Audio Streaming -Wilson The Legendary high-end speaker face-lift

Audio Streaming - Wilson Audio streaming Specialties has not invented the high-end speakers, but the speaker WATT, introduced in 1986, changed the rules of the game. Until then, the state of the art, all the speakers were big beasts, but it was a comparatively tiny WATT stand-mounted speaker. Its distinctive pyramidal shape was generated countless imitations.

The WATT soon joined the adequacy of Puppy (woofer), and during parts of two decades WATT / Puppy system evolved, culminating in the WATT / Puppy 8 in 2006. Well over 15,000 WATT / Puppys have been sold since 1986, but instead of moving to the W / P, 9 founder David Wilson decided to start again, so now we have the Sasha W / p ($ 26,900 / pair).

Wilson Audio streaming Specialties sales manager, Peter McGrath, came to the city of New York to introduce Sasha W / P, Wilson to the press in innovative audio streaming dealer last week. The new speaker of sweeping curves and elegant way to make the most beautiful Wilson speaker of all time.

It is a three-way design with a 1-inch inverted-dome tweeter, 7-inch midrange and two 8-inch woofers housed within the elegant 197-pound cabinet. The quality is beyond impressive graphics, and the passage of 12 jobs car paint is absolutely flawless. The tweeter and midrange drivers are identical to those used in the $ 68,000 Wilson MAXX Series 3 speakers. Wilson Audio streaming recently expanded its factory in Provo, Utah.

McGrath played a mix of musical styles that night, but its high resolution classical recordings were performed by the most amazingly Sasha W / P. He was one of those rare, "there" audio streaming experience where you feel transported to the musical event. Sasha The W / P on the ability to work with great ease unravel is what separates it from simply excellent high-end loudspeakers. Sasha The W / P can unleash uninhibited dynamic contrasts that belie its modest footprint. -Audio Streaming

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PSB T Tower Audio Streaming Speaker

Canadian outfit PSB has launched its Imagine range of speakers. The four-model series includes the flagship T Tower, a floor-standing model. The T Tower features a standard 5.25-inch bass/mid-range driver and one-inch titanium dome tweeter. But the reflex-loaded bass/mid-range driver comes with proprietary injection-moulded diaphragms made of a ceramic-filled polypropylene compound chosen for its high ratio of rigidity and internal damping.

The driver also features bullet-shaped aluminium phase plugs for enhanced mid and treble accuracy. As the quality of a loudspeaker system depends on its drive units and enclosure, the T Tower’s cabinet is made from seven layers of laminate.

To strengthen the cabinet further, the company used a 1.5-inch-thick baffle designed to minimise ripples for a solid three-dimensional soundstage. And the cabinet is so inert that all resonances are virtually eliminated.

The T Tower is capable of handling up to 200 watts (W) of power input. Sensitivity is above average, needing only 1W to produce a sound pressure level of 90 decibels. This gives the speaker a high degree of flexibility, making it an ideal match for both low-powered valve amplifiers and high-powered solid state amplifiers. The T Tower is available in Black Ash or Dark Cherry wood veneer

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Bl@st, a Bluetooth wireless headset

LAMBDA Mobile Apps has launched the Bl@st, a Bluetooth wireless headset with a built-in FM transmitter. The device allows you to stream voice or music from your mobile phone to any stereo FM receiver, including your car’s built-in audio system over the airwaves, simply by pairing with your Bluetooth-enabled mobile phone.

At a scant 20 millimetres by 10mm by 63mm, which is about the size of your average Bluetooth headset, the Bl@st makes use of a 15-preset frequency selector visible through its organic LED display to allow you to transmit in your frequency of choice. It also features a dual-microphone design with echo and background noise cancellation technology, allowing you to carry out a conversation even in a noisy environment.

According to Lambda’s chief executive Michael Tan, despite the Bl@st being an active FM transmitter, it does not need an approval from the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission as the power to signal output is no more than 120 decibel-microvolts.

Currently, the Bl@st v1.0 is able to stream music at 110 to 118 kilobits per second; by comparison, CD audio streams at 128Kbps. The rechargeable 130mAh lithium polymer provides up to eight hours of use in Bluetooth-only mode, or half the time with the FM transmitter.

Lambda plans to sell the Bl@st either through partnering stores or online channels such as Amazon.com and eBay.com, including its upcoming portal

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Beryllium Be-718 Audio Streming Speaker

HARDCORE audiophiles may insist that it doesn’t matter what a product looks like, the performance is what counts. However, if hi-fi products were sold on audio streaming sound alone, we’d have angry spouses on the warpath against designers and manufacturers! Visual impact is undeniably important, to ensure a product stands out from the crowd. And when it comes to getting noticed, nothing draws as much attention as loudspeakers.

Oddly-shaped amps and sources hardly draw comment, but if your speakers are ugly, the spouse will make her views known strongly. Thus, it was gratifying to hear my other half comment: “These are nice, I like their looks.” She was referring to the Usher Audio Be-718 standmount loudspeakers, from the Taiwanese company that’s made bold incursions into high-end audio realms in recent times.

While Usher makes an extensive range of speakers, it is the Dancer series that has been the most acclaimed; the Be-718 is the most compact in this line. The Be-718 was designed and made in Taiwan, with finishing cosmetics by a British firm. Additionally, its crossover was tuned by Dr Joseph D’Appolito.

Do note that the US version of the Be-718 has differing crossover parts/tweaks and wiring than the stock model reviewed here. The time-aligned cabinet houses a 1.25-inch beryllium oxide tweeter (thus, the “Be”) and seven-inch mid-bass unit, with the crossover point set at 2.05kHz.

At the front, there is a slit port, while two pairs of massive gold-plated binding posts are provided at the rear. The main box is finished in a lustrous piano black, with birch cheeks, giving the whole cabinet an aura of consummate class – no questioning the excellent design, manufacturing and finishing standards applied to this “Tiny Dancer”.

Usher quotes a sensitivity of 87dB, nominal impedance of eight ohms, a frequency response of 42Hz to 35kHz and power handling of 200 watts. Two dedicated stands are available – the RWS-708 (RM1,550) and RWS-729 (RM1,920), This review was done with the former.

The Be-718s were run with a number of amplification systems, including Usher’s own P-307/R-1.5 pre-power combo reviewed here earlier, and power amps like the Krell FPB 200, Mesa Baron, Bryston 3B-SST and McIntosh MC402 ... all fed by a Promitheus Audio TVC passive preamp.

Cables included Paul Speltz Anti-Cable, Siltech New York and Mapleshade Audio Golden Double Helix, while other speakers referenced were Audio Physic Tempo and Magnepan MG1.6.

My sources were the Bluenote Stibbert CD player and Clearaudio Performance/Satisfy/Concerto turntable set-up fed into a local phono stage. The interconnects were mostly customised Clearaudio Quint.

These are beguiling speakers, no two ways about it. During the first few hours of listening, the Be-718s impressed me with the manner in which they contrived to audio streaming sound larger than they were, with bass to match.

It wasn’t the sort of bass that came charging in, but the subtler variety that provided a deep and solid fundamental, with finer nuances faithfully reproduced. True, some detail was traded off for control in the last lap of its lower frequency range, but the bass still audio streaming sounded like it was coming from a bigger box, especially with orchestral and upright bass, which the Be-718 delivered with elegant impact. Even with electric bass on recordings of various musical leanings, the lows never overwhelmed the whole event.

The top end was extended, smooth, and with ample headroom – this was the impression of the beryllium tweeter that stayed with me. The clarity was impeccable, but there was also a tinge of fluid sweetness that took the sting away from brighter recordings, suggesting that these speakers tended to be forgiving unless the source signal was particularly poor ... with most recordings, I heard the detail and resolution, not thrust at me, but presented gracefully as a complete event.

The Be-718s also kept impressively out of the way, with no box colouration or additive qualities worth noting. The speakers created a generous audio streaming soundstage, revealing spatial information without over-analysing events – their fidelity to the mix was impressive. Of course, I felt the Maggies possessed sharper focus, finer transparency and more slam, but the Ushers were no slouches in these areas either ... they handled most things I threw at them with verve and confidence, and with a great sense of timing and rhythm.

While these speakers will certainly appeal to hardcore audiophiles, who will love their natural ease when projecting vocals and their attention to detail, even casual listeners will be struck by their unforced and fluent musicality.

There are various speakers for the price that will allow you a tantalising glimpse of higher-end realms, but the Usher Audio Be-718, er, ushers, you right into the midfield of the game. Given this, and the fact that each unit is as well built as anything the European or American manufacturers offer at twice or thrice the price, the Be-718 represents one of the greatest values in its price range. It’s the sort of fine wine that will appeal to more than just the connoisseur.

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