PE Leon Integrales - Playing The Royal Flying Doctor from Oz to Canada

July 6, 2013, 1:28 am

≫ Next: PE Leon Integrales - Episode 2 - Initial assessment

≪ Previous: All my hardware is back from hospital! And I am enjoying every minute listening to it!

A lonely pair of PE Leon Integrales in Winnipeg - Canada

If you were to "Google" PE Leon Integrale, you will find many entries on various forums telling the sad and sorry story of Perry G, a Canadian "Flying Doctor", who played his beloved Integrales too loud at a well lubricated party until "something" went awfully wrong and ruined the beautiful sound of some of PE Leon most famous designs.
Finally, last October, after returning from the Hifi Show here in Sydney, I found this message from this same Perry, asking if I could be of assistance. I thought I could and after more than 50 emails, various FaceTime conversations, lots of soldering, dozen of remote measurements and a bit of luck, I can now report that we were successful! Over the next few posts, I plan to tell the story of the remote diagnostic(s), the trials and tribulations, the methodology, the lucky breakthrough and and all along the building of a remote friendship, which is after all the best reward one can expect from the dealings of two nerds across the Pacific Ocean.
In the process, we exchange tips on amps, speakers (obviously) children, WAF and French wine. I certainly had fun all along and hopefully will be able to help others on other projects later. So stay tuned and enjoy the ride!

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PE Leon Integrales - Episode 2 - Initial assessment

July 14, 2013, 12:24 am

≫ Next: PE Leon Integrales - Episode 3 - Remote Measurement Set Up

≪ Previous: PE Leon Integrales - Playing The Royal Flying Doctor from Oz to Canada

The original crossover as we found eventually - note the burnt resistor on the bottom left.

The crossover I inherited at the start of the process

My first assessment was to find out what drivers were in the speaker and what was the filter like. The handicap was that the filter has been already tampered with in a previous attempt to fix it by replacing the burnt resistor.
In that process the wiring was not redone properly and the overall balance of the speaker was significantly altered.
Here is the list of the drivers employed:
Bass: 2 FOCAL 8C412T in an isobaric arrangement - PEL is using a patent from his father Joseph Leon
Medium: 1 SEAS P14
Tweeter: 1 SEAS H414

In another incarnation of this speaker, PEL used Focal drivers everywhere (PEL M IV):
Bass: 2 FOCAL 8C01
Medium: 1 FOCAL SN302
Tweeter: 1 FOCAL T120 - the famous kevlar inverted dome
This speaker was a subwoofer+satellite combo

Perry had been given links to a French forum where the following two conflicting schematics were posted:

PE Leon Integrale - Filter type 1

A PE Leon dealer in Canada gave us a few photos of the OTHER filter...very confusing!
And obviously, the two designs did exist at some point in time...

PE Leo Integrale - Filter type 2

One can assume that type 1 is the real deal and we started to work on that assumption.
I also trusted Perry when he confirmed (affirmed...) that all the drivers were OK. Being 15000 kms away, I had to trust him. From the photo of the rewired crossover, we could assess that we had all the components values right and from there I embarked on my own interpretation of what I thought the filter should be. And here is the result

My implementation of the components in the photo of the filter

This design is "textbook" with attenuators being in front of the filtering cell. This gives the ability to change the attenuation without changing the cutoff frequency of the following cell. I will leave you to ponder these schematics and in the next episode, I will explain how we went about remotely assessing the result. Let's just say that without our beloved iPads and the ingenuity of some Apps developer, we would still be trying!

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PE Leon Integrales - Episode 3 - Remote Measurement Set Up

July 20, 2013, 12:11 am

≫ Next: Scoop: Elipson to release new speakers for Habitat in Septembre 2013

≪ Previous: PE Leon Integrales - Episode 2 - Initial assessment

AudioTools iAudioInterface2 ready for your iOS device

I personally use this fabulous little device to design speakers and measure them (obviously not to make coffee...lol) This, together with a decent microphone that Audio Tools can supply and an iPad, you are very well equipped to assess the performance of a speaker or its individual drivers. At 600$, it costs the same as a vintage bottle of Ducru Beaucaillou, my favourite Saint-Julien - see www.ourfrenchimpressions.com for more details - and it lasts much longer!

AudioControl CM-125 test microphone, complete with calibration data on USB stick, tripod holder and carrying case

If you are not a professional user, then you might want to go back one step and use their iTestMic for about 200$
I recommended to Perry that he buys this more affordable version and he did!
It is really a cute little device and it has given us a way to compare measurements across the Pacific Ocean.

AudioTools iTestMic

That's it for the hardware, but obviously what makes the system complete and useable is the App.
This is quite a smart product, as you can buy only the measurement modules that you need and they are usually around 20$ each. Even if you were to buy all of them, I think it would set you back maybe 400$ and you would have a complete set of tools very close to the 20,000$ HP3582 I used to use in the 80s, or the 40K$ for a Rhode & Schwarz UPV analyser (but this is the ultimate machine and I do dream to own one, if I were to become an active speaker designer again!

R&S UPV Analyser

Audio Tools Menu

And here are the results of an FFT measurement for one of my most recent designs

I have used a measurement method for many years which is not textbook at all, but which has given me very good auditive results without resorting to an anechoic chamber. I won't reveal all the details here, but let say that these measurements are made in the listening room, and, as such, give a realistic measure of the behaviour of the speaker under test in to a REAL environment. You can see on the curve above that this speaker is flat in the room from30Hz to 20KHz =/- 5dB and roughly =/- 3dB from 300Hz to 12kHz, and trust me, it sounds spectacular! I am awaiting a new prototype that should improve the lower medium down to 150Hz for a better match with the active subwoofer, but I won't be able to talk about this for another month or so, due to confidentiality arrangements with my client.

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Scoop: Elipson to release new speakers for Habitat in Septembre 2013

July 21, 2013, 7:12 pm

≫ Next: PE Leon Integrales - Episode 4

≪ Previous: PE Leon Integrales - Episode 3 - Remote Measurement Set Up

TIMBER 9on the left) and LENNY, the new babies of Elipson and Habitat

You can now be a design addict AND a digital nomad hifi enthusiast, thanks to the joint-venture between HABITAT - of Terence Conran fame, and ELIPSON the iconic French speaker manufacturer.
TIMBER is a desktop bluetooth speaker, and the LENNY is a portable, or should I say walkable version.
I have no details of the equipment inside, but will probably be able to find out soon.
Prices are 199 euros and 299 euros respectively. A shame we do not have HABITAT stores in Ausrtalia!

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PE Leon Integrales - Episode 4

August 24, 2013, 11:30 pm

≫ Next: PE Leon Integrales - Episode 5

≪ Previous: Scoop: Elipson to release new speakers for Habitat in Septembre 2013

We started our remote assessment by using the RTA function of Audio Tools, a rather crude measurement, but one that a novice to measuring speakers could perform "unsupervised"...
In retrospect, we should have started with a proper FFT right from the beginning, as it would have given us a more accurate base for further modifications. Also at the time, Perry had not received the iTestMic and we were using the internal microphone of the iPad, which has a sharp filter under 250Hz to prevent overloading.
Anyway, we then started some modifications towards my proposed schematic. Here is one of the first results:

These two measurements are not giving us enough information to decide whether or not the modification was going into the right direction. So, we decided to wait for the arrival of the iTestMic to make further changes.

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PE Leon Integrales - Episode 5

August 25, 2013, 12:37 am

≫ Next: PE Leon Integrales - Episode 6

≪ Previous: PE Leon Integrales - Episode 4

At that stage, I thought I had enough information to come up with a proper schematic of how and why. the filter should be wired. This wiring diagram uses all the right components, and are properly allocated to the right filter cell. A few calculations confirmed that the woofers were cut off at 400Hz and the tweeter at 6 KHz, which souns quite high, but I personally like to use a higher cut off frequency and also the curves I found for the tweeter were consistent with this design decision.

SEAS H414 Tweeter

The midrange is not filtered in the treble as it gently rolls off naturally I suspected, as I could not find any measurements for the SEAS midrange P14RC4, pictured below as well as the mighty FOCAL 8C412 woofer.
I have since found a data sheet - which confirms my guess - here: http://www.seas.no/images/stories/vintage/pdfdataheet/h0522_mp14rcyp.pdf

By the time Perry got a chance to rewire his crossovers to this schematic, he also had received his iTestMic and we moved on to using the FFT measurements:

And I got this lovely email with this FFT photo - I have to say I was quite chuffed...:

"This Jean-Marie is the one that sounds the best by far. It was immediately obvious as so superior to the "correct" tweeter phase which was supposed to be inverted according to the very first schematic from PEL. Of course that schematic was for an old version of the crossover which was not the same as mine.
The white curve is the "inverted" phase while the orange curve is the "correct" phase.
You cannot believe my happiness after so many years of trying and giving up, tearing apart and cobbling back together, sure that this would be the last time. Hours on the internet corresponding to people who didn't know anything. Suggestion after suggestion. Now finally, this is it. How can I thank you enough?
You are a freaking speaker genius.!!! (bold inserted by author...)" Perry G.

Although the saga continued for a while more, let's leave it at that for today!

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PE Leon Integrales - Episode 6

August 31, 2013, 12:42 am

≫ Next: PEL Integrale - Episode 7 - A last minute twist in the story

≪ Previous: PE Leon Integrales - Episode 5

After Perry's elogious email, I was obviously quite happy with the result, and I thought it would be good to review everything to document the process and make sure we were the closest possible from the original.
During that process I realised I had possibly made a mistake by positioning the resistor network BEFORE the filter cell, rather than AFTER as per diagram above, which is more "textbook" if you like.
This topology gives the ouput of the cell a more stable impedance and make it easier to tune the cut off frequency of each cell.. We tried various iterations of this topology, swapping the resistor values to adjust the relative levels of the midrange and tweeter, and I guess I confused Perry quite a lot in the process, without necessarily getting a better result on listening tests.

The FFT above gives a good indication of the quite good response and is consistent with the listening tests Perry was reporting back to me. Obviously, I had to trust him entirely on his ability to remember how the speakers sounded more than 10 years before, but I believe that if you are familiar enough with a particular set up and a few recordings, you can have a fairly good assessment of the result you are after.
But a few days later, we had a breakthrough, actually two...but let's start with the cruncher!
Perry had spotted on eBay another pair of Integrales for sale in Canada, and I think at one point he may have been tempted to buy them...but in his infinite wisdom, he had the genius idea to ask the seller for a photo of HIS crossover and the seller kindly agreed!

The most interesting thing about this photo is the resistor on the top right: it is not quite as burnt as in Perry's speakers - maybe the party didn't go as long, or the music was played as loud, or they ran out of beer!!!! - who knows? Nevertheless, it means that this resistor should have been specified with a higher poet rating in the first place, and we will understand why soon!
The other good thing about this photo is that the filter has not been tampered with and is obviously as per the original design. So, then I spent some time decrypting it and came up with a new schematic - see below:

From this diagramm, it is easy to see that that R1 takes half of the power going into the midrange and should have been specified as a 10w at least, and in doing so, I would not have a chance to play and make anew friend across the Pacific Ocean! The good news are that when Perry had implemented this new crossover, he was on top of the moon with the auditive results, like being reunited with an old love!
Here are the corresponding measurements: We have not quite figured out why there is so much difference between the two speakers, but one suggestion is that one speaker is positioned in a corner of the room where the other one is not.

Well, you see, after more than six months of correspondence, trial and errors and a bit of luck in the end, we managed to bring these PEL Integrale back to life. Perry is now in the process of getting his Acoustic Research amp back to its original grandeur and I have not heard if it is back in service or not, but that should give another level of smoothness to the sound of these iconic speakers.

Now I promised you that there was a final twist in the story...well I will keep that for our next and last episode 7, next week! Stay tuned...

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PEL Integrale - Episode 7 - A last minute twist in the story

September 7, 2013, 11:40 pm

≫ Next: Sonab OA14 refurbishement

≪ Previous: PE Leon Integrales - Episode 6

The real McCoy - Crossover schematic supplied by PE Leon

During the last stages of our conversations, and after finally finding the real configuration for the Integrales crossover, Perry G shouted a last letter to PE Leon in the hope, I guess, to see our efforts vindicated. And this time, he got a response from a newly appointed export manager, promising to send the proper schematics, as soon as PE Leon came back from a trip. Although at first, Perry though that might well be another dilatory measure, he was quite chuffed to receive that information a couple of weeks after, without to have to ask for it again... So, Perry was quite chuffed, and I was quite happy that this beautiful vintage document - nobody was using CAD then - which, after a bit of deciphering, proved to be exactly what I revealed in Episode 6.
So, it is a great story with a happy ending and I hope that Perry will now enjoy his renovated speakers for years to come. I have been told that he might even put his beloved Audio Research amp in service, after having replaced all the valves and put the whole thing through a serious burn-in session!
Hopefully, we will hear from him about the renewed pleasures of listening music on a fabulous set of vintage HiFi!
I hope you have enjoyed our journey and the story and would welcome any other enquiries into helping other vintage enthusiasts willing to restore or upgrade a beloved pair of speakers.

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Sonab OA14 refurbishement

September 22, 2013, 3:19 am

≫ Next: Melbourne Hifi Show - October 18th - 20th, 2013 - Don't miss Kronos the new baby of Kyron Audio!

≪ Previous: PEL Integrale - Episode 7 - A last minute twist in the story

Before...

Before my intervention, one of the drivers was dead and the tweeter was filtered by a nasty electrolytic capacitor and its level was far too high, resulting in very harsh sound.
I first replaced the main driver that I found at WES in Ashfield and I calculated a better crossover for the tweeter.
a simple resistor network and better capacitors. The result is quite satisfactory.

And after...

And here is the result...much better
They are now used by my son with a very old MOSFET amplifier and a Bluetooth receiver fed by his iTunes....

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Melbourne Hifi Show - October 18th - 20th, 2013 - Don't miss Kronos the new baby of Kyron Audio!

October 17, 2013, 12:13 am

≫ Next: Australian Audio & AV show Melbourne October 18-20 2013 - Episode 1

≪ Previous: Sonab OA14 refurbishement

The new Kronos from Kyron Audio - photo supplied

If you have a tight schedule at the Show, then go straight to Room 312 to listen to the new Kronos by Kyron Audio.
You know of my keen interest for open baffle speaker and having had inside information about this new "baby' - so to speak, compared to the Gaia... - and I have been trepidating for some time in anticipation.
A last minute impediment almost prevented me to attend the Show, but I managed to spare Saturday to pay Lee and Leon a visit at the Intercontinental at the Rialto Towers. Unfortunately, there will be no time to try "Vue du Monde" the famous restaurant of Shannon Bennett on top of one these towers.
The Kronos are a fabulous contraption with a 300% raise in their WAF compared to the Gaia. It will help that there also a tad less expensive...

Another exhibit that I missed in Paris and Melbourne two years ago was the Dan D'Agostino stand. It was static in Paris (go figure...) and ran out of time at the last Show in Melbourne. Glad I waited, though as we now have a full range of products, including the recently released preamp. Ken Kessler reckons this is the best amplification in the World. Let's see if I am trading in my Bryston - don't worry too much Brian! - They will be in Room 440.
Bryston will have a big room called "Stock", Another amplifier worth your time is Devialet shown in rooms 403 and 410 and one of the few French companies present at the Show, in good company with Elipson and Focal.
Cabasse and Waterfall seem to be absent from the Show Guide, but we might have a last minute surprise!
I will tell you all about the Show next week!

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Australian Audio & AV show Melbourne October 18-20 2013 - Episode 1

October 20, 2013, 1:02 am

≫ Next: Australian Audio & AV Show Melbourne October 18-20 2013 - Episode 2

≪ Previous: Melbourne Hifi Show - October 18th - 20th, 2013 - Don't miss Kronos the new baby of Kyron Audio!

The Venue: Intercontinental Hotel at Rialto Towers

One can count on Melbourne for classy architecture! And this renovation is certainly the proof in the pudding.
On top, we had fabulous weather and the best coffee - although expensive - and a very decent buffet lunch to break the - long - day... I flew in just for the day on the second Virgin Australia flight - together with Len Wallis by chance - and returned on the last flight - a 16-hour day but well worth the effort.
Before I go any further, I would like to apologise in advance for the poor quality of some of my photos. My dear Olympus PEL-1 is showing signs of ageing - well, it is MY camera after all - and its autofocus is very poor in low lighting conditions. Thanks God, Christmas is not too far away!

Where are the French???

Not that I was expecting to see a lot of French products here, but it is always good to reconnect with some of my compatriots and French products. The disappointment came from the absence of Cabasse, Triangle and Waterfall Audio.
However, it was a surprise to see YBA now distributed in Australia by Audio Heaven and Elipson by Audio Dynamics who are also starting to distribute Davis Acoustics, the company founded by the late Michel Visan and now run by his wife and his two sons. Focal was there as usual in the good hands of Audio Marketing and the big noise was coming from Devialet, also imported by Audio Heaven and Avation. Even VAF was using them for driving their fabulous loudspeakers! Even, Geoff from Naim Audio came in for a listen - or did he see the writing on the wall and tried to get a new job? It would be a good way to rekindle the Auld Alliance! Just kidding...

French Electronics: Devialet, YBA

The Greek Australian French Alliance - Devialet drives the VAF speakers

Devialet Amplifier new look and new models Worked very well with the Vivid Audio speakers in the Avation room

Vivid Audio driven by Devialet and fed with MSB and OPPO CD players

YBA Integrated Amplifier IA350 from the Passion Range and Media Steamer MP100 from the Heritage range

YBA Integrated Amplifier A100 from the Heritage range and the entire entry level Design range

French Speakers: Focal, Elipson, Davis Acoustics

Focal in the good hands of Audio Marketing

The Planets by Elipson and their fabulous Music Centre

The new "Timber", a joint venture between Elipson and Habitat. A new way to listen to your virtual music via Bluetooth

New to Australia: The Legendary Davis Acoustics speakers - worked a treat driven by Electrocompaniet. The tallest model fom the Olympia range will retail for 3000$/pair

Stay tuned for more reviews in the coming days!

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Australian Audio & AV Show Melbourne October 18-20 2013 - Episode 2

October 21, 2013, 2:56 am

≫ Next: Australian Audio & AV Show Melbourne October 18-20 2013 - Episode 3

≪ Previous: Australian Audio & AV show Melbourne October 18-20 2013 - Episode 1

Sources

More and more people were using digital files on iPads, PCs, Macs, streamers of all sorts, so it was quite frustrating to see just a few CD players and a reasonable quantity of turntables. Here is my selection.

SOTA Sapphire turntable, inked by Renae Haak of Diabolik Tatoo. Does it colour the sound as well?

Brinkmann Audio turntable (the Bardo) shows the Jelco 10" tonearm with Arche headshell by Acoustical Systems - the cartridge here is the van den Hul MC-One Special.

Another one with two arms...Brinkmann Audio turntable features the new Axiom tonearm by Acoustical Systems and Brinkmann Audio 12.1 tonearm, the latter with van den Hul Crimson cartridge and the former sporting a Brinkmann Audio EMT Ti.

The elegantly simple but extremely capable Wilson Benesh turntable

The Classic Thorens with an SME arm and Ortofon cartridge

Best vinyl demo of the Show: Spiral Grove turntable with MySonic Labs cartridge, Ysilon amplification a nd Kayser Acoustics speakers

Amazing recording and 45RPM, 180g pressing. A must have in your collection. And I thought I knew that music...

Ypsilon - the only CD player worth a photo

Two for the price of one: Consonance and Audio Aero CD players on the Osborn stand

The British contingent: Naim and Cambridge Audio

A treat to finish this post: Wilson Audio, dcs Vivaldi, Clearaudio and D'Agostino

The most expensive system at the Show, and second best in my opinion

This is - give or take a few components - Ken Kessler's reference system. He calls the D'Agostino suite of products the best amplification in the World. We listened to a French percussionist that I carried around the Show - virtually - on a USB stick. It is a live recording and although it is "only" 16/44.1Khz it is one of the most amazing recording I have heard - period! It was sent to me with my old buddy, Alain Wacquet, who knows the artist personally. There is a passage where there is quite a rolling of drums and the D'Agostino got a bit of a workout...see photo of the power meter below. And I couldn't capture the highest peak 2/3 to the right...
It was certainly an amazing rendition and for my first encounter with that combination of two iconic products, I was certainly not disappointed, but...you will have to come back tomorrow for a bit of a surprise!

Jean-Pierre Drouet recorded live March 22nd 1994, Festival Banlieues Bleues

Jean-Pierre Drouet gives a workout to Dan D'agostino power amp

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Australian Audio & AV Show Melbourne October 18-20 2013 - Episode 3

October 24, 2013, 3:35 am

≫ Next: Australian Audio & AV Show Melbourne October 18-20 2013 - Episode 4

≪ Previous: Australian Audio & AV Show Melbourne October 18-20 2013 - Episode 2

Speakers

Well, this is always my favourite part of going to any hifi show. I am still fascinated after more than four decades being in the trade to see how many people are still designing new - or not so new - speakers of all sorts of technologies, shape, size and colour. i often caught myself inventing new speakers in my head - sometime putting these ideas on paper and more recently going to the prototype phase. Trust me, it is a disease, and it is highly contagious! So you have been warned...
This show, I concentrated on a few favourites and also on some brands that I never had a chance to listen to properly. So here they are without further ado.

Speakers from OZ

The latest member of the Whatmough family, the Progeny. The founder, Colin Whatmough, passed away in January 2011

SGR Audio newest "babies": Inspired by Wilson Audio

The Loudspeaker Kit proposes components like Dayton and Scan-Speak drivers as well as complete designs. Driven by Weston Acoustics valve amps made in the Mornington Peninsula, more famous for Pinot Noir than Hifi!

The magnificent and mighty Osborn speakers: Monument and Epitome. Well worth a listen!

Philip Vafiadis was his usual self, excellent at demoing his great range of speakers, using his iPad and a Devialet amplifier. I still have a sweet tooth for the Signature i(0, the smallest speaker in the range.

The best speakers at the Show - and they are Australians - Kyron Audio

Well, call me biased, but I have watched Lee and Leon for three years now, going about their business of designing the best possible speaker in the World, and I was suitably impressed by their first product introduced here in Melbourne two years ago: the Gaia. Based on the open baffle principle and inspired by Siegfried Linkwittz, it integrated the best techniques of analog compensation for the baas, digital filtering and equalisation from DEXQ, also based in Melbourne, as well as Hypex Class D amplifiers, the best implementation of that technology by its inventor. At 180K$, nobody was expecting to sell hundreds and it didn't! But, Lee and Leon were not going to be stopped by limited commercial success, so they started designing a new product, much less expensive, smaller and with a much better WAF index. Enter the Kronos, a great example of design along the lines of form follows function. It is impeccably manufactured, the electronics have actually improved compared to the Gaia, and it comes at less than half the price! As far as I concerned, it is the most accurate, transparent and musical speaker I have listened to so far. You might have to sell an investment property to afford it, but it is definitely worth your money. Besides, you just need to add a source, CD, Steamer, or a good old turntable and phono stage. Enough talk, go and arrange a listen...
We listened to my French percussionist, so I could properly compared to the Wilson Audio, and the Kronos won!

Two very happy speaker designers: Leon on the left and Lee on the right, the brains behind Kyron Audio.

Best Speakers/System at the Show: Kyron Audio Kronos

Other notable speakers

Vienna Acoustics from Austria

Brodmann, also from Austria

Kaiser Acoustics from Germany. I like these speakers quite a lot! And they look beautiful too...

The Auld Alliance - Ivor Tiefenbrun will be in Oz in December, I have been told...

The gorgeous Vivid Audio speakers

Thanks God for Bryston! Although the Dynaudio Evidence Platinum are supposed to be the "most awesome speakers on the Planet", I am still not convinced. I do like their professional studio monitors, though...

Our next and final episode will be dedicated to valves, not because I am a big fan, but because they can be very beautiful objects...Stay tuned!

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Australian Audio & AV Show Melbourne October 18-20 2013 - Episode 4

November 1, 2013, 11:31 pm

≫ Next: Microphase upgrade

≪ Previous: Australian Audio & AV Show Melbourne October 18-20 2013 - Episode 3

A bit of valves indulgence...

Let me say first that as most of us geeks and idiophiles we love looking at valve amps and we carry that romantic notion that they sound better than solid state. Being an electronic engineer by trade, and looking at test results alone, I will have to disappoint a lot of people by saying that there is NO technical way they can sound better. I will try to prove my point in a minute.
But before I do, let me recount an experience that let me in doubt of that statement.
A few years back, I have spent an afternoon listening to Tosca valve amps teamed up with Ocellia speakers and I have to admit that I did throughly enjoyed myself, almost missing my plane back to Sydney.
You read the whole story on my "Interviews" page.

Now, you will find below some very troubling comparisons that I have extracted from the Australian Hifi Magazine. I don't recall anybody doing such a comparison before. And let me state that what I am about to present is NOT intended to belittle or promote the chosen products. Neither is it a reflexion on the reviewer(s) involved. Some might think so when they see me using Bryston as a solid state reference, and yes there is a certain level of bias here (sic) as I know very well and use a Bryston 3B in my system. These two products have similar usage and pricing and both are very well engineered and built, and the Audio Space looks almost like a Nagra on steroids - very sexy indeed!

So here we are:

Audio Space Reference 3.1 (300B) - price in Oz 5.480$

Transient response is very limited by the high frequency roll off of the circuitry and the limitations of the output transformers, the bass response is truncated due to the necessary coupling capacitors between stages and the harmonic distortion is quite high, all these factors contributing to the rather mellifluous sound, a trademark of valve amps. These results are fairly typical of most valve amps. This is just an example of one which is actually very well built and deemed excellent on listening tests.
Read the whole review here: http://www.avhub.com.au/images/stories/australian-hifi/reviews/2013/2013-09/audio_space_ref_3p1_amp_review_test_lores.pdf

Bryston 135-SST2 - price in Oz 5,999$

On the the other hand, solid state gives you near perfect transient response throughout the usable bandwidth, with some ringing only on a capacitive load. Note that on a such a load the valve amp is actually working better than on a resistive load, hence the reason why they are deemed to work so well with electrostatic panels.
Harmonic distortion on the solid state amp is buried in the overall very low noise of the amp.

Read the whole review here: http://www.avhub.com.au/images/stories/australian-hifi/reviews/2013/2013-05/bryston_b135sst2_amplifier_review_test_lo-res.pdf

In conclusion:

Both amps were deemed to be excellent on listening tests and the jury is still out there on which technology is better.
My particular taste in the way I like music reproduced is one leaning towards "realism" and "accuracy", rather than "musicality". In most cases I find the rendition of the music I listen to more satisfying on a good solid state amplifier.
But, as a journalist, I am interested in both technologies, and as a photographer, I am much more inclined to shoot valve porn than surgical solid state - although Dan D'Agostino gets my photographic juices flowing...
So without further ado, here are a few of these pictures taken at the Show

A nice collection of toys on the Weston Acoustics stand

Weston Acoustics - Valve amps powering The Loudspeaker Kit interesting speakers

Top Shelf - Consonance CD and amps

The AM 833S Mono Amplifiers - one of the most impressive looking piece of gear at the Show!

AM Audio - I will have to buy the barn first, then get some "Transparence" speakers all the way from Alain Wacquet in Ardèche!

Allnic - South Korean beauties - Nickel! as the French would say...

More Allnic - in Audio Heaven!

Audio Research - censored: you will have to buy one to have a look inside...

I hope you have enjoyed the journey through this Show review. Stay tuned as I am about to make a major announcement in the days to come. And yes, it might be a Christmas present for the lucky owners of Microphase speakers - hopefully some are still alive!!!

↧

Microphase upgrade

November 9, 2013, 9:13 pm

≫ Next: Metronome Technologie new Kalista Ultimate SE + Nausicaa DAC

≪ Previous: Australian Audio & AV Show Melbourne October 18-20 2013 - Episode 4

The new tweeter upgrade for the Microphase SATs

For the last twelve months, I have been involved in designing speakers again after a 30 years hibernation!
I can't tell you just yet what I have been up to, but give it another month and I will able to reveal what kept me busy in my spare time: as they say, if you want something done, talk to a busy person...

A side effect of the research I have done on this project, commissioned by one of my day job client, is that I had to do a lot of research on which drivers are available today. One area where I found an interesting improvement
is tweeters. Well, obviously we have all heard of diamond, beryllium, various other metals but interestingly enough, the more mundane silk or "plastic" variety has been completely revamped with the view of extending the frequency range beyond 20KHz and often also extending the range at the bottom of the range, with resonant frequencies lowered as low as 1kHz and with a often a very low raise in impedance around that frequency. The result is that, even though I like to use a cut-off frequency around 5kHz, the resonant frequency is now two octaves below that cutoff and then in theory 24db down, basically not audible anymore.

The proprietary Audax boomer we used in the Microphase SATs is basically flat to 10kHz, so any breakup modes would be at least one octave over the cutoff frequency and then 12 db down let say around 15 to 20kHz, way beyond what most people can hear.

Another interesting new parameter is the consumer demand for a much better sound in their cars, right from the start and with the manufacturer's pre-installed gear. This new market has driven a lot of research by Tymphany (Vifa+SEAS+Peerless) to produce very affordable tweeters with a very small footprint.

A collection of small tweeters by Vifa and Morel

The next challenge was to find a driver that would work without modifying the existing filter. I wanted the potential client - you, dear reader - to be able to unsolder the current Audax TW51 and fit the new driver in minutes and be assured the results would be consistent with my tests here in Sydney..
I then had my new speaker cabinet supplier to make me a quantity of new flanges that would "simulate" the flange of the TW51. This was achieved with a 3mm birth plywood CNCed to fit both the original flange and the new VIFA tweeter. Final touch is the replacement of the rather "cheap" screws on the original product with cap screws similar to the one used on the boomer. Et voilà!

New VIFA tweeters , flange and cap screws

The procedure is quite simple: unscrew the 4 Philips head screw with the appropriate screwdriver. Use the supplied Allen key or a thin blade to extract the tweeter. Unsolder the wires. Note that the negative wire (normally black or blue) is connected to the positive lead of the tweeter. This is very important to respect, as we are using a 2nd order Linkwitz-Riley filter.

The original Microphase SAT with the Audax TW51 tweeter

Remove the existing screws with a Philips head screwdriver

Use the Allen key supplied or a thin blade to extract the tweeter

Note that the negative wire (black on this one) is connected to the positive lead of the tweeter.

Unpack the new tweeter and unscrew the cap screws almost entirely and rest the tweeter on them to protect the dome during the rewiring process. Rewire the black wire to the positive terminal of the VIFA (marked in red and the wider one as well) and the yellow wire to the negative terminal. Note that the back of the unit is quite messy as we have chosen to use silicone instead of glue to attach the tweeter to the flange, so you could change it later if you were to blow it...yes, shit happens! Also note that I cannot guarantee that all units are wired with the same colours. Some might be blue and red for instance, but it should be quite obvious.
Once the wiring is done, flip the tweeter over and screw it in place using the Allen key provided. You will have to use some strength about halfway through, as the screw needs to make it way into the timber. The new screws are longer and slightly bigger than the original ones. Be careful not to touch the dome or scratch the timber edge of the boomer baffle. Also, hold on to the Allen key firmly to prevent the very strong magnet to attract the key and possibly crash it on to the dome. If this were to happen, just wait for the dome to come back to its original shape and you should be OK, but don't try your luck unnecessarily! Repeat on the other unit.

The new VIFA tweeter with the cap screws unscrewed but still in place

The new VIFA tweeter rewired. Note the thicker terminal is thicker and has a red mark. It is to be connected to the negative wire coming from the filter

Et voilà! Brand new upgraded Microphase SAT. Enjoy without moderation...

Et voilà! you are ready to listen to your favourite music with renewed interest and a much better pair of Microphase SATs. Our next step will be to upgrade the SWS subwoofer. but in the meantime go to our brand new shop and...

Buy the Microphase SAT upgrade kit

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Metronome Technologie new Kalista Ultimate SE + Nausicaa DAC

November 16, 2013, 11:54 pm

≫ Next: Forget vinyl: Tape is the New Deal

≪ Previous: Microphase upgrade

Metropole Technologie new Kalista Ultimate SE CD player

It is certainly more expensive than my humble OPPO player, and you need to add the Nausicaa DAC and base to do the same things. It will set you back around 100k$, but promises you to be the best, albeit the most expensive, CD player on the Planet. It will certainly qualify as top vintage gear in thirty years time!
I have not had a chance to listen to this newest version, but did listen to the previous incarnation at the Paris Hifi Show and then more privately at Point Musiques. And it did sound fine to me...
Besides whether or not it sounds better than an OPPO or any other high-end player for that matter, you have to recognise Dominique Giner's resilience and perfectionism, as he has been at it since 1987, right at the onset of CDs becoming mainstream. What fascinates me is that he is using some of the same principles as high-end turntables manufacturers, like Clearaudio, or to stay French, Pierre Riffault. All are trying to prevent vibrations to corrupt the fragile signal that is engraved in metallised plastic or vinyl which we entrust to keep a record of our musical endeavours. all rely on mass and precision mechanical engineering to transform an analog signal into music. I hear you say to yourself "but CD is digital". Well, not really...
You see, once the laser picks up the "ones" and "zeros" from the disc, it then transmits an analog signal to the DAC, and the job of the DAC is to accurately transform this signal into a digital word of 16 bits at 44.1KHz sampling rate, or in this particular case, at an upsampled 96KHz. The quality of this original analog signal is linked to the stability of the disc in regard to the laser beam which reads it. The quality of the conversion relies on a very low level of noise in the electronics of the DAC AND a very stable, jitter-free clock. Hence why companies like Antelope use a rubidium clock to drive their DACs and ADCs.
I encourage you to read this article here that will demystify a few generally badly understood facts about CDs.
And we wrongly assume that this has been taken care of properly during the mastering process of the CD.
Nobody ever talks about that though...Hence the reaso why I mention Antelope, as their products are used as ADCs in all good recording and mastering studios around the World. I even know one here in Melbourne...
It is ONE reason why a copy of a CD might sound different from the original, by the way...

Output signal from a typical laser in a CD player

I will leave the last word toJohn Bamford and Paul Miller of Hifi News, who just reviewed the whole system:
"As much works of sculpture as high-end audio components, the Kalista transport and Nausicaa DAC sound as striking as they look. The combo delivers a richly textured and sumptuous sound, with fabulous three dimensionality when playing fine recordings". As Ivor Tiefenbrun would say "garbage in, garbage out"..., so you might have to throw away a few CDs if you can afford this beautiful machine...

↧

Forget vinyl: Tape is the New Deal

December 28, 2013, 3:27 pm

≫ Next: Happy New Year 2014 from Sydney

≪ Previous: Metronome Technologie new Kalista Ultimate SE + Nausicaa DAC

Stellavox SP8 + ABR

I once went into debt to acquire one of these beautiful machines and wish I didn't sell it in the early 80s. At the time, it was still possible to rock up (!) to some concerts, set up a pair of mikes and start recording. Try that today and you will probably thrown out or end up in jail for the night!
There is obviously no better medium that a first or second copy of live or studio recorded material. Proof, if you needed one, is that there a new proliferation of re-releases of master tapes onto Blu-Ray or DVD-A or as 96/24 0r even better, 192/24 digital files, or new pressings of 180g vinyls. The reason is that it is a very good way to get back to the source of the original recording with minimum alterations, and in some cases, with the proper digital processing, an increase of quality on the original, as noise is reduced and various artefacts removed.
For the real aficionado, with some deep pockets preferably, the ultimate treat is to acquire a copy on these master on tape and to play them back on refurbished/upgraded original equipment from the era.
So, as our festive season gift, I thought I would assemble for you a collection of photos of tape recorders gleaned from the web or from my personal collection of photos taken on shows. Both the CES and the RMAF we had a good collection of stands using tapes and tape recorders as their primary source! A sign of the times? I let you be the judge of this...
On a technical side, it is to be noted that most machines were limited to 15kHz bandwidth until the 70s, and we have to credit the Japanese manufacturers to push the boundaries with semi pro machines claiming a bandwidth exceeding 25kHz. Analog tape is also quite forgiving for accepting peak levels without generating too much distortion, then improving dynamic range in the process if managed smarly. Furthermore, the disc cutter had a certain tolerance in pushing the levels into the red just enough to gain a few dBs of dynamic range, without compromising the spacing between adjacent grooves. Kit Lambert, the producer of The Who, was famous for instructing Brian Carroll to "keep the needles in the red" on the VU-meters!

From the US of A

Ampex 8 track recorder used in the making of Tommy by The Who

An 8-track Scully machine in the early 70s. I used to sell these at the time...

From Europe

NAGRA IV-S, the response to Stellavox, once the NAGRA III became somehow obsolete as stereo was taking over mono even for Radio & TV reporting

Great promo photo showing the smaller footprint of the Stellavox and its lightweight construction

Uher: the German competition, used extensively by language labs, schools, and the great majority of amateurs. We had one at Uni that I have often used.

Revox A 700 - the semi pro version of the A77

Revox A77 - Another very successful product

Studer A 800 24 channel pro recorder

Scandinavian beauty from Tandberg

From Japan

SONY

TASCAM

AKAI

TEAC

Rackable Pioneer - found one of these in Melbourne!

The unusual AKAI

The magnificent Technics R1700, six heads and innovative "isolated loop" deemed to reduce wow and flutter. 30 t0 30kHz at 38cm/s!

And from France...

Hencot H67Bc, the French Revox and one of my dreams at the start of my Hifi journey

Schlumberger F500 Broadcast recorder

↧

Happy New Year 2014 from Sydney

December 30, 2013, 8:50 pm

≫ Next: Start 2014 in music and style

≪ Previous: Forget vinyl: Tape is the New Deal

↧

Start 2014 in music and style

January 1, 2014, 2:35 am

≫ Next: The Absolute Sound publishes "Illustrated History of High-End Audio - Loudspeakers"

≪ Previous: Happy New Year 2014 from Sydney

Edison Cylinder player found in an antique shop in Carmel, CA

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The Absolute Sound publishes "Illustrated History of High-End Audio - Loudspeakers"

January 7, 2014, 4:41 pm

≫ Next: German Vintage Hifi - Dual and Braun

≪ Previous: Start 2014 in music and style

And I just received my numbered - 530 - copy today!

It is a beautiful book and I did what we all do, look at the pictures first and read a few articles, before digging deeper into the thick of it!
Only Focal made it to the book in terms of French manufacturers, with a very good interview of Jacques Mahul.
Cabasse is briefly mentioned in the "Oddities and Wonders" section! No trace of Elipson or Charlin, brands that were never exported to the USA and obviously of no or little interest to our American colleagues...
The book focuses mainly on famous American and British brands and is well structured, with many timelines and good stories, some unknown to me, like the fact that Lansing committed suicide over the threat of bankruptcy!

Beautiful photos and archival documents are smartly presented in a dynamic and clean format. I have started reading a few interviews of some of the still alive and famous designers and can't wait to go through all of them!
I will keep you posted on any other anecdote or piece of trivia that I will find interesting over the coming weeks.