of an arm instead of a pin and the bed they used a large diameter ball, gliding in oil with ceramic nano-balls filling a cup. The fit is very accurate, so to make sure their surfaces do not attract each other too much, the bed has a specially prepared surface, resembling that of a golf ball. The tonearm is mounted on a retractable arm base, so one can also use tonearms with lengths ranging from 9 to 10.5''. However, it seems that only ones offered by Kronos - the tonearm wiring is terminated with a small connector that has to be plugged into the back of the deck. Next to it there is a pair of RCA jacks used to connect the deck, using a phono cable, with a phonostage. During the test, the turntable was fitted with the Shelter Accord cartridge and delivered signal to one of two phono preamps – the one I've been using for the past 7 years - RCM Audio Sensor Prelude IC and also to the recently reviewed Audio Tekne TEA-2000. The signal from the turntable to the phono was delivered using Argento Audio Flow IC, and than Siltech Triple Crown. The turntable was placed on Finite Elemente Pagode Edition rack. Records used for the test (a selection) Acoustic Room 47. Limited Black Edition, Proa Records, 180 g LP (2015) Chet Baker Quartet, Chet Baker Quartet feat. Dick Twardick, Barclay Disques/Sam Records, „Limited Edition", 180 g LP (1955/2011) Czerwone Gitary, Na fujarce, Polskie Nagrania „Muza” SX 0599 [Mono], LP (1970) Depeche Mode, Playing The Angel, Mute Records/Sony Music | Music On Vinyl MOVLP950, 2 x 180 g LP (2005/2014) Jerzy Milian, Milianalia, OBUH Records V27, „Limitowana edycja 329/350”, 180 g LP (2005) Kraftwerk, Radioactivity, King Klang Produkt/EMI, STUMM 304, „Kling Klang Digital Master“, 180 g LP (1975/2009); Max Richter, From Sleep, Deutsche Grammophon 4795259, 2 x 180 g LP (2015) Miles Davis & Milt Jackson, Miles Davis All Star Sextet/Quintet, Prestige/Victor Musical Industries SMJ-6530, LP (1956/1976) Tsuyoshi Yamamoto Trio, Misty, Three Blind Mice/Cisco Music TBM-30-45, „Twenty-Fifth Anniversary Limited Edition | No. 0080/1000”, 45 RPM, 2 x 180 g LP (1974/2004) Young Power, Young Power, Polskie Nagrania „Muza” SX 2525, „Polish Jazz vol. 72”, LP (1987) Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] It took me a while before I knew how to start this review. It was clear to me what I wanted to say, I had a certain sound "image" of this turntable ready in my head, but encountered difficulties with a choice of a feature, which would characterize this design best, which I should lead with. The first impression is the key, right? To paraphrase Wislawa Szymborska, first sentence, as they say, is the most difficult one, so now it should be a piece of cake ... ("Apparently, in every speech, the first, opening sentence is always the hardest. It's good I'm passed it now ..." - speech delivered on December 7th 1996 at the Swedish Academy, quote from „Tygodnik Powszechny”, www.tygodnik.com.pl [accessed: June 1st 2016]). The most important feature of this presentation is this incredible ease in establishing kind of "communion" with the listener - "communion" in the original sense of the word, ie. 'Emotional identification with the collective, with the environment "(Polish language dictionary, ed. W. Doroszewski "sjp.pwn.pl). This turntable delivers particularly "analog" and almost warm performance. I deliberately use these stereotypes, because it will help me to direct your attention. The “analogousness” of this sound comes from its wholeness, continuity and smoothness. We listen to the whole event, which obviously includes details, in which the main purpose, however, is something laying under the music. Typically, this is referred to as emotions enchanted in the notes and that is a good description. However, since you're reading an audiophile magazine i.e. designed for people who care not only about music (notes + performance), but also about how it is reproduced (recording + reproduction), I'd say that there's more to it: it's about the emotion of both the music itself, but also of how well, tangibly, dense, deep it is played. There is perhaps no greater contrast between the sound of two turntables than between Air Force Three and Sparta, even though they both represent a similar, equally high level of performance. The former focuses on precision, control, control over the played material. Only based on these qualities others follow, such as resolution, and therefore smoothness and the "completeness" of the sound. Kronos does it differently. It focuses on liquidity, resolution, and "completeness" and these are followed by: control and precision. On paper (computer screen) these words look the same, but they speak of different approaches. The reviewed turntable is all about coherence and richness. Compared to any TechDAS turntable, or Mr. Sikora's Reference, Kuzma Stabi XL and Reference, but also after the top SME deck it may, temporarily, seem to lack selectivity. One could even assign a lack of internal coherence and somewhat extinguished dynamics to it. That would be a huge mistake! If we issued a verdict based on this first impression we would make a mistake. It's a sound that one needs to discover gradually, it's not delivered right away. One follows the music, noticing how nicely this or that sounds. This is a turntable that does not evaluate, it leaves that job to us. Differentiation is very good, but it is not discriminatory. One will enjoy equally an analog tube recordings from OBUH Records and digital remaster (24/88.4) of Go Right by Kurylewicz Quintet. Sparta will distinguish the way particular material was recorded, as well as different issues, but it won't throw this information in our face. It rather makes suggestions – OBUH records sound incredibly dynamic and vivid, with lots of information about the musicians, the way of playing, technique. Reissues of Polish Jazz are really good, and the best of them, such as Kurylewicz, are simply fantastic. But one can not hide the fact that the PJ master tapes are 50 years old, some even more, as well as the fact, that this is a digital re-issue. It manifests itself with a limited information about the percussion cymbals, with them being separated from each other, instead of playing like one instrument, and they are surely not as dynamic as they should. Analog recordings and editions are incredibly vibrant when played by Sparta, but they don't sound bright at all. That's what I heard with a reference issue of Tsuyoshi Yamamoto Trio's Misty. Sound of this album was velvety, instruments were shown on a soft, black background, their sound was really deep and at the same time amazingly dynamic and vibrant. With both types of records one gets high dynamics and an excellent bass. This is what's usually most difficult to achieve for a suspended turntable. It is, almost always, accompanied with a blurred leading edge and treble losing its “glare” - I'll get back to that in a moment. Even Avid Acutus Reference, that I really like, is affected by that. Only SME designs are mostly free of these issues, but at the cost of "stiffening" attack. Sparta does it in a better way, because it does not sacrifices richness nor its specific softness of the sound, that make listening late at night so comfortable and pleasant. And what about cracks and pops and and background noise level? These are much fewer and lower than with the Air Force Two and Three, the J. Sikora Reference, and less expensive SME models. And yet these are not completely separated from the music, as they are with AF One. This is, of course, a completely different price level, but the fact is the fact. So let's clean our records before listening sessions. Having said that I need to be clear – neither the noise nor cracks and pops actually interfere with listening impressions or pleasure. Even more so that there is as much treble as you need and it does not seem to be too warm. Just as bass is at first is perceived as soft, also treble proves to be precise and very "musical", ie. being anchored in music. I'm not sure how it is possible but I haven't said almost anything about the midrange yet. I mean, I told you about it without calling it by its name. Speaking of "black", "deep", "density" I described mostly everything that is happening below 5 kHz and above 600 Hz. How incredibly well sounded the Max Richter From Sleep album, filled with slow sounds sounding as if they were coming from under water, particularly intense in a lower midrange. And so it has been presented which did not lead to "nasality" of the sound. It's not a coloration, it's not a "tube-like" sound, and yet it seems to be warm. And last but not least – a few words about spacing. I left it for the very end of this review because it is something that only the AF One does in a better way sounding even more similar to the analog tape. It is hard to talk about the soundstage layers and imaging of particular phantom images, there is no so-called "holography". The Kronos delivers a particularly homogeneous, saturated half sphere, that does not attract listener's attention to these aspects. It is rather "imaging" and not creating of a "soundstage". I admit that this way of presenting instruments in space appeals to me much more, although it is a much less "hi-fi" way. Summary In an article devoted to the 60th anniversary of the "Hi-Fi News & RR" magazine its chief editor, Paul Miller speaks about the pictures opening reviews, taken at "heroic angles" (John Atkinson, Steve Harris, Paul Miller, Diamonds life. "Hi- Fi News "at 60 ," Hi-Fi News & RR "June 2016, vol.16, No.06, p. 33). Sparta looks in such a heroic way, no matter from which side one looks at it. It presents its true character also in the field of sound, that is full, warm, dense and differentiating. Perfect make&finish and beautiful sound, that one can fall in love with - and it really doesn't matter how many rotating platters are involved. The Canadian company Kronos product range includes today three turntables: the most expensive, limited Pro model with four engines and a titanium frame, Sparta and Sparta 0.5, the latter using one platter. "The half" can be upgraded later to become a “full” Sparta. Range also includes tonearms – the 10,5'' Helena and 12'' Black Beauty. Sparta is a suspended turntable with a belt drive. The chassis and the auxiliary chassis are “skeletal” designs, ie. a great care was taken to leave them with as little material as possible - the more material is used, the bigger vibrations that have to be damped, and thus the higher the price. Bolted to the base are four tall pillars, one slips two auxiliary bases onto them. They are identical and are screwed together. Sub-chassis is suspended by means of rubber rings - four on each pillar. For each sub-chassis hosts a platter made of polymer and aluminum. The upper one has an additional thin layer of carbon fiber, and a record is placed directly on top of it. Platters - each weighing 12 kg - are individually balanced. The axis on which we put the record has a slightly smaller diameter than standard ones. On one hand it's an advantage, because if the axis is thicker it's difficult to place some records over it, but on the other hand it's more difficult to perfectly center them. One put a a screw clamp on top of a record. The bearings have been developed in-house in Kronos. They are based on a steel ball working in an inverted-bearing. The ball and a steel, hardened spindle are lubricated with oil poured into a bowl underneath. Inside the large diameter sleeve where the stem with a ball is put into, there are milled grooves, that supply oil to the top of the bearing, which is an opposite solution to the one usually used. Motors are mounted inside metal cylinders of different heights. These are DC motors made by Swiss company Maxon. The tubes are made of aluminum, and the "plugs" with motors and shafts of Derlin. Inside the tubes with motors there is a Hall sensor, which allows to synchronize motors with each other. This is done with the power supply placed in a separate controller, with toggle switches, eg. to change the speed (33 1/3, 45 rpm). We can also precisely set the speed – in order to do that one has to connect a cable with a light source to the controller. It works with stripes marked on the platter. It operates at a frequency of 120 Hz. There are two cables connecting controller with the turntable. One plugs them into the back of the chassis. Pro models features controller and a display integrated into the base of the turntable, same solution is used in J. Sikora Reference. At the top of the sub-chassis an arm-base is screwed, that can slide forward and backward. For Sparta one can use arms of 9 to 10'5" length. At the bottom of the sub-chassis so called “dog tag” is placed with the model name and serial number. Owner receives also a second dog tag that can be worn around the neck. Precise, beautiful work, and it offers user a sense of communion with a luxury product. Specifications (according to manufacturer) Dimensions (S x G x W): 510 x 360 x 280 mm Weight: 32 kg Platter weight: 12 each Power supply: dual channel pure class A linear DC Lubricant: variable viscosity synthetic oil Speed: 33 1/3, 45 rpm Tonearm length: 9”-10,5” (229 mm - 267 mm) [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kronos/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kronos/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kronos/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kronos/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kronos/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kronos/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kronos/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kronos/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kronos/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kronos/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kronos/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kronos/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kronos/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kronos/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kronos/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kronos/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kronos/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kronos/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kronos/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kronos/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kronos/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kronos/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kronos/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kronos/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kronos/th/13.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kronos/13.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kronos/13.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kronos/th/14.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kronos/14.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kronos/14.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kronos/th/15.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kronos/15.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kronos/15.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kronos/th/16.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kronos/16.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kronos/16.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kronos/th/17.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kronos/17.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kronos/17.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kronos/th/18.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kronos/18.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kronos/18.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

vo Sparidaens, Concept Manager, and Paul Rassin, Marketing & Communications Manager, are members of a six person team of a Dutch company Aequo Audio that designed Enesis loudspeakers. It's the only product of this manufacturer (for now). Introduction of these loudspeakers to the market was preceded with five years of research, trials and errors and new takes on the subject. The work was based on some technical assumptions, but the final voicing was made by a group of people, including designers themselves, and a group of friends - audiophiles and music lovers, who spent countless hours in listening sessions. As a result of these efforts loudspeakers were created that combine several, often conflicting, objectives. I must say that they represent a certain harmony – I mean in different aspects, such as: sound, appearance, setting etc. - which could not have been achieved by accident. Although perhaps in this case it had been, because from the very beginning its designers strictly complied to the principle they called “Octagon Model". By the way, it is probably not a coincidence that their logo resembles the Ring - you know which one... Octagon Model 1. Size and form – an audio product should be beautiful and become a harmonious part of the environment it is placed in – yet, uncompromising when it comes to sound quality. 2. Room acoustics – Aequo Audio uses advanced measurement techniques, including excellent anechoic chamber, but it is only a starting point; it was not about achieving a perfectly flat frequency response in the laboratory conditions, but about adjusting it to the realistic acoustic conditions of any space used by music lovers. Adjusting the sound to a specific room is achieved using the ARPEC system: Adjustable Room (and) Extension Placement Controller and the techniques that assist a controlled sound dispersion. Tweeter. On the left it is shown, how does the classic "waveguide" work in the vertical position. The problem is reflection from the ceiling, but unfortunately the reflections from the floor are even more difficult to control, since the distance from the floor is shorter than the one from the ceiling. On the right you can see that a better balance between the reflections from the floor and the ceiling was achieved by tilting the cabinet of the loudspeaker to the back. 3. Soundstage and imaging – the way of recreating soundstage is one of the key factors towards creating a high-end sound. One of the objectives was to make these loudspeakers "disappear" from the room and the other to achieve such level of imaging of instruments and performers that would create an impression of a live performance. EHDL Waveguide: On the left there is a loudspeaker with a front baffle tilted back. On the right you can see the EHDL that converts part of the vertical sound energy into horizontal one, hence reducing the problematic reflections from floor and ceiling, and generating a much more realistic soundstage with better depth with more natural imaging. 4. Loudspeakers placement – the company tried to avoid the use of techniques that narrow possibilities of loudspeakers placement in the room, such as: bass-reflex or dipole sound radiation. 5. Purity - because one of the characteristics of the human hearing is high sensitivity to even extremely low distortion, one should aim to minimize them. However, one has to know what to look for and which of THD (Total Harmonic Distortion) are more important and which are less. The company assumed that in the frequency range to which we are particularly sensitive, one needs to find a balance between odd and even harmonics. To minimize distortion a special multi-layer cabinets were created, a hi-tech midrange driver, and a special attention was paid to put all the elements perfectly together. Midrange driver measurements: The driver developed by AA delivers amazingly clean and fast performance. It does not have a problem with the "ringing" from the membrane break-in, which allowed them to use low-order filters in a crossover. This is achieved by symmetrical motor system and a special PP membrane with perfectly damped own resonances. Hence it was possible to use a low-loss suspension, thereby reducing the compression. 6. Precision - the resolution and phase behavior of the loudspeakers is another aspect that was important for the people of AA. Omission of bass-reflex and steep crossover filters allowed to bypass the problem of group delay phase in different parts of the band. It was also important to use transducers, which, thanks to the construction of the motor system were able to respond quickly and without compression. 7. Amplifier matching - one of the key aspects when building an audio system is finding a proper match of an amplifier and loudspeakers. Ensis feature an active bass modules, which makes user's life easier, because bass performance is not dependent on amplifier used in the system. These are high efficiency speakers and a friendly load with their 8-ohm nominal impedance. So one can use almost any amplifier, including a low output one (eg. a tube one) 8. Dynamics – some loudspeakers deliver a dynamic performance at low sound levels, other at high ones, which usually is a result of drivers chosen for particular design and their implementation. Audio Aequo tried to match these elements in such a way that dynamics and thus the emotional connection between a listener and music was similar at any position of volume knob. IVO SPARIDAES Concept Manager June, 20th 2016, Eindhoven, Holland Dear Wojtek! On the first day back in the rainy Netherlands, we look back at a very pleasant visit to Poland. I am very happy to have meet you in person and want to thank you again for inviting us in your house. I am very impressed by your vast music collection with real special gems, and your passion for both music recordings as well as state of the art audio equipment. Ivo Sparidaens - Concept Manager – oraz Paul Rassin - Marketing & Communications Manager during listening session with reference system of „High Fidelity”, Harbeth M40.1 including. To prepare the speakers for the test the midbass and subwoofer drivers have been burnt in by a multi-frequency sine-sweep to x-max for a fixed time lapse, as we always do before taking measurements. The tweeter has not been truly burnt in yet, as we feel it’s better to play them in with music. Depending on music and listening level, you can expect around 3 days for the tweeter to get adjusted to its job and get the best natural performance. It is possible that you experience the subwoofer and midbass also loosen up a little more in these days. As we stated during our visit you received a finished product for your review, although we still plan to introduce a few minor changes. We are still waiting for the final amplifier to arrive and we need to finish our auto standby circuitry. We also await the CE certification and finalizing product manual – your test will take place before we even start to deliver our product to customers. We hope these information will be useful for your review. If you have any questions don't hesitate to ask us – we'll be happy to answer any of them. Your opinion is very important to us. I think the speakers will perform very well in a similar position as your current Harbeth speakers, only with probably a bit less toe-in. See you again! I hope that you can already see it - the Ensis are not another "me too" design (understood as: "I can same thing as other, just better”). It is a well thought-through product, the creation of which has involved many experts in different fields and no money nor effort were spared. Ivo Sparidaens and Paul Rassin, who visited me just before this test was conducted are extremely nice people who are also truly focused on their work. They are perfectionist with a bit of artistic talent too - a deadly combination :) Ensis is a three-way semi-active loudspeaker, with a soft dome tweeter and a very costly, custom made by Audio Technology midrange driver. Mr. Ejvind Skaaning and his son, Pera Skaaning are owners of this company. In the past Mr. Ejvind founded and for many years led Dynaudio and Scan Speak. Drivers sit in a narrow, rounded at the back enclosure, quite high up above floor level, and the front baffle is slightly tilted towards the back. The cabinet is made of several layers of wood of different density with a vibration damping material placed between the layers. Speakers feature an active bass section – a side-firing woofer is placed in a sealed enclosure. During the test, the speakers were positioned with woofers firing outwards. Woofer is driven by a class D amplifier. The adjustment can be performed using two knobs, one of which adjusts the level of the sound and the second the cut-off point – it is a so-called analog ARPEC system. From our conversation it was clear that people from AA do not like digital DSPs that introduce unpleasant sound coloration, hence Ensis are completely analog loudspeakers (class D amplifier is also of an analog kind). The bass module is powered from the power grid. Set includes two thick, but quite ordinary power cables. Replacing them with other chords might be problematic though, as manufacturer instead of IEC connector used Neutrik's PowerCon ones, with silver contact areas. In subsequent versions they plan to use the same type of connector but made by Amphenol, which - as Ivo said - are of much higher quality. Signal from amplifier should be delivered to a single pair of speaker terminals and there is no separate low-level one for the bass - hallelujah! Similar solutions can be found in other high-end semi-active designs such as Audio Machina, for example. For the test loudspeakers were placed in exactly the same spots as my own Harbeths. While assessing them I firstly listened to the same albums I presented to Ivo and Paul. For this test as a source I used a two-box CD Player with CEC TX0 DAC0 3.0 + 3.0 (test will be published next month). The rest of the system was same as always. Adjusting the settings in the bass section took me ten minutes - it is simple, and the effects of the changes are clear. Recordings used for the test (a selection): Carmen McRae & Julie London, Carmen McRae & Julie London Bethlehem/Victor Entertainment VICJ-61458, „Bethlehem K2HD Mastering Series | No. 8”, K2HD CD (1954/2007) Depeche Mode, Violator (+Personal Jesus Maxi SP CD), Mute Records/Alfa Records ALCB-33, CD (1990) Franc Schubert, 4 Impromptus D899 & D935, wyk. Maria João Pires, Deutsche Grammophon/Universal Music Japan UCCG-50095, SHM-CD (1997/2011) Frank Sinatra, Sinatra Sings Gershwin, Columbia/Legacy/Sony Music Entertainment 507878 2, CD (2003) George Michael, Older & Upper, Virgin Records 8452032, 2 x Gold CD (1996/1997) J.S. Bach, Sonatas & Partitas vol. 2 BWV 1001-1003, wyk. Isabelle Faust, Harmonia Mundi HMC 902124, CD (2012) Joy Bryan, Joy Bryan Sings, Mode Records/V.S.O.P. Records MZCS-1122, „Mode Vocal Collection”, CD (1957/2007) Kraftwerk, Live on Radio Bremen, Philips (?) 2561971, Bootleg, CD (2006) Polish Jazz Quartet, Polish Jazz Quartet, Polskie Nagrania „Muza”/Warner Music Poland, „Polish Jazz vol. 3”, Master CD-R (1965/2016) Porcupine Tree, Deadwing, Lava 93437, CD (2005) Portishead, Dummy, Go! Disc Limited/Universal Music Company [Japan] UICY-20164, SHM-CD (1994/2011) The Oscar Peterson Trio, We Get Request, Verve/Lasting Impression Music LIM K2HD 032, K2HD Mastering, „24 Gold Direct-from-Master Edition UDM”, CD-R (1964/2009) Thom Yorke, Tomorrow’s Modern Boxes, Hostess | LANDGRAB RAB001J, CD (2015) Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] Designers of loudspeakers with a distinctive, good appearance that is closed to what people like to call a “designer” or “appearance focused” product, which in addition perform really well, have two ways to get there. One leads from the design/appearance to the sound and the other from the performance to the design. Both may work well and one could give a lot of examples of one or other approach that was successful. And yet, with all due respect to this type of efforts, one can not fail to notice that every time this is a kind of a "tug of war", it's like fighting with the matter – either to improve sound at the cost of design or appearance at the cost of performance. It's easy to spot this „inner tension” even when it comes to the best products - after all it is a result of the game of compromise. But it's not for the Aequo Audio loudspeakers. Even without knowing their origins, without talking to their creators, one can point to their most important advantage, which situates them at the intersection of these two, described above trends. They represent a perfect combination of design and performance. These loudspeakers look great, very modern and yet with their finish being a bit conservative, and at the same time they perform just as other classic design high-end speakers would. I realize this sounds a bit like taken from manufacturer's advertisement, but believe me - it's true and I can not express it in any other, better way. What distinguishes them from the majority of “designer” products is this fantastic smoothness and silkiness of the sound. The old paradigm said that only narrow front speakers are able to "disappear" from the room, leaving us alone with the music. The amazing Audio Physics loudspeakers, as well as some others seemed to be a great proof of that. Personally, I think that the problem lays elsewhere – classic designs have problems with phase coherence of the signal and eliminating one of the potential problems, ie. a broad front baffle, concealed some of these problems. In my experience sound “breaks away” much better from the loudspeakers with a large front baffle - my Harbeth M40.1 being a perfect example of that. With Dutch speakers, such considerations do not go beyond the initial phase, because they are not needed - they play like a single driver speaker. I never felt there was any problem with coherence between bass and midrange, but also between midrange and treble drivers. It's a very successful simulation of a point sound source. Therefore, most likely, the soundstage is so incredible in its density and tangibility. One can not specify its beginning and the end, because it is very concise. Presentation of different types of reverb, natural acoustics captured during concerts is astounding. One immerses oneself in the sound completely, the bubble separating us from the music bursts easily. But these speaker have also their own way of doing it – they build soundstage between them, it does not go beyond loudspeakers. These absolutely melt with the soundstage but are, however, border posts between the left and right edge of the scene. The listener's attention is focused in the foreground, but the sound can drift away to the the back of the stage, and with recordings, that allow it, it might surround us. After a while, I came to the conclusion that it was like listening through headphones in the sense, that I couldn't hear the room, but only the music, and that the foreground was presented close to me and that this imposed a certain character to the whole presentation. This is the case in which we are transferred to another sound dimension, in contrast to the other speakers that bring instruments to our room. In creation of this tight "cocoon" superior linearity plays the main part. I'm not talking about the "flat frequency response", because it is only one of many indicators that need to guide designers at the beginning of the design process, but about an impression of a perfectly leveled sound, from the bottom to the very top of the range. When you listen to old recordings, for example Frank Sinatra's recording of the 1940s or Julie London from the 1950s, you will get a nice insight into the recording (I'll get to that in a moment), especially into the most important element of the recording, ie. vocal. And when you listen to electronic music by Thom Yorke, sound will immediately go deeper and what matters most is a close, fast, warm electronic sound based in the lower part of the range. Ultimately, it doesn't really matter to Ensis what kind of music we want them to play because every time they deliver rich and very clean sound with energetic, beautiful sound sources. Having active bass section suggests that one can play these speakers using as powerful bass as one wishes. It is not so, that's a mistake committed by many as it is sort of residue in our minds, a reminder of a home cinema era. The professional active and semi-active systems, as well as home audio ones offer only a narrow range in which you should adjust the intensity of bass performance in particular room. In other cases it will be a different but as narrow range. Active bass module relieves amplifier from the requirement of delivering high current signal to the loudspeakers. But it's not its purpose to boost the bass. Ensis are able to deliver a beautifully coherent performance, but to achieve this we need to select the exact gain and cut-off freq for bass module, that will allow for a smooth performance across the whole band. Being able to adjust these settings is a clear advantage and yet whatever settings one chooses they still deliver a deep, rich and particularly energetic bass. They do not go as deep as my Harbeths and at the very bottom they are not so devilishly fast as the British "monitors". But, to be clear, no other speakers I had a chance to listen to in my system could match Harbeths in this respect. Dutch designs, however, belong to that small group of those that made me not miss this speed, reminding me in this regard the large JBL speakers. Their bass is clear, transparent and saturated enough to beautifully complement the extremely clean, warm midrange. No, I haven't confused adjectives – these speakers play both clean and warm at the same time; they differentiate presentation really well but they also homogenize it (make it more coherent). These are tricks delivered by guys from Aequo Audio, but I know them also from other top-performance loudspeakers, such as Pure Audio Machina NSE (in Polish) for example. Also this one is a semi-active design with an extremely rigid and small volume cabinet. Although totally different drivers are used the sonic effect is similar. I can clearly hear in them a tendency to allow listener to listen to any kind of music with clarity good enough, and not to lose a fantastic resolution of the midrange driver, that is a clear star of this setup. I never heard any hissing sounds. I do not know how they did it, but even with the recordings, which I knew had underlined sibilants – say George Michael's Older, released on the gold disc in (a little perversion won't hurt) Netherlands - nothing hissed. Treble wasn't rolled-off, withdrawn or veiled, I knew that there was more energy there, but it was all under control. On the other hand, with dark, warm sounding recordings, such as those of Julie London, added to the Carmen McRae album, speakers delivered a lot of information about the treble in the form of noise, voice's harmonics, etc. and sound did not seem to be closed-in. Midrange was very resolving, and yet I could not get rid of the impression that it was warm; I had similar impression when listening to the Kronos Sparta turntable. Perhaps that is why the events in the front of the stage seemed to have greater energy. The phantom images did not have “bodies” precisely rendered, but they rather constituted together a certain structure, a whole with other elements on the stage. The sound tone and dynamics was greatly differentiated, and the soundstage was impressively large. The soundstage that was delivered as a whole, from which one could deduce all the details rather than a sum of details - I hope you understand what I mean. These are not loudspeakers that tend to discredit recordings, associated equipment, requiring from a potential user to choose one particular presentation character. They differentiate recordings really well, delivering thus sonic properties of each of them, but they do it casually, turning our attention to essence of music. So it is hard for me to identify the target group for these speakers – they play classical, jazz and rock music equally well. But ... At the end of the listening session I played the Arriving Somewhere track from Porcupine Tree's album Deadwings, that I'd listened with Ivo and Paul in my house during their visit and that I promised them to listen to also using their speakers. It was a true ride – these loudspeakers, despite their delicate appearance, played a fragment with powerful guitars in a way large speakers would, without compression, without hesitation, without shyness. A delicate passages were deepened, delivered in a... well, delicate manner. They presented successive layers of the track with ease, freely, merging the big picture, so to speak, with details. It was really beautiful. Let it be a small clue as to their use. A comparison If I had to compare them to, already mentioned, Audio Machina speakers, the latter deliver a more open, more "immediate" sound. Ensis present a strong foreground, but it is always somewhat distant in relation to the listener - AM do it firmly, unequivocally. They also deliver more details, nuances. Ensis go deeper at the lower end, also bass has a more energetic character - in the AM it was more “in service” of the midrange and wideband Fostex driver. So Dutch speakers would be more similar to my Harbeths. Despite obvious differences between them, there are also many similarities, such as a similar material of a midrange driver's membrane, and similar dome tweeter. Both designs deliver a warm but also selective performance, as well as incredibly resolving. Harbeths are a bit more dynamic and deliver lower, deeper bass. On the other hand Ensis' presentation is more precise, with a better differentiated treble. Harbeths deliver a wider soundstage and do not prefer events in the front of the stage so clearly. But Ensis deliver even more coherent presentation, so their soundstage is smooth and completely homogenous. Summary These are particularly versatile loudspeakers. They look as designer's dream but deliver also a fantastic performance. Their only weaknesses – to be clear each audio product has them – are: slightly rounded lowest bass notes and a gently averaged dynamics of the midrange, or to be precise of the point of transition between upper bass and lower midrange. On the upside, it will be extremely easy to match them to an amplifier. They offer high efficiency, so one has to try them with some tube SET amplifier, but I would also match them with some high quality D-Class amps, such as those by Jeff Rowland, for example. That's obviously only a guess, as they performed amazingly well with my Soulution 710 which is a high-power, highly efficient and very transparent amp. But that's how I see them as an element complementing a system with some fabulous tube amplifier (eg. Triode or Phasemation; in Polish) or with solid-state such as: Jeff Rowland, SPEC (in Polish), Tellurium Q or Lavardin. Any of these systems will be beautiful - literally and figuratively. I don't know any other case of such a “designer” product to deliver such a top-high-end performance. The Ensis are the first. Ensis is a three-way loudspeaker, semi-active, with a Class-D amplifier driving the bass woofer. Passive section features two drivers - soft dome tweeter and polypropylene midrange. The tweeter sits inside a small acoustic "lens", which directs the sound wave. Just in front of the membrane sits one more element – a phase plug. Drivers are mounted on a narrow cabinet sloping to the rear. Its sports a two-layer front baffle, with a flat part on the outside in white or black color. It is made of very dense MDF. The element on the outside is made of a polymer containing certain minerals. The back panel finished with wood veneer is rounded and is made of two types of bent wood - hard on the outside and soft inside. The whole is bent in the press that applies pressure of 20 tones. This plywood resembling material has nine layers - three hard layers, two soft and three rigid ones and finally there comes vibration damping material called Grey Matter Compound. It is particularly rigid, but it also exhibits hardness of a granite block. Its thickness varies depending on the location. The cabinet is so rigid that you can drive a car over it without visible deformation. And yet, on the inside it is still reinforced with horizontal ribs, similar to those used for boats. The bass module is a kind of a "drum", with a driver on one side and the cooling plate for the amplifier on the other. The metal plate features two knobs allowing user to control the smart room size and speaker placement correction system. It allows user to adjust the sound character of the speakers depending on their placement in the room – next to the wall or far from any walls and obstacles. There is also a small light that indicates input overload. On the back of this "drum", directed downwards, there is a pair of WBT speaker terminals and a PowerCon power inlet. Loudspeakers stand on four rubber feet, which - if one so desires - can be replaced with spikes; the test was performed with feet. [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/aequo/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/aequo/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/aequo/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/aequo/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/aequo/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/aequo/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/aequo/th/13.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/aequo/13.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/aequo/13.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/aequo/th/14.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/aequo/14.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/aequo/14.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/aequo/th/15.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/aequo/15.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/aequo/15.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/aequo/th/16.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/aequo/16.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/aequo/16.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/aequo/th/17.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/aequo/17.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/aequo/17.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/aequo/th/18.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/aequo/18.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/aequo/18.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

f one has to use the word "legendary" to describe a musician or band, then when applied to the King Crimson it would be relatively painless from where I stand. Founded in London in January 1969 still the same year, in October they released the album that, let's not start to be modest now, forever changed the world of music. Recorded within just ten days In the Court of the Crimson King (An Observation By King Crimson) created without any help from a producer, who didn't understand what this was all about. As Tony Clark said, the guy who was supposed to produce this album, "an organized anarchy is the basis for the King Crimson work: triggering powerful forces of chaos, and then looking for ways to return to equilibrium" (by Wieslaw Weiss, Rock Encyclopedia, Warsaw 1991). Apparently, it was too big a challenge for him. Usually this music is referred to using the "progressive" term, understood as "progressive rock". One might as well describe it using terms such as: "eclectic", "artistic", "fusion", etc. Robert Fripp, who for all the years of group's existence was the driving force behind it and the only person who participated in the recording of all albums, was changing style, musicians, studios, producers, depending on the current direction of his explorations. So there are no two identical King Crimson albums, although one might claim that there are certain „series” based on a theme (eg. the "color" one). This band had a great impact on the whole rock music, not just the progressive branch. They sourced from a variety of styles, assimilated to rock solutions known from jazz, classical and modern music. Its members were fantastic musicians, such as: Greg Lake, Gordon Haskel, Mel Collins, John Wetton, Bill Bruford, Tony Levin, who had also successful solo careers as well as ones in other well-known bands. One of the Robert Fripp's apprentices was Steven Wilson - musician, instrumentalist, record producer and master of the console. Known for a variety of projects including solo ones with experimental electronic music, avant-garde jazz and ambient, and for being member of famous bands such as: Porcupine Tree, Blackfield and No-Man. His technical skills and musical sensitivity have been appreciated not only by fans of his music, but also by his master - Robert Fripp, who on the band's 40th anniversary entrusted him with a very responsible task of remixing and remastering of the almost entire King Crimson catalog. The success of this project resulted in further orders - including ones from Jethro Tull and Yes, that entrusted Wilson with their master tapes. The leader of Porcupine Tree is known for his almost obsessive care for even smallest details related to sound quality. It is not surprising than that his band's albums are issued in Japan as HiQualityCD and his solo albums in even more refined format of K2HD HQCD. Also his version of King Crimson albums was released as HiQualityCD (HQCD). The boxes released on the 40th anniversary of the band, apart from stereo CDs also included stereo versions in high definition, as well as multi-channel versions - Wilson is a fan of spatial/multi-channel music. No wonder that the Yes and Jethro Tull albums are also available in both, stereo and 5.1 versions. Releases At the end of April 2016 the first, and the beginning of May the second box were released in Japan, with the first eight albums of King Crimson. Nothing unusual about it, because boxes with their music have been released quite often. But this time there was more to it, because the discs were released as Platinum SHM-CD with 7'' covers. The Japanese recreated original covers with absolute perfection - every disc comes to us with two cover versions - Japanese and other one, often very different from the former (they used, for example, covers from first European releases). These discs, as already mentioned, were released in Platinum SHM-CD format (in my opinion it is the best CD format up to now), but as a bonus buyers also received a DVD-A/V disc with a lot of material - hi-res stereo version (24/96) and multi-channel hi-res version based on the previous remaster, alternative mixes of the tracks and previously unreleased ones. Some discs contain also video footage of band's performances. Exactly the same set of tracks was released in 2009 on the band's 40th anniversary. In Japan they were released as HiQualityCD. This version contained a completely different material than any previous King Crimson reissue. For the first time they resorted to the multi-track master tapes, and Steven Wilson, supervised by Robert Fripp, remixed this whole material, and prepared a new master (more HERE). The only exception is the album Red, which was not remixed for the stereo version, but only received a new mastering, using the same tapes as the version released for the band's thirtieth anniversary. If we take a look at the Discogs list of King Crimson's releases, we will face a huge number of them. Each album was issued dozens of times, and the most popular of them, In the Court of the Crimson King, has nearly 200 editions listed there. Discogs is obviously not an oracle and some positions on the list repeat themselves, but on the other hand not all reissues are mentioned there. So one can assume that actually there are between 160 and 190 different editions of the album, which were released on various types of media. The first release | If one narrows down the list to CD (and HDCD) releases, it turns out that there are only a few dozens that can be divided into several groups. The first digital releases (those from before the Red album period) come from the period between 1983 - 1986. The debut album was released in 1983 by the German branch of Polydor. The origin of the tapes from which the material was copied is unknown. Analogue Remaster we had to wait for the first remaster until 1989. It was released as the version of KC compact discs described as "The Definitive Edition", marked AAD, which translates to using an analogue remaster. It was prepared by Robert Fripp and Tony Arnold. 1st digital remaster | Already a year later, however, the next version of the whole catalog was released, this time remastered in digital domain, in 24 bits, by Simon Heyword, Robert Fripp and, in the case of the debut album (In the court ...) also David Singleton. The whole catalog was released on HDCD and was called "30th Anniversary Edition". HDCD – High Definition Compatible Disc – it's a format that allows to encode a 20-bit signal on a CD. One needs a CD Player featuring a proper decoder to enjoy sound in full resolution, but such discs can be played in any CD Player in 16-bit. As usual, if we talk about the King Crimson catalog, there is one exception: their debut album, released on November 15th, 2004 (also as HDCD) that was prepared using a completely new remaster. In 2003 in the archives of the Virgin label a stereo master-tape was discovered, even with the paste-ins, ie. the earliest possible version. This version of In The Court ..., released in 2004 was named "Original Master Edition". It is different than the 1999 remaster. 2nd digital remaster | The entire catalog was remastered again in 2009 (some titles in 2010). It is knows as the "40th Anniversary Edition", prepared by Robert Fripp and Steven Wilson. In Japan, they were released as HQCD (HiQualityCD). Both previous remasters sourced material from production stereo master tapes (more about remastering HERE). For the first time Steven Wilson was handed the original multi-channel master tapes - from 8-track master in the case of the debut album, to 16 and 24-track ones for other titles. As he said, during the whole process he tried to make as little changes compared to the original version as possible, but sometimes he managed to fix some errors and shortcomings, adding an instrument, phrase and so on. MEETING Between each of the remasters there are few or even several subsequent releases. One should mention eg. The 30th Anniversary Edition released in Japan on gold discs. Interestingly, these were regular Compact Discs and not the HDCDs. The latest version, Platinum SHM-CD, is only a re-edition of the 40th Anniversary Edition, not a new remaster. Even this brief introduction proves how fascinating the world of King Crimson music releases is. When we received these new boxes there was no other option but to compare them to the previous releases. So that it made actual sense, ie. that we could perform a comparison within a reasonable period of time (it actually took us six hours), we chose to listen to four albums: In the Court of the Crimson King, Lizard, Larks' Tongues in Aspic and Red, and just a few tracks from each of them. We narrowed the comparison even further down by selecting only some releases listed below; the list should hopefully prove that the comparison was quite comprehensive. Arabic numbers indicate subsequent remaster and Roman one subsequent comparison (see below): IN THE COURT OF THE CRIMSON KING (an observation by King Crimson) (1969) 1. The Definitive Edition (AAD), Virgin EG Records EGCD 1, CD | 1989 (UK) Re-Mastered by Robert Fripp and Tony Arnold (I) 2. ‎30th Anniversary Edition, Virgin CDVKCX I, 7243 8 48099 2 8, HDCD | 1999 (Europe) 24 bit remaster by Simon Heyword, Robert Fripp and David Singleton (II) 3. 21st Century Complete Edition, Series 1, #1, Universal International, Discipline Global Mobile UICE-9051, HDCD | 2004 (Japan) 24 bit remaster by Simon Heyword, Robert Fripp and David Singleton (III) 4. 40th Anniversary Edition, Wowow Entertainment, Inc., Discipline Global Mobile IEDG-01, Platinum SHM-CD + DVD-A/V | 2016 (Japan) Remixed by Robert Fripp and Steven Wilson LIZARD (1970) 1.The Definitive Edition (AAD) EG, Virgin Japan VJCP-2303, CD | 1990 (Japan) Re-Mastered by Robert Fripp and Tony Arnold (I) 2. 30th Anniversary Edition, Virgin CDVKC3, 7243 8 44068 2 0, CD | 2000 (Europe) 24 bit remaster by Simon Heyword and Robert Fripp (II) 3. 30th Anniversary Edition | 3, Discipline Global Mobile PCCY-01423, gold-CD | 2000 (Japan) 24 bit remaster by Simon Heyword and Robert Fripp (III) 4. 40th Anniversary Edition, Wowow Entertainment, Inc., Discipline Global Mobile IEDG-03, Platinum SHM-CD + DVD-A/V | 2016 (Japan) Remixed by Robert Fripp and Steven Wilson LARKS' TONGUES IN ASPIC (1973) 1. The Definitive Edition (AAD), Virgin EG Records EGCD 7, CD | 1989 (UK) Re-Mastered by Robert Fripp and Tony Arnold (I) 2+3. 40th Anniversary Edition + 30th Anniversary Edition, WHD Entertainment, Inc., Discipline Global Mobile, Panegyric IECP-20220/20221 2 x HQCD | 2012 (Japan) (II) 4. 40th Anniversary Edition, Wowow Entertainment, Inc., Discipline Global Mobile IEDG-05, Platinum SHM-CD + DVD-A/V | 2016 (Japan) Remixed by Robert Fripp and Steven Wilson RED (1974) 1. 30th Anniversary Edition, Discipline Global Mobile/Pony Canyon PCCY-01427, HDCD | 2000 (Japan) 24 bit remaster by Simon Heyword and Robert Fripp 2. 40th Anniversary Edition, Wowow Entertainment, Inc., Discipline Global Mobile IEDG-07, Platinum SHM-CD + DVD-A/V | 2016 (Japan) Remixed by Robert Fripp and Steven Wilson IN THE COURT OF THE CRIMSON KING (an observation by King Crimson) (1969) ________________I_________________ The Definitive Edition (AAD) | CD | 1990 (Japan) vs 30th Anniversary Edition | CD | 2000 (Europe) Janusz The 30th Anniversary Edition in terms of air volume, proper stereo image, and "spectacularity" seemed to be much better. Except for one thing: The Definitive Edition delivered much better vocals, that harmonized better with the rest of the music. It was less hissing, it wasn't so artificially "tuned-up" – there was something wrong with it on this second recording, sibilants were too strong, it was somewhat dirty. It added volume to the voice but it still sounded worse. The 30th Anniversary Edition every time served a nice space, depth and it already made an impression during short listening. But the voice, no doubts about, was much better on the first version we listened to. Rysiek B. What I want to say will be mostly consistent Janusz opinion, but with one significant difference between us - I liked vocal much more with the second version, the 30th Anniversary Edition. I'd say that this version sounded more truly to me – cymbals were nicely balanced, their sound clear, and the vocal was also very pure and transparent. In terms of stereo, stage depth, or generally - holography, for me, these two releases are almost identical. However, I would choose - if I had to - the second version. Wiciu For me, this comparison is a casus of a "late listener": the first part sounded like listened from behind closed doors, because I was late, and the second part sounded like I already got into the concert hall. That's how these two discs sounded like to me. The second version delivered proper sound depth, width and clear articulation. The big difference was made by percussion instruments, cymbals, decay - was a completely different story. The second version we listened to, the 30th Anniversary Edition, was much better, the difference was enormous. Tomek I agree completely with Janusz – I liked the second version much more, except for the vocals. I can confirm that on the 30th Anniversary Edition they were somewhat blurred and very "tweaked". Marcin I liked the second version more, too. The first was “muddy” like a 5 years old pond. The version based on digital remaster prepared for the 30th anniversary of the band presented more open, brighter sound, cymbals finally sounded right. I would even complain much about vocal - simply everything sounded better with the second version. Jarek Waszczyszyn In general, I agree with you. But I have a comment to what he Janusz said - Janusz said that this cleared up vocal didn't match the rest the album. And now – was the problem in remastering, in doing a poor job while “cleaning” the vocal, or it actually sounded like that? Therefore, I inquired about the version made using remix - I expect that this latest version will have everything cleaned up. ________________II_________________ 30th Anniversary Edition | CD | 2000 (Europe) vs 21st Century Complete Edition | HDCD | 2004 (Japan) Jarek Waszczyszyn I liked this remaster - 21st Century Complete Edition | HDCD - is a step in the direction that I mentioned before – I could finally hear this wonderful, splendid bell. The percussion was nicely differentiated. While when listening to the previous remaster we focused on the cymbals, now we could finally hear a good differentiation of drums, that, by the way, are not particularly well recorded for this album. The same goes for the guitar, which was now better. Marcin In my opinion the HDCD's remastering is more interesting. It's not “muddy” anymore plus I noticed a nice refinement of the sound. I have only one "but" – the 30th Anniversary Edition version had more depth. But is this truly a shortcoming? - Everyone must answer that for himself. Anyway, I like the 21st Century HDCD Complete Edition more. The sound on the 30th Anniversary Edition was a big, deep, wide. But the colors were better now. Tomek I enjoyed the 21st Century Complete Edition HDCD by far the most. It was perfectly "dark". It reminded me of reasons why some years ago I had to have every HDCD discs available. This sound, this presentation sat with me perfectly. Everything here was so beautiful and dark. Maybe vocal was a compromise between the first and second presentation (The Definitive Edition and 30th Anniversary Edition), but it was a good compromise. Now, finally, everything was were it was supposed to be. It was hard to find anything I wouldn't like about this realization - for me and thus far, it's definitely the best version. Wiciu This time I turned my attention to the vocal, because previously I focused on something else. It seemed to me that this time it was very good. It sounded natural. As far as the decay and depth of percussion instruments goes it sounded similar to the previous version, it might have been softer. Rysiek B. For me, these last two versions (30th Anniversary Edition and the 21st Century Complete Edition HDCD) were very similar. Yet, I prefer the latter - vocal was warmer, softer, richer. The second aspect that I noticed was larger reverb on percussion instruments, which increased “fulfillment” of the space. Other aspects of the two CDs were indistinguishable for me. Janusz For me, this recording (21st Century Complete Edition HDCD) was the best, for two reasons: it was more akin to "analog tape sound", it was darker and not wildly contrasting. While the 30th Anniversary Edition could seem more attractive due to this incredible depth but it was achieved by “disturbing” proper balance. Now everything was more aligned. Vocal fit the rest better – it was perhaps still not very good, just to be clear, but in this series was by far the best. The fact remains that this was still not it. ________________III_________________ 21st Century Complete Edition | HDCD | 2004 (Japan) vs 40th Anniversary Edition | Platinum SHM-CD | 2016 (Japan) Jarek Waszczyszyn This latter version (Platinum SHM-CD) is a bit like a Polish film – I look to the left, I look to the right action is nowhere to be found; I was simply not “taken” by it. Knowing that they had such a huge advantage having separate tracks at their disposal, I expected fireworks, and none happened. It was probably just about taking some more of my money, but I'm simply not convinced it's worth it. Marcin For me, the advantage of the Platinum SHM-CD version was a guitar that finally began to sound alive. Finally it attracted attention. As for the rest – there was nothing I didn't hear already before. The album sounded better, but should you buy it if you have the previous version (21st Century Complete Edition for HDCD)? Well, I wouldn't. Tomek It was, in my opinion, a very similar version to the Japanese HDCD one, ie. the previous one. It's the same, dark side of power, nicely mixed. It would be a tough choice for me. It confirmed, however, that the first two versions (The Definitive Edition and 30th Anniversary Edition) were the worst one, especially the latter. I do not think that this music was about delivering some huge space, it's not this kind of music. It is rock embedded in history. That is why I value both, Japanese HDCD and Platinum SHM-CD, equally. They are equally good. Wiciu Also in my opinion, there is not much difference between Platinum SHM-CD and Japanese HDCD version. Surely Greg Lake's voice on Platinum version is different – it is much wider and positioned more in the center. Spacing is similar, percussion instruments too. But the voice here is quite different. If I had to choose, I would choose Platinum SHM-CD, but not because it is significantly better. Rysiek B. In previous versions, the cymbals were in the foreground, vocal was placed behind them and the rest percussion and melotron even behind them. On the Platinum SHM-CD vocal was placed in the same plane as cymbals. The advantage of Platinum SHM-CD is a much better presentation of the acoustic environment, that is, reverb around the drums and melotron, which I previously did not even noticed. But it is not a truly significant advantage, I'd even say that I am disappointed. Why? Because usually the Platinum SHM-CD versions simply outclass all the others and here there were only some minimal differences. It is just a little better than others and that's all. Janusz When I listened earlier the Platinum SHM-CD version I was a little disappointed to be honest. It's a good release but without any particular advantages over other ones. The Platinum SHM-CD sounded “physiologically” or naturally. I forgot that I was listening to the CD, and started to listen to the music - in this sense a superiority of Platinum SHM-CD is ambiguous. But not because this or that is actually better. It's about a general perception of the presentation, about listening for pleasure, and this release offers most of it. LIZARD (1970) ________________I_________________ The Definitive Edition (AAD) | CD | 1990 (Japan) vs 30th Anniversary Edition | CD | 2000 (Europe) Jarek Waszczyszyn The differences between these versions were enormous. The first thing that surprised me was the fact that the second version, that is the 30th Anniversary Edition, offered much less reverb on instruments. That is why suddenly all the instruments started to sound more "lively". And in the case of this recording it is so important because harmony is a key here. It consists of different groups of instruments, so the more of these instruments can be heard, the fuller, richer this harmony is. It is very important that the vocal was intended to sound “crazy”. And in this second version it is, crazy sounding I mean. The 30th Anniversary Edition is much better. Marcin In my opinion, the greatest differences can be heard comparing reverb. In the Definitive Edition someone really went for it, while in the 30th Anniversary Edition reverb was rather tamed. That's why I like the second version so much more, because it was smoother, cooler. It started to make sense - individual instruments began to fit into the song. The first version, which was an analog master, sounded terribly chaotic. Wiciu The 30th Anniversary Edition offered significantly better spacing, a better sound balance, tonal balance, articulation. Rysiek B. I did not like neither of these versions, although the 30th Anniversary Edition I could listen to, while The Definitive Edition I simply couldn't bear. To tell you the truth I would rather listen to John Cage 4.33 than any of these CDs – none of them spoke to me. Janusz I think that there is nothing to compare here - the first version, ie. Definitive Edition, was unacceptable, unlistenable because of the emphasis in the upper midrange. It was so tiring that at higher volume levels I could not stand it at all. This is a unique track, because it is a pastiche, the piece reflects an essence of madness, of complete lunacy, and so it should be "perceived". The 30th Anniversary Edition was better, because it sounded more mellow and darker. They cleaned sibilants, but it still wasn't quite it. Generally speaking the "anniversary" remaster is much better. ________________II_________________ 30th Anniversary Edition | CD | 2000 (Europe) vs 30th Anniversary Edition | gold-CD | 2000 (Japan) Jarek Waszczyszyn Maybe you can remember that once we had a meeting with John Tu and we listened to the same recordings, but on aluminum and gold releases. The differences between them were unbelievable. Here we do not have exactly the same releases, because we use pressings from Europe and Japan, but the master is the same for both. And I remember that when we released with Jarek Śmietana his album Suite - it was his first album released on gold - I asked about the difference in price between the aluminum and gold version of discs and I couldn't believe that it was just 6 Polish groszy per unit. With such minimal differences releasing CD on aluminum seems so crazy - after all, the gold disc might be still played after a hundred years, maybe more, and it offers a much better sound. This is my entire comment. Marcin The gold version sounded better than aluminum, European one, but that was to be expected. In my opinion, the differences are not really great, though surely they are audible. As if the whole music sounded more “noble”. Would I buy the gold version having already European, aluminum one? - I do not know, it sounded better, but the difference was that significant. Tomek The gold version of the 30th Anniversary Edition was the most acceptable of them all. Yet, I still do not feel the excitement about this music, nor the quality of the recording itself, nor is it particularly interesting to encourage someone who does not feel the chemistry with this music. This is still a poor version, but the “least poor” among the ones we listened too thus far... Wiciu I liked the Gold 30th Anniversary Edition, because it was soft, physiological, pleasant to listen to. Rysiek B. It was OK but I agree with Tom - I couldn't feel any finesse, nor artistry and this fascination of my friends with release is beyond my comprehension. But anyone can love for one's own money ... Janusz The Japanese gold version of the 30th Anniversary Edition is by far the best of the three, but without any special emotions, nothing much is happening on it. But I also wanted to remind you that the analog release of this album sounded really bad, was unbearable - and I had first releases of all King Crimson albums, up to the Beat. It was so gruesomely sharp, poorly balanced, that I simply could not listen to it. And here's it is listenable. ________________III_________________ 30th Anniversary Edition | gold-CD | 2000 (Japan) vs 40th Anniversary Edition | Platinum SHM-CD | 2016 (Japan) Janusz There is no comparison - all previous issues, before Platinum SHM-CD, are simply no good. This one resembles something one can listen to. In terms of richness, tempo, instrumentation. As for the drama of this recording, Platinum SHM-CD sounds great, so much better than the other ones. Rysiek B. It is the only version that I could listen to with some pleasure. In my opinion buying other than Platinum SHM-CD version does not make any sense, it is wasted money. Better not to buy it at all. Wiciu I have a personal fondness for this recording, because I recorded it with from the radio "Three" in the summer of 1974 on cassette using Grundig tape recorder. And I must say that it was only this Platinum SHM-CD version that brought to mind pleasant memories of that summer. It is vibrant, rich, it is great. Tomek I'll put everything I have on this version - Platinum SHM-CD offered the best performance. It was good enough to make me consider buying it. I noticed the great percussion, a nicely rhythmic bass drum - it was sooooo cool. It's by far the best release. Marcin In my opinion, to version released on gold, which until now was the best, this one adds some more “drive” to it. It sounded cooler, I listened to it with pleasure, it was aggressive but in the right way. Jarek Waszczyszyn This one almost put me to sleep. Aggression, somewhat present in the gold version, now had disappeared. For me the Platinum SHM-CD is too smooth. The problem lays in the poor technical quality of the recording. So the question is - what one can actually “squeeze out” of it? Vocal on Platinum SHM-CD did not reflect the thread - which is my preference. LARKS' TONGUES IN ASPIC (1973) ________________I_________________ The Definitive Edition (AAD) | CD | 1989 (UK) vs 30th Anniversary Edition | HQCD | 2012 (Japan) Jarek Waszczyszyn The first impression was that it is louder, someone else asked if this was a remix, but it wasn't. The second version, ie. the 30th Anniversary Edition HQCD was definitely better, more fresh. The guitar was not louder, but clearer, I could hear much more details of what was happening there. As if the recording was a few years younger. Marcin I can not hear big differences, but still can indicate a few details. On the 30th Anniversary Edition HQCD bass line was played softly, nicely. At The Definitive Edition it blended with the background somewhere. The second version was more detailed. But the difference was not huge. Tomek I do not know what Martin meant, but to me the difference between these recordings was huge, as if it was a different mix. I clearly favored the first version, ie. The Definitive Edition, which charmed me musically and it was the first time this evening. The second release seemed to me as if someone recorded old music, but twenty years later - it was too modern. Wiciu The Definitive Edition version sounded to me exactly as I heard it the first time, played of my cassette deck with a recording made from the radio. The difference between The Definitive Edition and HQCD is like the difference between mono and stereo. They convey a completely different message. With The 30th Anniversary Edition HQCD the depth and width of the stage were clearly defined. It is much more than just a remaster, it sounds more like a remix – for me the 30th Anniversary Edition HQCD is brilliant. Rysiek B. To me this sounds like a remix. Differences were clear in bass range – in The Definitive Edition AAD it sounded boomy, poorly controlled. The second difference was in vocal - in the first version it was focused on a narrow frequency range and was not properly extended. I choose the 30th Anniversary Edition HQCD. Janusz For me the difference was huge, in favor of the 30th Anniversary Edition HQCD; calm, saturation, richness – these are elements that I value above all else. When guitars entered, Fripp's guitar played from behind, on HQCD they were properly rich, beautiful. In the The Definitive Edition AAD they sounded poorly. ________________II_________________ 30th Anniversary Edition | HQCD | 2012 (Japan) vs 40th Anniversary Edition | Platinum SHM-CD | 2016 (Japan) (z 40th Anniversary Edition | HQCD | 2012 (Japan) w tle) Jarek Waszczyszyn The Platinum SHM-CD had much more emotional vocals. And it had a vibrato, and richness. One can better understand the lyrics on this release. I think that these are the biggest differences – lyrics are easier to understand and recording contains more emotions. Marcin I can see certain propriety here: the first version, that is, The Definitive Edition AAD, sounds like a concert, as if it had been recorded during that era, on that hardware from that time, it is a documentary. Later they tried to correct it - on 30th Anniversary Edition HQCD they added some space, a bit like in a disco. The 40th Anniversary Edition HQCD was better, but only the latest, Platinum SHM-CD, smoothed everything, violin sounded much better. Due to this it all sounded complete. The Platinum version is the true diamond. Tomek Among the first three versions I like the first of them most (The Definitive Edition AAD) and penultimate (40th Anniversary Edition | HQCD). These clearly stand out from the rest, they are interesting. But this Platinum SHM-CD seems to me to be the best, everything on it is refined, polished, on the good side of darkness. The winner is the Platinum SHM-CD. Wiciu I liked The Platinum SHM-CD version, I liked it a lot. To me presentation seemed narrowed in space, just as in mono recordings, which is good. Vocal sounded very nice, although the bass had more decay in the 40th Anniversary Edition HQCD. Rysiek B. We begin to repeat ourselves: the Platinum SHM-CD version tops all others. First of all it delivers clean vocals and instruments. They added some reverb to instruments. It is also tonally rich, which drew my attention especially when listening to melotron. It became much more colorful. Even though these are not some spectacular changes, the Platinum SHM-CD is still worth buying, unlike all other versions. Janusz I agree with Rysiek and Wiciu, and I'd like to add one thing - the Platinum SHM-CD proves how much information this album actually contains. As if on previous versions, ie. the 30th Anniversary Edition and the 40th Anniversary Edition there were some "holes", some information simply lacking. There is more music on the Platinum, as if it delivered more of presentation than the others - it is amazing. RED (1974) 30th Anniversary Edition | HDCD | 2000 (Japan) vs 40th Anniversary Edition | Platinum SHM-CD | 2016 (Japan) Jarek Waszczyszyn I have to say that this is the worstly recorded album, especially the Red track. I love such a “sharp” playing, but here it was distorted. When someone sells me the album as a remix, he either doesn't respect me, or did a quick and poor job preparing it. If this material had been actually re-mixed it would not have been so distorted. And here everything is distorted. With the remix it should be quieter, so that the whole material was not distorted, you can do it on guitars, but not on every single instrument. I'm disappointed because it seemed to me that this should be quite different and it should be a remix. Janusz I can see that I completely don't understand what's going on. The sound on Red is distorted by definition, and that's how it should sound like. If Jarek had grown up listening to King Crimson, he would have known what was going on. So I'm not even going to refer to his opinion. But I would say one thing, one aspect should be emphasized - listening pleasure. We're talking about space, tone, richness, etc., and this is all important. But it's the listening pleasure that is paramount. Therefore it's easy for me to say that the qualitative difference between the 30th Anniversary Edition, and HDCD 40th Anniversary Edition, and Platinum SHM-CD is insignificant, but the listening pleasure between them is incomparable - Platinum SHM-CD wins always and everywhere. I bought once all versions of this album, but at some point I stopped because I did not want to pay for the same things over and over again. This time I listened to all the Platinum SHM-CD discs and I was thrilled. I didn't even think about hi-fi, because the listening pleasure with these versions was unbelievable. Tomek Since the beginning of the meeting, not really knowing King Crimson, I tried to understand the feelings of my colleagues, who are a generation older than me, or even a generation and a half, I tied to understand what they feel, what they could be driven by. I followed it listening to consequent albums and while listening to the Larks' ... I thought that finally I got what it was all about. And now we listened to the newest album of them all and it totally didn't speak to me, for me it sounded as if a bunch of guy went into the garage and recorded a demo tape. For me these differences are simply pointless – this Red track makes no musical sense to me. Wiciu I belong to the generation that listened to this record as soon as it was released, so it's “my music”. Red heralds future trends in music, dirty, sharp sound. It's a completely new direction, it like opening the door. Overdrive and distortions are intended by the makers. According to there is only a small difference between these releases. Platinum SHM-CD was more coherent, more consistent, but I can not say what would actually be better. SUMMARY We narrowed a number of releases, discs and tracks down and it is still one of the longest reports of the Krakow Sonic Society Meetings. This is because there is a lot to talk about. Even if we disagree, we disagree about something important. As you can see, not all participants enjoy this type of music, but there were some for whom it offered one of the most important aesthetic experiences. I think that the above statements are offering clear messages, which I will try to summarize in a few sentences, based also on other listening sessions. The Platinum SHM-CD versions were better each time. The second best came the HDCD ones, that were topped only by gold versions - both benefited from mastering prepared for the band's 30th anniversary (30th Anniversary Edition). Remixed versions of the 40th Anniversary Edition HQCD bring a different perspective on music material, but generally do not make significant differences. The worst impression made the older versions of The Definitive Edition AAD. Only starting from HDCD and digital 24 bit remaster better quality start culminating in Platinum SHM-CD. Not all version benefited from it equally - Red benefited least and Larks' ... most. Since they did not prepare new remix for the former it was not possible to gain as much as with other albums. Should you buy Platinum SHM-CD 7'' version? - Janusz says that it is beyond discussion, and so says Wiciu, and I happen to agree with them – each of us already has all three boxes and look forward to next releases. However, if you already have the Japanese HDCD version, or the one released on gold CD you may want to stick to them, or just buy selected titles on Platinum SHM-CD. Quality of HQCD versions is not very consistent - some items are better than others and it is up to you which one will you choose for yourself. If you do not have new remasters, and you want to get to know King Crimson from the best side, then there is no choice: Platinum SHM-CD Version 7" is the best and you should have it. SYSTEM USED DURING LISTENING SESSION CD Player/preamplifier: Ancient Audio LEKTOR GRAND SE Power amplifier: Ancient Audio SILVER GRAND MONO Power conditioner: Ancient Audio Re-GENERATOR Loudspeakers: Sonus faber ELECTA AMATOR Interconects: Siltech DOUBLE CROWN (1 m) Speaker cable: Siltech DOUBLE CROWN (bi-wire, 2 x 2,5 m) Power cables (for all components): Acrolink MEXCEL 7N-PC9500 Rack: Base Anti-vibration accessories: Acoustic Revive Wine: delivered by LocusVini.pl + participants POST SCRIPTUM Jarek Waszczyszyn I spoke with Janusz yesterday to sum up the KTS 104 meeting ... What stuck in Janusz mind most was that for the first time in a long time we listened to so much music and that our discussions finally hit the point. For most of the 103 meetings we tested products, techniques, or in other words a different approach to the physis leading to better performance - psyche. And sometimes we loose from our sight what is most important. Or perhaps our approach highlights the fact that art is perceived differently by different people? And the fact that such an atmosphere accompanied this meeting dedicated to the music of his favorite King Crimson, seemed to give him enormous pleasure ... I, on the other hand, was left feeling unsatisfied. Because our task (as technical engineers), record producers', our Society's is doing our best so that all that equipment in the studio and at home provided the listener with accurately conveyed emotions that rattled in musician's hearts. When I do my job poorly it is met with deserved criticism. And so it has to be! So I never answered any criticism publicly. It's as if a pool vault jumper patiently explained that it was the pole was not the right one, the wind unfavorable and therefore he did not reach the 6.15 height. The fact is that he didn't and that's it . During my electronics faculty I spent a lot of time on different discussions with Tomek Rogula. We never build anything together but these discussions surely helped us become better at what we did. One day let let me have a service manual of a 3M 34-track tape recorder. At the time 3M offered high quality studio tapes. It came to my mind during the discussion with Janusz. This manual was at least 200 pages long! How complex device it was, how difficult to adjust! And it was a manual of the tape recorder itself! What about noise cancellation circuits? Mixing console? Cables? All these devices worked in analog domain, so using our experience gained during Sonic Society meetings we realize how great impact have the small detail on sound quality. And when it comes to a studio it is not about just details, but rather tones and kilometers... [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kts104/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kts104/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kts104/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kts104/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kts104/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kts104/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kts104/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kts104/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kts104/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kts104/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kts104/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kts104/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kts104/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kts104/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kts104/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kts104/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kts104/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kts104/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kts104/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kts104/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kts104/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

he audio domain is a field which combines a few spheres of human activity, i.e. music, the art of recording and reproducing it. The most important aspects of music reproduction are: technical knowledge, musical sensitivity and attention to artistic design. The last of the three is (or rather used to be) especially controversial. It is because it does not influence the quality of reproduced sound and, as such, used to be regarded as an additional, redundant thing by hardcore audiophiles. It was perfectly enough for a black box with knobs, buttons and switches not to fall apart while being shipped to the owner. Thanks to that, money allocated for design and related activities was freed up. So, why do we attend audio exhibitions, since we know that there is usually no good sound there? Why do we buy nicely printed or online publications with fantastic photos? Surely, not only to read about sound. I think that this is how sensitive people who want to maximize their esthetical experience normally react. So, it is not only important what a given product sounds like, but how it is made and what it looks like. It is similar in the case of audio magazines. It is no coincidence that you emphasize the importance of photos presented in “High Fidelity” so often in your emails – the visual aspect of the magazine is extremely important. Where is it most prominent in the audio domain? In high end, which is probably obvious. When, years ago, the German monthly magazines “Audio” and “Stereoplay” started publishing a separate supplement – “AudioPhile”, devoted to expensive products only, I read it (like other, perhaps) as if it was “Playboy” – to learn something, but mostly to look at. Such is life… “AudioPhile” was a luxury magazine. When it comes to dummy and print preparation, it resembled high-end magazines devoted to watches, yachts, architecture and interiors. It was expensive to make and this is perhaps why there were sometimes problems with publishing it regularly. It is no coincidence that it now costs almost €20 per item. Another magazine of this type, published on the other side of the Globe, does not seem to have such problems. I am now referring to the Australian “Audio Esoterica” magazine, printed on presses standing upside-down and read on computers also turned upside-down. The magazine is published by the “Hi-Fi and Sound+Image” bi-monthly magazine which is part of the AVHub publishing group and is one of the nicest audio magazines, like “Image Hi-Fi”, the abovementioned “AudioPhile” and “TONEAudio”. The magazine is printed and the same material in PDF form can be purchased via Zinio platform where it costs a little less than 7 Australian dollars (AUD). Its editor-in-chief, Mr. Edgar Kremer agreed to talk to us and tell us a bit about himself and his magazine. WOJCIECH PACUŁA: Please tell us about yourself. EDGAR KRAMER: Music is in the Kramer DNA. Chromosome M over K. My father and mother, although not musicians, were ardent music lovers and their large music collection back in the 1960s, when I was a wee lad, influenced me and fuelled my nascent passion. On my paternal Romanian side, my uncle was a prominent conductor who led some of the world’s major orchestras (including, among many more, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, the Houston Symphony, and a music directorship at the New York City Opera). His frequent Australian visits to conduct the Sydney Symphony Orchestra opened my sense of wonder and sprung a deep well of classical music appreciation to counter, even somewhat soothe, the rebellious rock/punk spunk. On my maternal Uruguayan side, family members have been folk musicians and poets with a narrative illustrating the lives and adversities of the common man-of-the-land across generations. As a teenager, my family’s musical and literary spirit congealed in a fervent appreciation for music and early poetry and short story writing. Through sliding doors of destiny, after finishing film school, I worked for an events and video production company. Soon after, the company structure changed and me, via the Kramer’s musical preordination, in a raw gamble, purchased audio equipment and corporate staging arm. What an opportunity! A business where music was on the ‘to-do’ list almost daily! And the mostly unamplified music (or skillfully amplified via our high quality sound reinforcement systems) served as an invaluable education in the inarguable value of tonal purity, accurate resolution and realistic dynamic expression. These, to me, are the three most valued sonic qualities in assessing high-end audio, albeit never negating other important aspects of music reproduction. And even at this advanced stage of audiophilia I experience ‘goose bumps’ moments when these three qualities, in particular, are met in emotive and engaging music. Of course, while by day I was a pro audio engineer, by night I devoured “Stereophile”, engorged on “The Absolute Sound”, feasted on “Hi-Fi News”, etc., while evolving my knowledge base and, always inspired, continued sailing the exciting waters of high-end consumer audio. Via another twist of fate in the early 2000s, a chance email-meet with Srajan Ebaen, publisher of www.6moons.com web magazine, led to a generous opportunity to author high-end audio reviews for his widely-regarded publication. (Srajan Ebaen was the first editor to be presented in “The Editors” series in “High Fidelity” (No. 93, Jan 2012) – read HERE – Editor’s note). Here, finally, the coalescing of music and writing. The fruition of destiny? And then, further concreting providence around 10 years ago, after selling my business and now as an experienced audio journalist, the pull of the music and the written word led me to my present position as Reviews Editor with the publishers of Australian “Hi-Fi” and “Sound+Image” magazines. Later, as Audio Esoterica magazine was launched, I was appointed its Editor. IHow many readers do you have? Hard to tell how many readers between print and online. Into the many thousands and we hope to build the magazine's profile globally. Who is the publisher of “Audio Esoterica”? The publisher is nextmedia Publications. The firm has a portfolio of over 30 titles spanning niche interests in photography, motoring. aeronautics, fishing, sport, food and more. Is “Audio Esoterica” a monthly magazine? AE is a special issue published twice a year. “Esoterica” (without the Audio) is a permanent sub-section within the bi-monthly Australian “Hi-Fi” magazine. Tell us please about the “Audio Esoterica” magazine – how it started, why and what its purpose is. My interest is in high-end audio. I’m fascinated by designs that further and/or challenge the status quo. The beauty and elegance of the designs, the excellence in manufacture. I respect and admire the creators, the visionaries, the engineers, the scientists, the aesthetes that craft industrial and technical art. I think my current equipment list strongly reflects that ideal. With that in mind, I approached the publishers with an idea (and I’m told they were thinking along similar lines at the time) of bringing to life a publication of the highest quality, a glossy magazine styled like a coffee table book with beautiful product images and a high level of penmanship from the best professional reviewers in Australia. AAE is a printed and an online magazine at the same time, and one has to pay for both – is it a better solution than a free online magazine? Actually, as mentioned above, Audio Esoterica is a print magazine with parallel availability online. In return for the affordable cost, the reader gets independent reviews of the best and hottest global products by professionals. This is probably the best solution. How do you carry out tests – any rules? Rule number one: change only ONE component at a time. Then I think it’s important to live with an item for some time. Get to know it via the music and recordings you’re most familiar with. Don’t judge it based on price, reputation or looks which, for me, within the context of a review, are things worthy of comment but for a consumer are things worthy of judgement. Be open. Be mindful. Be cognizant of biases. Compare. Listen. These are the self-imposed mandates that rule my reviewing process. What you are trying to achieve in your audio system? Like everyone, I would imagine, I strive to get closer to the live event in the equipment choice. I had the opportunity to hear a lot of live acoustic music in my early career in professional audio. This has educated me about the importance of accuracy in tonality, authenticity in dynamic expression and realism in detail retrieval. What do you think about the current situation of the high end market – is there future for it? There will always be a market for the best. Be it a luxury boat, car, watch, pen or high-end audio. And music speaks universally to all of us. Young people, in particular, are listening to more music than ever before. It follows that with education (and this is where I think audio shows and general consumer marketing is so important) many of these passionate music lovers will desire to get closer to the music, to experience it on a far more profound, emotive and intimate level, and, as a by-product, enter the wonders of the high-end audio world. So, what was your first experience connected with stereo equipment? I was a shy yet curious eight year old. My parents being away for a few hours one day allowed a clandestine incursion into their bedroom, where the hi-fi system was a preciously-guarded shrine to music of the day — the late 1960s. As the needle dropped on a mélange of vinyl from Led Zeppelin, to Elvis, Charles Aznavour, to Piaf and on… the goose bumps… the tears… the joy… the rapture. Later, in my teenage years, I demanded a decent stereo kit from my parents in order to enjoy music as it should be experienced. Back then I didn’t know it but I was a budding audio enthusiast. At that stage I just wasn’t a card-carrying fully fledged audiophile… yet. What kind of music do you listen to in your free time? Could you also tell us about 10 albums my readers should pay attention to? My music taste spreads across a wide spectrum. From blues, to jazz, rock, chamber and world music. Right now, I’m on a hard rock phase with high rotation of preferred albums such as Puscifer’s Money Shot, A Perfect Circle’s Thirteenth Step (this has been around for some time), Clutch’s Psychic Warfare. World music from Spain (Curandero), South America (Susana Baca, Astor Piazzola), the French/Middle East (Garcia Fons) and Africa (Youssou N’Dour), and some modern jazz and pop music from gifted composers and musicians from Australia. Describe your audio system, please. As I explained above, I’ve selected my audio components from brands that reflect the passion of, most often, a single specialist visionary and gifted engineer. Digital wiz Thorsten Loesch is the creative genius behind my main source, the outstanding Abbingdon Music Research (AMR) CD-77.1 CD player (AMR) CD-77.1. The preamplifier is the fruit of Mick Malloney’s many decades of refining circuits and he has struck gold with the Directly Heated Triode circuit in the Supratek DHT Reference preamplifier. Flemming Rasmussen is a true artist and Gryphon’s extraordinary designs reflect his talent as an industrial designer and maker of some of the best audio reproduction equipment on the planet. Gryphon’s Antileon EVO is my choice for power amplification. The high-end loudspeaker space has been distinctly defined by the early designs from David Wilson. His company, Wilson Audio Specialties, has grown immensely since those early days when the WATT/Puppy monitor shook the high-end loudspeaker world. Subsequent designs have refined and improved over a number of generations. The Wilson Alexia is an extraordinary speaker and graces my listening room with its music-making powers. Finally, three important components. DEQX is an Australian company headed by Kim Ryrie (one of the talents behind the legendary Fairlight) whose digital processors – which feature DACs, crossovers, equalization, speaker and room correction, and more – were way ahead of their time when they first appeared on the audio landscape. The PreMate makes an important alternative configuration within my system. The ZenSati cables I use are the vision of Mark Johansen whose Seraphim loom allows the signal to pass through from component to component with commendable neutrality. These are some of the best cables available in an ecosystem brimming with all manner of wiring options. The Australian company SGR Audio makes a variety of high-end gear from electronics to active speaker systems, all creations by the father-and-son team Harry and Stuart Ralston. SGR’s racks are beautifully finished and provide a solid footing allowing components to perform at their best. My system features two three-tier racks which provide an important aspect to the overall system. With this mix of components I have achieved a system that walks the tightrope between the analytical precision tool that is the fundamental requirement in the reviewing process and an engaging, emotive musical instrument in absolute service of the music. Thank you! Thank you too! “THE EDITORS” series has included interviews with: MICHAEL LAVORGNA, „AudioStream”, USA, Editor-In-Chief, see HERE MICHAEL LANG, “Stereo”, GERMANY, Managing Editor (Geschäftsführender Redakteur), see HERE SRIDHAR VOOTLA, “Hifitoday.com”, INDIA, journalist, see HERE STUART SMITH, „HIFI PIG Magazine”, FRANCE (BRITTANY), see HERE SCOT HULL, “Part-Time Audiophile”, USA, editor-in-chief, see HERE ART DUDLEY, “Stereophile”, USA, editor-at-large, see HERE Helmut Hack, “Image Hi-Fi”, Germany, managing editor, see HERE DIRK SOMMER, „HiFiStatement.net”, Germany, chief editor, see HERE MARJA & HENK, „6moons.com”, Switzerland, journalists, see HERE CHRIS CONNAKER, “Computer Audiophile”, founder/chief editor, see HERE MATEJ ISAK, "Mono & Stereo”, chief editor/owner, Slovenia/Austria; see HERE Dr. DAVID W. ROBINSON, "Positive Feedback Online", USA, chief editor/co-owner; see HERE JEFF DORGAY, “TONEAudio”, USA, publisher; see HERE CAI BROCKMANN, “FIDELITY”, Germany, chief editor; see HERE STEVEN R. ROCHLIN, “Enjoy the Music.com”, USA, chief editor; see HERE STEPHEN MEJIAS, “Stereophile”, USA, assistant editor; see HERE MARTIN COLLOMS, “HIFICRITIC”, Great Britain, publisher and editor; see HERE KEN KESSLER, “Hi-Fi News & Record Review”, Great Britain, senior contributing editor; see HERE MICHAEL FREMER, “Stereophile”, USA, senior contributing editor; see HERE SRAJAN EBAEN, “6moons.com”, Switzerland, chief editor; see HERE [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kramer/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kramer/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kramer/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kramer/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kramer/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kramer/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kramer/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kramer/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kramer/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kramer/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kramer/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kramer/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kramer/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kramer/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kramer/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1607/kramer/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1607/kramer/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1607/kramer/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

t already happened a few times before - a test that you're reading now is a result of several years of effort. For the first time I asked about the possibility of receiving one of the products for a review, if I'm not mistaken, four years ago. I received a polite email from Kerry St. James, head of European sales and marketing (Senior Account Executive), who's taking care about YG Acoustics loudspeakers to be presented in the best possible conditions. Kerry thanked me for the contact, apparently he knew "High Fidelity", because the answer was positive, with one caveat - before they could deliver loudspeakers for a review they needed to find a proper representation in our part of Europe who would properly take care of potential customers. YG Acoustics, a North American manufacturer that included the initials of its owner, Yoav Geva, in their name is not just "another" company of an amateur designer who wanted to enter this already crowded market. It is a company that needed only a few years to make a lot of fuzz in the high-end audio industry and become its “full-time” participant. It was founded fourteen years ago in Israel (2002) and did not immediately achieve the level they represent today. Only two years later, after moving to the United States (Denver, Colorado), company took the course they stay on till today, both in terms of production, and applied technologies. It belongs to a small group of hi-tech loudspeakers manufacturers, for whom - at first glance – I'll get back to that in a moment - the opposite type would be a company like, say, Spendor and Harbeth, that, in contrast, could be called vintage manufacturers. If you have ever seen any YG loudspeakers, you know exactly what I mean – these are brilliantly, extremely precisely made loudspeakers so that in comparison a vast majority of competitors look like they were made by a 12-year-old preparing his creation for some young inventors contest. But... and I use this "but" with pleasure, because it allows me to escape for a moment from a routine, to look at things from different perspective. This “but” concerns company's approach to the construction of the speakers. YG Acoustics was founded using a grant from the Ministry of Industry of Israel. It was awarded to Mr. Geva for developing a crossover and the designer managed to design one with a flat frequency response and at the same time with minimal phase shifts. He based his works on what he had learned at the university and later working for the Israeli high-tech industry. YG was in fact largely established with the public money and it is an "engineering" company in the best sense of the word, i.e. the starting point for it was the vast knowledge and original idea. Its development followed this path and today it is one of the most modern manufacturers of speakers in the world, having its own specialized machinery and research department, which most of the advanced laboratories in the world would be proud of. And here comes "but": in exactly the same way at the beginning of the twentieth century, the first loudspeakers came to be. Their designers were men of science, focused eg. at Bell Labs, and the works were often sponsored by the state. The solutions they developed were used by the military, industry and public institutions, but also by entertainment industry, mainly in theaters. Thanks to further research carried out, eg. by the BBC other, today considered classic, brands were established - in UK – it was Harbeth and Spendor, that utilized ultra-modern for its time, plastic drivers. What was the hi-tech then today no longer raises such emotions. Not without reason, however, classic loudspeakers by Western Electric, JBL, Altec, KEF, Spendor, Harbeth etc. are still considered by many music lovers as the pinnacle of loudspeaker technology. Both - them, and YG Acoustics based their developments on the same principle: technology, technology and technology again. And listening session. Time has proven that this was a right choice. TECHNOLOGY x 6 Mr Yoav had his own idea about practical use of the principles recognized by loudspeaker industry for years but rarely put into practice mostly because of so called cost-efficiency. No wonder his lineup includes only four models (three until recently), with the cheapest of them, Carmel 2, priced at 125 643 PLN, and the top-of-the-line Sonja XV at 1 370 183 PLN (prices for Polish market per pair). At the heart of these designs lays a crossover – an element Mr Yoav started his audio adventure from. While working in Israeli he specialized in digital signal processing techniques.While there is no DSP in YG Acoustics speakers, the technology carries over to analog passive circuits as well. He used his experience to create a crossover with a flat frequency response and phase coherent (which is unique), and he called his solution DualCoherent. He also uses a solution called ToroAir in his crossovers – in his factory he wounds toroidal coil on CNC machined cores. These coils offer some unique features, for example, any impact they might have on other elements were eliminated. In his factory he manufacturers also midrange and bass drivers. Of metal. But it was not always so. Initially, all drivers were sourced from Scan Speak. YG used units from Illuminator series (tweeters) and Revelator (other ones). The new, independently produced drivers have be utilized in recent incarnations of Kipod and Anat. The starting point is a flat billet of aircraft-grade aluminum (6061-T651) which is milled (not extruded) cone is reinforced with ribbing, forming a very light, uniform and rigid piston. The technique has been called BilletCore - the making of a single driver takes up to four hours, and the accuracy is 20 microns. Drivers are made using German machines Gildemeister CTX beta 1250 TC. The first idea to create your own drivers dates back to 2007 but to develop the right technology to make took the company long four years - the first driver was actually manufactured in 2011. The tweeters are purchased from Scan Speak. The predecessor of the Carmel 2 model, Carmel, used the Dual Ring with characteristic “spike” in the middle, now is a large dome with a thick fold. Since recently, for the flagship model Sonja XV (for the company's 15th anniversary) YG makes their own drivers with a soft dome reinforced from behind with a metal "spider", that combines an idea of hard and soft membrane. Other models still use a classic, soft dome, for which drive and fixing elements are made in-house by YG on CNC machines. Now it is part of the front baffle - a sort of acoustic lens, which is to improve the phase coherency at the crossover point. This technique obviously has a name: ForgeCore. Such precise transducers need proper fitting to present their full potential. Therefor the cabinets are also milled of aluminum – of thick, large panels, and their walls are up to 35 mm thick. The fitting is extremely precise – these are closed cabinet loudspeakers. Proper shaping of the walls and the rigidity of the whole structure allows to eliminate any damping inside cabinets. This anti-resonance technique is called FocusedElimination. For the Carmel 2 model manufacturer had to optimize the low and mid frequency vibrations of the cabinet, which turned out to be challenging. For the first time YG applied a three-chamber cabinet, which behaves differently for mid and low frequencies. Other models feature two-chamber cabinets. The vibrations of one chamber are damped by the vibrations generated in anti-phase in the second chamber. Carmel 2 required a different solution, unique for YG Acoustics. As one can read in the company materials, the loudspeakers "were not voiced". The only determinants were results of numerous measurements, and how these translated into sound. It is a rare case, because most companies do not know exactly what to measure and based on the results of such tests they offer poor sounding products. Exactly the same can be said for the group of manufacturer with a different but equally extreme approach who base their designs only on what they can hear. Speaking about the materials in question – all the information given by YG Acoustics on them and the way it is presented is impressive and meaningful. Few other manufacturers could match that. Both the Internet website and printed information set a bar very high for other manufacturers. CARMEL 2 Until recently the range offered by the US company included just three models of speakers: Carmel 2, Hailey and Sonja. On the occasion of the 15th anniversary of the company, however, they prepared a special version of Sonja - model XV. Although, to be honest, it has little to do with the basic model beyond the mid-treble module (with the revised dome tweeter) and sub-bass module. The main low- midrange section is new, as well as the powerful sub-woofer towers that make the Sonja XV a 20-driver, four-speaker sound system. Compared to them Carmel 2 look really small. This is a two-way, not much higher than 1 m loudspeaker with closed cabinet. Although they seem a simple design, it is a sophisticated simplicity. Making a pair of Carmel 2 takes 34 hours of CNC machines work, of which milling takes 20 hours, lathing another 11 hours, and the other three are used for polishing and winding coils. Each speaker consists of 1,020 elements, almost all of which are made in-house in the YG Acoustics factory. The company is preparing even the screws for screwing cabinets together. As Mr Geva says, it is the only way to maintain high quality. SETUP The loudspeakers were brought to me by Kerry St. James with people from Polish distributor. We had some time to listen to music and talk. The second joint session took place when they came to pick up speakers - I wanted them to listen to some music after speakers were properly set up. A spoiler - Carmel 2 require a lot of attention from their owner during initial setup. They are extremely transparent and will point out every mistake made by us, expose all omissions we allowed to happen. Initially we placed Carmel 2 in exactly the same spot as my Harbeth M40.1, because it had been an optimal spot for majority of speakers I had reviewed. During subsequent listening, conducted already alone, I found a better placement for them moving them maybe 10cm from the spot. These 100 mm yielded a significant improvement in focus, spacing and tonal presentation. The loudspeakers were ultimately placed 130 cm from the rear wall (measured to the front baffle) and 210 cm apart from each other (from their inner edge). They were toed in so that the tweeters targeted ears of the listener. The technical parameters tell us that these speakers should be relatively easy load for the amplifier with their 87 dB efficiency, and the minimum impedance of 3.5 Ω. So one would assume that they should be a perfect fit, especially in small rooms, for low power tube amplifiers (presumably - with 300B triodes). I do not want to discourage anyone to experiment, as experimenting is the essence of our "way of life", but the reality is different: Carmel 2 is a true challenge for an amplifier. So they crave for a high power, low impedance and high current efficiency. My tests were confirmed by measurements carried out by the "Stereophile". Impedance actually is constant and quite high. As John Atkinson confirmed, it drops down to below 4 Ω only between 150 and 400 Hz, and the minimum is 3.68 Ω at 220 Hz. High requirements for power and high current efficiency come from something else – the measured sensitivity of Carmel 2 is 84 dB (B) / 2.83 V / 1 m, so it is very low (more HERE). I think it's but natural that the small speakers in a closed cabinet and medium-sized woofer digging quite deep into bass may not offer high efficiency. During the test they were matched with Soulution 710 power amp, which was - in my opinion - a great combination, but Audionet, Vitus Audio, Naim Audio, Accuphase, Mark Levinson – these are the brands I'd suggest looking among for a great match for these speakers. Also, the source should be of a sufficiently high quality. MSB Technology dCS Vitus Audio Ancient Audio CEC totaldac Audionet (model Planck) would be great choices. Each of these players will play differently, but it is the level where one has to look. But also - within the limitations of these loudspeakers and compromises established for them – the Reimyo system, consisting of CDT-777 transport and DAP-999 TOKU High Fidelity Edition DAC sounded great. YG ACOUSTICS in „High Fidelity” INTERVIEW: YOAV GEVA | YG Acoustics, CEO, see HERE BEST SOUND HIGH END 2014: YG Acoustics (loudspeakers) + JWB Merlin (electronics), see HERE Recordings used for the test (a selection) MJ Audio Technical Disc vol.6, Seibundo Shinkosha Publishing MJCD-1005, CD (2013) Ed Sheeran, X, Warner Music UK/Warner Music Japan WPCR-15730, CD (2014); Jeff Lynne’s ELO, Alone in the Universe, Columbia/Sony Music Labels (Japan) SICP-30890, Blu-spec CD2 (2015); Laurie Anderson, Homeland, Nonesuch 524055-2, CD + DVD (2010); Lisa Gerrard, The Silver Tree, Sonic Records SON212, CD (2006) Marilyn Manson, Personal Jesus, Interscope Records 9864166, SP CD (2004) Marilyn Manson, The Pale Emperor – Tour Edition, Cooking Vinyl/Victor Entertainment VIZP-138, CD + DVD (2015) Mark Hollis, Mark Hollis, Polydor 537 688-2, CD (1988) Niccolò Paganini, 24 Caprices for solo violin. Op.1, wyk. Mayuko Kamo, BMG Japan BVCC 40003, „RCA Red Seal”, CD (2009/2012) Pet Shop Boys, Super, Sony Music Labels (Japan) SICX-41, CD (2016) Polish Jazz Quartet, Polish Jazz Quartet, Polskie Nagrania „Muza”/Warner Music Poland, „Polish Jazz vol. 3”, Master CD-R (1965/2016) Tame Impala, Currents, Universal Music Australia/Hostess 4730676J, CD (2015); Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] The YG Acoustics brand is one of a few that were included in the prestigious magazine "The Absolute Sound" monograph titled: The Absolute Sound's Illustrated History of High-End Audio. Volume One: Loudspeakers ed. Robert Harley, Nextscreen, Texas 2013). It's an exceptional achievement that was possible thanks to uncompromising approach to production, but above all, because all these theoretical knowledge, all the time and effort and invested money translated in a unique sound. On a model's leaflet one find the slogan „Pure Clarity” and this catch-phrase is a perfect match. I have not had other loudspeakers at house that would deliver such a perfectly pure performance. And I sure as hell wouldn't declare this sound bright. We are talking about a black background, quiet "between" sounds, smoothness. Purity I experienced came from the low distortion level and it lead to more information being present in the presentation. The sound is more detailed, but I didn't perceived this way. Other loudspeakers delivering such pure performance are also “detailed”, but if we perceive them as such, it means that they are missing something. How detailed the sound of Carmel 2 is is showing by fullness of the sound, its richness, the "meat" around the "bones" so to speak. A “detailed” sound that is not properly rich, full at the same time is a defect, mistake. If, however, it is of such a nature as here – it become information. These speakers sound extremely coherent, seamless. I could not find a moment where one driver “handed” the sound to the next one. It was also difficult to point out sounds that came directly from drivers. Everything took place between the loudspeakers, in front of them, behind them - depending on how the particular album was recorded - but never directly from speakers. They generate a large space full of information, a holographic rendering of a very convincing character. Although the overall message is not as large in volume as the one delivered by Harbeth, JBL and other speakers with properly extended bass. Some things can not be changed and a small speaker in a closed cabinet has no chance to go down as deep as a much larger competitor. With Carmel 2 in the system one might have an impression of listening to a large monitor, but without a limitations in the lower range region - focus on the middle of the band is evident. Only one monitor, I know, sounds so flawlessly quickly, purely, consistently and as resolving – I mean the old, already long out of production Sonus Faber Electa Amator (I). A bigger cabinet of Carmel 2 offers some advantage. YG Acoustics are even purer, and the bass dynamics is articulated in a better way. As if by a larger cabinet volume and its closed design the rear side of the woofer's diaphragm was able to deliver a cleaner, smoother bass. The smoothness is a feature that nicely describes this product, just like the purity and precision. Probably you have experienced that more then once, but I'm sure that every time, just like me, you have witnessed the following phenomenon: if the speakers sound smoothly and cleanly at the same time, you can play the music loud for a long time without a hint of fatigue. So it was also this time. In a joint listening with Kerry we listened to music really loud for a long time, and no one even moved, no one got bored or tired. When increasing volume level my attention was focused on this or on another element of presentation. As if the system worked like a magnifying lens. Comparison with a magnifying lens is not accidental. I've never experienced such a unique differentiation of the sound as I did with Carmel 2. A reviewer's reference system should be able to do it, but I have to admit that I chose its individual components, so that the music sounded not only distinctively for particular recording, but so that every recording sounded good . In short - I wanted to like what I heard, and at the same time I to know what I was listening to - in that order. The problem of many well differentiating components is in fact that they lose sight of the big picture focusing on its elements; they sacrifice the essence of the music in the name of its technical correctness. Carmel 2 stop somewhere in the middle. On the one hand, they actually go very deep into the recording and accurately show its own characteristics, and the other they do not get to the point where it ceases to make sense. There are musical in the way usually attributed to loudspeakers using full-range drivers such as, for example. AudioMachina Pure NSE or those of a "vintage" type, like JBL, Spendor and Harbeth . But this is a completely different type of performance. All above mentioned brands focus on going into the mix by creating a kind of "fulfillment", even where there is none. Carmel 2 are extremely linear and they do not “fill” anything anything in it that "something" is not in the recording. They allow you to appreciate the input of sound engineers, for example, with the first Polish Jazz albums, they nicely presented the above-average quality of these recordings but also allowed me to immediately assess the Pet Shop Boys Super, pointing to the “shallow” bass and huge compression. But even in such conditions they delivered a nice, coherent performance. The above mentioned differentiation manifests itself with the bandwidth, resolution and dynamics. The tonality, timbre are excellent, but their changes are not the most spectacular ones. Although it is a small loudspeaker with a limited bass extension, it is fully capable of unmistakably telling us about how this part of the range was recorded, actually they do it in a better way than my Harbeths. The British speakers introduce some coloration to mid-bass which makes everything seem bigger and nicer, even if it is not. YG, although much smaller, two-way and featuring a small mid- low-range woofer deliver a better structured performance, they are more "vigilant" about changes of music genres and component being replaced in the accompanying system. This is great news, but I think it can sometimes be problematic. Sound-wise Carmel 2 behave like twice as expensive designs minus bass extension. This is something they can't do and that's why they are priced as they are. But what above requires electronics and wiring as good as if the columns were much more expensive. Look for devices with clear sound, dynamic, filled with the diameter. Soulution, FM Acoustics, Audionet, Reimyo, Mark Levinson - is the first of what I listen to them. In this quest more than once to disappoint, because it turns out that the company considered moving in those aspects of the compromise. But to achieve the maximum level of performance one needs as good electronics and cables as one would for more pricey competitors. One should look for particularly pure, dynamic sounding devices with rich midrange. Soulution, FM Acoustics, Audionet, Reimyo, Mark Levinson – I would start with products of these brands. While looking for the best match be prepared to be disappointed more than once, because you'll find out that even renown brands tend to compromise in these areas. Don't be discouraged though, because in a mid-sized room with a proper accompanying system Carmel 2 will offer a remarkable performance. Summary The smallest model in YG Acoustics range offer a perfect make&finish, is based on a solid engineering and made in a truly hi-tech production process. Equally important, however, is that they communicate with us “above” the technological level, beautifully conveying emotions stored in the recordings. They are very differentiating which will show us well know recordings in a new, not always favorable way. They are also very demanding toward accompanying system. They do not tolerate compensating one error with another one. This is an uncompromising design that require us to abandon compromise and making a decision about what exactly do we expect of our system and of music played on it: a pleasure for the price of averaging the performance or truth at the cost of experiencing true nature of our favorite recordings. This is a remarkable design for those who know what they want and are willing to accept limitation of bass extension. Carmel 2 is a small loudspeaker opening YG Acoustics' range, yet ale the above described proprietary techniques and technologies were applied also here. So there is a 7.25'' low- midrange woofer with the membrane milled from a single billet of aluminum, rigid basket and a powerful magnet. From the top it is already filtered at 1.75 kHz, where a soft dome tweeter with a wide roll surround takes over. The enclosure is made of aluminum, black anodized plates, fixed together with multiple screws. The fitting must be as accurate as possible because Carmel 2, like the other YG Acoustics loudspeakers, is a closed-cabinet design. Inside it is reinforced by horizontal aluminum braces, which resembles design of another American specialist company, Magico. The front baffle as well as side one are slightly bent. The cabinet is placed on a small metal plate-base, where one installs four spikes the cabinet stands on. Nothing in these speakers is left to chance, including speaker terminals. Carmel 2 feature double terminals with solid, copper, gold-plated jumper plates for those who use a single speaker cable. The terminals are also made in-house of copper and aluminum. The crossover is mounted on two printed circuit boards, with separate sections for low- midrange woofer and tweeter. Both are bolted to the back wall. The former is closed in a sealed chamber to prevent any influence/interference. Both use high-quality Mundorf M-CAP capacitors in their both versions - Supreme Silver/Gold, and MKP. The design of this crossover is far from minimalism – it features core and air coils, a lot of capacitors and several resistors. Mr. Yoav says, however, that only few elements are actually in signals path and the rest of them are used for impedance linearization. Specifications (according to manufacturer): Usable output: extends from 32 Hz to 40 kHz Deviation: ±2 dB frequency response ±5° relative phase throughout entire overlap Proprietary DualCoherent™ crossover at 1.75 kHz Sensitivity: 87 dB / 2.83 V / 1 m 2π anechoic Nominal impedance: 4 Ω (3,5 Ω minimum) Dimensions (H x W x D): 1030 x 230 x 310 mm Weight: 34 kg/PC. [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/th/13.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/13.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/13.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/th/14.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/14.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/14.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/th/15.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/15.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/yg_ac/15.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

ne thing Pro-Ject can not be denied is their consistence. One has to be extremely patient over the years to constantly improve something, lay new models of the same, or slightly different, "blocks" and not be tempted by some sort of a "breakthrough". Because what sells best is what's extreme, or even better - hysterically extreme. Now one realizes that this patience has paid off, but a few years ago one could have doubts as to whether it was the right way. Because again and again, for 25 years (this year Pro-Ject celebrates their silver jubilee - all the best !!!) we got from the company almost the same turntables, only slightly improved, slightly modified, slightly different. The same principle also concerned the tonearms. "Slightly" being the key word here. The most recent Pro-Ject turntables, including the reviewed RPM-9 Carbon, fit perfectly into the baby steps policy. Its base is shaped after a drop of water. At the narrow end they mounted a tonearm, and in the middle of the circle the main bearing. The diameter of the platter and the base at this point is 300 mm, which is the same as the one of a LP. The chassis is made of MDF taped hot with a thin layer of carbon fiber submerged in the resin. It's a solution that we already know from the cheaper model RPM-5.1 Carbon here "expanded" even further – carbon fiber is glued also to the side. The motor is placed next to the chassis and the drive is transmitted by means of a round, rubber belt. Nowością jest umieszczenie elektroniki sterującej silnikiem, w tym zmieniającej prędkość obrotową (33 1/3 i 45 rpm) w obudowie silnika. Ma ona taką samą średnicę fi, co w poprzednich wersjach, a jednak nie potrzebujemy zewnętrznego sterownika. Prędkość zmieniany małym, podświetlanym na zielono (super!) guzikiem, a wybrana prędkość sygnalizowana jest niebieskimi diodami. Synchroniczny silnik prądu stałego jest ten sam, co w RPM-5.1 Carbon, użyto także tego samego ramienia 9 CC Evo. W tej wersji dostajemy jednak aż cztery różne, wytłumione Sorbotanem, przeciwwagi, pozwalające na precyzyjne dopasowanie ich do wkładki (5 - 7,5 g | 7 - 10 g | 9 - 11 g | 10 - 14 g). From its smaller "brother" RPM-9 Carbon differs with the said motor control, but above all, with more significant weight. Small Carbon weighed 8 kg, and here just the platter weighs 7.2 kg; and the the turntable nearly 17 kg. It is made of aluminum with a vinyl layer on the top, it is damped from the bottom using a type of rubber (TPE) for the push-wide cutter. It is made using CNC machines and it is higher and heavier, because of some additional steel elements. It is also “wrapped” with carbon fiber not only on top but also on the sides. The bearing is a classic one for this manufacturer with a ceramic ball and Teflon bed. Turntable comes with Connect it CC cable with a DIN socket on one end and RCA plugs on the other (optional XLR connectors are available). From its smaller "brother" RPM-9 Carbon differs with the said motor control, but above all, with more significant weight. Small Carbon weighed 8 kg, and here just the platter weighs 7.2 kg; and the the turntable nearly 17 kg. It is made of aluminum with a vinyl layer on the top, it is damped from the bottom using a type of rubber (TPE) for the push-wide cutter. It is made using CNC machines and it is higher and heavier, because of some additional steel elements. It is also “wrapped” with carbon fiber not only on top but also on the sides. The bearing is a classic one for this manufacturer with a ceramic ball and Teflon bed. Turntable comes with Connect it CC cable with a DIN socket on one end and RCA plugs on the other (optional XLR connectors are available). As I wrote in the RPM-5.1 Carbon review, the 9CC Evo is one of the lightest tonearms in this manufacturer's range, that its effective weight is only 8 grams and that it should therefore work with cartridges of high and medium compliance; Denon DL-103 and similar ones may be too "stiff". It is of course true, but an incomplete one. In the real world, all Pro-Ject arms “get along” with DL-103 just fine. SETUP The Pro-Ject RPM series turntable come in several pieces that need to be assembled before one can start using it. It's not a difficult task but surely some experience with other decks helps. The test model comes in a very nice, although simple MDF box. I will say this: all turntable that cost more than 5000 PLN should be packed this way, as well as all amplifiers and players! I described the whole procedure in my RPM-5.1 review but it won't hurt anyone to repeat it. After opening the box one needs to take the chassis out of it and then tighten the three feet to it. The reviewed model uses large, aluminum feet featuring two surfaces decoupled by means of magnets. This solution is used by PJ for a long time and that's the only element of the design on which I have my doubts (with the magnetic suspension there is no way to disperse vibrations or convert them into the heat). The turntable should be placed a shelf so that the arm is on the right side, perpendicular to us. Set includes a small spirit level. User should unscrew consequent feet to the point where the chassis is horizontal, and then one installs the platter. Both the spindle (in the chassis) and the bed (in the platter) feature protective plastic caps that one has to remove before installing platter. One should keep them for future use. The motor can be set at three locations, all on the left side of the chassis: at the front, in the middle and in the back. I would suggest to set it in the front. One takes a transparent ruler and put so that its edge runs over the the axis of the arm base (there is a recess), the spindle and the axis of the motor. The distance between the motor and the platter may be adjusted by means of a transparent template that is included in the package. Cable from power supply needs to be plugged in the motor and the power adapter into a power outlet. One may purchase this turntable together with Ortofon Bronze, or without any cartridge. To adjust VTF one has to follow instructions in the manual, it's not that difficult at all. The indications on the counterweight are precise enough although if you want to do it accurately you should ask someone for electronic scale. One should also adjust VTA by adjusting the height of the tonearm column. It can be done by unscrewing two Allen screws. Generally, the idea is that white line drawn on the side of the arm is parallel to the surface of the record. This can be measured by using a small set square. Interconnect connects to the socket placed at the bottom of the arm. PRO-JECT in “High Fidelity” REVIEW: Pro-Ject HEAD BOX RS + POWER BOX RS UNI 1 - headphone amplifier + power supply unit REVIEW: Pro-Ject RPM-5.1 CARBON – turntable REVIEW: Pro-Ject PRIMARY THE ROLLING STONES EDITION | PHONO BOX E – turntable REVIEW: Pro-Ject PRE BOX RS – DAC, read HERE REVIEW: Pro-Ject BOX DESIGN MaiA – integrated amplifier, read HERE AWARD OF THE YEAR 2014: CD BOX RS + PRE BOX RS DIGITAL – Compact Disc transport + D/A converter/preamplifier, read HERE REVIEW: CD BOX RS + PRE BOX RS DIGITAL – Compact Disc transport + D/A converter/preamplifier, read HERE AWARD OF THE YEAR 2014: Pro-Ject 1XPRESSION CARBON CLASSIC + Ortofon M SILVER - turntable + cartridge, read HERE REVIEW: Pro-Ject 1XPRESSION CARBON CLASSIC + Ortofon M SILVER – turntable + cartridge, read HERE REVIEW: Pro-Ject Box CD SE + DAC Box FL - CD player + D/A converter, read HERE REVIEW: Pro-Ject ART-1 (+ Denon DL-A100) – turntable (+ cartridge), read HERE REVIEW: Pro-Ject RPM6 SB + PRO-JECT PHONO BOX SE – turntable + phonostage, read HERE REVIEW: Pro-Ject 2XPERIENCE – turntable, read HERE REVIEW: Pro-Ject RPM5 SUPERPACK – turntable, read HERE REVIEW: Pro-Ject HEAD BOX MkII – headphone amplifier, read HERE REVIEW: The Π Ject Family Saga vol. 1, read HERE REVIEW: The Π Ject Family Saga vol. 2, read HERE Records used for the test (a selection) Smoke Sessions - Vol.1, Smoke Sessions Records SSR-1401, „Limited Edition Collection | No. 193/500”, 200 g LP (2013); Bill Evans Trio, Waltz for Debby, Riverside Records/Analogue Productions APJ009, „Top 25 Jazz | Limited Edition #0773”, 2 x 180 g, 45 rpm LP (1961/2008) Dire Straits, Brothers in Arms, Warner Bros./Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab MFSL-2-441, „Special Limited Edition | No 3000”, 2 x 180 g, 45 RPM LP (1985/2014) Jean-Michel Jarre & Tangerine Dream, Zero Gravity, The Vinyl Factory VF184, 180 g 45 RPM LP (2015) Julie London, Julie is Her Name. Volume Two, Liberty/Analogue Productions APP 7100, 180 g LP (1958/2014) Mark Knopfler, Tracker, British Groove Records 4716983, “Deluxe Limited Edition”, 2 x CD + DVD + 2 x 180 g LP (2015); Skalpel, Transit, PlugAudio PL02, 2 x 180 g LP (2014) The Mills Brothers, „Hymns We Love”, Dot Records DLP 3568, LP (1964) Tommy Schneider & Friends, The Hidden Port, Kolibri Records no. 12001, 180 g LP (2012) Wes Montgomery & Wynton Kelly Trio, Smokin’ At The Half Note, Verve/Universal Music K.K. [Japan] UCJU-9083, 200 g LP (1965/2007) Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] Whenever a company has more than two-three products in their range, one can point out a so called "sweet spot". This is a product, or several products, after which the curve describing this relation begins to flatten rapidly. These products are not too expensive, but they are no longer cheap – they are just right. Among the Pro-Ject turntables such a place of balance was, for me for years, the RPM-5 model. First, in its basic form, then as a more sophisticated Superpack and finally in its best incarnation so far, the 5.1 Carbon. I remember particularly well the 2007 Superpack version test, because it was a set, which could be supplemented with new elements, one could replaced some element thus improving the quality of the sound while keeping the same sonic character of the presentation. If one liked the basic version of this turntable one could make it sound even better enhancing its advantages without exposing its weaknesses. Although the Carbon version is more expensive, it is still for me the "sweet spot" of the RPM series and the whole Pro-Ject lineup. The RPM-9 Carbon is almost twice as expensive as the 'Carbon 5.1'. But also its earlier versions were much more expensive than the original RPM-5. Despite that, following this model and the RPM-10 one could easily see how the price/quality ration worked - their sound was better, but not enough to justify declaring them a “new quality”. The improvements included cleaner, more accurate and more selective sound. These were still, so to speak, high quality hi-fi machines. The '9 Carbon' version overturns the existing stratification upside down. There is no need to pretend or be limited by a political correctness, because there is plenty of records to be listened to – it is a serious turntable. Serious in the sense that it shows things that we ask for on high-end level. E.g. the richness of the sound. I'm a big fan of RPM-5, in each version, mainly because the instruments are presented by him in a life-size, with nice, palpable bodies. They are never too bright or outlined which happened to '9' and '10' models before. The reviewed turntable offers even further improvement towards more open, more resolving sound, while maintaining the same level of richness and the scale of the sound. The first thing that stroke me was the amount of information, particularly in the middle and treble areas. It was real information, ie. building the message, and not the details that we do not need. They shape a rich sound with a proper flow regardless of the quality of the recording and pressing. The first records which I listened to were lo-fi releases by Warsaw label Altanova Press and the re-issue of electronic experiments Cybernetic Serendipity Music, and therefore the items one could say many things about except for one thing – one could never say these offer a refined sound. And yet, despite all this I listened to them with interest, enjoying them because I received a fantastic musical message, I knew what these recordings were about. I did not focus on the drawbacks of the media, but on music. And yet, as I say, this turntable shows a wealth of information at the top of the band, which for crack and pops, noise and distortion is like an open door to the prison cell – an irresistible temptation. It is capable of nice differentiation, shows the advantages of analog recording and analog remastering - see Waltz for Debby by Bill Evans Trio on 45 RPM Analogue Productions - but it also lets you close your eyes and "sail into big ocean of" sounds from digital recordings, such as, for example. 200 gram issue of Smoke Sessions. Vol. 1. The midband is particularly resolving. But also rather warm sounding. I'm exaggerating about this warmth a bit, but when we put RPM-9.1 and RPM-9 Carbon next to each other, we, without hesitation, will call Carbon a warm one among these two. If you have experience with more expensive turntables, then you will know that it's not about some warmth added on top, because it is not a coloration and treble is not rolled off. We will be aware that it is a "warmth" that is a result of the low distortion and - attention, the "magic" word - of coherence, so the features describing the world of high-end. The whole frequency range as delivered by RMP-9 Carbon is actually well balanced - neither warmed up nor dried. It is just right. If you could point the finger at something, but with care and not with the accusation, it would be more powerful lower bass. This should appeal to most listeners. I heard it best with Denon DL-103, but it was also evident with other cartridges. The control of the lowest range is not absolute - it is rather soft and meaty presentation. '9' and '10' delivered tauter and tighter bass. On the other hand, they did not deliver that much information and were not as enjoyable. What we get in comparison with more expensive turntables, is primarily an even larger scale of sound and better shaped instruments' bodies. Carbon soundstage is deep, also elements out-of-phase are portrayed in a fabulous way - the opening of the 12 " Jarre with Tangerine Dream single surrounded me with the sounds coming even from behind me. In turn, the width of the stage is moderate. This is a result, I think, of a limited volume of the sound. Kronos Sparta priced at 130.000 PLN, which uses carbon fiber also on the platter proves that everything can be much deeper, much bigger and many times more resolving. For a fraction of that amount, RPM-9 Carbon, however, gets us all the basic building blocks of Sparta's sound, shown in a very convincing way. And if I haven't convinced you yet to audition this turntable maybe an information the - especially with Denon cartridge, the background noise and pops&cracks are on this turntable negligible. Even listening through planar HiFiMan HE-6 headphones, particularly resolving, that hate bright sources, I could listen to any records comfortably and enjoy it. Summary In the world of audio progress is extremely slow and rarely we can witness any technological breakthroughs. The last was the digital revolution 2.0, which took place 25 years after the previous one, associated with Compact Disc. In the analog world we use solutions designed dozens of years ago or even more. It turns out that the experiments with the materials produced much good, and carbon fiber (and titanium, but it is completely different shelf price) are perfectly suited to increase the resolution of the sound without making it bright. And that's exactly what this turntable is about. It has a full, deep sound and high resolution. Bass is well extended and slightly emphasized, and the treble is nicely extended as well. The background noise as well as cracks&pops are barely audible. This is a very serious turntable. RPM-9 Carbon is a non-suspended mass-loader. It's chassis is machined on CNC of MDF and hot coated on top and sides with a layer of carbon fiber. A steel element added at the bottom adds weight, lowers the center of gravity of the deck and stabilizes the main bearing. It is an inverted bearing with a ceramic ball and steel spindle mounted in the base and with a bed of hardened bronze plate. The ball is lubricated. The turntable rests on three large feet decoupling it from the ground. Their bodies are made of aluminum, and the upper and lower parts are separated by repelling magnets. These are adjustable feet that allows user to level the turntable but they are not particularly user-friendly – flanges that have to be turned to adjust height are placed too close to chassis so it is hard to use them. The nicely balanced platter weighing 7,2 kg is made of aluminum. On top they put a layer of vinyl, it also features an internal TPE damping. Turntable is delivered with a black, heavy record puck made of brass. Platter is set into motion by an AC motor using a rubber, round belt. The motor sits inside a large, aluminum cast housing placed on a steel base. The whole structure vibrates a bit during operation, which should be improved in the future. There is a novelty in this design – a precise DC driven AC generator (Speed Box) that is built-in together with electronic speed control with 33/45 rpm switching. It runs on DC 15 V DC external power supply The deck is supplied with the 9” (230 mm) Pro-Ject 9CC Evo tonearm already installed. The set includes also the Pro-Ject Connect It 5CC phono cable terminated with DIN and RCA plugs. Specifications (according to manufacturer) RPM-9 Carbon Wow & flutter: 33: +/- 0.10% | 45: +/- 0.10% Speed drift: 33: +/- 0.10% | 45: +/- 0.10% S/N: - 75 dB External power supply: 15 V DC/800 mA Power consumption: 13 W (max)/< 0.3 W (standby) Dimensions: 440 x 180 x 325 mm (S x W x G) Weight: 16.7 kg 9cc EVO carbon Effective arm length: 230 mm Effective arm mass: 8 g Overhang: 18 mm Tracking force range: 0 – 35 mN [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/project/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/project/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/project/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/project/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/project/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/project/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/project/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/project/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/project/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/project/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/project/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/project/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/project/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/project/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/project/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/project/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/project/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/project/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/project/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/project/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/project/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/project/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/project/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/project/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/project/th/13.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/project/13.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/project/13.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/project/th/14.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/project/14.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/project/14.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

e had to wait a long time so that the flagship belt-drive transport of Japanese company C.E.C. (CEC) would finally be joined by equally sophisticated DAC. As long as I remember, that has always been a case – the TL0 transport in its successive incarnations was in its perfection alone. Below in the price list everything was as it should have been, ie. the TL3 transport was accompanied by the DA3 DAC (see HERE [Polish]), but TL0 was rather frequently combined with flagship DACs of other brands (for many it has also become a kind of an example used in their own designs of devices). And even if nominally the TX71 played the role of "the first lady", it was not a real "ultimate" choice for this transport. It is no secret that over the years the electronics for this company, including D/A Converters, was designed by Juan Carlos Candeias Isaac, an engineer and designer, preparing OEM products for several companies, including CEC and Aquavox. His German company was called Candeias Audio Electronics, and after moving to China, Candeias Electronics Co., Ltd. Along with Manfred Penning (formerly Restek) he finally founded a company named B.M.C. [Polish]. These days are over for CEC. When we look at the new converter, we can see that this time the Japanese company has benefited from the knowledge of someone from the outside, again a European - at the rear we find the inscription "Made in EU" that confirms that. Although no one will say this, the way they made housing, the functions, the appearance of the back panel and internal structure allows me to say with a lot of certainty that DA0 3.0 was designed and built by our good friend Rumen Atarski of Thrax Audio. This means that we are dealing with an extremely interesting product. DA0 3.0 The new CEC DAC is big and heavy. It's housing was made of perfectly matched aluminum plates and the device accepts digital signals up to 32 bits and 384 kHz, as well as DSD128 (via USB). It is equipped with a number of digital inputs, and it features a transformer coupled output. Each section has a separate power supply. What is even more important is that instead of some of-the-shelf DAC chip they decided to use a discrete, multi-bit 32/384 DAC made by MSB. Discreet means here not that it is small – it covers an area of approximately 20x15 cm, but rather that it is not an integrated circuit and that its components are separately soldered on the PCB. Majority of the best D/A Converters I know, whether it is dCS, MSB or totaldac use a similar solution. There are some exceptions obviously – our Polish Ancient Audio being a great example, but an ever growing number of top DACs are based on discrete R-2R circuits, with discrete resistors ladder switched by semiconductor circuits, controlled by a programmable DSP. The software for such a system is created by a particular manufacturer, which allows them to include their own digital filters, upsampling algorithms, etc. In addition to classic digital inputs, such as: RCA, optical, USB and AES / EBU, DA0 3.0 also incorporates a Superlink input ("CEC Superlink- Digital Signal Transmission System Connection"), based on four 75 Ω BNC cables. This way allows a separation of the clock for left and right channel audio signal, the return clock signal from transport and audio signal. Also Ancient Audio has its own version of such a link where each channel between transport and DAC connects with five separate digital cables! It was solved in a much simpler way in dCS, but even there the hi-res and DSD signals run through two cables, separately for the left and right channel. It's a rarely used solution, but one of the best ones, allowing to bypass the S/PDIF receiver to better synchronize both components of the system, and thereby reduce jitter. Superlink in this new CEC DAC was necessary, because their TL3 and TL0 transports were and are equipped with this type of output. The latter has a chance to use its true potential for the first time, at least using such an elaborate connection. Note that DA0 3.0 features a great white display that is large and easy to read. Since we received one of the first production units, we did not have a final version of the remote control or manual. However, the operation is pretty straight forward and can be performed from the front panel. User can choose a digital filter – there is a choice of four, activate one of the two upsampling algorithms, reverse the absolute phase and enable the re-clocking of an input signal. Let us add that the jitter is negligible, as the level of 1ppm suggest, the inputs are optically isolated, there is no need for the I/U conversion, there are no output buffers or any filters in the circuit after signal leaves D/A stage. We liked this device so much that during the High End Show in Munich we awarded it with Best Sound (read HERE). All that is just a beginning. DA0 3.0 DAC was used together with CEC TL0 3.0 transport using both, Superlink as well as RCA (S/PDIF) connections. A separate listening session was conducted using Audionet ART G3 CD Player utilized as a CD Transport (Philips CD Pro2 LH). Signal from unbalanced outputs was delivered to Ayon Audio Spheris III preamplifier using Siltech Triple Crown interconnect and than using Crystal Cable Absolute Dream IC to Soulution 710 power amp. I used my own Harbeth M40.1 loudspeakers as well as semi-active Aequo Audio Ensis with signal delivered to them using Tara Labs Omega Onyx. I also used the 1390 PLB a pair Polish Pylon Audio Opal Monitor [Polish] loudspeakers. Even the latter clearly presented difference between Superlink and S/PDIF connection. Adjustable digital filters allow user to “tune” that sound of the device, at least to a point, to fit the sound to our system and requirements. These do not cause any fundamental differences, as eg. cables did, but significant enough so that it is worth giving them a try. The test was carried out with the re-clocking and upsampling No. 2 and a digital filter No. 3 on. As for upsampling I had mixed feelings, so it is best if you try them for yourselves. C.E.C. in “High Fidelity” TEST: C.E.C. CD5 - Compact Disc Player, see HERE AWARD OF THE YEAR 2014: C.E.C. TL0 3.0 – Compact Disc transport, read HERE TEST: C.E.C. TL0 3.0 – Compact Disc transport, read HERE TEST: C.E.C. ASB3545WF Wellfloat – anti-vibration platform, read HERE TEST: C.E.C. DA 3N + TL 3N – digital-to-analogue converter + CD transport, read HERE TEST: C.E.C. CD 3800 + AMP 3800 – CD player + integrated amplifier, read HERE TEST: C.E.C. DA53N – digital-to-analogue converter, read HERE TEST: C.E.C. TL53Z + AMP53 – CD player + integrated amplifier, read HERE TEST: C.E.C. TL51XR – CD player, read HERE TEST: C.E.C. TL1N/DX1N – CD transport + D/A converter (world premiere), read HERE TEST: C.E.C. AMP3300R – integrated amplifier, read HERE TEST: C.E.C. AMP6300 – integrated amplifier, read HERE Recordings used during test (a selection) Andrzej Trzaskowski Quintet, Andrzej Trzaskowski Quintet, Polskie Nagrania „Muza”/Warner Music Poland, „Polish Jazz vol. 4”, Master CD-R (1965/2016) Bill Evans, Everybody Digs Bill Evans, Riverside/JVC JVCXR-0020-2, XRCD (1958/2007) Brian Eno, Another Green World, Island Records/Toshiba-EMI VJCP-68658, CD (1975/2004) Byrd, McLean, Coltrane, Taylor’s Wailers, Prestige/Analogue Productions CPRJ 7117 SA, SACD/CD (1957/2013) David Cross & Robert Fripp, Starless Starlight, Noisy Records/Inter Art Committees | Vivid Sound Corporation VSCD4294, SHM-CD (2015) David Sylvian, Alchemy – An Index Of Possibilities, Virgin CDVX 23, Promo CD-R (1995/2003) Depeche Mode, Violator (+Enjoy The Silence Maxi SP CD), Mute Records/Alfa Records ALCB-33, CD (1990) Franz Schubert, Winterreise, wyk. Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Alfred Brendel, Decca 464 739-2, CD (1986/2001) J.S. Bach, Solo & Double Violin Concertos, wyk. Anderw Manze, Rachel Podger, Academy of Ancient Music, Harmonia Mundi HMA1957155, „Musique D’Abord”, CD (1997/2016) King Crimson, In The Court of the Crimson King, Atlantic/WOWOW Entertainment [Japan] IEDG-01, 7” Platinum SHM-CD + DVD-Audio (1969/2016); Michał Urbaniak Group, Live Recording, Polskie Nagrania „Muza”/Warner Music Poland, „Polish Jazz vol. 24”, Master CD-R (1971/2016) Pet Shop Boys, Super, Sony Music Labels (Japan) SICX-41, CD (2016) R-Men, I thought about you, T-TOC Records MCDR 3002, „Platinum Gold Sound“, Master CDR IIα (2010) Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] Superlink vs S/PDIF Test shall begin with a short description of my impression on comparison between Superlink (using separate cables for clock and signal) and S/PDIF connection (using a single cable). The differences are significant and they decide whether what we get is a very good or a remarkable performance. This second option being a result of a combination of TL0 3.0 transport and DA0 3.0 DAC connected using Superlink. Sound when playing using S/PDIF is, in comparison, "gray" or in other words - colorless. You might think I exaggerate, because we are talking about a few percent improvement in the sound quality, and sure, one might say that. My answer to that is this: if we're talking about the top level, and we are already enjoying top level sound, each percent in this or that way means giving up or gaining something important. In this case, the gain means better depth of the sound, much more sensible, velvety naturalness of the sound and this unique "presence" it creates. It may seem an exaggeration, but - I assure you - it is not: the difference between the two inputs is subjectively so big that it becomes more important than the choice of a transport itself. Connected using a high-end digital S/PDIF cable CEC and Audionet transports sounded distinctly different, with the Japanese unit having an upper hand. It offered a thicker, more substantial, more natural sound and, above all, it offered a much better defined bass. But when I compared Superlink and S/PDIF connection between CEC components the differences between them were more fundamental. I would think of TL0 3.0 and DA0 3.0 as an “obligatory” set that should work together. DAC with signal delivered this way sounded so incredibly natural. I repeat it again and again (to be precise – for the third time), but I can't forget the sound I heard in Jacek Gawłowski's mastering studio. It was incredibly natural and believable. CEC offers a very similar performance. It focuses on delivering particularly rich, full sound, on texturing, on the maximization of "firmness" of the sound. It is vivid and active while having no hint of any digital artifacts in it. Its tonal balance is shifted downward the band, at least in comparison to most other digital sources, and it is one of the foundations on which the sound is constructed. It is so in part due to the belt-driven transport, but DAC also promotes this “vision” of the sound. With the Audionet as transport sound was a little lighter, but mainly not so deep - and I don't mean the sound stage, which I will discuss in a moment, but the depth of individual instruments, vocals, reverbs. The way that CEC system presents the physicality of drums, bass, trumpet, vocals finally, is simply incredible. It's very uncommon in the context of audio in general, not only for a digital player. In this respect, this performance was very close to the sound of an analog master tape. This is not the same sound, it is simply not possible, but among the devices for audio playback only two digital systems - dCS Vivaldi SACD Player and Ancient Audio Lektor Grand SE CD Player - and among turntables primarily TechDAS Air Force One offered similar attributes. Of course one can analyze individual parts of the band, sub-bands, dynamics, tonality, timbre and so on and I'm not saying it would be a mistake. However, this would distort the overall picture, which is more important than its components. Purity, beautiful proportions between the whole and the detail, refined imaging, these are important elements of the presentation and CEC delivers them beautifully. But the essence of this performance is something else - a reliable presentation of a “big picture” that causes goose bumps, involves listener even when he listens to some recordings he already listened to hundreds of times. Therefore, it is a particularly palpable sound. By "palpable" I understand that it is a reliable presentation of the instrument's sound or of a voice, which allows listener to realize/understand/appreciate both, the strategy and its implementation for the recording process (recording, mixing and mastering), and the music itself on an equal footing. It's the kind of communication, in which technique is constantly present underneath the events and it co-builds a new artistic message, a new quality, which has a lot in common with a live event but is not identical with it. In many ways, it's even better sound than the one we know from the 'live' events. Let me explain. At the time when I had the CE system at home, the Teatrum Musicum Kraków 2016 was taking placed in my city, coordinated by Capella Cracoviensis ("High Fidelity" was a media sponsor of the event). For two months of its duration there were several concerts and musical events prepared in different places by several cultural institutions of our city. One (hot) evening, I listened to Biber's Mystery sonatas performed by CC musicians with Robert Bachar as a soloist. He used five different violins, one for each sonata; these were violins of a different built and, above all, voicing. I sat maybe 2-3 meters from him with theorbo on the left, small cello on the right, and straight ahead, there was the violin, harpsichord and organ. The concert took place in the auditorium of Blessed James at the Franciscan Church in Krakow. The concert was brilliant and it ended with several encores. But one thing was different from what I listened to at home - the sound was largely dispersed and reflected, there was no clear "imaging" of the violin. The sound-holes directed up promoted reflection rather than direct sound. If the event had been recorded, microphones would have stand on a tripod, some 3 m above the stage, facing down, and they "would see" violin directly. That's how I heard Rachel Podger and Andrew Manze violins playing Bach's double sonatas from Solo & Double Vicertos Harmonia Mundi ("Musique d'Abord" series). They were presented with a clearly image, excellent timbre and were properly located on stage. The concert I mentioned above was an absolute revelation, and playing the music from a CD did not have the magic of live events. And yet I got a better perspective of the violin listening to the recording, I felt closer to the violin when listening to the CD using CEC system. It is not a heresy but a reality - how many times can we participate in a concert of some remarkable performers who are, at the time, in really good form, while we sit in the right place of a very good concert hall? And about jazz concerts? Rarely, very rarely happens that such concerts are properly amplified as it was a case once with Tomasz Stańko performance promoting the album Wisława in the Krakow Philharmonic. Rock concerts? Forget about it Contact with a live music is achieved through one's whole being, body and mind. It is something that can not be faked. I must say, however, that CEC DAC listened together with their transport offered something just as valuable in return: the already mentioned "palpability" of the sound, so that each subsequent event, ie. each new recording carried an emotional charge comparable to the one perceived during a live concert, it elicited similar (if not the same) emotions. Comparisons This CEC setup ranks at the top of the currently available digital sources, regardless of whether we're talking about files, SACD or CD. It occupies this top with a few other products. Of those that I had a chance to listen to that other ones I already mentioned before plus there is one more – the top totaldac system. Each one is different, with each of them we are offered a slightly different interpretation of the musical event - equally fascinating, but still different. The dCS offers even smoother, more “illuminated” sound. They way it builds space and everything in it is almost imperceptible in its naturalness. The closest match to it in this aspect would be the TechDAS Air Force One turntable. The French system, with 3.0 TL0 as a signal source, delivered even purer sound, with even more open treble area, with a very large soundstage. From these two systems CEC differs with more substantial presentation, better bass extension and better drive. If I were to compare it to something else another, it would be idler turntables or a reel-to-reel tape recorders. It's a particularly solid, meaty, with a hint of "vintage" sound in the sense that it never allows for any brightness which makes it similar to analog recordings made using tube hardware. This type of presentation, with German company Tacet being a great representative, has a center of gravity set quite low and it focuses on coherency, and a great differentiation of a lower midrange and bass. Upper midrange and treble in dCS and totaldac are slightly better differentiated. Both present treble in a bit stronger fashion too than CEC. It is extremely pleasant to listen to, but in fact, the sound rises even higher and goes a bit further. In terms of differentiation of the midrange and bass only Ancient Audio system could compete with CEC. The Polish digital source is not so phenomenally resolving in the bass, nor is its performance so remarkably rhythmic but the midrange is pure magic through the depth, saturation and refinement. CEC sounds in a very similar way, but it does not go that far. It also shapes the soundstage differently – it does not show the individual instruments so clearly nor their reverb, as Polish CD Player does, preferring rather not so well defined but thus a more natural sound stage, as we know it from reel-to-reel tape recorders. Summary or the GOLD Fingerprint I probably have not satisfied the Readers of "High Fidelity", who look for an easy and clear answers. I'm sorry, but I could not describe it otherwise as we are talking about a digital system that needs to be discussed in a different way. It does not really matter whether there is treble or there isn't one, and if there is, how much of it one can hear, because it's nonsense (in this particular case, these are important elements of the test, but in the lower price ranges). We are talking about the hardware that plays so reliably, so believably that we have to consider more fundamental issues, ie. how the particular album affects me, what exactly does it move in my soul and heart, what's my attitude towards this particular presentation of this particular music, how does it compare to the other top sources (digital or not). In this respect CEC's performance is close to the one of an analog master tape. It does not form such distinct phantom images as the Ancient Audio system and does not show sound in such an incredibly smooth manner as dCS, it can not differentiated treble quite so well as totaldac. However, there is something that the others (except perhaps Ancient Audio) do not have – this source presents the world in a way as if we were in it. This is the world that has been created from start to finish, but in such a way that one never even begins to thinking about arguing this particular concept of presentation. Because there is nothing to argue about. GOLD Fingerprint. A full name of the reviewed converter is "CEC DA 0 3.0 - Universal Audio DSP controlled DAC". Its design is almost exactly the same as the one of Thrax Audio Maximus DAC, apart from a few details. The housing is made of aluminum plates perfectly fitted together - it is a truly excellent work. Electronics is bolted to the upper wall and there is no other way to get to it than by dismantling the whole device into small parts - I didn't want to do that. The bottom of the housing is screwed to it with aluminum feet, but instead of metal screw they used a plastic, threaded spindle. Front is covered for the most part with a mirror-like plate, resembling the one used in TL0 3.0 transport. Visible beneath is a fantastic, large, easy to read display. Maybe a little too short, because it can not fit the whole displayed information at once. We can read on it information from device's menu, as well as the parameters of digital signals. I found it interesting that the DAC when connected to the CEC transport displayed the information about signal having a resolution of 24 bits, as if the transport upsampled signal before sending it out. On the other hand when I connected a Philips CD Pro2 transport (in both Audionet ART G3 and Ancient Audio AIR V-edition) the displayed number “17” suggestion such a strange bit-depth when playing regular 16-bit discs. Next to the display there are six push-buttons, which allows user to change an active input, change the settings in the menu, turn on the mute mode (a green LED lights up) or switch it to standby mode (red light). The rear panel has been machined from a single aluminum plate. It holds Neutrik and Cardas connectors. There are two analog outputs - balanced and unbalanced - and one chooses between them with a small switch. The inside is almost entirely occupied by a large, made of high-quality material, printed circuit board with Platinum Signature MSB Technology's 32-bit DAC modules. These are resistors turned on using semiconductors, controlled by a DSP. CEC features four mono converters, controlled by two DSPs from Analog Devices. These contain the digital filters, including upsamplers, as well as the re-clocking circuit. There is no conventional I/U conversion or buffers, or even amplifiers in the output stage. The output is transformer buffered – these are supplied by the British company Carnhill. It's an interesting choice, because the vast majority of manufacturers of audio products chooses Swedish Lundahl transformers. At the sides there are two PCBs with power supplies – there are as many as four separate Talem transformers for each channel separately, for the display and auxiliary systems. The USB input features a receiver prepared by JL Sounds. It uses a programmable XMOS chip, supported by high quality oscillators - a separate one for input signal and two more for an output signal. There is also a re-clocking circuit there that reduces jitter. The PCB accepts USB signal in an asynchronous mode, with resolution up to 384 kHz and 32 bits, and therefore the level of DXD. It also allows the transmission of DSD signal (using DoP protocol). The system delivers I2S and S/PDIF signals. To isolate the noise coming from a computer from the rest of the system, I2S output (and also, if someone uses it, the S/PDIF one), oscillators and re-clocking circuit are galvanically isolated from the XMOS USB input. Specifications (according to manufacturer) • Input signal: 32/384 (USB) | 24/192 (other inputs) Digital inputs: • SUPERLINK: BNC x 4 • S/PDIF (RCA) • TOSLINK • AES/EBU • USB 2.0: PCM 32 bits/32-384 kHz | DSD 64/2,8224-128/5,6448 MHz Power consumption: 30 W Dimensions (W x H x D): 432 x 400 x 120 mm Weight: around 16 kg Color: silver, black [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/th/13.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/13.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/13.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/th/14.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/14.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/cec_da/14.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

roducts for the power conditioning have their position in the audio world firmly established. Of course, not only here, they are equally important wherever the quality of power supply is particularly important, so in medical applications, military and in laboratories. At the same time nowhere else is their use called into question with such an astonishing regularity and ferocity as in our audio world. It is strange, considering the fact that at the speaker terminals one gets exactly the same current as from the electrical socket, only modulated with a signal from a sound source. Apparently, those who in other applications do not question the need for purification of the supply voltage of noise and other interference, find it hard to believe that a better power means also a better sound. The argument usually goes like this: since there is a transformer in an audio device - a natural low-pass filter – since there are capacitors and advanced voltage regulators, it should not matter what voltage the device will receive from power grid, as long a it matches nominal values, which in Poland is 230 V and frequency of 50 Hz. Fortunately, most of you, I think, has already experienced usage of power strip, cable or conditioner, and I do not have to convince you that these elements change the sound significantly. Often for the better. But rarely it happens that a manufacturer points to specific changes/improvements his solution introduces; an Italian company, Cammino, however is one of the few. As one reads on their webpage, the conditioners with the poetic name of Power Harmonizers (models H3.1, MA-5, MA-1), "improve the quality of power" and "dramatically reduce harmonic distortion." "They improve the phasing of current and voltage, filter out high frequency noise (RF)" and "increase the reliability of the equipment without disturbing the natural wealth of harmonics and dynamics in music." Power Harmonizer H3.1 Power Harmonizer H3.1 is the top of the line product of this company. It has already been introduced to the range some years ago but it is in production and still the flagship model. It's a classic passive conditioner with filtering elements, featuring four power outlets. The tested version, 3.1, one with a maximum capacity of 450 W, is intended for a digital source, and three other for analog devices - which in turn may deliver up to 1750 W (in total). The company, however, offers two other configurations, differing in the number of "digital" and "analog" outlets: 2.2 and 1.3. It would be difficult to include this device into "accessories" category considering its medium-sized housing, comparable to the dimensions of the Leben CS300 amplifier. Such particular comparison was encouraged also by a nice wooden cabinet. Company materials say that it is "tuned" using a material with added minerals for coating. The front is made of aluminum with blue LED entered in the company's logo - a dot over the 'i'. On the back there are four high quality outlets – these are Furutech FI-E30 (R) with rhodium plated contacts. A red dot indicates "hot" line - it is very important so that the entire audio system is connected with the right polarity. Also H3.1 should be so connected - check the correct phase by pressing a button on the rear panel - if the green light is on, everything is fine; if not, turn the Schuko plug in a power outlet. Also other brands take particular care of correct polarity, including Audionet (on the display you get an information on the correct polarity) and Ayon Audio (with the inappropriate connection a red light on the rear panel lights up). Also from Furutech and also rhodium-plated is the IEC socket. Next to it there is a mechanical power switch with silver contacts. Also fuse's contacts are made of silver. On the back one finds two more switches, labeled "PE". They are used to disconnect the ground (the protective conductor) of the "analog" outlets in various configurations (input and output ground). Typically, this type of switches are used where there is a ground loop, resulting in the so-called hum, or buzz audible in the speakers. Cammino approaches this differently, pointing to changes in the sound that these switches introduce: The PE switches open or close the acoustic scene similarly as when in a concert hall you seat at the back or at the front rows, whereas the DIGITAL and ANALOG outlets are used to modify the timbre balance of the system thanks to their particular conduct. The correct combination of these settings allows you to optimize the interaction between the system and the listening environment, often getting greater advantages than changing one of the Hi-Fi system components with a more expensive one. The fine tuning with the right choice of outlets and PE switches should be performed after the essential optimization of the loudspeaker position and subsequently slightly adjusted, if needed. source www.cammino-hp.com The device features three feet, de-coupling it from the surface it is placed on. It is a rigid de-coupling by means of metal ball. The device "floats" on them, so one has to be careful with power cables – these should not be too heavy, otherwise they might entail the device impairing its decoupling from the ground. The "digital" and "analog" outlets are filtered out slightly differently - the latter starting from 1 kHz and @ 100 kHz attenuation of -40 dB is achieved, the latter are filtered from 4.5 kHz and the same value of -42 dB is achieve already @ 60 kHz. Both suppress interference up to 30 MHz. The conditioner measures 290 x 145 x 215 mm and weighs 5.2 kg. What one can not read in technical description or parameters is the fact that it looks very elegant. Well, tis should come as no surprise considering it comes from Italy, right? If you thought it was funny that I placed the reviewed power strips and conditioners on platforms, think again, or even better – perform such a test yourself - assuming that the system is properly set up nothing will be the same ever again (see HERE, HERE, and HERE). So one should provide Harmony with some quality platform too. During this test the Cammino conditioner was placed on the top shelf of Finite Elemente Pagode Edition. The comparison was based on listening to two-minute pieces of music and switching a power cable between Acoustic Revive RTP-4eu Reference power distributor and the conditioner. The conditioner was first plugged into the same distributor, so that I could assess how it changes the sound that I can hear in my system every day, and then to the wall socket, the same as the distributor. I listened in this way to two CD Players - Ancient Audio Lektor AIR V-edition and Audionet ART G3. In both cases, the power cable was the same - Acoustic Revive Power Reference Triple-C, equipped with the latest, rhodium plated Furutech FI-50 NCF plugs. The conditioner was powered with a two-meter Harmonix X-DC350M2R Improved-Version power chord. Recordings used for the test (a selection) Dire Straits, Brothers in Arms, Vertigo/Universal Music Ltd. Hong Kong 5483572SX, SHM-XRCD2 (1985/2011) Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong, Ella and Louis, Verve/Lasting Impression Music LIM UHD 045, UltraHD CD (1956/2010) Franz Schubert, Winterreise, wyk. Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Alfred Brendel, Decca 464 739-2, CD (1986/2001) John Coltrane, Coltrane’s Sound, Atlantic/Rhino R2 75588, „Atlantic Jazz Gallery”, CD (1964/1999) Ornette Coleman, The Shape of Jazz to Come, Atlantic Records/ORG Music ORGM-1081, SACD/CD (1959/2013) The Rolling Stones, Exile on Main St., Atlantic/Universal Music Company (Japan) UICY-40001, Platinum SHM-CD (1972/2013) Wolfgang Dauners/Et Cetera, Knirsch, MPS Records/HGBS Musikproduktion UG HGBS 20013, CD (1972/2013) Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] One thing I learned a long time ago: products related to powering audio products affect the sound in different ways and the effects of their use are dependent on the quality of home electric grid, from how it is connected to an external power line and finally on how the components of the system are made and interconnected. Finding a proper solution for particular system is a game of trial and error. And yet ... When testing over the years different, very different filters, strips, cables and conditioners in my system, listening to them later also in the systems of my friends, I have developed sort of general idea of how the particular product affects the performance not only of my, reference system, but how should it behave in most of our Readers' systems. It's still just an approximation, a preliminary analysis, which must be confirmed independently, but - I think – it's valuable in that it directs the subsequent attempts, freeing you from having to start from the scratch for yourself. So I can say with a high probability that the Cammino Harmonizer will introduce order to your system and it will open the sound. I give you these qualities together, as in this case they do come together. Introducing order means better definition of the sounds, and of music sounding nicer. Both range extremes benefit from that particularly - the treble is more vibrant, vivid, more sophisticated, less "hard", and the bass is more tuneful and is better differentiated. This results in a more meaty and richer presentation, as if someone had released the "brake" prohibiting color saturation before. I did not notice any major changes in the dynamics, and if there were any I considered them positive. I mean, that the differences between quieter and louder passages, both on Coleman's jazz recording, as well as on the Dire Straits album, were bigger. To the extent that made me pump the volume up while listening, because sound seemed too quiet. But only until something louder happened as then I could clearly hear that what I took for lower sound level actually was a better differentiation of dynamics. Also the soundstage is differentiated in a better way - I mean first of the depth of the stage was amazing. Whatever was placed far away from me now seemed set even further, and the foreground is also moved a bit further away from the listener. It affects vocals most. With Cammino they are presented further away, deeper, are not that palpable as without this conditioner. The bigger distance between them and listener is a result of a more open perspective. When you listen to the music for some time in this way and get used to this new perspective, we shall realize that it is much more natural presentation and that before the sound was given in a more direct, more into-the-face way. As I wrote once, I'm a fan of up-close presentation, but in this particular case presenting vocal from a bigger distance but in a better acoustic environment, in a better interaction with other instruments - that I liked more. I spent a lot of time trying to answer the question, whether the sound with Harmony was darker or lighter than without it. It seemed to me that it was a simple question, because with most other conditioners I had an answer after a few minutes of listening. But Cammino's influence on tonality, timbre is much more subtle, which does not translate into simple zero/one or black/white choices. Anyway, it seems to me that with this conditioner sound was slightly darker. The impression was based mainly on a better expression of the sound's attack and did not have much to do with the level of treble, but rather its presentation. Harmony offered a richer version of the presentation, and therefore less "unambiguous", and thus not as obtrusive/aggressive. Options Harmonizer's manufacturer says in the manual about the differences in sound that occur between the sockets designed for digital and analog devices, as well as the changes in sound caused by the switches disconnecting ground. I can confirm that – these changes are repeatable and easily described. The impact of these changes is lesser than of the conditioner itself, but it allows you to fit the sound to your preferences. It seems that the digital socket is more aggressively filtered than analog one. The sound of the CD Player was brighter, clearer and more detailed when used with it. With an analog outlet the same tracks played with the same player had a warmer color, were denser/richer and slightly more closed. I did not notice any changes in the dynamics or range extension in the lower region. Perhaps only that with the analog socket bass was a bit softer and sounded more "physiologically", i.e. pleasantly and with the digital one it was better focused instead, and had higher energy. The PE switches actually affect how we perceive the spatial relationships between the instruments. The biggest difference, though on an absolute scale not that big, one can hear between the position with both switches "On" or the two set to "Off". In this latter case, the sound of my system was wider and less focused, instead; I could hear more of the reverbs and room's acoustics. When in "On" position sound was more substantial, and the foreground was presented in a more distinct, precise way. Summary Needless to say, that the differences between the components plugged directly to the Acoustic Revive RTP-4EU Reference power strip and the conditioner, which was plugged into the same strip were clear, but not conclusive. The very fact that in general these could be identified and that the music with conditioner sounded better proves that the solutions adopted by the people of the Cammino are meaningful, and that their device really works. The device plugged directly into the wall socket and compared with the strip showed much greater differences – the same in character as before, but their assessment was more ambiguous. And finally - a comparison between the Harmonizer and the wall socket. Here there is nothing to talk about - all the advantages were stronger, deeper, almost phenomenal. Again, they were the same as before, only intensified. It's a very nice-looking component, which makes you want to hear more music and more often. It "embellishes" sound by extracting it from the gray introduced to the music by components plugged directly into the wall outlet. Everything is clearer, more vibrant, as well as much more nuanced. An added bonus is an option of choosing the outlet and the way in which it will be connected to the system's ground (cable protection). In my reference system I liked most the combination of the analog socket with switches in "On" position. [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/cammino/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/cammino/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/cammino/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/cammino/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/cammino/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/cammino/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/cammino/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/cammino/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/cammino/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/cammino/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/cammino/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/cammino/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/cammino/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/cammino/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/cammino/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/cammino/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/cammino/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/cammino/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/cammino/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/cammino/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/cammino/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/cammino/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/cammino/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/cammino/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

company, whose main sound sources are still players of 120 mm, digital optical discs nowadays is sort of a sensation. Yes, Audionet offers in addition also four "Network Components", but I have the impression that the real fun for its designers is still a Compact Disc, maybe with addition of other discs, such as: SACD and DVD-A / V. It was not just a coincident that the top line presented at the High End 2016 in Munich, Scientist Series, included a CD player, not a network/file player. I bet that the latter sooner or later will join the line but rather as an answer to customers' demand, than actual needs of people from the company. The CD Player under review is called ART G3, or "Aligned Resonance Transport Generation 3". ART is a company's solution name referring to the multiple-way decoupling of transport from the ground. The first "layer" is the chassis itself. It is made of three types of material – bottom and side walls are made of steel, there is a granite plate underneath (see Ancient Audio) and MDF is also used for the upper part of the chassis together with additional side walls. Still other mechanical properties are introduced via aluminum front. The second "layer" is the way the transport is mounted inside the device. The new version features a well known Philips CDM-Pro2LF (VAU1254 / 31LF) mechanism, used not only by Audionet, but also by number of other manufacturers of high-end CD players. The transport has been suspended under 8 mm aluminum plate with another, steel plate screwed underneath. The whole is suspended on braided strips, supported by Teflon props. The fixing system of a transport and decoupling it from vibration are key features of this company's disc players' designs. Since the first version they already changed everything - e.g. G2 and G3 use different type of transport, and G3 and the top player Planck use different D/A Converters. However, the extensive decoupling remains unchanged, all changes are applied into everything around it. The Generation 3 indicates yet another version of the device. In fact, this is the fourth version, because after the original ARC-E there was the V2 version in 2002, and after that, in 2006, the G2. As you can see, the device has been offered for several years, and it's been 10 years since its last revision. In the DAC section one finds the long time obsolete AD1955 chips supporting signal up to 24 bits and 96 kHz - so it's no wonder that its USB input accepts signals also only up to 24/96. This indicates that using a different transport mechanism for the G3 is the most important change comparing to the G2, although some small changes were introduced also to the digital and analog sections. All signals from the digital inputs and read from a CD are firstly upsampled to 24/96, and only then converted to an analog signal. If one uses the "high bit" mode same circuit converts the input signal to 24/192. "The Mother of all CD Players," as it is called in the company materials, is a top-loader player, with a manually operated lid - an aluminum plate, sliding along Teflon guides. One puts a small disc weight one the disc made of a material called POM, which is used by many turntable manufacturers for platters and sometimes also chassis (see HERE [Polish] and HERE). Front can be black or silver, and display a blue or red. Since the launch of this device a lot of time has passed. However along with the refreshed version of the Planck, also this Player was brought to customers' attention reminding them also that changes in Audionet occur very rarely and it is only when the company is confident that they will bring significant changes into the sound. So let's look at this classic CD player, which as sort of a time machine takes us back to the times when such devices were the peak of technical possibilities. The Audionet Player was placed on the Finite Elemente Pagode Edition rack without additional anti-vibration feet and without additional platforms. In my opinion it worked for it best. It was compared with Ancient Audio Reader AIR V-edition CD Player and two-box CEC TL0 3.0 + 3.0 DA0 Player. A signal was sent using the unbalanced RCA Siltech Triple Crown interconnect to the Ayon Audio Spheris III preamplifier, and from there with another unbalanced IC to the Soulution 710 power amplifier. A separate session was devoted to listening to the ART G3 using headphones HiFiMAN HE-6 driven by Bakoon HPA-21 amplifier. The signal from the Player was delivered using Acoustic Revive Triple-C FM (1.8 x 1.4) interconnect. AUDIONET in „High Fidelity” TEST: Audionet pre1 gen2 + eps [Polish] – linestage + power supply TEST: Audionet MAP1 [Polish] – preamplifier/AV processor Recordings used for the test (a selection) Diorama, The Art of Creating Confusing Spirits, Accession Records 23450-2, 2 x CD (2002) Pat Metheny Group, Offramp, ECM/Universal Music K.K. UCCU-9543, „Jazz The Best | No. 43”, gold-CD (1982/2004) Art Tatum, Piano Starts Here, Columbia/Sony Classical 97 22218 2, „Zenph Re-Performance”, SACD/CD (2008) Johnny Coles, Little Johnny C, Blue Note/Audio Wave AWMXR-0006, XRCD24 (1964/2013) Michał Urbaniak Group, Live Recording, Polskie Nagrania „Muza”/Warner Music Poland, „Polish Jazz vol. 24”, CD-R (1971/2016) Franz Schubert, Winterreise, wyk. Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Alfred Brendel, Decca 464 739-2, CD (1986/2001) R-Men, I thought about you, T-TOC Records MCDR 3002, „Platinum Gold Sound“, Master CDR II (2010) June Christy, Something Cool, Capitol/EMI Music Japan TOCJ-90033, HiQuality CD (1966/2006) Novi Singers, Fife, Four, Three, Polskie Nagrania „Muza”/GAD Records GAD CD 025, CD (1977/2015) Rival Sons, Great Western Valkyrie, Erache Records/Hydrant Music QIHC-10059, CD (2014). Vangelis, Spiral, RCA/BMG Japan 176 63561, K2 SHM-CD (1977/2008) Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] Some good solutions flow through time, surprising more and more users. Some people simply return to what they knew before, and what has been overshadowed by novelties promising all kinds of good staff for half the price. Others are discovering them for the first time, marveling at the fact that they were permitted to be sidelined. But that's how the market works, especially the one associated with technologies. In audio it is driven on one hand by the companies, which every now and then must have something new in their range – that's how it works - otherwise they could lose to their competition and even the best good intentions are not enough, and on the other by engineers developing increasingly powerful components, systems, developing new components/circuits that measure better than previous ones. This forces change, regardless of whether the solution (product) could still be useful, or its time has already passed. This leads to a kind of "reaction", a resistance to change. But let's not be some naive "primitives" - progress is a good thing. After all, these "old" solutions were also invented once, it is not so, that only technologies developed within a single, well-defined segment of time (meaning "long, long ago") have some value. I would suggest a more flexible attitude towards progress: Let us take what it gives us and filter it through our actual needs, expectations, taste, in a wise way, "conserving" achievements of the past. Some of these ideas have a chance to appear again only because of the fact that something has changed in their environment and the benefits they offer are finally visible. I think that's what Audionet Player is about. Not that previously it had no fans, on the contrary, in some circles it was highly praised. But the reasons for doing so, however, were specific to a time and a given circle of people. In the sound of ART G3, which is significantly different from the G2's, we find all these things, ie. a hint of "vintage" but also of modernity and something timeless, which has nothing to do with one (resembling the past), or other (pivoted toward future) trend. It is particularly rich and reliable. There is no slight brightening of the sound anymore, that was a signature of the previous version, and that many music lovers liked a lot. Now it is a sound with rich lower end with an energetic bass. The latter is well differentiated even better than before; very good in absolute terms. For it is well focused, and has the same mass and energy. It does not favor any of the instruments, because these same qualities can be heard in the case of a double bass, piano but it still sounds great when generated electronically. It may therefore seem that it's a warm or even dark sound. But it will seem so only for a moment, and only when we replace with it a device with a clearly more open upper end. This impression comes from the fact that the range of around 1 kHz frequency, which previously was really strong, very "linear", is now slightly laid back, and thus more natural. It's one of the differences between the "objective" measurements and "subjective" perception, in which the latter always wins. Music is perceived subjectively as we are not some measuring apparatus that can analyze only one aspect at a time. We are incredibly complex system that analyzes all at once. The part of the midrange that is laid back allows the entire midband to develop properly. It is tangible and very realistically sounding. Piano sounds great, because it combines its majesty, power and delicacy. Similarly sound voices, both male and female. They have refined timbre, fullness and pretty good depth. There is another part of the range that has been modified, the so called "presence" area around 8 kHz frequency. This is not a classic EQ boost, but rather something of a "tuning". That's why the sound is so open. But that's also why one has to be careful about the accompanying system. This is the case where the anti-vibration feet, power conditioner, and even The Muse interface, the idea of TARA Labs, that mellows sound a bit, do not apply. All these elements made this Player sound tougher, more edgy and I would recommend against it. Without them, sound was a little less differentiated but presented a better tonal balance. It may even not be about tonality with regard to the frequency range but rather about the energy emitted in a said range, meaning something time-related – these are two different things. There must be something to it, however, because the soundstage, presented by ART G3 is outstanding. The first plans are tangible, but are not presented up-close. It was best heard with classical music recordings where instruments on the center of the stage were clear and dense, even though they were presented behind the line connecting the speakers. In turn, the closer toward the edge of the stage, the more it was structurally sound, spacial. All the out-of-phase effects were truly impressive - the sound surrounds us, circling around, caressing listener when needed. Audionet does not build a deep soundstage and does not show a clear "body" of instruments, at least compared to the best CD players, I know. It does not create a continuous "performance", which is characteristic for an analog tape, and which the best of the best digital systems try to match, eg. CEC two-box system (TL0 DA0 3.0 and 3.0). Its resolution is very good, as well as differentiation. Highly compressed recordings, for example: Diary of Dreams by Diorama, etc., tend to “harden” the upper midrange – I already mentioned that when citing "presence". So it is not the most versatile player I know. One has to take care about proper “environment” of the Player, and I would not expect miracles when playing poorly recorded music. I mean poor technical quality, error made by producers and not technical limitations, eg. of 1950ties jazz recordings, because these sound fantastic. The player reacts nervously for deep compression – there is no way around it. If you want to do something about it, either get some cheaper player, where such errors are covered up with other errors (eg. warm up sound), or decide to buy something significantly more expensive. The best players get deeper into sound, which makes us perceive such technical errors of the recordings as sound's "feature" or even a "flavor", so a part of the performance and not something that disqualifies it. If, however, we do not mind and we like to hear unusually well played acoustic instruments, well-recorded rock, then there is something to think about, ART G3 is here and now and costs - as for a high-end device - a very decent money. Summary I don't know how old are you and if you can even remember all the fuzz about ECM releases. Both, in times of Long Play and later of CD their products were considered as setting the bar in regard of transparency and vibrancy. Their releases were cited as a great example of an audiophile sound delivered by a non-audiophile company, a label focused on music and not on sound. Some of the listeners, even a large part of them, however, pointed to the fact that these releases sounded too lightly, were too bright, and even too shrilling. The same recordings listened today, I mean mostly CDs, sound phenomenal. Brightness, that they were supposed to deliver, turned out to be introduced by Players and not recordings and came from a high jitter. Same with this shrill, with the addition of errors coming from the feedback of the output stage of the players and amplifiers. Now, played on high-end Players, the same CDs dazzle and amaze. With Audionet CD player, under review, it is the same story. Its performance fully corresponds to what is required from a modern digital source, but with a hint of "vintage" sound, which gives this performance a timeless dimension. Its sound is deep and rich, but also open. It presents the events on the stage in a great way and pumps a lot of energy into the lower part of the range. This is a comprehensive, well thought-through performance, which situates ART among the successful, sophisticated sound sources. Be careful about this “hardening” of the upper midrange I mentioned before, especially when combining the player with other components. If you do, you will enjoy a great, ergonomic player, you can rely on. Audionet ART G3 is a Compact Disc Player, capable of playing also recordable CD-R and CD-RW (also those not finalized). This type of construction is a top-loader – there is no classic drawer, and the CD is placed directly on the motor shaft, under a lid that has to be manually moved. The device is extremely robust and heavy. The weight comes mostly from a granite slab, which is a bottom of the housing. It is intended to suppress the vibration. The front is made of aluminum, just as the “rails” lid moves along and the lid itself. It is moved by hand and it is really enjoyable operation, because the movement, due to the bed of Teflon, is extremely smooth. A matter of loading the TOC (ie, information about the number of tracks and their duration) was solved in an interesting way. In most cases, for the TOC to be read into Player's memory, one needs to turn on a micro-switch – it is done automatically when a drawer closes or user does it when sliding the lid of a top-loader. Here, instead of a primitive switch an element responsive to the presence of metal was used, so that the top lid is not electrically connected to the rest of the player, which should translate to an extend life of the device. Transport Transport mechanism is highly regarded, classic high-end CDM Pro2LH used by companies such as Ancient Audio, Ayon Audio, Jadis, Metronome Technology, Nagra, Reymio, Vitus Audio and many others. They stopped its production few years ago but it is still available for purchase. Audionet modified one very important thing in it - on the axis of the motor they placed quite a high cylinder made of POM one places a weight over. Originally it is a small/low element with beveled edges, which does not guarantee that weight is leveled. Once a similar solution but with a metal shaft was offered by Sony. Transport itself is suspended on a special decoupling system - a heavy aluminum plate is bolted to the bottom and on top there is another, thinner one. The whole hangs on braided belts, supported on Teflon pillars. Inside The electronic circuit is very similar to the previous one, although the integrated circuits in the analog section were replaced and some other changes, eg. in power supply were made. ART has been manufactured for several years and they still use the same DAC - Analog Devices AD1955 despite its limitation to 24/96 signal processing ability. Two such chips are used, one for each channel. Nowadays, it's less than nothing, but once it was the most sophisticated solution there was. That's why the USB input accepts signals only up to 24/96. Before the DAC chip one finds the SRC4192I sample rate converter, which converts the 16 / 44.1 signal to 24/96 or 24/192. Signal from USB input is received by the old system PCM2706, and from other inputs by the DIR1703E. PCM2706 is a complex system, USB receiver, DAC and headphone amplifier in one - in Audion only the functionality of a receiver is used. The power supply section is divided into two parts - transport has a separate, switching mode one, and the rest of the Player uses a linear one with a toroidal transformer with a few secondary windings. On the side one can still see a large board with programmable LSI chips - is part of the company's control system, in which the connections are executed with TOSLINK cables. It's an ingenuous technical idea, because the devices are galvanically isolated from each other. However, in reality however no other company uses it. Inputs and outputs I've mentioned USB input – ART is not just a CD Player but also a D/A Converter, although with limited functionality. There are two digital inputs – USB and optical TOSLINK, that accept signals up to 24 bits and 96 kHz. There are more digital outputs, which shows how important for the designers is the transport section of the device. One finds an AES / EBU, two RCA coaxial and one optical TOSLINK outputs. There are two analog outputs - balanced and unbalanced RCA; this devices features a balanced analog section. One might be surprised seeing two RCA S/PDIF outputs. But that's another feature important for companies that take a particular care about technical abilities of their products. The importance of the transport section of the Player can be also associated with the whole Audionet lineup – ART might be digitally connected with brand's preamplifier/DAC and it is capable of delivering PCM signal upsampled to 24/192. Many products today are capable of sending a signal up to 32/384 and DSD (DoP) via SPDIF, but this is quite imperfect method of such signal transfer. Audionet allows transfer of such signal via a special connection with separate lines for right and left channel. You can remember a similar solution from my reviews of Chord and dCS products. And a word about an important option – the rear panel features a socket that allows one to connect an optional, external power supply called EPS (Enhanced Power Supply). It is based on two 100W toroidal transformers and large total filtering capacity. The voltage is rectified in a Schottky diodes bridge, and discrete regulators are used, MOSFET transistors are employed as active elements. EPS is used to power the analog section. The test was performed without it. Menu The "high bit" mode may be set in device's menu. It allows user to set the output signal resolution (16/44.1 or 24/192) and to turn off the digital output. One can also determine whether the player should turn off automatically when not in use or not; user also decides if the disc is to be played when the lid is closed, or only after "Play" is pressed. It will also allow to determine the brightness of the display. It might seem that there are only few options but in practice it turns out, that it is enough. Audionet is also extremely ergonomic. The display dims after a while, and when no music is playing it dims even more, and status information moves along the display not to burn pixels out. The information is presented using large letters which makes them easy to read. After the Player is turned on user is informed whether the plug has the correct polarity. If not, one should turn it 180º - we're talking of course about the Schuko plug and socket. Ergonomics is a separate branch of knowledge, and few companies are really good at it - Audionet apparently is. Remote The previous version of ART was delivered with a "learning" remote control from Logitech. The new version features a simple, made in China, aluminum remote with aluminum buttons. It is neither particularly nice nor too ergonomic. So during the test I used the remote control that comes with the Ancient Audio Player – after all both devices feature Philips transport, responsive to the RC-5 code. Specifications (according to the manufacturer): Playable discs: CD, CD-R, CD-RW (finalized and non finalized) Disc sizes: 80 and 120 mm (according to IEC 908)  Conversion D/A: 192 kHz, 24 bits, Dual-Mono-DAC, Multibit-Delta-Sigma Frequency range: 0 – 90 000 Hz (-3 dB) – analog section THD + N: typ. 100 dB; (A-weighted/-60 dBFs) SNR: > 110 dB Chanel separation: > 130 dB/10 kHz Output impedance: 33 Ω Output voltage (XLR): 3,5 Veff. Power consumption: < 1 W (standby) | 40 W (max.) Dimensions (W x H x D): 430 x 120 x 360 mm Weight: 22 kg [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/audionet/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/audionet/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/audionet/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/audionet/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/audionet/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/audionet/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/audionet/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/audionet/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/audionet/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/audionet/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/audionet/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/audionet/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/audionet/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/audionet/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/audionet/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/audionet/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/audionet/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/audionet/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/audionet/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/audionet/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/audionet/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/audionet/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/audionet/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/audionet/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/audionet/th/13.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/audionet/13.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/audionet/13.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/audionet/th/14.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/audionet/14.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/audionet/14.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

he cover of the August edition of the “Stereophile” magazine is decorated with a photograph of the Moon by Simaudio Evolution 780D – a two-in-one converter and file player. It is a device which accepts digital PCM signal up to DXD (24/384), DSD up to DSD256 (11.2896 MHz), as well as decodes aptX signal sent wirelessly through Bluetooth and, on top of that, plays audio files from external storage media (HDD) through an Ethernet connection. As it seems, this is the future of audio from any price range. Michael Fremer, aka the “Analog Man”, who was responsible for the test, writes in the introduction: Even though it may seem an exaggeration to some people, the process of giving up CD is definitely too slow for most of us. There is nothing nostalgic or pleasant in putting a CD in a player and no heat goes through our body when we take out a plastic disc from a mediocre box that does not evoke any positive thoughts, and look at how it disappears in the device. Looking at digits on a display is not nearly as engaging as the view of a needle touching the surface of a vinyl disc. Michael Fremer, Moon by Simaudio Evolution 780D, “Stereophile”, August 2016, No. 8, p. 58 I think many people share his opinion. On the other hand, there is Mr Kazuo Kiuchi the CEO of the Combak Corporation (Reimyo, Harmonix, Enacom) and co-owner of the XRCD24 patent. He represents the opposite pole, claiming that today’s technology allows us to render absolutely high-end sound from a CD, provided that the CD is appropriately prepared and played. The CEC company, whose beautiful system we presented at the beginning of the month acts in accordance with this belief. There are also many people who think the same as Mr Kiuchi-san. So, it might seem that there will be another format war. However, reality is completely different – Michael Fremer represents the opinion of the absolute majority and even a small local war is out of the question. Systems such as the Moon by Simaudio Evolution 780D are the future and the future seems bright thanks to high resolution files. DAP-999EX TOKU High Fidelity Edition However, this is still the future and we do not know when it will finally become reality. It will also mean a complete departure from the physical aspect of a recording. This is not my future. Sooner or later, I will surely find a file player that will satisfy me. However, the Compact Disc, Long Play and, above all, analog tape will remain my natural habitat. It is even truer, as, due to a paradigm shift, we now have the CD format in its best condition. Silver and gold discs have never sounded so well before and there is probably not much left to be achieved in this domain. A good example is the DAP-999EX TOKU converter prepared by Mr Kazuo Kiuchi especially to honor our magazine (hence the added “High Fidelity Edition”). When I heard for the first time, about a half year ago, that he was working on what he called his last DAC that would crown his work in this domain and combine Reimyo with “High Fidelity”, I thought I would have a heart attack. It is both great responsibility and honor for us. Even though we did not take part in listening tests, in a way it is “our” product. Initial plans aimed at a “Red Fingerprint Edition” version, which would have referred to the award that we gave to its predecessor, the DAP-999EX Limited, but we came to a conclusion that its status will be better represented by a HF logo with the letter “R” meaning “Reference”. There is an appropriate panel on the cover of the August edition of our magazine, but its final look may still change – we got the first device that was assembled for our test and we are still thinking about the details. What we know so far is that only 36 such devices will be manufactured, each with our logo and certificate. Mr Kazuo Kiuchi’s Digital Audio Processor does only one thing (but does it well): it changes digital signal from a Compact Disc to analog signal – it accepts only 16-bit signal. Even though it offers four different digital inputs, we will probably use the RCA S/PDIF input, as such outputs are found in most CD transports, including the Reimyo CDP-777 which the DAP was designed for. The heart of this device is the K2 circuit. It is an interpolator unit which changes 16/44.1 signal into 24/176.4 signal, interpolating in an “intelligent” way. The patent belongs to the Japan Victor Company (JVC) and we know it from K2, K2HD, XRCD/XRCD2 and XRCD24 discs where it is the basis for signal coding and disc preparation. It works with all types of CDs and does not require any preliminary signal “coding”. In order to ensure conditions similar to the test of the previous converter version, I used the CDP-777 Reimyo transport and the Ancient Audio Lektor AIR V-edition player (the Philips CD Pro-2LF drive is used in both). To connect the transports with the DAP, I used the digital Harmonix HS-102 cable. To supply power to the transport, I used the 2-meter Harmonix X-DC350M2R Improved Version power cord and to supply power to the DAC – the 聖HIJIRI Nagomi X-DCH cable. Both components were placed directly on the top shelves of the Finite Elemente Pagode Edition rack. Apart from Harbeth M40.1 speakers that are part of the reference system, the Reimyo system was also tested with YG Acoustics Carmel 2 speakers. The Reimyo system was placed exactly at the same place where the CEC system (the TL0 3.0 transport and the DA0 3.0 converter had stood shortly before. It was an A/B comparison test where A and B were known. Music samples were 2 minutes long, but we also listened to whole albums – both through speakers and a reference headphone system. REIMYO in “High Fidelity” TEST: Reimyo DAP-999EX Limited – digital-to-analog converter, read HERE TEST: Reimyo CAT-777 MkII – line preamplifier, read HERE TEST: Reimyo KAP-777 – power amplifier, read HERE KRAKOW SONIC SOCIETY, meeting #77: Reimyo KAP-777 – power amplifier, read HERE KRAKOW SONIC SOCIETY, meeting #72: Kazuo Kiuchi (Combak Corporation) in Cracow, read HERE INTERVIEW: Kazuo Kiuchi (Combak Corporation), read HERE TEST: Reimyo CDT-777 + DAP-999EX – CD transport + digital-to-analog converter, read HERE Recordings used in the test (a selection) Paganini For Two, Gil Shaham, Göran Söllscher, Deutsche Grammophon/Universal Music Ltd, Taiwan 480 246-5, XRCD24 (1993/2009) Alessandro Rolla, Duets for violin & viola, wyk. Isabelle Faust & Thomas Riebel, Glossa GCD C80021, CD (2016) Andrzej Trzaskowski Quintet, Andrzej Trzaskowski Quintet, Polskie Nagrania „Muza”/Warner Music Poland, „Polish Jazz vol. 4”, Master CD-R (1965/2016) Art Ensemble of Chicago, A Jackson in Your Home/Message to Our Folks/Reese and the Smooth Ones, Actuel/Charly 649X, 2 x CD (1969/2013) Bach, Violin Concertos, dyr. Yehudi Menuhin, EMI/Hi-Q Records HIQXRCD9, XRCD24, CD (1960/2013) Chet Baker, It could happen to you, Riverside/ZYX Music OJC20 303-2, „Original Jazz Classics”, Super Bit Mapping CD (1958/1987) Duda/Kanaan/Rudź, 3CITY, 2 x Master CD-R (2016); płyta przygotowywana do wydania Enrico Rava, The Pilgrim and the Stars, ECM Records ECM 1063, „ECM Touchstones”, CD (1975/2008) Enya, Enya, BBC Entertainment BBC CD 605, CD (1987) Fausto Mesolella, Live ad Alcatraz, Fonè/Master Music NT017, XRCD24 (2014/2016) Martin L. Gore, Counterfeit e.p, Mute/Sire 9 25980-2, CD (1989) Paula Cole, Courage, Decca B0008292-02, CD (2007) R-men, I thought about you, T-TOC Records MCDR 3002, „Platinum Gold Sound”, CD-RIIα (2010) Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] The news of the latest and perhaps the last converter in the history of the Reimyo company made us think about what Mr Kiuchi-san wanted to achieve this time and which direction he wanted to take. He could go anywhere, as there are a few equally important paths in top high-end. If someone thinks that there is one universal and unquestionable “model” of top sound, he or she is wrong. We talk about re-production, i.e. about a process which aims to re-create sound “according to the likeness” of the original event. It is a bit similar to translation, the purpose of which is to use one’s own words to express the spirit of the original work as faithfully as possible. When it comes to music, the “original work” is a situation in a studio or at a stage. It appears that the sound of the TOKU HFE model was modeled in a very similar way to the sound of the CEC DA0 3.0 which was tested some time before and is twice as expensive. It is neither “the same”, nor “identical” sound, but the language of music produced by the devices is very similar, as if both creators similarly felt and understood music reproduced at home. The tested DAC sounds exceptionally clear. There is nothing left of the earlier slight but clear rounding of sound and the slight emphasis on lower midrange has also disappeared. Both these elements are great. I like such devices very much as they ensure incredible listening comfort. To a greater or lesser extent, the ultimate resolution and differentiation “no matter what” are sacrificed in them, providing in return beautiful listening experience while we listen to all albums, not only the best ones or some special re-editions and releases. Examples of very good converters of this type would be the Exogal Comet Plus tested in the June edition of “High Fidelity” (No. 146) and the Accuphase DP-720 SACD player that we have known for a long time. The Reimyo system does not round anything and does not fill the lower midrange unless it is required by the given musical material. Because of that, its sound is harsher and more direct. At first, it may seem that this is against the idea of reproducing music, as most CDs are not sound masterpieces. However, after listening to the device even for a short time, one comes to a conclusion that it does not butcher worse CDs and does not emphasize their defects. Thanks to exceptionally good resolution, it overcomes this problem and enters music deep enough to make faults and problems connected with CD preparation “unimportant”. They become part of the message as much as music itself does and become a “flavor”, not a fault (these are not always faults anyway, but often cumulated compromises independent of the producer, as well as his or her conscious choices). A part of this creation is stronger energy of the midrange, especially within the range of 1 – 2 kHz. It is the “presence” range which we are evolutionally especially sensitive to. It is most frequently slightly lowered in order to conceal faults and I opt for any action taken in accordance with the rule – “first, do not harm.” However, in the best products something that I hear when I listen to the TOKU HFE and what I know from the top CEC system, the dCS Vivaldi system and the Ancient Audio Lektor Grand SE player can be allowed: we show everything as it really is and go deeper. The strong midrange does not explode in our face with many irritating and annoying colorings, and details which have nothing to do with music. It is different. Thanks to this open quality the sound is clearer, more distinct and direct, and therefore closer to a live event. I have focused on the specific elements that belong to the “hi-fi” realm because they reflect music perception that Reimyo guarantees really well. It is a “direct” message in the sense that it is exceptionally tangible and immediate. It is tangible not due to the fact that instruments come before the front plane of the speakers, but because of their clarity, sonority and richness. The sound attack is exceptionally fast and loud. I do not hear any delay or subtlety. It is something that “vintage” sound lovers will not like, as they are used to warmth and sound condensation. As regards TOKU HFE, condensation means increasing the amount of information from the whole frequency response range, within the whole range reproduced by a given instrument (group, band) and it is not about burning out sub-ranges that might suggest something like this. Therefore, sound changes from one album to another and often from a track to another track, as everything depends on what is being played at the given moment. It has special influence on the audience. It is because we (audiophiles, of course) sit and listen to music, but at the same time we still think about how it is reproduced. That intuitive awareness of matter makes us perceive a musical message in a really attentive way. If the sound of a new device is notably better than what we have known so far, we often listen to more and more albums, testing what this or that recording sounds like. We browse through our collection, enchanted by the improvement in sound quality, captured in our listening position by sound fireworks that we have never heard before. This is the way of listening proposed by dCS and CEC, and it is outstanding. However, there is another equivalent way, but here the vector points at a slightly different angle. Such is the case with Reimyo and I am going to explain it using an example. The day before I listened to the new DAC for the first time, I got a parcel with two Master CD-R discs produced by M-MAM Audio, with material from the latest Krzysztof Duda’s, Robert Kanaan’s and Przemysław Rudź’s album entitled 3CITY (Trójmiasto). The music it brings is fantastic and, no matter how much I liked their previous album, Hołd, the new release goes much further – both when it comes to music and sound. While listening to new albums during a test, I never know what to expect. Recordings that I know help me make comparisons, as I can focus on sound, not paying so much attention to music, while a new album is a mystery. With the Reimyo device I could hear really well how the recording was produced (recorded, mixed and mastered), but I was mostly curious about the music, so I was sitting like at the cinema, watching a movie that I had been waiting for years. A fantastic combination of “pure” electronics with electrically generated sounds imitating live instruments was naturally accepted by the Japanese system which neither pointed out a lack of harmonics in the “instruments”, nor forcefully reduced electronics to its synthetic component. So, I had great low bass and fantastic dynamics that electronic albums usually lack. TOKU models sound in a specific way. In the DA0 3.0 CEC-a test I wrote that its sound is close to the master (analog) tape, in the case of a Superlink connection. With an RCA connection it was not that strong anymore. CEC, similarly to dCS, presents all recordings in this way, even if their master tapes are digital. It is sound which does not very clearly show the edge and attack, brings closer the perspective between instruments and has incredible dynamics. Modeling that we get with Reimyo is about focusing more on sound sources. Everything is clearer and less ambiguous with it. It is also sound close to the master tape, but with emphasis on reproducing its copy, similarly as in the case of a vinyl disc. Space is shaped in a similar way here. It is really vast and one can clearly hear where a given instrument was planned to be placed by the sound engineer – this is what the Lektor Grand SE sounds like. This is planning clearer than reality, closer to requirements characteristic for listening at home. At home, events have to go through some kind of “lenses” to be able to get through the system at all. Finally, a few words about the bass. It is low and very energetic, completely different than in the CEC system, and yet different than in the top MSB Technology system. If I could use speakers for comparison, the MSB system produces bass like top-class speakers with a bass reflex port, e.g. my Harbeth M40.1 or JBL 4367 Studio Monitor speakers. Most turntables sound similar. The CEC system shows the lower range like speakers with sealed enclosures. The range is short, with excellently controlled attack and decay, but also a bit less “present” at bass reflex. Finally, the Reimyo system sounds like speakers with a baffle. It goes lower than enormous “vintage” speakers of the 1920s and 30s, and it also has much more built-up treble. However, the impression of bass presence without its continuous presence is similar. Summary Which perspective is the right one? Which system reproduces a live event better? I do not know the answer to questions formulated in this way. All these top systems look at recorded material in their own way and all of them are perfect in this respect. The Reimyo system is the cheapest of all of them, except for the Polish Ancient Audio set. It can do only one thing, i.e. play CDs, so it is the second most limited and least functional system (after the Polish player). Despite its price, it is comparable with each of the abovementioned players. It beautifully crowns the work of an amazing man, excellent manager and exceptional constructor – Mr Kazuo Kiuchi. GOLD Fingerprint. The Digital Audio Processor DAP-999EX TOKU High Fidelity Edition is a small semiconductor device which accepts only 16-bit signal of 32, 44.1 and 48 kHz sampling frequencies. In the introduction I wrote that, due to this fact, it is exclusively designed for signal from Compact Discs, but it is not exactly true. It is so today, but several years ago it would have been a converter designed to work with Compact Discs AND a DAT (Digital Audio Tape) recorder. The latter usually worked with 16/48 signal, but it was also possible to change it to 16/32 mode, elongating recording time on a given tape in this way. Today, as I think, only one green LED will turn on, the one at the input signal sampling frequency of 44.1 kHz. Naturally, there are three diodes, one per each frequency. Below there are three other diodes informing the user about the synchronization of the DAC with a signal source, de-emphasis operation and any errors. Next to them there are four buttons to change the active input: RCA, BNC and an optical input (all of them S/PDIF) or AES/EBU. Switching between them is automatic after signal enters the device, but they can also be changed manually. DE-EMPHASIS The description is related to an ancient technology, but it can prove useful. In any modern DAC there is almost always no diode signaling 32 kHz sampling frequency, as this type of signal is very rarely used. There is also no information whether a given recording was coded using pre-emphasis, since CDs have been pressed without it for many years. D/A chip producers often forget about that ancient technology and a de-emphasis circuit which is obligatory for CDs is not included by them. However, it sometimes proves useful, especially if we deal with the first pressings of digital discs. Some of the first CD players used 14-bit converters that worked like 16-bit devices thanks to higher oversampling. Their problem was high noise. In order to eliminate it, a method known from, for example, a Dolby noise reduction system was used. When a CD was pressed, the treble was raised and when it was played, digitally, de-emphasis was used, i.e. the treble was decreased. A “flag” was placed in the CD’s sub-code to inform the DAC that it was necessary to turn on the de-emphasis circuit. The technology was used in CDs since their beginning until the end of the 1980s, especially on discs coming from Japan. It was later given up and many players do not “see” that flag, and CDs with pre-emphasis are played in a bright and rough way, with an emphasis on the treble. The power switch is located at the back with inputs and outputs. The device has a balanced design, so we can obtain signal on RAC and XLR outputs. Their level is a bit higher than the CD standard and equals 2.55 V instead of 2 V on the RCA output, and 5.1 V, not 4 V on the XLR outputs. Next to digital inputs there is a mechanical switch changing the absolute phase of digital signal. The new version differs from the previous one mostly when it comes to the TOKU logo which resembles a personal signature stamp that any Japanese artist has. The housing is made of aluminum, which is not a new thing, but it is differently coupled with the ground. Instead of round pads there are aluminum feet extending beyond the housing. Wide brass spikes, placed on special Harmonix RF-909X tuning feet, are attached to the bottoms of the aluminum feet. Similar spikes can be found in the CD-777 transport, but in TOKU their latest “TuneUPmate” RS-1115 version has been used. The spikes are a bit shorter, so if we want the transport and the DAC to stand at the same height, we have to buy new spikes for the transport. The TOKU HFE is a variation of the Limited version, so it should be no surprise that all the basic modules are exactly the same in both devices. The differences lie in slightly different passive elements selected with regards to the way they change sound. The differences that we can see with the naked eye include, among others: the mains fuse – here we have a black version of HIFI-Tuning.com, a better AC mains voltage filter and different capacitors in the output stage – the ones used here are flat and screened with gold-plated copper plates. For a change, the digital NPC filter has disappeared. It makes sense, as it was used in the first version of the DAP, without the word “Limited” in the name. In the subsequent version with the “Limited” plate on the housing it was inactive, but it was left in its place, in an effort to change as little as possible in the topology of the printed circuit board. The K2 JCV8009 circuit, used in the first version and inactive in the “Limited” version has also been removed from the main board now, alongside with two secondary circuits. Digital inputs are isolated from the signal transmitter using matching transformers that also take care of the desirable input impedance (75 and 110 Ω). Next, signal enters the digital receiver, the old Yamaha YM3436D circuit. Even though its production was stopped a long ago, it is valued for low jitter. The circuit accepts signal up to 24 bits, but the sampling frequency is limited to 48 kHz. The receiver is isolated from the inputs using matching transformers. Signal is then transmitted from the large board to a secondary board that is the “heart” of the device. On its input there is the K2 JCV8009 circuit surrounded by eight CMOS gates operating, I guess, as part of the upsampling and digital filters circuit. A really good looking MXO clock ensures time coherence. 16/44.1 signal is synchronically changed here into 24/176.4. Changing 16-bit into 24-bit words is not an example of simple upsampling which relies on adding 8 more “empty” bits to 16 signal bits. Here we have an interpolating circuit that “predicts” changes that should take place and generates missing signal. Apart from JVC with the K2 circuit, the Denon company has also had achievements in this field with a similar Alpha Processing circuit, now in its Advanced AL32 Processing version. Signal is transmitted from the board through the Burr Brown DF1706 digital filter and reaches a battery of optoelectronic circuits, galvanically isolating this component from the next one. I do not know if you remember, but some time ago it was regarded as one of the best external digital filters and co-operated with D/A Burr Brown PCM1704 converters, just like here. One such NOS circuit operates in each channel, in the highest specification (“K”); chips are paired. The converters are surrounded by excellent purple Sanyo capacitors. The analog section seems much simpler, even “normal”. The Burr Brown OPA627 integrated circuit is responsible for I/U conversion, while low pass filters and amplification are made using standard JRC 5534 integrated circuits. The XLR output sockets are rhodium-plated, while the RCA output sockets are gold-plated. It is worth paying attention to the fact that the XLR output has “American style” cables, i.e. No. 3 is the hot pin. If we connect the DAC to devices from outside Japan, it is worth changing the absolute phase by 180º. I have not mentioned it yet, but power supply in the device looks great. There are as many as five separate power supply units, drawing voltage from two little, beautiful, double-C transformers. Input voltage is preliminarily filtered in a metal TDK Lambda “tin” and “conditioned” in an Enacom filter (the company belongs to the Combak Corporation group). Technical specifications (according to the manufacturer) Input signal: 16 bit Input signal sampling frequency: 48 kHz, 44.1 kHz, 32 kHz Digital inputs: 1 x AES/EBU/input impedance: 110 Ω 1 x BNC/ input impedance: 75 Ω 1 x RCA/ input impedance: 75 Ω 1 x TOSLink Digital signal processing: K2 Technology (K2 LSI; 16-24 bit) DA converter: 24 bit, 16-time oversampling Output voltage: XLR – 5.1 Vrms (hot = 3) RCA – 2.55 Vrms Frequency response: DC – 20 kHz (+/-0.5 dB) S/N ratio: >114 dB (IHF-A) Dynamic range: >100 dB Channel separation: >105 dB (1 kHz) Linearity: +/-0.5 dB (+10 dBm ~ 90 dBm) 1 kHz IHF-A THD: >0.003% (1 kHz Vo=F/S) (30 kHz, LPF On) Power consumption: 15 W Dimensions: 430 (W) x 44 (H) x 337 (D) mm Weight: 5.5 kg [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/th/13.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/13.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/13.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/th/14.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/14.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/14.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/th/15.jpg" big="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/15.jpg" src="foto_testy/1608/reimyo/15.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]