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I truly dislike “best audio product of the year” lists. It is a virtual impossibility that the list-makers have listened to every component in a particular product category and, hence, the lists are essentially meaningless. Still, each year several product categories contain products which are truly special and deserve to have their praises sung. In this, Audiophilia’s first full year of high-end publishing on the internet, I thought it appropriate to recognize those components and accessories which, in my mind, stood out from the rest of the pack. Please note that not all of these products have been, or will necessarily be, reviewed in these virtual pages, although they have all been auditioned in familiar systems and listening environments.
1997
saw a definite move away from the multi-box digital front end, towards a
unified, single-box approach. Still, many audiophiles continued to pair
dedicated transports with stand-alone D/A converters in order to keep
abreast of the latest developments in digital-to-analogue conversion. At
the disposal of such audiophiles in 1997 were D/A converters which set new
standards in price-performance. One such product which merits particular
mention is The Parts
Connection’s Assemblage DAC-2. For a mere US$499 in
kit form, the DAC-2 offers high-quality parts, including dual 20-bit Burr
Brown DACs, the Pacific Microsonics PMD-100 HDCD decoder/filter, and, most
importantly, excellent sonics. Although some listeners report a bit of
brightness in the DAC-2’s presentation, this seems to be highly
dependent on the partnering transport and never manifested itself
throughout my auditioning. The kit is easily assembled by novice builders
and is backed by an assembly guarantee by the folks at TPC. Those more
interested in listening than soldering can order a fully-assembled version
for US$549. A parts upgrade kit (unauditioned) is also available for
US$149. While not intended as a state-of-the-art digital processor, at
under $500, the DAC-2 gets you far closer than it has any right to and is,
therefore, worthy of high praise.
Although
still being auditioned for an upcoming full review, the preamplifier which
really caught my attention in 1997 was the oft-praised Audible
Illusions Modulus 3A (US$ 1895 with MM phono board, US$ 2395 with John
Curl Designed Gold MC phono board). One of the last of a dying breed of
truly full-function preamplifiers, the relatively affordable Modulus 3A
combines a simpler-is-better circuit topology, an outboard power supply,
and excellent parts and build quality, to produce sonics which, in my
opinion, are rarely heard at its price point. The 3A is available with
either a moving magnet or a high-gain, moving coil board designed by John
Curl (designer of the famed Vendetta Research SCP-2 phono preamp), or as a
line-stage only version dubbed the L1. Full review online soon.
None.
Two
very different loudspeakers, at very different price points, proved to be
particularly noteworthy in 1997. First was ProAc’s
Response One SC (US$ 2100), the update to that British
company’s long-respected Response One S. The Response One SC proved,
yet again, that mini-monitors have much to offer in terms of soundstaging,
imaging, and tonal accuracy. While deep bass was out of the One SC’s
reach, it’s tonal balance proved very satisfying. The One SC’s
new bass/midrange unit excelled at reproduction of the human voice, and
its extremely refined tweeter was smooth, detailed and fatigue-free. A
truly superb loudspeaker at a real-world price.
At
a much more lofty, but not unreasonable, price, was the tri-amplified Waveform
Mach 17 with active crossover (US$ 6995). Whether driven by
relatively inexpensive solid-state electronics, or six channels of tube
power, the Mach 17s thrilled with their ability to reproduce music with
the dynamics, power, and beauty of the live event. Imaging and
soundstaging were on par with the best I’ve heard, the members of a
symphony orchestra being clearly delineated in space on the best
recordings. The Mach 17s were capable of moving some serious air and were
easily capable of rendering the bottom octave. With their reasonable size,
furniture-grade cabinetry and high level of craftsmanship, the Mach 17s
will blend seamlessly with most shared living spaces. While some
prospective purchasers might be put off by the Mach 17’s need for six
channels of amplification, the recent appearance of several high-quality,
six channel amplifiers could ease the potential financial burden of
building a system around this loudspeaker. Those wishing to own some
degree of the Mach 17’s magic at a lower price point might be
interested to hear that Waveform has plans to build a non-active version
requiring only a single stereo amplifier.
The
bargain priced, and virtually unknown,
D Lin Audio Silver
Bullets 4.0 interconnect (US$ 180/metre) emerged as my favorite
cable of 1997. The Silver Bullets 4.0 features four, small-diameter,
high-purity silver conductors, high-quality Cardas RCA terminators, and
one of the most fatigue-free and tonally neutral presentations I’ve
heard. Those biased against silver conductors due to their reputation for
brightness will be pleasantly surprised by the 4.0’s lack of such a
sonic signature. The price of the Silver Bullets has been kept firmly in
real-world territory as D Lin Audio markets the cables exclusively over
the internet. Their reasonable price and superb sonics led me to purchase
two pairs for my reference system. Based on the success of their initial
efforts, I expect we’ll be hearing much more from D Lin Audio in the
not-too-distant future.
The new Black Diamond Racing Record Clamp for the VPI series of turntables recently made its way to my turntable (courtesy of Madcap Audio’s Jonathan Badov) with surprisingly good results. Although the clamp was just a prototype at the time of auditioning, it was near enough to its final form that I feel safe discussing it here briefly. The clamp consists of two circular blocks of carbon fiber, one containing a threaded hole through its center, the other a non-threaded hole. The two-part clamp is tightly screwed down over the threaded spindle of a VPI turntable in place of the stock VPI clamp. I listened to the clamp in two Aries-based systems (including my own), and was quite amazed at its positive sonic benefits. Most apparent was a much improved sense of rhythm and pace - the stock VPI clamp seemed to impart a slightly slow, plodding feel to the proceedings, diminishing some of the music’s life and energy. Although I’m at a loss to explain why, the new clamp made music significantly more interesting and involving. At a projected price of about $200, Black Diamond Racing’s VPI clamp appears to be one of those rare audio accessories whose asking price is more than justified by its sonic effect. A full review is forthcoming.
Finally,
Echo Busters’ Room
Treatment Products round out my list of accessories of merit for
1997. Not only are the Echo Busters one of the best ways I know of to tame
the acoustical problems which plague most listening rooms, but they are
also attractive (as far as room treatment products go) and very cost
effective. While there are other competing products available (such as
Michael Green’s RoomTunes), in my opinion, the Echo Busters are more
effective, equally affordable, and less visually intrusive.
-- Andrew Chasin