audiostreaming

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

2009-06-23T23:35:00.000-07:00

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

PSB T Tower Audio Streaming Speaker

2009-03-21T06:11:00.000-07:00

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

Bl@st, a Bluetooth wireless headset

2009-03-21T05:57:00.000-07:00

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

Beryllium Be-718 Audio Streming Speaker

2009-03-21T05:43:00.000-07:00

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.

REGA SATURN Audio Streaming CD Player

2009-03-21T05:38:00.000-07:00

SOME may beg to differ but in my opinion, the Rega Apollo is one of the best bets for a mid-end digital source, despite some quirks in its operating system. If you’re putting together a budget-to-mid-end hi-fi system, and if you value musicality, rhythm and resolution, I won’t hesitate to recommend the Apollo as your source, my only caveat being its top-loading feature.

The more ambitious and well-heeled audiophile and music-lover may, however, want something that significantly outperforms the Apollo in terms of frequency headroom at both ends of the spectrum and superior accuracy in detail retrieval. For them, Rega serves up the Saturn CD player.

The Saturn looks almost like the Apollo, only there’s an extension on the underside to accommodate the heftier power supply, which also increases the weight of the player considerably. The housing is built from extruded aluminium, with a solid aluminium front panel.

Exclusive features for the Saturn include two (as opposed to a single one on the Apollo) parallel-connected Wolfson WM8740 dual differential 24-bit DACs, a master clock driven by a high-stability/low-jitter crystal oscillator module, a 60VA toroidal transformer with separate windings for audio/digital/display circuits, Nichicon Fine Gold capacitors and post-DAC Class A analogue amp/filter, among other things.

The operating system optimises itself for each CD loaded into the transport compartment, so like with the Apollo, it takes about eight seconds before a loaded CD is ready to play. The ultra high memory capacity of the OS ensures whatever error correction level applied will not affect the audio streaming sound quality. The transport mechanism possesses the latest signal processing techniques and servo for superior data retrieval.

The Saturn will, apart from Red Book CDs, also play MP3 discs, and comes with a cool remote (the same as the Apollo’s). Both optical and digital outputs are provided, a concession to users who may want to explore this upgrade path later, although Rega itself does not offer a standalone DAC at this time.

So far, so good ... the Saturn looks to be quite superbly put together, and inarguably a heftier and more substantial piece of work than its sibling ... it is also more than twice the price.

The Saturn was reviewed over two sessions, during which I had different CD players to form comparisons – an Ayre CX-7e initially and an updated Bluenote Stibbert later. I also had the Apollo running earlier on in the sessions.

Amplification included a Krell KAV-400xi integrated and Audio Research LS15/Krell FPB200 pre/power combination (also Mesa Baron power amp), while loudspeakers used included Epos ES12.2, Audio Physics Tempo V and JM Lab/Focal 816V. Cables were Siltech New York and Stereovox Firebird, interconnects were customised Clearaudio Quint and JPS Labs Superconductor Q (the single-ended variant was used to hook the Saturn to whichever amp was in the system).

There’s no doubt the Saturn presents some significant steps up from its less expensive sibling. To start with, it delved much deeper into the recording, consummately confident in its retrieval and presentation of ambient detail and spatial nuances. There was superior resolution in instrumental and vocal timbre, and the projection and focus were impeccable and concise, with an impressive stage to top these.

Highly involving and intimate, the Saturn didn’t miss a step when it came to dynamics and timing ... it had considerably more authority, especially in the lower frequencies, than the Apollo ... if you think that’s unfair comparison, well, I’m just giving Apollo owners an inkling of what is possible if you’re thinking of an upgrade down the road.

The Saturn’s bass possessed more heft than I’ve heard from most CD players around or under the price, and this was cohesively matched to an engagingly vivid midrange and smoothly crisp highs. It certainly wasn’t laidback, nor was it as in-your-face as some well-known Brit offerings, choosing instead to present the recordings on the worth of the studio mix.

The combination of the Saturn’s attributes resulted in a very tactile and enticing presentation, working very well with a variety of material, both acoustic and electronic, and suited equally to rock, jazz or classical works ... there was just the right amount of slam for rock and fusion recordings, with enough finesse to handle elaborate orchestral works with aplomb.
Focus, man, focus

Critics continue to brush aside the CD format, decrying its inability to deliver higher resolution than the Red Book standard. Yes, we all know CD hasn’t turned out to be the perfect digital medium we were promised 25 years ago, but if you possess hundreds or thousands of these discs, I’m thinking you might still want to squeeze the last ounce of performance from them.

Which is where machines like the Rega Saturn play a role. CD may not be ideal but the Saturn doesn’t draw your attention to this; instead, it focussed on communicating that intangible quality of musicality to your senses. This has to be one of the finest CD players you can get for the price.

AUDIOQUEST audio streaming interconnects cable

2009-03-21T05:32:00.000-07:00

THOSE marketing audio cables and interconnects would have you believe there’s much more to a bit of connecting wire than inductance, capacitance and resistance. It’s all a bit confusing for the layman, and the further you delve into this topic, the more complex and, often, less enlightening it gets. So, snake oil or credible science? The answer is never quite so straightforward – which is why I like to keep it simple when it comes to wiring up my system – nothing too fancy.

Which was why I was wary of the one-metre single-ended pair of AudioQuest Columbia interconnects passed to me. What on earth were those cylindrical packs affixed to the input end of the wires, I wondered? It didn’t help that there was a tiny button on each of these things which, when pressed, activated a small green LED.

Then again, AudioQuest is a cable company of some repute and surely, there had to be an explanation? The extra bits are what the company calls its patented dielectric-bias system (DBS). In theory, any insulation on the cable slows down the passage of the signal through the conductor inside.

DBS “creates a strong and stable electrostatic field which saturates and polarises the molecules of the insulation.” This, in turn, supposedly minimises energy storage in the insulator and non-linear time delays. The results, claim AudioQuest, are a quieter cable with improved detail and dynamic contrasts. There are batteries in the pack, which should last for years – the LED indicates battery status.

The conductor is solid and extreme-purity copper, and the dielectric is an air tube, and it takes about two weeks of use for the sonic effects of the Teflon shield to be eliminated.

The Columbia is available with RCA or XLR connectors – the review unit was the former.

The interconnects were used between an upgrade Bluenote Stibbert CD player and Krell KAV-400xi integrated amp, driving Audio Physics Tempo speakers via Stereovox Firebird cables.

For comparison, I had a pair of JPS Labs Superconductor Q and DH Labs Air Matrix interconnects. The usual running in was conducted over a few weeks.

What’s very obvious about the Columbia was how clean and focused it audio streaming sounded across the frequency spectrum. Initially, I found the treble a touch grainy and etched, but this smoothened out with use, and eventually, the Columbia settled down to audio streaming sound spacious and well-paced, if a tad more relaxed than the JPS (which also had more grunt) and Air Matrix.

It was a bit lean towards the bass end of things, but tight and well-controlled, so if your system has too enthusiastic lows and audio streaming sounds a bit too syrupy, the Columbia is a good bet to put things back on even keel.

These are remarkably well-behaved interconnects, never accentuating on any particular area but instead, allowing the music to flow freely, as any good pair of wires should, and very light of feet when it comes to dynamics. If you have a mid-to-high-end system that requires a bit of fine-tuning, and you need interconnects that don’t get in the way, the AudioQuest Columbia warrants an audition.

AYRE ACOUSTICS AX-7e audio streaming amplifier

2009-03-21T05:24:00.000-07:00

ALTHOUGH Ayre Acoustics has been in the high-end audio business since the early 1990s, it wasn’t until recently that the US company’s profile took a major step up, thanks to a range of products that garnered raves in the specialist hi-fi press. The AX-7e is a fully balanced, zero feedback design that contains significant upgrades from the previous version of this amp. Chief among them are improved filtering of the AC signal, better peak current delivery and filtering of the rectifier switching noise.

The amp uses eight high-current output devices per channel and has a proprietary volume control with FET switches and metal film resistors. The volume control is a 66-step unit, with increments of 1dB per step. The onboard control microprocessor is designed to turn off when it isn’t executing any command operation, which helps reduce noise. Source inputs are completely disconnected when not in use.

Four inputs – two balanced and two single-ended – are provided, as is a tape output. Instead of the conventional naming of inputs on the front and back panels, Ayre uses icons like Star, Planet, Comet and Moon. There’s a display-off function, too, if you’re fussy about these things.

A remote handset is provided, although I had to make do without one for this review. Fortunately, the remote unit of a Krell KAV-400xi worked for setting volume and selecting inputs on the Ayre.

The speaker terminals are the oddest I’ve come across – you’ll need spades or bare-wire terminations on your cables, although I wouldn’t recommend the latter because there’s a short waiting to happen if you’re not careful.

Power is quoted at a modest 60 watts per channel continuously into eight ohms and 120 watts into half the load, with a frequency response of 2Hz to 200kHz. You can set the AX-7e to home theatre mode, for use with a surround processor and allowing two-channel signals to be routed directly to the amp.

The AX-7e measures 438 x 350 x 120mm (w/d/h) and weighs 12kg. I didn’t see anything to suggest the amp’s build and overall finish weren’t of the highest quality. Then again, for the price, I wasn’t expecting anything less. New Ayre components require a break-in period of between 100 and 500 hours, so if you’re going to audition one, ask if the dealer has a run-in unit.

Even run-in, there was a discernible improvement in the AX-7e’s performance after about a couple of hours in operation, so this is good reason to leave the amp on standby when you’re not using it. Once the AX-7e was sufficiently warmed up for each session, it began to sing … during the first session, I went from “hmm …” initially to “Hot damn!” a CD or three later.

My source was an upgraded Bluenote Stibbert CD player, a Pioneer PD-D6 SACD player and a Technics analogue tuner, via JPS Labs Superconductor Q balanced, and DH Labs Silver Sonic Air Matrix and JPS Ultraconductor single-ended interconnects respectively.

Speakers used to partner the AX-7e were the Audio Physics Tempos, variously through Siltech New York and Stereovox Firebird cables. For comparison, I had the Krell KAV-400xi integrated amp (see The Krell factor below) – the difference in approach was significant.

While the Ayre didn’t have the Krell’s natural authority and grunt in the lower extremes, it kept the bass well balanced in the mix – less dominant, but certainly very tightly defined and controlled, and downright tuneful. The four-ohm Tempos allowed the amp to output its higher power rating, and it never faltered even when pushed.

What got my attention, too, were the retrieval of detail at low levels, and the inherent musical nature of the AX-7e, even with the volume set at moderate-to-soft. Everything in the mix was clearly and cleanly presented without ever audio streaming sounding clinical.

The Ayre lent ample space around instruments and voices, and was never muddled even with difficult recordings – its sense of rhythm was impeccable, and it never lacked energy or panache.

The weight of electric/synth bass was as authoritative as the organic rasp of the upright bass, and acoustic drum tracks had all the impact of a live event. This blended with a smooth and crisp treble and a very natural midrange, resulting in a seamless and silky integration across the frequencies.

The more I listened to the Ayre, the more its rhythmic grace, lushness, musicality and poise endeared it to me – magically communicative is how I would describe the AX-7e, especially in balanced mode.

I have no reservations about concluding that the Ayre AX-7e is one of the most enchanting amps I’ve heard in the past two decades. If your budget lies in this territory, and you’re considering a pre/power combination – wait! Take a paradigm shift and listen to the Ayre. A rewarding experience is assured.

THERE has been much talk over the past couple of years about how the Krell audio streaming sound has changed over the years, especially in its entry-level products … like the KAV-400xi (RM11,888) integrated amplifier.

The amp was reviewed here about a year ago, around which time we didn’t have the Ayre AX-7e for comparison. Both models are priced not too far away from each other, so it seemed pertinent to see how they came off in a shootout. Those looking for visceral bass thrills may be a tad taken aback by the Krell - the KAV-400xi trades the brutish bass delivery of yore for a more natural and controlled presentation.

But you only have to compare the KAV-400xi against high-quality and similarly priced amps like the AX-7e to realise Krell’s low frequency resolution is no less effective, although it is an iron-fist-in-velvet glove approach. As I write this, a Naim Supernait (a bit over RM16,000) is on the burners, and even this doesn’t dig as deep into the lows as the Krell.

Of course, at 200 watts into eight-ohm loads and 400 watts into double the load, the KAV-400xi has some serious reserves of juice on tap … it also does get quite hot, so proper ventilation is mandatory.

Still, power isn’t everything, and the Ayre, despite its modest power output, was capable of getting the hard work done. The Krell has a crisp and natural texture to the highs and midrange, eschewing timbral additives for neutrality … but it will not be accused of audio streaming sounding sterile.

Overall, the KAV-400xi delivered a tight, metrical and dynamic audio streaming sound that did justice to varied material – it wasn’t held back by anything and the range of features makes it a long-lasting buy.

If you want power, solidity and a no-nonsense delivery, the Krell is the choice. If you’re looking for something more beguiling and indulgent, the Ayre stakes its claim. Either way, you’re getting a finely engineering amp that will let you drown happily in the music for years.

AMPHION HELIUM2 Audio Streaming Speaker

2009-03-21T05:16:00.000-07:00

THE Amphion website gives us little history on the Finnish company, but regular readers of hi-fi publications will be familiar with two of its products – the highly acclaimed Ion and Helium2 compact loudspeakers. There are also an Argon and Xenon in the range … one wonders about the fixation with inert elements. While the silver front baffle housing the 5.25-inch woofer and recessed one-inch titanium tweeter is unique, the MDF cabinet, in Finnish birch veneer, appears too plain-Jane and Ikea-like in appearance. What were they were thinking?

The cabinet measures 310 x 265 x 155mm (h/d/w) and weighs a modest 7kg.

The crossover point is set at .5Hz, and both drivers are shielded.

The two-way, rear-vented port design presents an eight-ohm load, with a sensitivity of 86dB and frequency range of 50Hz to 20kHz. Recommend amplifier power to drive the Helium2 is 20-120 watts.

Two cylindrical pieces of foam are provided if you want to tune the port according to your environment. You get only single-wiring provision, a trend I’ve increasingly observed on most European speakers of late. Apart from the silver/birch finish of the review pair, Amphion also does the Helium2 in black/cherry, full silver and black/black – possibly making for nicer visual candy.

Despite the dowdy looks of the cabinet, the speakers are impeccably constructed and finished. The light grey cloth grille, which is clipped on, proved to be a struggle to remove, so once you get them off, you’ll want to leave them that way.

The Helium2s aren’t the sort of speakers that impress immediately … after running the review pair. I took my time with them over a few weeks, and realised they’re the sort that gradually grow on you. The longer you have them in the system, the more you’ll appreciate their attributes.

Attributes? Well, what makes the Helium2 a keeper is the inclination not to lend additive qualities to the input signal. These are speakers that will show up deficiencies in your system chain, and while the cabinets have their physical limitations, the listener is likely to realise these as such and attempt to derive the best out of the other parts of the system.

The Helium2s were driven by a Krell KAV-400xi integrated amp for some sessions and a pre/power team of Audio Research LS15 and Krell FPB200 at others, the cables used being Siltech New York. My source was a Bluenote Stibbert (upgraded to 2007 specifications) CD player, hooked up via JPS Labs Superconductor Q balanced interconnects.

The speakers exhibited a tight and tuneful bass that, at low to moderate volume, blended seamlessly in the mix, complementing an articulate mid-band and a neutral, if a tad dry treble. There was a suggestion of coolness, exacerbated by recordings of a similar texture, but generally, this seldom intruded on the listening experience.

When I played some high quality recordings, and eased into the sweet spot for some critical listening, nuances and spatial information surfaced that I never realised were present. If I had heard them earlier, then the Helium2 made them more obvious.

The speakers worked well with all sorts of musical material, but recordings with acoustic timbres audio streaming sounded more organic and realistic than, say electronica. These boxes also showed considerable bass heft, belying their physical dimensions.

Going loud wasn’t too much of an issue with the Helium2s, although they’re not what you would want to use at parties!

While these speakers have many refined characteristics, I would never call them civil in the classic sort of way … they can deliver with pizzazz when required, whether classical violins or distorted rock guitars … and if breathy, intimate vocals are your sort of thing, these won’t fail to please either. Make sure the rest of the system is up to it.
Head on the shoulders

While there’s quite a bit of competition at this price, the Amphion Helium2 stands out for its poise, head-on-shoulders expressiveness and control. I would have preferred a more striking finish on the cabinet, but this a cosmetic matter. If you’re shopping for speakers at this budget and already have a pretty solid amp and source, the Helium2 warrants a lengthy audition

XINDAK PC-O2 / FP GOLD N / FP GOLD S - Audio streaming power cables

2009-03-21T05:08:00.000-07:00

XINDAK, a Chinese brand based in Chengdu, Sichuan, makes various audio components including interconnects, speaker and power cables, valve and solid-state amps, CD players, DAC and power conditioners. Three Xindak power cables were recently sent to us for review – the PC-O2, FP Gold, N and FP Gold S. I used two other cables to compare all three Xindaks with – the Supra LoRad and DH Labs Power Plus, both neutral, with the latter offering slightly more bass slam and upfront vocals. The three cables were plugged into an Audiolab 8000S fed by a Marantz 63KI with music coming through Epos M15.2 floorstanders.

The cheapest PC-02 is well made, flexible and features a big IEC connector and sturdy US plug. Measuring 17mm in diameter, it has a black nylon outer jacket with a criss-cross design. It uses 5N oxygen-free copper, but details of construction are not available.

Compared with my two reference power cables, the PC-02 audio streaming sounded bright and thin. The website says the cable is designed to work well with Class A amps, which are typically “tubey” and warm in nature. Even after much burning in, the Xindak retained its bright-audio streaming sounding nature.

The FP Gold N is from Xindak’s highest range of power cables. It is around 19mm in diameter, very stiff and comes with good quality IEC connector and US plug. Its black nylon outer jacket has a silver spiral design and it comes in a specially made case. There’s a wooden block around it, which is probably for vibration and/or resonance control.

The cable’s stiffness made it difficult to bend to suit the orientation of the plug. There is need for some space between the components and wall plug for the cable to bend gently. And when connected to a light CD player like the Rega Apollo, the Xindak actually shifted it a bit.

Xindak’s website says the wire is made of multi-strand electrum wire and multi-strand brass wire without oxidisation by inter-twisting the two kinds of wire together using a special technology. The electrum wire is made by mixing 5% 4N bullion and 95% 4N argentine.

I had to Google to find out what electrum and argentine are and the best results were that “electrum is a naturally-occurring alloy of gold and silver, with trace amounts of copper and other metals” while “argentine is nickel silver which is an alloy of copper, nickel and zinc”. Presumably, Xindak’s cables are made of mostly silver, gold and copper.

In terms of audio streaming sound, this cable renders everything warm, rich and mellow, with a deep audio streaming soundstage. However, there seemed to be an upper-midrange emphasis resulting in some upfront presence. Micro-details could be heard from the mix of audio streaming sounds and on the whole it presented all types of music in a pleasant, creamy way.

The FP Gold S comes in an aluminium mini briefcase and is obviously meant for those with deep pockets as it costs as much as some integrated amps. Details on its construction and materials are not known, but it looks exactly like the FP Gold N cable.

This is the smoothest operator of the lot and just like the Gold N, it audio streaming sounds mellow, rich and warm. The audio streaming sound is even more detailed but in a non-fatiguing way, the audio streaming soundstage is deeper and the images sharper. But unlike the Gold N, there’s no upper-midrange emphasis. This will work well with bright and thin-audio streaming sounding solid-state amps and CD players.

Strangely, the cables tested were component dependent and audio streaming sound quality changed when the cables were used with different components. For example, I used the Supra LoRad on a Musical Fidelity A3-24 DAC and the Xindak FP Gold S on the Audiolab 8000S and the audio streaming sound improved when I switched the cables.

These cables are not a one-size-fits-all solution. You will have to test them with different components to get the audio streaming sound that you like.

PIONEER A-A9-S Audio Streaming amplifier

2009-03-21T04:59:00.000-07:00

SINCE Pioneer’s success with the A400 integrated amplifier in the early 1990s, it has not made much impact with stereo-only hi-fi equipment. Efforts were channelled into home entertainment products, resulting in some excellent multi-channel amplifiers and plasma display units. Recently, however, Pioneer returned to the two-channel market with the exceptional EX range of speakers and a range of electronics, among which is the A-A9-S integrated amplifier.

Viewed front-on, the A9 looks good – it has an elegantly curved minimalist fascia, with just a power button, knobs for volume and source selection, a “Direct” button, a headphone jack and an LED display (all other functions are controlled from the remote). Tone and balance controls can only be accessed via the remote handset, and can be bypassed.

However, the top plate is cluttered with one too many screws – 16 of them to be exact! While these serve a purpose, the indents for the inset screws are either too large or non-existent. Features include a preamp out, inputs for five sources including tape loop and phono (MC/MM), and a USB input (your PC will recognise the A9 as an external sound device).

I do take issue with the speaker binding posts. Regular banana plugs are incompatible with the sockets and only fit sideways, clamped with the screw-down knobs. Those with stiffer and heftier speaker cables may run into trouble. Additionally, the remote control is plasticky and cheap looking, and imprecise in controlling levels. Frankly, it was quite embarrassing to see “Made in Malaysia” stamped on the back of it, in stark contrast to the high build quality of the unit itself, which is made in China.

Otherwise, the A9 is actually a very solid piece of gear. The chassis is rigid and the entire unit is relatively weighty at 10.8kg, given its dimensions. The amp is a true dual-mono design, with a dedicated toroidal transformer for each channel and a power rating of 55 watts into eight ohms (and 70 watts into four ohms).

The A9 was put in the company of Marantz DV7600 and CD63 KI digital sources, diyparadise Monica 2 DAC, and Rega P5 turntable, powering a pair of Magneplanar SMGb speakers.

The amp used “Direct” mode through the duration of the review.

The A9 also features a Sound Retriever function. The manual says this is a “new technology that helps remove the adverse effects of compressing two-channel audio by restoring bandwidth and smoothing jagged artefacts”. It appears to be a loudness button by another name!

Tunes off a portable Samsung YP-T8 portable digital player showed added presence and drive with the function engaged, but when employed with full-range audio, it was far from neutral – volume was louder and bass was bloated, so best to leave it off when playing the latter.

The A9’s sound is touted to have been refined at AIR Studios, the recording studio founded by legendary Beatles producer Sir George Martin.

What is obvious about the A9 is its immediate, fast and detailed sound. It is able to bring out high levels of detail and nuances from your music, but sounded leaner compared to the resident Euphonic Research ATT-600/Amp-80 pre/power combo.

The A9 does not stumble over any sort of music you throw at it. Rock, classical or vocals, the amp presents it as is, warts and all. Bass is delivered with authority and always controlled, treble is detailed without being strident, and the midrange is generously precise with good presence. It is not exactly dry, but if you veer towards the tube amplifier sound, this may not be to your fancy.

The amp offers a generous amount of power and good dynamics, and should drive most speakers to loud volumes without much trouble. The phono stage, though, is there mostly for added functionality. It does the job but you could do better with a standalone unit.

So how does the Pioneer A-A9-S measure up against the A400? The latter was a great amp – for its price. It did not measure up sonically to higher-end designs, but was a no-brainer for newbies looking for a budget hi-fi system.

The A9, however, is not cheap. There are lower-priced integrated amps available, and many competitors at the price. So while it may not have the makings of a classic like the A400, those seeking a decent amplifier with good design basics going beyond the budget category owe it a listen.

AUDIOQUEST COLUMBIA

2008-05-18T02:02:00.000-07:00

THOSE marketing audio cables and interconnects would have you believe there’s much more to a bit of connecting wire than inductance, capacitance and resistance.It’s all a bit confusing for the layman, and the further you delve into this topic, the more complex and, often, less enlightening it gets. So, snake oil or credible science? The answer is never quite so straightforward – which is why I like to keep it simple when it comes to wiring up my system – nothing too fancy.

Which was why I was wary of the one-metre single-ended pair of AudioQuest Columbia interconnects passed to me. What on earth were those cylindrical packs affixed to the input end of the wires, I wondered? It didn’t help that there was a tiny button on each of these things which, when pressed, activated a small green LED.

Then again, AudioQuest is a cable company of some repute and surely, there had to be an explanation?

The extra bits are what the company calls its patented dielectric-bias system (DBS). In theory, any insulation on the cable slows down the passage of the signal through the conductor inside.

DBS “creates a strong and stable electrostatic field which saturates and polarises the molecules of the insulation.”

This, in turn, supposedly minimises energy storage in the insulator and non-linear time delays. The results, claim AudioQuest, are a quieter cable with improved detail and dynamic contrasts. There are batteries in the pack, which should last for years – the LED indicates battery status.

The conductor is solid and extreme-purity copper, and the dielectric is an air tube, and it takes about two weeks of use for the sonic effects of the Teflon shield to be eliminated.

The Columbia is available with RCA or XLR connectors – the review unit was the former.

The interconnects were used between an upgrade Bluenote Stibbert CD player and Krell KAV-400xi integrated amp, driving Audio Physics Tempo speakers via Stereovox Firebird cables.

For comparison, I had a pair of JPS Labs Superconductor Q and DH Labs Air Matrix interconnects. The usual running in was conducted over a few weeks.

What’s very obvious about the Columbia was how clean and focused it sounded across the frequency spectrum. Initially, I found the treble a touch grainy and etched, but this smoothened out with use, and eventually, the Columbia settled down to sound spacious and well-paced, if a tad more relaxed than the JPS (which also had more grunt) and Air Matrix.

It was a bit lean towards the bass end of things, but tight and well-controlled, so if your system has too enthusiastic lows and sounds a bit too syrupy, the Columbia is a good bet to put things back on even keel.

These are remarkably well-behaved interconnects, never accentuating on any particular area but instead, allowing the music to flow freely, as any good pair of wires should, and very light of feet when it comes to dynamics.

If you have a mid-to-high-end system that requires a bit of fine-tuning, and you need interconnects that don’t get in the way, the AudioQuest Columbia warrants an audition.

PIONEER PD-D6-S

2008-05-18T01:55:00.000-07:00

PRIOR to the advent of DVD in the late 1990s, some Japanese companies turned out excellent amps and CD players for the budget hi-fi market. However, in the DVD era, most of them shifted focus to the AV market, some exclusively, and two-channel projects took a back seat.

Over the past couple of years, though, it has been refreshing to see some of these manufacturers return to the stereo realm, and although not exactly catering to audiophiles on a budget, they at least offer a different perspective.

Pioneer made waves in the early 1990s with its Legato Link technology for CD players, and that name is being revived to power the PD-D6-S SACD/CD player (we’ll call it the D6).
Style with substance

The D6 uses Pioneer’s exclusive Legato Link Conversion PRO, a technology that quadruples sampling rate for decreased phase shift across the audio frequency range. This, Pioneer says, results in a smoother and more natural reproduction of the signal.

Coupled to the Legato Link is Hi-Bit technology that expands data length from 16-bit to 24-bit for re-quantisation.

At the heart of the D6 are twin Burr-Brown 24-bit/192kHz DACs (parallel-connected in mono mode) to ensure accurate processing of SACD signals. The pickup and drive mechanisms of the made-in-Malaysia D6 are Pioneer’s own.

High-grade parts are used throughout, and features include a quick-response power supply circuit, short and simple signal paths, DSD single-chip decoding, low-jitter crystal oscillator behind the precision master clock, and separate grounds for the digital and analogue sections.

Using the remote, you can set the player in “Pure Audio” mode, which switches off the white LCD display panel. The Legato Link mode is available only for CD playback.

The D-6 will play CD, CD-R/RW, SACD and discs containing MP3 and WMA audio tracks. Also, there’s a button on the remote that allows you to switch between the layers of any SACD recording. However, you cannot perform this on the fly – the disc has to be stopped first.

A pair of analogue outputs is provided, and if you want to use the D-6 as a transport only, there are both digital optical and coaxial outputs on the rear panel.
Spot the difference

The D-6 was, at different times, hooked to Krell KAV-400xi and Ayre AX-7e integrated amps and a pre/power combination of Audio Research LS15/Krell FPB200. I used DHS Labs Silver Sonic Air Matrix and JPS Superconductor Q interconnects as well. Speakers were Audio Physics Tempo, hooked up via Stereovox Firebird and Siltech New York cables, depending on the system.

Sticking with CD mode, keeping the display on and without Legato Link, there was an overall leanness and crispness to the sound that, while not cutting edge, at least set my right foot tapping. The lack of additives across the frequency spectrum made for a player that was honest to the recorded signal, with very good rhythmic and dynamic handling capabilities.

The staging was more constricted and less expansive than I’m used to, although the D-6 kept elements in the mix in excellent focus.

When I switched to a hybrid SACD disc, I was able to compare between the two formats and indeed, the SACD layer revealed improved ambience, greater resolution and superior spatial information.

I had no grouse with the CD layer’s bass reproduction, but with SACD, there was better control and detail … in fact, in the midrange and highs, I heard greater clarity and dynamic capability, too.

However, I felt the D-6 had one too many options to mess around with during CD playback … with or without Legato Link, Pure Audio or not … as I continued to listen, I wondered if these were really necessary.

If there was any sonic difference or improvement with Pure Audio mode on, then it was hardly discernible. I know some believe that bypassing the display mode is the purist way to go, but nothing was obvious to me.

Also, I heard nothing awe-inspiringly enlightening with the Legato Link on – indeed, some may not prefer the slight plumpness in the lower regions in this mode, which caused some veiling of the proceedings.
Nothing better

It’s almost impossible to find a multi-format machine that shines in all areas at this price, but the Pioneer PD-D6-S certainly does a better job than many of the cheaper multi-tasking DVD players in the market.

The D-6 offers competent CD capabilities and more engaging SACD playback,you’ll be hard-pressed to find a better “purist” player.

DH LABS SILVER SONIC / Q10 / POWER PLUS

2008-05-18T01:48:00.000-07:00

THEY have been touted as high-end cables at budget prices, and after testing them, I can assure you reviewers are not wrong in their observations of DH Labs’ Silver Sonic wires. I tried three products – interconnects, internally bi-wired speaker cable and power cord – and all featured “family” traits of big soundstage, great detail and punchy sound, while leaning towards a neutral balance and a mild touch of brightness.

The Matrix

The Silver Sonic Air Matrix interconnect is unique in that it uses DH Labs’ proprietary Air Matrix dielectric – a mixture of PTFE Teflon and 60% air. The dielectric constant is 1.4 and its propagation velocity is 84%. Going by the charts, Air Matrix outperforms Teflon.

It appears it is this dielectric that gives these interconnects their speed and zap. The sound created is truly big, bold and powerful.

Using a Rega Apollo CD player, Audiolab 8000S and Epos 15.2 speakers, I compared this with a pair of home-made silver interconnects.

The Air Matrix, which uses silver-plated copper, sounded as detailed as silver and surprisingly more upfront and “faster”. It also had a much better and “rounded” bottom end. The bass notes sounded richer with more solidity.

Another reviewer tested these and they held their own against interconnects that cost three grand.

Q’s the word

Considering that the Q10 are internally bi-wire speaker cables, they are rather thin (about 8mm diameter) and quite flexible. This is most welcome, as many speaker cables can be as thick as snakes and stiff.

Unlike other bi-wired cables, these have wires of different gauges – they feature 14 AWG wires for the treble and 12 AWG wires for the bass/mid.

I compared them with AudioQuest GBC single bi-wire cables. This may not be a fair comparison because the GBCs are not exactly the best that AudioQuest can offer, but the GBC is a 12AWG aggregate size cable featuring six conductors using pretty good copper – AudioQuest’s Long Grain Copper.

Again, the DH Labs cables created a large soundstage with a good bass rendition. Details were aplenty and the images were stable. One comment must be made – the soundstage created by the Q10 and also the Air Matrix seems to be spherical whereas other cables such as the AudioQuest GBC tend to place the musicians in a row between or slightly behind the speakers with one more row at the back.

In terms of tonal balance, the Q10 was pretty neutral whilst the GBC displayed some upper-mid hardness.

Power factor

The thick (15mm diameter) Power Plus power cable uses three 12 AWG high-purity copper conductors to achieve very low series resistance and inductance, and features noise-cancelling geometries to cut RFI noise. It comes with a good quality US plug and IEC connector. Though it is quite thick, it is very flexible.

I compared this with a Kimber Power Kord and a Supra LoRad. The Kimber was bass heavy while the Supra and Silver Sonic Power Plus were close sonically, with the latter being a tad richer sounding.

The Power Plus was tonally on the neutral side and created a big soundstage, but it had the tendency to push the midrange and, especially, the vocalist forward while there was a slight hint of brightness on the high notes.

XINDAK PC-O2 Cords of power

2008-05-06T13:02:00.000-07:00

XINDAK, a Chinese brand based in Chengdu, Sichuan, makes various audio components including interconnects, speaker and power cables, valve and solid-state amps, CD players, DAC and power conditioners. Three Xindak power cables were recently sent to us for review – the PC-O2, FP Gold, N and FP Gold S.

I used two other cables to compare all three Xindaks with – the Supra LoRad and DH Labs Power Plus, both neutral, with the latter offering slightly more bass slam and upfront vocals. The three cables were plugged into an Audiolab 8000S fed by a Marantz 63KI with music coming through Epos M15.2 floorstanders.

The cheapest PC-02 is well made, flexible and features a big IEC connector and sturdy US plug. Measuring 17mm in diameter, it has a black nylon outer jacket with a criss-cross design. It uses 5N oxygen-free copper, but details of construction are not available.

Compared with my two reference power cables, the PC-02 sounded bright and thin. The website says the cable is designed to work well with Class A amps, which are typically “tubey” and warm in nature. Even after much burning in, the Xindak retained its bright-sounding nature.

The FP Gold N is from Xindak’s highest range of power cables. It is around 19mm in diameter, very stiff and comes with good quality IEC connector and US plug. Its black nylon outer jacket has a silver spiral design and it comes in a specially made case. There’s a wooden block around it, which is probably for vibration and/or resonance control.

The cable’s stiffness made it difficult to bend to suit the orientation of the plug. There is need for some space between the components and wall plug for the cable to bend gently. And when connected to a light CD player like the Rega Apollo, the Xindak actually shifted it a bit.

Xindak’s website says the wire is made of multi-strand electrum wire and multi-strand brass wire without oxidisation by inter-twisting the two kinds of wire together using a special technology. The electrum wire is made by mixing 5% 4N bullion and 95% 4N argentine.

I had to Google to find out what electrum and argentine are and the best results were that “electrum is a naturally-occurring alloy of gold and silver, with trace amounts of copper and other metals” while “argentine is nickel silver which is an alloy of copper, nickel and zinc”. Presumably, Xindak’s cables are made of mostly silver, gold and copper.

In terms of sound, this cable renders everything warm, rich and mellow, with a deep soundstage. However, there seemed to be an upper-midrange emphasis resulting in some upfront presence. Micro-details could be heard from the mix of sounds and on the whole it presented all types of music in a pleasant, creamy way.

The FP Gold S comes in an aluminium mini briefcase and is obviously meant for those with deep pockets as it costs as much as some integrated amps. Details on its construction and materials are not known, but it looks exactly like the FP Gold N cable.

This is the smoothest operator of the lot and just like the Gold N, it sounds mellow, rich and warm. The sound is even more detailed but in a non-fatiguing way, the soundstage is deeper and the images sharper. But unlike the Gold N, there’s no upper-midrange emphasis. This will work well with bright and thin-sounding solid-state amps and CD players.

Strangely, the cables tested were component dependent and sound quality changed when the cables were used with different components. For example, I used the Supra LoRad on a Musical Fidelity A3-24 DAC and the Xindak FP Gold S on the Audiolab 8000S and the sound improved when I switched the cables.

These cables are not a one-size-fits-all solution. You will have to test them with different components to get the sound that you like

AMPHION HELIUM2

2008-05-06T12:58:00.000-07:00

THE Amphion website gives us little history on the Finnish company, but regular readers of hi-fi publications will be familiar with two of its products – the highly acclaimed Ion and Helium2 compact loudspeakers. There are also an Argon and Xenon in the range … one wonders about the fixation with inert elements.

While the silver front baffle housing the 5.25-inch woofer and recessed one-inch titanium tweeter is unique, the MDF cabinet, in Finnish birch veneer, appears too plain-Jane and Ikea-like in appearance. What were they were thinking?

The cabinet measures 310 x 265 x 155mm (h/d/w) and weighs a modest 7kg.

The crossover point is set at .5Hz, and both drivers are shielded.

The two-way, rear-vented port design presents an eight-ohm load, with a sensitivity of 86dB and frequency range of 50Hz to 20kHz. Recommend amplifier power to drive the Helium2 is 20-120 watts.

Two cylindrical pieces of foam are provided if you want to tune the port according to your environment.

You get only single-wiring provision, a trend I’ve increasingly observed on most European speakers of late.

Apart from the silver/birch finish of the review pair, Amphion also does the Helium2 in black/cherry, full silver and black/black – possibly making for nicer visual candy.

Despite the dowdy looks of the cabinet, the speakers are impeccably constructed and finished. The light grey cloth grille, which is clipped on, proved to be a struggle to remove, so once you get them off, you’ll want to leave them that way.
Pizzazz or polish?

The Helium2s aren’t the sort of speakers that impress immediately … after running the review pair. I took my time with them over a few weeks, and realised they’re the sort that gradually grow on you. The longer you have them in the system, the more you’ll appreciate their attributes.

Attributes? Well, what makes the Helium2 a keeper is the inclination not to lend additive qualities to the input signal. These are speakers that will show up deficiencies in your system chain, and while the cabinets have their physical limitations, the listener is likely to realise these as such and attempt to derive the best out of the other parts of the system.

The Helium2s were driven by a Krell KAV-400xi integrated amp for some sessions and a pre/power team of Audio Research LS15 and Krell FPB200 at others, the cables used being Siltech New York. My source was a Bluenote Stibbert (upgraded to 2007 specifications) CD player, hooked up via JPS Labs Superconductor Q balanced interconnects.

The speakers exhibited a tight and tuneful bass that, at low to moderate volume, blended seamlessly in the mix, complementing an articulate mid-band and a neutral, if a tad dry treble. There was a suggestion of coolness, exacerbated by recordings of a similar texture, but generally, this seldom intruded on the listening experience.

When I played some high quality recordings, and eased into the sweet spot for some critical listening, nuances and spatial information surfaced that I never realised were present. If I had heard them earlier, then the Helium2 made them more obvious.

The speakers worked well with all sorts of musical material, but recordings with acoustic timbres sounded more organic and realistic than, say electronica. These boxes also showed considerable bass heft, belying their physical dimensions.

Going loud wasn’t too much of an issue with the Helium2s, although they’re not what you would want to use at parties!

While these speakers have many refined characteristics, I would never call them civil in the classic sort of way … they can deliver with pizzazz when required, whether classical violins or distorted rock guitars … and if breathy, intimate vocals are your sort of thing, these won’t fail to please either. Make sure the rest of the system is up to it.
Head on the shoulders

While there’s quite a bit of competition at this price, the Amphion Helium2 stands out for its poise, head-on-shoulders expressiveness and control. I would have preferred a more striking finish on the cabinet, but this a cosmetic matter.

If you’re shopping for speakers at this budget and already have a pretty solid amp and source, the Helium2 warrants a lengthy audition.

Running-in tuning audio streaming

2008-04-02T03:56:00.000-07:00

SO you’re in the habit of occasionally upgrading your amplifier or speakers for audio streaming, or love to mess around with wires. Many audiophiles for audio streaming believe new gear needs running for optimum performance, so how do you keep the music going without wearing down your CD player audio streaming ?

Here’s an option – radio! There are a number of tasty FM stations these days, dishing out a variety of music and for audio streaming . Still, you may feel that spending over a grand on a new digital tuner isn’t justified.

Solution – get a vintage analogue tuner for your audio streaming … you know, those where you turn a dial and the needle silently glides through the display meter. These tuners can be found at flea markets and the classifieds – hook up an antennae, and bask in endless hours of pleasure while running in your gear.

Denon’s high-end audio streaming statement

2008-04-01T17:05:00.000-07:00

IF you thought costly, lifestyle hi-fi was the sole domain of the Europeans, think again, because Japanese manufacturers are showing the stuff they’re made of - and receiving acclaim for it.

Take, for example, the Denon CX3 miniature high-end audio streaming hi-fi system, comprising the DRA-CX3 audio streaming stereo receiver, DCD-CX3 CD/Super Audio Streaming CD player and SC-CX303 audio streaming speakers, all built from the finest grade audio audio streaming components.

COMPACT LUXURY: The Denon CX3, Japan's answer to the European, hi-fi lifestyle.

The DRA-CX3 is a 75-watt-per-channel amp with an AM/FM tuner, plus an MM/MC phono equaliser section. There is also claim to newly developed amplifier circuitry that improves power delivery, clarity and transient handling.

Separate power supplies and ground circuits are used for each stage, and the precise electronic volume control should keep most users happy. Large, gold-plated brass speaker terminals are provided, which will accommodate those thick cables audiophiles so love.

The DCD-CX3 comes with a newly developed transport mechanism for more accurate information retrieval; this is coupled to a high-accuracy AL24 processor, and separate digital and analogue transformers for power supply stability.

It will play MP3 and WMA files recorded on CD-R/RW, plus, of course, Red Book CDs and SACD.

Pure Direct mode, gold-plated brass terminals and optical digital outputs ensure you can maximise your enjoyment.

The SC-CX303 audio streaming speakers each have a new 13cm DDL carbon fibre woofer cone mated to a soft-dome tweeter. The cabinet uses 30mm MDF and is wrapped in natural cherry-wood veneer, with a rear duct for deeper and clearer audio streaming bass.

GOLDRING DR150-An open ear

2008-03-28T11:37:00.000-07:00

HEADPHONES are not products you would expect from a popular audio streaming hi-fi manufacturer, but here’s one – the Goldring DR150. The name is more commonly associated with vinyl playback, but going by its performance here, things might just change.

The DR150 is the top model in the range, with the DR100 and DR50 further down the line. The DR150 is fashioned mostly from plastic, which may not instil confidence initially, but feels sufficiently sturdy, to take the abuse of regular use.

Encouragingly, the DR150 comes with a hefty, detachable three-metre cable, made by QED. Fixed terminations at both ends are the mini-jack type (ideal for portable player use), and a quality ¼-inch stereo adaptor is included as well.

The cans, when new, exert quite a lot of clamping force, but constant use will gradually flex the plastic and lessen this. That said, the lightness and some well-placed padding make this a very comfortable pair of cans.

The DR150s were thrown into action with a fair bit of equipment, spending time in the company of Pocket Amp 2 Version 2 and Darkvoice THA 332 headphone amplifiers running WAV and MP3 files off the PC, as well as CDs and SACDs via a modified Marantz CD63KIS and Marantz DV7600 players.

These are an amazing pair of headphones, considering the price. Just allow them plenty of run-in time to smoothen an initially sibilant treble.

Sonically, it’s a good all-around performer that punches above its weight. It has a clean overall presentation, but not to the point of being overly clinical. Detail retrieval is good with decent separation of instruments but it is not as openly transparent as pricier competitors.

The DR150 may not possess truly deep audio streaming bass, but has the ability to thump it out within its parameters with excellent control and punch.

The mid-range has good presence with audio streaming higher frequencies rendered well and the treble is not excessively highlighted – in fact, there is a very balanced audio streaming sound throughout.

The DR150 may not have the finesse or the ultimate resolution of pricier designs from other manufacturers, but it is one of the better cans that you can get your hands on.

At the price, though, you’re unlikely to find anything that can beat this. One definitely worth checking out if you’re in the market for an affordable pair of quality headphones.

Audio Streaming Q ACOUSTICS 1050

2008-02-28T15:52:00.000-08:00

What they are: Three-way floorstanding audio streaming speakers.

Lust factor: Seductive midrange and very detailed sound streaming.

Reality check: If only the bass had a bit more streaming punch.

IF YOU were expecting a big sound streaming from the Q Acoustics 1050 floorstanders, you won’t be disappointed. The speakers beat my pair of Mission 782s in terms of size (they measure 97.5 x 29.5 x 19.5cm) and, unfortunately, sound streaming quality too, except for the bass response.

A great audio streaming start

Right from the start, the Q Acoustics 1050s exhibited striking qualities – the extremely detailed sound streaming, the huge soundstage in terms of height and width, the sweet and textured midrange, the smooth highs, the involving sound streaming. But the bass was a bit too light.

STANDING TALL: The Q Acoustics 1050, very seductive and very detailed.

Removing the jumper connectors, made of shiny nickel-plated brass, and bi-wiring with AudioQuest cables improved the bass somewhat. Using a McCormack DNA-1 power amp instead of the Audiolab 8000S improved the bass some more, but since the 1050s are in the same price range as the Audiolab, the integrated amp was used for the rest of the listening sessions.

The 1050s are the first pair of audio streaming speakers, encountered that come with metal plinths that can be screwed on to the base of the audio streaming speakers. Two hex keys are supplied with the audio streaming speakers and the spikes come with plastic covers to ensure that the missus will not complain about the holes and scratches on the marble floor. Also, the audio streaming speaker terminals are in a most unusual configuration.

The aluminium plinth raises the tweeter to the ear level of a listener sitting in his favourite chair. The box is pretty solid and if you were to stuff your hand into the largish port, you can feel the stuffing and bracing.

The front of the audio streaming speaker is curved, serving to improve the dispersion of sound streaming waves and reduce initial reflections. Two 165mm mid-woofers are placed vertically in line with a tweeter in the middle in the classic M-T-M or D’Appolito configuration – this is used by many manufacturers and is said to help in stereo streaming imaging.

In exquisite detail

There is nothing to complain about the 1050’s imaging. In my system, using pure silver DIY interconnects (with silver, you tend to get pinpoint imaging), the imaging was superb. It was still good even when listened to music off-axis.

After many nights of playing Diana Krall, Joni Mitchell, Eva Cassidy and Audiophile Acoustic Voices, that the best way to describe the Q Acoustic 1050’s sound streaming was SET-ish. It has the seductive midrange, the smooth top end and rolled-off bass of the SET amp. The only thing missing was the warmth of the valves.

They would have been the perfect replacements for the Missions if not for the bass. It is not that the bass is not there, it’s just that a little more slam and grunt would have helped convince buyer to spend some money.

According to the specs, the bass is -3dB at 44Hz, a bit high for a audio streaming speaker of this size. But this could be due to the fact that the 1050, the flagship model in the Q Acoustic’s 1000 range of speakers, can also be used as the main audio streaming speakers of a Home Theatre system with a matching sub-woofer that should fill up the lower octaves and provide some slam.

Cyrus audio streaming

2008-02-26T08:02:00.000-08:00

British company Cyrus, which is known for its unique-looking, impressive-sounding hi-fi amplifiers audio streaming, now has introduced an audio-visual (AV) processor that can convert an existing Cyrus two-channel hi-fi system into a 5.1, 6.1 or 7.1 channel home cinema system. This way, the company contends, the user can enjoy the occasional jaunt into home cinema without compromising on two-channel hi-fi standards.

Called AV Master 8.0, it is designed to aesthetically complement existing Cyrus components. In fact, it is an AV processor and a three-channel amplifier audio streaming built into a single enclosure.

The three-channel amplifier of the AV Master 8.0 can be used to drive the main left and right speakers as well as the centre channel speaker, leaving the existing two-channel amplifier audio streaming to drive the surround speakers.

Alternatively, the existing audio streaming amplifier can be retained in its original role of driving the main left and right speakers while the AV Master 8.0 drives the centre and surround speakers.

Apart from the variants of Dolby Digital and DTS soundtracks, the AV Master 8.0 is said to be optimised for two-channel, pure audio streaming performance where the centre channel amplifier can be switched off during two-channel operations. There is also a subwoofer pre-out for use with an external active subwoofer.

P.S. Audio Streaming

2008-02-25T17:58:00.000-08:00

Most audiophiles would have heard of Paul McGowan, co-founder and chief executive of P.S. Audio, a high-end audio streaming-oriented company that makes products ranging from power amplifiers and power protection products to audiophile-grade AC outlets, power cables and interconnects.

McGowan, although famous for the top-notch range of pre-amplifiers and power amplifiers he designed in the mid-1980s, insists that he is still in the “learning curve”. By this he explains that over the years he learnt that no matter how good an amplifier he is able to design, such high-level performance would be reduced to naught if the power supply is not up to mark.

All these products have one thing in common: they are made according to high, stringent standards and contribute significantly to the musical improvement of any audio-visual (AV) system.

McGowan stresses that the power supply that comes in through the ordinary mains outlet, more often than not, is contaminated by noise, which robs an audio streaming system of its full potential.

To eliminate all that distortion noise and the electromagnetic field that emanates from the mains outlet, P.S. Audio has manufactured a wide range of power regenerators, high-performance power cables and outlets that includes the Power Plant Premier in its many variants: the P300 Power Plant, Quintessence Power Center, and the portable Quintet and Duet Power Centers. Its power cable range includes the sought-after XStream Radian Series.

P.S. Audio also makes a series of mains AC outlets such as the Power Port to clean up the mains supply. The GCA-MC, like other high-performance P.S. Audio amplifiers, features the company’s proprietary Audio Cain Cell technology to make sure that every channel sounds streaming identical regardless of power output. This, McGowan explains, is important in a multi-channel AV system for seamless audio reproduction.

The GCA-MC is capable of providing a good reservoir of refined power in a high-end home theatre, especially so with Blu-ray and HD DVD software in which advanced Dolby TruHD and DTS-HD Master Audio Streaming high-resolution soundtracks demand the best a power amplifier can provide.

Audio Streaming of music- REGA APOLLO

2008-02-22T15:46:00.000-08:00

REGA Research has never been known to follow trends, at least not when it was fashionable to do so. It was the last of the true-blue British hi-fi manufacturers to embrace the digital realm Rega delivered its first Audio Streaming CD player, the Planet, only in 1996 – but head honcho Roy Gandy’s eccentric approach has resulted in a number of enduring products.

The classic Planar turntables and RB tonearms, in their latest incarnations, continue to draw the faithful, and there is a wider range of Rega hi-fi gear these days to tempt the enthusiast. Last year, Rega finally replaced the Planet with the Apollo, a Audio Streaming CD player that has been lavished with great acclaim both sides of the Atlantic.

REGA APOLLO is a A Audio Streaming CD player with lust factor, very musical, and excellent with all sorts of material. The Audio Streaming CD player to beat, even above its class. So what is so special about the Apollo, apart from its top-loading feature and USS Enterprise -like lid?

The Rega website provides some information on the development of the Apollo, which took three years. We learn that Rega sourced its Audio Streaming CD transport chipsets and operating software from a mysterious British company, instead of the Far East. This new disc operating system allows for data retrieval conforming to the Red Book standard, and comes with a powerful 20MB of memory and 32-bit digital processing power, far outstripping what has been conventionally available.

The Apollo comes with a new remote handset, and as a concession to the times, the player accommodates MP3 CDs. The Apollo has four levels of error correction. Slip in the Audio Streaming CD, shut the lid, and the player “initialises” the information and then selects the optimal level of correction to avoid “over-correction”, which can be detrimental to Audio Streaming sound quality. It takes about eight seconds to optimise a Audio Streaming CD for playback. This is coupled to a high-performance, digital-to-analogue converter from Wolfson, the WM8740 Sigma Delta 24-bit DAC with differential outputs. The output amp is also new, a discreet design with high quality audio components operating in Class A mode.

The transport (from Sanyo, I’m told) incorporates a “three-point mounting ball chuck” that Rega claims is superior to the previous magnetic puck design. Less mass means less stress on the mechanism, resulting in more accurate retrieval of information from the Audio Streaming CD.

The fascia is typically minimalist, with the barest of features, and the satin-finished aluminium casework won’t really catch the eye – until you observe the top-loading feature. The Apollo is pretty light, and the casework isn’t spectacular – but then, as with other Rega products over the decades, you’re paying for what’s inside, not how it looks.
The hills are alive...

At the rear, a pair of analogue RCA outputs and two sets of digital outputs coaxial and optical round up the features on the Apollo. The detachable power cord is good news for tweakers, although Rega eschews the use of fancy bits of wire, saying the provided cable and interconnects should be sufficient for optimal performance.

The Apollo had the opportunity to try it in a variety of systems amplification included, Quicksilver Line preamp/Mesa Baron power amp set-up, and a range of integrated amps, including a NAD C 352, Primare i30, Creek Evo and Malaysian-made Stranwood Artemis.

Speakers were Xavian XN 125 II and PSB Alpha B1, and cables and interconnects included a range from QED, Chord Co and Black Rhodium. This is a very musical player, with excellent detail retrieval capabilities, and spot-on timing and pace. In the right system , the Apollo will sound more expensive than its real-world price.

The results aren’t your typical high end stuff, the “refined” or “cultured” and “suited to Audio Streaming vocals and jazz only” approach. Rega, like Naim and Roksan, has always beat its own distinctive path to the ultimate goal of music reproduction, and the Apollo, in the digital realm, makes Audio Streaming musical enjoyment as tactile and satisfying as the older Planars and new “P” range turntables do in the analogue domain.

It has very good Audio Streaming bass, which is taut, considerably well extended and musical; a midrange that projects cleanly and with clarity, even with rock mixes; and a treble that leans on the right side of sweet. There’s no significant coloration to distract the purist, and yet, no one will accuse the Apollo of being sterile.

The Rega Apollo stands out as a class leader, no argument about this – it is a mighty fine Audio Streaming player that gets better the more resolving the rest of the system is ... in fact, whether you have a budget or mid-to-high-end system, this one deserves a serious audition.

More at : Rega

The audio streaming room

2008-02-21T03:47:00.000-08:00

ROOM acoustics are the last thing many audiophiles take into consideration, preferring instead to upgrade their kit along various paths. However, some dedication and patience in fine-tuning a listening room’s acoustic environment can bring about significant improvements in audio streaming.

Break up parallel expanses of bare wall with furniture, and use carpets to absorb excessive lows. The idea is to arrive at a judicious mixture of diffusive and absorbent surfaces that allow the higher frequencies to breath while keeping bass tight … without loss of information or resolution.

You can also opt for a variety of professional room treatment products, meant for application in recording studios, halls and homes. Some DIY work will also get your room to audio streaming pretty decent – packing foam stuck on the rear/side walls can break up parallel surfaces and diffuse/absorb certain frequencies.

Regular experimentation will tell you what works and what doesn’t … without much outlay of precious cash. And keep us posted on the results.

Audio Streaming Music on your feet

2008-02-20T00:40:00.000-08:00

NIKE+IPOD SPORTS KIT

The kit is made of two devices — a transmitter and a receiver.

The transmitter is a small, coin-sized device that fits into the insole of any Nike+ compatible shoe while the receiver plugs into the dock connector of any iPod nano.

The transmitter is actually an accelerometer, which measures the movement of your feet and from that computes the speed and distance you have travelled.

Apple claims that the device has an accuracy of at least 90% and it could be improved further if you take the time to calibrate it. To get started, you'll have to download the Nike+ software which is available on the iTunes website. Once you install the software and attach the receiver to the iPod, you just need to walk around a bit to activate the transmitter and get it communicating with the iPod.

After that, the Nike+iPod kit will track important statistics during each run, including the total distance covered, the amount of time taken, the extent of the change of pace and even the total amount of calories burnt.

The Nike+iPod makes exercising fun even when you have not been doing any for a very long time. The iPod will give you spoken-word reports on your progress as you run. And of course, you’ll be doing all this while listening to your favourite tunes to keep you on your feet.

Fitness measuring device

Sensor dimensions (w x d x h): 34.79 x 24.13 x 7.62mm

Receiver dimensions (w x d x h): 26.12 x 15.74 x 5.58mm

Sensor weight: 6.52g

Receiver weight: 3.4g

Price: RM139

Yamaha RX-Z11 Home Theater Receiver -Audio Streaming

2008-02-18T19:53:00.001-08:00

Yamaha introduces a new benchmark audio streaming for home theater receiver performance: the RX-Z11. The new flagship takes high end receiver evolution to another level with an enormous range of exciting features, capabilities and cutting edge technologies. The RX-Z11 performance sets a new standard in home theater experience.

When it comes to top-shelf stereo receivers, Yamaha’s new RX-Z11 sets a high bar for feature-rich high definition amplifiers. Sure, it’s got your XM-HD, HD Radio, Dolby True HD, and neural surround. Yeah it’s Made for iPod, XM Ready, and it’s got network connectivity for getting your Windows Media Player on. But those are all just table stakes for modern HD-capable receivers, and the RX-Z11 is a high roller. It’s got support for HDMI 1.3a, and it can upscale video all the way to 1080p, or drop the res down to 480. It’s also the first receiver on the market to use THX Loudness Plus — a back-end audio feature designed to let you play movies at low volumes without sacrificing any surround sound details. (Typically, movies are optimized for theater-level volumes — not living room.) Although we were initially skeptical, this worked quite well, letting us pick up intricate spatial details of our favorite flicks without blowing out our eardrums or making enemies of the new neighbors.

But when you are ready to pump the volume, the RX-Z11 can handle just about any speaker configuration you want to throw at it. The rig supports up to 11 total speakers: six surround, center channel, and two presence speakers in both the front and rear. And that little .2 designation? It means you can pump your bass across dual stereo subwoofers. Best yet, the manual has clear diagrams on how to set up everything from a full 11.2 party mover to a puzzling-given-the-price-tag 2.1 bare bones setup.

Yamaha takes receiver evolution to a new peak with an enormous range of exciting capabilities.

Unprecedented Audio Performance

Trilateral Sound Development for the HD Audio era
Discrete 11-channel amplifier configuration delivering a total of 1,180W (140W x 7 + 50W x 4)
Digital ToP-ART and High Current Amplification with high quality and custom-built audio-grade parts and devices used throughout
Super Stable Chassis design

High Sound Quality

Preamplifier Stage
New Pure Direct for lossless audio formats also
Pure Ground DAC Concept
High quality preamplifier block design
Low-Jitter PLL and Digital Clock Circuits
High quality headphone amplifier circuit
Power Amplifier Stage
All-Channel Current Feedback Circuit
Hybrid Low Noise Power Supply
Symmetrical Layout and New Power Circuit Layout
Low-impedance, minimum loop print pattern
Thick aluminum panels and large, heavy feet

High Picture Quality

Latest HDMI 1.3a specification supports Deep Color (30/36 bit) transmission, xvYCC color space, 120Hz and 24Hz Refresh Rates and Auto Lip-Sync compensation
Analog and HDMI digital video signal upscaling to Full HD 1080p and downscaling to 480p format
Analog video to HDMI digital video upconversion capability
4 Component Video in and 2 monitor outs

Surround Realism

New CINEMA DSP HD3 creates lush, dense, accurate sound field
THX Ultra2 Plus surround modes
Improved Compressed Music Enhancer
Adaptive DRC (Dynamic Range Control) and DSP effect level controlling capability
SILENT CINEMA and Virtual CINEMA DSP

Make your PC audio streaming like a clubbing

2008-02-18T19:34:00.000-08:00

The computer is increasingly becoming the hub of many audiophiles home stereo systems. No longer just a way for kids to download illegal MP3's off the internet, the computer is slowly taking its place as a serious, high quality audio source. Turning your computer into a music server for your stereo is quite easy. If you have music on your computer, you're almost there.

Here's a list of things you'll need:

A Computer

Any modern PC or Mac will do, but you will want as large a hard drive as possible, as well as plenty of RAM (~512mb). A USB port is required to use a USB device, and if you want a wireless solution, your computer will need a wireless networking (802.11b/g) card. You may also want to consider a backup hard drive for your music. Computer hard drives are prone to failure; you don't want to lose all your music!

A Sound Card, Wireless Media Server, or USB DAC

Speakers produce sound by moving a rigid surface quickly enough to produce vibrations. But what tells the speaker how fast to vibrate? That's the soundcard's job. The hardware device that links your computer to your stereo, a crucial link in the chain. This is a critical part of the chain for getting good sound out of your PC. Your PC is a terrible environment for a sensitive little audio signal. It is filled with electronic and mechanical noise and interference that can wreak all kinds of havoc on your music. The stock sound card that came with your PC does very little to eliminate this noise, and will pass it right along to your stereo.

Good sound cards, however, will do their best to isolate the music from the noise. This is a big reason why audiophiles tend to prefer external USB or Firewire sound cards to internal cards. The signal is transferred via USB and where the interference is minimalised. Now you've got something you can work with.

One more thing to consider is whether you will use the analog or digital output of your soundcard.If you have a dolby digital equipped receiver, or a high end digital-to-analog converter, you'll want to use the digital output of the soundcard. Otherwise you'll be using the analog outputs.

PC Speaker

Transform your PC audio into high-performance theater sound. Pc speakers make a persons voice sound like munchkins. ... munchkins it's the sounds of your bones when your pc will start eating you alive.

The PC speaker rig receives a signal from your computer's soundcard in either analog or digital format, which it then runs through a series of sound processors and amplifiers. Once the signal is through the amps, it goes directly to the speakers in analog format. That signal controls the movement of powerful electromagnets, which in turn moves the surface that produces the sound. Like different size chimes produce different tones, smaller speaker surfaces produce higher-pitched sounds, while larger speaker surfaces can produce lower-pitched sounds. But of course, there's a trick. To produce the low-frequency bass sounds that give rocket explosions and Def Leppard tracks their punch, you need at least one very large speaker. This speaker, frequently called a subwoofer, only outputs the low-frequency sounds near the bottom of the human range of perception. Because the human ear can't precisely tell which direction low-frequency sounds come from, speaker manufacturers can create large, standalone subwoofer boxes

If the subwoofer handles low-frequency sounds, what takes care of the high- and mid-range sounds? These are the purview of the satellite speakers. These much smaller speakers—called satellites—include one or two speakers that specialize in producing mid- to high-frequency sounds. Speaker rigs can have anywhere from two to seven of these satellites to create a sound field that envelops your room. Because the human ear can easily determine what direction sounds in this frequency range come from, it's important that the satellite speakers are put in the right places.

There are three basic satellite designs available today. The standard satellite speaker features a mid-range driver and a tweeter, which specializes in high-frequency sounds. Recently, Logitech has begun manufacturing speakers that use a single driver and forsake the tweeter. We've also seen flat speakers that vibrate a flat sheet of plastic instead of a more traditional cone shaped object. We were very impressed with Logitech's tweeterless design—high-frequency sounds don't suffer at all, and the overall sound quality is excellent. The flat-panel speakers are very cool to look at, but for the most part, they just can't produce enough sound to satisfy…well, anyone. They just don't get loud. that can be hidden out of sight and still produce loud, punchy bass.

Playback Software

A software application to help 'rip' your CDs into music files, organize and play them back for you.WinAmp, iTunes, MusicMatch, Windows Media Player, Foobar, etc. This is really a personal choice. Choose the one that works best for you.

About Audio Streaming

2008-02-18T19:17:00.000-08:00

Streaming multimedia is multimedia that is constantly received by, and normally displayed to, the end-user while it is being delivered by the provider. The name refers to the delivery method of the medium rather than to the medium itself. The distinction is usually applied to media that are distributed over telecommunications networks, as most other delivery systems are either inherently streaming (e.g. radio, television) or inherently non-streaming (e.g. books, video cassettes, audio CDs). The verb 'to stream' is also derived from this term, meaning to deliver media in this manner.

Audio size

Streaming media storage size (in the common file system measurements megabytes, gigabytes, terabytes, and so on) is calculated from streaming bandwidth and length of the media with the following formula (for a single user and file):

storage size (in megabytes) = length (in seconds) · bit rate (in kbit/s) / 8,388.608

(since 1 megabyte = 8 * 1,048,576 bits = 8,388.608 kilobits)

Real world example:

One hour of video encoded at 300 kbit/s (this is a typical broadband video for 2005 and it's usually encoded in a 320×240 pixels window size) will be:

(3,600 s · 300 kbit/s) / (8*1024*1024) give around 130 MB of storage

If the file is stored on a server for on-demand streaming and this stream is viewed by 1,000 people at the same time using a Unicast protocol, you would need:

300 kbit/s · 1,000 = 300,000 kbit/s = 300 Mbit/s of bandwidth

This is equivalent to around 125 GiB per hour. Of course, using a Multicast protocol the server sends out only a single stream that is common to all users. Hence, such a stream would only use 300 kbit/s of serving bandwidth. See below for more information on these protocols.

Audio Format

An audio file format is a container format for storing audio data on a computer system.

The general approach towards storing digital audio is to sample the audio voltage which, on playback, would correspond to a certain position of the membrane in a speaker of the individual channels with a certain resolution — the number of bits per sample — in regular intervals (forming the sample rate). This data can then be stored uncompressed or compressed to reduce the file size.

It is important to distinguish between a file format and a codec. A codec performs the encoding and decoding of the raw audio data while the data itself is stored in a file with a specific audio file format. Though most audio file formats support only one audio codec, a file format may support multiple codecs, as AVI does.

There are three major groups of audio file formats:

Uncompressed audio formats, such as WAV, AIFF and AU;
Formats with lossless compression, such as FLAC, Monkey's Audio (filename extension APE), WavPack (filename extension WV), Shorten, TTA, Apple Lossless and lossless Windows Media Audio (WMA); and
Formats with lossy compression, such as MP3, Vorbis, lossy Windows Media Audio (WMA) and AAC.

Uncompressed audio format

There is one major uncompressed audio format, PCM, which is usually stored as a .wav on Windows or as .aiff on Mac OS. WAV is a flexible file format designed to store more or less any combination of sampling rates or bitrates. This makes it an adequate file format for storing and archiving an original recording. A lossless compressed format would require more processing for the same time recorded, but would be more efficient in terms of space used. WAV, like any other uncompressed format, encodes all sounds, whether they are complex sounds or absolute silence, with the same number of bits per unit of time. As an example, a file containing a minute of playing by a symphonic orchestra would be the same size as a minute of absolute silence if they were both stored in WAV. If the files were encoded with TTA, the first file would be marginally smaller, and the second file taking up almost no space at all. However, to encode the files to TTA would take significantly more time than encoding the files to the WAV format.

The WAV format is based on the RIFF file format, which is similar to the IFF format.

BWF (Broadcast Wave Format) is a standard audio format created by the European Broadcasting Union as a successor to WAV. BWF allows metadata to be stored in the file. See European Broadcasting Union: Specification of the Broadcast Wave Format — A format for audio data files in broadcasting. EBU Technical document 3285, July 1997. This format is the primary recording format used in many professional Audio Workstations used in the Television and Film industry. Stand-alone, file based, multi-track recorders from Sound Devices, Zaxcom, HHB USA, Fostex, and Aaton all use BWF as their preferred file format for recording multi-track audio files with SMPTE Time Code reference. This standardized Time Stamp in the Broadcast Wave File allows for easy synchronization with a separate picture element.

Lossless audio formats

Lossless audio formats (such as TTA and FLAC) provide a compression ratio of about 2:1.

Free and open file formats

wav – standard audio file container format used mainly in Windows PCs. Commonly used for storing uncompressed (PCM), CD-quality sound files, which means that they can be large in size — around 10 MB per minute. Wave files can also contain data encoded with a variety of codecs to reduce the file size (for example the GSM or mp3 codecs). Wav files use a RIFF structure.
ogg – a free, open source container format supporting a variety of codecs, the most popular of which is the audio codec Vorbis. Vorbis offers better compression than MP3 but is less popular.
flac – a lossless compression codec. You can think of lossless compression as like zip but for audio. If you compress a PCM file to flac and then restore it again it will be a perfect copy of the original. (All the other codecs discussed here are lossy which means a small part of the quality is lost). The cost of this losslessness is that the compression ratio is not good. Flac is recommended for archiving PCM files where quality is important (e.g. broadcast or music use).
aiff – the standard audio file format used by Apple. It is like a wav file for the Mac.
raw – a raw file can contain audio in any codec but is usually used with PCM audio data. It is rarely used except for technical tests.
au – the standard audio file format used by Sun, Unix and Java. The audio in au files can be PCM or compressed with the μ-law, a-μlaw or G729 codecs.

Open file formats

gsm – designed for telephony use in Europe, gsm is a very practical format for telephone quality voice. It makes a good compromise between file size and quality. Note that wav files can also be encoded with the gsm codec.
dct – A variable codec format designed for dictation. It has dictation header information and can be encrypted (often required by medical confidentiality laws).
vox – the vox format most commonly uses the Dialogic ADPCM (Adaptive Differential Pulse Code Modulation) codec. Similar to other ADPCM formats, it compresses to 4-bits. Vox format files are similar to wave files except that the vox files contain no information about the file itself so the codec sample rate and number of channels must first be specified in order to play a vox file.
aac – the Advanced Audio Coding format is based on the MPEG2 and MPEG4 standards. aac files are usually ADTS or ADIF containers.
mp4/m4a – MPEG-4 audio most often AAC but sometimes MP2/MP3

Proprietary formats

mp3 – the MPEG Layer-3 format is the most popular format for downloading and storing music. By eliminating portions of the audio file that are essentially inaudible, mp3 files are compressed to roughly one-tenth the size of an equivalent PCM file while maintaining good audio quality.
wma – the popular Windows Media Audio format owned by Microsoft. Designed with Digital Rights Management (DRM) abilities for copy protection.
atrac (.wav) – the older style Sony ATRAC format. It always has a .wav file extension. To open these files simply install the ATRAC3 drivers.
ra – a Real Audio format designed for streaming audio over the Internet. The .ra format allows files to be stored in a self-contained fashion on a computer, with all of the audio data contained inside the file itself.
ram – a text file that contains a link to the Internet address where the Real Audio file is stored. The .ram file contains no audio data itself.
dss – Digital Speech Standard files are an Olympus proprietary format. It is a fairly old and poor codec. Prefer gsm or mp3 where the recorder allows. It allows additional data to be held in the file header.
msv – a Sony proprietary format for Memory Stick compressed voice files.
dvf – a Sony proprietary format for compressed voice files; commonly used by Sony dictation recorders.
mp4 – A proprietary version of AAC in MP4 with Digital Rights Management developed by Apple for use in music downloaded from their iTunes Music Store.