RANDOM ACCESS MEMORIES* aving arranged business cards on the table, I saw an archipelago come to life. Nominally, these were islands or perhaps groups consisting of a few islands each. However, when I looked at them from a longer distance, they merged – often in an amazing way. When I came closer to them again, they would again divide into separate entities or small groups that did not seem to have any points of contact with one another. This obvious allusion to the world of audio was not yet clear to me then and I was not aware of it. When I work on reports from large exhibitions, I develop photographs from RAW files and look through them. Only then do I recall emotions connected with them, sound and associated conversations, and I can use my notes (if I took them), company materials, the catalogue and business cards. The HIGH END exhibition in Munich that I have been attending since it was moved there from Frankfurt, is one of the biggest such events in the world, at least when it comes to stereo and pure high-end. So, my method of work has been surprisingly effective. This time I started from the very end, i.e. from business cards, because at this year’s exhibition I spent most of my time on meetings, talks and planning. I aimed to recall all the people that I wanted to tell you about and use them as a medium for describing the event itself, and trends in audio that are being born in front of our eyes and are being revealed through the exhibition. | Master class The High End exhibition opened its doors for people from the outside at 10 a.m. on Thursday, i.e. on a day traditionally reserved for people representing the audio industry – the press, distributors and sales representatives. Reserving one day for this purpose is necessary, as the exhibition in Munich is mainly about business – I heard that from everyone that I talked to, followed by a claim that the Audio Video Show exhibition in Warsaw is equally important to them, as it is the place where you go to listen to music. It is an obvious exaggeration, as in Munich there is also a lot of good sound and in Warsaw people also talk business. However, this is how these two complementary events are perceived by manufacturers and the press. Todd Garflinke and Chris Sommovigo – on his smartphone, Todd is showing cables that Chris has made for him. Already a minute after 10 o’clock, I had an appointment with Chris Sommovigo. The 3202 interconnect and 3232 speaker cable that we had just tested became a pretext for a longer conversation on cables in general, Japanese culture and the future of the company. It appears that Chris, for family reasons, is now moving back to the USA. As he said, it is a real ordeal for him, as he must send large and heavy machines, which means an at least 2-month break from work. However, he is an optimist, as he has prepared some cables “to have on stock”. Chris shared his stand with a man that he, before the exhibition, had promised to introduce me to – the owner of the M•A Recordings company, Todd Garflinke. I do not know if you have heard his recordings – if not, give them a chance and you will witness an incredibly natural musical event. Todd’s main recording technique is recording in the DSD128 digital domain. Acetate is cut from such signal by Len Horowitz, a young man, using a Scully machine with a Westrex head, both manufactured in the 1950s. It is almost certain that this machine was used to make acetates for the Prestige record label. Todd Garflinke | M•A Recordings In the past, Todd also recorded in PCM 24/96, but DSD won due to its much more natural sound. The company offers both CDs and files for download, but the products that seem to be the most interesting are LPs and – attention! – tapes. An extremely beautiful box with Bach’s Goldberg Variations performed by Ito Ema was shown during the exhibition. The wooden box was handcrafted in Japan and it costs 600 USD… It is no coincidence that the two gentlemen had their stands next to each other – Chris has made special versions of cables, with silver content, that are used to connect a DSD recorder and the Scully machine. What is interesting, the record label also offers a Polish album that we can find in the menu, with the tag “Poland” – Grzegorz Krawiec’s album Journey – Podróż. However, Todd played something else for me – a recording from Thailand featuring a girl with an incredible voice. I must say that it sounded great! So, the only thing I can do is give him the Best Sound • High End 2018 award. I knew then already that this was not the end. A serious looking gentleman was standing in the corner of the same tiny stand, with a few copies of the book entitled Music and Audio: A User Guide To Better Sound, published by AIX Publishing. The massive book has 850 pages and probably discusses all the topics that we deal with in our industry. It was written by Mr Mark Waldrep, an academic lecturer and the owner of AIX Records – a record label that deals with hi-res recordings. He records in the 24/192 PCM format and releases recordings on Blu-ray and DVD-V/A. Mark Waldrep (on the right) talking to Bartek Pacuła. He also writes the blog realhd-audio.com where he presents the views that he discusses in detail in the abovementioned book. I think that everyone should have this book and regularly read it. It was written by a man who knows his job and the topics are described in an intelligible, but yet detailed enough way. Not only does each chapter contain a description of techniques and technology, but also evaluates them. I disagree with most of the evaluations. It is no printing mistake – I value and respect Mr Waldrep and I am glad that, finally, someone who clearly opposes many views popular in the world of perfectionist audio does not gabble, as it usually happens, does not say “no” for the sake of it, but has solid arguments to support his theses. And arguments can be rationally discussed. So, I read sentences like the one below with pleasure: If the music you want is available as a normal CD file or download, you should acquire it that way. If you spend $35 on an XRCD, you’re wasting your money.  Many years of experience and a lot of listening sessions that I have participated in with different groups of people have convinced me that it is exactly the opposite – XRCDs sound tremendous and each Polish zloty that I spend on them gives me a fourfold return on investment. Despite this, or perhaps because of this, it must be said that Music and Audio: A User Guide To Better Sound is one of the most interesting monographs devoted to the contemporary stage of the audio world that I have dealt with. It is a book that is pleasant to disagree with. When Mr Waldrep was signing our copy, Chris took me to the side and introduced me to someone that I had known for years, respected a lot and now met personally for the first time: David Robinson, the editor-in-chief and publisher of the online “Positive-Feedback” magazine. I almost sank in his arms, as it is a big guy and an experienced sailor, as well as an incredibly warm person. David Robinson | „Positive-Feedback” Cooperation between PF and “High Fidelity” is extremely rewarding for both sides and it was pleasant to get some praise. Based on this experience, we have decided to do more and now we are talking about something that all the five magazines that have formed this incredible alliance with “Positive-Feedback” could share (the remaining three are: “Part Time Audiophile”, “HiFi Pig” and hifistatement.net). By the way, David asked me if I want to become part of the editorial staff of PF in the role of “contributing editor”. Of course, I said “I do” :) | Youth is coming! A conversation between our friend Dirk Sommer (the editor-in-chief of the hifistatement.net magazine who, together with Birgit Hammer-Sommer, is the head of Sommelier Du Son record label) and his new journalist must have been similar. The latter, a 25-year-old Hamburger (when you call the residents of Frankfurt “Hamburgers” in Germany, it is impossible not to smile), is the most recent “purchase” of the German magazine – fresh blood that has entered our circulatory system. The two gentlemen met each other during one of Dirk’s presentations, when he was demonstrating the sound of recordings made digital using different A/D converters. After the presentation, the young man asked a lot of questions and manifested his good taste. I hope that we will soon be able to get to know him better, thanks to reading about him in “The Editors” series. Dirk presented a similar “trick” during the exhibition in Munich – in one of the rooms, he placed his stand where it was possible, in real time and without knowing which device was being used, to compare recordings made using an internal converter in a Tascam recorder, Mytek converter and an MSB converter. The differences are not small. The Tascam ADC sounded very weak, with sandy treble and weak dynamics. The Mytek device was much better, but the MSB converter proved really classy. The differences were unambiguous and I had no problems with indicating, in such a “blind” test, which device was which. Dirk’s sense of hearing is something that makes him better than other, also very good sound engineers and remastering specialists. I very highly value albums that he records, but I equally appreciate his work in the field of remastering. That is why my eyes beamed when, exhausted after a long day, with a good drink in my hand and sitting at his home studio, I saw a small Oscar Peterson’s box entitled Exclusively for my friends. I have had a large box, with six vinyl discs, remastered by Christoph Stickel and Dirk, since it appeared in stores, but it was the first time I had seen its digital version. It is interesting due to the fact that it contains eight discs – the two additional ones are entitled The Lost Tapes. They were not included in the “large” box, as they were remastered in the digital domain, while vinyl discs were released in A|A|A series, i.e. in an analogue remaster. As Dirk said, the Edel company that released the album entrusted the valuable tapes to them after they had demonstrated what they had been able to do with the two that I am talking about. Both were available only in the digital version and one of them had really varied dynamics, tone, volume, etc. And it was not possible to save it using only analogue tools. They have managed to bring it to a state in which it is possible to say “Bravo!” Attention – Dirk is preparing Master File copies of his analogue tapes! They will be available at the online store nativeDSD.com. However, while talking about the comparison prepared by Dirk and its results, we must remember that Mytek converters are not especially expensive and sound great for their price range. A lot of very serious recording studios use them and the results of their work are very good – see Chesky Records albums. I see Michał Jurewicz regularly during exhibitions, we write each other, but we have never had time for a longer conversation before – until we met in Munich this year. And the time seemed to be very good, as the company is launching a new product – a mobile digital-to-analogue converter and amplifier which is connected to the source using either cable or Bluetooth. The sales target are supposed to be young people. Cleff by Mytek (this is the name of the brand that devices belonging to this series will be sold under) is the first product sold under this brand, but there are to be more such devices. The motto is: “Stream like Vinyl” and it refers to the growing popularity of the analogue among young people who, at the same time, are “consumers” of digital streaming services. We had a long conversation about that, as it is a “hot” topic and each manufacturer has their own vision of what young people need. There are a lot of opinions and most of them will probably prove wrong. However, everyone agrees on one thing: WE need young people more than THEY need us. Perhaps for this reason, even in extremely conservative Japanese companies, young people are being given voice. Let us take the Accuphase company as an example. It has not had its own stand in Munich for years, although its products appear in many systems. However, its representatives come to the exhibition every year – this year, the event was attended by Mark M. Suzuki (Executive Vice President), Tatsuki Tozuka (Manager, International Marketing Div.) and the “new guy” (it is, of course, a nickname that I have come up with), Mr Takaya Inokuma (Manager Engineering Div.). Mr Takaya Inokuma (Manager, Engineering Div.), Mr Mark M. Suzuki (Executive Vice President) and Mr Tatsuki Tozuka (Manager, International Marketing Div.) Mr Takaya-san came to Bavaria with a design that he has been responsible for from the beginning until the very end, i.e. the new T-1200 tuner. Although it seems that the days of the analogue (when it comes to the method of transfer) radio are numbered, a lot of music lovers, mainly those who listen to classical music and jazz, still use the radio and want this contact to be the best possible. The T-1200 makes more advanced use of technologies that have been applied before, i.e. strongly emphasises the analogue “front end” (RF) and then the digital part, i.e. the IF filter, FM demodulator and stereophonic DS-DC demodulator. Thanks to advanced digital processing, it has been possible to obtain amazing parameters, e.g. signal/noise ratio at the level of 92 dB and fantastic inter-channel separation, not to mention outstanding selectivity. Apart from the fact that I could feel Mr Takaya-san was proud of the analogue part, he surprised me with something else – when I asked him whether he had worked for Accuphase for a long time, he modestly replied that it had not been such a long time, which was confirmed by his two senior colleagues. So, when I enquired how long it had exactly been, he said: “Seventeen years.” So, the apparently young man really proved to be young, but also extremely experienced. So, I am sure that the T-1200 will have a special position in the company portfolio, despite being a niche product. Mr Takaya Inokuma | Accuphase | Manager Engineering Div. We also welcome a young man in the Muson Project Inc. company which is not known to people from outside the industry, because it is a so-called “agent”, i.e. a company which acts as an intermediary between Japanese brands and the outside world. However, it is thanks to them – Mr Yoshi Hontai and his son, Elia Hontai – that brands such as Leben, Acrolink, Oyaide, Acoustic Revive, SPEC and other ones are present in Poland. Let me remind you that I was the first person from outside Japan who wrote reviews of products manufactured by many of these companies, including Leben and SPEC, at the time when nobody in Europe or the USA had heard of them yet. Anyway, Mr. Yuki Maeda joined the company in April. It is an exceptional and inspiring story. He has a passion for music, which is probably obvious. However, it is not something he had dealt with before – he used to be an insurance agent who offered insurance policies. He sold one of them to Mr Hontai and his son, and the meeting inspired him to change his life. As the audio industry all over the world is doing better and better, and the Muson company is growing, Mr Hontai offered him a job and he agreed to join the company. As Mr Hontai himself has recently been given more responsibilities, he said it was high time to employ someone new. From the left: Mr Yuki Maeda, Mr Elia Hontai, the author of the report and Mr Yoshi Hontai It is because he devotes more and more time to the Leben company and, in fact, manages it. Due to the fact that Mr Taku Hyodo, the owner of Leben, is ill, Mr Yoshi Hontai takes care of the business from day to day, as well as oversees new products. Some time ago, we received a new version of the CS-600 integrated amplifier, adapted for operation with other types of tubes, but a new super integrated amp is being developed now. When will it be ready? Unfortunately, it is not known… Anyway, it is known that an article devoted to Mr Okihigo Sugano (a legend of the Japanese audio industry) and recordings produced by Audio Lab. Record which we are working on now, will be written with the help of Ongen Publishing – namely, Mr Yosuke Asada, the editor-in-chief of “Net Audio” and “Analog” magazines. Their websites present an impressive three-year project in which Mr Sugano-san talks about his life and vision of sound. Yosuke-san proved to be as nice and cool a guy as presented in an interview that we have published in “High Fidelity” alongside this report. The 34-year-old man has the passion and strength that the audio industry always needs. Mr Yosuke Asada (on the right) | Ongen Publishing Youth also seems to be the motto for those companies that are rather oriented at “the elders”, simply because this group of consumers has enough cash. One of such firms is Moon by Simaudio which has chosen Munich to be the place for the premiere of their new product, labelled as 390. The device combines: an audio file player with a cable connection and Bluetooth, a line preamplifier and an analogue preamplifier. From among all its functions, it is worth paying attention to the possibility of synchronizing a few devices in a multi-room system. Bowers & Wilkins speakers from the new ‘800’ series and Nordost cables were used in the presentation. The sound was excellent, independently of what types of files were used. Even though the device refused to cooperate with the presenters for a moment, Mr Costa Koulisakis, the company vice president said that it was a prototype and they had never had such problems before. I hold them to their word! Anyway, it was high-quality sound and I had not heard Bowers & Wilkins speakers play music so well for a long time, hence the Best Sound • High End 2018 award. | Vitality However, it was not a single case – the new Bowers & Wilkins speakers were used in a few other systems, including the one prepared by the Cambridge Audio company. The English company, celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, presented a high-end line of devices called Edge, including a streamer, an integrated amplifier, a preamp and power amplifiers. It was a minimalistic presentation, yet the sound was fantastic, as it was fresh and natural. Therefore, the Best Sound • High End 2018 award was only natural as well. However, not only such “old” companies can offer something exceptional. Most Polish brands are young or very young. It may be the reason why, during meetings, I heard a few times that foreign manufacturers, journalists and distributors are impressed by the vitality of the Polish press, our manufacturers and the exhibition in Warsaw. This image is enhanced by the Polish companies that are more and more boldly entering western and Asian markets. The products of Franc Audio Accessories (cooperating with CH Precision, Kronos Audio, Engstrom and Living Voice) and Rogoz Audio (the main partner of the TAD company) could be found in a few rooms. Fezz Audio toroidal transformers, manufactured by the firm’s parent company, constitute the basis for Fezz Audio amplifiers As usual, a lot of emotions were connected with the joint presentation of the Pylon Audio and Fezz Audio brands. The latter attracted visitors’ attention due to the fact that it uses its own toroidal transformers not only in power supply units, but also in the output stage. Such innovations, as well as sound and workmanship that are also excellent here, are given awards by people from outside Poland. It was similar in the case of Pylon Audio which presented a number of their speakers having a completely new finish with “metallic” lacquer at the exhibition. Apart from transformers, Fezz Audio also enchanted visitors with the new Lupi amplifier. “Metallic” housings of Pylon Audio speakers from the Diamond series There were many more Polish “stormtroopers” at the exhibition. A nice presentation was given by the Divaldi company represented by Waldemar Łuczkoś and Sveda Audio whose products were exhibited with LampizatOr electronics, right next to the stand of the cable manufacturer Albedo. Arek Szweda, the owner of and constructor at Divaldi, has just prepared a “home” version of his monitor speakers that we are to test soon. He also told us what the recording session of Audiofeels debut album, which took place at a “studio” built at the back of a store, looked like and why it sounds so good. The stand of LampizatOr and Sveda Audio companies The monitor speakers that I have mentioned have a classic d’Appolito speaker array and are active. Rebel Sentiment 10 speakers that we tested in the March edition of “High Fidelity” (HF | No. 167) have a similar but passive array. In Munich, it was also possible to see their floorstanding version. Although the presentation took place at a tiny open stand in a large hall, it was possible to sit down and listen to the model ‘10” with Struss amplifiers, including the R500 model. A family of Rebel speakers from the Sentiment series – it is worth paying attention to the consistent use of a d’Appolito array There must be something special about this speaker array, as the new (and simply beautiful) Monitor Audio Studio speakers look exactly the same. They have been designed to monitor recordings at a studio, but they can be as well used to play music at home. They include a “bellows” Heil tweeter and two midwoofers (sandwich design). They are small, perfectly made and cost about 1000 pounds. | Even higher high-end At the other side of the price rainbow there is the YG Acoustics company. However, it also designs its midwoofer modules in a very similar way, but using much more sophisticated tools. It is one of the companies that, thanks to providing perfect mechanical design and carrying out advanced research on the operation of the whole system, have raised sound quality to a new, seemingly inaccessible level. The company is growing so fast that, despite the fact that its factory has been made larger, it already lacks space. That is why Mr Yoav Geva, its owner and the main engineer, decided to employ someone to manage the firm, in order to be able to focus on developing new constructions. So, Mr David Komatz became the new CEO. A “spider” that reinforces the tweeter dome is made from such an aluminium rod that is CNC-machined to give it the desired shape While we were having beer together, our friend, Kerry St. James, who takes care of the company contacts with the outside world, told us about a few innovations, including some really “big” ones. What seems to be the most important now are improvements of existing models. They cost a lot of money and may seem small, but they have really significantly changed the sound of speakers manufactured by this American company. One of such changes is a modification of the tweeter and, therefore, of the crossover as well. Another one consists in changing the transformer coil in the woofer section. Kerry said that Mr Geva came up with an idea for the former at night: he woke up and immediately had a ready-made solution. If, he reasoned, a delicate fabric used for a tent is reinforced using metal ribs, why not use the same structure for the silk tweeter membrane. Developing a working prototype took quite a lot of time and money, but the result is impressive: an aluminium “T-piece” is CNC-machined of the most expensive aircraft-grade aluminium and adhesively attached to the membrane at the back. Replacing the coil required an even higher investment. A Mundorf coil that had been used so far was excellent, at least when it comes to its electrical parameters. However, it had a classic mechanical design, which did not fully satisfy Mr Geva – a perfectionist. So, he designed his own coil whose clamping elements are made of thick aluminium, thanks to which the coil gap has extremely small tolerance. In some time, we will be able to learn what the Hailey and Sonja speakers sound like in our “HF” editorial office system. I met the latter speakers’ namesake, Mrs Sonja, and listened to the Sonya 2.2 speakers with Nagra and Boulder electronics, and a new SME Synergy turntable with Crystal Cable cables. It was excellent sound and hence the Best Sound • High End 2018 award. The system that we awarded, including YG Acoustics speakers, Nagra electronics and a Boulder preamp from the 1100 series, as well as Crystal Cable The Ultimate Dream cables YG Acoustics is distributed in Poland by Core Audio which also takes care of the AudioNet brand. Audionet is another company whose daily bread are technological innovations. When I met David Robinson (“Positive-Feedback”), he emphasised a few times that, in his opinion, the company is one of those that make the best amplifiers on the planet Earth. He introduced me to one of its directors, Mr Robert Hagemann, who surprised me first by handing a business card on to me the Japanese way, with both hands, and then by giving a long response in Japanese to my “arigato”, which I did not understand at all. So, it is necessary to be careful about what you say and to what person :) AudioNet prepared a presentation of its Heisenberg power amplifiers and the Stern preamp using the Dynaudio Evidence speakers. Signal was supplied to the amps and preamp from the CD Planck player. It was the kind of sound that I consider to be right. What mattered was only the musical message and the role of its technical aspects was only to support it and never to come to the foreground. It was a really perfect presentation and confirmation of the fact that a high-quality CD player is an absolutely sufficient digital signal source. We hereby confirm that by giving the system the Best Sound • High End 2018 award. A presentation of the AudioNet system However, as I said when I recalled Dirk Sommer, everything depends on how signal is recorded and who prepares it for release. So, I looked at historical models of Nagra tape recorders with great respect and admiration, starting from the “spy” SN model that once went into space (the Apollo mission), through the first tape recorder – model I powered by a crank handle, up to the classics – models: III, IV-S and the digital HD – one could listen to the latter ones using Audeze headphones. This is the analogue part. However, my guide was René Laflamme – the most valuable of Nagra’s recent assets, perhaps apart from the HD Preamp that we talked about a lot. It is because René is also the head of the 2xHD label which sells hi-res and even DSD256 files. Although he loves the analogue, as he uses the Nagra T tape recorder with Doshi electronics, he also devotes a lot of time to digital technologies. However, hi-res files make any sense only in such hands. What I heard from these tape recorders, including the digital HD (it was incredible!), had to end with the Best Sound • High End 2018 award, both for “vintage” tape recorders and the flawless preamp. René Laflamme with the HD Preamp That does not mean, however, that the exhibition only focused on tape recorders and digital technologies. Traditionally, a lot of exhibitors presented turntables. However, I got the impression that this year they were not the centre of attention. Despite that, two presentations were excellent – one with the new SME Synergy turntable and the other with the Continuum Audio Labs Obsidian turntable. I have already mentioned the former one, so let me now add that the Synergy is the first new SME turntable since 2015 and the ‘15A’ model, as well as the first one developed under the management of Mr Stuart McNeilis, after the company had been bought by The Cadence Group. The system included a Nagra preamp where 6 V battery power was changed to 9 V. The other presentation enchanted me with Dean Martin’s natural vocal reproduced by Wilson Audio speakers powered by Constellation Audio electronics. The 50th anniversary of the Cambridge Audio company was one of a few important anniversaries that were celebrated during the High End 2018 exhibition in Munich. For me personally, as well as for the whole “High Fidelity” crew, the most touching moment was the opening of a bottle of 25-year-old excellent wine, which took place in the Einstein Audio room. We were moved not by the exquisite wine itself – although it did have some influence on our emotions – but by the fact that our friends and owners of the company, Annette Heiss and Volker Bohlemeier, celebrated the 30th anniversary of the company and of their relationship. We wish them all the best, as they deserve it! All the best! | Island-island-island… I hope that this personal account of the exhibition has shown you where the modern audio industry is heading. In order to make it easier, I will try to summarize my report in a few words. First of all, perfectionist highest-level audio reinforces the division into many separate “islands”, creating isolated “interest groups” and educating music lovers who find “their” sound here and not anywhere else. It is easiest to see when it comes to sound sources. Reel-to-reel tape recorders set the tone for the exhibition and produced the best sound. Due to extremely high tape prices (300 to 1000 USD!), it is fun few people can have. However, as with any type of perfectionism, all of us can enjoy it, getting better and better LPs, CDs and files. One of the best listening sessions at the exhibition was prepared by the Hemiolia Records company. During the event, a found tape with a recording of Pavarotti’s performance was presented. It was simply great – hence the Best Sound • High End 2018 award. Compact Discs are doing well, with a small niche in the form of Super Audio CD. However, the digital domain is ruled by those who have decided to sell their music via the Internet. In the “outside” world, most of this market is occupied by streaming services and a small share belongs to stores which sell files. In the “inside” world, things seem to be the other way round, as we can obtain DSD files and real, uncompressed PCM hi-res files only in the latter way. Devices that are used to play files, either directly from the Internet or from local memories, were the most important this year. The position of turntables remained very stable against this background, perhaps because they are well-established and do not need to prove anything. A lot of inexpensive models, mainly from Asia, were shown in Munich, but there were also representatives of the highest price range, led by the incredibly looking Metaxas turntable. It was accompanied by products manufactured by the Einstein company which offers a complete analogue path with a turntable, an arm and a cartridge, not to mention the electronics. The Metaxas & Sins GQT Analogue tape recorder When it comes to amplifiers and speakers, it seems that effort is being made, on the one hand, to obtain as much music as possible from vintage solutions and, on the other hand, to improve the technical details and specifications of modern products, so that they contribute to musicality. When I talked to people from Accuphase, they said a few times that this is the main change that is taking place in Japan and that their company is trying to keep up with these demands. So, devices that are becoming more and more prominent are characterized by flawless measurements and combine them with elements that companies which use solutions popular in the 1940s and 1950s have built their reputation on. The exhibition is a good time to give awards – the photo shows Gabi van der Kley-Rijnveld and the award she got for cables from The Ultimate Dream series I think that what I talked about in the introduction is clear: big money has been injected into the audio industry, so companies have established their positions and are building a base of loyal users around them. This leads to the creation of separate islands which do not seem to communicate with one another at all. So, what comes to my mind is the sentence that was shouted out in anger by the main character of the comedy About a boy (directed by Chris Weitz and Paul Weitz, 2002): “I am an island. I am bloody Ibiza!” He elaborates on the thought in the following way: All men are islands. And what's more, this is the time to be one. This is an island age. A hundred years ago, for example, you had to depend on other people. No one had TV or CDs or DVDs or home espresso makers. As a matter of fact they didn't have anything cool. Whereas now you can make yourself a little island paradise. With the right supplies, and more importantly the right attitude, you can become sun-drenched, tropical, a magnet for young Swedish tourists. Reality is different, however. If we look at everything from the right distance, we will see countless connections, interdependencies and influences. Let us squint and look at these single spots and we will notice that they constitute clear shapes. It is because reality is reflected by what Marcus thinks in the last scene of the abovementioned movie: I used to think two was not enough. But now things are great; there are loads of people... I don't know what Will was so pissed about. I don't think couples are the future. The way I see it now, we both got back-up now. It's like that thing Jon Bon Jovi said: 'No man is an island.' BEST SOUND • HIGH END 2018 M•A Recordings marecordings.com MOON by Simaudio | Bowers & Wilkins | Nordost simaudio.com bowers-wilkins.com nordost.com YG Acoustics | SME | Nagra | Boulder | Crystal Cable | Ortofon yg-acoustics.com | nagraaudio.com boulderamp.com | crystalcable.com ortofon.com Audionet | Dynaudio audionet.de | dynaudio.com Hemiolia Records hemioliarecords.com Constellation Audio | Wilson Audio | Transparent Audio constellationaudio.com wilsonaudio.com transparentcable.com Cambridge Audio | Bowers & Wilkins cambridgeaudio.com | bowers-wilkins.com Nagra: III, IV-S, HD Preamp nagraaudio.com * Borrowed… [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/28.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/28.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/28.jpg" desc="Constellation Audio electronics and the Continuum Audio Labs Obsidian turntable on an Artesania Audio rack."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/29.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/29.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/29.jpg" desc="The EAT Forte turntable in the mint colour and finish resembling Auris Audio devices."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/30.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/30.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/30.jpg" desc="One of the most important novelties – the powerful Dan D’Agostino Relentless power amplifier; price: 250,000 USD… In the background – Dan d’Agostino himself."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/31.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/31.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/31.jpg" desc="Dan D’Agostino Relentless: 1500 W/8 Ω, 6000 W/2 Ω, the first 100 W in A class."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/32.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/32.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/32.jpg" desc="Another important premiere: the new Dynaudio Confidence series with new NeoTec woofers."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/33.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/33.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/33.jpg" desc="Apart from having a modelled front panel, the Confidence series also has a lute-shaped housing."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/34.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/34.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/34.jpg" desc="Mr Robert Rothleitnert next to his Ichos Schallwandler No. One speakers."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/35.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/35.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/35.jpg" desc="The Indiana Line speaker series."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/36.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/36.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/36.jpg" desc="Wolf von Lang speakers with Air Tight electronics."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/37.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/37.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/37.jpg" desc="The powerful Air Tight ATM-3211 monoblocks using 211 tubes – 120 W output in the push-pull mode."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/38.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/38.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/38.jpg" desc="A touching view of two friends – Mr Atsui Miura (on the left) and Mr Masami Ishiguro (on the right) who set up the A+M Limited, i.e. the AirTight company in the year 1986."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/39.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/39.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/39.jpg" desc="The new floorstanding TAD speakers which constitute an advanced form of the Micro Evolution One bookshelf speakers. It is worth paying attention to the cover near the floor – it is part of the company’s woofer loading system."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/40.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/40.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/40.jpg" desc="Thrax speakers consisting of the Lyra module and the Basus subwoofer system have gained their final shape – now they look like a complete speaker."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/41.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/41.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/41.jpg" desc="This is the largest subwoofer I have ever seen outside cinemas and theatres: the Ascendo company, 50” diameter."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/42.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/42.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/42.jpg" desc="A tasty presentation of the Marten Coltrane Memento 2 speakers and Vitus Audio electronics. Cables: Jorma Design."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/43.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/43.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/43.jpg" desc="Small, excellently made Monitor Audio speakers from the Studio series."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/44.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/44.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/44.jpg" desc="These enormous KS-17electrostatic speaker panels were manufactured by the King’s Audio Limited company from Hong Kong."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/45.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/45.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/45.jpg" desc="Organic shapes and great sound – this is the shortest summary of the system with the Höffner Audiosysteme Manufaktur H1speakers, an Einstein Audio amplifier and a Naim Audio CD player."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/46.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/46.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/46.jpg" desc="We can see the company’s latest construction: the Graham Audio LS6/f next to tiny bookshelf speakers."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/47.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/47.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/47.jpg" desc="A whole range of speakers manufactured under the Graham Audio and Cartwell brands."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/48.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/48.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/48.jpg" desc="Ayon Audio is back after many years with the first series of its speakers. It was the first company to use ceramic transducers: the Black Falcon and Black Heron. They are to be even easier to drive thanks to tube amplifiers and a switch which adapts them to both a single-ended and a push-pull construction."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/49.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/49.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/49.jpg" desc="A new Genuin Audio Tars server and active Neo speakers produced by the same company, controlled in a DSP circuit."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/50.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/50.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/50.jpg" desc="Munich was the place where the latest version of the Avantgarde Acoustic Trio Luxury Edition 26 speakers was presented. It is a limited edition of 26 units, marking the 26th company anniversary. Efficiency: 109 dB, Strontium ferrite magnets."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/51.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/51.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/51.jpg" desc="The new Magico A3 speakers in a classic-looking housing, although it is still made of aluminium."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/52.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/52.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/52.jpg" desc="A cross-section of the Magico A3 – what attracts our attention are the aluminium reinforcements. Despite having such a sophisticated housing, these are to be the cheapest speakers offered by this manufacturer."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/53.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/53.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/53.jpg" desc="And these are “adult” Magico speakers (the M6 model), with a housing reinforced with carbon fibre braid, with Soulution electronics from the 7xx series and a Kronos Audio turntable, standing on an HRS rack."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/54.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/54.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/54.jpg" desc="A system that we gave an award to, with the Constellation Audio Centaur monoblocks and the Wilson Audio Alexia speakers. Cables: Transparent Audio."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/55.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/55.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/55.jpg" desc="Another return – the JBL L100 loudspeakers with characteristic replaceable grilles. Offered for sale in 1970, now they have been improved, e.g. thanks to a newly developed tweeter."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/56.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/56.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/56.jpg" desc="Lyravox and the Karl complete stereophonic system in the form of speakers: DSP, wireless and cable transfer, active crossovers, amplifiers for each speaker…"] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/57.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/57.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/57.jpg" desc="A whole series of active Lyravox speakers (from the right): Karlotta, Karlina and Karlos."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/58.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/58.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/58.jpg" desc="For many companies, this year’s exhibition was an opportunity to show their history: the photo presents the miniature Nagra SN reel-to-reel tape recorder."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/59.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/59.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/59.jpg" desc="Although the Nagra SN was used by spies, its most famous mission was to fly to the Moon – it went there with Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin in the year 1969."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/60.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/60.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/60.jpg" desc="The first Nagra tape recorder, powered by a crank handle (!)."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/61.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/61.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/61.jpg" desc="The Nagra III, a monophonic model from the year 1957. It still works and sounds excellent!"] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/62.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/62.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/62.jpg" desc="Renè Laflamme and the Nagra IV-S from the year 1971."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/63.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/63.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/63.jpg" desc="An Otari tape recorder with tapes that had been considered to be lost for many years, containing a recording of a Luciano Pavarotti’s performance; Munich was the place chosen for their premiere."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/64.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/64.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/64.jpg" desc="A less known brand which manufactures tape recorders – the Danish Lyrec Manufacturing A/S. The company was set up in 1945. The photo shows the PTR-1 (FRIDA) model."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/65.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/65.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/65.jpg" desc="It is one of the most popular Studer tape recorders, the A812 model. It was possible to listen to it in the TAD company room."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/66.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/66.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/66.jpg" desc="A Fern Roby Audio turntable made in the USA from thick aluminium panels. It is a company which also makes aluminium housings for other manufacturers."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/67.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/67.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/67.jpg" desc="Christopher Hildebrand, the owner of Fern Roby Audio, presenting a phono stage that can operate on its own or can be magnetically attached to a turntable produced by the company."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/68.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/68.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/68.jpg" desc="The Clearaudio company celebrated its 40th anniversary in Munich. Among many other attractions, there was also the modified Volkswagen where a sound system was installed."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/69.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/69.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/69.jpg" desc="If we are talking about Clearaudio and sound systems, we naturally need to mention turntables – the photo shows one on a special platform which maintained the level, with an active version of the KEF L50 speakers."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/70.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/70.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/70.jpg" desc="Most Clearaudio turntables can be placed on stands."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/72.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/72.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/72.jpg" desc="This is Cleraudio history – preamplifiers manufactured for the company in Slovakia, e.g. by Ri Audio."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/73.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/73.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/73.jpg" desc="Avid Hi-Fi with the Ingenium model in the unusual anode colour."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/74.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/74.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/74.jpg" desc="Conrad Mass, the owner of Avid, next to the latest Sigsum integrated amplifier. Next to it, there is a black turntable – Conrad said that it is the most popular colour now."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/75.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/75.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/75.jpg" desc="The Volare Dr. Feickert Analogue model – small and compact."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/76.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/76.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/76.jpg" desc="These unusual organic shapes are the trademark of the Metaxas & Sins company – the photo shows the Phonographic Perambulator PP1 turntable."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/77.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/77.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/77.jpg" desc="This Onkk Limited turntable also had a streamlined but much more familiar shape."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/78.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/78.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/78.jpg" desc="Music Hall presented the mmf-9.3 turntable in natural veneer."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/79.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/79.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/79.jpg" desc="The Acoustical Systems Arché is an amazingly fine-tuned arm head, in which it is possible to replace the cartridge only by unscrewing the plate that it is mounted to."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/80.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/80.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/80.jpg" desc="A high-end Technics turntable? Why not – the SP-10R model has all the specifications that will let it win the hearts of more than just a group of “anachrophiles”."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/81.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/81.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/81.jpg" desc="SME and the new Synergy turntable – motor from the model 10, in a new housing, plate from the model 15, a new base and, of course, an organic shape are just a few of its special features."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/82.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/82.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/82.jpg" desc="As always, Transrotor did not disappoint us – the photo shows the majestic Metropolis Chrom turntable."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/83.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/83.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/83.jpg" desc="Afi Flat is a device which is used to flatten vinyl records and reduce internal stresses in vinyl."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/84.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/84.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/84.jpg" desc=The incredible Dereneville Modulare turntable with three arms, including two parallel tracking ones."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/85.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/85.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/85.jpg" desc="A novelty from TechDAS, the Air Force V model, so far the cheapest one of all the turntables that the company offers."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/86.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/86.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/86.jpg" desc="The Acoustic Signature Tango Reference preamplifier – that is what I call a big device…"] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/87.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/87.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/87.jpg" desc="Although it looks like a Micro Seika turntable, in fact it is the Amari LP-82s. It weighs 50 kg."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/88.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/88.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/88.jpg" desc="Another novelty, the Kuzma Stabi R turntable. The photo shows a version with bases for two arms."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/89.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/89.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/89.jpg" desc="The Kuzma Stabi R is a modular turntable, so it can be fitted with a wooden housing and a different arm base."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/90.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/90.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/90.jpg" desc="An Einstein turntable, unmistakably called The Record Player."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/91.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/91.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/91.jpg" desc="Components of The Record Player; in the centre there is a sub-platter for Rega turntables that can be used to upgrade them."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/92.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/92.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/92.jpg" desc="Volker Bohlemeier with the anniversary bottle of wine."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/93.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/93.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/93.jpg" desc="The BDC2 is a top-loader CD player manufactured by the B.M.C. company. Due to the fact that it has a large knob instead of small buttons, it is extremely user-friendly."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/94.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/94.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/94.jpg" desc="A new Métronome Technology player which plays both CDs and SACDs. Please pay your attention to the touch screen."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/95.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/95.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/95.jpg" desc="The DreamPlay One integrated CD player has joined the Métronome Technology Kalista series. One can buy a special stand for it."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/96.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/96.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/96.jpg" desc="That was the first time I had seen a complete MBS Technology source, consisting of The Reference Transport and the Reference DAC. The transport plays records with DSD stereo and multichannel signal, as well as PCM 24/192 in the AIFF, ALAC, APE, FLAC and WAV formats."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/97.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/97.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/97.jpg" desc="Excellent looking Wadax devices from the Atlantis series, including a top-loader CD player. Thanks to the MusIC Chip technology, they are to correct errors that occured during recording or digital mastering."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/98.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/98.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/98.jpg" desc="Mr Omata Kyoichi next to the latest server, the DSP-050EX model, manufactured by his company – Sforzato Corp."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/99.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/99.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/99.jpg" desc="A novelty from Cocktail Audio, the X45Pro model – a file player and server with the CD ripping function."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/100.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/100.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/100.jpg" desc="Opera-Consonance presented a digital source in the champagne colour: a optical disk player with a computer drive and a hard disk called the X1, working with the Reference 8 Pro Music Player (a file player and converter). Using it, we can play files up to 32/384 and DSD256."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/101.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/101.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/101.jpg" desc="The iFi Audio room and our April cover."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/102.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/102.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/102.jpg" desc="The CEC company does not only stand for sophisticated CD players, but something more – it also offers speakers."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/103.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/103.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/103.jpg" desc="The Portuguese Innuos company presented the top-of-the-line Zenith Statement file player. They plan to manufacture only 100 units of the two-piece device."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/104.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/104.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/104.jpg" desc="Chord Electronics also presented a new version of their converter – the photo shows the Hugo TT 2. The main change are the new digital filters included in the top-of-the-range Artix 7 FPGA circuit. The display and controls have also been slightly changed."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/105.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/105.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/105.jpg" desc="Weiss Engineering, Swiss specialists in digital waveforms, presented the small digital-to-analogue converter DAC501 which, however, has a wonderful specification. Be it enough to say that Herbie Hancock uses converters manufactured by this company. The DAC accepts DSD128 and PCM signal up to 384 kHz."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/106.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/106.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/106.jpg" desc="The Kharma company set up this complete system in a specially arranged room. The firm’s powerful loudspeakers make use of two diamond tweeters. Amplification was provided by amplifiers manufactured by the company and the sources included two Nagra IV-S tape recorders, the Clearaudio Statement turntable and a full dCS Vivaldi system."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/107.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/107.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/107.jpg" desc="Aequo Audio has made the Stilla speakers for those who prefer to have classic designs in their rooms. Apart from Norm electronics, there was also the Antipodes CX + EX file player/server."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/108.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/108.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/108.jpg" desc="In the corridor, one could find the nice-looking and apparently solidly made ultrasonic KirmussAudio KA-RC-1 cleaner. LPs and singles are separately inserted into the slots on the top."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/109.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/109.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/109.jpg" desc="A complete Polish solution to high-end problems: the hORNS Symphony speakers, power amplifiers (monoblocks) made by the same company, as well as a J. Sikora phono stage and turntable. Next to them there was a Sumile cartridge and Gutwire cables. For those who wanted to listen to an optical disc, there was also the Audio CD-1sx player."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/110.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/110.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/110.jpg" desc="“Sumile” stands for a violet (the flower) in Japanese – hence the colour of cartridges manufactured by the company."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/111.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/111.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/111.jpg" desc="Divaldi is one of few Polish companies that have been given the IF Design Award (2017). The firm offers amplifiers, headphone amplifiers and phono stages, as well as speakers, furniture and accessories."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/112.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/112.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/112.jpg" desc="It had seemed that there was no chance of return, yet the Finite Elemente company is back to the market. The photo shows one of its original founders, Mr Luis Fernandes, who came back in order to straighten things out."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/113.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/113.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/113.jpg" desc="For a start, the Finite company offers anti-vibration feet having different finish."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/114.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/114.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/114.jpg" desc="This beautiful headphone amplifier, the AT-HA 5050H model, has been manufactured by Audio-Technica."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/115.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/115.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/115.jpg" desc="The Audio-Technica company stand."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/116.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/116.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/116.jpg" desc="This is the Opera-Consonance Linear X headphone amplifier with 300B tubes, offering as many as 9 W!"] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/117.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/117.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/117.jpg" desc="Ayre electronics from the ‘8’series – the photo presents a preamplifier equipped with a headphone amplifier and a DAC – the KX-8 model."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/118.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/118.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/118.jpg" desc="Novelties offered by the Oyaide company – turntable interconnects: the PH-01 RR, PA-2075 DR V2 and PA-2075 RR V2."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/119.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/119.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/119.jpg" desc="New Oyaide plugs from the Armored series."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/120.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/120.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/120.jpg" desc="An original Spura machine for producing cables."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/121.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/121.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/121.jpg" desc="A stylish stand of the Polish Albedo company."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/123.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/123.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/123.jpg" desc="The Fidata company prepared a few new products, including a LAN signal switch, as well as an optical disc transport which makes it possible to rip optical discs to a hard drive. The photo shows one of the company engineers, Mr Akiya Miyamoto."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/124.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/124.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/124.jpg" desc="This is the first device manufactured by Cambridge Audio, the P40 amplifier from the year 1968."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/125.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/125.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/125.jpg" desc="This is the latest Cambridge Audio amp – the Edge. The company is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/126.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/126.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/126.jpg" desc="In order to see what a sophisticated project the Edge series is, it is enough to look at this photo – it shows a coaxial volume control and input switch knob. And nothing more."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/127.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/127.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/127.jpg" desc="This huge block of aluminium is the new analogue Lumïn amplifier operating in AB class."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/128.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/128.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/128.jpg" desc="This beast is the Hegel H590 model. The new Norwegian reference amp has the power of 300 W (8 Ω) per channel and an in-built DAC."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/129.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/129.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/129.jpg" desc="The Western Electric brand is back to the market with amplifiers – the photo shows the 91C model with the 300B tube."] [img mini="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/th/130.jpg" big="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/130.jpg" src="foto_testy/1805/monachium2018/130.jpg" desc="My beloved Tivoli Audio company presented new devices, including the Model One Digital and the integrated Music System Digital.] [/hfgallery]

wanted, I really wanted to start this text somehow differently, to escape from the memories from the review of the Chopin MkIV by Struss Amplifiers, but I gave up - though never I had an amplifier from this company, our paths have been crossing in one way or another for some time. For the last time we met with Mr. Zdzisław Hrynkiewicz-Struss, if I am not mistaken, about sixteen years ago. Maybe seventeen, I'm not sure. I worked at the Audioholic company, a distributor of products from such brands as McIntosh, PSB, Aerial, Nakamichi, and Enlightened Audio Design. In addition to the distribution business, the company rented a large villa on the outskirts of Krakow, in which several rooms were arranged in a way that it could look like at clients homes. In addition to the devices from our distribution we presented also in the showroom products of several other companies that complemented the portfolio. One of them were amplifiers by Struss. I remember this situation perfectly because at the same time my brother Maciek bought a used 140 Struss amplifier. Nicely made, with an unusual front from polished sheet metal, phono preamplifier and wooden side panels it was a quite famous device at the time. This was not the first device by Mr. Zdzisław. He had been designing and manufacturing audio devices for a long time, based on the experience gained from the Polish Academy of Sciences, where he was part of the team of electronic engineers. This period lasted for ten years. Then, in the 1985 – 1990 period, he cooperated with Philips and Studer AG - for the latter he designed a reading track for the B77 reel-to-reel tape recorder. Cooperation with Philips allowed him to acquire measuring instruments and electronic components that others could only dream about at the time in our country. As his spiritual mentor, Mr. Struss mentions Dr. Matti Otali. This, born in 1939, professor of the Finnish University of Oulu who died in 2015, an important figure at Philips Research Laboratories, chief engineer of Harman/Kardon, was an electronic engineer known for developing methods of distortion measurements that were previously unknown - Transient Intermodulation (TIM). TIM were mainly formed after the use of a deep feedback. It is worth mentioning that his appearance in 1973 at the AES conference inspired the Norwegian music producer Svein Erik Børja, who after three years had his first amplifier and company ready – it was called Electrocompaniet. The first Mr. Struss amplifier based on these experiences was the Struss 01-2 model from 1995. A year later, Struss Amplifiers was founded. As we read in the company's materials and on the manufacturer's website, at the same time the 140 model was designed, and a year later it received the Award of the "Audio" magazine, in which my reviews began to appear a few years later. The first reviewer was Adam Mokrzycki, today known more as the organizer of the Audio Video Show, that "High Fidelity" is a media partner of. ZDZISŁAW HRYNKIEWICZ-STRUSS Owner, designer The preamplifier is an innovative Harmonics and Phase Conversion System that changes the proportions in the harmonic distortion spectrum. The system's solution introduces even harmonics, characteristic of tube circuits, which makes the presentation of music warmer, more realistic, and at the same time is not devoid of the advantages of transistor amplifiers. Also in this section a number of changes known from Struss Amplifiers have been introduced. They mainly concern the removal of all capacities - both coupling and preventing interference. It required us to design new circuits with the elimination of parasitic interference. We have achieved the required compromise by using SMD components in selected places, and THT elements (traditionally threaded) that are decisive for the sound of the amplifier. The whole amplifier are two independent monoblocks powered by two 500W toroidal transformers. In output stage, we used a proven and accurately calculated topology of convection cooling, known from earlier Struss Amplifiers. I would like to add that Struss Audio is in the final stage of preparation of separate monoblocks working in class A, with a power of 50 W, next we will propose monoblocks with a power of 400 W, working in the AB class. | DM 250 In 2015, after a series of amplifiers, of which we should mention the models we have tested, Chopin MkIV and R150, the company changed its ownership structure and under the name Struss Audio began to work on a completely new device. The result of the three-years work is the DM 250, which is the subject of this test. As Mr. Zdzisław says, the basic mechanical structure is similar to what we know from the Chopin model. Completely new is the look and electronics. The front panel has an interesting layout, thanks to dividing it into two parts with a carmine insert and sculptural treatment of its surface. The chromed knobs for volume control and input selection were originally developed for Chopin and nothing has changed since then - they are nice and handy. With a remote control, in the form of a flat, heavy disk, we can only adjust the volume. The device features four line inputs, one MM phonostage input and one for the power in. One of the inputs is balanced (XLR). De-symmetrizing circuit - the amplifier is an asymmetrical design - is the company's own development. One of the RCA inputs has been equipped with high-quality WBT sockets. Speaker connectors come from the same brand. The amplifier's circuits are protected against overload and short circuit. A power switch is also protected - a latching breaker from the American company C & K has been chosen to protect against accidental switching on or off. And at the same time it is an interesting departure from boring buttons and switches. Similar on/off switches one can find in Japanese amplifiers by SPEC company. The amplifier is rated at 250W at 4Ω and a its frequency response is 5 Hz - 250kHz. Its sound has been tuned so that on the one hand it is as transparent as possible and on the other it sounds nice. The techniques that have been used to achieve that have been developed since 2000, and one of the most important ones is a proprietary solution HPCS (Harmonics and Phase Conversion System): Struss Audio Harmonics and the Phase Conversion System (HPCS) is a solution that enables the listener to move into the real world of music from the comfort of his own home. The amplifier is characterized by the closeness to the ‘tubey sound’ so favored amongst audiophiles, while maintaining all the best features of the transistor amplifier, such as speed and low frequency control. […] The HPCS system is a solution that, while maintaining extremely high technical parameters of the amplifier's path, allows to obtain a sound that is pleasant to the human ear. from: company's website As Mr. Zdzisław says, this is about a preamplifier section in which he used J-FET transistors in a system known from tube amplifiers based on pentode tubes. It is about minimizing odd harmonic distortion, leaving even ones at a level that would be acceptable from the point of view of measurements, and which would help in obtaining the target sound. The system was assembled with a mixed by-pass and surface technique, and the number of components was reduced to a minimum. The amplifier worked in the "High Fidelity" reference system and was compared to a separate system consisting of the Ayon Audio Spheris III preamplifier and the Soulution 710 power amplifier. As a source, I used the Ayon Audio CD-35 HF SACD Player and simultaneously the reviewed Gold Note Pianosa turntable with Machiavelli Red cartridge. This is a HO MC cartridge, and its output voltage is 2 mV, so it is lower than the nominal preamplifier sensitivity in DM 250. During the test it did not matter, but for peace of mind I would recommend using cartridges with an output voltage of around 4 mV. The amplifier drove Harbeth M40.1 loudspeakers using Siltech Triple Crown cables. As interconnects I used Acoustic Revive RCA-1.0 Absolute-FM. To power up the device I used Acoustic Revive Power Reference Triple-C. I placed Struss integrated on the Acoustic Revive RAF-48H anti-vibration platform. STRUSS in „High Fidelity” TEST: Struss Amplifiers Chopin MkIV | integrated amplifier TEST: Struss Amplifiers R150 | integrated amplifier Recordings used for the test (a selec- tion): Faith No More, Sol Invictus, Reclamation Recordings!/Hostess K.K. RRIPCOO2J, CD (2015) ; Jamie xx, In Colour, Young Turks/Hostess YTCD122J, CD (2015/2016); Julie London, Julie is her name. Vol. 1, Liberty Records LPR 3006, LP (1955) Kendrick Lamar, DAMN., Top Dawg Entertainment/Aftermath Entertainment/Interscope Records/Tidal FLAC 16/44,1; The Weeknd, Starboy, XO • Republic 5727592, CD (2016) Suzanne Vega, Close-Up. Vol.1, Love Songs, Amanuensis Productions | Cooking Vinyl COCKCD521, CD (2014) Tomasz Pauszek, LO-FI LO-VE, Audio Anatomy AA-006-17-CD, 2 x Master CD-R (2017); Tommy Schneider & Friends, The Hidden Port, Kolibri Records no. 12001, 180 g LP (2012) Tsuyoshi Yamamoto, Autumn in Seattle, First Impression Music FIM LP 004-LE, 200 g LP (2001/2011) Tsuyoshi Yamamoto, Autumn in Seattle, First Impression Music FIM XRCD 043, XRCD2 (2001) Tsuyoshi Yamamoto, Autumn in Seattle, First Impression Music FIM UHD 043LE, CD (2012) Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] Recorded in 2001, using the Studer A829 tape recorder, album Autumn in Seattle by Tsuyoshi Yamamoto, a Japanese jazz pianist, composer and arranger, was for the owner of the First Impression Music label, Mr. Winston Ma a very special release. The material was recorded especially for his label, and the title track was composed especially for him. It is no wonder that he kept re-issuing it every now and then, when he found a better - in his opinion - way to release this material. The "ultimate" version was, I think, the vinyl one, but he also highly appreciated the digital versions - XRCD2 and 32-bit UltraHD. I've been listening to this album quite often, because I like Yamamoto and this type of music. But each time I choose another edition - I can not decide which one is better. And that's because they are completely different. I compared them using the Struss amplifier and the differences mentioned were absolutely clear and unambiguous. Of course, music was the most important element, it gives the sense to the whole, but “watching” how Mr. Ma's thinking about sound has been changed over time is fascinating. The 2011 version, the 32-bit UltraHD, sounds in a big, intense way. DM 250 also presented it this way, because it presents large plans itself, it is not a "lean" sounding device, so it conveyed this property of the album really well. It is an amplifier that plays "widely", that is, showing big phantom images located in a large space. I could immediately feel that the sound of the version in question was somehow "made" or “shaped”. Comparing the XRCD2 disc to the vinyl showed that they are more similar to each other than to UltraHD. Struss had no trouble presenting a strong, but not entirely contoured, double bass from this album. It is an amplifier that does not chase the selectivity of the lower end of the sound spectrum. It plays with momentum, nice colors, but it doesn't try to clarify everything that happens there. However, it does not stop it from delivering a very good differentiation of the low range, because it was immediately clear that the XRCD2 version is more punctual and faster, and the UltraHD had a less pronounced attack. The control of this range is really good, this is not the problem - it is perfectly clear though, that it is more about saturating it with colors and mass, not about the ultimate speed of dynamic shifts. You should not think that the DM 250 is only suitable for one type of music - it is anachronistic approach. Both the First Impression Music album and the excellent electronics of Tomasz Pauszek from LO-Fi LO-VE had the right rhythm, pulse, each one its own, and the sound was rich with powerful bass. Let's play DAMN. by Kendrick Lamar, Starboy by The Weeknd or In Color by Jamie xx, and we will hear the same features: a strong, low bass with creamy colors and a pleasant, warm attack. I think that such a presentation of bass range is responsible to a large extent for amplifier's momentum, for such a nice saturation of the sound. Because the whole band is presented in such a way, that is, warm and dense. And it did not matter whether I listened to sophisticated jazz productions or electronics, this aspect was readable with all recordings. The latest Struss amplifier build a strong foreground. This is a device that celebrates human voices, gives them seriousness and saturates with meanings. I liked it very much and it perfectly harmonized with the philosophy behind the Harbeth speakers. So if you listen to this type of music and think that only tube amplifiers can offer you what you need, think again while listening to DM 250. The voices are incredibly intimate with it, have a large volume and are palpable. They are rich and very natural. Although we have the impression, something like an aftertaste of the warmth applied to them. The first 10 this device produces is in class A, there is a small feedback and very low TIM distortion, it is also based on field-effect transistors (FETs). Each of these techniques when used separately warms up the sound. Here, all together were very well combined, reminding me not only what I know from the Qualiton A50i amplifier, but also class D elinsAudio Concerto amp. Which proves that there is something like the aesthetic community, taste and it can achieved using various solutions. In the case of the Struss DM 250 it results in warmth, density, saturation and incredible momentum. The attack seems rounded, but there was nothing lacking in the sound of cymbals, brass instruments, in the beat of the drums. It was perfectly clear, however, that this is a "long-distance" device in which the listener's attention focuses on richness and sustaining of the sound, not on the attack. The dynamics may seem a bit calmed down, at least if we listen to something clearly open clearly dynamic. This, however, only matters in a short demo, it becomes an advantage during a long listening session. Also, decaying is a bit masked, and that is probably why the sounds located on the axis, in the foreground, seemed to be displayed in my room instead of taking me into the space, where the music was recorded. They were large, rich and dense, and had large, nice bodies. They were, however, placed "here and now", and the reverbs and acoustics of the interiors were tempered. Paradoxically, classical music in the chamber edition gained from it because the performers were close to me, there was no distancing them from me at the expense of reverberation. Summary This is a really good amplifier by Mr. Zdzisław - he is beautifully saturated, dense, but he does not drown everything into mush. Its high tones have exceptional ease in filling the band without brightening or sharpening. The bass is incredibly deep and powerful, although it does not try to compete with the best one in terms of control and selectivity. It is supposed to be just a good filling and a foundation for the rest of the band. As you can see, the most important part of the band is midrange. The vocals, small chamber ensembles sound great, but so does electronic music. Despite so shaped tonality, it is a very universal amplifier, because it delivers a very fast and clean sound, although it is hidden under colors and saturation. The phono preamplifier is a nice addition here, but only high-quality digital sources and phono preamplifiers will allow the DM 250 to show everything that I've talked about. Congratulations! The DM 250 is a medium-sized integrated amplifier and the manufacturer calls it: "dual mono" design. The point is that there are two monoblocks powered from separate transformers. Its front panel is very pretty - divided into two parts by a carmine ribbon looks really nice. This type of motif is not a novelty, because in a different form we know it from elinsAudio devices, but you can see that it is about using a similar idea, and not duplicating it. Front and back | The front is made of thick anodized black and carmine aluminum. It is not flat, as usually, but slightly bowed, which makes the whole look very “architectural”. Its production was undertaken by a company from Canada. We know the manipulators from Chopin – there is a small volume knob and input selector; the latter can also disconnect the amplifier and preamplifier section, when user want to include the device in the home cinema system. However, the knob adjusting the signal level at the headphone output has disappeared - the company has given up this function. The selected input is indicated by blue LEDs. Quite unusual, known from industrial devices, is the power supply switch - it has a latch that prevents accidental switching on or off of the device. On the back we can find separate input marked as CD/DAC - these are high quality WBTs - and loudspeaker connectors of the same company. The other RCA inputs are classic one, soldered to the printed circuit board. Since the amplifier was designed for export to the USA and Canada, there is also a balanced XLR input and, as already mentioned, a power-in input. The chassis, prepared by one of the companies located near Warsaw, is made of bent, galvanized steel sheets, and the top wall is varnished. From the inside manufacturer used a bituminous mat to damp vibrations. The amplifier stands on aluminum feet with felt washers. Inside | The front panel of the amplifier shows the "Dual Mono" writing and on the rear the "Dual Mono Amplifier" one. When one lifts it it is immediately clear that despite the small dimension, there is a lot of copper and aluminum in it - the term "dual mono" means a separate power supply for both channels. Amp features two large toroidal transformers with a power of 500 W each, mounted on a thick, copper-plated platform. There are also four, two for each of the two channels, capacitors with a total capacity of 60,000 μF in the power supply section to suppress ripples from the power grid. The power amplifier section is based on the own Struss patent - RP No. 176514. It is a coupled system without capacitors, based entirely on field effect transistors. Both channels share the same PCB, a large part of which has been surface mounted. The transistors were bolted to a 15 mm thick aluminum plate. Along with a large heat-sink and casing, it dissipates heat from the output transistors - two complementary pairs per channel of N-MOSFET field-effect transistors (IRFP240 + IRFP9240). Bolting the transistors to a thick, vibration-resistant plate would reduce their vibrations and the effect of "microphoning". Today, it is known that this effect well-known from tube devices also affects transistor circuits. Same goes for the preamplifier section. It features a separate PCB and is screwed next to the back panel. It is based on J-FET transistors operating in a similar arrangement to pentodes in tube systems, thanks to which the 3rd harmonic has been minimized, leaving stronger second one. This will help in obtaining a more "tube", and in fact more natural and pleasant sound. The inputs are switched using relays, and the CD input appears to have a shorter signal path. The phono input works with a single Texas Instruments integrated circuit, that had all markings removed from it. The volume control potentiometer comes from the Alps company and long interconnects deliver signal to it. Remote control | The remote control is interesting – it is round in shape and quite heavy. One can control volume with it. It was designed to be operated while placed on a flat surface. Technical specifications (according to manufacturer) Rated power: 130W/8Ω | 250W/4Ω Frequency range: 5Hz – 250kHz (- 3dB/1W/8Ω) Output impedance: 0.10 Ω THD: • 0.1 % @ 1W/8Ω • 0.025 % @ 130W/8Ω Slew rate: 200V/μs Dynamics: 140dB S/N weighted noise: 145dB (IHF - A) Input sensitivity:  RCA: 500mV | XLR: 250mV | MM: 3mV power amplifiers: 0.775V Input impedance:  RCA: 100kΩ | XLR:22kΩ | MM: 47kΩ power amplifiers: 47kΩ Power consumption: 40VA – 800VA (peak) Class A operation: 2 x 10W Dimensions (W x H x D): 430 x 102 x 338mm Weight: 16kg [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/struss/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/struss/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/struss/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/struss/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/struss/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/struss/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/struss/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/struss/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/struss/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/struss/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/struss/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/struss/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/struss/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/struss/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/struss/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/struss/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/struss/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/struss/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/struss/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/struss/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/struss/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/struss/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/struss/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/struss/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/struss/th/13.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/struss/13.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/struss/13.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

mall companies, including audio companies, do not change their lineup often. If we look closely, it turns out that there is really no such thing as "lineup" in their case. At least if by lineup one understands the ordered, structured logically fitting to different price shelves set of devices, then only medium and large size manufacturers are able to plan the lineup and refresh it on regular basis. For specialists companies, such as the French LAVARDIN TECHNOLOGIES, it's an advantage and disadvantage at the same time – it depends on how we look at it. On the one hand, new devices appear spontaneously when the designer - usually the owner at the same time - prepares something that can be called a "new" and at the same time "satisfying" his expectations product. In such a case, we are offered something really new and well-thought-through. This is an advantage that I would call "personal". But there is also the other side of the coin. The bigger manufacturers can do more - it's a truism, but it perfectly shows the importance of the so-called "large scale". Purchasing a larger number of components of a certain kind a given manufacturer is able to negotiate a much better price for them. As a result they constitute a much smaller percentage of the costs of a given device. This is an advantage which we must naturally call a "scale". No wonder that the Lavardin company, which we are talking about this time, does not hurry with new products. It is small, so it can't use the effect of a scale, nor is the brand known to the mass customer, so it is not compelled to regularly refresh the offer. Partially for this reason, the previous IT amplifier has evolved extremely slowly - the basic model was created in 1996, the color of the knobs was changed in 2003, and in 2005 the input circuit was improved and the recording output was added. Version with these modifications was given the name 2K5. And only in 2011 we tested the 15th Anniversary version of the IT-15 and the latest incarnation, model ITx 20 is a device prepared for the 20th Anniversary. | ISx REFERENCE RED EDITION Similarly, the ISx series celebrates the 20th Anniversary of Lavardin Technologies. This is an amplifier that uses all solutions known from IT, but sold at a lower price. As the manufacturer says, it is able to perfectly present what was so exciting about the IT model. There are two versions available - the basic ISx and the more "awesome" ISx Reference. It can be even more "sexy" if we order it with a beautiful red front panel. This version is called ISx (symbol series) Reference (better version) Red Edition (information about the color of the front panel). Memory distortions | "Exclusive high speed solid state circuits with low memory distortion" - this is how Lavardin describes the type of circuit they use in their amplifiers. We elaborated on it on the occasion of the IT-15 model review, but let me remind you. "Memory distortions" is a special type of interference introduced into the music signal by "remains" after a signal that has previously passed through electronic components. Although it has not been noticed before, it turns out that they modify the signal in an unfavorable way, giving it a cool and rough character. Disregarding them is interesting because the negative impact of MC cartridges magnetization has been known for many years - special demagnetizing systems are used to get rid of it. And magnetization is one of the main components of the "memory distortions", which is also accompanied by permanent polarity of electric charges in conductors. The Audioquest company has strongly engaged to fight this negative effects recently, and they use use a special, active system in their cables that permanently polarizes the dielectric. Lavardin believes that no other company has paid attention to it, because classical measurement methods are not appropriate when it comes to music. Signals with a fixed frequency or with a set level are almost always used for measurements. And yet those appear – as Lavardin Technologies claims – in less than 0.01% of the entire track. Such a strong emphasis on one type of distortion has two functions: a marketing and information ones and both are validated. The marketing role allows company to set their own "identity", or something that separates them from the other manufacturers. It is about drawing the potential customers' attention to an aspect that is unique to a given company. Lavardin combines this with something outside of marketing, which is the second part of it being different from competitors – the sound delivered by their devices. This French company wants the sound of its devices to be both "tube" and "transistor" like, with emphasis on the former. The ideal feature is "focused transparency" in the midrange, reminding of "the best tube amplifiers". Options | The ISx Reference Amplifier is a classic device designed according to the "less is more" principle. Its creators gave up almost all features that make using the device more convenient, except for the remote control. I'm pretty sure that if they could, they would get rid of it too. Since today the remote control is a standard feature they had to offer it but to stay in harmony with their conscience, they used a circuit of their own idea, which they called "Zero Side Effect Remote Volume Control". One can order a device with one of three additional options: a phono MM preamplifier, a front panel in the red color and with a "bypass" input. Mounting inside the phonostage module means one of the line inputs - number 4 – is used for it. In the technical data we can find information that the sensitivity of this input is 2 mV, which means that it is suitable not only for classic MM cartridges with a 4-5 mV output voltage, but also for the MC HO type, usually with an output voltage of 2-3 mV. The front panel in red looks great and I can not imagine that I could order this amplifier in black. On the pictures posted on the Internet, apart from the red front, the amplifier also has red rims of the volume and input selector knobs – the reviewed unit had these elements in silver, so I do not know which one is the actual version. And finally you can combine this amplifier with a home theater system - optionally you can change the input number 1 into the amp in, bypassing the attenuator. I have not found any information about the sensitivity of this input. The MM and bypass inputs are characteristic for devices built not only for the European market but also for the North American one where they are considered a must have. Exactly the same reasoning was used when preparing functionalities of the Struss amplifier DM 250 (more HERE). The tested unit was a Red Edition, i.e. with a red front panel, but without the other two options. One could argue it's the most puristic version. It's a small device, it does not warm up too much when used, so it can be placed anywhere. However, it is worth taking care of a proper anti-vibration platform - the sound will be even more focused and rich with it. During the test as a source I used the Ayon Audio CD-35 HF SACD player using the Acoustic Revive RCA-1.0 Absolute-FM interconnects, and the amplifier was powered by the Power Reference Triple-C cable from the same company. The Lavardin drove my Harbeth M40.1 loudspeakers and I have to say it was a perfect combination. So let me suggest using any "BBC" loudspeakers with it. LAVARDIN TECHNOLOGIES in „HF” REVIEW: Lavardin Technologies IT-15 | integrated amplifier REVIEW: Lecontoure Loudspeakers Stabile 210 | Lavardin Technologies Model C62 + Model AP150 + CMA317 + CML83 + CMR250 | system audio Recordings used for the test (a selec- tion) Puer natus est, Stile Antico, Harmonia Mundi USA HMU 807817, SACD/CD (2010) Anna Essipowa, Anna Essipowa plays Chopin, Verdi-Liszt, Schumann, d’ Albert and Thalberg, „Pulpils of Leschetzky Vol. 1”, Sakuraphon SKRP-33005, CD (2015) Bogdan Hołownia, Chwile, Sony Music Polska 5052882, „Pre-Mastering Version”, Master CD-R (2000) Mayo Nakano Piano Trio, MIWAKU, Briphonic BRPN-7007GL, Extreme Hard Glass CD-R (2017); Rammstein, Stripped, Motor Music 044 141-2, maxi single CD (1998) Tsuyoshi Yamamoto Trio, Misty, Three Blind Mice/First Impression Music FIM SACD 062 SACD/HDCD (1974/2004) Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] From the beginning I noticed supremacy of the melody over the rhythm, the tonality over the ultimate control with the French amplifier. It perfectly combined all these advantages into something more, which allowed music to flow without restrictions and inhibitions, which allows it to build a large, dense, powerful presentation in front of me. So Lavardin sounded incredibly "analog", because that's what this type of presentation is associated with, but also intensely. The intensity of such presentation is placing the foreground slightly in front of the line connecting the speakers and focusing listener's attention on this element. But it is not about highlighting the events on the axis, but rather about allowing listener to appreciate them. I noticed that already when listening to the first album with Anna Essipova's recordings from 1906-1907 transferred from rolls to the digital domain by the Japanese company Sakuraphon. The sound was, given the age of recordings, phenomenal in its truthness. But I also know that it is rather distanced and shown further away from listener than newer productions. The French amplifier brought the piano closer and enlarged it. It did not matter that it was a modification, because it allowed for great contact with both music and the musician. It is not that every recording sounds the same way. The tools used to create it are the same, but each album has its own sound. And when I listened to the Bogdan Hołownia's Chwile I heard the same approach as with Essipova, that is, warming up, adding layers, saturation. It sounded different, though, in a way that was appropriate for this recording, which I'd listened to hundreds of times before. The trumpet and piano were in the foreground and they were not pushed towards me. Percussion and percussion instruments placed further away by sound engineer, often behind other instruments, here were exactly there and did not lean towards the listener. What creates an interesting effects with albums, that are not considered “audiophile” editions, such as, for example, Stripped by Rammstein. This is the only single from the album For The Masses, where the top rock bands interpret the songs of the Depeche Mode. The recording is very compressed and quite "technical", that is, harsh. Lavardin remodeled it in such a way that it rounded the edges and warmed it up - this procedure it applies to every material. And this could sum it all up if I decided to rest with only simplifications and stereotypes. The tested amplifier is not stereotypical though, it breaks out of it quite quickly. It beautifully presented the main feature of such music, that is the fantastic rhythm, the pulse, the succession of events at precisely defined time intervals. It was similar with remixes of this song, including the excellent, electronic Psilonaut Mix. There was something in this music that droved it forward, thus engaging me in it. The stereotypical "tube" amplifier, regardless of whether it was built using tubes or semiconductors, usually plays quite slowly, quenching the pulse. Lavardin does not do it, and it seems to me a derivative of a very, very good speed of this sound. "Tube-like" is only tonality and saturation, maybe also a way of presenting the sound stage, on which what is happening at the back of the stage is not as important as what is in its front, but the micro-dynamics is not. Which is a paradox, because the "fastest" amplifiers I know are tube amplifiers, but built around 300B tubes. The ISx Reference is not as transparent or as fast, but with the tonality similar to that of KT120 and EL34 tubes, it outperforms them in terms of micro-dynamics and keeps everything in perfect order. This is an advantage that gives any music a value, which it lacks with many other, still great devices. In rock and electronic, it allows music to reach us with drive and power, while in jazz and classical music it brings out the speed which is hidden in the music itself. So let's play something like Misty by Tsuyoshi Yamamoto Trio from the First Impression Music SACD disc and we shall know that it's incredibly good recording played by fantastic musicians and including a remarkable music. The top of the band is maybe even most interesting. The Misty album is one of the top achievements of the Japanese art of sound recording, because of the remarkably well conveyed sound attack. Lavardin gently rounded it, but it did not slow it down - something I rarely hear. It rounded it up because it is a warm amplifier and it warms up treble. But it does not withdraw the entire treble - it was immediately clear that this recording was made on analog tape without any noise reduction system. The noise of the tape was perfectly audible in quiet passages, but it was neither emphasized nor dampened - it sounded just like form a high quality turntable. The only cost, a kind of "tribute", that we have to pay for such sound aesthetics, is how the low tones are formed. They are perfectly saturated, tonally rich and just nice sounding. But there will be no perfect control at the bottom, one should not expect exceptional clarity or focus. So that we understand each other - it's a refined sound and I can not hear any problems with it. But also as part of this offer, bass presentation is something that we have to get used to. Unless it's exactly what you're looking for, then there is nothing to talk about at all. Summary ISx Reference in its basic form is an amplifier with no elaborated functions apart from a remote control, hat seems to be a “luxury” addition in this case. But it's not about functionality here, it's a “sound-only” amplifier. If this is a good approach for you, you will be totally happy with it. This is a device with a "soul", involving, one may even say "spiritual." It offers beautiful tonality and is incredibly fast. It produces a warm sound and the bass, though nicely extended and full, is not strongly focused. The sound stage is a derivative of the foreground and tonality. But the sound has a large volume and is powerful. A beautifully, beautifully sounding amplifier! The ISx Reference Red Edition from Lavardin Technologies is an integrated, solid-state amplifier with an output of as much as 50 W per channel at 8 Ω and 70 W at 4 Ω. Company materials state that at 2 Ω it reaches as much as 104 W. Its chassis is made of very thick, bent aluminum sheets, and the front is made of thick aluminum plate. The metal sheets are painted black and the front is anodized for a perfect red color. The amplifier features three rubber feet - two in the front and one in the back. | Front and rear The front in addition to the red color features also silver accents - two aluminum knobs that allow user to adjust volume and select input, as well as a plate in the middle with the company's logo and a red power LED. In the back you can see what I mentioned at the beginning, namely that small companies have to count every penny. The descriptions of inputs and outputs are placed on stickers. RCA sockets are of good quality, gold-plated with Teflon spacers, but it is also not of the top shelf. Similarly as not-gold-plated loudspeaker sockets. All connectors are placed quite close to each other, so one has to check whether plugs of one's cables are going to fit. Next to the sockets, you can see plugs - the amplifier uses chassis shared with other models of this company, which allows to reduce costs. It is worth paying attention to the red dot painted on the power socket – with the amplifier you will receive a phase probe that will allow you to establish which of the IEC connector pins is “hot”. Next to the socket there is a power switch – its placement might suggest that the device should be left on all the time. | Inside The electronic circuit is assembled on a single printed circuit board. This is a classic example of a system prepared by passionate people who have striven for the highest possible production efficiency and for the highest quality possible. The system is entirely composed of transistors. Finally, a complementary pairs of bipolar transistors operate in the AB-push-pull system in the Darlington TIP 147 + TIP 142 National Semiconductors circuit: A Darlington pair is two transistors that act as a single transistor but with a much higher current gain. This mean that a tiny amount of current from a sensor, micro-controller or similar can be used to drive a larger load. The same transistors work in IT models. The system is fully threaded, made of high quality components - I have not seen so many resistors in one place for a long time. All film capacitors are EVOX polypropylene capacitors. The transistors are fixed using elastic elements to the aluminum profile and they are not bolted. This is to help with mechanical decoupling. The aluminum profile in turn is screwed to the bottom of the chassis, which acts as a heat sink. The signal from the input sockets with short solid-core copper wires enters the PCB, and the selection of an active input is made in relays. The signal is then attenuated using the Blue Velvet Alps potentiometer. This is a motorized potentiometer - the company declares that the control system is completely "invisible" for the audio circuit. The transformer is hidden under an aluminum screen, and this whole part was decoupled from the chassis with rubber spacers; it was bolted from one side to the bottom and from the other to the back wall, which is to help reduce vibrations. From the transformer comes a single secondary, symmetrical winding, therefore there is one rectifier bridge – based on high-speed Schottky diodes; between the channels, only the capacitors suppressing the ripple from the power grid are separated. These are Vishay capacitors. | Remote The remote control is made by Lavardin in-house and perhaps that is why it is not particularly good looking one - it is a metal "boat" with an aluminum plate screwed from the top. Using two buttons one can adjust volume level. A perfectly made system with excellent components inside and good quality connectors outside. It is obvious that it is not a mass-product. But the whole makes a good impression - the amplifier look really good. This is what we expect from specialist manufacturer. Technical specifications (according to manufacturer) Output: 2 x 50W/8Ω | 2 x 70W/4Ω | 104W/2Ω THD:

should say: he's a perfectionist in every way, if not for the fact that it sounds at least silly, and the matter is quite serious. And that's because Cezariusz Andrejczuk, the designer behind the Numer 3 Bamboo loudspeakers, is an absolute perfectionist. He refines his products in a way that no other company would consider worth doing, because it takes a lot of time and money. Cezariusz does not care, because each of his products is not only a commodity to sell, but also a part of his own music system. However, I could start this text with something like this: the shape of Numer 3 Bamboo perfectly fits into the popular in the recent years trend of decorating houses in the 1950s and 1960s styles. Rounded top, bamboo plywood (ecology!) and NOS paper cone drivers perfectly matching this vision - all that results in a product that may become an object that will add splendor to the room it is placed in. And it not only looks great but also smells - Cezariusz does not use varnish on the cabinets of his speakers, because he believes that hardening the surface adversely affects the sound. The cabinets of the reviewed loudspeakers are therefore oiled. A side effect is the ease of repairing any damage and removing signs of wear. | Numer 3 Bamboo We have reviewed the Numer 3 loudspeakers in February 2017 (HF | No. 153). Constantly introduced corrections and upgrades have led to almost completely different in terms of electrical circuit and sonic character, loudspeakers although using exactly the same drivers as before. Both are NOS units, that is, they are new, but come from many years ago and have not been produced for a long time. Both feature conical paper diaphragms. They also feature some old-style suspensions - a 100mm tweeter a paper one, and a 250mm low-midrange woofer made of rubberized canvas. Number 3 Bamboo is a two-way design with a bass-reflex cabinet, with port placed on the rear panel. It is actually closed with plugs, which - if we want to deepen the bass a bit - we can take out. However, Cezariusz believes that in this way we are deteriorating the impulse response, and thus the sound. To improve precision designer used four feet to decouple speakers from the floor. These are magnetic-ball feet with cork washers. The crossover is extremely minimalist. It took the designer several years to get to this solution; there are only two elements in it: a coil and a capacitor. There is no resistor for the tweeter, which reminded me of the extraordinary Extrema model from Sonus faber. The cross-over in these speakers is enclosed in a separate box inside the cabinet, and the former is decoupled from the latter. In order for such a reduction to succeed at all, both elements are selected with a precision which one could consider an "exaggeration" if not for the sonic effects: these loudspeakers are extremely resolving and each, even a slight inaccuracy results in a deterioration of the sound reproduction. The speakers were brought and set up personally by the constructor. He toed them in in such a way that they were directed directly at the listener's ears. He was dissatisfied with the imperfections in the acoustics of my room, but only theoretically - when we played some music he clearly calmed down. This type of loudspeakers is usually designed for use with tube amplifiers, although the solid-state amplifiers that work in Class D are also great. The Avatar designer uses Class A amplifiers, but without feedback. However, because I wanted to know how the loudspeakers behave, and not in the system with the amplifier, I tested them - similarly to all other Avatar Audio constructions - with the Soulution 710 amplifier (class A/AB, transistor) The second element that Cezariusz pays great attention to is the source of the signal. According to him, the Compact Disc is a very poor medium, and the only digital source that makes sense are high-resolution files, especially the DSD ones, that he believes sound particularly natural. He is a fan of simple, even purist recordings and has a dream - to build a small recording room based on his own ideas. Suffice to say, concerts in churches interest him only if he can sit in the first row, where nothing stands in the way between him and the instruments. If there is no such place available - he leaves. Anyway - the most important source of signal are for him DSD files. I have a different opinion on this subject. I am not a dogmatic, though, so during the test I mostly used the Ayon Audio NW-T DSD transport. This is a special device, because it sends a signal not only with a USB output - considered by many professionals to be a bottleneck of computer audio - but also via a professional 3 x BNC link. I benefited from the fact that the Ayon CD-35 HF SACD player features such an input. The DSD signal is transmitted without changes and manipulations in the "direct" mode. In addition, I also listened to SACDs and high resolution PCM files. AVATAR AUDIO in „High Fidelity” TEST: Avatar Audio DREAMLINK POWER CABLE NUMBER 2 | power cable AWARD: BEST PRODUCT 2017 | Avatar Audio HOLOPHONY NUMER 4 | loudspeakers TEST: Avatar Audio DREAMLINK NUMER 3 | interconnect RCA + speaker cables TEST: Avatar Audio HOLOPHONY NUMER 4 | loudspeakers TEST: Avatar Audio RECEPTOR NUMER 2 | anti-vibration platform TEST: Avatar Audio HOLOPHONY NUMER 3 | loudspeakers AWARD: BEST SOUND • AUDIO VIDEO SHOW 2016 | Avatar Audio HOLOPHONY NUMER 2 | loudspeakers TEST: Avatar Audio HOLOPHONY NUMER 2 | loudspeakers TEST: Graj-End GRAJPUDŁA NUMER 3 | loudspeakers Recordings used for the test (a selec- tion): 2xHD | DSD, sampler, 2xHD, Promo USB Flash, DSD64 (2017) 2xHD | PCM, sampler, 2xHD, Promo USB Flash, WAV 24/192 (2017) FIM Super Sounds! I, First Impression Music FIM DXD 066 USB, Promo USB Flash, FLAC 24/176 Istanbul, wyk. Hespèrion XXI, Jordi Savall, Alia Vox AVSA 9870, „Raices & Memoria, vol. IX", SACD/CD (2009) Polish Jazz, wybór, Master WAV 24/88,2 (2016) Puer natus est, Stile Antico, Harmonia Mundi USA HMU 807817, SACD/CD (2010) Anne Bisson, Blue Mind, Fidelio, USB WAV 24/96 (2009) Dead Can Dance, Anastasis, [PIAS] Entertainment Group PIASR311CDX, „Special Edition Hardbound Box Set”, CD+USB drive 24/44,1 WAV (2012); Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber, Rosary Sonatas, viol. Rachel Podger, Channel Classics CCS SA 37315, 2 x SACD/CD (2015) J.S. Bach, The Art of Fugue, Brecon Baroque, viol. Rachel Podger, Channel Classics CCS SA 38316, SACD/CD (2016) John Coltrane, Blue Train, Blue Note/Esoteric ESSB-90123, SACD/CD (1957/2015) w: 6 Great Jazz, „MasterSound Works”, Blue Note/Esoteric ESSB-90122/7, 6 x SACD/CD Tsuyoshi Yamamoto Trio, Misty, Three Blind Mice/First Impression Music FIM SACD 062 SACD/HDCD (1974/2004) Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] Cezariusz Andrejczuk with Numer 3 Bamboo speakers Cezariusz' uncompromising approach to his designs becomes obvious already after the first few seconds of listening to his speakers, especially to this particular model. Far from the universality and having a clear "own sound" loudspeakers Number 3 Bamboo within the assumed goal are unbelievable. The element, that immediately tells us to reorient our perception, is the way of imaging. I am intentionally not talking about "sound stage" or "space", because it is about something more general, which includes these two features and others, such as shaping images, etc. Imaging by these speakers is based on replacing our room's acoustics with the one of the recording. Sitting in front of them, we feel as if we were sitting inside a kind of dome of sound that surrounds us on all sides. As if our room turned into a pair of powerful headphones. It was obvious right away, and in my case it was the next episode of the second season of the Westworld series (2018). I am talking about this because this type of top TV series feature also great soundtracks, in which everything has perfectly matched proportions, size, volume. This is of course a construct built of small elements, not a sound recorded on the set. But that's why it's almost a perfect creation. With such a material, Numer 3 presents an incredible amount of details, subtleties - both in terms of sounds on the axis and surrounding ones. It turns out that most of the classical loudspeakers masks these details, sink them in something bigger that creates a "mass" of the sound. However, before we set our minds that this presentation is about "details", let's throw away everything I've said so far and lets try to see it in a slightly different light. Avatar Audio speakers do not show details and subtleties, but provide abundance of information. And this large amount of information means that we think that it is about details and subtleties. The Bamboo Numer 3 combine them together and show them as a "dome" of sounds. All you need to do is listen to good analog recordings, for example Three Blind Mice from the First Impression Music sampler, to hear the noise of the tape in a way you hear it in a studio. Almost all loudspeakers modify it, withdrawing it behind basic sound - here it is an important part of the creation. The are also very fast. These are loudspeakers that do not seem to delay the signal. They show the attack immediately, as if it were born before our eyes. Even ultra-fast Harbeths are slower and more "coarse". In this respect, only the huge, large horn speakers from the 1950s and 1960s show something similar. There is a quick attack, so nothing is smeared, nothing slows down. There is also an incredible transparency, which results in unbelievable imaging, there is also a great rhythm, which gives the recordings a unique pulse. Music lives with them and changes. With all this in mind, let's say something that I am pointing to when testing every Avatar Audio speakers: they offer a completely different sound than the classic speakers. The basic difference concerns the mass of sound. With the Numer 3 it does not exist, it is a fast sound that does not leave a taste on the tongue, because new information keep coming all the time. The volume of sound is good, but even small modern monitors can create a more massive and more saturated presentation. They usually do it - although not always! - by coloration, using their bass-reflexes, which in turn leads to sound blur. But the fact is that they can create more massive sound than Avatars. The second thing is related to the tonality of the tested speakers. Part of the midrange is emphasized. That's why the sound is so clear and expressive. But it is also a departure from high fidelity; as usually, we get something at the expense of something else. The modification that I am talking takes place in the range between several hundred and 1000 Hz. And now: tube amplifiers with a higher than the transistor ones output impedance will compensate that to bigger extent. That's how it works. And the resolution will remain the same. Summary The new version of the Numer 3 is more resolving, more coherent and, above all, more exciting than the previous model. Although the change of the cabinets and the not using the felt leveling the reflections of the sounds could seem like a step back, taking aesthetic postulates over the sonic ones, in fact it is exactly the opposite – this is a much better speaker than the model I once tested. Their incredible resolution, impulse response and transparency place listener the center of the events. The foreground is close to us, but we feel as if we were sitting in front of the performer, not because he sits on our lap, and because we are in the same space with him. The loudspeakers play a nice bass, although it does not have the mass or the richness known from modern designs. Also the treble is always present, there was nothing missing there. These are unique speakers for special type of customer. Jazz and classical music are the best partners for Numer 3. Pair them with a high quality tube amplifier and the result will be unique. The Avatar Audio Numer 3 Bamboo is the second model from the bottom of this manufacturer's offer. Below there is the basic one called Numer 4, and above the larger, two-module speakers, Numer 2 and Numer 1. The Numer 3 Bamboo, the version under review, differs in almost all details - except for the drivers - from the previous version of Numer 3. The cabinet is different - now with bamboo plywood. It is also slightly smaller, and the front wall is more tilted. The Avatar designer believes that the crossover makes for up to 70% of the sound performance of a loudspeaker, hence that's the element he takes an utmost, almost fanatical attention to when designing a new model. The circuit used in the Bamboo version is completely different, because it consists of only two elements: a waxed coil and a capacitor. The latter is composed of several smaller ones (from the 1960s and 1970s) to obtain an accuracy of the order of 0.01uF. The elements of the crossover are enclosed in an internal housing, and this one is decoupled from the cabinet. The drivers are precisely selected so that they differ in terms of the measurements as little as possible. There is nothing to be afraid of - they are NOS type drivers, which means they have been made several years ago, but they will survive most of modern designs. They were made so that they would not age. Both come from Germany from the 1970s – the low-midrange from the beginning of this decade. This is a shortly made 35W version with an AlNiCo magnet, and therefore a rare one. The good news is that Cezariusz has enough supplies so you don't need to worry about availability. I've mentioned the tilting of the front panel - it was meant to take care about phase alignment of the drivers. Equalizing their acoustic centers is meant to do the same - the tweeter is shifted towards the rear and loaded with a short horn. At its outlet you can see a felt collar. Its purpose is to reduce reflections and deflections of the sound wave. The speaker features a single pair of connectors that reminded me rhodium-plated WBTs. An important component of the Avatar Audio loudspeakers are the feet decoupling them from vibrations. Each of the four feet has two decoupling levels: magnetic and ball ones. This is the version of anti-vibration feet made by one of the Chinese manufacturers but modified by Avatar. The modifications involve replacing rubber and felt elements with cork ones and also replacing the decoupling balls with other ones, produced by the Avatar. Technical specifications (according to manufacturer) Power: 20W Impedance: 4Ω Sensitivity: 93dB Frequency range: 30 – 20 000Hz Dimensions (H x W x D): 1030 x 290 x 300 mm Weight: 20kg/pc. [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/avatar/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/avatar/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/avatar/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/avatar/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/avatar/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/avatar/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/avatar/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/avatar/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/avatar/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/avatar/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/avatar/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/avatar/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/avatar/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/avatar/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/avatar/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/avatar/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/avatar/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/avatar/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/avatar/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/avatar/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/avatar/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/avatar/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/avatar/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/avatar/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/avatar/th/13.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/avatar/13.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/avatar/13.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

oo many audio manufacturers tell me the same story: “If I don’t charge a premium price for my products, the audiophile community doesn’t take me seriously.” Thus begins a vicious circle and at least a part of the reason audiophile gear is so expensive. I’ve owned and reviewed many different speakers. Martin Logan, Merlin, Von Schweikert, Usher, Acoustic Zen, Magnepan, Thiel, ZU and Tekton, to name a few. Some were expensive and some medium-priced by audiophile standards. The AURUM CANTUS Leisure 2 Luxury MKII is the first high-end speaker I’ve owned that costs under $1000 US. Normally, I would have never considered this speaker. However, I was going through a phase some time ago where I was just not happy with the crop of speakers that seemed to be flowing in and out of my listening room. Finally, I put on the brakes and decided to re-evaluate. A friend had a pair of the Leisure 2 and suggested I borrow them until I came up with something that worked. As soon as I hooked them up to my Quicksilver Mid-mono amps and played a few cuts, hmm… it was clear they had potential. | Leisure 2 Luxury MkII The Leisure 2s measure 350mm × 226mm ×280mm (13.78″ × 8.9″ × 11.02″) and are a two-way ported box with bass-reflex ventilation. Some say that some of the best sound that can be made using loudspeakers comes from a basic two-way ported speaker. While I used to be skeptical about this “sensation” for a long time, I now subscribe more and more to this philosophy. The frequency range is 55Hz-40kHz with sensitivity at (2.83V/1m) 87dB and an impedance of 8 ohms (minimum 6.4 ohms). The recommended power of the amplifier is 50-200W. The driver component includes a purified aluminum ribbon tweeter with high power handling, high output and shielded design, with an easily field-replaceable ribbon available (if it is necessary to replace). The midwoofer has an aluminum frame, with a composite cone of non-woven carbon fiber and Kevlar. The copper clad aluminum voice coil is as large as 50mm (2″) in diameter with a flat wire and a special magnet system with Faraday rings, a demodulation coil and a 120mm×20mm Y30 Ferrite magnet. It crosses over at 2500Hz with an attenuation slope of -12dB for the midwoofer and -18dB for the tweeter. The crossover components include M-Cap Supreme MKP capacitors for the tweeter and Aurum Cantus MKP capacitors for the midwoofer, high-purified OFC inductors, and mil-spec metal oxide film resistors, all connected with a Teflon-insulated OCC cable. The cabinet material is high-quality rigid MDF and comes in a standard rosewood high-gloss veneer finish. Before you listen to this speaker, let me tell you a few words about its stunning appearance. It has no right to look as good as it does for the price. The fit and finish easily compare to speakers costing 10 to 20 times as much. John Dunlavy (Dunlavy Audio Labs), whose labs and production facilities were located not far from my home, once told me that the cabinet is by far the most expensive component of any speaker. This is the first indication that the Leisure 2s are a bargain. The rosewood gloss finish is just superb, never mind the price. Granted, Aurum Cantus did cut a few corners by using a black gloss for the rear and bottom panels, but even these parts of the speaker are not out of place, and the deep black gloss compliments the rosewood. Inspect the speaker carefully. Quality is instantly apparent, especially on the front sloped baffle that facilitates time/phase coherence. This doesn’t surprise me after learning that a variation of the Leisures – the Red Rose Music Rose Bud II (by Mark Levinson – the constructor, not the company – Editor’s note) was made in the same factory as the cabinet of the reviewed loudspeakers. Rumor has it that some Sonus faber cabinets may have been made there too. The first thing that struck me about this speaker was the ribbon tweeter. The highs (especially when driven by tube amplification) are crystalline and addictive, detailed and quick. They impart a lovely sheen, which sounds to my ear more like real voices and instruments, and imparts musical detail that is not normally present in a speaker in this price range. The bass performance (for a mini monitor) is not far behind. The composite carbon fiber/Kevlar woofer provides remarkably forceful bass that is quick and tuneful, and is actually superior to some larger speakers I’ve had. The synergy of the composite midwoofer and low-mass tweeter really works to propel the pace and timing. Like any high-end speaker worth its salt, the Leisure 2s require some tender loving care to coax out all the performance they are capable of. Upstream sources, preamplifiers and cable issues can be revealed, especially the weak link. Amplification is also crucial. I use 50 watt push-pull EL34-based amps, which are on the low side of power that Aurum Cantus recommends. Even with that lower power, I much preferred the lush midrange, addictive highs, air, and transparency that the tubes gave me versus the superior dynamics and slam that the solid state amps provided. Although I wish the speakers were a little more sensitive than 87 dB, the impedance is fairly benign, making them a good match with tubes. The Leisure 2s also need some good stands. Heavy, solid, and preferably sand-filled stands worked for me. I did not use spikes on the stands, rather the Gingko Audio ARCHs, my new favorite tweak. Placement is also crucial. Experiment. You can bring these speakers way out into the room, where they virtually disappear, voices come alive and you are rewarded with a huge 3D presentation that will delight. They’re not perfect. When I really got analytical, I did hear some faint anomalies in the 2500-3000 Hz region where the speaker crosses over, but certainly not enough to cause me to sit up and take notice. Subwoofer | If you have a larger room and need more and lower bass, these mini monitors can me mated with a subwoofer for a classic combination that keeps the outstanding soundstage and imaging qualities but adds punch, ambience, and bottom octaves. However, the sub must be set up properly. It should have either its own room acoustics correction or an outboard DSP device such as the DSPeaker Anti Mode 8033 that I use. Before you run sweeps to flatten out your room, align the subwoofer in between the Leisures and just slightly behind the Leisure’s midwoofer. This is your best shot at achieving time and phase coherence, which will be audible and confusing if you don’t take care of proper setup. Once the sub is set up properly, the game changes. The entire presentation expands, you can enjoy a higher volume, and the limitations of the Leisure 2’s bass performance can be mitigated. Adding a sub gives the Leisures the ability to more faithfully render a lot of different types of music, from electric rock and jazz, etc. to large-scale orchestral music. Conclusions The Aurum Cantus Leisure 2 Luxury MKII could be all the speaker you need or, like for me, it could be a temporary reference. If you have a small to medium-sized room, your upstream components and cables are up to the task, and you listen at volumes that are not extreme, I suspect you could easily live with the Leisures a long time, especially at the price. Adding a good subwoofer (or two), will transform these mini monitors into a full-range system that should work for almost any taste in music and room. Value matters to me in every price range. The reviewed speakers hit the sweet spot of value and performance. The law of diminishing returns does not apply to them. Am I still looking for THE ONE speaker for my room? Yes. Have these amazingly affordable speakers filled the bill for me until I find THE ONE? Yes. Don’t get me wrong though, they are not the be-all and end-all of speakers. But they could be the speaker for you if your price range is under $1,000 US. Even when I find THE ONE, I still plan to keep the Aurum Cantus Leisure 2 Luxury MKIIs, my favorite speaker under $1,000 US. So, maybe audio manufacturers don’t need to charge a premium price to be taken seriously. Distribution in Europe: AURUM CANTUS EUROPE Via Monte di Pieta 23A, 12037 Saluzzo (CN) | Italy tel.: 39 348 711 9755 joeszall@alice.it John Zurek has been passionate about music and audio as long as he can remember. Growing up in Chicago, he was lucky to be exposed to a wide variety of music that influenced him throughout life. John’s first degree was in music, and he played and taught music for many years before going back to school, getting a technical degree and joining the corporate world . Since then, John spent 30 years in hardware and software engineering as a technical writer and trainer. Now retired, he hopes to never write another technical manual or software user guide again. John appreciates and enjoys a wide variety of audio systems, from single-ended valves to high-powered solid state and everything in between. He focuses on high-value components. There is a special place in his heart for vinyl. He also writes for Positive Feedback which shares reviews with High Fidelity. John Zurek (on the right) with Tomek, a member of the KSS (on the left) during a meeting of the Krakow Sonic Society in 2013 John lives in Colorado Springs and is an avid outdoorsman. He has been very lucky in the last few years to visit Poland several times and meet awesome like-minded audiophiles (and beer aficionados) from the Krakow Sonic Society in Krakow. He also visited Warsaw and Lodz then, meeting (as it seemed) his long-lost relatives from Poland. You can read about John’s visit in Cracow in a report from Meeting No. 91 of the Krakow Sonic Society (HF | No. 116).

his is an album that was not to be. But it is. It was created on the run, because of the Polish side's insistence. It was an expression of the ambition of Polish jazzmen and their record label, Polskie Nagrania “Muza”. It is one of the few studio recordings by Stan Getz, which were created outside the Verve Records label, he was bound with the contract, and with his owner Norman Granz – with friendship. As we read in the Roman Waschko description posted on the cover: “Polskie Nagrania” proposed to the musician recording of this album understanding the difficulty of implementation of this project. Like all great musicians, Getz is also associated with one company that reserves the exclusive rights to recordings. The track list includes five of them: 1. The Folks Who Live On The Hill 4:42 2. But Not For Me 6:13 3. Cherokee 5:21 4. Darn That Dream 5:49 5. Out Of Nowhere 7:04 Stan Getz was accompanied with young Polish jazzmen: Andrzej Trzaskowski, Roman Dyląg and Andrzej Dąbrowski. This recording became legendary. | An album that was not supposed to be

ark Waldrep’s CV is impressive: he has been the founder and main engineer for AIX Records, author of articles published in professional audio magazines (e.g. “MIX”) and audiophile magazines, speaker at AES conventions, and member of the CTA/CEA audio section, The Recording Academy (NARAS) and the Audio Engineering Society (AES). For the last 20 years, he has been teaching sound engineering students about sound at a university. For a long time, Mark Waldrep has been known in the audiophile world mostly for his perfect records that he released in the AIX Records record label that he established in 1994. He was a pioneer and tireless promoter of digital PCM records of 24 bit resolution and 96 kHz sampling frequency, both in a stereophonic and multichannel form (the latter is more important from his point of view). These puristic records have made many skeptics believe in this format. But Mark Waldrep, as I would put it, is a much “broader” person, as he has a PhD degree in musical composition and two other scientific titles, including one connected with computer science. In spite of that, he is mostly known as a sound engineer and record producer. Although in a moment I will try to present his profile from a broader perspective, the angle that we look at him from will probably stay the same for a long time. When I met him during the High End 2018 exhibition in Munich, we had to buy a book that he had just published, which summarizes his reflections on topics connected with recording and playing back sound: Music and Audio: A User Guide to Better Sound. To a large degree, it is an extended collection of articles that he has published on his blog realhd-audio.com http://www.realhd-audio.com where he has fought with many beliefs established in the audiophile world. BOOK | REVIEW MARK WALDREP Music and Audio: A User Guide to Better Sound AIX Publishing 2018 Music and Audio… is a book which carries much weight – both in reality and metaphorically. It is as thick as a brick, with 850 pages and an extra Blu-ray disc which serves to demonstrate selected problems and to calibrate equipment. The book was published using Mark Waldrep’s own funds, by a division of AIX Records – AIX Publishing which was created for this purpose. The book consists of twenty chapters, each divided into subchapters. The numeration method makes one think of university textbooks – not without a reason. It is an ordered lecture on topics connected with recording and reproducing sound, starting with information on the sound of Blu-rays, through the basic concepts used in music, such as melody and harmony, an overview of digital signal coding methods, a presentation of all important digital formats and sub-formats, a lecture on what hi-res signal is and what it is not, finishing with a discussion of audio equipment and accessories, and interviews with experts. The book is a quick and easy read – it is very easy to feel the “newspaper column character” of many of the chapters, which is also visible in the author’s line of reasoning and constant “conversion” of readers to the author’s own “faith”. I will return to this in a moment. Topics discussed by Mr Waldrep are interesting, up-to-date and actually constitute “ready solutions”. There is no doubt we read material prepared by an expert – both a theoretician and practitioner. I think this is one of few books on audio issues which combine these two ways of exploring reality well. At the same time, I disagree with the author in many respects, often fundamentally. The author often contradicts himself. Let us consider his deep dislike for the DSD format, or actually for reproducing this format in its native form, without converting it to PCM. Theoretical objections, which are hard to contradict, appear many times and in different chapters. It is similar with XRCD – the author literally discourages his readers from spending money on such records, even though in a moment he says: “this is the way a CD should be made”. He also questions the sense in using expensive digital power cords and other cables many times, and he also sometimes heavily criticizes magazines published by the audiophile industry, although he also willingly quotes them to demonstrate how they have praised him. It is because the most important drawback (and the main strength) of this publication is its journalistic character, expressed by constantly returning to the author’s favorite motif, i.e. the supremacy of PCM 24/96 records over everything else. Mark Waldrep cannot refrain from pointing out theoretical weaknesses of all other methods of sound recording, including the analog tape. Starting the book with a chapter devoted to the format that he considers to be the only right one –hi-res 24/96 sound on Blu-ray discs – only makes this book more inconsistent in terms of its genre. What I missed here was a scientific attitude, which can be summarized in the following way: “be careful with what is certain, as we do not know everything and what we know is temporary”. So, although Music and Audio… has been planned to be some kind of an academic textbook for music lovers and sound engineers, and a handbook for audiophiles who are possible to be saved from the tentacles of audiophile press, it is actually an ordered, extended and more comprehensive blog in a printed version, i.e. a polemic with everyone who has different views than the author, divided into chapters. But… There is a great BUT indeed. Be it journalism or not – the reviewed monograph carries an enormous charge of knowledge and great observations. Although it will often make us gnash our teeth and ask rhetorical questions, such as: “Why does the author not say anything about listening sessions, but only theorizes?” or think how it is possible not to hear “this” or “that”, it is a book that one should have and return to, even if only in order to open some field for discussion. Although I disagree with a lot of views presented by Mark Waldrep (even though he probably considers them to be dogmas) and I simply hear something else, I appreciate the knowledge, reason and engagement behind these views. If this is what a discussion is to be like, i.e. if things are to be discussed at such a high level, I am FOR it. It is because one can get somewhere and go further only in this way. Mr Waldrep sold and signed his books at a stand which he shared with other Americans: Todd Garflinke with his M•A Recordings record label, Chris Sommovigo with the Black Cat Cable and Christopher Hildebrand, the owner of Fern Roby Audio. I noticed that they all looked at the senior author with respect and took his opinions into account. So, together with Bartek who is responsible for news published in “High Fidelity”, we bought the book, asked for an autograph and made an appointment to conduct an interview. WOJCIECH PACUŁA: Please tell us something about yourself. MARK WALDREP: I’m 65 years old. I grew up listening to the music of the 60s and my father’s record collection (mostly jazz and classical music), studied guitar and played in a cover band as a teenager, and learned how to build and repair electronic equipment from my father (he was an amateur radio operator). I loved both the art of music and the technology which made it possible to capture and reproduce it. By the time I was 10 years old, I already had a small reel to reel tape machine and stereo system. At the age of 20, I left university life in Michigan and headed to California to pursue a career in the music industry. I studied audio engineering at a private vocational school for a couple of years and started acquiring my own recording gear while continuing my academic education in southern California. I earned a Ph.D., M.F.A., M.A., and B.M. in Music Composition, a B.A. in Art, and a M.S. in Computer Science over the course of the next 10-15 years. I started my first recording company during my years studying and working at CSU Northridge. CSOUND offered music students cassette tapes of their recitals. I learned production sound from the legendary Mike Denecke (the inventor of the timecode slate), worked in an analog multitrack recording studio doing commercial rock and jazz projects, did live sound for the 1984 LA Olympics, and continued to do location concert recording with my Nagra IV-S and QCB large reel adaptor. My recording experience covered a very wide range and exposed me to every type of analog audio engineering. In 1989, I opened the Pacific Coast Sound Works, which specialized in pre-mastering CDs using the new Sonic Solutions DAW and NoNoise software suite. As a classically trained musician, my clients (CBS Records, New Albion and Ellipsis Arts) took advantage of my ability to follow complex scores when assembling and editing album releases. I purchased one of the first CD recorders (for $17,500!) and began to work with Warner New Media on CD-ROM and interactive media. PCSW mastered hundreds of CDs for a wide range of artists/clients, including The Allman Brothers, Kiss, Bad Company, Widespread Panic and Blink 182. The arrival of the DVD format in 1997 was a turning point in my life. I expanded into surround mixing and mastering, digital media production and authoring. Now called AIX Media Group, my little company produced the very first DVD-Video discs ever released in the US. And I continued to provide audio and DVD authoring services to a variety of movie studios and record labels. When DVD-Audio emerged in 2000, I looked around and saw that all of the other labels were remixing albums from their catalogs in 5.1 but no one was making new high-resolution recordings. AIX Records was founded in 2001 to demonstrate that high-resolution audio had the potential to deliver fidelity beyond the traditional CD – perceptible or not. Over the course of the past 17 years, I’ve produced almost 100 high-resolution music albums. They are unique in that each has three different mixes, all are made with 96 kHz/24-bit PCM audio and most have video of the sessions. All of these releases have frequency and dynamic range specifications that eclipse Redbook CDs. Over the course of the last two decades, I have advocated for REAL high-resolution audio. I have also been a strong and persistent critic of the major record labels, the CEA/CTA, NARAS, the DEG and so-called “hi-res audio” digital music download sites for their false and misleading campaigns in favor of high-resolution music. In 2013, I started my blog called RealHD-Audio.com and have written over 1100 articles about high-res audio. My book “Music and Audio: A User Guide to Better Sound” was funded through a successful Kickstarter campaign in the fall of 2015 and published earlier this year. The book — and accompanying Blu-ray disc (or files) — analyzes the entire music production process, discusses all aspects of the audio chain, contradicts a lot of the information promoted by the mainstream audiophile press and focuses on inexpensive and easy ways to improve music listening. My goal is to provide unbiased, unfiltered and honest information about all aspects of music production and reproduction. A little information can save readers a lot of money. Your main interest, however, is now AIX records, isn’t it? Could you tell us the story behind your label? Actually, I have not recorded and released a new album on AIX Records in over 4 years and have no plans to begin any new projects. The label was founded to demonstrate the superiority of high-resolution, surround, PCM-encoded music over vinyl LPs, analog tapes, compact discs and compressed sound files. Do you think it is the best form of music presentation? Throughout the history of recorded sound, technologies and techniques have generally advanced. As a result, fidelity — our ability as audio engineers to capture ALL of the sound components produced by live instruments or amplified sources — has increased. However, the introduction of “computer audio” in the 90s, the accompanying need for “lossy” data compression formats and the trend to favor loudness (i.e. the compression of musical signal and not the compression of files) over quality pushed fidelity backwards for the first time in the history of audio recording. MP3, AAC, Dolby Digital, and MQA are all lossy encoding schemes that attempt to solve a specific problem. Some were necessary and successful, and others are unnecessary and only cause problems and industry confusion. Contemporary delivery formats and network bandwidths can store and deliver high-resolution (96 kHz/24-bit PCM) audio without resorting to lossy encoding schemes. It was true for physical media back in 2001 and now it is available for downloads AND streaming. AIX Records adopted a somewhat unusual production philosophy. As an audio engineer with many years of experience in both classical/jazz and commercial multitrack recording methods, I imagined a hybrid process that would combine the best aspects of each. I wondered whether I could record an entire ensemble performing an album’s worth of material in a single session like many classical and jazz “live” album releases. But I didn’t want to compromise the sound of my recordings with a PA system or limit myself because an audience was present. I also wanted the intimate sound of commercial recordings, which use lots of close up microphones. After a few experimental sessions (I once placed 8 stereo pairs of microphones in and around a grand piano), I was satisfied with the sound. My associates and I recorded all of our albums the same way: live performances in an acoustically rich chamber music auditorium, all musicians/singers play at the same time, lots of stereo microphones, real room reverberation, no equalization or dynamics processing during any stage of the production process and no mastering (other than sequencing and relative volume adjustments). And we captured the performances on standard and high-definition video — the musicians were all on stage performing, so why not capture them with video, too. The post production process involved mixing the digital multitrack masters through an all-digital signal path (96 kHz/24-bits) to the mixdown masters: traditional stereo, 5.1 surround from a “stage” perspective, and 5.1 surround from an “audience” perspective — users get to choose which mix they prefer. The initial releases were immediately recognized by reviewers and customers as “something uniquely different”. We won awards, built a dedicated following and received lots of positive feedback. Andrew Quint of The Absolute Sound magazine visited the studio in 2011 and wrote: “…the multichannel audio, emanating from five B & W 801 loudspeakers, is quite simply the most realistic and involving instance of recorded sound I can recall, from any source format. Mark Waldrep knows what he’s doing” and an attendee at the annual AXPONA show in Chicago wrote: “I want to thank you for the most memorable musical experience that I have ever heard! Hearing is believing!!! Nothing in my 50+ years in audio reproduction has impacted me the way your recordings did.” These reactions are not unique. It seems it is possible to move beyond the traditional methods and formats. AIX Records succeeded by embracing new technologies and new techniques, and getting back to the essence of music – talented musicians performing together. Your Music and Audio… book is supposed to be, as it seems, a summary of the knowledge of audio, am I right? I was prompted to write Music and Audio: A User Guide to Better Sound for a couple of reasons. First, I read a number of books by “so-called” audiophile authorities that were misleading, gave bad advice (we shouldn’t recommend using “bright interconnects” to compensate for a “dull sound”) and were outright wrong on many counts (left and right surround speakers in a 5.1 system should be at 110-120 degrees NOT 135-155!). All those books seem to promote the same myths and misinformation I see in advertising-supported audiophile magazines. I felt it was important to give an unbiased alternative to audiophiles. Secondly, I was inspired by another successful Kickstarter campaign mounted by another writer (sadly, he has failed to deliver his promised book and disc after more than 5 years). I thought if he can go it, then I can too. And I delivered my book. Most authors of books on high-end audio systems are not experienced audio engineers and operate on a purely subjective level. Their nonsensical endorsement of expensive power cords, support for the myth of hi-res audio and “revolutionary” new encoding formats like the new MQA makes me highly suspicious. I have over 40 years working in professional audio and have demonstrated through my audio releases that I understand what it takes to make superior sounding albums. And I do it with regular IEC power cords, inexpensive interconnects and uncompressed hi-res PCM 96/24 signal in a state-of-the-art recording studio. The book has already been called “the gold standard” and more than a few readers have written to applaud my honesty in the face of an industry full of falsehoods. And I’m happy to report that it is available in Europe through Hi-Fi Test magazine. Who is the projected or “virtual” reader of your book? The target audience for Music and Audio: A User Guide to Better Sound are individuals interested in learning about high-end audio, ways to easily and inexpensively improve their systems, and anyone contemplating spending money on new gear or audio accessories. The book is broken down into chapters on music, production techniques, equipment, formats and acoustics. Spending time reading selected sections of this book will pay big dividends when shopping for new equipment or accessories. The first chapter carefully breaks down all of the demonstration tracks and format comparisons presented on the Blu-ray disc. It’s very compelling to hear examples of real high-resolution audio and see the waveforms, dynamic contours and spectra. The final chapter has interviews with a number of industry luminaries, including Bob Stuart from Meridian/MQA, Robert Margouleff – engineer for Stevie Wonder, Richard Schramm of Parasound, Bob Hodas and Sam Berkow – acousticians, and many more. A large part of the book is devoted to a polemic with some audiophile beliefs. For example, you question the value of XRCD and HDCD, etc. Is it based on your listening experience or just your academic knowledge? I have written extensively about XRCD, HDCD, SACD, DSD, DXD and, lately, also MQA. Whenever I begin to research a potentially interesting topic or technology, I read the promotional materials, study the science (attend AES paper sessions), speak with other experts, listen carefully and see if hyperbole has crept into marketing material. I try to balance an objective and scientific approach with my background as a musician and composer. The specifics of XRCD are an interesting case. The JVC process produces very good CDs — but they are still limited by the Redbook specification. Anyone making a claim that they somehow are able to deliver fidelity beyond 44.1 kHz/16-bits is pushing a false narrative. Likewise, gold CDs do not deliver more fidelity than aluminum sputtered discs… It’s all marketing and support from uninformed audiophile writers. It turns out that a large portion of “audiophile wisdom” is based on the subjectivist position that it “just sounds better”. People spend crazy amounts of money chasing ever higher levels of sonic nirvana when simple solutions and common sense will get them there for much less money. Is there any documented correlation between measurements and listening impressions? Which is more important? I mean, if something sounds good and the measurements are not so great, is there a fault on the equipment’s (producer’s) or the listener’s side? The definition of fidelity is: “the degree of exactness with which something is copied or reproduced”. In the case of audio/music, fidelity means that whatever audio is produced by the musicians, it should be captured and reproduced without any change. Of course, audio engineers, producers and artists mess with sounds in lots of creative ways — even to the point of degrading the sound. Analog tape and vinyl LPs have a lot more distortion than a CD, but are cherished by audiophiles for their “sound” and not their fidelity to the original. If the only basis for audio fidelity is whether you like the sound of one format or system more than another, then we have no basis for objectively measuring equipment or content. I would never insist that listeners abandon recordings that lack fidelity — everyone is entitled to their own personal tastes. But I do have difficulty accepting statements that make absolute claims about the superiority of vinyl LPs or analog tape over the potential of new high-resolution digital media. There is a correlation between specifications and the fidelity of an individual recording. The ultimate “sound” of a track is the responsibility of the engineers and producers. How do you select the equipment that you use – through measurement or listening? I make sure that the equipment I’m using meets true high-resolution specifications and then I listen. You have to know that your baseline will deliver the fidelity of the sources. When I set up a demo room at a trade show like AXPONA, I partner with suppliers that I know have equipment worthy of my recordings. The last show we did, I used a custom OPPO machine with multiple S/P DIF digital outputs connected to 3 Benchmark DAC2 HGC digital to analog converters. The analog outputs of the DACs were then passed to bridged mono Benchmark AHB-2 power amps, which can deliver the extreme dynamic range of my tracks (120 dB plus!). The final component was a set of 5 Revel Salon II speakers and a couple of subwoofers. Last year, we used 5 Emotiva T2 speakers that sounded amazing, too — for a lot less money. The sound of that demo produced true high-resolution fidelity, probably the only room in the hotel that did. If I get it right, you strongly opt for PCM-based recordings, at least 24/96 ones. Do you hear any differences between optical disc-based and computer-based systems (streamers)? I mean, do physical media offer any advantage for high-resolution signal? At least AND AT MOST 96 kHz/24-bit PCM! There is no additional fidelity gained by exceeding this specification. Moving to higher and higher sample rates and longer word lengths doesn’t provide any better sound than 96 kHz/24-bits — it just results in bigger files. In fact, my recent HD challenge found that most people — even those that said they could “easily tell the difference between an HD file and a CD version” — couldn’t tell them apart. With a good quality, independently clocked DAC like the Benchmark mentioned above, the digital data coming from a physical disc player and the equivalent stream from a computer would — and should — sound identical. Do you think that USB is a “high fidelity” link? Or should we avoid it? There is no compromise when using a USB digital connection in a high-end system. And using an expensive USB cable will not change the data, provide additional “low level details”, “widen the soundstage”, or otherwise enhance fidelity. Designer cables that claim to be capable of “low jitter” are snake oil. Any high-quality DAC throws away the incoming clock and uses its own. Do you have your favorite microphone setting? Do you prefer small membrane microphones? Or does it depend on the purpose? It depends on the instrument/voice and specifics of the music. I have a lot of large diaphragm microphones and generally use them on the lower register of a piano or stringed-instruments. The smaller KM-84s or AKG 460s I reserve for acoustic guitars and upper register instruments. I do use AEA ribbon microphones for brass and male vocals. Their 84 was perfect for a baritone like John Gorka or Willie Nelson. Could you tell us about your audio system? I have several audio systems. The AIX Records studio was custom designed and built by Peter Gruenheisen of nonzero architecture. It is 30 feet long, 14 feet high and 24 feet wide. It has a raised floor, double walls and extensive acoustic treatment. The sources are an Oppo BDP-105 or a Benchmark DAC2 HGC (depending on whether I’m listening to MCH audio). I use either a Bryston 4B or 9B MCH power amplifier to a set of 5 B&W 801 Matrix III speakers positioned in a circle around me (ITU setup). I also have a TMH Labs Profunder Subwoofer powered by another Bryston amplifier. Each channel has a 1/3 octave equalizer in between the output and power amplifier, which were used by Bob Hodas to tune the room to a flat response. I was given speaker cables by Audience and Cardas but would not invest my own money in cables in that price range. All analog interconnects are Canare and pass through a 3/16” patch bay. Digital cables are Belden and I use IEC standard power cords throughout the room without power conditioning. I have a dedicated ground behind the studio and isolated ground connections for all equipment. Are you happy with your recordings or there is something you'd like to improve? Honestly, I love the sound of my recordings – especially when experienced in a high-end 5.1 surround playback environment. The “stage” perspective mixes provide a level of involvement and space that I haven’t heard from any other label. Tell us please what 10 albums High Fidelity readers should buy and listen to right away – and why? Here are my favorite recordings from the AIX Records catalog: |1| The Latin Jazz Trio: incredible “quiet” Latin Jazz with great piano sound. |2| Laurence Juber, Guitar Noir: this won the 2002 award for “Best High-Res Recording” from the CEA “Demmy Award”. It’s my best-selling album with a former Wings guitarist. |3| John McEuen and Jimmy Ibbotson, Nitty Gritty Surround: a winner of multiple awards which features Jennifer Warnes. Great singing and playing of Americana/bluegrass music. |4| John Gorka, The Gypsy Life: my favorite singer/songwriter with a gorgeous baritone voice and amazing songs. |5| Albert Lee, Tearing It Up: very few guitarists define a category of playing. Albert Lee does. Formerly with The Everly Brothers, Emmylou Harris’ Hot Band and Eric Clapton’s bands. This is the first Blu-ray surround album awarded “record of the month” by Stereophile. |6| Ernest Ranglin, Order of Distinction: an album recorded by the “father of ska” described as the best jazz guitarist from Jamaica. Features Monty Alexander and a variety of famous partners: Robby Krieger (The Doors), Alana Davis, Elliot Easton (The Cars) and more. |7| Afro Cuban Latin Jazz Project featuring Kamasi Washington, El Vuelo: up tempo Latin Jazz with complex rhythms and sax solos. |8| Old City String Quartet, Mozart Clarinet Quintet: this is what a chamber music experience can be when played by an energetic ensemble AND captured with close up microphone techniques. |9| G. Enescu Philharmonic Orchestra, The Brandenburg Concertos: one UK reviewer wrote that he’d never heard such depth and dimension as he heard with this recording of two of the Brandenburgs. Stereo microphones placed close to the ensemble make that difference. |10| NJSO – Zdenek Macal, Beethoven Symphony No. 6 and Respighi Pines: big orchestral music in full surround shows off the potential of high-resolution audio.

t was hard for me to believe it - when I was preparing the materials for this test, I searched for the Fezz Audio amplifier tests I carried out. It turned out that there were just two of them, of the Silver Luna and Titania. And yet it seemed to me that I know the sound of Fezz Audio really well, I have it in my head and ears. And I do, I really know how the Fezz Audio amplifiers sound like, because I spent the whole last year traveling around Poland with workshops, during which we conducted half of the listening sessions using the Titania model (more HERE). So when in June last year one of the owners of this company, Maciek Lachowski, called me and said he was thinking about the project of a new amplifier, I thought it was about expanding the offer with an even more expensive model - after all that's where real money comes from. I was wrong, and Maciek turned out to be a real dreamer who wants to share his success with others. What is it about? As you could have seen during the last year's Audio Video Show, the company's portfolio expanded, but from below. An affordable, nice, robust, well-thought-out amplifier called Lupi (from Latin lupi - wolf) was prepared, using interesting and rarely used PCL86 tubes (triode-pentode). The price was set at PLN 3490 and I really do not know how the company wants to earn on it. Perhaps the key is that the most expensive elements of a tube amplifier, meaning transformers, are produced by its separated branch called toroidy.pl. I do not see any other explanation. | α Lupi Already during that conversation, Maciek told me that he would like Lupi to appeal to younger music fans and freaks, for whom the electron tube is an important symbol. In addition to the low price, it had to be as versatile as possible, and one of the most important functionalities of modern sound sources, both D/A converters and amplifiers, is the presence of a headphone output. I thought then that it was a great idea, a very natural one. However, it turned out to be impossible to implement. For the amplifier to be made at a quality level for the people in Fezz Audio to accept its sonic performance, its price would have to be higher than expected. Maciek, regretfully had to shelf the project, opting for a classic integrated amplifier. And he was right. As the exhibition in Korea and the first orders resulting from it proved, the amplifier was accepted as it was. Already then it was called α Lupi (alpha). The solution for the situation was to create a complementing device, and amplifier designed only for headphones, model Ω Lupi (omega). | Ω Lupi The genesis of this model is connected with the research that was carried out on the prototype of the original Lupi, still with the headphone output. It turned out that this particular system, these specific tubes cooperating with toroidal output transformers, are ideal for powering headphones. So the idea was dusted off and in this way the amplifier being the protagonist of this test was created. On the outside, both amplifiers - Alpha and Omega - are almost identical. These are simple, tasteful forms in burgundy and black, with aluminum touches of manipulators and logos and white typography. The front is painted with high gloss finish and the other walls are powder-coated. In turn, the transformers covers are black. The device features two knobs - volume control and output impedance control, so you can adjust it to the headphones you use. There are three positions to choose from: "Low", "Mid" and "High". The circuit is based on a push-pull topology, but there are only four tubes - why? Maciek reached for a very popular, and therefore inexpensive, cool PCL86 tube. There are two tubes in one glass - a triode and a pentode, and this model was used in television sets. Its version called ECL86, of lower voltage, was in turn found in the Polish amplifiers of Fonica and Unitra. Suffice to say, my first tube amplifier I made using power amps from a turntable with an amplifier called Stereo 240, and the preamplifier I based on the ECC83 tube, using the simple layout included in the book An Audio Approach To Audio Frequency Amplifier Design, published by The General Electric Co. Ltd. of England from 1957. The Fezz Audio amplifier features a shorter because amplifying path because one of the triodes in PCL86 is used for phase reversal and the other is a driver - the potentiometer is placed in front of the circuit. Let us add that the tubes used here were produced in a Polish factory Polamp. It is a pity that the Russians and Czechs were able to use the machines and skills of people and their tubes are known all over the world today, and Polish ones are lost in history ... But that's life - it's great that someone reminded us of them and in such an interesting amplifier. MACIEJ LACHOWSKI Owner, designer Omega Lupi, is the design that we worked on the longest in our history. We opened the project in March 2017 and presented the prototype in November of the same year during the Audio Video Show in Warsaw. We wanted the opinions of the users and even though they were positive, I knew then that the design would satisfy me only when Omega Lupi is able to drive even the most demanding headphones - also those with extremely high impedance. I thought there were a lot of headphone amplifiers on the market, but either they were simple designs for relatively cheap headphones, or very expensive ones, for extremely demanding customers, and I wanted to create a universal headphone amplifier for a wider group of people listening to music in this way. That is why, right after the Show ended, we started work from the very beginning. The chassis was the only element left from the prototype. Everything inside was rebuilt from scratch. As you well know, the heart of each tube amplifier are not only the tubes but, above all, transformers, and we spent the most time building those. But it's probably obvious - Toroidy.pl is a strong player on the market of audio transformers and we have unique experience with different types of designs. Omega Lupi is a one-of-a-kind amplifier. Most of the headphone amplifiers are OTLs - that is, featuring no output transformers. And I wanted the headphones to be treated in our design as a loudspeaker set, because what other than good loudspeakers headphones are? The only way to achieve this is to match their impedance using transformers - in other words, do it in the same way as in an integrated stereo tube amplifier. We have therefore designed winding in our transformers to optimally match headphones with low (up to 32 Ω), medium (up to 300 Ω) and high (up to 600 Ω) impedance. Thanks to this solution we have achieved optimal working conditions of headphone drivers, and thus negligible low distortion and great dynamics while maintaining the tube character of the sound. Omega Lupi is a very efficient amplifier. During the designing process, we examined about 30 pairs of headphones - starting from the simplest dynamic ones, through several hundredth ohm ones used often in studios, and ending with planar Audeze models. Each and every time our amplifier had enough “juice” to properly drive every cans. At this point, an important question comes to mind: why PCL86? One of the reasons is historical - we built our first tube amplifier called Laura (still as Toroidy.pl) using this tube, which captivated many listeners. The second reason is personal - I value this tube very much. Considering its price, availability, sound and origin (POLAMP Nakło), we could not deny ourselves the pleasure of designing an amplifier using the PCL86 valve. This is an outstandingly engineered design, technologically advanced (two tubes in one glass enclosure) triode-pentode. It's a pity that nobody is producing them today. Fortunately, due to the wide availability of NOS tubes (these were, after all, very popular TV tubes), they are easy to buy and at very low prices. Fezz Audio bases on the NOS tubes made by the Polish company Polamp, which are still available on the market and I believe that someday they will come back to the market. I would like to draw your attention to the restrictive selection of tubes and the exceptional care of assembly. It is about exceptionally demanding sound aspects - after all, according to the design assumptions, it is an over-ear speaker system. So we put the ear in the speakers and there must be an absolute silence, black background, no hum - just silence. The Fezz Audio Ω Lupi amplifier was tested in the "High Fidelity" reference system and compared to the Ayon Audio HA-3 amplifier. The signal was sent to it from the Ayon Audio CD-35 HF SACD player with the Acute Revive RCA-1.0 Absolute-FM and Crystal Cable Absolute Dream interconnects. It was powered by the Acoustic Revive Power Reference Triple-C cable. The listening was mainly performed with planar headphones HiFiMAN HE-1000 V2 (nominal impedance: 35 Ω | sensitivity: 93 dB), in the "Mid" position of the impedance switch. Which is interesting, because the nominal impedance of this model would suggest switching to the "Low" position. So one should try out all three positions every time and choose the best for particular headphones. Additional listening was performed with planar headphones HiFiMAN HE-6 (impedance: 38 Ω | sensitivity: 89 dB), the dynamic Sennheiser HD800 (impedance: 300 Ω | sensitivity: 102 dB) and Beyerdynamic DT-990 Pro (impedance: 600 Ω | sensitivity: 97 dB). FEZZ AUDIO in „High Fidelity” INTERVIEW: MACIEJ LACHOWSKI | Fezz Audio in Korea TEST: Fezz Audio TITANIA | integrated amplifier | TEST: Fezz Audio SILVER LUNA | integrated amplifier | RED Fingerprint Recordings used for the test (a selec- tion) Puer natus est, Stile Antico, Harmonia Mundi USA HMU 807817, SACD/CD (2010) Aretha Franklin, A Rose Is Still A Rose, Arista Records 18987-2, Master CD-R (1998) Depeche Mode, Construction Time Again, Mute Records Ltd/Sire/Reprise IMS/2007, Promo CD-R + DVD-R (2007) Depeche Mode, World in my eyes/Happiest girl/Sea of sin, Mute/Sire/Reprise 21735, maxi-single (1990) Electric Light Orchestra, Out of the Blue, Epic/Sony Music Japan SICP-30111, 2 x Blu-spec CD2 (1972/2013) Giulio Caccini, Dolcissimo Sospiro, wyk. Roberta Invernizzi, Divox CDX-70202-6, SACD/CD (2008) Glenn Gould, Bach: The Goldberg Variations, Sony BMG Music/Sony Classical/Zenph Studios 9703350-2, “Zenph Re-Performance”, SACD/CD (2007). Tsuyoshi Yamamoto Trio, Misty, Three Blind Mice/First Impression Music FIM SACD 062 SACD/HDCD (1974/2004) Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] The sound qualities of each audio product, and thus the amplifier, can be assessed from two points of view - as a representative of a specific price category and in absolute terms. Fezz Audio Omega Lupi kills in both. This device looks and sounds like amplifiers for 5000-6000 PLN and more. Although it is not a perfect amplifier, it does not even aspire to this role, it has everything it needs to become the basis of any, really any headphone-based system. Its sound is modeled - modeled so, that it is deep and saturated and that the bass is an important component of the creation, not just an ersatz of low frequencies, as is usually the case with headphone amplifiers. Modeling goes here in the direction of smoothing the top and shifting the center of gravity, focusing our attention on the lower midrange. It gives us what we call "groove" or "stepping bass". I do not know whether it was the Fezz Audio designer's intention, and how much was it their intuition, something like an internal "voice", the sound engineers from the 1950s followed while creating perfect jazz recordings, that until this day remain an unattainable model, who were listening to the recordings they were preparing using small speakers with high distortion showing a fraction of what even cheap speakers offer today. Depeche Mode fans - attention: this is an amplifier that could be "dedicated" to this music. It absolutely does not close it for other types of music, I will come back to that later, but once you hear Shame from a tonally challenging album Construction Time Again, or spend a moment with Happiest Girl from the mix released on World In My Eyes / Happiest Girl / Sea of Sin maxi-single, you will know that this amplifier will allow you to truly enjoy your favorite band. The thing is that the Fezz Audio amplifier shows the colors as if it was natural, that the CDs have their own life, as if it was normal that it is a creation, whose spirit, design, or whatever we call it, should be brought out. And, as Mr. Okihiko Sugano, the owner of Audio Lab Record once said, there are musical instruments used, which in this case happen to be audio components. Omega Lupi delivers a deep sound, controlling the events, as if the membrane of headphones did not weigh anything and at the same time weighed a ton - the former because the sound is so fast and the latter because the bass has weight and slam. I'm talking about the problematic Construction Time Again because it's an album recorded after a phenomenal, analog recording Abroken Frame using samples, various strange sounds, and therefore quite hard, often even tiring. The tested amplifier showed this aspect, did not try to hide it. But on the other hand, it filled it up enough, it made sure nothing disturbed me, I could hear chords, density, layers. In turn, the aforementioned single comes from the Violator, which was mastered on ½ "analogue tape, which makes it sound fantastic. And it was with this album that it became clear that in absolute terms the device emphasizes the mid-bass, it gives it a lot of power and is not strictly controlling it at the bottom. In both cases the headphone amplifier delivered something that in many headphone systems is almost non-existing - with the right headphones it is able to create a huge space. I am thinking about recordings from the opposite musical spectrum, for example about Dolcissimo Sospiro released by Divox Antiqua, or madrigals and arias by Giulio Caccini (XVI-XVII century) performed by Roberta Invernizzi. The presentation was beautifully arranged tonally in a space of a large interior. I could clearly hear the foreground, which was not placed inside my head, but a bit ahead of me, but also fantastic reverbs and reflections. I've mentioned these two types of music not out of spite and not for show, but to say something else: it is a very universal device. Its tone is quite dark, at least in comparison with semiconductor amplifiers, but it is darkness full of meanings if you can say that. The cymbals sound vibrant and are built up and down, and if the recording was made in analog domain and without a noise reduction system - let it be Misty by Tsuyoshi Yamamoto Trio - we will know it immediately, without the need to listen to and split the hair in four. But we will always know that it is not the treble that is most important here. This device communicates with listener directly. It's just that it does not close us in the sounds close to us, even though it's the easiest way to achieve such effect of "closeness". As I said, the sound of Omega Lupi is incredibly "wide", it has momentum. One would therefore assume that it would be presented form a distance. But it is not. It is direct, and this immediacy results from the outstanding speed with which the sound is reproduced and from its density, which is delivered to us immediately, coherently. OTHER DELIGHTS: HiFiMAN HE-6 | Sennheiser HD800 | Beyerdynamic DT-990 Pro (600 Ω) The rated output power of the tested amplifier is so high that it could successfully drive loudspeakers. But there are headphones, which are equally difficult loads, for example HiFiMAN HE-6. Low efficiency means that they are notoriously under-driven. Lupi held them on a short leash, meaning there was no question of lack of power. The sound was very clean, fast, which are the inherent features of these cans. However, despite the strong bass of the amplifier, the headphones remained at a fairly high tonal level, because that what they are. The bass was well controlled, pure, lively, but it lacked the richness, which the HE-1000 V2 delighted me with. The HE-6s sounded best with the switch in the "Low" position. The Sennheiser HD800 dynamic headphones also require good amplifier. Unlike planar HiFiMANs, however, they are easier to drive. It turned out that their tonal balance is similar to that of the HE-6, but with a lower midrange playing a bigger role. Lupi greatly presented advantages of these headphones, usually disappearing in the coloration and lack of a "drive" - here there was everything one can expect from such a system. In this case the headphones sounded best with the switch in the "High" position. And finally, a studio reference, 600-ohm Beyerdynamic headphones, a unit from almost 20 years ago, the same was used back then by the sound engineers recording the performances of Krzysztof Penderecki, with whom I had the opportunity to cooperate. I have to say that I only once I heard the DT990 Pro headphones performing so well, and it was with a professional amplifier in a studio. But even then it was not a well-balanced sound, as it was in this case. Switch was in the "High" position. This is not the most resolving amplifier, but it has an incredible vitality and speed, which causes the sound to have a lower tonal balance, it is also denser and the bass is more "present". The Sennheiser and HiFiMAN headphones controlled this range better, but the musical experience was more complete with Beyerdynamics. As it turns out, it is not that the Fezz Audio amplifier imposes its vision of sound on the headphones it is used with, it does not close the sound of the recordings in one format. Both headphones and recordings speak with their own voice, only that it is saturated with Omega Lupi's DNA. In comparison with the most expensive headphone amplifiers I know and those I own, the Polish device is less resolving and does not go so deeply into the sound, into the form of instruments, like - Ayon Audio HA-3. It builds sound rather on the axis and that's where the window of momentum I've mentioned opens up, while Ayon and Octave V16 Single Ended open the space also on the sides. Or maybe it's something else, maybe Fezz Audio more accurately showed the differences in this respect between different realizations? It can also be true. But the impression remains that the Fezz Audio amplifier delivers a stronger, more emphatic center of the stage. Summary Ω Lupi sounds sensationally well. It delivers a low sound saturated with colors and rich with momentum. It energized the bass and modeled it, without the ultimate control at the very bottom. However, it did not really bother me – at least until I compared it with a much more expensive headamp. The resolution is very good, really fantastic and only single-ended designed using best tubes go even further. But when we take the price into consideration, that's a Burgundy sensation, which deserves to be honored with a BURGUNDY Fingerprint :) Outside | The Lupi amplifier looks like a classic integrated amplifier. It is because of its flat main body with electronics inside and tubes at the top and a higher screen at the back covering the output transformers. The transformers are manufactured in house, by toroidy.pl, from which the Fezz Audio brands derives. Designers could therefore design them exactly for a particular amplifier. The power transformer and the choke are made in house - both on a toroidal core. On the front panel there are two silver knobs – volume control and output impedance switch. The power switch is on the rear panel, which is not particularly convenient. The tubes used in this project are PCL86 triode-penthodes that look similar to the popular EL84 pentodes. They work in a push-pull circuit in the AB class. The screen behind them has a beveled front, making it look lighter than usual. The segment with tubes can be covered with a safety grid with which - it's a rarity - Ω Lupi looks just as nice as without it. Inside | The electronic circuit is assembled on a small printed circuit board. I found there coupling capacitors from the Polish company Miflex. I do not know if you remember, but this manufacturer located in Kutno also produces capacitors for GigaWatt (more HERE). It's a good sign – these are great capacitors, now all Miflex has to do is to develop their range and keep improving the quality. The model used in Omega Lupi has polypropylene spacers and is marked with the MKP-01 designation. The other capacitors used here are also of high quality, as they come from the Japanese company Nichicon. The signal from input sockets (nice ones) located on the rear wall is send through long shielded interconnects to the potentiometer on the front panel. To tell you the truth, I do not know why it was placed on the left side, while for right-handers it would be more convenient to place it on the right, and the interconnects could be half as long. After the attenuation, the signal is transmitted using another set of interconnects to the board, to the grid of the first triodes. Interesting fact - the potentiometer is equipped with a motor for remote control. There is no remote control though because it would increase the cost of the device. The power supply is based on a large toroidal transformer and a choke - also featuring a toroidal core. Their cores were immersed in a resin to reduce vibrations. Toroidal output transformers are at the top, under the black painted part of the housing that shields them. It's a clean, solidly assembled design using very good components. But, let's repeat, the main strength of Fezz Audio amplifiers - including Omega Lupi - are excellent transformers. Technical specifications (according to manufacturer) Type: stereo vacuum tube headphone amplifier Max. output power: 2 x 250mW Circuit type: Push-pull AB1 Class Output impedance: 32-600Ω inputs: 1 x RCA outputs: 1 x RCA THD < 0.3% Frequency response: 20Hz-120kHz (-3dB) re Power consumption: 90W Weight nett: 9.5 kg Dimensions: 340x355x150mm [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/fezz/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/fezz/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/fezz/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/fezz/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/fezz/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/fezz/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/fezz/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/fezz/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/fezz/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/fezz/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/fezz/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/fezz/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/fezz/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/fezz/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/fezz/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/fezz/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/fezz/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/fezz/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1807/fezz/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1807/fezz/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1807/fezz/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

t the time of publication of this test on the BLACK CAT CABLE one will see following information: At this time we find Chris Somovogio, its owner and designer - and the only contractor – in the middle of a big change in his life. As he said in the short history of his company, which we have included in the test of cables 3202 and 3232, it is already the second move, this time back to the USA. In 2015, he found himself - together with his family - in Japan, where his wife came from, with a strong decision to bring up children in this country - a country that fascinated him. Not only he, but also his company, that is, machines for the production of cables, moved there. It was a time-consuming and expensive undertaking. All cables produced by him after July 2015 were therefore marked: "Made in Japan". The return will be even more difficult and even more costly as the company grew in the meantime and Chris purchased a few new machines. However, it was necessary - his parents require constant care. And even if he was not convinced to do it by the examples from Japan, his sensitivity did not allow him to leave this matter to others. It will be a move from the Japanese city of Yugawarado to American Atlanta - this is a 10,000 km worth change in perspective | Stargate But, as it seems to me, the Japanese thread will always be associated with him - with him and his products, regardless of the family context. For he was imbued with a work ethic known from small Japanese manufactures, borrowed some solutions and materials from this country, and finally sold his cables in boxes prepared there. Will it be so in the future - I do not know. However, the Stargate cable was sent for the test before returning to the United States, in Japan, same as its box. CHRIS SOMOVOGIO Owner, designer Stargate was the elevation of the Ultranova using some materials from the Indigo line, but without the hyper-complicated build of the Indigo.Whereas the Indigo line uses Zoltán Matrix (ZMX) conductor, which is very difficult and time consuming to make properly, and it also uses a Matrix 32-element shield layer, which is also quite expensive and complicated. So the Stargate central conductor tries to approximate the Zoltán Matrix design in a simpler form by braiding 64 Matrix condcutors around the Ultranova helically-twisted 99.999% pure silver ribbon. This is then hand-placed within a microporous low-density teflon tube so that the overall dielectric effect of the air in the tube and the low-density microporous Teflon will help to keep capacitance low and velocity high. In place of the Matrix 32-element shield fo the Indigo, for Stargate I use a bare-copper 32-element braid of 30awg pure copper. This is an open-weave "Faraday Cage" style shield. In this way the audiophile receives a very nice approximation of what is possible in the Indigo line, and this is the first real step toward the magic of effortlessness and revelation of subtleties and nuances to the listener. Stargate is absolutely intended for a well-assembled high-performance audio system, as it was designed to be very revealing to even the most-delicate and interior aspects of music without sacrificing dynamic glory. History | The tested interconnect goes back much deeper than just extravagance called Ultranova. Already in 2000, when he founded the Stereovox brand, his main opponent was the so-called "Skin effect". In short the point is that the signal flows not in the entire volume of the conductor, but rather on its surface - the higher the frequencies, the closer to the outer layer they are transmitted. This causes phase shifts between signals at different frequencies. To counteract this, Chris instead of a classic conductor used copper microtubes with thin walls: CuTube. The development of this technique were the methods that were at the heart of the offer of his next company, Stereolab from 2008, mainly InterPole, a topology in which the conductors were "woven", creating a kind of a "braid". These solutions found application in three series of cables: Back Cat, Stargate and Indigo; from the first of them Chris's newest company took its name, and the next two were used as names of the two top series. Technology | The Stargate line belongs to the "Reference" level of Black Cat Cable lineup. It was presented for the first time during the High End 2018 exhibition in Munich. It includes analogue RCA and XLR interconnects and a speaker cable. As Chris said, this is a production version of the Ultranova Supreme model made only in several copies, in which some of the Indigo series solutions were used. The Stargate is a cable made in the form of a ribbon in ePTFE tube (trade name: Teflon), around which a copper band was wrapped. The central conductor is a helically wound strip of pure silver (5N), and the screen is a braid made of individually enamelled, pure copper wires. Since the cables are made to order, by hand, only by Chris, waiting for the order can be as long as four to eight weeks. Due to the move to America - it may take even longer. The Stargate interconnect was tested using the "High Fidelity" reference system. It was compared to reference cables: Siltech Triple Crown, Acoustic Revive RCA-1.0 Absolute-FM and Crystal Cable Absolute Dream, connecting Ayon Audio CD-35 HF Edition SACD player and Ayon Audio Spheris III preamplifier. The comparisons were conducted as: A / B / A and B / A / B, with A and B known. BLACK CAT CABLE in „High Fidelity” TEST: Black Cat Cable 3202 + 3232 | interconnect + speaker cable | RED Fingerprint Recordings used in the test (a sele- ction) A Wondrous Mystery, wyk. Stille Antico, Harmonia Mundi USA HMU 807575, SACD/CD (2015) Ariel Ramirez, Misa Criolla, José Carreras, Philips/Lasting Impression Music LIM K2HD 040, K2HD Mastering, „24 Gold Direct-from-Master Edition UDM”, Master CD-R (1964/2009) Art Pepper, …the way it was!, Contemporary Records/Mobile Fidelity UDSACD 2034, „Special Limited Edition | No. 00880”, SACD/CD (1972/2008) Artur Rubinstein, Artur Rubinstein plays Chopin, Polskie Nagrania MUZA/Polskie Nagrania PNCD 487, CD (1984/2008) Bach, Violin Concertos, Yehudi Menuhin, EMI/Hi-Q Records HIQXRCD9, XRCD24, CD (1960/2013) Fryderyk Chopin, Janusz Olejniczak vol. 1, Selene Records 9102, CD (2014) Kraftwerk, Live on Radio Bremen, Philips (?) 2561971, Bootleg, CD (2006) Miles Davis, Bitches Brew, Columbia/Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab UDSACD 2-2149, „Special Limited Edition | No. 01229”, 2 x SACD/CD (1970/2014) Patricia Barber, Companion, Premonition/Mobile Fidelity UDSACD 2023, SACD/CD (1999/2003) Tsuyoshi Yamamoto Trio, What a Wonderful Trio!, First Impression Music FIM DXD 079, CD (2008) Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] PLN 20,000 for a meter long pair of interconnects is a lot of money - the assessment of such a cable must be largely devoid of context, it should refer to the best cables that the person carrying out the test knows. It just so happens that in my case all three reference cables are either completely silver (Siltech), or silver with a small amount of gold (Crystal Cable), or partially copper, and partly silver (Acoustic Revive). It's a coincidence, I did not choose for the conductors they were made of but because of their performance - after a few years of "natural selection" it turned out that I was left with cables in which silver plays a major role. The Stargate is also mainly silver. I know many elements of its sound from reference cables. But many sonic features are characteristic only for it. It deliver fast sound with an immediate attack. The sound here wakes up immediately, it is generated as if there were no delays between the instrument and us, as if the sound was spreading with the speed of light, not the sound. This is of course an illusion, in my room there is the same physics as outside of it, but psychoacoustics changes perception of the sound depending on many variables. That is why Stargate sounded so fast. I do not know copper cables that are so fast and even Crystal Cable seems slower. But there is more to it - it is also open and extremely spacious. When I first played Touch of Trash from Patricia Barber's Companion, the space seemed just incredible. The voices of Barber and Jasin Narducy accompanying her in this track were exactly on the axis of the listening session, but all instruments, including percussion instruments and guitar had a huge breathing space around them. Both of these elements, that is speed and spatial intensity, Stargate owes to a very clean, strong treble. The level of treble is higher than in the Siltech and Crystal Cable, reminding me what I know from Acoustic Revive cables. The difference may seem small, at least on an absolute scale, however, it causes a lot of changes in the presentation, in emphasis on certain elements of the sound, like the aforementioned listener's attention to speed and space. This is not a "light" sound, though. There is no lack of richness and mass. Although often silver cables sound this way, this is not the case. The bass is well-extended and powerful, I would even say that with a better control than in Siltech; I am not saying "better", it's not the point - it's just "stronger". I could clearly hear it with the Barber album, but even better with the music from the Kraftwerk's bootleg with the 1971 Live On Radio Bremen concert. The Stargate sorted out the presentation and gave it a framework. It was energetic, rhythmical performance. And yet every now and then a thought came back to me, which came to my mind at the very beginning of this test, with the What a Wonderful Trio! album by Tsuyoshi Yamamoto Trio, namely that it is a cable delivering - after all - a delicate sound. Yes, it's open in the treble area, it delivers powerful high tones, and yet the presentation is pastel, in a way - delicate. The lower midrange is slightly weaker in it than in the reference cables, which makes the piano sound harder and closer to us. The entire presentation, however, is slightly quieter than with the cables in which this range is more saturated. So there is, on the one hand, some internal softness and delicacy, and on the other hand, a great control of the entire presentation. It is a complete sound in which nothing is missing, though it has its own face. I'm guessing a little, but I would say it's a cable that will perform well in tube systems where resolution is important - Stargate is excellent in this regard – a good selectivity comes handy – with Stargate it is above average - but without slimming the bass – with the Stargate this subrange is powerful and goes very low. And from the tube design I would expect saturation of the lower midrange and the slight warming of the top treble. Summary "Stargate" was a TV series (actually it was Stargate SG-1, produced by Jonathan Glassner, Brad Wright) was broadcast between 1997-2007 in the USA. Through these "gates" one could move to places hundreds of light-years away. In other words - it was a gateway to another worlds. I think that this could be what Chris thought about when he had to give the name first to the line and then to that particular cable; it is a kind of means of transition to another world. It is a world rich with details, greatly differentiating recordings, open, with momentum and powerful bass. The sound with the Stargate in the system is fast, large and particularly spacious. Treble is stronger than in all reference cables, but this is not an emphasis of this range, an anomaly, but a consistent way to achieve such an open sound - otherwise it would not work. The cable looks like it was made in a tool shed, but it is aesthetic and its box is very nice. But this is just a handmade product - all work is hidden under the green-black-blue braided sleeve. And it is enchanted in music. Stargate really opens other spaces for us. As I said, the Stargate interconnect we received for the test dates back to the "Japanese" times. You can see it at first glance, because a small cable comes to us in a large box made of balsa wood, on which the logo was placed - a special Stargate logo. The box is big enough so that probably the same one is used for a speaker cables from this series. | Balsa ⌈ Balsa is a popular name for Ochroma pyramidale, a species of tree found in the forests of South and Central America and the Caribbean. This wood is very soft and is twice as light as cork. Its special feature is its low density, but also high elasticity and durability; wood is very popular among modelers and among conductors (baton). ⌋ The cables themselves do not stand out with anything special and we immediately know that we are dealing with short series and that it is a handmade product. The cable is very flexible, and on the outside you can only see the braid made of material in dark green, blue and black. The cables are terminated with plugs without markings - the contact areas are gold plated. I do not know anything more about them. Have you ever dreamed about hand-made product straight from Japan? - Here you go. With Stargate you will get everything that you can expect from such a production.

e have meet with Johnnie Bergmann Rasmussen many times during the High End exhibition in Munich. For years, we have also planned to test another turntable - the Sindre model with the tonearm using the same name was tested in 2009 (HF | No. 68), and the test result was special award – the Statement Award. Many things have changed since then. First of all, the company offers a new top model called Galder with the Odin arm. There is also have a new distributor in Poland, thanks to whom the test finally came to fruition. | Galder John is a mechanical engineer, one could even call him an obsessive engineer, which is why his products are made with meticulousness and precision, and at the same time are well finished and catch the eye. Let's have a look at the Galder model - it's a low, squat solid made of aluminum in a gray color, with a lighter edge of the platter and additional elements in the same color. Though the whole thing weighs 38 kg, you do not think about it until, obviously, you want to move it. It is a non-suspended, heavy turntable, in which vibrations are converted into the heat. The whole is a modular design, with the main bearing mounted in a module with a larger mass and dimensions, and a decoupled element with the motor. Both rest on a common aluminum frame that mechanically bonds them. It is a turntable in which a heavy, 12 kg platter moves on a classic bearing with a steel, hardened spindle but supported with an air cushion. It is a solution difficult to apply because it requires an external pump that is efficient, quiet and wouldn't cause problems with air cleanliness. Although it can be done in a relatively simple way, as in the Holbo turntable by a Slovenian company with the same name we tested (HF | No. 168), only in such advanced designs as for example TechDAS models, or Bergmann its implementation is truly refined. | Odin The second feature that distinguishes Bergmann Audio turntables are the tonearms they use. These are tangential models, i.e. "linear-tracking". Every now and then we talk about them, but they are rarely used for the same reason as the pneumatic suspension of the platter: they are expensive and they must be perfectly made to offer really good performance. It can be done in a relatively simple way, but only the precision guaranteed by such manufacturers as Kuzma, Walker Audio, Clearaudio and Bergmann Audio ensures that their advantages outweigh the disadvantages. The advantages are considerable. As you know, the varnish from which the matrix for pressing LP records is created is cut by a head with a hot stylus. The head moves perpendicular to the axis of rotation, in a straight line. The tangential arm simply reproduces the same movement, so that there is no distortion that is present when using classic arms ("pivoted") with single point of support - there only in two points where the stylus is parallel to the groove and only there the distortion is zero. In others they are quite high. Another advantage of the linear arms is that you do not have to use anti-skating. And another is that because they are quite short, they have a lower vertical mass than the "pivoted" type arms. However, life writes its own scenarios, and though ideal on paper, tangential arms have their own problems resulting from the same features that constitute their advantages. In order to extract the latter, they must be flawlessly made and move on a thin layer of air, so they require a pump, same as a platter hung in the same way. It turns out that they also require some compromises, thanks to which we still have both types of designs on the market, both in medium and high price ranges. Johnie, as mentioned before, is an obsessive engineer, that's why he is the right man for the job. Odin is made of aluminum and moves on a air film. The only non-aluminum element is a carbon fiber arm tube, consisting of two inner and outer tubes with a damping material between them. It is light and extremely durable. The arm features a VTA, though not very comfortable, as well as the azimuth adjustment. However, the azimuth is adjusted not on the head of the arm, as it is permanently glued with epoxy glue, but one has to adjust the whole arm. This solution is to offer a much higher stiffness. The signal is output via a DIN socket from a rigid block of the arm. The turntable can be equipped with four arms of any type - both Bergmann and others. Suitable bases are offered by the manufacturer. | Operation The turntables of this type are more complicated than classic ones because they require an external pump. The one in the Bergmann system is closed in a large, black box and is very quiet – in which it is similar to TechDAS pumps. There are two tubes running from it to the turntable - one with the air pressed under the platter and the second sucking air from under the record – I forgot to mention that: in the Galder model the record is pneumatically sucked to the platter, just like in the Japanese turntables I was talking about. The third connection is a long cable controlling the motor. After connecting, the operation is very simple - press the start button, either 33.33 rpm or 45 rpm, and the pump automatically switches on the suction and starts pushing the air. After a moment the motor begins to spin slowly increasing speed. The idea was not to wear the drive belt. One of the assumptions of this company is the maximum separation of the motor and platter - the motor is therefore of low power and the belt tension is minimal. When the platter achieves proper speed – a blinking LED indicator would be useful for user - one can move the arm with the cartridge over the record and lower the stylus into the groove. It's not done with a lever like in most decks, but with a knob, as in other models of this manufacturer. Since this mechanism has no oil damping, it should be done carefully. The system is very quiet and only the belt can be heard a little louder than in other turntables. It is a turntable that is very easy to operate despite the fact that its design is so complex. The Galder turntable was auditioned together with Odin tonearm The Miyajima Labs Madake cartridge was installed and set by Johnnie Bergmann Rasmussen, and then I only adjusted the speed using the JR Audio strobe light. The signal was sent via Cammino PH 1.2 Reference interconnect to one of two (interchangeably) phono preamplifiers: Grandinote Celio IV or RCM Audio Sensor Prelude IC. During the test, the turntable was placed on the top shelf of the Finite Elemente Pagode Edition rack, and the power supply and pump module stood on the Acoustic Revive RST-38H platform, and the latter on the floor. I carried out the auditions with both my Harbeth M40.1 speakers and the YG Acoustics Hailey 1.2 tested at the same time; their test will be released in the November edition of "High Fidelity" and in the printed form it will be available at the Audio Video Show 2018 along with the Show's catalog. DS AUDIO ST-50 Stylus Cleaner The DS Audio is a veteran of the industry associated with digital signal recording, part of the Digital Stream Corporation. DSC specialized in optical reading systems, was a manufacturer of industrial CD and CD-ROM drives, its devices were used for laboratory error measurements for optical discs. But not only - DSC was, together with Microsoft, the inventor of an optical computer mouse, an element without which it is hard to imagine the modern world. DS. Audio is its branch, which deals with something else - although also related to optical reading - that is, from optical phono cartridges. A suitable phono preamplifier is dedicated to the cartridge. In addition to these systems, from January this year the company also offers so-called "Stylus cleaner", used for non-invasive cleaning of the stylus. Traditionally, this is done with a brush with soft bristles - we will find one delivered with every Denon DL-103 cartridge. Similar cleaners are offered by several other companies, but this is special: it is reusable - one just cleans up the pad – and it does not leave any residue on the stylus. It also looks great. . The ST-50 comes packed in a very nice metal box. The insert was made of a transparent urethane resin, originally "designed for laboratory rooms in which semiconductors were developed". You can use it to clean all types of styluses without fear of damage. I have been using several types of brushes for years and the best combination of brush and liquid I know is the one prepared by Pathe Wings from Berlin. The use of this set, however, requires some skills and a steady hand. The ST-50 does the same, and maybe even more (fluid is not needed) in a simpler, safer way. It is not cheap, but it is reusable. The difference in sound is not overwhelming, it's not the point - but it's always audible as "more sound in sound", as a better resolution. If you have a good record player, do not think twice, this is the type of help that becomes natural over time. Polish distributor: RCM Price: 360 PLN ds-audio-w.biz BERGMANN AUDIO in „High Fidelity” AWARD | STATEMENT AWARD 2009: Bergmann Audio SINDRE + AIR TIGHT PC-1 | turntable + cartridge TEST: Bergmann Audio SINDRE + AIR TIGHT PC-1 | turntable + cartridge Recordings used for the test (a selec- tion) Benny Goodman Orchestra feat. Anita O’Day, BigBands Live, Arthaus Musik101732, 180 g LP (2013) Do świtu grali, Czy wiadomo jakie tam głębiny przepastliwe?, Obuh Records V32 , Limited Edition 180 g LP (2018) Hans Theessink, Slow Train, Blue Groove 1610, 180 g LP (2007) Josef Hofmann, Josef Hofmann plays Chopin, Everest Records 904, „Archive Of Piano Music”, LP (1966) Kankawa, Organist, T-TOC Records, UMVD-0001-0004, "Ultimate Master Vinyl", 4 x 45 rpm 180 g LP + CD-RIIα + 24/192 WAV; Luka Bloom, Dreams in America, Skip Records SKL 9094-1, Limited Edition 180 g LP (2010) Nat “King” Cole, Just One Of Those Things, Capitol Records/S&P Records S&P-508, „Limited Edition | 0886”, 180 g LP (1957/2004) Sun Ra, The Futuristic Sound Of Sun Ra, BYG Records 529 111, LP (1969) 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] Music lovers and audiophiles have many different, often mutually exclusive expectations when it comes to turntables. The strongest opposition occurs, as it seems, between the need for "analog sound" and "exactly like on the master tape" presentation. And in the case of digital recordings it should sound better than from the original file - otherwise pressing such records would not make sense, right? A file player would be enough. If by 'analogue sound' one means in some way enhanced and 'made', then placing such a requirement in addition to the fidelity to the source material is like calling for rain in the desert; it is an either or choice. These types of thoughts most often come to my mind when I listen to turntables such as the tested Bergmann. And that's because they belong to one of these "camps" - to the camp of fidelity to the original. What does it mean? Above all, avoiding coloration at all costs. If the album was recorded in a super-analog way and as vigilantly mastered as Hans Theessink's Slow Train, the tested turntable will play an in extremely "analog" way (it's actually a system - turntable + tonearm, but to make it simply I will use 'turntable'). But analogue in the same way as analogue master tapes are, it is an open, extremely dynamic, selective sound, without explicitly pointing to the sources of sound. It's organic, in the sense that everything is going from beginning to the end, the story unfolds and has its culmination, and listener while sitting in front of the speakers, can sense it, is a part of a kind of act of re-creation. Because this is a sound that does not make us analyze the information, one can listen to the full story, that is, the entire album and embrace not only its individual elements, tracks, but also the album as a complete artistic work. Bergmann plays in an extremely open way. The amount of information, both those with a small amplitude, as well as dynamics and imaging, is above average - this is what high-high-end sounds like. You can hear it in the whole band, although the greatest impression is made at the top and bottom. Because we are talking about a great sounding product, there is no hint of brightening of the former, nor the blur of the latter. The treble is very resolving, but it is not "detailed" in the way it is often analyzed, that is, we get a lot of information, but as a whole, in a package with the rest of the band, never separately, never alone not even when - as on the Smokin 'at the Half Tone by Wes Montgomery and Wynton Kelly Trio - drums are placed in one channel, almost in its extreme. The cymbals were strong, vibrant, very well differentiated, and yet I did not have an impression of exaggeration, over-representation. In turn, the bass is amazingly accurate, that is, it has the pulse and precision that I know from the best CD players. I do not even refer to an electronically generated one, like on Kraftwerk records, or even a bass guitar, as on the Helicopters by John Porter Band, but to acoustic instruments. Because in their case we will most fully appreciate the selectivity and the ability to differentiate the attack, great rhythmicity. I am thinking of two albums here - an amazing Kankawa box, a Japanese artist playing Hammond organ, and about Dreams in America by Luki Bloom. The first of these is an example of how vinyl cut from 24/192 digital files can sound like. It is so organic that a large part of analog realizations sounds pale in comparison - figuratively, but also literally. Bergmann shows this kind of perfection with ease, as if next to the music. In turn, Bloom's album is just a voice and a guitar. Recorded by Skip Records and mastered by Hans-Jörg Maucksch in the Pauler Acoustics studio, which is where the productions of Stockfisch are made, has a low center of gravity. Bergmann did not raise it tonally, and by the way it showed that to be able to reproduce the male vocal and acoustic guitar, a perfectly placed bass is necessary. Like with this turntable. (And by the way - the photo for the cover was made by Ewa Figaszewska, a graduate of the University of Silesia.) So it's a system that is a kind of "relay" that tries to add as little as possible to the recording. This results in unprecedented dynamics, an ability to differentiate it and the immediacy of an attack, as well as in extremely precisely conveyed both band's extremes. There is an incredible momentum to this presentation, it's "wide" - so to speak - and engaging. But this is not a machine that could be called a "transcriptor", it is a "translator". It does not make the midrange complete or particularly saturated. Although that's how we often define the word "analogue", in this case, analogue sound manifests itself in what I wrote about above. Listen to the aforementioned Theessink, Bloom, or Nat 'King' Cole's from the Just One Of Those Things, and you will know what I am talking about. Each time the vocal was different, it differed in color and tension, the distance of the microphone, etc. I think it would benefit from pairing with a warmer sounding phono preamplifier, because I liked the presentation more with Grandinote Celio IV than with RCM Audio Sensor Prelude IC. It is more about adjusting the presentation to our expectations, not about correcting it. It's a presentation in which emotions matter, it's lively, dynamic, open, with a huge momentum. It won't make you sleepy, ever. Therefore, it will not appeal to those for whom the turntable stands for a special presentation and who expect it to fill in the midrange, emphasize it - even at the cost of tonal balance. Summary Bergmann shows emotions through changes in dynamics, precise attack, and not through a saturated presentation of the vocals. These are very natural, but not everyone expects naturalness from vinyl, right? It's an open sound in which the quality of the band's extremes is better than in case of the 99% of other designs and resembles what I know from TechDAS (Air Force) turntables and the Lumen White Myst ere model. If this is what you are looking for, that is, the truth of the source, and not "your" truth, the Bergmann system will be ideal for this purpose. Let's add a great make and finish to it, and we'll get a truly reference design. | Galder Deck | Galder is a mass-loader, non-suspended turntable. This means that the vibrations are distributed over the massive chassis structure and extinguished without the elastic separation of the platter with the tonearm from the base with the motor. And there is something to distribute them in, because the turntable made of aluminum weighs 38 kg, of which almost 12 kg is the platter. The deck consists of two modules combined with a solid 10 mm thick aluminum platform, something like a frame and floor in the car. The module with the bearing is fixed to it permanently and the motor module is slipped in without any fixing. Both are aluminum bars milled from the bottom side. The turntable can be used with up to four tonearms - tangential and / or classical ones. The whole sits on three aluminum feet made by Johnnie. It's his idea - they are made from two parts screwed together and decoupled inside using three smaller ceramic balls with a bigger one placed in the center. The feet are adjustable which allows user to level the deck. The main bearing has been developed by Bergmann and consists of a spindle of hardened steel moving in a bed of polymer used in aviation. It is supported by air - under the platter there is a thin layer of compressed air, thanks to which the platter is perfectly decoupled from the base. The platter itself is sucked in, just like in TechDAS turntables - its upper part is 3 mm acrylic plate with a rubber gasket around. Once the clamp is removed the vacuum is removed too and the record can be removed without stopping the spin of the platter. Motor | DC motor sourced from Premotec is placed in a separate module. The shaft placed on its axis is made of polymer. The torque is transferred to the perimeter of the platter using a wide, flat belt. The motor is controlled by a system with a tachometric sensor that checks the rotational speed several hundred times per second - it's a shield with 68 reference holes. This system ensures rotation stability at 0.0027%. Since the platter is very heavy, the motor starts very slowly, reaching the nominal speed after a while - the point is not to wear off the belt. The speed is selected using small buttons, which also automatically switch the pump on. It can be precisely set using even smaller buttons. Pump | The pump, as well as the engine's power and control systems are placed in a large, longitudinal housing, which can be placed next to the rack. The pump is very quiet and only when one places ear right next to it one can hear its operation. As Johnnie said, this is an OEM model working without oil, i.e. there is no need to use cumbersome filters. The filters are used only to clean the air from dust. The electronics controlling the pump and motor were designed by Bergmann Audio engineers. To compensate pressure there is a reservoir acting as a buffer. In the same housing there is also the electronics with the motor control system. The pump connects to the motor module with a 5-meter cable with a LEMO multi-pin plug, and with the platter with two transparent pipes – one delivers air to the platter and tonearm, the other sucks the record in. The module weighs just over 15 kg. | Odin Odin is a tangential arm (linear tracking), that is moving parallel to the axis of the plate, with an effective weight of 14 g. As it reads in the company's materials, it was about making its construction as precise and stable as possible, but at the same time as simple as possible. The base was made of milled aluminum, on which a tube with a large diameter was installed, with drilled holes. Air is released through the openings under high pressure. The arm is mounted on a tube with a slightly larger diameter - thanks to the air film held between them, the arm moves almost without resistance with the movement of the stylus. The gap between the tubes is only 50 microns and by increasing or decreasing the pressure we change its mechanical properties. Johnnie recommends setting the lowest possible pressure, but the decision belongs to the user. The arm tube is made of carbon fiber. In fact, there are two tubes - one inside the other - with a material damping the vibrations between them. The arm is glued to an “aluminum boat”, and this one is glued with epoxy glue to the aforementioned tube. From the front, an aluminum, milled headshell is glued to the arm. Internal Litz copper wiring runs uninterrupted from the clips for the cartridge to the DIN socket on the rear side of the arm column. The arm does not need anti-skating, but you can adjust its azimuth - between the base of the arm and the bed there is a steel shaft that helps to adjust its level. In classic constructions, this is done by changes introduced in the head of the arm itself. And this is not exactly a good solution because it worsens rigidness of the arm. In Odin, you can also set the VTA, but it requires a few additional actions - everything is described in the manual. Counterweight in the form of a fragment of the roller slides on the arm and is decoupled from it by means of three rubber rings. [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/bergman/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/bergman/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/bergman/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/bergman/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/bergman/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/bergman/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/bergman/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/bergman/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/bergman/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/bergman/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/bergman/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/bergman/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/bergman/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/bergman/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/bergman/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/bergman/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/bergman/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/bergman/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/bergman/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/bergman/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/bergman/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/bergman/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/bergman/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/bergman/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/bergman/th/13.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/bergman/13.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/bergman/13.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

udiophiles love gadgets - we know that, right? Regardless of how much we would rationalize it, try to explain this weakness, we are particularly susceptible to logotypes, descriptions of techniques, new technologies, stories. But just because it is so common phenomenon is not worth to fight it, or to pretend to be something that we are not. Let's put it plain and simple: the so-called "price tag" is just as important to us as it is for those sitting at the catwalk during the Milan Fashion Week. And the manufacturers know our weakness and try to use it - it is also completely normal. We are therefore interested in novelties, fascinated by their uniqueness, buying, for example, say fifth edition of a CDs that we already have and know in hope that it will be THE RIGHT one and, implicitly, THE ULTIMATE edition. Often it turns out that it is worse then the ones we already have, or just as often that it's just different; real differences are rare. Of those I know, it is worth mentioning the techniques known under the acronyms XRCD, HQCD, SHM-CD and BSCD2. In this context Briphonic appears a guest from another universe. This Japanese company records, mixes, masters and releases discs by itself and these are, one could say, model releases. I wrote about the treatments they use, their approach to the whole process and ways to get the best sound in the article titled Briphonic: the best there is in May this year (HF | No. 169). What is their secret? - Actually, there is no secret, just mere knowledge, experience and devotion to achieving results, although for most record labels they seem unattainable. It is simply that everything should be done in a correct way - from recording, through production, to the release of material. It is so simple and so difficult at the same time. | Meeting During Krakow Sonic Society meetings, we take a closer look at all the techniques that were mentioned, so listening to the Briphonic recordings was only a matter of time. I did not predict that it would transform into something more. And it was like this: this company releases its recordings both on CDs and on USB pendrives (files can also be downloaded from the company's store). In the aforementioned article, I presented two albums: Sentimental Reasons and MIWAKU, both played by the Mayo Nakano Piano Trio. Although the final effect, that is the kind of release, is the same in both cases, they have been recorded in two different ways: The Sentimental Reasons is a disc recorded on an analogue multi-track recorder with 2" tape, mixed in analogue domain to the analog 1" master. From this master, digital CD copies and files were made in almost every available format: DSD 64, DSD 128, DSD 256, PCM (FLAC) 96/24, 192/24, 384/24, adding a video recording to it. In turn, the MIWAKU is available only as a CD and DSD 128 and DSD 256 files, and this is because it was a DSD recording made in the stereo DSD 256. In the article, I described the differences between the four versions of CDs, leaving a comparison with the files for another occasion. The KTS meeting seemed to me a natural choice. Choice and execution are two different things. For a comparison to be reliable and for us to really listen to the comparison of formats and not devices - as much as it was actually possible - I had to meet several criteria. The first was to provide the same D/A converter for the CD player and for audio files transport. Secondly, I wanted the transfer of the digital audio signal from the file player to the DAC to be performed in the best possible way, preferably bypassing the USB link; I had similar requirements in relation to PCM files. | Audio files transport – a selection There are only a bunch of file players and transports that I know and respect, but none of these devices does meet the requirements for signal transmission mentioned above. Except for one: the Ayon Audio NW-T DSD. This device was conceived as a partner for D/A converters and CD and SACD Player made by this company. The DSD signal is sent from it using a professional 3 x BNC link in its native form, and the PCM signal can be sent via the I2S link, i.e. the transport is clocked by the DAC's clock. It just so happens that Ayon Audio CD-35 HF Edition that both I and Janusz, the host of KTS meetings, use, features both such inputs. The combination of NW-T DSD and CD-35 HF seemed a natural choice. Even more so, because the transport in question has a significant advantage over others - it can be operated from both the front panel and the remote control, like a regular CD player. So we did not need to install a router and configure file transport. However, it has also disadvantages. One thing actually: it plays only DSD 64, and PCM files up to 192/24. Which means that we could not listen to the files from the MIWAKU album, and from the Sentimental Reasons we could use only DSD 64 and PCM 192/24. The secondary disadvantage is that the USB input on the front panel only works with pendrives formatted in FAT16 and FAT32 - the Briphonic pendrives formatted in NTFS are therefore not supported. I had to copy the files to another pendrive. It should not have had any influence – a perfect digital copy – but still ... | Meeting, or two in one Once again, it turned out that the listening session would be just an introduction to something else - to listening to the files themselves. To introduce us to the subject, I prepared a selection of DSD files ripped from SACD discs using the Playstation console, which were to be compared with the SACD discs from which they were copied (Part I: DSD files). It was only after a longer listening session that we started comparing the Briphonic albums and a short comparison of the two songs from the Sentimental Reasons disc (Part II: Briphonic). In the first part, we discussed freely and asked participants of the meeting to send a summary of this part. I have recorded conclusions for the Briphonic recordings listening. | PART I: DSD files Program: Blade Runner, soundtrack, reż. Ridley Scott, Atlantic Records/Audio Fidelity AFZ 154, „Limited Numbered Edition | No. 2398”, SACD/CD (1982/2013) Art Pepper, …the way it was!, Contemporary Records/Mobile Fidelity UDSACD 2034, SACD/CD (1972/2008) Dead Can Dance, Spiritchaser, 4AD/Beggars Japan WPCB-10078, „Audiophile Edition”, SACD/CD (1994/2008) Dire Straits, Brothers in Arms, Vertigo/Mobile Fidelity Labs UDSACD 2099, „Original Master Recording, Special Limited Edition | No. 1808”, SACD/CD (1985/2013) Nat ‘King’ Cole, Love is the Thing, Capitol/Analogue Productions, CAPP 824 SA, SACD/CD (1957/2010) Janusz | Krakow Sonic Society Unfortunately, my memory is very limited, to say the least, so let me share two or three things I felt quite strongly during the listening session. First of all: a decisive primacy of SACDs, that was clear immediately and without a shadow of a doubt. Bigger sound, better resolution, naturalness, attack. The files in comparison appeared to be flat, dull, the presentation focused, without "breath" and - above all – without proper attack. Secondly: in one recording, I can't remember now which one, file was better, but again not by as much as in the case of the difference between the SACD and the file in the first point. Thirdly, as I recall, I only voted once for the draw, but I do not know what the comparison was about. In summary: as for me - there is nothing to talk about. I do not recall any other case when in such a short time after the track started, I was sure about the results of comparisons. Which is worth consideration. Bartosz | „High Fidelity”/RMF FM Although I could not stay for the second part of the meeting (i.e., the more important one), it turned out to be extremely valuable and interesting opportunity for me. To my surprise, my heart was conquered by DSD files, which I chose each time, even when all other KTS's members looked at me in shock and disbelief (or maybe even some were disgusted) ?). I myself was surprised by such a turn of events, because until now I didn't really even considered such a way of listening to music. I thought it was a curiosity for the most crazy audiophiles and Japanese (it's probably the same), and also a great opportunity to simply earn obscenely large money for the sale of each copy of the album (please take a look at the price of the Blue Coast Records). Every time DSD files captured me with their holistic approach to the music. These were not sounds mixed together, but MUSIC: dense, expressive and addictive every time. The presentation built by DSD files may not have had the widest sound stage, and its dynamics could not match the top CD or SACD releases. This, however, did not matter to me, because the latter lost (in my opinion) to DSD, when I assessed the impression as a whole. What was most surprising to me was that despite their "organic" feeling, DSD files still offered many subtleties that audiophiles love. The discovery of the meeting was for me the way in which the Blade Runner by Vangelis files sounded like. The way the ambiance of the recording was built, a phenomenal presentation of deeper layers of the stage, an extremely fleshy sound: it all beautifully combined together, offering me an unforgettable spectacle. However, to make it clear: I am not going to buy DSD files maniacally now. These are still quite uncomfortable when it comes to playback (not every DAC supports them) or "storing" (because of their size, and external disks - though getting cheaper constantly - still cost money), are also ridiculously expensive. With DSD files, as well as with SACDs, we never quite know what we're buying: is it something really recorded in this format, or a “half-product”, almost a cheat, that started its life as PCM, to be converted at the last minute to DSD. Rysiek B. | Krakow Sonic Society Thanks to our Host and Editor, we compared two digital sources and mediums. In my opinion it was the first and a small step to de-contruct the topic in an audiophile manner. Surely our organizer will describe the starting material and criticize it – so now let me share my impressions. At the beginning, as usually, I was in the minority, and at the end of the listening session, the opposite was true - Janusz delegated me to "Bieszczady", and Jarek evaluated things differently. As I remember we tested the same material from five SACDs and their equivalents in the form of files. Already after the first material I had no doubt about which source I choose - "DISC, Gentlemen!" Today, after years of listening, while assessing a recording I watch first of all for a wealth of colors and musicality. I associate musicality with swing and the "musical breath" of every instrument that pulsate, like the heart and breathe, like the body of each musician - surrounded by room's acoustics, or a studio's. It's some primary experience that can't be explained by reason. Jarek was the first to direct my attention to it, he taught me how to listen to it - although today we sometimes differ in conclusions. Focusing on these two aspects, my verdict from the meeting is 4:0 for SACD and two draws. I still have too little data to evaluate this meeting reliably, so I put my hopes in Editor. After the first step, it's time to revisit to the topic more extensively - probably the devil audiophile is in the details ... Wiciu | Krakow Sonic Society In a few cases, it was difficult for me to distinguish SACD from a file, but in few other discs sounded better. Hence my conclusion: for file lovers there is good news, because already today not much separates file from the disc. The device that is capable of playing them does not feature any mechanical parts, so it is theoretically easier to control in terms of moving elements affecting the sound quality and more likely to break down. For disc enthusiasts, the message is just as good: we're still holding on. It is still a bit better, but the opponent approaches the walls. It seems that due to other advantages, the future belongs to files, and CD lovers will come down to the reserve, as vinyl lovers have done. Panta rej - there was an era of vinyl, there was an era of the silver disc, now the era of the files is coming. If it is stored in the cloud, the entire library is available everywhere, where there is network coverage and we have a playback device at hand. Jarek Waszczyszyn | ANCIENT AUDIO It happened for the second time in my humble hi-end career. For the first time, almost 10 years ago, I played with a file player with SD cards reader, in SDMusA format. The files were ripped from a CDs and sounded better than from same CDs! A copy better than the original? I did try that with 20 different albums, in different systems, with different auditorium, so it was more then a suggestion. And then nothing for a long, long time. Do you remember listening to the full dCS Vivaldi system? While listening to the CDs we tried also one track ripped to file from the disc and everyone shouted, not to torture their ears and to return to the CD. And then we listened to Ayon. Finally, a replay! Finally, files ripped from the disc presented a better ordered space, breathing, multi-layering, independence of music events. A blow, a surprise. You know what? There is no worse art than predictable one. When I hear a piece in Ich Troje style, I know ten chords ahead. But when Coltrane plays, he surprises me every now and then. One time faster, one time slower. Once in tone, once outside it. Once a solid blow, but then silence. OH! Silence! Music is the break between notes. Breath. Everyone probably noticed: the better the system, the darker the presentation, the less noise, more music. And now the question arises: why? Does the computer drive, used to rip discs, read something more from them, something that the player's drive is not able to transmit? Or maybe it's something completely different? And this is the beauty of high-end - more questions than answers. Tomek | Krakow Sonic Society In my opinion, the physical disc in most cases sounded clearly better than the file. Maybe for two albums I would be able to show the superiority of the sound from the file, which appeared either in the form of a better drive, or more beautiful colors, but the failure of the files on some of the albums was spectacular. However, I have considerable concerns about the origin of the files we listened to. As a person who in his life personally ripped about 1.5 thousand discs to FLACs and murdered more than one CD reader in the laptop, I will say that the ripping hardware and software are of great importance. So I'm not sure if Playstation is the right ripping tool. I know that with SACD there is no other option but it would be ideal to compare the DSD file provided by the recording label to the physical SACD. | SUMMARY – the first one As you probably realize, I am a supporter of formats as such, because they organize the search and allow you to focus on the target, as well as a collector, focused on physical formats: CDs, LPs and SACDs. I have been listening to digitally recorded music for years, both in recording and mastering studios as well as at home. Still I'm not convinced that files are just as good as their physical counterparts. Why is it so, since the high resolution file is theoretically better than the CD and LP - I do not know. However, I must be honest with myself and my readers, so I am still looking. Slowly, however, we are reaching the moment when it begins to be, even for me, interesting. However, many elements had to play their parts, software and hardware manufacturers had to learn a lot. The system we used at Janusz' to listen to files was really very good and the problem was only its limited compatibility with files and pendrives. You have already read the comments of the participants of the meeting, so you know that they were split into two camps, which sometimes percolated - Rysiek, Janusz, Tomek and - to some extent - Wiciu, they were inclined to the fact that the SACD disc sounds better. In turn, Bartosz and Jarek took exactly the opposite position. Why? These two presentations were quite different from each other. Files sounded warmer, darker, lower. They were more focused on the listening axis. But they also were less dynamics and calmer; in addition, they all sounded similar, while the SACD discs were more strongly differentiated. Both presentations, however, were really very good. The participants' assessment was therefore dependent on what they were looking for in music, not necessarily on the absolute quality of the sound. In my opinion, in most cases SACD disc sounded better. However, these were not as big differences as in the past, and often I could only talk about what I liked more, and not what sounded better. Huge, huge progress! | PART II: Briphonic Program: Mayo Nakano Piano Trio, Sentimental Reasons, Briphonic CD | CD-R | Gold CD-R | Master Glass CD-R | PCM 192/24 | DSD 64 CD vs CD-R Jarek | This time I agree with Janusz, that after the first bars played by the piano it was clear that the CD-R version had a much better reverb - we could hear a larger room and some pedals. Tomek | I agree with Jarek, with the exception of information about pedals, I am not so familiar with this aspect. But the advantage of the CD-R version was clear. Maybe not huge, but worth the money. Janusz | In my opinion, the differences were really important. The first thing that struck me was that the entire presentation of the CD-R was slightly moved away from the speakers. Better, larger space and depth were created. There was more information that made performance more friendly. It was simply more pleasant to receive. Wiciu | These were not very big differences, although I could hear that there were different presentations. In the first version, I wondered for a moment whether it was definitely an acoustic piano, and in the second one it was clear. But again, for me the differences were minimal. CD-R vs GOLD CD-R Jarek | We are moving forward - definitely there was more sound from the piano. The pianist would probably say that there is more ornaments and other elements. You can hear more of the pianist skills on the Gold CD-R. Tomek | Unfortunately - this difference was beyond my perception, I can not say how these presentations differed from each other. Rysiek | For me this time the difference is significant, with the Gold CD-R being much better. The richness of color, musicality, swing appeared - this CD started to play music, not sounds, it only started to draw me in emotionally. Already after the first three seconds I knew that I'd definitely choose this version. Janusz | For the first time I agree 100% with Rysiek. The thing that struck me, after the first sound, was that the whole musical and sound event moved back behind the speakers line - it went deep. I saw that this event has a certain space, a place where it was recorded. Here I heard something that was not there before. Besides, I heard something that my body liked. I do not know why this is happening, but when my body likes music, it means I do not want anything more and I do not want to waste time on something else. What we are fascinated with, it means tone, space and so on, it's nonsense, it has nothing to do with music. But I know that this is a way to the truth - and ultimately the music has to grab you and this is the real high-end. Wiciu | I can not speak so beautifully, but I can say that I agree with Tomek in that - for me - these were not differences I was able to capture during one listening session. I am sitting in the best place and I have the impression that I am in Fatima, but in a group of those who can not see anything... Maybe because this album is very well produced, and for me every version is fantastic. Gold CD-R vs Glass Master CD-R Jarek | This time the difference was the largest. Already in the first chords one could hear the second instrument, that is, the room in which it was recorded. In certain chord sequences, it began to be equivalent to the piano. The moment when the drums came in was similar, but from the drums it was again a different performance. The sound with Master Glass was vivid, dynamic, quite different than with Gold CD-R. It is a pity that it costs so much and it is so fragile. Tomek | In my opinion, the amount of information, audiophile subtleties you are talking about, there was too much of all of it on the "glass" version. The “swing”, that Rysiek spoke earlier about, and which was present on the Gold CD-R version, now got lost somewhere. It's just a very good recording, similar to the ones we listened to on the previous three versions, and that's why even the basic one was impressive. On the medium itself, apart from its collector's value or the form of capital investment, I would not allocate so much money. It was different with the second song - this time the Glass Master sounded absolutely fantastic, just unbelievably good. I have to take back what I said earlier. Perhaps the "glass" disc requires a prolonged listening, but after the next song I have to say that the quality of this sound knocked me down. Damn, maybe it is even worth the 3500 zlotys in order to listen to something so good on a system of this class. Rysiek B. | Another version and yet another progress. The first noticeable impression is the length of the piano's decay, the acoustic environment, which Jarek mentioned - I heard it as a "bigger" and more spectacular piano - all this clearly speaks in favor of the Master Glass CD-R version. Ultimately it was a gentler presentation and even more musical than the Gold CD-R version, and therefore pleasant to listen to. The music has lost some of its focus, but it has not lost its emotions. I choose the "glass" version. Janusz | I have my own release on this medium - the Gould disc - but it's just one instrument. Here there are three and you can hear even better what is the advantage of the Glass Disc - that's what nobody talked about and nobody would, because these people do not know what they are talking about! They have good systems, phenomenal really, but their systems are not able to show it – namely a good system should not present space, details, subtleties, because it is – no offense - for children from the first grade. Firstly and lastly it should convey the attack, the sound that comes out at a given moment and we should hear it at that moment. It's a sound attack. And Glass Disc shows it, and no previous version did. Rysiek B. | It was just more enjoyable, somehow it sounded better physically, right? Wiciu | Yes, that's exactly what it's all about. What Ryszard said was true. In my opinion, the overall improvement after switching from Gold CD-R to Glass Master CD-R was not big, but the "glass" version was more enjoyable, more pleasant, even though there was more information. It is finally a version with which the piano was just a big acoustic piano, I immediately felt that it was a big instrument. It sounded colder than before, but the whole presentation was more expressive, more accurate and therefore more natural. Like at a concert, where we can hear and see instruments – that's what I had with Glass Master. Glass Master CD-R vs PCM 192/24 vs DSD 64 Jarek | Interesting, but there were not big differences between the two versions, although if I had to choose, I would choose a DSD file. I can not say exactly why - whether it's a matter of attack or a differentiation of the piano, I do not know. Tomek | I wondered for a while about this and at first it seemed to me that the PCM version sounded better. Ultimately, after listening to all three versions and comparing them to the Glass Master version, I would point to the DSD version as the better one. From what we heard so far it was the best performance. It was different with the second track - this time the Glass Master sounded absolutely fantastic, just unbelievably good. Again, I have to take back what I've said before. Perhaps the "glass" album requires a longer listening time, but after the next track I have to say that the quality of this sound knocked me down. Damn, maybe even 3500 zlotys would be worth spending to listen to something so good on a system of this class. After switching to DSD, I stopped having any pleasure in listening to this album, it was a less pleasant experience for me. Everything just became dull. I am very surprised and I have to give it up for the Glass Master CD-R and I wonder why the DSD file sounded so much worse - I will not even mention the PCM. Rysiek B. | After listening to PCM vs. DSD comparisons, I had the impression that I like PCM more, but then I changed my mind and eventually I would choose DSD. Ryszard B. | For the first time, I agree with Tomek so clearly. There was a significant difference between these presentations, in favor of the disc. The disc was full of colors, dynamics, diversity, emotions, it was addictive. DSD was bland, boring, dull and it was unacceptable. I emphasize the consistency of my choices, it can not be a coincidence that the disc was better than the file each time - for six comparisons in four cases disc was clearly better sounding, and in the two they would be equal, but provisionally. Now it was the last straw in this discussion and the Glass Disc finally exposed the problems of playing music from the file in favor of the superiority of the disc. Janusz | It is not even about one presentation adding something and other missing something else. It's about what your body is perceiving - and for me, the presentation delivered by the Glass Disc is something that my body says "yes!" to. I just sort of turn off and stop thinking about presentation - higher, farther, wider, faster, and just listen. Because only music counts. Therefore, for me, there was a huge gap between the disc and the DSD file, I could not listen to the file. | An overtime: Mayo Nakano Piano Trio MIWAKU, Briphonic Gold CD-R | Glass Master CD-R Jarek | I do not know how you will do it Wojtek but try to catch the goose bumps on my hands with your camera. The Glass Master with this recording is phenomenal. For the first time today during this meeting I was simply shocked. I understand that the previous recording was recorded and mixed in analogue domain, but this one sounds much better - in the Glass version simply phenomenally. Both in terms of music and sound this version was better for me. Wiciu | No, I liked the music on the first one too, and the sound was also very good - although the noise was much higher - but I agree - MIWAKU is fantastic. Anyway, with Gold CD-R MIWAKU it seemed to me that there also was some noise, and with Glass version it wasn't there anymore. Jarek | You see – this gentle noise underneath are just brushes before they play harder - on Gold CD-R they were not particularly clear, and on the Glass Master they sounded like brushes, not like noise. Rysiek B. | I liked the Glass Master version better. It is warmer, more musical, gentle, although I find less resolution in the sound of the piano. The previous version was more resolving. The Glass version, on the other hand, is warm, pleasant, physiological and make me want to listen to it. Tomek | I also liked the "glass" version very much. I listened to this song and for the second time I have to apologize for everything bad I said earlier about Glass Master – ultimately it is worth every penny. Well, musically this album is much better. On this medium you can hear how it really sounds like. Wiciu | Come on Tomek, there are some holes in your musical education - all you need to do is to remember the Penderecki's Polimorfia, Lutosławski's Quartet- that's what is there in the second track on the Sentimental Reasons album. Tomek | No, thank you, I don't want to do that :) Janusz | I will not agree with what my beloved friend Wiciu said - everyone has the right to express opinions. No offense - what are you talking about? After all, the Glass Master is something you listen to music with. You do not think about crap, you should just listen to music. You do not have to wonder what could be improved, but simply absorb the experience. Rysiek B. | Actually, you're right, but the quality is necessary to achieve what you're talking about, what Tomek has proved when talking about an avant-garde piece that he could not listen to when played from the DSD file, and with the Glass Master he could, right? Poor quality simply makes you turn off the music. Janusz | By the way, I will tell you something about the system. Ever since I have a Shunyata conditioner, I'm listening to a completely different sound - the difference is huge. Guys! - you should understand that for me music is the most important thing in life. I now experience something that can not be described. This is something I did not realize before. In 1973, my parents bought me the first system and for the second time I experienced something like this only after replacing the conditioner. Thanks to Jarek from Audiofast, actually by accident, because we listened to the Vivaldi One Player back then, the conditioner stayed with me. I did not listen to anything for two days because I was so tired. I plugged it in and, after I heard it, for me, to be honest, it was a complete madness. I really tested many components in my system. Without this particular component you will never hear the sound you've heard here today in your system, believe me... | SUMMARY – the second one A comparison of different releases of Briphonic recordings showed the absolute superiority of the Glass Master version. Interestingly, to understand what it brings and to accept it took longer than in case of other "inventions". Not because the differences were small, and because it's such a different sound. So good that even the same file listened from DSD 64 or PCM 24/192 files did not move anyone anymore. The price is crazy, but it is the peak achievement of the Compact Disc technique. Interestingly, once again it turned out that the MIWAKU album, although digitally recorded, sounds better than the Sentimental Reasons. Is it a shorter recording chain - a mix right away to a stereo DSD 256 file - or a different approach, I do not know. Everyone after the first bars of the piano from MIWAKU looked at each other, and then just listened, in silence. So it turns out that this limited, old digital format offers the highest-quality sound, if the disc was properly prepared. Paradoxically – this comparison made files look better – they still do not offer an absolute sound – but their advantage is ease of access, lower prices than specialist SHM-SACD and Glass Master releases, as well as ease of use. However, for them to make sense, we have to meet several conditions, among which the connection with the D/A converter seems to be the key one. The most important information, probably for all participants of the meeting, is that one can finally compare files and CDs seriously, looking for the best performance. And who knows, maybe after the next meeting it will turn out that we will start looking at devices such as Ayon Audio NW-T DSD with envy. [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/kts115/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/kts115/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/kts115/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/kts115/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/kts115/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/kts115/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/kts115/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/kts115/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/kts115/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/kts115/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/kts115/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/kts115/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/kts115/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/kts115/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/kts115/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/kts115/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/kts115/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/kts115/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/kts115/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/kts115/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/kts115/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/kts115/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/kts115/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/kts115/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/kts115/th/13.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/kts115/13.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/kts115/13.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

ave you ever wondered who was first? I mean, who came up with the idea of having a web-based audio magazine? This interview will give you the answer to this question. Perhaps for many of you it will be the first contact with "Secrets of Home Theater and High Fidelity". I suspect, however, that many of us have been reading the articles of this American on-line portal (magazine) for quite some time. I first came in contact with it some seventeen or eighteen years ago, when I worked at Audioholic, a Polish distributor of McIntosh, Velodyne, VTL, etc. As part of my responsibilities, I checked publications about the brands we distributed and if necessary, I translated parts of those. I used mainly printed magazines: "Stereophile", "The Absolute Sound", "Sound & Vision", "Hi-Fi News", Hi-Fi Choice "etc. Looking for information, however, I came across two publications on the Internet that quickly drew me in, and the idea of writing about audio on the Net intrigued me; these were: the Canadian "Soundstage" and the American„SECRETS OF HOME THEATER AND HIGH FIDELITY”. The latter was so interesting to me because theymade their own measurements of DVD players and projectors, verifying producers' promises. And in the world of video, measurements are very well correlated with what you see. The editors were not afraid to point out errors, for example with the "de-interleaving" technique. What's more - the producers, also the biggest ones, did not take offense and tried to correct their mistakes, guided by the tips and suggestions included in the "Secrets ..." tests. Do I have to add that when three years later, when I founded "High Fidelity", I tried to explain the graphic guy what is the "on-line magazine" I did it using this particular example? - I do not think so ... Although a lot of time has passed since then, the Internet has changed from the place of entertainment into the largest marketing, social and political machine in the history of mankind, the magazine is still the same: it still offers a high quality. I had a chance to talk to its founder and chief editor, Mr JOHN E. JOHNSON. WOJCIECH PACUŁA: Could you tell something about you, your career etc. JOHN E. JOHNSON: I have two hobbies. One is high-end audio, and the other is photography. I started in photography when I was six years old. My mother gave me a Kodak Brownie camera, and she paid for my film and developing. In those days, film was about 50 cents a roll and developing was also about 50 cents, for black and white. Color was a little more than twice that amount. I am still a very active photographer, and my concentration is on infra-red photographs of large gardens. I got into audio when I was fourteen years old, building a one-transistor radio from a kit. Then I obtained my ham radio license, call letters KN7MQK, but I could only afford to build a 15 watt transmitter from old TV parts. I could not afford to build or buy a receiver. When I was twenty, and in college at the University of Washington, I built a turntable from a children's record player parts. I bought a 35 watt/channel stereo amplifier, which used tubes. I built my speakers from simple full range drivers and plywood for the enclosures. My entire stereo system cost a total of about $200. I entered graduate school in 1968, and I saved enough money to purchase a Marantz 2270 receiver and KLH monitor speakers. I had a Dual turntable and a Radio Shack phono cartridge. I graduated with a PhD in Interdisciplinary Neurosciences, and in the first years of the 1970's, I worked at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA – Ames Research Center), near Sunnyvale, California, and in the latter half of the 1970's, I had a position at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), in Baltimore, Maryland. I eventually also had a joint position at Johns Hopkins University. We moved to the San Francisco Bay Area in 1989, and my full time job was being a scientific journal Editor-in-Chief. How did you come up with an idea for a web-based magazine? I had originally planned for the magazine to be a print publication, but the distributors wanted 50%, and the printers wanted a fortune for the color. At that same time, the Internet was on the cover of all the news magazines, and I decided that was the best route for me to take Were there any other on-line publication in US or Canada? At the time I started publishing Secrets of Home Theater and High Fidelity, there were no competing publications on the Internet. Secrets was the first such publication. When was that? I started Secrets of Home Theater and High Fidelity in 1994 – it was the first Internet magazine dedicated to high-end audio. When I was buying the domain name hometheaterhifi.com there were only 5,000 website on the Internet. The magazine was an immediate success and has been growing since then. Are you happy about how it turned out? Yes, that was a very good decision, as publishing on the Internet was immediate rather than having to wait for pages to be printed on paper and distributed. Also, typos and other errors could be corrected. Overall, the Internet was the best thing to happen to publishing since the invention of the printing press. What was the goal such publication? The goal of Secrets of Home Theater and High Fidelity is to inform audio and video aficionados about new products that have arrived in the marketplace and let them know if those products perform as advertised. Maybe even better than advertised! How do you test components – I mean – what is your philosophy of the review, product, methodology etc.? We review products as thoroughly as we can. Sometimes the review includes bench tests, but not always. What I am finding is that now that we are well into the 21st century, high-end audio products have very good specifications, and they usually meet them because high-quality circuits are commonly available due to engineers having found what works over many years of experimentation. It's very good for consumers. The bottom line though, is always what the product sounds like rather than what the bench tests reveal. Can you point strengths and weakness of on-line publications? Printed ones? The strengths of on-line publications are three: First, it is a lot less expensive to publish on-line Secondly, it is much faster to publish on-line Third is that mistakes can be corrected with on-line articles. The weakness is that you need a computer to view on-line publications. Do you still read printed audio/video magazines? I read printed magazines regularly. It is very easy to read them while having lunch or relaxing in the afternoon. I don't need a computer screen to read them. What you think about paying for content – or it should be for free? Paying for content is fine, as long as the content is high quality. If it is not professionally created, then it should be for free, Tell us about your audio (video) system. Here is a list of my audio/video equipment: | Lab 1 (Home Theater) OPPO BDP-105 - Blu-ray Player – Wireless Networked OPPO UDP-205 Universal 3D Blu-ray Player – Wireless Networked Pass Labs XP-20 Preamplifier Procesor surround: Classé SSP-800 Procesor surround: Emotiva XMC-1 Classé CA-5200 Five-Channel Power Amplifier (200 Watts per Channel) Pass Labs X600.8 x 6 8 Power Amplifiers (4) (600 Watts/Each) Audio Control Phase Coupled Activator (Sub-Harmonic Generator) Carver Platinum Mark IV Ribbon Speakers MartinLogan Summit X Hybrid Electrostatic Speakers (2) (Rear Left/Right) MartinLogan Stage X Hybrid Electrostatic Speakers x 3 (Center and Sides Left/Right) Velodyne DD-18+ x 3 Subwoofer Sony VPL-HW55ES 1,920 x 1,080p Digital Projector 90″ (Diagonal) Stewart Grayhawk Projection Screen Sony 75″ UHD Flat Panel Display Cables: Wireworld, Mogami | Lab 2 (Two-Channel Audio with Digital and Analog Sources) OPPO BDP-105 3D Blu-ray Player – Wireless Networked AURALiC VEGA VPI-HR-X + Sumiko Blackbird (MC) Turntable with Sumiko Blackbird MC Cartridge Manley Labs Steelhead Steelhead Phono Preamplifier Balanced Audio Technology VK-5i Preamplifier Pass Labs Xs Preamplifier Preamplifier Pass Labs Xs 300 Monoblock Power Amplifiers (2) (300 Watts/each) Emotiva XPA-1 Monoblock Power Amplifiers (2) (500 Watts/Each) Emotiva XPR-1 Monoblock Power Amplifiers (2) (1,000 Watts/Each) Balanced Audio Technology VK-500 Solid State Stereo Power Amplifier (Fully Balanced) (250 Watts per Channel) MartinLogan CLX Full-Range Electrostatic Speakers Paradigm Reference Signature SUB 2 Subwoofers (2) PS Audio P500 AC Regenerator (Line Conditioner) Custom-Built Computer for Audio Analysis Accupel HDG-3000 Digital Color Signal Generator (1080i capable), Component Video and DVI Output ColorFacts Pro Video Test and Calibration Software, Version 6.0, Spyder Sensor SpectraPlus Audio Analysis Software Audio Precision SYS-2722 (Measurement Instrument) Staco 3PN2210B-DVM 22 Ampere Variable Transformer (for adjusting line voltage to 120 volts during amplifier power output tests) Cables: Wireworld, Mogami | Lab 3 (two-channel audio) OPPO BDP-105 Universal 3D Blu-ray Player – Wireless Networked Bryston BUC-1 Converter Balanced Audio Technology VK-5i Pure Class A Triode Preamplifier (Fully Balanced) Balanced Audio VK-75SE Triode Two-Channel Power Amplifier (Fully Balanced) (75 Watts per Channel) Magnepan 20.7 Planar Magnetic Full-Range Speakers HiFiMAN HE1000 Planar Magnetic Headphones OPPO PM-1 Planar Magnetic Headphones OPPO HA-1 Headphone Amplifier Cables: Wireworld, Mogami “THE EDITORS” Series YOSUKE ASADA | “Net Audio”, “Analog” HERE, JAPAN, chief editor DANIEL BREZINA | HIFI-VOICE.COM, CZECH, editor-in-chief (Šéfredaktor), see HERE EDGAR KRAMER | „Audio Esoterica”, AUSTRALIA, editor-in-chief, see HERE 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”, USA, 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

COVER REVIEW very once in a while, the idea of the superintegrated amplifier is coming back to the mainstream - an integrated amplifier with high output power, extended functionality and high or very high price. My first contact with this type of devices was limited to McIntosh products, specifically the MC6850. It conquered markets, including Poland's, in the late 1990s. I found out about its success personally selling a dozen or so units - at that time I was working for a Polish distributor of the brand, the Audioholic. Once I sold it to a man who came to our shop in his old, dilapidated "Maluch" (Fiat 126p). The amplifier cost ten times more than the car, and yet the buyer seemed the happiest man in the world. At the time, such a purchase was a bit risky idea, because a for similar amount of money one could buy a system of separates consisting of a preamplifier and power amplifier - either from McIntosh or one of many other producers. The Superintegrated was for some a kind of aberration, and for others it was simply an extravagant choice. Since then, a lot has changed and now it is usually an ideal compromise. | Separates or integrated? Let's think for a moment about the point of dividing amplifiers into two, sometimes even more, separate units. Such a superior reason, from which more detailed ones arise, is striving for the best possible separation of the voltage section (preamplifier) from the current section (power amplifier). The most important element is the power supply separation - a power amplifier requires a high power power supply, flexible in terms of fast reactions for peak requirements of power consumption, and the preamplifier needs lower power and its power consumption i constant. Equally important is the controlling of electromagnetic radiation - higher in the case of the power amplifier and smaller in the preamplifier. And finally there is the matter of vibrations - the power amp requires a different mechanical construction than the preamplifier. However, there also are downsides of such a solution. The most obvious is the more space requirement since it's occupied by a two-unit system. From the technical side, however, it seems more important to separate electronic circuits, including ground and power supply systems, into two independent circuits, which is not entirely beneficial. When the amplifier is designed as a whole, engineers can optimize ground and power supply for the entire circuit. The advantage is also the elimination of interconnects (and contact areas) between the preamplifier and the power amplifier. And finally there is an economic factor - even if the separates system costs the same as the integrated, we still need to spend money for a power cable and interconnects. | Superintegrated For years, integrated amplifiers were considered to be inferior to their separates counterparts. With amplifiers like MC6850, the trend, started probably in 1989 by the Kondo Ongaku, which cost - both back then and now – a lot of money, was initiated namely, the desire to eliminate the disadvantages of integrated amplifiers and use their advantages. And that had to cost a lot. Thus, devices such as: Soulution 530 were introduced, an amplifier with the size of a small refrigerator, or the aforementioned McIntosh, whose modern equivalent is the MA8000 offering 300 W per channel, reviewed by us in April this year (HF | No. 168), the Gold Note IS1000, or Accuphase E-650 (HF | No. 166) - all expensive and very expensive, offering high output, good and very good functionality, but above all guaranteeing sound that surpasses most separates systems offered for similar money. One of the newest representatives of this "genre" of amplifiers is the FLS 10 model from the Italian company AUDIA FLIGHT. | FLS 10 This is the latest addition to the manufacturer's series (company materials also use the name F S L with spaces). Its full name is: "FSL10 Balanced Stereo Integrated Amplifier" - as you can see, the manufacturer underlines in its name its fully balanced design. It's a big device, measuring 450 x 180 x 440 mm, and really heavy - 36 kg. It offers high output power of 200/380/700W at (respectively) 8/4/2 Ω, so it meets the basic "requirements" for the superintegrated. But also other electrical parameters seem to point to that - very high damping factor at >600 (8 Ω) and very wide frequency range - from 0.3 Hz to 500 kHz. Its extensive functionality is also important. The FSL 10 is a microprocessor-controlled device, so the settings are saved in its memory and called on demand. So one can change the brightness of the display, or turn it off, one can name inputs, determine which are active and which are not (less noise), choose the input to integrate the amplifier with the home theater system, i.e. omitting the preamplifier section and so on. The amplifier offers five line inputs, two of them are balanced, as well as two preamplifier outputs - RCA and XLR - and a tape/recording output (RCA). There are also two pairs of loudspeaker outputs and an independent headphone amplifier with a ¼ TRS output on the front panel. There are two large grilles on the back. After unscrewing them, one can install optional cards/modules in the amplifier - a solution known for example from devices by Accuphase, CH Precision and others. So one can customized the amplifier according to one's needs. There are for options/modules: MM/MC phonostage with RCA inputs, MM/MC with XLR inputs, two additional RCA inputs, D/A Converter with 6 digital inputs: Toslink, AES/EBU, dual RCA (S/PDIF), USB and a special connector for company's own SACD player; USB accepts PCM signal up to 32/768 and DSD up to DSD256. I would not be surprised if, in a while, there is also a module with streamer, and maybe even a Bluetooth receiver. | Operation The FLS 10 integrated amplifier is large and heavy - it requires two people to move it freely. It is operated either with a remote control or with small buttons on the front panel. The buttons in the remote control and on the front are the same, i.e. metal, and have a clear operating point. The volume can also be adjusted using a large knob on the front. The volume is changed in 0.5 dB steps in the range from -90 to +10 dB. Additionally, you can set the gain for each input in the range +/- 6 dB. Besides, there are more nice features, such as: when you want to turn the amplifier off and go to the standby mode, after pressing the power button the amplifier first smoothly mutes the outputs, which can be seen on the display and only then disconnects the power supply. Information are presented on a small blue OLED display. It allows user to read the volume level and selected input. To tell you the truth, I'd rather have the letters bigger. On the front panel, as I mentioned, there is also a headphone output. Since the FLS 10 is equipped with an independent headphone amplifier, plugging cans in does not disconnect speakers - one has to do it oneself with a small button labeled "SPK". Above there is a blue LED that indicates its use. Its ignition when disconnecting speakers is not intuitive - after the diode lits up at the button described in this way, I would rather expect that speakers are turned ON not off. The amplifier takes 200 W while idle, which means it has a high bias current for the output transistors and that the first watts it delivers in class A. The disadvantage of this solution is that it is always warm - with an intensive use it gets even very warm. So it should be placed on the top shelf of the rack. To sum up this part - the amplifier's functionality is above average, it is easy and pleasant to use. The amplifier was tested in the "High Fidelity" reference system, i.e. with the Ayon Audio CD-35 HF Edition player as the source and the Harbeth M40.1 speakers. Because this is a fully balanced amplifier I used only balanced outputs from the player; devices were connected using the 1.5-meter Acoustic Revive XLR-1.5 Triple-C FM interconnect. Also the power cable came from this company - it was the Power Reference Triple-C model, plugged into the RPT-4eu Ultimate power strip. Speaker cables were mu trusted Siltech Triple Crown. The amplifier was so large that I decided to placed it for the in front of the Finite Elemente rack on the wooden box, it was delivered in. In truth, it looked great on it. However, the box required several modifications. I put it on four Vibrapods, and another Vibrapods were placed under the amplifier. The interior of the chest was stuffed with damping material. For the headphone part of the test I used three cans: planar-magnetic HiFiMAN HE-1000 V2 and Edition X V2, and also dynamic Sennheiser HD800. AUDIA FLIGHT in “High Fidelity” REVIEW: Audia Flight FLS-1 | preamplifier REVIEW: Audia Flight FL Phono | phonostage AWARD | Best Sound 2016: Audia Flight FLS-4 | power amplifier REVIEW: Audia Flight FLS-4 | power amplifier AWARD | Best Sound 2015: Audia Flight FL THREE S | integrated amplifier REVIEW: Audia Flight FL THREE S | integrated amplifier REVIEW: Audia Flight 100 | power amplifier Recordings used for the test (a selection): Rudolf Firkusny, Rudolf Firkusny Plays Schubert, Schumann, Brahms, Sugano Disc SCD-833001, CD (1983) Blade Runner, soundtrack, reż. Ridley Scott, Atlantic Records/Audio Fidelity AFZ 154, „Limited Numbered Edition | No. 2398”, SACD/CD (1982/2013) Patricia Barber, Companion, Premonition/Mobile Fidelity UDSACD 2023, SACD/CD (1999/2003) Chick Corea/Gary Burton, Cristal Silence, ECM/Tower Records PROZ-1091, SACD/CD (1973/2017) Eva Cassidy, Songbird, Blix Street Records/JVC VICJ-010-0045, XRCD24 (1998/2010) Fauré, Requiem, dyr. Michel Corboz, Erato/Warner Music Japan WPCS-12545, SACD/CD (1972/2012) Yes, Close to the Edge, Atlantic/Warner Music Japan WPCR-15905, 7” SACD/CD (1972/2014) Mozart, String Quartets KV 387/KV 421, Tacet S 233, SACD/CD (2018) Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] This amplifier can not be mistaken with any other. It has its own, quickly recognizable sound signature, performing in a special way that is a response to prayers of many, surprisingly many music lovers and audiophiles who are usually ashamed to ask for it directly. It's an amplifier that plays in an extremely emotional way. It is primarily about transferring the listener to another world - the world of recording. Analysis? Cool assessment? Not in this case - the FLS 10 invites you to listen to music and experiencing it at the same time at full speed. At first you can feel overwhelmed by such a presentation. Here everything comes at you at once, strong, revealing, dense. Accustomed to elegant, selective systems, we may feel confused for a moment, because this is not a calculated performance. One starts a concert by Patricia Barber from the Green Mill in Chicago, known from the Companion, and the concert space appears in our room. Not so much as "appears", but rather "bubbles away". The foreground with Audia Flight is placed close to us, just like the entire performance - it's a direct attack on our senses. We feel like the performer stands right in front of us and sings only for us. Even if it is a recording from the early 1970s, in which the vocal was a bit distant, like fin the Close to the Edge by Yes, it is more present with the Italian amplifier, more tangible. Differentiation in this respect is very good. It is not about unifying everything, this amplifier does not do it. Barber was very close to me, because she had a close-up microphone - like on the stage - and Anderson was not very far away, because the whole presentation was saturated, which made him sound like that. But it absolutely is not a monotonous device that plays every recording in the same fashion. I mean something like a common approach, that this device proposes to us, a common interpretation for different - and shown as differing from each other - events. The "presence" of instruments is unbelievable, they affect listener almost sensually, as if they were really in front of us. This is mainly due to warm and rich presentation. With this "warmth" it is so that one would not be able to distinguish this sound form one presented by a tube amplifier using EL34, KT88 or KT150. Here and now, however, it was more open, because I never had the impression of treble being withdrawn or rolled off. On the contrary - the amplifier seems to be playing in an extremely sonorous way, as if the harmonics were in line with the basic sound, creating together something more than each of them separately. Let's look for it in the wonderful SACD release of the Gary Burton and Chick Corea Crystal Silence by the Japanese Tower Records. The vibrancy of the vibraphone and the power of the piano correlated with it were outstanding. The fact that Audia Flight presents large phantom images contributed obviously, here everything has its importance and role to play, there are no irrelevant elements. It is able to deliver in an interesting and entertaining the listener way both, the aforementioned duo, the Auryn Quartet playing Stradivari, Amati and Guarnieri instruments, as well as the power of the opening soundtrack on Vangelis Blade Runner. And that's because a low-centered presentation with lots of information, in which the bass plays the main role. Mentioning at the beginning the fulfilled prayers, I also meant this element - we will never lack the power of bass, its extension, fleshiness and massiveness. This range is played a bit in the “Italian fashion”, i.e. without obsessive control over the attack and decay, but also without problems with these elements. It is a smooth, soft sound in which the rhythm is perfectly kept, with which any recording pulsates and draws listener in. It won't make you sleepy, even though the tonal balance could have led to it - there is so much going on here that we put sleeping aside for another day. The bass extension on the Vangelis album was presented in such a moving way that I did not need anything else. The very bottom is not completely controlled, but it is never late and does not mix with other subranges. The energy of the bass is amazing and reminiscent of live performance, where the definition is not the most important factor. More important is the timbre/tone and rhythm - here presented in an outstanding way. Watch the second part of the Blade Runner, i.e. Blade Runner 2049 (directed by Denis Villeneuve, 2017), and you will hear bass extension organizing the majority of this film in such a way that you fell fell shivers moving down your spine. Watch Sicario next, directed by the same man two years earlier ( 2015), where the section of double basses and cellos builds tension in a similar way, and goose-bumps are guarantied. | Headphones This is an absolutely unique case, where the sound of the amplifier is of an equally high-quality whether one uses loudspeaker or headphone outputs. What's more, in this these two presentations are very similar, were built from the same elements and a very similar effect was achieved. Plain and simple: this is one of the best headphone amplifiers I know of. It is very resolving - maybe not as much as with speakers, but still. This is something that with planar-magnetic headphones such as the HiFiMAN HE-1000 v2 that I use, is particularly important, because I can hear almost everything. The Italian amplifier turned out to be outstanding in this respect and only my Ayon Audio HA-3 with 45 triodes in the output shows something extra at the very top of the band. But at the bottom, the Italian integrated was unmatched. Only once did I hear the headphones of this company delivering such a good bass performance and it was during the presentation of the HiFiMAN ShangRi La system, costing 50,000 US dollars. I could also clearly hear something that was clear to me while listening through the speakers, but I did not pay much attention to it - the amplifier does not hide the details from the recording. Which was obvious for example when I listened to Barber's voice that was emphasized in a stronger way then usually, resulting from the use of stage microphones, or with slightly brightened sibilants in the voice of Eva Cassidy from the Songbird album, compiled, among others, from concert recordings, etc. When listening through the loudspeakers, my attention was pulled away from this element by the aura, density and presence of the recording in my room. It did not happen with headphones, so I automatically paid more attention to what we are talking about. So what we get is a more open sound with low bass and warm midrange. This can be corrected by the choice of headphones – one could use Audeze LCD-3, or HiFiMAN Edition X V2 - warmer and denser than the HE-1000 V2 model. Both with headphones and speakers, one has to get used to the way FLS 10 treats space. It's an amplifier that builds something like a "bubble", moving artists and instruments along with their acoustic ambiance to us, into a room where we listen to music. Because the foreground is placed close to us, and the presentation is intense, whatever happens deeper on the stage is less important. This is not a very deep soundstage. Events far behind foreground are as intense as those in the front and they are not much inferior to them in volume - hence the sense of their closeness. The instruments are beautifully differentiated in their tonalities, which gives them an extremely individual feature, they are shown as "separate beings”, thickening as we focus on them. The amplifier treats them as something holistic, so they will not be "cut" from the background, making it difficult to "analyze" them. Because it is not an airy, pastel presentation. It's a warm, burned out in the midday sun, presentation and with an incredible bass extension. The latter is not always as perfectly defined as in the case of my reference amplifier. In turn, the upper treble is slightly warm and always in servitude to the midrange. Each of these elements can be used as both "for" and "against" features, depending on your preferences. Summary I will say, however, that one would have to have a lot of ill will not to appreciate the beauty that the Audia Flight amplifier brings to one's live. Because beauty and experiencing emotions that's what music is all about. The FLS 10 delivers an intense presentation activating emotions in listeners, extracting reflexes from our bodies that are dormant when listening to other devices. If I say that in terms of sonic character it is very similar to what I heard in the same system with the Kondo Ongaku, I will not by exaggerating much. The Japanese integrated is of course a whole different world, but the Italian amplifier evokes similar emotions in us. A beautiful amplifier greatly designed with unique functionality, there is but one choice left for me: RED Fingerprint. The integrated amplifier FLS 10 from the Italian company Audia Flight is a solid, heavy, well-made device. Its chassis is made of thick aluminum plates in such a way that no screws are seen anywhere. I found some only at the back and underneath. The amplifier stands on four aluminum feet with rubber hemispheres underneath. | Front and back The front is the thickest and profiled so that the wavy line divides it into two horizontal parts and introduces the "movement" element. There is an oblong window above this line, and there is an OLED display with a blue filter in it. On the right side there is a flat, but large volume knob, and at the bottom silver, small, metal buttons. The device works well with them, because they have a clear trigger point. On the right side there is also a headphone jack ¼ TRS (large 6.3 mm jack), and next to it a button, which switches the loudspeaker outputs off. There are two pairs of them, positioned vertically on both sides of the back panel It is quite obvious that it is a symmetrical design - it is not only about it being balanced, but also about the mechanical design. Same as in the devices of the Danish company Gryphon, both channels were arranged symmetrically in relation to the axis of division, i.e., input number 1 is the closest to the center, and the next ones diverge from it towards both sides. There are five inputs, two of them balanced; there are also three outputs - two from the preamplifier section with an adjustable signal level - RCA and XLR - and an unbalanced RCA with a fixed signal, intended for recording. The EIC power socket is placed slightly to the side and a mechanical switch is integrated in it. Below the input sockets one can see two, unscreweable plated that can be replaced with optional cards – there are two plates, so I assume that one can put two different module at the same time. | Inside When unscrewing the top cover, it is not difficult to notice that it is in fact the FSL 4 power amplifier with a slightly modified input section and preamplifier. This is a modular device, with two output sections on the sides, screwed directly to the heat sinks, a power supply in the middle and a preamplifier on the two PCBs at the back. The preamplifier consists of two sections - the input one, where the relays change the inputs, and the amplifying one above. The latter consists of four modules with the CFA15 designations assembled using the surface mounting technique closed with plastic covers; this is a similar solution to the one found in the Marantz HDAM modules and some others, for example by NAD. These are transistor circuits working in Class A. This section has its own power supply with a toroidal transformer. It seems that the volume level is regulated in resistor ladder integrated circuits, one per channel. This one was bolted on a PCB placed above one of the largest toroidal transformers, that I saw in audio devices - it has a power of 2000 W and was flooded with resin and shielded. The entire power supply consists of twelve, separately rectified and filtered lines; there are a lot of medium-sized capacitors in it with a total capacity of 288,000 μF. 32 transistors operate in the output section, in a parallel push-pull system - 16 per channel. These are bipolar ON transistors: MJL1302A (PNP) + MJL3281A (NPN). The signal goes from them to the sockets on the back panel with copper braids with a large cross-section - 5.2 mm2 - originally intended for power cable). The loudspeaker sockets are gold plated, but the endings of the wires are not. | Remote The remote control is made of aluminum and works with the Philips RC-5 code; indeed, the company's chip is its "heart". The buttons are the same as in the amplifier, which is a nice thing. The remote control has almost all the functions of an amplifier, apart from switching off the loudspeaker outputs. The volume control, of course, is adjusted using two buttons. The set includes a Phillips screwdriver, which will be used to replaced the battery. It's very nicely made, with heart and big knowledge device. Specifications (according to manufacturer) Nominal output: 200/380/700 (8/4/Ω)  Inputs: 3 x RCA, 2 x XLR Outputs: 1 x RCA, 1 x XLR, 1 x REC RCA Volume control range: -90dB to +10 dB Frequency range (-3 dB): 0,3 Hz - 500 kHz THD: < 0.05% S/N: 110dB Input impedance: 47kΩ Damping factor (8Ω): > 650 Power consumption in standby: [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/audia/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/audia/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/audia/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/audia/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/audia/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/audia/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/audia/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/audia/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/audia/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/audia/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/audia/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/audia/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/audia/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/audia/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/audia/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/audia/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/audia/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/audia/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/audia/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/audia/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/audia/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/audia/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/audia/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/audia/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/audia/th/13.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/audia/13.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/audia/13.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/audia/th/14.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/audia/14.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/audia/14.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/audia/th/15.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/audia/15.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/audia/15.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1808/audia/th/16.jpg" big="foto_testy/1808/audia/16.jpg" src="foto_testy/1808/audia/16.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]

POLISH AUDIO CLASTER n response to a question sent from the user, the on-line language counseling of the Polish Language Dictionary gave the differences between three, often used interchangeably, terms - gramofon, adapter and patefon: Gramofon is a device used to play sound from vinyl records, it has the widest range of meaning from the given three. Adapter in everyday language, refers to an electric turntable used to play shellac or vinyl records (also called "black"). This word also has a technical meaning, which is mentioned in the encyclopedias, please compare the term from the Encyklopedia PWN on-line - Patefon is a spring loaded turntable, produced from 1905 to 1920, it is an outdated expression. sjp.pwn.pl, accessed: 09.08.2018 So let's use the editor's suggestion and see what the encyclopedic part of the Dictionary ... says about the adapter: adapter 1. «a device in a turntable, used to read the sound recorded on a vinyl record» 2. "turntable" Can you see it? First of all, the problem is that there are several interchangeable terms for a turntable in Polish language. Secondly, in the general definition 'adapter' is a device, while in the detailed and technical definition it's only a part of it, i.e. cartridge. This interesting shift of the meaning from one component - the adapter, or the phono cartridge - to the whole device - the turntable - takes place, as far as I know, only in Polish. Equally interesting is the fact that the name 'GRAMOFON' was borrowed by us at the very beginning, when these devices appeared in our part of Europe at the beginning of the 20th century and comes from the word 'GRAMOPHONE'. A 'gramophone' is a term used in English-speaking countries interchangeably with the name 'PHONOGRAPH', meaning the invention of Thomas Edison from 1877, which allowed the recording and reproduction of a sound recorded on a thin film wrapped around a cylinder. The name 'gramophone' was registered as a trademark in 1887, and as a general name for products in the United Kingdom in 1910. Since the 1940s, the 'RECORD PLAYER' term has been used. Currently the most frequently used term is 'TURNTABLE', meaning – a table that turns'. In English-speaking countries the name of the device used to reproduce the recorded sound changed several times, in Poland it remained the same as it was a hundred years ago, and the 'adapter' was used only for a limited period of time, associated today with the years before the fall of the Great Wall in 1989. | T-2 So there is some confusion in the nomenclature, and the Polish name dates back - as I said – to the most distant times. In English-language literature, which currently has the biggest influence on the audio industry language, 'record player' is used interchangeable with 'turntable'. And this term was used by Shape of Sound to create symbols for their latest turntables: T-1 and T-2. The Shape of Sound was founded partially due to another vinyl enthusiast, Mr. Andrzej Kozłowski (AdFontes). As in the review of the Readleaf model once Marek Dyba quoted: "Ewelina and Piotrek built a turntable that amazed me...". And Ewelina and Piotrek are Mrs and Mr Krawiec, the founders and owners of Shape of Sound. The model under review, T-2, equipped with two tonearms - 10'' WT-10 priced at 2,900 PLN and 12'' WT-12 costing 3000 PLN - is their latest design; I mean both the deck and the tonearms. It's big, impressive and looks really good. The tonearms made of wood Mr. Piotr on CNC machines in his workshop seem very interesting too. Also, the platter and the bearing he made himself, which obviously requires high precision and knowledge. The deck (chassis) is outsourced to the same carpentry workshop that works for Avcon. It is composed of glued plywood sheets with a chamber milled inside. In turn, the motor and electronics come from Pro-Ject. The motor, however, was encased in an aluminum cylinder and decoupled mechanically. PIOTR KRAWIEC Designer The latest Shape of Sound product is called 'T' for a 'Turntable'. It is available in two versions: T-1 and T-2. Turntables T-1 and T-2 differ only with the number of tonearms. The chassis is made of layers of hardwood plywood glued together in the press under high pressure. In individual slices of the plywood, holes for the feet, bearing, drive and tonearms are cut out. Therefore, the weight of the chassis itself is around 15 kg. The deck can be finished with a clear varnish or we can stain it using any color. The whole rests on four adjustable feet, which enables leveling of the turntable. A 40mm thick aluminum platter that weighs 7 kg rests on an oil filled hydrodynamic bearing. The bearing axis made of stainless steel is supported on a ceramic ball with a high surface smoothness which together with Teflon bed and a little oil results in excellent sliding properties. The T-1 turntable is equipped with one WT-10 arm with a length of 10 inches, while the T-2 additionally has a 12-inch WT-12 arm. The tonearm tube has a shape of a cone. It is made of beech wood and is adequately protected against the adverse effects of moisture from the air. The arms allow for adjustments for proper cartridge setup. The tonearms' design is based on two sets of rolling bearings. In the vertical axis, the rotation was based on two single-row radial ball bearings. In the horizontal axis, we also used rolling bearings, but in an beveled configuration, which allows for eliminating backlash without impairing the rolling properties of the bearings and results in negligible resistance to the movement of the arm. SHAPE OF SOUND in „High Fidelity” REVIEW: Shape of Sound REDLEAF + NOJE | turntable + tonearm The standard version of the Shape of Sound's turntable is equipped with one tonearm. However, an optional base can be purchased additionally, and such base was installed in the reviewed unit. Since the manufacturer adjusted and set up the arms for cartridges, which - in their opinion - work well with them, I did not change anything in the setup. And only at the end of the listening session I replaced Ortofon's cartridge with Denon DL-103. The 10" WT-10 tonearm was paired with the Ortofon 2M Black and the 12" WT-12 with Transfiguration Axia. Ortofon is a quite expensive MM type cartridge, the company's flagship model in the 2M series. At the time of this test it's price was around 2,300 PLN. It features Nude Shibata stylus. In turn, the Axia Transfiguration is a MC type cartridge with an output voltage of 0.38 mV, which the recommended loading of more than 20 Ω; during the test it was set to 200 Ω. It uses the Ogura PA (3 x 30 μm) stylus, and costs about 1500 USD. The T-2 turntable was compared to the Bergman Audio Galder with the Odin arm, and I during the test I used three different pairs of speakers: YG Acoustics Hailey 1.2, Harbeth M40.1 and Avcon Nortes Mk3. Recordings used for the test (a selec- tion) Bill Evans, Bill Evans Live At Art D'Lugoff's Top Of The Gate, Resonance Records HLP-9012, „Limited Edition - Promo 104", 3 x 180 g, 45 rpm LP (2012) Brendan Perry, Ark, Cooking Vinyl/Vinyl 180 VIN180LP040, 2 x 180 g (2011) Brian Eno, Craft On A Milk Sea, Warp Records WARPCDD207, 2 x 180 g LP + 2 x CD + 24/44,1 WAV (2010); Budka Suflera, Cień wielkiej góry, Live 2011 + studio 1975 (box), Polskie Nagrania „Muza”/Budka Suflera Productions, BSP 05-2011, 2 x 180 g LP + 2 x CD; Do świtu grali, Czy wiadomo jakie tam głębiny przepastliwe?, Obuh V32 , 180 g LP (2018) Garbage With Brian Aubert, The Chemicals, Stun Volume | PIAS STNVOL011 ‎STNVOL011, „Record Store Day 2015”, 10” 45 rpm LP (2015) John Coltrane, Giant Steps, Atlantic/Rhino, R1 512581, „Atlantic 45 RPM Master Series", 2 x 180, 45 rpm (1960/2008) Leon Russell, The Montreux Session, Edel 0208394CTT, „Triple A Series”, 180 g LP (2013) Japanese issues available at [REKLAMA5] Guided by the fact that the turntable was equipped with two tonearms, wanting to hear what the shorter of them could do with a cheaper cartridge and the longer with more expensive one, I divided the test into two parts. In each of them I tried to show the characteristics of the particular combination. It soon turned out, however, that the element with biggest influence on the sound is the deck. The tonearms obviously differ from each other - the shorter one offers faster, more accurate sound, while the longer one is more fluid and the bass goes deeper down with it. There is also a huge difference between cartridges. The hierarchy of "how important" each component is, i.e. how strongly it affects the sound, in opinion should be presented like this: deck, cartridges, tonearms. | Ortofon Black 2M It is the type of turntable that, realizing the vision of its creators, is strongly leaning towards it. It is about the implementation of a specific sound, which is not quite what is called "neutral", but it is - as I understand it - in accordance with the needs and vision of the analogue sound of Mrs. Ewelina and Mr. Piotr. It's, in short, a warm and friendly sound, with perfect harmonic compatibility. The system, because I'm talking about the whole proposed set, which consists of the deck, 10" tonearm and Ortofon cartridge, sounds captivating in its density. Already the first record I listened to, recorded during the Montreux festival, the Leon Russell The Montreux Session showed what it is all about. It was a fleshy, organic presentation in which the most attention was paid to the internal "compatibility", to the fluidity, while elements such as resolution and selectivity are presented to such an extend, that it's not a weakness of this turntable, but still far from what J.Sikora's or TechDAS products are capable of delivering. I started my listening session with the album recorded in Montreaux, wanting to return at least for a moment to the perfect concert of Van Morrison during the same festival, that I'd heard a few days earlier in the Stravinsky Hall. And I wanted to hear it the more that it was recorded by my friends - Dirk Sommer of Sommelier du Son and hifistatement.net or Matthieu Latour, one of the directors of the Nagra company, whom I saw literally a few hours earlier. I do not need to add that the recordings were made using an analogue Nagra T tape-recorder. Anyway, the turntable presented the tendency that I am talking about, that is compliance at the expense of details, but it perfectly showed the energy of a live performance, where what matters is the pulse, rush, and so on. This is the sound that in such recording, and I would add also Bill Evans' concert in New York's Top of The Gate club, but also in new digital recordings like Ark by Brendan Perry, preserves something fundamental for music - its “punctuality". So the records sounded warm, nice and with drive, thanks to which the music lived, changed, pulsated and engaged. Just to be clear - it is a sound modeled to achieve a very specific purpose and character. If you are looking for objective truth and details, you should look for some other product. If, in turn, we are looking for something that is considered classic "analog" sound, which is associated only with vinyl records, then the Shape of Sound turntable will be the answer to such needs and preferences. | Transfiguration Axia Switching to other arm and cartridge one should expect changes in the sound - and that's what I got here. Even then though, the character of the deck and the material from which the tonearm's tube was made will prevail. Firstly, however, I should mention differences. The better cartridge and the longer arm opened up the sound to a certain extent and there was also a higher resolution. The bass was also better defined. It was a definite step forward, where as its reason I would rather point to the cartridge than the arm - the cartridge simply helped to show the tonearm's sonic character. When I listened to the Ortofon, I noticed not only what I already mentioned, but also some limitation of band's extremes and not quite as taut, quite as focused bass as I would have liked. Interestingly, and characteristic of products born from love for music, it does not impede listening to music. The presentation is colorful, strong, pleasant. Simply, the upper treble is warm and withdrawn, just as the lower bass range. One of the advantages of such a presentation is the almost complete lack of pops&cracks. In my experience, that how both, turntables with a thick wooden base and arms with a wooden tube, sound like. Here it merged into something more, and I got only music, almost without any side effects resulting from the imperfections of the medium. Moving to a better, more resolving cartridge, I expected an improvement, but I was also afraid of losing this almost magical ability to extract music without pops&cracks. Fortunately it didn't happen - the sound actually opened up, but it still had the same character. It's rhythmic, strong presentation with a large foreground and warm band extremes. It is the midrange that plays the most important role, regardless of what music you're listening to. I wished for a bit more resolution and selectivity, and more depth to the soundstage. But it's audio we're talking about, there is nothing for free, you get SOMETHING at the expense of SOMETHING ELSE. With the Shape of Sound T-2 turntable, we get unrestricted, joyful, warm and organic sound. Organic, because it is coherent and perfectly combined into one whole. Summary The Shape of Sound T2 is a "targeted" turntable. It was developed for a specific purpose, namely so that the music would flow freely and that you could listen to it during long, rather late at night than early in the morning, sessions. It does not split a hair into four pieces, it does not force listener to analyze the sound. It's a good and a bad thing, but that's how it is. It's great for listening not only to the best, sophisticated recordings such as the Russell's concert, but also to digital recordings, for example the Ark by Perry or 10" EPs by Garbage titled The Chemicals. It also works well with slightly worn records, giving them a second life. It seems to be a perfect implementation of designers' plan that will - I am sure – be warmly welcomed by many music lovers. The Shape of Sound T-2 turntable is a non-suspended, massloader. That is - the main bearing with the platter and the tonearm are fixed to the deck by means of a rigid links, without a soft suspension. The dissipation of vibrations in massloaders can be carried out in various materials, the most popular of which are: aluminum, acrylic and stone. Every now and then, however, this type of turntable features a wooden base, as it is a case with the reviewed model. | Deck The deck is made of several layers of plywood, combining to a total thickness of 115 mm. They are glued together in a hydraulic press under high pressure. Its interior has been milled in the same way as in the cabinets of the Avcon loudspeakers, because they also makes the bases for Shape of Sound. The surface can be finished in any way - in the tested unit it was colored with carmine to match the speakers. The model under review, the T-2, featured two arms, but it may support between one and three of them. Additional aluminum bases installed in milled spaces must be added before purchase. The 40 mm thick platter is made of aluminum. On the underside, a small circle has been milled into it, where a small sub-plate fits in, which is mechanically part of the axis. The bearing looks classic – there is a brass element with Teflon bed installed inside the aluminum element. There is a small ceramic ball on the axis. On top of the platter one places an old-fashioned rubber mat. A turntable is fitted with four aluminum feet, made by the company in-house. | Motor Torque is transmitted to the platter's circumference via a rubber square cross-section belt. The tension of the belt is rather loose, as if it was about maximum decoupling of the motor from the base. The engine itself is enclosed in a solid, large cylinder, and an aluminum pulley is placed on its axis. The speed is changed electronically. A small Pro-Ject Speed Box S is used for this purpose. It allows you to change the speed from 33.33 rpm to 45 and vice versa, and turn the rotation on using a button. It connects to the motor with a short, ordinary cable. It is powered by a small 18 V DC power supply. | Tonearm The new Shape of Sound tonearms are available in two lengths: 10" and 12". The former is a compromise between the long 12" and short 9" arms, the length particularly beloved by the Japanese. It features a tube made of varnished beech wood and it can have an effective length of 10" or 12". The tube is attached to a nice aluminum element with a gimbal. Its horizontal movement is possible due to precision German blade bearings. The arm features a brass, black-painted counterweight that slides over the aluminum shaft from the rear. The counterweight is decoupled from the arm with a Teflon insert and after setting the correct VTF should be fixed using an Allen screw. User can also adjust VTA - again using proper Allen key. The arm's head-shell is made of aluminum and it forms a whole with an element used to lift the arm. There is classic anti-skating solution - a weight suspended on a line. The signal is output through gold-plated RCA sockets. In the basic tonearm the sockets are located under the bottom edge and hidden underneath. It makes it much harder to connect the interconnect and it drove me crazy when I had to tighten the ground cable. Even more so considering that it is tightened with a tiny, ordinary screw. I would rather not do it too often ... In the second arm the connection is easier because the outputs are located from the listener's side. However, the ground screw is the same. This is a very nice, interesting design, using components that have been known for years. The whole makes a big impression with the precision of the workmanship and finish quality. [hfgallery] [img mini="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/th/05.jpg" big="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/05.jpg" src="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/05.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/th/06.jpg" big="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/06.jpg" src="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/06.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/th/07.jpg" big="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/07.jpg" src="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/07.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/th/08.jpg" big="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/08.jpg" src="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/08.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/th/09.jpg" big="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/09.jpg" src="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/09.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/th/10.jpg" big="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/10.jpg" src="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/10.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/th/11.jpg" big="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/11.jpg" src="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/11.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/th/12.jpg" big="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/12.jpg" src="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/12.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/th/13.jpg" big="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/13.jpg" src="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/13.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/th/14.jpg" big="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/14.jpg" src="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/14.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/th/15.jpg" big="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/15.jpg" src="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/15.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/th/16.jpg" big="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/16.jpg" src="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/16.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/th/17.jpg" big="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/17.jpg" src="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/17.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [img mini="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/th/18.jpg" big="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/18.jpg" src="foto_testy/1809/shape_2/18.jpg" desc="HighFidelity.pl"] [/hfgallery]