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faberryman
Founder and Site Administrator
Joined: April 2009
Posts: 2945
Location: Nashville, TN
 
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Post subject: Re: RMAF 2009 Coverage
The Bamberg Engineering Sound Lab - Modwright Room
Bamberg's 5-MT in cherry sounded sweet. It was among my favorites.
's 5-MT.JPG [ 48.42 KiB | Viewed 391 times ]
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faberryman
Founder and Site Administrator
Joined: April 2009
Posts: 2945
Location: Nashville, TN
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Post subject: Re: RMAF 2009 Coverage
The Daedalus Audio - Modwright Room Redux
Daedalus again partnered with Modwright, this time to show off its Ulysses model loudspeaker ($10,950 plus stands). The amplifiers are Modwright KWA 150s configured as monoblocks ($5,995).
IMG_0654_Daladeus_modwright.JPG [ 56.43 KiB | Viewed 391 times ]
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faberryman
Founder and Site Administrator
Joined: April 2009
Posts: 2945
Location: Nashville, TN
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Post subject: Re: RMAF 2009 Coverage
The Joule Electra - Merlin Music Systems Room
Merlin and Joule Electra had a room that not only sounded good, but looked good too. Shown are the Merlin VSM loudspeakers driven by Joule Electra's massive VZN-100 Mk.III monoblock OTL amplifiers ($15,000/pair).
IMG_0659_merlin_joule2.JPG [ 56.97 KiB | Viewed 391 times ]
IMG_0661_joule2.JPG [ 72.46 KiB | Viewed 391 times ]
Control duties were handled by the Joule Electra's LA-300ME preamp:
IMG_0663_joule3.JPG [ 44.11 KiB | Viewed 391 times ]
The Audio Aero Prestige Reference CD/SACD player spun the tunes:
IMG_0662_audio_aero.JPG [ 29.19 KiB | Viewed 391 times ]
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faberryman
Founder and Site Administrator
Joined: April 2009
Posts: 2945
Location: Nashville, TN
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faberryman
Founder and Site Administrator
Joined: April 2009
Posts: 2945
Location: Nashville, TN
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Post subject: Re: RMAF 2009 Coverage
The Blacknote Room
Blacknote demonstrated its new DSS 30 media player. It can be connected to an external USB hard drive or a network attached storage unit (NAS), or read from USB memory sticks from the front panel. In another room, YG Acoustics used the DSS 30 as the source for demoing its speakers.
IMG_0678_blacknote_dss30.JPG [ 51.98 KiB | Viewed 391 times ]
Blacknote also showed off its CDP 300 CD player and DSA 150 integrated amplifier.
IMG_0679_blacknote_cdp300.JPG [ 28.54 KiB | Viewed 391 times ]
IMG_0680_blacknote_dsa150.JPG [ 28.58 KiB | Viewed 391 times ]
I will be posting an interview with the designer of Blacknote shortly.
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oneobgyn
Joined: April 2009
Posts: 2045
Location: Danville, CA
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Post subject: Re: RMAF 2009 Coverage
Frank
your pix are the most complete of RMAF than any of the other boards
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faberryman
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Post subject: Re: RMAF 2009 Coverage
The Von Schweikert - Channel Islands Room
Von Schweikert demonstrated its Unifield 3 loudspeakers with a variety of Channel Island Audio products.
IMG_0690_vonsweikert_unifield3.JPG [ 59.31 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
As you can see, no acoustical treatment was used. Note the bedspread hung up on the headboard as a backdrop for the electronics. Unbelievably poor planning.
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oneobgyn
Joined: April 2009
Posts: 2045
Location: Danville, CA
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Post subject: Re: RMAF 2009 Coverage
That room is an embarrassment
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faberryman
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Location: Nashville, TN
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Post subject: Re: RMAF 2009 Coverage
The PS Aduio - Focus Audio Room
PS Audio demonstrated its Perfectwave transport and DAC and, and its amplifier and power conditioning equipment, with Focus Audio Master 2.5 loudspeakers. It was so loud I could barely carry on a conversation with Paul McGowan.
IMG_0691_psaudio_focus.JPG [ 69.15 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
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faberryman
Founder and Site Administrator
Joined: April 2009
Posts: 2945
Location: Nashville, TN
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Post subject: Re: RMAF 2009 Coverage
The Atma-Sphere - Classic Audio Room
Atma-Sphere demonstrated its Music Amplifier M-60 Mk. III 60 watt tube OTL monoblock amplifiers with Classic Audio horn-loaded, field coil loudspeakers to good effect. The latest iteration of the M-60 Mk IIIs have much lower distortion than the Mk IIs proving that improvements can constantly be made to classic designs with higher quality parts not previously available.
IMG_0700_Classic_spkrs_atma.JPG [ 44.62 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
Here is a photo of the external power supply used to create the magnetic field in the field coil speaker drivers:
IMG_0702_classic_spkr_power.JPG [ 114.3 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
One of the Atma-Sphere M-60 Mk IIIs:
IMG_0705_M60MkII.JPG [ 94.59 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
The Atma-Sphere Music Preamplifier MP-1:
IMG_0709_atma_mp1.JPG [ 61.27 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
The turntable is a Kuzma Stabi Reference ($5900) equipped with a Triplanar Mk7 tonearm ($3900) and an Air Tight PC-1 Supreme cartridge ($9000).
IMG_0706_Kuzma Stabi.JPG [ 58.27 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
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faberryman
Founder and Site Administrator
Joined: April 2009
Posts: 2945
Location: Nashville, TN
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Post subject: Re: RMAF 2009 Coverage
The Empirical Audio Room
Empirical Audio showed off its USB DACs and de-jittering devices, and introduced its own small, two-drive network attached storage unit (NAS). Here is its new Off-Ramp 3 USB DAC:
IMG_0727_offramp3.JPG [ 137.12 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
I would have preferred that the NAS be in a metal rather than plastic enclosure:
IMG_0729_e,prical_nas.JPG [ 88.92 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
Empirical Audio's top-of-the-line Overdrive USB DAC and Substation external power supply:
IMG_0731_empirical_dac.JPG [ 97.07 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
These huge speakers dwarf Empirical Audio's components:
IMG_0735_huge_speakers.JPG [ 63.19 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
IMG_0736_empirical_lotsa.JPG [ 63.81 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
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faberryman
Founder and Site Administrator
Joined: April 2009
Posts: 2945
Location: Nashville, TN
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faberryman
Founder and Site Administrator
Joined: April 2009
Posts: 2945
Location: Nashville, TN
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Post subject: Re: RMAF 2009 Coverage
The Audio by Van Alstine - Salk Signature Sound Room
The tall, slim speakers are the Salk Song Tower QWT transmission line speakers with ribbon tweeter in an MTM configuration. The chunkier speakers are the all new HT4 models. The HT4s were awesome sounding.
IMG_0754_salk.JPG [ 53.87 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
Powering the Salk speakers were Audio by Van Alstine's 30 watt/channel stereo Ultravalve tube amplifiers ($1695):
IMG_0756_vanalstine_ultrawave_amp.JPG [ 88.76 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
I thought Audio by Van Alstein's solid-state amps and preamps were well constructed but homely:
IMG_0757_vanalstine_insight_phaseinverter.JPG [ 59.81 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
IMG_0753_vanalstein_ultra_sl_pre.JPG [ 78.35 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
IMG_0751_vanalstein _amp_interior.JPG [ 110.53 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
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faberryman
Founder and Site Administrator
Joined: April 2009
Posts: 2945
Location: Nashville, TN
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Post subject: Re: RMAF 2009 Coverage
Peachtree Audio
Pearchtree Audio was there to demonstrate its hybrid integrated amp/USB DAC. Its DAC section is based on the ESS 9006 Sabre DAC chip, which incorporates a patented on-chip jitter reduction circuit and which claims a signal/noise ratio of -122dB.
IMG_0759_peachtree1.JPG [ 51.93 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
They also showed what appears to be a small spin-off of the Nova without the space for a Sonos inside, but there was no literature naming or describing it.
IMG_0760_peachtree2.JPG [ 93.63 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
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faberryman
Founder and Site Administrator
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Posts: 2945
Location: Nashville, TN
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Post subject: Re: RMAF 2009 Coverage
The Ypsilon - Bergman - Tidal Room
This was one of my top ten rooms. The German-made Tidal Contriva speakers ($71,000) were stunning, even in an untreated room.
IMG_0762_bergmann_ypsilon_tidal.JPG [ 66.6 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
Ypsilon's new DHT mirror-finished tube monoblocks ($71,000/pair) put a smile on everyone's faces:
IMG_0767_ypsilon_amp.JPG [ 126.51 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
This is Ypsilon's CDT-100 top-loading transport ($25,000):
IMG_0765_Ypsilon_CD.JPG [ 43.44 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
The Ypsilon design team was having a creative block when they settled on the plain-looking VPS-100 phono preamplifier (top) ($25,000) and PST 100 linestage (bottom) ($36,000):
IMG_0769_ypsilon_x2.JPG [ 49.25 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
Bermann's air bearing Sindre turntable with linear tracking tonearm ($20,000) is a work of art. It sounds pretty good too:
IMG_0764_bergman.JPG [ 64.84 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
On the left is Ypsilon's MC series moving coil step up transformer ($2,700), and center and right are a pair of BC1 single-ended to balanced transformers. Each weighs probably 20 lbs.
IMG_0771__ypsilon_transformers.JPG [ 44.61 KiB | Viewed 225 times ]
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