A rare Microphase TRITON ACTIVE subwoofer

May 2, 2015, 1:55 am

≫ Next: DEVIALET en force at HIGH END MUNICH

≪ Previous: Come with me to Provence and I may organise an add-on French Vintage Hifi tour of some respected French manufacturers

The Microphase passive SATs owned by new owner of an active TRITON active subwoofer in Belgium

A few years back, this gentleman got in touch with me through the AudioVintage forum. He had bought and restored a pair of passive SATs from Microphase. We talked further about where to find a subwoofer to match. And it just happened that my good friend Pierre Bréart, the happy proprietor of Audio Conseil in Uccle, one of the most respected dealers in Brussels, as well as one of my best dealers at the time, had bought one back from a customer. And I just found out that the two got together and clinched the deal! The power of the internet and social media!

The TRITON active subwoofer at Audio Conseil in Uccle

And now at its new place - at least for the photo

You will find below a few photos of the inside of the beast, including Cabasse 21 cm woofer, modified SAT active amplifier and connectors. And to help this particular fellow and happy new owner of this very rare piece of French Vintage Hifi, I have put together a wiring schematic for his new hybrid system. Very few of these subwoofers were made, so it was quite a surprise for me to find one in such a good condition. When I first got photos from Pierre, I actually didn't remember producing this particular product. So here it is for posterity!

Close up view of the amplifier. Note the screwdriver volume adjustment - hany in a hybrid system...

The 100W amplifier, neatly packed in a small package, as it was originally designed to fit in the SATs

The beautiful 21cm bass driver from Cabasse. Very light and stiff membrane black coated on the outside

And now, the whole system back home and ready to play, but for the appropriate wiring...

Wiring diagram for an hybrid Microphase triphonic system

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DEVIALET en force at HIGH END MUNICH

May 16, 2015, 1:29 am

≫ Next: CLASSIC HIFI | BRITISH & JAPANESE VINTAGE HIFI IN SYDNEY

≪ Previous: A rare Microphase TRITON ACTIVE subwoofer

My friend John Darko from DAR, Digital Audio Review. is reporting from the HIGH END Show in Munich and raves about the PHANTOM and a few other Deviate new gadgets.

READ HIS REVIEW OF DEVIALET IN MUNICH HERE

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CLASSIC HIFI | BRITISH & JAPANESE VINTAGE HIFI IN SYDNEY

August 3, 2015, 7:24 pm

≫ Next: Triangle got a new distributor in Australia: Audio Marketing

≪ Previous: DEVIALET en force at HIGH END MUNICH

Classic Hifi in Newtown - Sydney

I have had the project to write about Classic Hifi for quite a while. The place is usually very busy and it is difficult to browse and take pictures without being in the way of the buying customers.
This shop has been trading for over 13 years and is a temple of British and Japanese vintage hifi mainly. No French products here...
Ian and Peter have been surfing on the vinyl revival wave at this "cosmopolitan" location for 13 years, selling vintage vinyls, turntables, cartridges, amps, receivers and speakers primarily.
Their new apprentice Mitch, was enthralled in conversation with a young lady that day and was more than happy to let me browse the shop as I was uncharacteristically, the only punter that day. It looks like "come and listen to my turntable" has become a successful pick up (sic...) line!

Vintage Duntech playing...amongst good company

Quad preamp and amp - plus classique, tu meurs...

Marantz and Cambridge, iconic pieces

Yamaha turntable and "S" shaped Jelco arm

Probably my favourite turntable of that era from Mitchell, still one of my favourite manufacturer today

Denon icon

A rare "continental" offering from Lenco

All products have been carefully restored or brought back to near mint condition, and this reflects on the prices...but it is all covered by a 3-month warranty and you can actually try everything before you buy. A notch better shopping experience that eBay for sure...
So, don't be shy! Go and have a look and a listen if you live nearby or visit from faraway!

A vintage Hifi reincarnation of an Indian Goddess....

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Triangle got a new distributor in Australia: Audio Marketing

August 22, 2015, 11:16 pm

≫ Next: Triangle chez Len Wallis Audio | Good music meets good French wine

≪ Previous: CLASSIC HIFI | BRITISH & JAPANESE VINTAGE HIFI IN SYDNEY

I have known Renaud de Vergnette, the original founder of Triangle for many decades and although we were competitors at one point, we always had a lot of respect for each other. I have lost track of the new Triangle and their new owner, a former client of Renaud and a wine enthusiast as much if not more than Renaud (and myself....). The fact that Audio Marketing has been appointed as their new Australian distributor as result of Focal deserting them to join the NAIM distributor, and that my long time friend Len Wallis is deeply involved in this venture, we will certainly put together more articles about this long lasting French brand, whose legacy can compare to the Elipson and Cabasse of our Hifi World. Besides, Len is organising a big launch party next Tuesday to which I was duly invited, so you will certainly get a review of this event very soon indeed...And it will feel quite organic then to follow up with a proper monogram on the brand history and product ranges, past and present. In the meantime you can search this blog where you will find scattered information about Triangle. Good reading!

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Triangle chez Len Wallis Audio | Good music meets good French wine

September 6, 2015, 5:00 am

≫ Next: The end of an ERA - Episode 2

≪ Previous: Triangle got a new distributor in Australia: Audio Marketing

Marc Le Bihan, the proud second owner of Triangle

Following up on my previous post, here is a more comprehensive "dossier" on Triangle Loudspeakers and their new distribution in Australia with the big launch at Len Wallis Audio.
You will certainly find information about Triangle scattered through this site, but I have never taken the time to do a proper history and review of this iconic French brand of speakers, up there with the Cabasse and the Focal of this world. So, here it is!

Renaud de Vergnette in the 80s and now with his first two designs, the 1180 and the CX2

Quite an interesting photo, to be compared with the one above... Renaud de Vergnette certainly didn't sell his business to a stranger! These two have been friends and in a client/supplier relationship for a while and their love of music and red wine was certainly the original cement between these two...
I encourage you to read an interview of Renaud on 6moons (link below) where Renaud compares a good speaker to a raw milk camembert and a hifi speaker to a pasteurised one!
I am with him all the way! If there is no emotion, then there is no music and no need to spend a fortune on better cables and other fancy audiophile stuff! Another good comparison here would be Wilson Audio vs Kyron Audio...I let you guess who is using raw milk in their design...
Another thing to be noted from these photos is the obvious influence of Elipson on all of us in France at the time. The CX2 on the left, Renaud second design, is an obvious take on the first Elipson "boule" in an easier to manufacturer cubic enclosure and using the same TW8 tweeter from Addax. (The midrange is also a 21cm from SIARE) and his first model, the 1180 a pint size version of the 4060 with separate subwoofer and time aligned tweeter!

The iconic Elipson speakers from the 1960s! - photo courtesy of www.passion-elipson.com

Renaud de Vergnette has always privileged the quality and extension of the midrange driver in order to achieve best timbre reproduction by the way of linear phase. Until proven otherwise, I still consider this design choice as your first step towards reproducing music, rather than aiming for the best possible frequency response on the spectrum analyser. A good extended midrange driver is your raw milk in the process of producing a speaker for your long term enjoyment!
Then add a baguette and a glass of red wine to complement both sides of the spectrum...

In 1985, Triangle starts producing their own drivers and introduces the Zenith

Two drivers were designed for this speaker, a 17cm midrange and a 21cm woofer. Let's spend some time talking about the midrange: a 95dB/1w/1m design with a pleated suspension and a slightly exponential cone, this driver has an Fs of 70 Hz and reaches 13KHz thanks to a second cone as a dust cap. Reminiscent of a Supravox design, although with a far less exponential cone, it is the engine room of the speaker covering 400z to 11KHz once filtered! Quite an achievement and a guarantee of proper timbre reproduction, high speed transient response and a surprising low distortion kept under 2%. Pour un coup d'essai, ce fut un coup de maitre! . The tweeter from Audax - TW50 takes over from 11KHz, and the 21cm in a bass reflex separate chamber takes care of the signal below 400Hz with a gentle 6dB/oct crossover.

Read the review from 1986 in French here

Fast forward to 2004 and the 2nd generation of the ANTAL, the blueprint for current high end Triangle speakers

The second generation ANTAL uses the new horn tweeter designed in house. The first generation was designed by Thierry Comte, who left Triangle in 2000 to start Atohm, which is now a formidable competitor in the French marketplace, as well as the drivers supplier to Waterfall Audio. This second generation is the blueprint of current designs with multiple drivers (too many???) and the first appearance of the now famous Triangle horn tweeter. Apart from its 98dB efficiency, this new tweeter provides by construction a good time alignment with the midrange.

And now in 2015 chez Len Wallis Audio, the two top of the range Triangle speakers Magellan Concerto & Cello

And yes, there is another taller more expensive speaker in the Magellan range, the Grand Concert, which we didn't get a chance to listen to! Mind you at 55K$, the Magellan Concertos will not be for everyone budget and the Cellos might do the trick at roughly half the price and half the size with still very good specs. The Concertos have a total of 7 drivers, 2 being a second midrange and tweeter at the back to create a more omnidirectional speaker. Effortless comes to mind to describe these speakers, although at times, a trace of sibilance could be heard in the crossover region between the midrange and the horn tweeter. My guess is that the horn tweeter is used too closed to its resonant frequency, but obviously I didn't get a chance to do further tests to confirm my theory. Don't get me wrong though, these are formidable speakers with great imaging and dynamic range, not to mention their very wide bandwidth and transient response, a trademark of Triangle speakers, largely due to their efficiency and the wideband midrange paper cone.

Structure of the Concerto

Rear view of the Concerto

Structure of the Cello

One thing to be noted is the really high standard of the cabinetry, certainly up there with Focal.
The data sheet reveals the crossover frequencies at 300Hz and 2.8KHz, a great departure from the original Zenith. Also, the crossover slopes are at 24dB/oct between the tweeter and midrange, not ideal to keep the phase linear and 12dB in the bass section.

French Saint Emilion wine and British inspired food were served generously throughout the evening , the wine being provided by Marc le Bihan who has a financial interest in that vineyard (and others, I am told...). The main owner, Olivier Decelle, also owns Mas Amiel, a vineyard who once belonged to a cousin of my maternal grandfather, Paul Amiel...I will have to find out more!

A notch down the Magellan series and you get the interesting Signature series which sports Greek Alphabet names. Here the Delta and the Theta. To be noted the double port to the two woofers in separate chambers and another version of the horn tweeter. A good starting point.

Elana 2.5 way brand new speaker from Triangle

These new floor standers in the entry level price of the range have in my opinion the potential to be very good. In that particular occasion, they were paired with a tube amplifier which was obviously not up to the task, and clients wanted to play "Telegraph Road" from Dire Straits at a level that was not suitable to that combination. A shame, as the 2.5 way configuration should result in a great sounding speaker. I shall return and listen again on a different amplifier. This product is not even on the Triangle website, so technical details are scarce at time of printing...

The new Plaisir range, a cheaper version of the Color

The Plaisir range is an entry level home theatre package, based on the Color range but with a cheaper finish - and, my guess, cabinets made in China - but they are a real "pleaser" to listen to, here with Leonard Cohen. His voice was perfectly reproduced and although these speakers are supposed to cut off at 45Hz at -3dB, his voice had the perfect foundation and timbre.
For less than 3000$ for five speakers - 2 floor standers, a central channel and two surrounds, it is certainly worth checking. Full technical details on Len Wallis Audio website, who I shall congratulate for putting together a great evening with Audio Marketing. Check them out!

Check the interview with Renaud de Vergnette

Check the Triangle factory tour

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The end of an ERA - Episode 2

October 3, 2015, 8:43 pm

≫ Next: Audio Reference | Le Son Authentique | from 1975 to 1987

≪ Previous: Triangle chez Len Wallis Audio | Good music meets good French wine

As previously discussed, I have owned an ERA turntable for a few years. In fact, it was my second turntable, after I left home and our DUAL to my sister. ERA was a unique player in the French Hifi landscape of the time. The company started in 1964, and probably lasted until the early 80s. Towards the mid 70s, ERA branched out in making electronics and speakers in an attempt to provide a complete solution to their clients. But their core competency was in designing turntables with the help of Jean-Claude Verdier, not exactly an amateur in the field...

I have just inherited a bunch of documents from Jean-Paul Guy, with a surprise: a complete ERA catalogue from 1974, so I thought I would scan it for you and for posterity. Merck JP!

Who else than a much younger Paul Bocuse could be the quintessential French person to promote a French product?

My second turntable in the early 70s

The same but "sans bras"

Getting up in the World! S shaped arm with virtual pivot

ERA 6066 - with automatic start/stop and still virtual pivot

ERA 3033 - Top of the rang, but with a more traditional bearing arm

Bloc Quarante - A fabulous product

ERA ST50 Amplifier

ERA ST70 Amplifier - more muscle

ERA TS2 tuner

ERA loudspeakers - a series of three models

ERA - Curated Press Review

If you own or have owned an ERA turntable or any of these products, I would like you to send us your story and some photos to complement this story. Thank you in advance!

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Audio Reference | Le Son Authentique | from 1975 to 1987

November 7, 2015, 9:13 pm

≫ Next: DEVIALET PHANTOM | French Vintage Hifi in 30 years time!

≪ Previous: The end of an ERA - Episode 2

A reader from the Netherlands who owns a pair of these speakers, and a talented architect, triggered several weeks of research and accumulation of documents, reading of forums entries to try to tell the story of this iconic brand of French speakers active for 15 years or so...
I have to credit again cabinetmaker extraordinaire Jean-Paul Guy for sending me his complete file, including original drawings and hand-written notes from Jean-Claude Fourrière, the founder.
Dear readers, this is all pre-CAD, email and Internet. We didn't have mobile phones, and most communications were via landlines and fax machines, or slow mail...
Just that alone meant that it took time to get anything done, and mistakes were costly, very...

So, with that sort of documentation, producing anything to the standard that GUY HF was producing at the time is a near miracle, and it is a tribute to Jean-Paul that the results were always far superior than these drawings suggest. Here is a copy of the 1985 catalogue

Audio Reference Speakers - 1985 Catalogue

But the story starts 10 years earlier when Jean-Claude Fourrière is approached by DECCA to design a monitor loudspeaker using the legendary ribbon tweeter developed by Stanley Kelly. And we don't know how that happened...
In most loudspeaker systems the Deccas were used in a passive configuration Later he developed the ALH full range plasma loudspeakers.) Fourrière used the Decca London Ribbon from 2000 Hz. Decca Special Products in England authorized him to use the denomination DECCA and he named his creation Decca AL2000. It was a 3-way system with complementing units from Audax (HD24 and HIF13). He also designed a 2-way system at the time: DECCA AL1500 with crossover frequency of 1500 Hz. The panels of the cabinets were heavily damped with sheets of lead. Photos below courtesy of www.soundfountain.com

From that same website, I made the extraordinary discovery that this ribbon tweeter could be compared in performance, and particular high frequency extension to the ubiquitous and far less expensive AUDAX TW8, which Elipson used on their "boules" and that I used in my very first design in 1971, as did Renaud de Vergnette in his first commercial Triangle speaker!

Audax TW8 super tweeter good to 40kHz

Audax TW8 super tweeter data sheet - good to 40kHz

Jean-Claude Fourrière on the tools - on the Hewlett-Packard tools that is... circa 1980

What triggered this article as mentioned before, was an email from Jan H. who asked me to help him identify a pair of Audio Reference speakers he owns and to find out some specifications.
He ended up sending me a number of great photos that he has given permission to share with you, you insatiable lot of hifi nerds and loyal readers of this blog!

An early version of the REF 65 with a paper cone lower midrange. Later versions use a SEAS Dome

The difficulty in identifying these vintage speakers comes from the fact that these small manufacturers were changing their configuration often without changing the model number!
This is a perfect example, as the REF 65 in the catalogue above shows both midrange drivers as domes (from SEAS), but this early version (my guess...) uses a MP14RCY from SEAS polypropylene cone. This, I believe, would have been a lot easier to crossover to the 24cm from Audax in the separate but integrated subwoofer. I have personally experimented at the time with a Dynaudio dome midrange and found it very difficult to use for that reason (and I have never been a great fan of Dynaudio drivers, or finished speakers for that matter...)

D25This midrange crosses over to two Audax tweeters, the very reputable HD100D25 and TW74, a larger flange version of the famous TW51, described as a super tweeter...and also used by Confluence on their Cantilene, and by myself on the Microphase SAT and many other manufacturers. Audax at that time was producing 10,000 units a day! mainly for TV sets.

The bass section is handled by a MHD24 from Audax in a separate enclosure, acting as a bass-reflex loaded subwoofer down to 35Hz. The entire speaker is deemed to go up to 26 kHz!

I couldn't resist editing this much larger photo down to a very Dutch setting: Coffee and woofer on the stove...

On this model, the 50mm plinth has obviously been removed and spikes installed

Obviously, with four drivers to take care of, the crossover needs to be quite a complex affair. We would certainly try not to use electrolytic capacitors in a modern design, but technically when they are used in the low pass section, they are not in the signal path and therefore should not have an influence on the quality. However, 30 years later, I would replace these capacitors by a Mundorf or equivalent, just because they are probably not 12 uF anymore and their leakage would be significant and that would move the crossover frequency significantly. All other components are of quite good quality for the time and should still be fine.
Although we do not have the value of all components, reverse engineering from the capacitors values and the frequency response of the drivers suggest crossover frequencies of 300 Hz for the woofer at 12dB/oct, 2000 Hz for the midrange and the HD100 at 12dB/oct, then around 4.5Khz for the TW74 at 6dB/oct. Various other resistors and capacitors may have been used to adjust levels and impedance compensation on the TH74, a good way to get reed of a nasty resonance. We might do some more research to clarify, or if somebody has the schematics, then we would be sorted...
I do not have a review of that speaker, although I have a number of them for other speakers in the range, which I will publish in a second episode to be published in the coming weeks.

The mighty crossover for the REF 65

In conclusion, Jean-Claude Fourrière was an inventor and a nuclear scientist, and he eventually went broke trying to design a commercially viable plasma headphone and full range speaker, the AHL Toltèque, which also had the benefit of being an open baffle design. Although he got some subsidies from ANVAR, the innovation French body, the product was too difficult to manufacture and the price made it very difficult to afford. Having said that, in his heydays, he had almost a hundred retailers throughout France and was doing quite well exporting to Europe and America.

The AHL Toltèque, the last baby of Jean-Clade Fourrière

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DEVIALET PHANTOM | French Vintage Hifi in 30 years time!

November 14, 2015, 11:59 pm

≫ Next: Salon Haute-Fidélité Paris November 2015

≪ Previous: Audio Reference | Le Son Authentique | from 1975 to 1987

Devialet is French for Audio Innovation in this new century. Their amplifiers have commanded rave reviews even from not so francophile reviewer and friend Ken Kessler, more a Dan d"Agostino fan than any French contraption, specially involving Class D and all sorts of digital gimmicks! Deviate strikes again with the ultimate boom box aptly named Phantom which just landed in Australia, "10 minutes by Tractor" from home at Len Wallis Audio. (For those of you who follow my food and wine adventures on my other blog, you will now that this is the name of one of my rare favourite winery in Australia...)
In one word (or two...) it is not short of sensational! The midrange and tweeter are very similar in concept to Cabasse "La Sphere" although much smaller. The time alignment is taken care of within the sophisticated electronics built in the very heavy armoured cabinet, and this part of the spectrum is amazingly clear and neutral, much more accurate and with a lot less distortion than its Cabasse Big Brother! When it comes to the bass section, one is fooled into believing it is near perfect because one gets mesmerised by the sheer beauty of the movement of the twin woofers on each side of the "object" and the significant amount and extension of bass this thing generates! Devialet claims a 16 Hz bottom end. I was not in a position to check on site, but this contraption does move a lot of air! If you read the specs carefully though, it say that at higher volume the bandwidth is reduced to 49 Hz because the driver would probably destroy itself tryingg to move that much air at a lower frequency.
The specification claims that the distortion is below 0.001%, but I doubt this true across the whole frequency range... More on this later!
The only way to feed the beast is via Bluetooth and an app on your iThing called Spark which in turn gets fed by Tidal or Qobuz or anything that can stream 44khz/16 bits or up to 192kHz/24bits. You can also connect it to your network via the Ethernet port or to your OPPO player via optical link.
Two versions are available, one delivering 750W peak and the other one 3000W!. These numbers are to be taken with a grain of salt though, as they represent the amount of power the electronics are capable of delivering. As there is NO specification of efficiency, it is difficult to know how much acoustic power is really available. However, this plays very loud indeed, to the point that I could not really hear another pair of speakers I was evaluating in an adjacent room with the door duly closed when the Phantom was playing!
As I have said before, I think to midrange and tweeter are near perfect, but what about the bass? Where is the trick? Look at this video first and then I will attempt to answer that question.

Apologies for the orientation, I should have shot this video in landscape on my iPhone!
The important information is there anyway and I will reshoot soon in the proper format.
What strike me with the bass drivers is that, although they can move a lot, the return to the rest position seems to be lagging a lot, making me question the low distortion figure...
Don't get me wrong, this is an extraordinary piece of audio and electronic engineering, well worth all the virtual ink it has generated and all the money you would spend on it!
And it gets better, as you can use 2 or more of these beats to go stereo or multiform, with its ability to synchronise within 20 microseconds! That f....g quick my friends!

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Salon Haute-Fidélité Paris November 2015

December 12, 2015, 12:49 am

≫ Next: BREAKING NEWS : DEVIALET PHANTOM IN 15 APPLE US STORES

≪ Previous: DEVIALET PHANTOM | French Vintage Hifi in 30 years time!

Paris Marriott Rive Gauche - The venue for the Paris Salon de la Haute Fidélité - Photo courtesy of Brian Zulaikha

The iconic venue, known originally as the PLM Saint Jacques, was built in 1972 and designed by Pierre Guidicelli. It has been home to numerous Hifi Shows and the last one on November 21st and 22nd. I sent my own reporter in the person of Jean-Paul Guy, owner of GUY H.F. and speaker manufacturer extraordinaire for decades. He was kind enough to take photos of what he thought interesting and added a few notes that I will post here 'en anglais', lucky readers!

The newly relaunched BS50 from Elipson

And no, Elipson was not there, as they had chosen to exhibit at the the other Hifi Show organised by Jean-Marie Hubert a few weeks before. But you know my passion for Elipson...
The "cloud du Salon" was in fact Deviate with their fabulous amplifiers but mainly for JPG and myself, the Phantom speaker! Jean-Paul has actually revealed to me that our other friend Philippe Lesage, ex Technical Director of Addax when I first met him and now director and owner of PHL Audio was heavily involved in the design of the bass drivers. He was also involved in the design of the drivers for the 4260 Elipson a few years back and in the design of my main driver for Microphase, an enhanced version of the MHD10. Mr Legorgu, Director of Addax at the time said to Jean-Paul: "I have just hired a savant!". Not a small token of appreciation! Philippe actually took over from Jacques Mahul, who didn't do too badly either after leaving Audax...
I have recently posted about my first experience with the Phantom, and interestingly enough Jean-Paul have a similar conclusion saying this might be the end of the Utopias, Wilson Audio and other big contraptions. He is also mentioning the reference to Cabasse with the same comment i-e, this works!

One of the Deviate engineer explains the Phantom to a fascinated audience

I will continue with other French products like LEEDH, the amazing small speakers designed by Gilles Milot, another ex-Audax engineer, by the way...Jean-Paul, who is an art lover and connoisseur, calls him the "Giacometti" of the speakers. You can find more information about Gilles Milot and his speakers elsewhere on this blog. Since my last encounter, Gilles Milot has developed a matching subwoofer. There are obviously similarities in the design intent with the Deviate phantom, although this one is passive for the satellites, but active via a traditional amplifier for the subwoofer.

The complete system with two LEEDH E2 and the new subwoofer 20.1

.This new subwoofer is based on the isobaric principle popularised by Linn decades ago. Here two 23cm drivers face each other in a 16L enclosure (Atohm LD23CR08) and two Pro Audax 38cm (AAC PR38T0). A two-channel 300w plate amplifier also from Atohm drives the woofers and gives the system the efficiency and the low end of 20 Hz at -1dB (to be compared to the 16Hz of the Phantoms). The main benefit of using this subwoofer with the E2 is to relieve them from trying too hard to move air to reach down to 50Hz, giving the whole system breathing space. If you read French, then I recommend you read the review on EVMAG here

Triangle and Atoll, a perfect match? The look seems inspired by YBA or is it the other way around?

The amazing range of speakers from Ocellia, one of my favourite speakers

The usual suspects were also there as in Focal presenting the new SOPRA, an avatar of the Utopias driven by Octave Audio amplifiers, PE Leon using YBA amplifiers and Davis Acoustics still pushing the Karla, one of their best design ever.

Octave Audio amplifier on the Focal stand

The Davis Acoustics stand - photo courtesy of "L'Audio Experience"

There was also an interesting contingent from our British friends who crossed the Channel for the occasion... B&W were presenting the famous Nautilus, and the new 802 D3 with amplification from Classé Audio and Devialet, KEF with the Blade 2 and Pass Labs amplifiers (not for the faint hearted...)

B&W Nautilus and Deviate, a mighty combinaison!

And the new 802 D3 driven by Classé Audio

I couldn't resist sharing this video with you...It will save you the time to search for it!

KEF Blade 2 driven by Pass Labs amplifier

Avantgarde speakers...The Germand are the kings of Horns!

The Translator turntable from Germany

This is by no means exhaustive and I have to say a "grand mercy" to Jean-Paul Guy who went to Paris from his sleepy village of Bourbon-Lancy specially for the occasion, at a time where most Parisians were staying indoors after the terrorists attacks. Well done my friend!

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BREAKING NEWS : DEVIALET PHANTOM IN 15 APPLE US STORES

December 18, 2015, 9:03 pm

≫ Next: Come with me to Provence in May 2016 for a gourmet tour!

≪ Previous: Salon Haute-Fidélité Paris November 2015

This is great news as it will eventually trickle down to every Apple store around the World if the sales are there obviously. Apple already sells a number of "bluetooth" speakers in their stores. This is would be the most upmarket product both in price and performance. So bravo à route l'équipe Deviate. Another information contained in this article is that the Phantom is actually manufactured in Monceau-les-Mines, by a company called Eolane Monceau which also build a tablet for schools called Qooq. French technology at its best!

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Come with me to Provence in May 2016 for a gourmet tour!

January 16, 2016, 10:18 pm

≫ Next: Devialet, you've done it again!

≪ Previous: BREAKING NEWS : DEVIALET PHANTOM IN 15 APPLE US STORES

Many of you would be aware that I run another blog which is all about my passion for food, wine and cooking. What you might not know is that I organise gourmet tours of Provence for a small group of 12 people with five star prestations and accommodation all included. The next trip starts on May 14th in Avignon and we still have a few spots lefts, so we are keen to have you fellow audiophiles joining me and my wife for a week of indulgence and discovery of all the delights that Provence has to offer. My mother's side of the family is from Provence and I obviously have a very sound and intimate knowledge of the place. My credentials as a cook and a gourmet are amply documented on my blog and my wife has been organising VIP and professional tours for a number of years, including bringing Concorde to Australia with Bouygues/TF1 guests on board! So you are in good hands…
Some of you may have picked that the dates of this trip follow closely the High End Fair in Munich that I will be attending. So, if enough people are interested, we could meet there and/or organize an audiophile tour of some of my favourite speaker manufacturers and vintage hifi dealers on the way to Avignon.
How does that sound? Interested?
Then visit www.ourfrenchimpressions.com for details.

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Devialet, you've done it again!

January 25, 2016, 5:43 pm

≫ Next: My visit to the Devialet showroom in Paris

≪ Previous: Come with me to Provence in May 2016 for a gourmet tour!

Equivoque by Phantom from Devialet on Vimeo.

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My visit to the Devialet showroom in Paris

May 28, 2016, 11:58 pm

≫ Next: AW Audio update - PA12 tripes revealed

≪ Previous: Devialet, you've done it again!

The Devialet Showroom in Paris

I finally made it! I had planned to spend a few days in Paris before heading to the West Coast to meet with my family there and some of that time was going to be dedicated to my HiFi freakiness! It started very well with a lunch with Jean-Paul Guy, just a few hours after landing from Australia and a visit to Presence Audio Conseil, one of the top dealers in the City of Lights. But first thing, first on the Monday morning (after a pit stop at arguably the best boulangerie in town, Du Pain et des Idées, for the the flakiest croissant ever!) I took the metro to the Sentier station and here it was, a few meters away in a magnificent late 19th century building that took part in the 1898 facades' contest, hosting the whole company from showroom on the ground floor to offices and R&D on the other floors.

The Expert amplifier side of the showroom

On the pedestal! Phantom speaker and Expert amplifier

The Phantom side of the showroom

It is a very big space, very confutable with the highest quality fittings and finishes, thanks to some famous investors money... The main space is dedicated to static displays of the products and a demo space for the Phantoms in stereo together with a very big screen advertising the company's technological breakthroughs and main features.
The demo itself is completely based on Tidal running on an iPad and feeding the Phantoms via Bluetooth. Difficult to be simpler and at about A$7,700 including a free subscription to Tidal for a year, it would be hard to assemble a separate components system to match the sonic result...

I had listened to a single Phantom at Len Wallis Audio a few months back and was suitably impressed! But the stereo experience is ten times better, as you suddenly can appreciate the polar response of what is essentially a compact Cabasse Sphere (at a fraction of the price...)
Tidal had all my favourite test songs in store, so I could fully investigate these revolutionary speakers. For the first time also, I had a chance to look at the guts of the beast and that was another good surprise - although I was not expecting to be disappointed. This product is highly sophisticated inside and outside, using the best electronic and mechanical design tools and manufacturing techniques available today.

The Phantom tripes revealed

The right side of the Phantom with bass driver removed

The left side of the Phantom with the bass driver removed

Obviously, the bass driver assembly is the talk of the town here, and even if I still not sure I can trust the distortion figures in the very low part of the spectrum, I have to acknowledge here the fabulous work of Philippe Lesage, ex-Audax Technical Director and founder of renowned pro audio drivers manufacturer PHL Audio. The principle is derived from the Bruel & Kjaer vibrating pot but that's about it in terms of inspiration. The rest is pure mechanical and electronic genius!
If I were a 30 something young executive today, I would certainly buy a pair and be content with it. If I were the same hifi freak as I am, then I would also consider moving up to the Expert amplifier and a pair of SAM compliant speakers...and that was the second part of my demo time there...

Out of 5 or 6 pairs of very good loudspeakers, it just happened that these beautiful Sonus Faber columns were wired in, so I decided these would be good enough for our experiment. Now, we are talking 5 to 6 times the price of the Phantoms, as you will need two Expert amplifiersapnd the speakers... And its shows or rather it sounds!

Some of the speakers SAM ready

The specifications are astonishing as per below, to be compared to the latest Bryston 4B cubed amplifier (my reference...)

Harmonic Distortion: ≤.005% from 20Hz to 20kHz at 300W
Noise below full output: -110dB single ended, -113dB balanced

The amazing specifications of the Devialet Expert amplifier

Whether or not, one can hear the difference is a matter for further discussion, but Devialet has another weapon of sonic construction with their SAM software which basically digitally corrects some of the imperfections of your speakers (645 of them at last count, quite a choice by anybody's standard!). The Sonus Faber are already a very fine set of speakers out of the box, but SAM gives them another level of transparency and smoothness.
Another impressive feature of the Expert is in the range of inputs available from turntable (and precise matching of almost any cartridge...), any line source, bluetooth, NAS or streaming services...
Our friend Ken Kessler, of HIFI News fame, who is not famous for being Francophile when it comes to Hifi is a fan. That says a lot!
I had a great time and I was looked after very well by a quite knowledgeable young man. He promised to send me more technical information, but in typical French fashion, I have not heard from him yet... I will keep you posted with an update when I receive his correspondence.
So, if you are in Paris, spare the time to visit: it is well worth your time!

↧

AW Audio update - PA12 tripes revealed

July 8, 2016, 11:09 pm

≫ Next: StereoNet International HiFi Show - Melbourne - July 1st/3rd 2016

≪ Previous: My visit to the Devialet showroom in Paris

Many of you will remember my great appreciation of these electrodynamic panels created in the 80s by my long term friend Alain Wacquet. From time to time, some of my loyal readers take the time to write to me and contribute more information on the products I have featured here over the years (more than 6, as of today, not that I am counting...)
And it was the case recently when fellow audiophile Raymont L. who owns some of these panels himself and a great fan, found this article on the forum Vintage Audio Laser.
I don't know the people behind these entries, but theyr nicknames are "zolbergue" and "aerosteph" respectively. If you guys want to make contact, you are welcome!
The article gives a rave review of the PA12 as per photo on different sorts of music, and concludes, rightly so, that these panels are particularly well suited to small jazz ensembles.
So surprises for me though, as Alain is himself a musician and loves that sort of music. He used to delight us with lovely percussions, saxophones and piano pieces, the core of the modern jazz repertoire. He definitely is responsible for my love of Bill Evans in particular!
What the article reveals for what I think is the firs time ever, is the actual configuration of the drivers, a week kept secret up until now, even for myself. I have gathered somehow the gist of the design (see my previous article" but Alain has never revealed the details even to me so far...

So here it is in all its vintage splendour! And yes, it uses an inverted kevlar dome tweeter from Focal and 8 almost identical drivers from Audax, the upper ones being dedicated to the midrange and slightly treated as the photo reveals. It would be great to get a close up, but I do not have one...yet!. One can also see the 5KHz crossover at the bottom (no, these are not extra tweeters, but inductors....). All these drivers give to the panel its efficiency, power handling and transient response. Also, being a line array, it provides a very cylindrical polar response, hence the amazing and very stable soundstage and presence.

And finally, one can find at the back of the panel in a separate box, the baffle compensation crossover, indispensable to counteract the dipole effect of any open baffle speaker.
Some people, like Kyron Audio, choose to do this compensation electronically, but the beaty of this design is that it works beautiful as an entirely passive, and still very efficient at 91dB/1w/m, panel. Well done Alain! We love your work and wished you had continued a tad longer...
PS: all photos courtesy of Vintage Audio Laser Forum
For my French readers, here is the link to the original post on the forum

Get to the original French post

↧

StereoNet International HiFi Show - Melbourne - July 1st/3rd 2016

July 9, 2016, 1:49 am

≫ Next: SCIENTELEC | A forgotten gem?

≪ Previous: AW Audio update - PA12 tripes revealed

It takes balls, resilience and determination to take on a big multinational press group and organise your own local HiFi Show. Not only Marc Ruston of StereoNet fame has these qualities, but on top, he made a success of the event. Well done Marc!

My well worn program

It is not a big show by any measure, but to be able to pull out about 40 companies representing not far from 200 brands, mostly famous, but with some more esoteric gear thrown in, I really enjoyed visiting the show, meeting people I knew, and newcomers, as well as talking to a fair number of visitors and listening to some amazing systems and music bien sûr...
There was obviously a plethora of turntables, even though digital files were never far away. One wealthy distributor had even brought his own Studer pro tape machine to play first copies of master acquired through very special connections. A treat!
I missed my friends from Bryston, Kyron Audio and Brigadier Audio, but the last two had just broken the piggy bank to attend the Newport Hifi Show in the US of A, a show with a lot more exposure for their very special speakers indeed...
There was, surprinsigly, only a handful of Australian manufacturers, and I was the only French thing in sight, besides a static display of Cabasse speakers and Audio Aero imported by Osborn.

Cabasse - The only French thing in sight besides this journo...

So, let's start with these Aussie legends!

Holton Precision Audio - Ex Nihilo Amplifier - Tasmania

Holton Precision Audio from Tasmania giving Dan D'Agostino a run for his money!

Anthony Holton is a serious person when it comes to designing amplifiers - he has been doing for 20 years - and it shows. This new Ex Nihilo monster is just that, the result of doing table rase of previous designs and starting with a blank sheet of paper and giving himself carte blanche in terms of budget and the sky is no limits specifications. By the way, Anthony is one of the rare amp manufacturer to specify slew rate, the most important parameter in my view, as it will give you a good idea of the transient response of this piece of electronics.
And it is beautiful too, the chassis being machined in Switzerland, a country that has produced other fabulous sound machines like Stellavox or Nagra, not to mention Goldmund, Alumine and a few others..
We were treated to listening to these beauties (it takes two to tango...) on some open baffle speakers from Israel, Pure Audio Project. See below for my take on these speakers.

Richter Acoustics

Richter Audio valve Class A amp The Sorcerer and Mentor V speaker designed by legend Brad Serhan

Top of the range Richter speakers Dragon V

Osborn Loudspeakers

Osborn makes almost French speakers, using a lot of Focal drivers and interestingly enough manage to get a much more lively and interesting result at a tenth of the price of the Grande Utopia using most of the same drivers! The cabinets are magnificently crafted without shouting "Look at me".. Interestingly enough, Greg Osborn also imports French electronics from Audio Aero.
Quoting his website here says it all and certainly reflects my opinion:
"After several years of experimentation the Mark 1 Epitome was born. This speaker easily eclipsed the best of the references used in their design and they captured the heart and soul of those that heard them. The same ideals are reflected in the present generation of speakers where each instrument is separated from the next and operates in its own acoustic space. They have spectacular dynamic range with no dynamic compression and awesome bass response, so that the potential power of the orchestra can be sensed by the listener even during quiet passages. Osborn Loudspeakers put back what has been missing from reproduced music: life, excitement and satisfaction.
Although the three larger models epitomize the designers goals, he at least appreciates that people live in real houses and usually have real wives who can see no reason why the living room should be dominated by something as imposing as the Monuments or the Epitomes. The Eclipse was the major attempt to bridge the two ideals. It is large enough to be able to reproduce deep bass and it is lightning fast, with a sound out of all proportions to its size."

VAF Research speakers

One of the biggest rooms at the Show - VAF Research

I like Philip Vafiadis, i like the man, his enthusiasm, his dedication...and his speakers. And I suppose their trademark is the consistency across the whole range from the tiny i(0 to the towering i93 shown above. And I hear him saying "Darling I shrieked the i90..." as there is now an even smaller version of the i90, the149! You can stop this guy and that's fine with me!

The VAF "babies"

Big crowds for a big VAF display

As they say "God is in the details" and it shows on the VAF Signature i93

Wyndham Audio

Wyndham Audio makes more traditional speakers, but I was really interested in listening to folded horn single driver design. There is a fine line between transmission line and folded horn, but we will leave that discussion to the experts... This implementation of the concept, based on a single Fostx 108 full range driver was a delight to listen to. Single driver designs give the best phase and with a very high efficiency, the Fostex gives great slew rate and timbre accuracy. Au external baffle compensation filter gives the system the extra bass required together with the folded horn. Quite impressive result in a very spouse friendly package...

And now let's have a look at the foreign contingent...

Avantgarde Acoustic

The "radically simple" Zero 1 from Avantgarde

Well, if you are a regular reader, you will know I like horns and Avantgarde's in particular. So I was pretty keen to get a listen to this "tout en un" system, not dissimilar in concept to Kyron Audio, just a hornier version...
The room set up was no ideal, as I think the speakers were too far apart to produce the kind of image these type of speakers are capable of. But,eh, every exhibitor had some of the same problem. After must tergiversations, we finally managed to plug my famous USB stick in the system and play these percussions from Jean-Pierre Drouet, one of my definite test.
It played quite well, maybe not as accurately as the Kronos from Kyron Audio, but still very realistic with good timing and slew rate, but the timbres were not as precisely rendered.
Mind you, these are also a lot less expensive that the Kronos... Great looking speakers!

German Physics, Ypsilon electronics and Studer tape machine

Telos Distribution are very good at showing their very expensive but magnificent products.
Ypsilon and German Physics need no introduction and we have covered them before on this blog. I like these german speakers much better than their MBL "cousins".
Fed by either first copies of master tapes running on the Studer or from the Spiral Grove turntable, the result was some of the finest listening sessions of classical music or jazz at the Show. I did spend an inordinate amount of time there, just because I could...

PureAudioProject - Open Baffle in kit form (almost...)

The PureAudioProject Open Baffle speakers from Israel

This was the best surprise of the Show. I am a bit of a fan of Open Baffle speakers, as you have probably noticed if you are a loyal reader... The small version called the Trio 15 got my vote (well it was Election Day in Australia on that Saturday...) and with two 15"/38cm woofers from Eminence and the famous Voxativ full range driver in a d'Appolito arrangement, a complex and high quality Leonidas crossover (and we are not talking Belgian chocolates here...), the result was not short of spectacular... Mind you, with two mono blocs of power from Holton, there was plenty of juice to drive these beauties designed in Israel.
One interesting thing is that they are shipped flat packed and ready to assemble by the end-user, IKEA like. They are also very affordable, in the same price range as the now famous Emerald Physics from the US of A.
Curiously, I was far less impressed by the "grand modèle" using Morel drivers (also from Israel).
I thought they sounded more brittle and the timbres were not accurately reproduced. Unfortunately there was no possibility to plug my now (in)famous USB stick, so I could not test them with material I knew intimately. These larger speakers are not on their website yet, so let's give them the benefit of the doubt and consider them at prototypes for the moment.

Harbeth - Un grand classique

The quintessential British design originating from extensive research by the BBC and now with a new bass/midrange driver developed in house. Refined sound, very polite and accurate, great to listen to classical music, but maybe a tad restrained when it comes to more modern repertoire.
The construction, manufacturing and finish is outstanding although very dated in terms of look, a real vintage winner with a modern twist.

A couple of electronics from the USA and China

Bricasti Design - USA

Brian Zoner, one of the founder of Bricasti Design

Like Bryston, (you know, my favourite brand of amplifiers...) Bricasti started in pro audio and still get the bulk of their business from recording artists and studios, but with the introduction of the m1 DAC/preamp and M@* mono blocs , the consumer market was within reach.
Brian travels the World to show his wares with his own pair of speakers (Accuton) and his demos are some of the best you can get as he not only knows his gear, but his music as well.
I have never heard them before and it was quite a revelation. Besides Brian looks and talks like an HP engineer, so we got along just fine... I was expecting Siegfried Linkwitz to walk in any minute...
You should visit their website, as there a number of interviews of pro users raving not only about the sonic qualities of these electronics, but also about the care taken in their manufacturing!

Melody - China

The Melody valve electronics driving a pair of JBL speakers

Pardon my ignorance, but I had never heard of Melody... And that is a shame, because these people craft some of the most amazing looking valve electronics I have ever seen. The quality of the finished product rivals my all time favourite Allnic.
Unfortunately, the Chinese music being played almost exclusively was not familiar or should I dare say enjoyable to be able to give them a fair judgement and hopefully I will have a chance one day to listen to them on material that I know. Just from the manufacturing quality and aesthetics point of view, they certainly look the part and I expect them to perform accordingly!

A diarrhoea of turntables from all over the World

Acoustic Signature

Acoustic Signature Storm MK2 turntable with two motors

Acoustic Signature makes a dozen different turntables, various tone arms and phono amps, built in Germany, with a little resemblance to Clearaudio at times. Well designed and beautifully crafted, they are objets d'art as much as turntables. And not all will break the piggy bank...

Acoustic Signature WOW XXL turntable

More turntables...

Kozma turntable with cute active monitors Musikelectronic Geithain’s RL 906, about 5k$ a pair

The new "baby" TechDAS

So, in conclusion, this was a great show and it was well organised and attended. We will be waiting for the Sydney event in March 2017. Well done Marc Rushton!

↧

SCIENTELEC | A forgotten gem?

August 27, 2016, 10:58 pm

≫ Next: More of AW Audio - a guest post by Raymond Lerat

≪ Previous: StereoNet International HiFi Show - Melbourne - July 1st/3rd 2016

Advertising for Scientelec circa 1979

I was at university when Scientelec was the go to brand for cashless students like me. They were primarily sold via people like Cibot Radio (Paris 12ème) and some of their amplifiers were available in kit form, which made them even more affordable. Some would say that the good look of the products were hiding a not so upmarket performance... But, in fact some of the products were really good for the time and they also made an interesting turntable, which by many aspects, seemed to have been inspired by ERA (designed by the famous JC Verdier...).
Way before the internet (which turned 25 this month btw...) .
Very little information is available online, and after trawling all my forums and various vintage hifi vendors, I have compiled here a few photos to give you a glimpse of what the product range was about. Created in 1968, the company went bankrupt in 1980 and the founder ended up behind bars, a rare thing at the time for such a small business...
Photos courtesy of Audio Vintage Forum, Hifi Antique and Hifi Vintage Audiophile.

Scientelec Tripode turntable

Detail of the unipivot curved arm, a difficult concept to implement

Scientelec Integrale, a very similar concept to the ERA QUARANTE

Not a Bryston, but a very capable small integrated amplifier Scientelec Elyse EM-15-8

Scientelec MA-2 Amplifier

Scientelec Big Brother Mach A 50 amplifier

Orange was very fashionable at the time....

Interesting speakers and electronics from Scientelec

Omnidirectional speakers from Scienteler, using the famous Audac TW8 aluminium tweeter

ERA 444 turntable for reference... My second turntable

The ERA Quarante integrated hifi system

↧

More of AW Audio - a guest post by Raymond Lerat

October 2, 2016, 11:24 pm

≫ Next: A new beginning for Microphase...

≪ Previous: SCIENTELEC | A forgotten gem?

AW Audio electrodynamic panels EA12 chez Raymond Lerat

I have been communicating with Raymond for quite some time as he is the lucky owner of a pair of EA12 from my friend and fellow speaker designer Alain Wacquet. Raymond has also been helpful in providing information for my article on Confluence.
He has just posted a comprehensive review of these fabulous speakers on the forum Audio Vintage and has kindly given permission to rewrite and translate his prose in English here.

For those of you who read French and want to read the original post, here is the link:
http://www.audiovintage.fr/leforum/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=56039

My notes are in italics in the text below

EA12 presentation by Raymond Lerat - The English version

Raymond Lerat had the pleasure to meet with Alain Wacquet in Nancy chez Audio Video Son in the mid 80s. He found him affable and full of humour with a smile on his face, and passionate about music with a penchant for jazz, and a composer himself, up to this day where he indulges in more esoteric compositions with prepared instruments and noises. He was born near Lille in the Northern part of France, close to the Belgium border. (This is where I met Alain...)

Raymond first interest in presenting these panels to the Forum was to gauge the level of knowledge, interest and exposure that the members of the forum might have with this confidential range of vintage speakers from the early 80s.
Raymond notes that all people he knows who have been exposed to AW speakers were all enthusiastic about them, specially when reproducing jazz ensembles and small classical formations where they excel.
Their main characteristic been described as "energetic", with a real sense of "beeing in the room" and with perfect imaging and spatialisation.
All reports written over the 10 years of research by Raymond have all returned an "enthusiastic" response.
The way Raymond describes his first encounter with AW Audio fells short of a "love at first sight" declaration, but like often, the object of ditto love seems unreachable financially and is left confined to the realm of dreaming...until such a time where it suddenly becomes accessible.

Raymond goes on to describing various experiences with other panels, like Magnepan, Stax, Audiostatic and Quad, products which were not lacking in anything, but which would actually add undesirable things, in his opinion.

With Magnepan for instance at the time, the image of a piano might have been stretched to 15m or so, within an orchestra which would feel like 20m wide, so the proportions of the sonic image was distorted. Inadequate dynamic range, lack of the bottom octaves, short circuit between front and back fields made it near impossible to position the panels for the best results in a given space.

Lansing Trimline, DCM Time Frame, Carver in the US, Phonophone, Triangle in France have tried to use electrodynamic drivers to design such a type of speaker with various degrees of acoustic success, but no commercial one.
Alain Wacquet managed to stay in business for over 10 years, while producing a "haute couture" type of product, made by hand, with love and exceptional craftsmanship, hence expensive.

The objectives and typical qualities of an electrodynamic panel are a credible horizontal and vertical image, with a cylindrical polar response, providing a stable, accurate and homogenous response and image.

The impulse response - slew rate - will have to be exceptional, vastly superior to any other system, with a very good reproduction of timbres, the hallmarks of an acoustic doublet system.
The use of a linear array of mostly identical small full range drivers will provide such result if they are correctly implemented. If not, the result will be like a "sonic porridge" as Raymond nicely puts it.

NOTE: I have found this measurement from a LEEDH Perspective designed by Gilles Millot, using the same driver as a midrange. This shows the exceptional impulse response of the main driver used by AW Audio, a WFR12 from Audax. It is to be noted that 6 12cm drivers have an equivalent surface to a 300m woofer with half the mass...But the resonant frequency would be about double, hence why the lower octave can't be reproduced at the same level as a 300m woofer which fs would be around 30Hz.

Obviously, it will be expected that the lower octaves of the audio spectrum will be somehow reduced in level, but still extremely clean because of the speed provided by the light membranes of the drivers, but also by the acoustical short circuit between the front and rear waves.
Trying to add a subwoofer often results in a bad marriage, which Raymond describes as trying to mate a carp and a rabbit!

Raymond has experimented with electrostatic and isodynamic panels over time but found them lacking inefficiency, and dynamic range, qualities required to give life and freedom to the music, a treat that a boxed system cannot achieve. For these reasons Raymond had abandoned his quest, even though he owned a pair of QUAD ESL 63 in the 80s.

The various advantages of a panel speaker compared to a box speaker

A bit of history - You might want to read my own articles on the timeline of AW Audio

The AW Audio adventure started in 1985 after two years of research prior, resulting in the introduction of the EA12 first panel, then the less expensive EA11 and finally the outstanding EA16 which only 10 pairs have been sold.
Later the EA12 would be replaced by the PA12 and there are a few units of the ultimate Transparence (in Alain's basement...) all this over a 10 year period and through a handful of dealers around the country.

Raymond didn't get a chance to listen to this second generation of panels, which seem to carry the same drivers, although they are no longer locked behind the fabric. (neither did I...)

Obviously, the difficutiles of marketing and selling such a boutique range of products of such high quality, superb finish, designed by a passionate and uncompromising man such as Alain was not a piece of cake, having to abide by the rules of greedy esoteric and high end dealers, (being used to extravagant margins to push such a product and others..)
Raymond goes onto explaining some of the reasons behind Alain's decision to abandon the project although all public demos were all spectacular and well received in comparison with similarly priced products at the time. Essentially, it was extremely difficult to transform all these marketing efforts into sales.
(I have witnessed a number of these demos and they are amongst the best I have ever heard at any price... It took me decades to find something better, and you probably know that I am referring to my friends at Kyron Audio here!)
Raymond goes on to compare the experience of listening to an AW Audio panel to the degustation of a Grand Cru wine, as it stays with you for the rest of your life either on the palate or in your ears. (Obviously, you can rejoice time and time again to the pleasure of listening to a pair of good speakers, difficult and somehow far more expensive to keep drinking bottles of Ducru-Beaucaillou 1982, my all time favourite wine, if you can find some, that is...).
The relation between cost of manufacturing and sale price is quite similar in both cases...
To calibrate the topic, a pair of EA11 cost 15500 francs, EA12 25000 Francs. EA16 50000 francs.
(The dealer was probably buying them for less than half that price, and a pair of EA12 was equivalent to my generous monthly salary at Hewlett-Packard..., so Alain would have to sell at least two pairs a month to barely survive!).
A pair of EA12 was sold at the same price as a pair of Confluence "Pastorale" designed by another atypical engineer, musician, music lover and passionate.

Alain Wacquet had some serious criteria and objectives to design his panels: linear phase, homogeneous polar response, slew rate and extended dynamic range, timbres accuracy and enough bass in such a dipole setup, maybe not as deep as a traditional box speaker, but certainly cleaner in many aspects. The AW Audio panels had very few rivals at the time with these parameters in mind.
Alain has never unveiled anything much about the crossover schematic, nor the treatment of the midrange drivers, but one can see that 8 drivers (WFR12 from Audax) were used in line, the two top ones have some treatment applied and are dedicated to the midrange, the six at the bottom are the bass drivers. A Focal tweeter takes care of the higher frequencies. It is a 2-way electrically but three way acoustically. The coherence and balance of the system are outstanding
(The quality of the voices, male or female and accuracy of the timbres particularly on percussions were astonishing and Alain was a perfectionist when it came to choose the music that would put the best out of his speakers... At some hifi shows where we were both exhibiting, I would sometime abandon my own stand to delight myself in Alain's demos...).

The AW Audio panels are quite easy to set up, specially compared to other types of panels, when it comes to spread and tilt as well as distance from the walls. A reasonable power amplifier is enough as the efficiency of these speakers is around 91db/1w/1m. Even a valve amplifier will be a good match, bringing out all the qualities of the panels on vocals and small musical ensembles.

Listening test

In a few words, the general impression left by listening to the EA12 is one of balance, with an image as wide as it is high and deep with a great sense of precision, without halo around the instruments, with no listening fatigue.
The differences between live or studio recordings are well articulated as there is no fuzzyness attached, giving the impression of space between the various instruments, what can be expected of a panel speaker versus a traditional cabinet of the same quality.

Percussions are very realistic, the brass are physical, and the strings are very quick, all timbres rendered with accuracy, speed and finesse, the vocals are superb, palpable...

The bass is as speedy as the upper spectrum, there, with a sense of freedom, it breezes...
All listeners agree that, even though the very bottom part of the spectrum is not present, the quality of the bass is second to none, not withstanding much larger box speakers.

Having bought the Confluence "Pastorale" two weeks after getting the EA12, Raymond had extensive comparative listening sessions over the last two years.

The EA12 excel at jazz and classical small ensembles with their imaging, finesse and precision, still providing a big sound even at low volume
On the other hand, the Pastorales are more polyvalent, specially if one listens to pop, rock or soul music..
(I am tempted to disagree with Raymond on this, being a great lover of small speakers, where imaging, precision and finesse are more important than a lot of bass. In many ways, AW Audio and Microphase were very similar in their objectives and were both very accurate and quick, with a great imaging, hence why we became friends quite naturally).
Each speaker brings its own character to the party and that is why so many people design speakers as it is still the realm of some "black magic", definitely an art form.

Raymond goes onto stating that his "graal" for listening at home still favours high efficiency and dynamic range over other criteria, implicitly giving the preference to AW Audio. It is worth noting that the EA12 and the Pastorales are in the same price range, hence there is a valid point in comparing the two systems.
Raymond concludes by saying he was very lucky to find a pair of EA12 to buy, almost 30 years after having first seduced by Alain's demos and contraptions, as most owners of AW Audio panels tend to keep them for themselves. And I would agree with that statement 100%!

A relatively recent photo of Alain Wacquet with two of his musician friends

↧

A new beginning for Microphase...

October 8, 2016, 12:22 am

≫ Next: We are open for business!

≪ Previous: More of AW Audio - a guest post by Raymond Lerat

After 30 years of absence, we are about to start marketing a new range of speakers under the new name of Microphase Audio Design (M.A.D. in short...). It will be sold only online with five showrooms around the World where you will be able to listen to them. All products will be limited editions and the first product to be release, the new SAT MK2 pictured, is available through our e-store on this website. Towards December 2016, we will launch a dedicated website for these speakers.
To help you understanding the qualities of these speakers, we have started a new page here where we are documenting our design principles, the process, the measurements and listening test and eventually some testimonials from trusted professionals.
These products are fully manufactured in Australia and will be shipped around the world from here. So, don't be shy, read our story and if you are in Australia or New Zealand, we can organise a listening session in Sydney by prior arrangement. If you are in France or in Europe, stay tuned for an announcement in the coming weeks.

Read the story of the genesi=s of the new Microphase Audio Design speakers

↧

We are open for business!

December 3, 2016, 10:10 pm

≫ Next: SALON HAUTE FIDELITE 2016 - MARRIOTT PARIS RIVE GAUCHE

≪ Previous: A new beginning for Microphase...

After the overwhelming response to our SAT MK2 at the Paris Hifi Show, we are now open for business and we are ready to take your orders. Current shipping time is end of January 2017 for orders and deposits received before 15.12.2016. Any questions, get in touch via email or our Contact Us page

↧

SALON HAUTE FIDELITE 2016 - MARRIOTT PARIS RIVE GAUCHE

December 31, 2016, 5:09 pm

≫ Next: AUDIOANALYSE - The French Class A amplifiers guru in the 70s

≪ Previous: We are open for business!

their I was beyond excited and not a little nervous to exhibit our new speakers at the Marriott Rive Gauche (onece called the PLM Saint-Jacques and alledgedly the most modern hotel in the World when it opened) after a thirty year hiatus. I will be forever grateful to Jean-Jacques Capello of Point Musiques for hosting and demonstrating our new Microphase Audio Desigh SAT MK2 to a knowledgeable audience. I was quite chuffed to see them mesmerised by our minuscule speakers...
But this article is all about the other exhibitors and fantastic products, from the oldest players and classic designs like Pierre-Etienne LEON to the revolutionary Devialet.

TotalDac

Vincent Brient, the talented French designer of DACs and music servers was presenting his d1-serverwhich can work from a hard drive or as a streamer then onto a DAC like the Totaldac d1-core, or the more upmarket Totaldac d1-twelve-SE. Amplification was courtesy of "Integrated Signature" from the US based Absolare, a hybrid design of valve preamp and solid state power amp generating 2x200W. The horn speakers were not for the faint hearted and behind next door to our own minuscule speakers, we had to fight some serious sound levels! It looked more like a Japanese DYI design than a finished product, butthey did shake the walls even though they were not the sweetest or more accurate design at the Show... WAF = 0 as well...

Point Musiques - Ocellia - ConceptS - Gold Note - Artec - M.A.D - Kelinac

Jean-Jacques Capello makes sure everything is ready to go...

Ocellia and Artec speakers

Gold Note CD player in three boxes

Keliniac, Concept Couleur and Microphase Audio Design speakers. Gold Note and Artec electronics

Jean-Jacques Capello was presenting four different systems, all designed to provide the best musical experience for a given price point. A Gold Note CD1000 CD player from Italy and a French made turntable ConceptS Sonata were feeding an all ARTEC Ultimate amplification, cables and speaker system. A ConceptS preamp and two 300B Ocellia mono valve amps and an integrated Tosca amp Tosca were driving the amazing and totally unconventional Ocellia Calliope 30 Twin, with Ocellia cables throughout. (read my article about them here: http://www.frenchvintagehifi.com/interviews--reviews/point-musiques-a-musical-afternoon-chez-jean-jacques-capello )
Another system was driving the Kelinac 914MG driven by an integrated Gold Note Demidoff, a CD player Gold Note Favard Anniversary and câbles from Actinote. Finally another system based on the ConceptS 7W integrated valve amp driving the ConceptS Couleurs 94 equipped with a full range 31 cm driver and an integrated 2x50W Artec were feeding the M.A.D SAT MK2

Concept Turntable with magnificent unipivot arm for 3000 euros

More arms than an Indian Goddess...

The Concets turntable and its unipivot arm can be have have for 3000 euros

Kelinac and Concepts Couleur speakers

Votre servitor with cabinetmaker extraordinaire Jean-Paul Guy and his lovely daughter

Static display of Concepts electronics and our minuscule SAT MK2

Artec SEY3.5 and Microphase Audio Design SAT MK2

Calamighty Sound - A mecca for all things vinyl

Garrard and Pierre Clément cartridge given a new lease of life

Plus vintage, tu meurs! Mighty it is indeed, with refurbished Garrards, Pierre Clément cartridges, and all sorts of plinths, arms, etc... The enthusiastic founder François Saint-Gerand is a delight to talk too and is passionate and very knowledgeable about all his products and beyond.

Mulidine

Marc Fontaine presenting his new Mulidine Cadence

Marc Fontaine is an ex colleague of mine at Hewlett-Packard and a very good friend, as we both share a passion for music reproduction and speaker design. He "retired" from HP/Agilent in 2005 to buy Mulidine to continue and expand on the legacy of the original founder Marcel Rochet.
Note the elaborate acoustic panels revovered from the studios of the French National Radio and Television ORTF.

Micromega - PMC

This was an amazing combo of the new M-One integrated amp/DAC, etc with the fabulous PMC speakers, used by Bryston to demo their amps before deesigning their own... So I am pretty happy to report that the M-One make thenm sing beautifully. It was one of the very best demos at the Show....

Metronome Technologies - ASA - JADIS

JADIS amplifier: le "derrière"

JADIS amplifier: le "top"

ASA Loudspeakers

I will not insult you by presenting Metronome - alledgedly best CD player in the World, and JADIS, alledgedly best valve amplifiers in the World too, but ASA? Never heard of this Atelier de Synergie Acoustique...Et pourtant! There are a lot of similarities with my own designs and the manufacture of the cabinets in solid wood is amazing! The sound is spectacular too...

Gryphon - Pierre Etienne LEON

A mighty association of Danish powerhouse The Gryphon and French legend Pierre Etienne Leon speakers. These two rooms were very well attended throughout the Show. It is a tribute to persistence and good genes to see Pierre Etienne surviving decades of ups and downs but still passionate about designing new speakers and try to achieve the Graal of music reproduction!

DEVIALET

Expert Pro, the new top of the range amps from Devialet was displayed here and the Expert 1000 Pro put to the test. Power, slew rate and dynamic range are the main features of this new range. Obviously the Phantoms were playing their part as well...

Davis Acoustics

Davis Acoustics turns 30 this year! And for the occaion they are gifting us with a new speaker called Renoir. Interestingly enough, the 'homemade' 31 cm bass driver is paper based, where the 17cm midrange uses the proprietary woven kevlar cone. Both use Ticonal magnets. The TW20K2F tweeter with double magnet and kevlar membrane takes care of the higher frequencies. Like the top of the range Karla, the system comes in two cabinets, a configuration inherited from Elipson and favoured by many, including myself... Electronics used are an Aura Note V2 and a Gryphon Diablo.

FOCAL - OCTAVE

I happened to visit before the opening of the Show and was privy of the vagaries of the setup. Interstingly enough, there was one position of the Focal speakers (Sopra 3) which gave an amazing image and general rendition. The unknow (to me..) German electronics from Octave were driving the Focals with ease and confidence.

Octave valve electronics from Germany

Nautile Acoustique - FISCH Audiotechnik

To be honest, I have never heard of this French brand before... Their coaxial driver is complemented by a super tweeter Townshend. This « Nautile Acoustique by Bel Canto design » electronics were developed by John Stronczer himself. Integrating a DAC and a two-channel Hypex N-Core amp module, they drive the drivers and manage the crossover. Mark Levinson electronics, includingthe new combined server/transport/DAC ML519 and new préamp-DAC ML526, phono preamp double mono ML52 interfaces the EAT turntable to the system. Probably the most innovative speaker at the Show, besides the Phantoms...

Sonus Faber

Ever since the Chario was introduced decades ago, I have been in love with Sonus Faber speakers, probably the most beautiful speakers on the Planet... And they don't sound too bad either!

ZU Audio

Very interesting coaxial speakers from the US 0f A. First time I had a chance to listen to them and I was certainly impressed.

Line Magnetic Audio

oVous avez dit Modern Vintage? Then Line Magnetic is for you! These modern replicas of legendary valve amps and Western Electric speakers are a delight to the eye and a great comfort to the ear! To be discovered absolutely!

Pèle mèle or meli melo...

Italians do it better? DoAcoustics mini speakers

BW 800 D3 - A private listening session chez Len Wallis Audio in Sydney didn't convince me... Even the magnificent demos of Martial Hernandez failed to impress me

Entry level speakers for 25Keuros? Non merci...

André is probably turning in his grave...

Ultimate amp? Maybe... It certainly looks the part!

Ming Da France

Ming Da France static display - impressive!

Ming Da France - The Beast!

Advance

Haute Couture audio components in small and affordable packages. To be considered to drive our minuscule Microphase Audio Design SAT MK2...

ATOHM - Trinnov Audio

No need to introduce Atohm and his charismatic founder Thierry Comte, ex Technical Director chez Triangle... The mighty active subs (in black...) were certainly shaking it!

Hifi Câbles et Compagnie

The infatigable Jean-Claude Tornior is still at it after probably four decades in the business under various guises, including Phonophone reviewed elsewhere on this blog. He knows how to design a decent pair os speakers and he is has a great following for his cables...But you know what I think, the best cable is the shortest cable...

Turntables galore...

Definitely, the vinyl revival is here to stay... Almost every stand had a tyrntable or two or more... Here is a little feast for your eyes as a conclusion to this article. This is obviously not an exhaustive coverage but a glimpse into the products which took my fancy. Thanks for tagging along my journey!

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