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Aqua La Scala digital converter

There are several ways of skinning the proverbial digital rabbit and turning it into a tasty analogue stew. The most popular one is to use a chipset from one of a small number of large-scale manufacturers; this has the advantage of low cost and relatively straightforward design, plus you also get the latest sample rates and built-in oversampling, whether you wan them or not. This approach can be found in products across the board from mobile phones to DACs costing tens of thousands of pounds. One alternative is to build a ladder DAC using discreet components in an R2R arrangement; this requires considerably more RnD and thus money but does offer greater flexibility in the design with the option to put in as much or little oversampling, filtering, etc. as the maker wants. The ladder DAC is the exclusive domain of high-end products because it’s traditionally too expensive for anything else. Moreover, the quality of the performance depends entirely on implementation. It is often assumed that ladder DACs must be better because they are made up of discrete components that can be selected for sound quality but there are plenty of examples of great sounding chip-based D/A converters on the market. There is clearly space for both approaches but it’s hard to resist the appeal of the electronic craftsmanship that goes into the hand-built approach of R2R.

Aqua is an Italian company that favours the ladder DAC and builds a small range of converters that are chock full of circuitry; they also make a CD transport that can be linked using a proprietary I2S connection for minimum degradation between components. La Scala is in the middle of Aqua’s converter range and features the Optologic R2R ladder DAC, a custom-programmed FPGA processor galvanically and magnetically isolated by an optical interface between processor and convertor. Aqua (‘Acoustic QUAlity’) eschews oversampling and digital filtering and builds discrete power supplies for the analogue and digital sections using MOSFETs, JFETs, and high-speed diodes. It also incorporates a hybrid output stage into this converter certain parts of which are visible through the slot on the right-hand side of the facia. There you can see a pair of double triode valves that are followed by MOSFETs to provide a low impedance output from the single ended and transformer balanced connections on the back of the case.

The front of this attractive box has a bit of Italian style in its design and the minimum of controls to play with. There is, for instance, no volume control on La Scala; it provides a fixed line output in the classic style. It has input and on/off switching and the only luxury is a phase switch in the slot next to the valves. The back panel is therefore not a lot more complicated with the analogue outputs alongside S/PDIF and AES/EBU inputs and a USB connection in a Neutrik socket, although you don’t need a Neutrik termination to connect to it. There is one outsider in the form of the I2S link on an RJ45 connection, again in a Neutrik socket, which is to support the proprietary link to Aqua’s La Diva transport; it’s not clear if it can be used with anyone else’s I2S link. There’s clearly room for a bit of standardisation on this front, companies have been putting in I2S links like this for years now but because there’s no standard, there is no known I2S compatibility across brands. It’s time that someone (maybe the AES) came up with one.

 

The plain nature of the front panel is not terribly handy when getting started, there is no visual indication of the presence or otherwise of a signal, which can be useful with computer audio sources, for instance. And unlike some of the competition there is nothing to say what sample rate is being received; such things aren’t essential and can usually be established by other means, but they are quite nice nevertheless. That said, it’s sound quality that ultimately counts. Lights and displays can be useful (especially for the reviewer) but once a DAC is up and running you don’t need to be told what it’s doing. The only change that would be helpful is to name the inputs USB, coax, etc., rather than I, II, III, etc.  You might get to know which is which over time, but it’s not like there could be a tuner or a CD player on input I since that input will always be the I2S connection. 

Using an Innuos Zenith SE network server as source with an Auralic G2 Aries streamer connected to the La Scala via the AES/EBU input produced a distinctly organic, relaxed, and juicy sound compared with the Chord DAVE DAC I was using up to that point. The Italian DAC has a really nice feel that is comparable with good analogue sources, revealing the interplay between musicians very nicely and creating great musicality in the process. It has almost the opposite character to the DAVE, which is precise and definite next to the organic fluency of the Aqua. Using the USB output of the server and bypassing the streamer altogether produces clearer imaging and a greater sense of integrity, so much so that I began to wonder about the quality of the balanced cable being used for the AES/EBU connection; it’s not a dedicated digital cable so it is probably compromised in that role albeit not from a musicality POV. The USB connection is tighter and more coherent, inspiring in fact, and raising the level of engagement up several notches with Esperanza Spalding’s ‘Judas’ [Emily’s D+Evolution Concorde/HD Tracks]. I had no choice but to unleash the air bass guitar at one point, suggesting that the Aqua has the power to get to the parts that other digital converters fail to reach.

It is also usefully quiet; with the more cerebral tones of Haydn it is possible to hear oodles of texture in the harmonics of original instruments while being inspired by the drama of the music. Adding the AURALiC streamer back into the system enhanced things still further; one of the oddities of digital streaming is the more hardware can often produce more musical detail. More is more. And here I got greater openness and lots of audience atmosphere on Alison Krauss + Union Station’s ‘Touch You For a While’ [Live,Rounder], as well as a very strong vocal image from the singer. The DAC shows how compression has been used to control the level of the voice on the recording while also revealing the slight vibrato she adds to achieve the power that’s being reined in. This sounds beautiful with the acoustic guitars and lively ambiance, very live despite the vagaries of the recording. Lee Morgan’s The Sidewinder (Blue Note) sounds like a live studio recording; it’s full of energy and swings like nobody’s business – and here the La Scala got everything in proportion and presented it in a soundstage with excellent depth. Even the cymbals have some shape and body, something that few digital devices can do well. It’s so quiet that you can hear new details in the track as well (I’m sure there is a voice in the background). What’s absolutely clear is the brilliance of Morgan’s trumpet playing, where the DAC brings a depth of tone that is rare and presence that makes the performance sound like it’s happening here and now.

With a coaxial S/PDIF input from the G2 Aries the result is similar – very musical with plenty of inner detail, subtlety, and space. The balance is possibly a little darker but Michael Wollny’s piano is positively radiant and the drums on his Wartburgalbum (ACT) that much more engaging. 

 

Aqua’s La Scala is very nearly as relaxed as the CAD 1543 MkII, another non-oversampling DAC, but based on vintage multibit chips that is slightly more revealing and better in timing terms. It makes La Scala seem as though it adds a little bit of polish to proceedings, a bit more sparkle in the highs being the apparent. That said this is a very natural sounding converter with excellent transparency and a musical fluency that makes you want to close your eyes and escape into the music. It has just enough features to make it user friendly but doesn’t draw attention to itself. In fact that is its key skill; it gets out of the way to let the music through. If you give it a decent source I guarantee an experience that will be hard to switch off.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

 Type: Hybrid digital-to-analogue converter.

Digital Inputs: One AES/EBU (via XLR), one coaxial (via RCA phono) one coaxial (via BNC), and one galvanically isolated USB, one I2S proprietary link (via RJ45)

Analogue Outputs: One stereo single-ended (via RCA jacks), one balanced (via XLR connectors)

DAC Resolution/Supported Digital Formats: All PCM from 44.1KS/s to 384KS/s with word lengths up to 24-bit, DSD64 (2.8224MHz) and DSD128 (5.6448MHz). The following format restrictions apply:
DSD 128 and 384KS/s are supported through USB and I2S only

Frequency Response: 20Hz–22kHz, ± 0.5dB

Distortion (THD + Noise): < 0.1%, 1kHz -20dB

Output Voltage: Not specified.

User Interface: Front panel switches.

Dimensions (H×W×D): 100 ×450 ×370mm

Weight: 9kg

Price: £5,990

Manufacturer: AQ TECHNOLOGIES S.r.l.

URL: aquahifi.com

UK Distributor: Elite Audio 

Tel: +44(0) 01334 570 666 

URL: eliteaudiouk.com 

Neat Acoustics Iota Xplorer floorstanding loudspeaker

We first saw Neat’s Iota as a cute compact loudspeaker that anyone could live with and grow to love. It then became the Iota Alpha, which is a bit bigger but still diminutive, and does what it’s told. Now we have the Iota Xplorer, a rather more boisterous speaker that likes to push the boundaries of what a compact floorstander can do, and gets everyone to stay up too late. I predict that the range will continue to grow and flourish until it usurps the rest of the Neat range a bit like grey squirrels.

Bob Surgeoner’s latest creation stands 74cm above the carpet, but has large conical spikes that leave a decent gap beneath its squat cabinet; this was not an aesthetic decision but one calculated to allow for a more predictable bass response. This may look like a two-way but underneath you can see a bass driver; what you can’t see is that there’s another identical driver above it within the box creating an isobaric arrangement where one driver moves in phase with the other. In other words, you have two motor systems controlling the output which, combined with the fact that the chamber between the two drivers is sealed, means that the system ‘sees’ the overall enclosure as being twice as big as it is. Neat uses a pair of its P1-R2 bass drivers which are 170mm in diameter and have treated paper cones. The lower half of the Xplorer cabinet is a separate chamber with a port in the back but not a reflex type, Bob describes it as a “controlled leak” because it doesn’t augment the bass output in the way that a traditionally tuned reflex port does. This is apparent in practise because you can’t usually place a rear ported speaker close to the wall in the way that you can with this one.

The mid and treble drivers sit in a sealed cabinet with an angled baffle that sends the sound upwards so that it can project into the room and offset its relatively compact stature. The other drivers are a  P1/R3 mid/bass – with a treated paper cone and an aluminium phase plug – and the first instance of an AMT (air motion transformer) tweeter in a Neat speaker. Bob has experimented with this type of planar tweeter in the past, but claims this example from Dayton Audio is the first he has really liked, at least in the arrangement found in the Xplorer; I wouldn’t necessarily expect them to turn up on Neat’s other ranges in the near future. This AMT is 113mm high and 68mm wide, so quite large for a treble driver.

The positioning of the tweeter on one side of the Xplorer’s baffle means that you can experiment with having it on the in- or outside of the pair, which means that the tonal balance can be adjusted to suit different rooms and personal tastes. I found that in a relatively narrow (3.5m) room having the tweeters on the outside gave the best image width without sacrificing focus. But I did struggle to get them to sound right at first. I tried a variety of positions relative to the wall, and different degrees of toe-in but something still seemed wrong, particularly in the bass. Eventually the penny dropped; I put loudspeakers on Townshend Audio Seismic stands because they ‘always’ sound better that way, but it occurred to me that with a bass driver that moves up and down rather than back and forth there might be some extent to which the bass was moving up and down at the same time. Taking them off the Townshend bases did the trick and in the process proved that however universal an accessory might seem there is always going to be an exception (to prove the rule). 

 

I established that the Xplorers gave a good balance with a 275mm gap behind them and left a slight toe-in toward the listening position. So, I hooked up my ATC P2 power amplifier and let ZZ Top loose with the Tres Hombresalbum [Warner Bros]. This proved to be a perfect combination of speaker tech and music: timing is a particularly strong suit with this Neat so a band that’s this well ‘synched’ comes across in storming fashion – the word ‘Scorchio!’ was soon down in the notes and I had trouble switching to some less emotive material. But why change when the speaker has power and total cohesion alongside the best electric guitar sound I’ve heard in some time? The mid isn’t the sweetest on the market – Bob describes it as “explicit” – and that means when a valve guitar amp starts to scream you get the full effect. Exploring with more material, I found that this explicitness was a little too stark and changed the orientation of the Xplorers so that they were parallel to the wall, meaning that the tweeters were no longer facing me, this did the trick of smoothing their exuberance. However, if your ideal sound is akin to that of ‘chrome bumper’ Naim electronics of the 1980s, toed-in could well be the speaker position for you.

With larger works like Beethoven’s 7th [Barenboim, Beethoven For All SymphonyNo.7 in A, Op.92, Decca] the scale of the soundstage isn’t quite what you might crave. This will be room dependent of course, and mine is better damped than average, but ultimately physical speaker size does have a bearing on image size unless dispersion is particularly good. The charm and power of the piece is well presented though, and you can enjoy its ebb and flow with ease. Going back to more obviously rhythmic music feels like the loudspeaker’s natural comfort zone, and Doug MacLeod’s ‘Too Many Misses’ [Exactly Like This, Reference Recordings] comes through rather well; instrumental separation is good and the vocals project really well into the room. The full luxuriousness of this recording could perhaps be better presented, but the ‘feel’ is spot-on. There are more refined loudspeakers available at this price, but they don’t have the timing nor bass control on offer here. In fact, bass is possibly the Xplorer’s strongest suit; you can throw anything at it and the result is deep, powerful and stops and starts just when it should. Lorde’s ‘Royals’ [Pure Heroine, Universal] has some monster low end on it, which can often sound overblown and distorted, but here it’s precise and musical, with a degree of rhythmic security that can best be described as ‘tunetastic’. The emphasis is on the rhythm and melody not the sound, which means long term listening enjoyment is guaranteed.

Another problematic track for speakers that try to reach down low is Terry Callier’s ‘Lazarus’[Timepiece, Verve], but the extra grip provided by two magnet systems on the bass keeps it in line, and maintains a Rega-like musicality that is highly engaging. At this point I replaced the ATC amplification with a Naim Uniti Nova streamer/amp. Neat speakers have always been popular with Naim owners and this pairing made it apparent why that might be. The sound is a little more vibrant and even more musically communicative, delivering both the welly of the epic kick drum sound of Deadmau5’s ‘Seeya’ [while(1<2), Astralwerks] with the melody of the vocal in a clean, lively fashion. Meanwhile, J.J. Cale’s ‘Call Me the Breeze’ [Naturally, Shelter] lacked height but not coherence, but the voice is placed firmly in one channel rather than centrally which may have something to do with this (the vinyl version would sound bigger and most likely better). The intense and not terribly ‘audiophile’ density of James Holden’s Animal Spirits[Border Community] proved a little difficult to penetrate, but Micheal Wollny Trio’s Wartburg[ACT] on the other hand opened up and let me hear all the gentle brushwork from the drummer and the inspired way these musicians work together.

 

The Iota Xplorer is a worthy step up from the popular Iota Alpha. It’s more revealing and considerably more powerful both in terms of dynamics and bass drive. It’s rare to find an almost wall-mountable loudspeaker that has this much low-end extension and control, let alone one in a box that won’t dominate its surroundings. If it’s refinement you’re after I’d look elsewhere, but if you are trying to get more ‘thrillpower’ out of your music collection and make the TV redundant, then the Iota Xplorer is more than worthy of your attention.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Type: 2.5-way, four-driver, floorstanding speaker with isobaric bass loading

Driver complement: One 4.45 x 2.68 inch AMT tweeter; one 170mm P1/R3 mid/bass driver with treated paper cone; two 170mm  P1/R2 bass drivers

Crossover frequencies: not specified

Frequency response: 25Hz–22kHz 
(+/- 3dB) 

Impedance (minimum): 6 Ohms (5 Ohms)

Sensitivity: 87dB/W/m

Dimensions (H×W×D):  740 (including spikes) ×300 ×220mm

Weight: 18kg/each

Finishes: natural oak, American walnut, black oak, satin white

Price: £3,500 per pair

Manufacturer: Neat Acoustics Ltd

Tel: +44 (0)1833 631021

URL: neatacoustics.com 

AVM Evolution CS 5.2 streaming CD Receiver

When I was an impressionable teenager, lusting after pretty much everything Bang & Olufsen produced, my parents’ rather more prosaic aspirations leant towards a music centre. For readers who don’t have roots in the seventies or before, these were all-in-one boxes containing a turntable, tuner, and compact cassette player, with a built-in amplifier and, like as not, bundled loudspeakers hard-wired with bell-wire. More upmarket versions had spring-loaded loudspeaker terminals and thus catered for separate loudspeakers, for that almost-but-not-quite budget hi-fi experience. Since those days, boxes that do everything have got a bit of a bad rap, but there’s been something of a resurgence of late and, having heard a fair few of today’s offerings, it’s high time to set aside any prejudices.

AVM is a relative newcomer to the UK, but can claim 30 years of history in its native Germany. The current owner, Udo Besser worked for Burmester for 15 years and the AVM products do have a similar luxuriant air about them. That goes for the immaculate fit and finish, but the sound also seems to share a certain generosity: a lush and expansive air that is immediately attractive.

The Evolution range is the middle of three offerings, flanked by the entry-level Inspiration, and the high-end Ovation ranges, and includes CD players, integrated amplifiers, pre-amps, and stereo or monobloc power amps. The £5,750 do‑everything CS 5.2 is either none of these, or most of them, depending on your outlook. In point of fact, it is even more, because it also offers an FM tuner and inbuilt phono stage, alongside its CD player and integrated (220W into 8Ω) amplifier. The CS 5.2 also has network connectivity, wireless streaming, and an asynchronous USB input. Its 192/24 upsampling DAC can accept optical or S/PDIF external signals, and pretty much all established streaming and music file formats are supported. Internet radio is a given. Three analogue inputs, two digital outputs (optical and coaxial, as for the inputs), a 75Ω FM aerial socket and two sets of loudspeaker terminals complete a pretty comprehensive back panel compliment.

The front panel has five soft keys below the display, whose functions vary depending on which source is chosen via the large rotary selector switch. There’s an optional remote control, but I used the front panel soft key controls and the app (available for iOS or Android). The app is neat, easy to use, and very flexible, so it’s likely most users won’t need the remote control and it makes sense not to bundle something in that users can do without, and would doubtless prefer not to pay for. One minor gripe, perhaps, is that the app doesn’t show track number or title during playback. The volume control is a light, but nicely-weighted rotary knob, coupled to a digital numeric display of level, or you can drag a finger over a slider on the app, though I found it harder to precisely control the level this way and it only moves in one-unit increments where the rotary knob allows finer control in 0.5 unit steps.

If you think of this as a conventional piece of kit, set up is a doddle. Unpack the box, plonk it on your support shelf, connect the mains (and VHF aerial if used), and hook up your loudspeakers to the sturdy binding posts. Then slot in a CD and play some music. The last sentence is a fair summary of the basic installation instructions, but in truth, most of the manual is taken up with the details of how to connect to your LAN, how to set up your Wi-Fi connection, and how to configure the app, plus the user-adjustable options you can get at via the menu. These include tone controls, adjustable input sensitivity, tuner presets and FM de-emphasis, gain-fixing, display options, and various other facilities. When you’ve played with these to the point of ruining everything, a factory-settings reset option is thankfully also available.

The manual is comprehensive enough, but given the complexity of the options, and the myriad ways the CS 5.2 can be used, it might be thought slightly lacking in detail in some areas; Luddites need not apply. An example: the manual explains that setting up the Wi-Fi requires that the CS 5.2 is first connected to the network via the LAN port, and after that has been achieved, the Wi-Fi connection can be established. This worked fine, and I rigged up a temporary length of Cat6 cable to my router in another part of the house, for the express purpose of establishing a Wi-Fi link. Having done all this, and got my iPhone talking nicely to the CS 5.2, I disconnected the LAN cable whereupon the Wi-Fi connection was dropped, and couldn’t be restored. The manual implies, without explicitly saying so, that once a Wi-Fi connection has been achieved, communication with the network will be by Wi-Fi. Not so, apparently. Checking with the importer, they confirmed that the LAN cable needs to remain connected. That temporary length of Cat6 cable became permanent for the duration of the review period, something my wife rather pointedly didn’t comment about…

 

The big question then is how does this £5,750 do-everything box actually perform? Connected to my Russell K Red 150 floorstanders, via Audiomica Genimedes loudspeaker cables, the AVM CS 5.2 replaced a dCS Puccini/U-Clock combination and Albarry pre/monobloc amps, which collectively cost over four times the price of the AVM so direct comparisons would be a tad unfair, but my first impressions were entirely favourable. Using its internal CD mechanism instrumental tone was luxuriant, without being fat or overblown; there was scale and weight aplenty and soundstaging was generous. On Ariel Ramirez’ ‘Missa Criolla’ [Naxos] the staging was broad, with good depth but not the cavernous depth and acoustic space that something like the dCS can render. The amp had no problem generating my preferred neighbour-baiting levels without apparent strain, but could play quietly without smothering the dynamics or killing the rhythmic flow.

The presentation leans more toward the full, lush, and slightly soft-focus end of the spectrum. Compared to the dCS it lacks a layer of subtlety, granular detail, and microdynamics – in the ‘Missa Criolla’ it was less clear whether struck tambourines were also being shaken or held still, for example – but there are perhaps as many people out there who don’t appreciate the dCS’ particular suite of virtues as there are those who do, and I can well understand why such people might gravitate to the AVM’s side in that case. Given the cost differential between the dCS and the AVM, I’d also be interested to see how much the equivalent model in AVM’s high-end Ovation series, the £11,695 Ovation CS 8.2, might close the gap. It would certainly be a fairer comparison, albeit the dCS system would still be some way ahead on cost, even with a budget amplifier downstream.

Taking it in its own terms, more realistic competition would be with CD players and integrated amps in the £2,000–£2,500 bracket, which puts us into territory occupied by many more mainstream brands. Of these, I suspect the stiffest challenge might come from the likes of AstinTrew, or the new Roksan Blak series, but when you factor in the cost of interconnects, aftermarket mains cables, and additional supports, it would be relatively easy to bust the AVM CS 5.2’s £5,750 retail price and not gain any discernible sonic benefit, losing functionality and flexibility in the process.

The internal slot-loading CD mechanism is a tad slow to load, but can be set to autoplay, so you can load the disc then get on with other stuff in the knowledge that it will start when ready. There is a small amount of mechanical noise, but not something that would intrude unless the unit was sat next to your ear. Playing ‘Miel et Cendres’ from Dhafer Youssef’s album Divine Shadows[Jazzland] the characteristic richness of Youssef’s Oud was well-portrayed, though the percussion’s impact was slightly softened. It’s a piece which builds from a subtle and atmospheric opening, adding complexity and rhythmic intrigue while a simple melody repeats, then fades to a simple restatement of the melody at the close. It’s lovely, but oddly unsatisfying; it dwindles away just at the point when you hope the band is going to move up a gear. It therefore relies on beauty and atmosphere for effect, rather than drama and excitement. In that, then, paradoxically the AVM scored over the dCS because the dCS always leaves me wanting more, there’s a sense of a destination not reached, whereas the AVM was sufficient in itself.

There is a clear hierarchy to the internal elements of the CS 5.2; in a nutshell, my lasting impression is of a good amplifier, a decent DAC and an okay CD transport. Playing the same piece on the dCS Puccini through its S/PDIF output into the CS 5.2, the AVM resolves more of the subtle timing cues, the leading edges of the percussion are more clearly depicted so there is more tension, that build-up which goes nowhere is more effectively conveyed. Better still is the dCS via its analogue outputs into the CS 5.2, timing and dynamics stepping up a further notch or two, the musicians are simply better; the overall impression is still of a warm and lush presentation compared to my Albarrys, but it’s not overdone. The more expensive offerings in AVM’s ranges have tube line stages and while the CS 5.2 doesn’t, I think the voicing could appeal to valve users, while not alienating valve haters.

Before you get the impression I’m being too critical of the CD transport, I should say that its performance is quite well-judged. Listening to music via the USB input (FLAC or WAV files on a USB memory stick in this case, though you could equally connect an external hard drive) the CD makes a much better case for itself. Elbow’s ‘Puncture Repair’ from Leaders of the Free World[V2 Music] lacks a little of its pathos via USB, sounding slightly banal compared to the same track played through the CD. ‘Station Approach’ from the same album has a long middle section where Guy Garvey sings on the same note while the band builds around him. The anticipation this creates is much more effectively realised via the internal transport than off the USB stick; overall, performers are portrayed as better musicians via CD. Similarly, the same file streamed off my phone via Wi-Fi loses out to the USB input, being somewhat compressed and murky by comparison. So, to summarise, the usual hierarchy of source quality I’ve come to expect is preserved: CD beats USB, which beats Wi-Fi streaming.

 

The tuner is a nice addition, though aerial deficiencies at home prevented me giving it a thorough workout its performance seemed entirely in keeping with the rest of the unit, which is to say, thoroughly respectable. Mind you, given the superb quality of Radio 3 via the internet, the FM tuner didn’t get as much attention as the internet radio facility, which was a doddle to use via the app, though the lack of instructions meant I was reliant on intuition and experimentation at first. The in-built phono stage, which caters for moving magnet or medium-to-high output moving coils thanks to variable input sensitivity, offers even more flexibility and versatility, and while it won’t worry a decent standalone phono stage, it shows every sign of being capable of giving a good account of itself with the sort of turntables it is likely to be asked to partner.

As a complete system, the AVM CS 5.2 is a remarkably versatile unit, providing access to internet radio, streaming services (TIDAL and Qobuz are supported) and USB digital, together with the conventional gamut of hi-fi sources. As a one-box solution for a minimalist, the AVM CS 5.2 has few peers, and the flexibility of its back panel connections makes it equally valid as a core component in a separates system, where its DAC and amplifier performance cede little to rivals at the likely price points. Add in the cool, understated good looks and impeccable build quality and it’s hardly surprising that AVM have a winner on their hands.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Type: CD Receiver with streaming, asynchronous USB and onboard phono stage

Amplifier

  • Input sensitivity: 12.5–125mV
  • Sensitivity Phono: 40–400µV
  • Input impedance line: 6.8kΩ
  • Input impedance Phono: 47kΩ / 100pF
  • Signal to Noise Ratio: 96dB(A)
  • Signal to Noise Ratio Phono: 83dB(A)
  • Crosstalk (Phono): 55dB
  • Frequency range: <5Hz to >50kHz
  • Distortion: ITM @25W / 4Ω <0,1 %
  • Damping factor: >200
  • Rated power into 8Ω: 2 ×220 Watt
  • Rated power into in 4Ω: 2 ×330 Watt

Tuner

  • Supported radio formats: FM
  • Frequency range: 87.5–108.0MHz
  • Tuning steps: 50kHz
  • Sensitivity (mono / stereo): 1.5µV / 50µV

CD, digital in/out 

  • Formats: CD-Audio, CD-R
  • Upsampling: 192kHz / 24Bit
  • Frequency range: <5Hz–20kHz
  • Deemphasis: yes, automatic
  • Digital inputs: 33–192kHz / 16-24Bit (S/PDIF, TOSLINK)
  • USB-input: up to 48kHz / 16Bit
  • Digital-outputs: 44.1kHz / 16Bit (S/PDIF, TOSLINK)
  • Streaming Formats: MP3 , WMA, AAC, OGG Vorbis, FLAC (192 / 32 via LAN), WAV (192 / 32 via LAN), AIFF (192 / 32 via LAN), ALAC (96 / 24 via LAN)
  • Supported HiFi streaming services: TIDAL, Qobuz
  • Supported media servers: UPnP 1.1, UPnP-AV and DLNA-compatible Server, Microsoft Windows Media Connect Server (WMDRM 10)
  • DLNA-compatible Server: NAS
  • Dimensions (W×H×D): 430 × 130 × 370mm
  • Weight: 12 kg
  • Price: £5,750

Manufactured by: AVM Audio Video Manufaktur GmbH

URL: avm.audio

Distributed in the UK by: PMC

URL: avm-audio-uk.com

Tel: +44 (0)1767 686300

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Questyle Audio HB2 hub for QP2R DAP

The Questyle QP2R (reviewed in Hi-Fi+issue 154) is one of our most valued DAPs (digital audio player) we’ve ever tested. It’s the real deal, covering virtually all the bases in terms of formats, has outstanding on-board DACs and amps, and makes extremely good sense as for the audiophile on the move. But, what if you want more? That’s when the HB2 hub kicks in.

Before we go further, however, some personal back story is in order. The Editor and I are from more or less the same part of London and have largely lost those strong ‘Norf Lunduhn’ accents. Except when things get ‘proper naughty’, such as during the exchange between Alan Sircom and me about writing almost 1,500 words on a dock, which ended up sounding a bit Guy Richie. Fortunately, a rough translation will be provided:

“You ‘avin a bubble, saahn?” I asked, “I can do you a monkey on a dock, no Barney, but faw’teen ‘undred? Use yer loaf!”

Trans: “Are you making fun of me? I can write 500 words on a dock without difficulty, but 1,400 words might prove a stretch. You have lost your mind!” 

“Shut it!” He explained, “Untwist yer Alans, squire. Av a go, an’ you’ll knock aht another bag, early doors.”

Trans:“Keep Calm and Carry On, my friend. Try the QP2R/HB2 combination for yourself and you’ll find those extra 1,000 words very quickly.”

He was right. Because what is, intellectually speaking, a docking station for a high-end DAP can work as an extremely fine digital front-end for desktop and full-sized systems in its own right. Well, almost: in a full-sized system where the electronics might be half a room away from the listener, trying to navigate a music collection through the QP2R’s screen is going to be somewhatfrustrating, but used closer to eyes, the QP2R/HB2 makes a very cogent case for doing without any kind of computer, server, or disc-based source. And when that listening is done, you have an absolute top-notch portable audio source with all your music pre-loaded, ready and waiting.

A quick recap of the QP2R is in order, of course. The black and gold or black and gunmetal player is Questyle Audio’s response to just criticism of its first DAP, the QP1R. It lost a micro SD port in the upgrade, but got more power (an all-discrete, fully balanced, pure Class A current mode amplifier that delivers both single-ended and balanced headphone outputs), more processing power (it uses an AKM AK4490 DAC chip), more formats (PCM files to 384kHz sampling rates  and up to 32-bit word depths; DSD files at DSD64, DSD128, or DSD256 resolution levels, with DSD64 performed natively), and much improved haptics (a far more responsive multi-controller navigational wheel). All wrapped in a CNC-milled chassis and hard-as-nails Gorilla Glass. In today’s everything-on-your-smartphone world, the Questyle is one of the few designs that truly makes a valid case for a standalone portable player, both in terms of outstanding build and extremely high performance.

 

It’s joined by the HB2, the actual subject of this test. The HB2 is deceptively simple, as it has just a coaxial S/PDIF digital output, a pair of RCA analogue line outputs and both a 5V input and a charging/docking connector for the QP2R. This bi-directional connection only works one way at a time; in other words, it won’t charge and play at the same time. Questyle says this is because doing both undermines sound quality, and – absent a way of testing this without having to send the dock and player back in pieces – we’ll have to take that at face value. There is also a useful remote control that drives the docked QP2R.

The HB2 addresses one of the most obvious limitations of a portable player – what do you do with it when it’s not in your pocket? In fact, the quality of the pair invites a bigger question. The high-performance output of a dedicated device like the QP2R through its dock is not shared by the quality of the computer that routinely feeds it unless you factor in a very high-spec DAC in and of itself. Even then, there are those who claim that putting a computer in your audio system – with its noisy, made for peanuts, switch-mode power supply polluting the AC – undermines the sound of the complete system. Which means that audiophiles wanting post-CD sound in the home and on the move face a dilemma; finding a way of getting the best of both without either compromise or significantly increased hassle. Uploading a file or ripping a disc to a server and a DAP should be straightforward, but is often a multi-stage, ad hocprocess involving the computer as a kind of intermediary. By way of contrast, using the QP2R as portable and domestic source standardises the process. The files are stored on your computer, transferred to the QP2R’s on-board or micro SD storage, and that’s it. Your computer is kept at arm’s length from the system but is used as the repository for all things music. The music you play is on the DAP.

Granted, this concept is not without its issues, especially as it means randomly browsing through your music is performed at one remove from the system, but sonically it makes a lot of sense.

Of course, it only makes sense if the player and the dock live up to the hype. The QP2R is on safe ground here – it has already demonstrated its quality in headphone-based listening tests, as far as DAPs go, it’s one of the good guys. OK, so it doesn’t give bad recordings a soft landing, but it is unflappably resolving, dynamic, and muscular sounding when the recording allows it to shine. And shine it does! There’s a sense of authority and control to the sound, yet not at the expense of the filigree details, or even the rhythmic properties of a recording. The old British obsession with PRaT (Pace, Rhythm, and Timing) is often sidelined in DAP devices, as they seem to accent detail and separation over beat, but the QP2R is a rare and welcome exception, producing a cogent and coherent sense of rhythm underpinning the melodic themes of the music.

That is important in a portable audio context, and absolutely vital in a docked environment. The arguably more visceral bass of cone drive units in a room – or possibly the mass of those cones relative to typical headphone diaphragms – seems to make that rhythmic performance all the more vital. I know that most people seem to equate that timing information with a 4/4 rock beat, but I find it becomes most noticeable with Schoenberg’s Verklärte Nacht[von Karajan, DG], where his seminal early tone-poem carves a delicate meter. This is easily disrupted (through both sins of omission and commission) and the QP2R’s performance is welcomed.

That’s the key thing about the combination of QP2R and HB2; the former is an excellent deliverer of music, and the HB2 doesn’t get in the way of that. The authoritative grip the QP2R has on headphones (thanks to that current mode amplification) applies just as equally to driving line stages through the HB2. It’s inherently clean, detailed, and extended top-to-bottom. If there is a criticism here, it’s directed perhaps as much at rival products as at the QP2R/HB2 combination; the duo delivers what is supposed to be an optimum line level voltage load, but many of today’s DACs and players ‘sex up’ the output. In real terms, this makes the QP2R/HB2 more dynamic than its rivals, but slightly less loud at a given volume level. Not a big issue, and if you are the least bit mature about audio, you would see this as a positive, but decades of loudness war propaganda demonstrates that louder sells.

The S/PDIF output is equally honest in nature. By avoiding the amps altogether, it gives a glimpse into what the raw QP2R delivers, and that is an extremely detailed and precise (those words again) sound. In absolute terms, the digital output seems entirely comfortable with any kind of DAC input, such is its accuracy, although the overall sound seems to be less rhythmically commanding than the QP2R and its analogue outputs.

 

What both analogue and digital outputs show, though, is the QP2R’s excellent soundstaging properties, which sometimes get overlooked in the personal audio space. The duo presents an image that projects slightly forward of the loudspeakers and is both wider and deeper than the norm, with excellent image solidity within that soundstage. Sonically, this puts the QP2R/HB2 on a par with good players and streamers in the £3,000-£5,000 class, but for £1,599. OK, so you can’t see the display across the room, but neither can you take your streamer on an aircraft!

Aside from the name (the DAP sounds too much like ‘QPR’ and Spurs supporter are not big fans of Queen’s Park Rangers) there’s not much to dislike about this combination that wasn’t already noted in the review of the QP2R in Issue 154, and that was a rave. OK, personally, I’d love wireless connectivity and possibly access to Tidal or Qobuz in the home, but I really wouldn’t lose that much sleep over their omission because it’s the sound quality that really wins you over here. Slipping back into Guy Richie speak, this’ll put a smile on yer boat!

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

  • Product type: Docking station for Questyle QP2R DAP
  • Power supply: USB Type C, 5V/2A
  • Static power consumption: 0.3W
  • Max power consumption: 8.8W (when charging DAP under max current)
  • Digital out: S/PDIF out (RCA),
    PCM44.1-192K/16-24Bit
  • Analogue out: RCA: 2Vrms; THD+N< 0.0008%@ 1kHz; SNR >110dB
  • Dimensions: 85mm[L] × 82.5mm[W]× 71.2mm[H]
  • Weight: Not specified
  • Price: £499 (£1,599 bundled with QP2R)

Manufacturer Information: Questyle Audio

URL: questyleaudio.com

UK Distributor: SCV Distribution

Tel: +44 (0) 3301 222 500

URL: scvdistribution.co.uk

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Monitor Audio to adopt BluOS® High-Resolution Multi-room audio platform

London, England, Tuesday, 21st August 2018 – Monitor Audio, the renowned UK based speaker company, its sister brand Roksan and Lenbrook International, the owner and developer of the market-leading BluOS high-resolution multi-room platform, announced a global cooperation agreement that will bring the BluOS streaming platform to upcoming Monitor Audio and Roksan products. The announcement marks Monitor Audio’s entrance into the growing multi-room streaming category and signals their intent to make BluOS their multi-room platform choice for Monitor Audio and Roksan branded products in the future.

“Our development team explored all of the available options for wireless multi-room audio solutions that premier loudspeaker companies must be reviewing in this marketplace,” stated Andrew Flatt, Monitor Audio’s Chairman & CEO. “After a full review, we’ve decided to adopt the BluOS platform. It’s purpose built for discerning audio enthusiasts and thereby fits with our own core values. Integrating the BluOS multi-room music management experience with our own audio performance and design values will only add to the desirability and satisfaction of our products for our existing and future customers.”

 

“Monitor Audio is a perfect partner brand to add into the BluOS ecosystem since they believe, as we do, that high resolution audio matters,” says Gordon Simmonds, CEO of Lenbrook International. “Monitor Audio is a global brand and brings solid distribution partnerships fully capable of delivering the BluOS success factors to the discriminating audiophiles and audio enthusiast that love music and want premium audio performance.”

BluOS is an award-winning proprietary, but brand-agnostic, platform, which means that any BluOS Enabled product connected to the same Wi-Fi network can share music libraries and playlists, regardless of the brand of speaker or audio component. With the addition of multiple hardware partners, music lovers will be able to choose from a variety of traditional hi-fi and modern wireless products from several international premium brands to create a wireless whole home audio system that suits their lifestyles, without compromising on audio quality.

 

About Monitor Audio

Monitor Audio Ltd is a British owned and managed audio design specialist which has created globally renowned loudspeakers for over 40 years. They lead the industry with their build quality and have speakers for every situation – from two-channel and home cinema configurations, through multi-room and smart home audio solutions, to outdoor environments, each speaker delivers the award-wining Monitor Audio sound. For more information visit Monitoraudio.com.In late 2016, Monitor Audio purchased Roksan, one of the most recognised names in highfidelity audio. Roksan has created award-winning audio products in the UK for over 30 years and their extreme attention to detail, together with an uncompromising approach to quality,has created a range of turntables, CD players, amplifiers and streaming systems that are acclaimed throughout the world. This makes Roksan the perfect partner for Monitor Audio.

For more information visit Roksan.com.

About BluOS

BluOS® is a premium multi-room audio ecosystem that manages stored and cloud music sources and playback, with support for high-resolution audio streams up to 24/192. Adopted by some of the most renowned hi-fi audio brands and integrated with numerous smart home control systems, BluOS allows for interoperability among enabled devices across brands for maximum versatility and use cases. Integrations with popular streaming services like Tidal, Spotify, Qobuz, and Deezer, as well as featuring support for FLAC, WAV, MQA, and other highresolution formats and codecs, BluOS offers virtually unlimited access to music of all genres for any occasion. Made up of an operating system and a control application for smart phones, tablets, and PC desktops, BluOS is the ultimate choice for the modern audiophile.

For more information visit BluOS.net.

Media Contacts

Matthew Tasker

UK Media Relations, Monitor Audio

[email protected]

Peter Hoagland

North America Media Relations, Lenbrook International

[email protected]

Richard Stevenson

UK Media Relations, Lenbrook International

[email protected]

HIFONIX HI-FI STORE RESTYLED

The Hifonix store in Sutton Coldfield has been completely restyled to offer customers an inspiring and relaxing environment in which to enjoy the extensive range of performance audio products in stock.

The store features a dedicated showroom (displaying some of the finest hi-fi equipment around), a headphone lounge and a dedicated listening room. Hifonix’ owner, Aseem Hussain, is a life-long audiophile and the re-designed store demonstrates his desire to deliver a unique retail experience.

The main showroom has a hand-picked selection of turntables, amplifiers, speakers, headphones and streaming equipment on display, and has been planned to allow plenty of room for customers to view products from renowned brands such as Arcam, Dynaudio, Kef, Leema, Moon, Naim, Panasonic, Pioneer and Technics.

 The Hifonix team are true headphone enthusiasts and can assist customers in deciding which pair best suit their needs. The headphone lounge features a range of premium products including Grado, Sennheiser, Mr Speakers, Audeze and Focal.

 The listening room has been acoustically treated to allow a premium experience for customers and to ensure that they are able to make an informed selection. Hi-fi and home cinema configurations can be fully demonstrated to customers as they sit down and enjoy a complimentary drink, whilst listening to the music of their choice.

 

Aseem’s passion for audio is reflected in his and the team’s consultative approach. They recognise that all of their customers have particular musical preferences, and a different perception of sound, and they work carefully to find the perfect product that matches individual taste and needs.

The restyled Hifonix store is attracting customers from across the heart of England, testimony to the products on display and the service offered by the team.

Information: www.hifonix.co.uk

 

Contact: [email protected]

 

[email protected]

 

Campfire Audio Polaris and Andromeda universal-fit earphones

I first became aware of Campfire Audio at T.H.E. Show 2016, where the guidebook for the event featured close-up advertising photos and revealed the exotic and purposeful looks of Campfire’s newly launched range of universal-fit earphones. In high-performance audio it is usually not a good idea to judge books by their covers, but sometimes products like the Campfire earphones show such careful attention to construction details and overall design that one can’t help but be impressed. A bit of investigation revealed that Campfire Audio was no ordinary start-up company, but rather had a desirable pedigree in that it was a spin-off from the well-regarded firm ALO Audio.

For those unfamiliar with the name, ALO Audio is an Oregon-based firm that was founded by Ken Ball and that has been around for many years: ALO is best known for its specialised personal audio cables, its superb portable and desktop headphone amplifiers, and outstanding amp/DACs. Indeed, when I first began to explore high-performance personal audio components almost a decade ago, I fondly remember Ken Ball loaning me one of his ALO Rx-series portable headphone amplifiers so that I would have a high-quality platform with which to evaluate earphones and headphones. Over time, it seemed only logical for ALO to branch out to develop a range of specialty earphones to be marketed under the Campfire Audio brand.

Ken Ball and his team launched Campfire Audio in 2015 with the release of the firm’s first three earphones: the Jupiter, Orion, and Lyra. In 2016, Campfire released its flagship Andromeda and Nova earphones, followed by the so-called ‘Liquid Metal’ range consisting of the Lyra II, Dorado, and Vega earphones (the Vega serves as a co-flagship model alongside the Andromeda). Finally, in 2017, Campfire introduced a new mid-priced earphone called the Polaris.

In late 2017 I asked Ken Ball what he thought would be the best Campfire models to review in order to give our readers a good sense for what the Campfire brand is about and after a brief pause he proposed the flagship Andromeda ($1,099) and mid-priced Polaris ($599) models as the subjects for this review.

There are obvious external similarities between most of Campfire’s earphones. All feature crisply-lined, angular earpieces fashioned from metal—either via CNC machining, as in the case of the Andromeda and Polaris, or via a ‘Liquid Metal’ process as used on models such as the Vega, Dorado, and Lyra II. Another signature feature found on all Campfire earphones are thin, angular metal faceplates that bear “CA” logos and are attached with recessed, miniature cap screws. All models use proprietary Campfire beryllium-copper MMCX-type signal cable connectors. Each model in the line-up is treated to its own distinctive colour scheme, making it easy to tell at a glance which model is at hand.

The Andromeda earpiece shells and faceplates are done up in a matt Kelly green anodised finish with accents in the form of silver-coloured metal sound outlet ports and bronze-colour cable connector jacks. In turn, the Polaris arrives with matt textured Royal blue anodized earpiece shells topped off with matt black/cobalt-coloured, Cerakote-finished faceplates, with polished black sound outlet ports and again bronze-colour cable connectors. (Cerakote is a durable polymer-Ceramic Composite coating often used in firearms applications, but that Campfire puts to more musical uses in Polaris and several other earphone models.) It’s on the inside, though, where the biggest differences between Campfire’s various models become apparent.

 

Let’s start with the Andromeda. Each CNC-machined aluminium earpiece houses a five balanced armature-type array consisting of two high-frequency drivers, one midrange driver, and two low frequency drivers. Output from the mid and low frequency drivers are directed toward the listener’s ears via traditional bore tubes, but the high frequency drivers are treated differently. Instead of using a “traditional ‘tube & damper’ tuning system,” says Campfire, the Andromeda’s dual high frequency drivers are loaded into a 3D-printed Tuned Acoustic Expansion Chamber™ (T.A.E.C.). The T.A.E.C. system is said to provide the requisite “acoustic tuning without compression”, thus yielding uncommonly extended and open-sounding treble response. Campfire describes the Andromeda as a very well balanced all-rounder that “combines all of the best elements of our earphone design experience into a single set of earphones”.

Accessories included with the flagship Andromeda include a dark brown leather semi-hardshell carry case, a set of Campfire Litz-wire signal cables featuring silver-plated copper conductors terminated with beryllium-copper MMCX connectors on the earphone ends and a 3.5mm stereo plug on the amplifier end. As befits a flagship model, the Andromeda also comes with an expansive set of ear tips including sets of SPINFIT tips (sizes XS, S, M, and L), Campfire tips (sizes S, M, and L), and Silicone tips (sizes S, M, and L). Completing the package is a small cleaning tool and a Campfire Audio lapel pin.

The Polaris is considerably different to the Andromeda in that it is a hybrid design that uses both a dynamic driver and a balanced armature-type driver to achieve its signature sound. Handling low and midrange frequencies is a 8.5mm dynamic-type driver loaded into a so-called Polarity Tuned Chamber™ whose output is directed to a sound outlet port. Actually the Polarity Tuned Chamber is not just one chamber, but rather two—one positioned on the front side of the driver and the other on the rear. Campfire claims the Polarity Tuned Chamber helps optimise the performance of the dynamic driver in a way that “opens up the sound and gives the driver an effortless power.” In turn, the Polaris’ single balanced armature-type high frequency driver is loaded into a Tuned Acoustic Expansion Chamber similar to the one used in the Andromeda. Campfire describes the Polaris as an earphone that is “emotionally engaging and highly resolving”.

Accessories included with the Polaris are similar but not identical to those provided with the Andromeda. The two differences are that the Polaris’ carry case is made from a textured black faux leather material whereas the Andromeda’s case uses real leather, while the Polaris’ Litz-wire signal cables feature high-purity copper conductors rather than the more costly silver-plated copper conductor cables supplied with the Andromeda. In all other respects the accessory kits for the two earphones are the same.

During my tests I used the Andromeda and Polaris earphones with a Questyle QP2R digital audio player and Astell & Kern KANN digital audio player, plus a system consisting of a Windows/Lenovo/jRiver-based music server feeding a Chord Hugo II headphone amplifier/DAC. In all cases I used a wide range of musical materials captured at CD or higher-resolution levels as sourced from the built-in memory of the DAPs, from the music library driver of my music server, or from Tidal. Finally, to see how the headphones would fare in a casual, everyday listening context, I did a fair amount of listening to both models as driven by an iPad Air. Earphones on hand for comparison included models from Noble Audio, JH Audio, Westone, and others.

Early on it became apparent that the Polaris and Andromeda were targeted toward different groups of customers and different sets of application scenarios.

 

I would say the Polaris is geared for listeners who care more about the overall ‘feel’ or ‘vibe’ of the music than about pluperfect, purist-grade tonal neutrality or accuracy. This isn’t to say that the Polaris is burdened with gross sonic colourations, as this definitely is not the case, but rather to say that it does—in a subdued and tasteful way—take a few liberties with tonal balance in the name of making music sound a bit more punchy and exciting. What is more, the Polaris’ tonal character also helps the earphones achieve a richer and more articulate sound when powered by less than ideal amp/DACs or performance-limited smartphones and tablets.

With these objectives in view, the Polaris is voiced to provide a judicious touch of low-end lift and a subtle degree of upper midrange/treble emphasis as well. These characteristics prove extremely helpful in day-to-day listening environments where there may be a fair amount of background noise present—for example, in trains, train stations, airports, or aboard jet aircraft. In any setting where there might be a distracting amount of ‘rumbling’ low-frequency noise or ‘hashy’ upper midrange/treble noise present, the Polaris’ voicing lets the music rise above the noise floor while retaining a vital measure of its essential clarity, tonal colours, and dynamics. The key, though, is subtlety; the Polaris’ moderate touch of bass lift and gentle upper midrange/treble emphasis are just that: moderate, gentle, and very carefully managed. As a result, Polaris deftly influences the balance of the music being played, but without causing the music to lose its fundamental character. What is more, the Polaris is highly smartphone and tablet-friendly, meaning that its tonal characteristics can help overcome the sonic limitations of the electronics.

To appreciate the benefits of the Polaris sound, try a track such as Hanne Boel’s soulful rendition of the classic tune ‘After Midnight’ from Outtakes[Warner Music, Denmark, 16/44.1]. Boel’s rendition of ‘After Midnight’ features an incredibly hard-grooving rhythm section centred on an agile and highly propulsive electric bass, a rock-solid drum kit, and what sounds like a Hammond B3 organ. The Polaris does a great job of conveying the depth, punch, and fluidity of the bass line, while absolutely nailing the precise thwack of the kick drum, the pop of the snare, and the crisp attack and shimmer of the hi-hats and cymbals. In short, the sound just makes you want to get up and boogie. At the same time, the midrange of the Polaris does full justice to the sound of Boel’s deeply inflected and profoundly soulful voice (which brings to mind comparisons with singers like Aretha Franklin or Betty LaVette), while showing how the plaintive wail of the Hammond organ serves as a perfect foil for Boel’s voice. My point is that the Polaris delivers on Campfire’s promise of an “emotionally engaging and highly resolving” sound.

In contrast, the Campfire Audio Andromeda is an earphone created by and for audio purists. In practice this means the Andromeda offers optimal and near-neutral tonal balance, with a substantial amount of resolution—especially when it comes to capturing spatial cues in the music. Perhaps the Andromeda’s only (very slight) deviation from flat frequency response might be a subtle degree of bass emphasis, which gives a sense of more solid grounding whenever foundational bass elements are present. Like many fundamentally neutral transducers, the Andromeda sounds so effortlessly natural that it can at first seem self-effacing, though in truth it is simply standing aside to let the music tell its own story.

In short, the Andromeda is highly faithful and transparent to its sources. When the music is well recorded and rich in emotional content, the Andromeda sounds very accomplished, expressive, and refined. But, if fed recordings that sound flattened, compressed, or lacking in focus or expression, the Andromeda honestly will reveal those shortcomings. On more than a few occasions I noted that the better the recordings you play and the better your ancillary equipment is, the more you will be impressed by what the Andromeda can do. I found the Andromeda to be competitive with top-tier models from firms such as JH Audio and Westone (many of which carry higher price tags than the Andromeda does), which is to Campfire Audio’s credit.

A track that highlights the Andromeda’s strengths is Dead Can Dance’s ‘Anabasis’ from In Concert [PIAS America, 16/44.1], which is an extremely well-made live recording of the famous electro-acoustic ensemble led by Lisa Gerard and Brendan Perry. This intensely atmospheric track combines both powerful yet nuanced high and low percussion instruments, a wide variety of other acoustic and electronically synthesized instruments, plus haunting, Middle Eastern-influenced vocals. Through the Andromedas, the variegated textures and tonal colours of ‘Anabasis’ are brilliantly revealed, so that the track sounds by turns dark, brooding, shimmering, soaring, and always majestic. But owing to the Andromeda’s superb resolution of low-level details the sumptuous sound of the music proper is augmented by the earphones’ uncanny ability to capture the distinctive three-dimensional spatial qualities and the electric atmosphere and overall ‘feel’ of a live concert event.

 

Are there caveats to the Polaris and Andromeda? The only one I can think of is that the somewhat angular shape of Campfire’s earpieces might not be a comfortable fit for all ears (although they fit me well). For this reason, I suggest that prospective buyers do a ‘test fit’ with any of Campfire’s models (they all share a similar shape) to verify that the earpieces are comfortable for them. This might mean a trip to a CanJam show, but if they suit, it will be more than worth the effort. Everything else about these earphones—sound and build quality, useful accessories, etc.—is all to the good.

Campfire’s Polaris is an enjoyable and entertaining high performance mid-priced earphone that works very well in noisy environments and is happy to be driven by smartphones and tablets. The Andromeda, in turn, is a serious audio purist’s earphone that does all things well and that offers particularly good top-to-bottom balance and coherency, plus very effective rendition of spatial cues in the music.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Campfire Audio Polaris

  • Type: Two-driver, two-way, hybrid dynamic/balanced armature-driver universal-fit earphone.
  • Driver complement: one 8.5mm dynamic driver in a Polarity Tuned Chamber enclosure, one balanced armature-type high frequency driver in a Tuned Acoustic Expansion Chamber enclosure.
  • Frequency response: 20Hz–20kHz
  • Sensitivity: 97.5dB SPL/mW (but note, perceived sensitivity seems much higher than this specification suggests)
  • Impedance: 16.8 Ohms
  • Accessories: Described in review text
  • Price: $599

Campfire Audio Andromeda

  • Type: Five-driver, three-way universal-fit earphone.
  • Driver complement: five balanced armature-type drivers grouped as two high-frequency drivers in a Tuned Acoustic Expansion Chamber enclosure, one midrange driver, and two low-frequency drivers.
  • Frequency response: 10Hz–28kHz
  • Sensitivity: 115dB SPL/mW
  • Impedance: 12.8 Ohms
  • Accessories: Described in review text

Price: $1,099

MANUFACTURER INFORMATION: Campfire Audio
Portland, Oregon 97214 USA

Tel: +1 (503) 853-8606, +1 (855) 204-1492

URL: campfireaudio.com 

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Roon Nucleus+ music server

Streamed music always seemed to me like a great idea, but one that, over the years, I have had begun to have serious doubts about. I know that, in many households, music has been somewhat relegated to commodity-level these days, but the systems I was hearing had left me unimpressed, despite the hype. As I began to dip my toe into the world of high-end streaming I was encouraged by the process but still generally disappointed with the overall quality I was hearing. Would it take years before we had the necessary equipment and software to really explore its potential and depths? Compact Disc was like that and we all blamed the early discs for their rather thin and indifferent sound. It took a long time for me to both accept it as a main listening source and even longer to understand that there was a lot more music on those early discs than I had ever thought. I hoped that digital file storage and streamed music wasn’t going to take so long to reach maturity because when digitally encoded music for the home first came to prominence in the early 1980’s, it absolutely stank.

The dream that streaming has always promised the music-lover is the world of high-quality music at your fingertips. Through lossless streaming from companies like Tidal, this dream has notionally become reality, or at least has been on the cusp of real success. In fact I have had several set-ups at home that have come close(ish) to high-end CD replay but the quality has always been ‘consistently inconsistent’. As the software improved so did the music, but a great sounding album could always be followed by flat and rather anaemic disappointment. Add to this a certain clunkiness in the operating systems requiring all-too-frequent reboots and I have often found it a rather unfulfilling experience. But, as far as sound quality goes, streaming and its electronics have moved on enormously over the past year or so and easy access to an enormous library is, in no small way, thanks to my choice of Tidal, and Roon’s software with its superb detail and implementation acting as Tidal’s able wingman.

Where home audio is concerned, there was a time when our musical horizons were defined by our libraries. How many CD’s or albums had you accumulated? Along with the occasional foray into the world of FM radio, that was your musical world, as seen from the comfort of your listening chair. Then along came iTunes and then Spotify, and the amount of music at your fingertips grew enormously. But there was always the sound-quality to consider if you aspired in that direction. You could plug into all sorts of music and even rip the contents of your CD collection onto any number of storage systems with a few clicks of the mouse. That was fine, but the sound certainly wasn’t. It was often excruciatingly bad. In fact, the sheer amount of material available and the various ways of storing the associated files was always going to require some creative software to bring it all together. If you’ve ever stood before your CD collection wondering what to play or hunted for an elusive disc, you’ll know what I mean. Some companies were ahead of the game here and supplied software providing this gateway and the hand-held tablet was quite obviously the most convenient way of actually seeing what was available to listen to. Throw in some metadata like the album artwork and other details, incorporate this into the mix alongside the world of recorded music and it’s not hard to see the scope for some serious software innovations. This is where Roon comes in.

Imagine a situation where you have a subscription-based account with a company like Tidal, NAS drives crammed full of your ripped CDs, some downloaded files, perhaps a memory stick or two, and a drive crammed full of hi-def files. That’s a hell of a lot of music you can access, and you’ll want to achieve that quickly along with some cover art and relevant information. You may just want to browse your music for inspiration, or even have suggestions made for you. Often there is a cascading effect where one piece suggests another, and this is the way great and memorable listening sessions come about for me. Roon is your friend here and is the richest and most rewarding of its type that I have tried. But, as a fan of great sound, I was never going to get too excited until the quality to rival a top CD player was achieved. For me it’s all about the total experience and not just the sheer convenience.

 

I had been using the Roon software, alongside Tidal for over a year now and one of the issues has been that running it requires a decent amount of processing power. A tablet won’t do it, so I have been using a MacBook. It works well enough but means that the computer is essentially out of bounds while the music is playing. What has been needed is a separate and dedicated computer for running the Roon core, linked to the network to assemble and collate the metadata as well as providing an extensive view of the library through your tablet. Utilising the Mac also led to some occasionally clunky and irritating reboot moments, which did little to enhance the whole experience into an immersive listening session. The Nucleus is Roon’s first hardware product; a dedicated server with a built-in processor that runs Roon autonomously. Two versions are available: the entry-level Nucleus (see Specifications box, below) and the higher performance Nucleus+ version reviewed here. The Nucleus+ is built around an Intel NUC i7 processor, 8GB of RAM, and a 128 GB OS SSD for the operating system with the option to also add an SSD or HDD hard drive to provide an extensive internal library. There are connections for external NAS storage and an output that supports an HDMI connection. Roon also has drivers available now that enable integration with automated systems like Crestron.

Nucleus and Nucleus+ are entirely compatible with any of the growing list of devices on the market that are Roon-ready and there are also an increasing number of products that are able to run a dedicated core too. Roon themselves are a very open company in so far as they make recommendations as to what to buy and how to configure it should you want to build your own server system based around the NUC. You could certainly achieve identical technical results and save some money by doing it yourself. The Nucleus+ is really a self-contained version that brings everything together in a pre-configured, small, finned box with a dedicated custom power supply and no irritating fan noise for those who just want a ready-made single-box solution. Its sole purpose is to power the software and bring you music from all connected digital sources and arrange it into a coherent and comprehensive format that enables you to listen to what you want and as importantly, to explore new musical avenues. It does these things supremely well. But, obviously at a price, especially when you factor in the costs for Roon itself.

Just plug the Nucleus+ into your network through the router, hook up your hard drives and access everything through the Roon app (Mac OS, Windows, iOS and Android are all supported). Straightforward installation and lightning boot up are both exemplary aspects of the Nucleus+ and its simplicity of operation, operational stability and the clean, uncluttered appearance of the app are hallmarks of a great design. It is also a multi-room compatible platform that provides DSD and PCM upsampling as well as multi-channel playback.

It’s impossible to talk about the Nucleus+ without describing what Roon itself brings to the home-listening experience and the success of the whole Roon platform depends ultimately not only on how it looks and functions but also on how it sounds. As I mentioned earlier, for years it has been possible to utilise computing power to access music from the net but it’s only recently that it has begun to sound like anything other than a second quality source. Roon has certainly helped in changing all that and it takes a while to fully appreciate just what it can do. A fully charged Nucleus-based system will have access to music through a subscription-based service, like Tidal in my case and perhaps an entire CD collection ripped onto a NAS. It also opens the world of hi-def downloads like never before and despite always being somewhat underwhelmed by these in the past, I have to say that, after recent experiences, I see them as the future of high-end sound. I was granted access to a portable hard drive crammed full of them and the audio quality of the music has been really very impressive. Music that I have on standard CD that I have been able to compare with some of the same albums in a hi-def format has left me shocked, in a good way. I can’t detect any unpleasant digital artefacts or tonal nasties. But what has surprised me most is the sense of solidity, integrity, and instrumental qualities and character that I have been hearing. At long, long last, the whole streaming experience is now fulfilling the musical potential we always hoped it would.

If you run Roon – and you should seriously consider it if you intend on using stored files and a service like Tidal – the Nucleus+ (or Nucleus) is but one option, but what an option! Roon will change the way you listen to music in that it will serve you up musical options and link them together. Search for an artist, an album or a song and it presents you with the answers by looking at everything you have within your musical library and everything it can find within Tidal, depending on the parameters you set. It will download rich metadata for all your music, including those ripped files and continually look for ways to enhance and expand that. It provides many musical reviews, ratings, and links which will enable you to look at an artist in far greater depth by listing all of their albums or by just clicking the producer or any of the mentioned musicians. This opens up a new vista of possibilities as this aspect of Roon is developing all the time. In this way you discover new music on a daily basis and I cannot tell you how often this has led me towards albums and artists that I doubt I would ever have heard of without the Roon/Tidal axis. It will, as Alan Sircom said to me, release your inner musicologist. It looks good too and has many subtleties that you discover on your journey. It enables you to focus your searches and bring songs or albums together in personal playlists.

 

For those who are happy to maintain their CD collection in hard form and who have no intention of ripping it onto a storage medium, but just like having a musical asset like Tidal, perhaps Roon is less necessary and there are other 3rd party apps that work well. But, as your library grows, Roon comes into its own and I wouldn’t want to be without it now as I envisage myself exploring the world of hi-def music much more intensely than ever before from now on. It has fantastic potential and depth.

So, if you are smitten with Roon and its abilities, the Nucleus is easily recommendable as it’s small, easy to accommodate and simply allows the software to work at its optimum. Your personal library just keeps growing and growing and it is just too easy to lose yourself for hours while listening to music you have never heard before. This just has to be one of the main reasons for owning a decent system. In the next issue I will be incorporating the Nucleus-powered Roon software into a high-end home system built around a dCS Rossini so I will be able to take a closer look at sound quality and formats. If you like Roon, there’s no doubt you’ll love the Nucleus. It does precisely what it says on the tin. Tidal’s wingman? In fact, the Nucleus is audio’s Top Gun!

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

  • Type: Music server/Core for Roon software
  • Variants: Nucleus – Intel NUC i3 processor, 4GB RAM, 64GB OS SSD
    Nucleus + – Intel NUC i7 processor, 8GB RAM,
    128 GB OS SSD
  • Storage: Supports libraries up to 12,000 albums (120,000 tracks)
  • Supports multi-room systems up to 5 zones
  • Connections: 2 x USB 3 ports, Thunderbolt 3, internal 2.5” HDD/SSD bay
  • Dimensions: 7.5 ×22 ×15.5 cm (H×W×D)
  • Price: Nucleus £1,499, Nucleus + £2,499

Manufactured by: Roon Labs

URL: roonlabs.com

UK Distributor: Henley Audio
Phone: +44 (0)1235 511166

URL: henleyaudio.co.uk

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Linn Products Urika II phono stage

Recently, we looked at the Linn Lingo 4 power supply, which transforms the Akurate-level LP12 turntable. It was formed from many of the concepts used in the top Klimax-grade Linn Sondek LP12. Technically, there’s not a lot to improve on that top-of-the-tree turntable, with its Radikal DC motor, high-precision Ekos arm, Keel subchassis, Kandid cartridge, and Urika phono stage all offering substantial (and upgradable) improvements over the Akurate LP12. Or so it seemed at the start of the year…

Powered by the Radikal supply, the Urika phono stage is built into the Trampolin base board of the top version of the deck. It takes a feed straight from the arm base and outputs a line-level RCA single-ended or XLR balanced output to an amplifier. Increasingly, however, Linn is racing away from the traditional, and the matching Klimax DS vinyl replay system no longer features any form of analogue input (the DSM version does have a line-level pathway, but even here it only features one set of XLR connections). The logical move for Linn, then, is to digitise the phono stage – and so the Urika II is born.

Linn has no plans to remove the original Urika from the line-up, and both the standalone Uphorik phono stage and the MM stage built into the Majik DSM show no sign of disappearing anytime soon. But when it comes to users of older Klimax systems, the move to the Uphorik II allows a touch of box liberation. Many Linn users have Klimax Kontrol preamps from the last decade, which have become increasingly vestigial as they moved into network streaming. However, very few – possibly no – Klimax Kontrol user will have bought the Klimax DSM vinyl replay system because the line-and-phono functions were handled by the Klimax Kontrol. If the turntable is the last analogue source you will ever own, the Urika II effectively signals the end of that need, and the need for the Klimax Kontrol. It’s sell or trade-in time!

Here’s why. The Urika II connects directly to that Klimax DS that you were hitherto using as a streamer. The Kinsky app you used to navigate through your music now also acts as a digital source selector and volume control. The Klimax DS now connects directly to your power amplifiers (or in the case of a full-blown DS system, Linn Klimax 350A loudspeakers), and now you have a system that is potentially all digital from the cable hanging from the arm-base to the cables leading to the drive units. Linn’s pithy ‘the source is in the speakers’ statement doesn’t quite hold here – the source remains in the record deck, but is kind of elongated throughout the whole system – but it does take some of the analogue heavy-lifting out of the equation.

The Urika II effectively makes the Linn LP12 an almost-exclusively Linn product. That’s not an oxymoron; the Urika II gets its power feed from the Radikal supply (no problem there) but the A/D process relies on the more up-scale clocking system found in the DS product to which it is connected, rather than its on-board timing board. Technically, you could skip the Linn DS product and simply use the TOSlink optical cable (which is provided as a recording digital out for those wanting to perform a few needle-drops, or archivists), but I think the nature of that output is governed by the timing accuracy of the Linn DS system. This is why the ‘sort of elongated throughout the whole system’ line is not just a throwaway. The ‘almost’ part of its Linnsclusivity is that the Urika II can be used with a number of different, extremely good, moving coil cartridges that are not in the Linn camp, most notably models from Benz, Denon, Dynavector, and Lyra. Linn’s Akiva, Kandid, Klyde, and Krystal are also included, although the classic Asaka, Karma, and Troika models are not.

 

Frankly, I think this is a good compromise. While there are many Linn users who are welded to their Troika MC cartridges, many of those cartridges are 30+ years old. More importantly, many of those Troikas sit in ‘preserved in aspic’ systems that are also 30+ years old. These listeners are often extraordinarily passionate music lovers who have their deck serviced religiously every few years, but they jumped off the upgrade path decades ago and a digital phono stage that connects to a network streamer is never going to figure in their world.

If you look to the technology in the Urika II, it’s possibly best to look at what went before first. Typically a phono stage applies an amplifier to the cartridge load, then introduces an RIAA filter network and often some form of analogue-domain rumble filter to that amplified signal before passing the line-level output to the preamplifier. The original Urika deconstructed this phono stage design into four distinct phases: gain plus the first RIAA pole, the second RIAA pole plus a zeroed RIAA reference, followed by a two stage rumble filter. This helped preserve the integrity of the original signal, but it was still compensating for the LP in the inherently noisy analogue domain, which is a problem when you have a low-output source like a moving coil cartridge.

Urika II moves most of the process (second RIAA pole, rumble filtering) out into the digital domain. The gain+1st RIAA pole is still performed in the analogue domain, but essentially that first pole is all about the low-frequency boost, so it’s the least likely aspect of the equalisation process to add noise. In addition, from listening tests A/D-converting phono stages that introduce all of the RIAA curve in the digital domain seem more noise-laden than the Urika II, because there is less gain applied in the analogue domain.

Installation is easy. A dealer who has been trained in the dark art of Linn setter-uppery will do it for you. And any Linn dealer who could install an Urika will be able to install an Urika II. It’s effectively a swap.

The big question is ‘does it work’? It has big shoes to fill because many Linn owners consider the Urika to be the pinnacle of phono stage development, and that model already produces an extremely low-noise performance. Naturally, at this Lofty Linn Level, it’s best auditioned in a ‘komplete’ Klimax system, with a Klimax DSM allowing you to switch between Urika and Urika II. This poses some logistics problems, in that you either need two decks (in which case, is the difference in the cartridge, or the set-up) or a deck with two baseboards and either a custom arm plug with two sets of outputs or hot-swapping arm plugs. We went for the one-deck/two-baseboards approach. You’ll probably do the same, which means roadshows and special events at dealers. Attend them!

This is an easy demonstration. Three immediate things hit you when comparing Urika with Urika II; greater accuracy, more detail, and an almost complete absence of noise. As those are the big bonuses when trading up to the Urika, it’s clear the Urika II steps up the game substantially. All the main aspects of the Urika performance are retained, and most of them are improved. But those big three hit home and hit home fast. You aren’t drawn to one of those three aspects of performance, and the others unveil themselves over time; all three hit you at once and then the rest of the more subtle improvements join in. As with the Lingo 4 tested in the last issue, ‘It’s All Right With Me’ by Marty Paich Big Band [The New York Scene,Discovery LP]was a key indicator of this performance boost. There are a lot of short rests in the music, interleaving with the dynamic percussion and brass section stabs. Those rests were better defined, more in tune and time with the music, and whisper quiet.

The ‘tl:dr’ (“too long: didn’t read”) headline here is ‘if you like the Urika, you’ll want the Urika II.’ But, not everyone likes the Linn sound. If you look for something more ‘lush’ or ‘full’ in the midrange, or more ‘rich’ in the bass, other phono stages are available. On the other hand, those who go after accuracy don’t tend to use terms like ‘lush’ and ‘rich’ and Linn – and its followers – would contend that the Urika II’s detailed and clean presentation goes for accuracy over sonic fireworks. I think the Linn sound is extremely detailed and accurate, and as a complete system it excels at temporal and timbral accuracy. Spatial and dynamic accuracy are not secondary concerns, but because of its centres of excellence in a system that actively (pun intended) tries not to impose its own character on the sound, I can see how this comes across as ‘dry’ sounding.

I’m of two minds here. Intellectually I agree with Linn, and the detail and accuracy of the Urika II (and, for that matter, the Urika) are beguiling and make you want to listen to more records. The temporal accuracy also puts the LP12 on a new level, improving it in all the ways it improved over other decks all those years ago. It kept a good beat, and keeps an even better one now. But in some respects, I also want that rich sound with a big soundstage, too; it might not be right, but it sounds so seductive that ‘right’ can take a back seat. On balance, however, the detail, the timing, and the atomic-clock like precision win.

 

If you look up the phrase ‘Urika 2’ in Google, you not only get information on the Linn phono stage, but about a Beretta semi-automatic shotgun, which is very popular among clay pigeon, skeet, and trap shooters. The urge to say something like ‘Linn’s Urika II outguns its rivals’ is too hard to resist. For good reason – the Urika II is a hard act to follow.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

  • Moving coil (MC) internal phono stage for LP12
  • Connections: XLR input for power supply, 2x RJ45 Exakt link connectors, TOSlink optical digital output
  • Supported cartridges: Linn: Akiva, Kandid, Klyde, Krystal. Non-Linn: Benz Micro Ace S, Denon DL103, Dynavector DV20x, Dynavector XV1S, Dynavector XX2 Mk2, EMT JSD 5, EMT TSD 15 SFL, Lyra Argo, Lyra Delos, Sumiko Celebration Pearlwood II, Van den Hul ‘The Frog’
  • Note: Requires Exakt-enabled Linn DS or Linn DSM player and Linn Radikal turntable power supply
  • Price: £2,750

Manufactured by: Linn Products Ltd

URL: linn.co.uk

Tel: +44 141 307 7777

Tel (UK Freephone Only): 0800 001 5111

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Black Rhodium Overture/Polka/Stream cables

In pro audio the answer to the question what’s the best cable? Is “the one that is the right length to make the connection.” In domestic audio, as we know, it’s not quite that straightforward! We appreciate that getting the whole signal from A to B without losing crucial information along the way is far harder than it should be. This is why many call cabling the weakest link in the system, the place where more losses occur than anywhere else. Graham Nalty – one of the UK’s cable pioneers with Sonic Link from the 1980s – has long understood this. He has been refining his Black Rhodium cable range since 2002, when he started telling the world about the benefits of rhodium plating for audio connections. Since then, Nalty has developed a range of audio and video cables including power cords and musical instrument leads.

This review looks at several new cables in the Black Rhodium range, Overture interconnect, Polka speaker cable, and Stream power cable. Overture is a hand-built interconnect that comes in RCA and XLR balanced forms and uses pure silver conductors (99.99%) in a dielectric of air and PTFE, which is described as “a layer of air separating the wire from the inner wall of the insulation along its length”, which sounds like a loose fitting tube to me. These have a braided screen to minimise RF interference and the conductors are “wired in opposing direction for lower noise floor,” which means they are oriented differently for send and return, although how this lowers noise is not clear. As with all Black Rhodium interconnects, they are twisted to reduce RFI; a technique that is generally – if not universally – accepted. The RCA plugs are Graham Nalty’s own GN-4 types with rhodium-plated connectors and a single earth connection in a plastic collar, an arrangement not dissimilar to the Eichmann Bullet plug.

Polka speaker cable also has anti-RFI screening using a braided screen that protects 4mm square copper conductors in a “thicker than usual” version of Black Rhodium’s preferred silicone rubber insulation, the extra girth chosen to keep conductors apart. It’s a conveniently flexible cable with a woven external sleeve around the twisted conductors; each length is terminated in rhodium plated 4mm banana plugs with an easy to use locking system, although spade connectors are also an option.

 

Stream power cable looks much like Polka as it has the same fabric outer braid, but it comes in the somewhat more specific length of 1.7m, which was chosen on the basis of listening tests and which apparently “aligns very closely with the quarter wavelength of 50Hz mains frequency” (in the UK). So it’s a good thing that they are quite flexible because having so much cable could get in the way where circumstances are tight. Stream has silver-plated copper conductors in a low-loss silicone rubber insulation, chosen for both its low dielectric absorption and mechanical damping capabilities. This too has a tightly braided screen and comes with rhodium plated 13A (or Schuko) and IEC plugs. There is also Powerstream which has a higher quality IEC plug that’s not unlike a Furutech in appearance for an extra £100.

Using the signal cables first with Overture between the Chord DAVE DAC and ATC P2 power amp and Polka from there to Bowers & Wilkins 802 D3 floorstanders I was greeted by a relaxed and natural tonal balance that seemed dynamically a bit weaker than I’m used to, but with good depth and well-defined vocals. The treble is appealingly clean, which means you can play at higher levels without discomfort, yet the soundstage is not restrained; quite the opposite is the case as the soundstage expands out into the room. With Radiohead’s ‘Decks Dark’ [Moon Shaped Pool, XL] the vocals are right there in the room. It’s not the most detailed of presentations, but musically there is a lot to enjoy and there’s no shortage of bass power where required.

Taking the Polka alone its smooth, natural balance isn’t quite as coherent as it could be, it lacks the realism and definition of nuance that can be achieved at the price, but in its favour is an effortlessness that encourages you to focus on the music rather than the sound. Overture interconnects are closer to what I’m used to with good detail definition, especially when it comes to cymbals and other upper midrange sounds. And it times well but without any undue emphasis on leading edges. Putting both Overture and Polka in the system and replacing a more affordable (Russ Andrews Power M) mains cable with a Stream on the Innuos Zenith server (the power to the source being the most critical in the system) resulted in a quieter, calmer presentation with better focus, depth, and overall transparency that gave way to improved timing, a worthy upgrade. Switching over to Powerstream produced a more realistic drum sound on James Blood Ulmer’s ‘Crying’ [Live at the Bayerischer Hof, In+Out Records] and a bigger soundstage for this excellent live performance where vocal definition and the sense of hall acoustic was much clearer.

Black Rhodium also supplied a six outlet power strip with Stream cable and adding this proved beneficial as well; using it between the wall and the Powerstream on the Zenith added more power to the kick drum and greater overall dynamics. I also gave the standard Stream a spin on the ATC P2 power amp and there the sound got more open and bright (after another Power M cable) and had cleaner highs. Switching over to the power strip helped as well, bringing out greater dynamic resolution and depth in the soundstage.

 

Graham Nalty has clearly learnt a thing or two about what makes a decent cable in his time at the coalface. He has been particularly successful at getting rid of the high frequency noise that can muddy the sound of a good system and this can be heard with any of these cables, but especially when used throughout the system. There’s no shortage of competition in this arena of course, but if you are after a natural and musical sound in a revealing system then the Black Rhodium route could well be the answer.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Overture

  • Type: Analogue interconnect with RCA jack terminations
  • Length: 1m pair
  • Conductor: High purity silver
  • Dielectric: PTFE, air
  • Shielding: High optical cover braid
  • Price: £1,200

Polka

  • Type: Loudspeaker cable with RCA jack terminations
  • Length: 5m pair
  • Conductor: Copper
  • Dielectric: Silicone rubber
  • Shielding: tightly braided metal screen
  • Price: £1,700

Stream

  • Type: Mains cable with 13A and IEC connections
  • Length: 1.7m
  • Conductor: Copper
  • Dielectric: Silicone rubber
  • Shielding: Tightly braided metal screen
  • Price: £450 (Powerstream with upgraded IEC £550)

Manufacturer: Black Rhodium

Tel: +44(0)1332 342233

URL: blackrhodium.co.uk

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ELAC Adante AS-61 standmount loudspeaker

When it comes to designing loudspeakers, Andrew Jones is one of the sharpest tools in the box. He has the magic touch and seldom puts a foot wrong in the products that fall under his purview. There is a string of loudspeaker ‘hits’ attributed to him, at every level from the distinctly affordable to the disturbingly expensive. But arguably, it is the ELAC Adante AS-61 that truly makes his bones.

The Adante range was the third series out of the ELAC gates for Jones, with the more down-to-earth Debut and UniFi ranges before it. But good as these models (Debut now in Mk 2 guise) clearly are, Adante is ELAC and Andrew Jones showing what they are capable of when the brakes are taken off. And arguably the AS‑61 standmount is the purest expression of those design goals.

Ostensibly, the Adante looks like a two-way standmount. Closer inspection shows that top driver is a concentric 25mm soft-dome tweeter at the acoustic centre of a 133mm aluminium midrange cone. What you can’t see, however, is that the 200mm aluminium bass cone is actually a passive radiator, driven by an internally mounted and separately chambered 165mm aluminium bass cone. ELAC’s description of this arrangement sums it up perfectly: it’s a three-way, interport-coupled cavity design. Ports connect the separate chambers of the internal structure of the Adante’s cabinet, although there is no external port to contend with. This gives the Adanta AS-61 an ability to deliver an impressive 41Hz in room, with a reasonably benign six-ohm impedance load. The trade-off – such as it is – means the AS-61 has a relatively low 85dB sensitivity.

The speaker is designed to work with its own stands. Cleverly, ELAC designed this to use just the one cross-head screw throughout. However, there are 20 of them needed for each speaker to connect the two uprights to the top and bottom plates, and to bolt the speaker to the stand itself. Mid way through the third screw of 40, I began to discover the need for good battery management when it comes to power screwdrivers.

The lone drawback of the Adante AS-61 is it takes some work to get really, really right. And in the process, it often achieves a ‘good enough for government work’ level of performance that I fear many will settle upon. Actually ‘fear’ is the wrong word – the speaker sounds good even when its installation is relatively imprecise. But the difference between ‘good’ and ‘OMG!’ is a somewhat iterative process of listening, repositioning, and listening again. Toe-in, precise levelling of the loudspeakers, side and rear wall distance, and listener position are all best performed with the kind of accuracy and precision normally attributed to £30,000 loudspeaker installations. When you give the AS-61 that kind of precision, though, you are rewarded with the kind of loudspeaker midrange and high-frequency performance you simply don’t find at this price level. The short answer here is what you hear in most auditions is probably about half of what you can extract from these loudspeakers. Upstream electronics are perhaps less vitally important, but there’s a need to get things right here, too. A good, meaty 100W amplifier – and a very good source – should be the minimum requirement.

 

Sonically, the mid and top are extremely attractive to sit in front of. The soft dome is effortless, and there is no sense of hardness or brashness, just musical honesty and refinement. A good tweeter doesn’t shine, it seduces over time, and a really good one allows you to play any kind of music without exaggerating brightness or blandness. That’s one of the things the ELAC Adante does so well: mix it up with Mahler, Mozart, and Metallica in one session, and the loudspeaker will bring out the best in each. It will not hide why a bad recording is bad, but neither will it expose such recordings to bright light, rendering one-third of most collections unlistenable. The great one-album arbiter here is Strippedby The Rolling Stones [Virgin]. Some of the live from the studio takes (in particular ‘Love in Vain’) are some of the best recordings made of the band, whereas some of the live tour cuts (for example, ‘Street Fighting Man’) are some of the worst. ELAC portrays them with egalitarian equanimity. This is helped by a clean, detailed, and fast midrange that blends almost seamlessly with top and bottom.

But it’s the bass that really shows why this is so important a loudspeaker design. Until the Adante, bass was always going to be a trade-off between cabinet size, cabinet material, and whether or not the loudspeaker is a bass reflex model. The net results of these trade-offs was a loudspeaker that either went for accuracy at the expense of bass depth, or bass at the expense of accuracy. The more you went for accuracy (a sealed cabinet made of the stuff of tanks or kitchen worktops) generally the leaner the bottom end, but the more you went for bass depth, the greater the influence of the cabinet and the port. What happens with the Adante is the best of both worlds; the smaller, ported 165mm driver effectively ‘informs’ the performance of the outer 200mm bass driver, which acts like a much larger drive unit in a sealed-box. That means you get to hear those difficult, fast-paced yet deep bass notes on ‘Chameleon’ [Trentemøller, The Last Resort, Poker Flat] as distinct, non-blurred, almost percussive bass tones with the sort of depth you might attribute to bigger designs and none of the port-chuffing and choking up that normally occurs when a smaller box tries to overstretch itself. The cabinet is nearly dialled out here, and it’s only when comparing it to a few speakers that are significantly larger, heavier, and pricier that you begin to hear where the cabinet coloration kicks in.

OK, so ELAC is not breaking the laws of physics here, and the amount of volume headroom low-end you can extract from a big cabinet or bass drivers with the surface area of Wales is not on the table here. It goes plenty loud for most and the bass is extremely deep for a cabinet of this size, aided by that functionally inaudible cabinet, but if you seek bottom octave organ pedal notes, gut-churning synth sounds and want to play The Who – Live At Leeds[MCA] at something approaching gig-like volume levels, sooner or later the AS-61 is going to run out of steam. But these are not limitations of the AS-61, just fundamental limits placed on performance by building a cabinet that doesn’t need to be built in a shipyard.

It’s here where ELAC and Andrew Jones show their mettle. This speaker design is so good, it could be easy for the company to fall into something of a showboating trap – making a loudspeaker that is engineered to sound impressive, but ultimately unrewarding. Add a bit more bloom to the bass here, trade that accuracy for a bit of sparkle in the upper mids, and you’d get a loudspeaker that grabs headlines, but ultimately leaves people cold. This, on the other hand, is a crowd pleaser that also delivers the sonic goods for the long game.

 

Five years from now, there will be dozens of brands making a hash of emulating what ELAC and Andrew Jones did here. Many of them will be in the buttock-clenchingly expensive part of the loudspeaker market, and hardly any of them will be able to achieve the same clarity of thought, vision, and – most importantly – sound as the Adante AS-61 delivers. When you listen to the ELAC Adante AS-61, you know almost immediately that you are hearing something different. We are in the presence of greatness, here, and there will be a lot of companies trying and failing to play catch-up.

There is no such thing as a perfect loudspeaker. Even the very best of them trade compromises across a range of parameters. The ELAC Adante AS-61 is no different, but the step-change in technology means it’s trading compromises at a more advanced reading age than its peers. I listen to a lot of good loudspeakers, some of which have feet that cost more than these Adante standmounts, but this is the one that gives me pause. The ELAC Adante AS-61 is the loudspeaker that takes on the high-end behemoths… and wins!

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

  • Speaker type: three-way, interport-coupled cavity standmount loudspeaker
  • Tweeter: 1×25mm soft-dome, concentrically mounted
  • Midrange: 1×133mm aluminium cone
  • Woofer: 1×165mm aluminium cone, internally mounted
  • Passive radiator:
    1×200mm aluminium cone
  • Crossover frequencies: 200Hz, 2kHz
  • Frequency range: 41Hz–35kHz
  • Sensitivity: 85dB @ 2.83v/1m
  • Recommended amplifier power: 50–160W
  • Peak power handling: 160W
  • Nominal Impedance: 6 ohms
  • Binding posts: Dual pair five-way metal
  • Magnetic shielding: No
  • Cabinet finishes: Gloss black, gloss white, rosewood veneer
  • Accessories included: Binding post straps, manual, gloves
  • Dimensions (W×H×D):
    24.4 ×48.4 ×40.2cm
  • Weight: 16kg
  • Price: £2,600 (stands, £520)

Manufactured by:
ELAC Electroacoustic GmbH

URL: elac.com

Distributed in the UK by:
Hi-Fi Network Ltd

URL: hifi-network.com

Tel: +44(0)1285 643088

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Pioneer SE-Monitor 5 headphones

Pioneer launched an ultimate flagship headphone called the SE-Master 1 a couple of years ago. Open-backed, hand-crafted, built to order, made of unobtanium-wrapped fantasticium, with ear-cups made of unicorn eyelids… that sort of thing. There’s a waiting list, and we’re not exactly at the front of the line. Fortunately, Pioneer made a £1,000 closed back SE-Monitor 5 version for the rest of us, and very good it is too.

The SE-Monitor 5 actually pulls a lot of the technology developed by Pioneer in the SE-Master 1, and production engineers it so that it’s more regularly available and attainable. They were also designed from the outset to be comfortable enough to be worn at home for extremely long periods, despite their 480g weight. They are, however, quite large. This is actually the secret to their comfort, as they are very much ‘over ear’ designs: if you are small of head, ‘over ear’ means ‘covering everything from temple to jawline’. But this, coupled with very soft, very padded, yet very breathable ear pads and a very lightweight, but well-built frame and headband, means they really can be worn all evening with no real stress on the listener. Oddly, there isn’t a lot of padding around the headband, but this works in the Pioneer’s favour, as it lightens the load considerably. I wore these headphones for an entire evening’s Radio Three listening and never felt the need to even reposition them. OK, so they aren’t so comfortable that you could sleep in them, but they are comfortable enough that you can easily doze off with them on. However, the Pioneer comfort zone was enhanced by Winter-time listening; I suspect during Summer the density of the foam in the pads might prove a little sweaty, especially in a closed can design.

These are very much home headphones. Although the closed back design might lend them to portable listening on the move, the size of the headphone and its more sumptuous looks push it gently toward home use. In fairness, they do look good on the head (so long as your head is large enough) and great on the stand. I’m an occasional sucker for a piece of well-turned luxury and this has that very obviously luxuriant look and feel, but without too much overstatement. In other words, ideal for refined use in the home.

I’m also a bit of a sucker for good packaging and this is above average. A nice big box, with a presentation case and a spot of plush doesn’t go amiss. OK, so it’s not the kind of locking case found in the very top models, but it’s a lot better than a bubble-pack. The pack is also packed… with goodies. There are three sets of cables (3m long with jack, and two 1.6m long cables; one with a standard 6.3mm jack, one with a 2.5mm balanced connection). These are all very well made but loosely braided cables with a nice woven outer jacket. The connectors meet the headphones with two standard 3.5mm jacks, so replacements are not a problem. The cables again point to home use; they are not the kind of cable you can wind around your headphones (don’t, just don’t do that!) and throw in a bag, as that loose braid will catch and snag, and the strain relief on the wires doesn’t feel substantial enough. There are also two sets of ear-cups (3D memory foam and pleather) and these do have different loading and so slightly different tonal balance.

 

The core to this and the SE-Master 1 is the dynamic driver, a single 50mm diameter nano cellular fibre design. That’s wood pulp to the uninitiated, albeit wood pulp that’s been carefully treated. The other big aspect taken from the SE-Master 1 is the patented ‘Double Headphone Chamber’, which is basically a main chamber with ported sub-chambers for better bass response.

In generally, I really like the look of these headphones. The contrasting light metal around the yoke and headband, with a contrasting copper ring, black cups, and rose-gold strain reliefs on the cables, shouldn’t work together, but actually looks refined and elegant in reality.

In use, these are decidedly easy headphones to drive, and don’t require a hefty headphone amp to drive them. It is about quality not quantity here, as the 99dB efficiency and benign 40-ohm impedance means there is no need to be exceptionally fussy in partnering these headphones. I used them with a faithful old Audiolab 8000A (with an adaptor) to great effect, and into a new Pioneer/Onkyo DAP for both single-ended and balanced operation. Balanced does make a difference here, and you should go for it if possible.

There seem to be two schools of thought in headphone design. The first is the audiophile concept, which means a flat frequency response, even if that means the headphones end up sounding bass light. The other is the tailored approach, which over-rides the flat frequency response for a more sonically acceptable presentation. That way, madness lies. Or, more accurately, Beats lies. In all honesty, most headphone makers go somewhere between the two poles, making a ‘mostly accurate’ design with extra bass. Not Pioneer!

Instead, Pioneer chose to make the SE-Monitor 5 as flat as they could. This means there is a lot of bass, in terms of specific low frequencies, but not much in the way of bass slam and boost. For some, that would be an instant deal breaker, but for others, they will happily trade bass weight for bass accuracy and bass speed. I’m very much in this latter camp. I would rather hear the sound as it was recorded, even if on headphones that ultimately sounds rather thin and bass light because you can fix that in EQ if you so desire.

I have to say this is one headphone where first impressions don’t count. My first audition of the Pioneer SE-Monitor-5 was unfavourable at best. As described, it was too thin and too bass light. But, it was tonally accurate, and it was fast. Really, really fast. Changing to the foam pads helped enormously, as they seem to have a natural LF boost. As did removing my glasses (they were breaking the pad’s seal around my ears). But it was still bass light.

As I listened further, it became clear that it wasn’t bass light, but instead I had slowly grown accustomed to that bass rich tonal balance of even supposedly accurate headphones. Gradually, I was deprogramming myself of the taint of older headphones, and at that point I began to see what the SE-Monitor-5 was trying to do, and it dawned on me that it’s exactly what I try to do with loudspeakers. I was a convert.

Now I listen and hear an extremely open and extended midrange, free from those mild lifts at 1kHz and 8kHz that seem to be there to make voices nicer. Yes, there’s still a lack of deep, thrumming bass from these headphones, as they trade bass speed over bass depth. I found I can live with that, not only because that bass speed is exhilarating, but because I want that midrange accuracy and treble extension.

I found listening to the Pioneer SE-Monitor-5 with the foam ear cups worked best. This gave a very ‘in the studio’ feel. So I gave them something difficult to play: ‘Hat and Beard’ from Eric Dolphy’s Out To Lunch[Blue Note]. The interplay between musicians here is vital to getting the music right, or listening to a complete mess. And this was when the penny finally dropped – that bass speed is the key to getting this music right, and even slight deviations from neutrality just get in the way of the performance. Big bass was out!

After that, many of the other great parts of the performance of the Pioneer SE-Monitor-5 just began to slot into place. It’s not a lateralised sound, and there is some width to the sound, placing musicians outside of your head. Treble extension is excellent, and the overall presentation is one of soft-spoken calm and accuracy.

 

I suspect there will always be people who will never like the sound of this headphone because it doesn’t have a full and deep bass. This might also be down to the choice of music – I didn’t feel the need to listen to a lot of rap, reggae, or rock through the SE-Monitor-5.

Pioneer’s SE-Monitor-5 is a bit of a grower. Listen to them the first time, and you might come away underwhelmed. Try again because it’s worth putting in the effort. You might find that you discovered a real joy of a headphone, one of the best closed back designs on the market at this time. That’s not overstating the case – if you aren’t just listening out for big, deep bass and love to hear what a good, truly accurate transducer can do for your music, the SE-Monitor-5 might just get under your skin.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

  •  Headphone Type: Fully-enclosed Dynamic Headphones
  • Driver Units: f50 mm (1.96˝) Cellulose Nano-fibre Dynamic Driver
  • Impedance: 40 Ohms
  • Frequency Response: 5 Hz–85 kHz
  • Sensitivity: 99 dB
  • Maximum Input Power: 1,000 mW
  • Supplied cords:
  • Cord 1: Unbalanced Cord (OFC Litz Wire) 1.6 m (5 ft.), f3.5 mm (1/8˝) Stereo Mini-plug (Gold‑plated)
  • Cord 2: Unbalanced Cord OFC Litz Wire) 3.0 m (9 ft.), f3.5 mm (1/8˝) Stereo Mini-plug (Gold‑plated)
  • Cord 3: Balanced Cord (OFC Litz Wire) 1.6 m (5 ft.), f2.5 mm (3/32˝) 4-pole Stereo Super-mini Plug (Gold-plated/ Balanced Connection-compatible)
  • Supplied with Ear Pad ×2 (Polyurethane / Leather Finish), Carrying Pouch, Gold-plated 3.5 mm to 6.3 mm (1/8˝ to 1/4˝) Plug Adapter, User Manual, and Warranty Card
  • Weight: 480 g (16.93 oz.) Not Including Cord
  • Price: £1,000

Manufactured by: Pioneer

URL: pioneer-audiovisual.eu

Tel: +44(0)208 836 3500

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