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If you've vowed not to compromise this time around,consider the rich rewards of owning Carver. Each compo-nent includes unique innovations designed to confront andsolve real -world sonic problems.

Power unleashed: Simultaneous high current/high voltage output. The TFM-25 is capable of deliver-ing more simultaneous current, power and voltage into awider range of speaker loads than any other competitivelypriced design: 225 watts per channel into 8 ohms20-20kHz with no more than 0.5% THD. Its patentedMagnetic Field Power Supply can draw up to 200% moreline current, store more joules of energy in its unique dis-tributed capacitance system, and then deliver up to 500%more current during musical peaks. With the right speakers,this kind of serious power can achieve a full restoration ofthe robust percussive attacks and lightning transients so

necessary to achieving musical realism from digital sources.Accuracy and musicality through Transfer

Function Modification. Over the past two decades, BobCarver has worked on the problem of replicating one poweramplifier's sonic signature in another dissimilar design.Through thousands of hours of painstaking tests and mod-ifications, he has been able to closely match the TFM-25'stransfer function with that of his highly acclaimed$17,500.00 Silver Seven vacuum tube reference poweramplifier. When you hear the warm, natural sound of theTFM-25, you'll know that Transfer Function Modifica-tion is an audible reality.

New flexibility in a classic preamplifier design.The Carver C-16 is at once a purist, "straight -wire -with -

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turnover, full -band Spectral Tilt.and of course Sonic Holographywith a new Blend control that fur-ther extends the remarkable spacial resto-ration abilities of this exclusive Carver technology.

ACCD turns "dirty" FM into fresh air. Unlike anycompetitive tuner model, the Carver TX -12 can actuallytransform a noisy, multipath distortion -ravaged FM signalinto clean, hiss -free music with full stereo separation. Thekey is the TX -12's Asymmetrical Charge -Coupled FMDetection circuitry. A lengthy name for a wonderfully fastsolution to expanding your listening possibilities. Whenyou experience ACCD's effect, you may consider theTX -12's full remote control, 20 FM/AM presets with pre-view scan, stereo/mono switch and dual antenna inputs,mere icing on the cake.

Hear why we stack up ahead ofthe competition. The TFM-25, C-16and TX -12 are just three of over a dozen

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To receive White Papers on Simultaneous High Current HighVoltage Transfer Function Modification and Sonic Holography* detailsof Spectral Tilt and the name of your nearest Carver Dealer,call 1-800-443-CAVR, 8-5 PM Pacific time.

CARVER CORPORATION, LYNNWOOD, WASHINGTON, U.SADistributed in Canada by EVOLUTION 0 AUDIO INC. 1-(416) 847-8888

SEPTEMBER 1989 VOL. 73, NO. 9

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MUSIC REVIEWSROCK POP RECORDINGSCLASSICAL RECORDINGSJAZZ & BLUES

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DEPARTMENTSSIGNALS & NOISEAUDIOCLINICTAPE GUIDE Herman BursteinBEHIND THE SCENES Bert Whyte ,,,,,AUDIO ETC Edward Tatnall CanbySPECTRUM I. Berger and T. SchermanROADSIGNS Ivan BergerIN CONFERENCE R. A. Greiner

The Cover Equipment: Paradigm Ise loudspeaker.The Cover Photographer: Michael Groen.

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Subscription inquiries, (800) 274-8808:in Canada or other foreign countries, (303) 447-9330

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Editorial Assistant: Michael Bieber

Associate Editors:Edward Tatnall Canby Bert Whyte, B. V. Pisha

Senior Editors:,hard Feldm : !1 A Roberson

Senior EdItortoudspeakers: D. B Keele.Senior Editor Music Features: Ted For

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Contributing Editors Artist:Michael Aldred, Susan Borey. Herman Burstein.David L Clark, Anthony H Cordesman. Ted Costa,

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AUDIO. September 1989. Volume 73. Number 9AUDIO (ISSN 0004-752X. Dewey Decimal Number621.381 or 778 5) is published rr!!!',. t!,wnolly owned subsidiary of Hac-,at 1515 Broadway, New YorkU S.A. at Dyersburg. Tenr -

Publisher Services Inc. Sec..New York, N.Y 10001 and ado 'Subscriptions a, the U S $21 n.:for two years. $53 94add $6.00 per year AUDIOof DCI. ©1989. C i!--rights reserved Editorial contributionsinclude return pos!.igewith reasonable care, but the Editor assumes noresponsibility for safety or return of manuscriptsphotographs, or artwork. The Publisher. in his solediscretion, reserves :he richt to repe an: ad copy hedeems inappropriate Subscription Service: Forms3579 and all subscr.: !

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While thebest things in lifemay be free, thebest in car stereois anything but. Socost containment had to takea back seat when Sony set outto outperform every car CD changer available today.

Presenting the CDX-A2001 DiscJockey' carCD changer. It recreates music so real, so all -encompassing, it drives even the most exotic cars toa higher level of performance.

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1989 SONY CORPORATION Of AMERICA SONY DISCJOCKEY REMOTE COMMANDER AND THE LEADER IN DIGITAL AUDIO ARE TRADEMARKS OF SONY

car CD players far behind. And while all other car CDplayers have one or perhaps two digital -to -analogconverters, the Sony 2001 uses four to extract greatermusical detail from every compact disc.

So from the grandeur of a fullorchestra to the nuances of a sologuitar, the 2001 will accelerate

the beating of your heart.To take advantage of this incredible digital

performance, Sony designed the RM-X2001 RemoteCommander' unit. Its logic -controlled attenuatorbanishes the distortion of conventional volumecontrols. The preamplifier section also employs a

switching power supply and copper -capped resistors-provisions that would be at home on sophisticatedhigh -end home components.

In fact, the 2001's advancedtechnology inspires so much con-fidence, we back it with anunprecedented three year limitedparts and labor warranty.(Please see your authorized Sony

Autosound dealer for details.)So audition the CDX-A2001 system for yourself

and experience the onecar CD changer with S y -everything. Exceptcompetition. THE LEADER IN DIGITAL AUDIO"

Richard Marx -RepeatOffender (EMI) 380.915

David Benoit -Urban DayDreams (GRP) 384 628Johnny Diesel & TheInjections (Chrysalis)

384925Jean Luc Ponty-in TheFast Lane (Columba)

383521Bad English (Epc)353.463The Joe ZawinulSyndlcate-Black Water(Columbia) 383.455Dan Hill -Real Love(Columba) 383.380Jean-Pierre Rampal-Mozart: Flute Concertos.K.313/314 Adante, K.315/Rondo K.184 IsraelPhilharmonic/ Zubn Mehta(CBS Masterwork, 383.364Emanuel Ax -HaydnSonatas Nos. 33. 38, 58 860 (CBS Masterworks)

383.331

Black Sabbath -HeadlessCross (I R S) 383.109

Clarence Clemons -ANight With Mr C (Columba)

383.067Donna Summer -AnotherPlace And Time Atlantic)

382.960

Roger Norrington-Berlioz. SymphonieFantastique, Op 14 LondonClassical Players (Angel)

382.747Alyson Williams -Raw(Del Jam I Columba)

382.465Alex Bugnon-LoveSeason (Orphr,,s, 382432Bobby Lyle -Ivory Dream(Atlantic) 382.390Stevie Ray Vaughan &Double Trouble -In Step(Er, c 382-374Alice Cooper -Trash(Edcl 382.366

The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band-Will The Circle BeUnbroken, Volume Two(Un,ersa,) 382.267

Cutting Crew -TheScattering (Virgil 382.168

Triumph -Classics (MCA)382.135

Donny Osmond C,ii,,1382-119

L.L. Cool J -Walking WithA Panther(Del Jam I Columb,a)

381.988

The Dirty Dozen Band -Voodoo (Columba) 381.962Earl Klugh-Whispers AndPromises (Warner Bros I

381.806Barry Manilow (Arista)

381.707

Larry Carlton -On SolidGround MCA 383-661

(yodi LAupcf

"4 ,

Cyndi Lauper-A Night ToRemember (Epic) 377.887

Roger Norrington-Beethoven. SymphonyNo.3 In E Flat, OP 55(Eroica) (Angel) 382.754

Stray Cats -Blast Off (EMI)381.442

Great White -Twice Shy(Capitol) 381178

De La Soul -3 Feet HighAnd Rising (Tommy Boy)

381.160

Dirty Dancing -Live InConcert. OriginalSoundtrack (RCA) 381.152

Bonnie Raitt-Nick ofTime (Capitol) 381.087

Working Girl -OriginalSoundtrack (Arista) 380972Aretha Franklin -ThroughThe Storm (Arista) 380.873Kirk Whalum-ThePromise (Columba)

380 436Wendy & Lisa -Fruit AtThe Bottom (Columba)

380.386Henry Lee Summer -I'veGot Everything(CBS Associated) 380.352The Jacksons-2300Jackson Street )Epic)

380.337Steve Reich -DifferentTrains - Kronos Quartet /Electric Counterpoint - PatMetheny (Nonesuch)

380.071

Portrait Of Yo -Yo Ma(CBS Master) 379.941

Canadian Brass -TheGabrieli Album(CBS Masterworks) 379.933Enya-Watermark (Geffen)

379.925John Patitucci-On TheCorner (GRP) 379.909Tone-Loc-Loc'ed AfterDark (Delicious Vinyl)

379.875Harry Connick, Jr. -20(Columbia) 379.818

George Duke -Night AfterNight (Elektra) 379.719Milli Vanilli-Girl You KnowIt's True iAr sta) 379.610

Hiroshima -East (Epic)379.321

Andreas Vollenweider-Dancing With The Lion(Columbia) 379-313

Duke Ellington Orch.-Digital Duke (GRP) 357- 350

Squeeze -Singles -45'sAnd Under (A8M) 317.974

Living Colour -Vivid(Epic) 370.833

Steps Ahead-N.Y C(Intuition) 381.681

The Doobie Brothers -Cycles (Capitol) 382.457

1111111LTOOMOCA1111111111141

FYCTIM MAW& TIIISCOOKED

Gloria Estefan-Cuts BothWays lE br1 382.341

Andres Segovia, Gu itar -la Collection. Vol 5

A Classics) 379.297(M

Placid() Domingo -At ThePhilharmonic (CBS Master

379.289

Badlands (Atlantic1384 388

Branford Marsalls-TnoJeepy (Columbia) 381.830

The Cult -Sonic Temple381.798

Enrico Caruso -OperaArias and Songs Milan1902-1904 (Angel) 379.255Michel Camilo (Portrait)

379.107Judy Collins -Sanity AndGrace (Gold Castle) 379.081Wang Chung -TheWarmer Side Of Cool(Geffen) 381.754

Stevie Nicks -The OtherSide Of The Mirror(Modern) 381.103

Lyle Lovett And His LargeBand (MCA) 378.935

Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam -Straight To The Sky(Columba) 378.893

Roachford (Epic) 382.010

Jody Watley -Larger ThanLute (MCA) 381061

Classics from the 50s, 60s, 70sWoodstock II -OriginalSoundtrack (Atlantic)

382.143/392.142Crosby, Stills. Nash andYoung -So Far (Atlantic)

378.745Grateful Dead -SkeletonsFrom The Closet(Warner Brost 378.406Roy Orbison-The All -Time Hits, Vols. 1 8 2(Col Special Pro) 377.945

Rockpile-Seconds OfPleasure (Columbia)

377.846The Who -Who's Better,Who's Best (MCA) 376.657

Jerry Lee Lewis -18Original Sun Greatest Hits(Rhino) 369.108

Joni Mitchell -Blue(Reprise) 365.411

Waffic-John BarleycornMust Die (Island) 364935

Little Feat -Dixie Chicken(Warner Bros.) 363.515

Best Of The Doors(Elektra) 357.616/397.612Yes -Close To The Edge(Atlantic) 351.965Traffic -The Low Spark OfHigh Heeled Boys (Island)

351.924Rolling Stones -StickyFingers (RollingStones Rec ) 350.645Buddy Holly -From TheOrig. Master Tapes (MCA)

348.110

The Who -Tommy (MCA)345223/395.228

The Byrds-Greatest H6s(Columbia) 342.501

A Decade OfSteely Dan (MCA) 341.073Joe Cocker -Greatest Has(A&M) 320.911

Led Zeppelin (Atlantic)299.966

Motown's 2511 Hits(Motown) 319.996/399-998Elton John -Greatest Hits(MCA) 319.541

Eagles -Greatest Hits Vol.2 (Asylum) 317.768

Creedence ClearwaterRevival -20 Greatest Hits(Fantasy) 308.049

Woodstock -Ong.Soundtrack (Atlantic)

291.864/391.862Best Of The Doobie Bros.(Warner Bros) 291.278

Linda Ronstadt -GreatestHits (Asylum) 286.740Best Of The Band (Capitol)

269.365Chicago -Greatest Hits(Columbia) 260.638Simon & Garfunkel -Greatest Hits (Columbia)

219.477

Bob Dylan -Greatest Hits(Columbia) 138.586

Al Jarreau-Heart'sHorizon (Reprise) 376.186

Anita Baker -Giving YouThe Best That I Got (Elektra)

374.058Johnny Clegg & Savuka-Shadow Man (Capitol)

374.025

Beethoven -SymphoniesNos 1 8 6. Nomngton,London Classical Players(Angel) 373-985

Bangles -Everything(Columbia) 373.829Cocktail -OriginalSoundtrack

373.779Patti Austin -The Real Me(Owest) 372.060Bobby Brown -Don't BeCruel (MCA) 372.045

Melissa Etheridge371.468

Steve Winwood-RollWith It (VI rgin) 371.211

The Traveling Wilburys-Volume One (Wibur,.)

375.089

IC

U2 -Rattle And Hum(Island) 374.017

Spyro Gym -Rites ofSummer (MCA) 370 767David Sanborn -Close Up(Warner Bros) 370-304Wynton Manuals Quartet-Live At Blues Alley (Col-umba) 370.080/390-088Tracy Chapman (Elektra)

369.892Van Halen-OU812(Warner Bros) 369.371

Bobby McFerrin -SimplePleasures (EMI) 369.306New Kids On The Block-Hanging Tough(Columbia) 368.423Basis -Time And Tide(Epic) 368-043Carly Simon -GreatestHits Live (Arista) 365.874Guns N' Roses -AppetiteFor Destruction (Geffen)

359.984

Portrait of WyntonMerman' (CBS Master )

373.555

Luciano Pavarotti-Pavarotti in Concert(CBS Master , 373.548

Liberate -GreatestHits (Columb.ii 354.522

U2 -The Joshua Tree(Island)

(ABM(

354 449

The Police -Every BreathYou Take...The Singles

349.318

Peter Gabriel -So(Geffen) 345.777

Kin Te Kanaws-Verdi &Puccini Arias (CBS Master )

343.269Billy Joel -Greatest HitsVols 18 2 (Columba)

336.396/396.390

Dire Straits -Brothers InArms (Warner Bros )

336.222David Bowie -Let's Dance(EMI Amer) 319-822

(Arista)

Foreigner -Records(Atlantic) 318.055

Kenny G -Silhouette371.559

Introducing The ChickCores Akoustic Band(GRP) 379.891

Portrait Of VladimirHorowitz -Plays Mozart,Beethoven, Chopin. etc(CBS Master) 378.604

Dave Grusin Collection(GRP) 378.398

Joe Sample -Spellbound(Warner Bros) 378.224

Gipsy Kings (Elektra)377812

Prokofiev-PianoConcertos 1, 2 VladimirFeasman, Zubin Mehta(CBS Master) 377.360

Roy Orbison-Mystery Girl377-101

Rosanne Cash -Hits1979-1989 (Columba)

376.665Crosby. Stills, Nash andYoung -American Dream(Atlantic) 376.533

Lee Ritenour-Festival(GRP) 376301Tiffany -Hold An OldFriend s Hand (MCA)

376.236Franck/Brahms: ViolinSonatas Nadia SalernoSonnenberg. Cecile LicadiAnoen 376.038Andres SegoviaCollection. Vol. 4.Baroqueguitar(MCA Classics)

375.998Jett Healy Band -SeeThe Light Ar =,!1, 375.873Was (Not Was) -What'sUp Dog? (Chrysalis)

375.857Fleetwood Mac -GreatestHits(Warner Bros) 375.782Journey's GreatestHItS(Columbia) 375.279

R.E.M.-Green)Warner Bros 375.162

Barbra Streisand-Till ILoved You (Columba)

374.884

Edie Brickell & NewBohemians -ShootingRubberbands At The Stars(Geffen) 374-835

Paula Abdul -ForeverYour Girl (Virgin) 374.637Canadian Brass -TheMozart Album (CBS Master)

374.561

Dianne Schuur-Talkin''Bout You (GRP) 374.298

Buckwheat Zydeco-Taking It Home (Island)

374-256Eddie Money -Nothing ToLose (Columbia) 374.223

Debbie Gibson -ElectricYouth (Atlantic) 377.275

Fine Young Cannibals-The Raw 8 The CookedII R S ) 379214

Tom Petty -Full MoonFever (MCA) 382-184

Guns N' Roses-GN'RLies (Geffen) 376087

Wynton Marsalis-TheMajesty Of The Blues(Columba) 380394

The Movies Go To TheOpera -Various Artists(Angel Studio) 372.342

Madonna -Like A Prayer379.594

smiksoVNINOn the Cutting Edge

Erasure -CrackersInternational (Sire) 381.814Joe Jackson -Blaze 01Glory (A8M) 381.699Tim Finn (Capitol) 381.533Indigo Girls (Epic) 381.269Tom Tom Club -BoomBoom Chi Boom Boom(Sire) 381.251Big Barn Boo -Fun, Faith8 Fairplay (Ural 381.236Guadalcanal Diary -FlipFlop (Elektral 380.998The Godfathers -MoreSongs About Love AndHate (E 380.345XTC-Oranges 8 Lemons(Geffen) 3130.253

Robyn Hitchcock AndThe Egyptians -QueenElvis ANY 380.212Depeche Mode -101 (Sire)

379.404/399.402Simply Red -A NessFlame is ,, ), 378.943The Replacements-Dont Tell A Soul

378.927

Say Anything -OriginalSound Track ONTG) 381.871Stan ReMosquittTren) 381.822

Midge Ure-Answers ToNothing Chrysalis) 378.786Lou Reed -New York (Sire)

378.216Elvis Costello -Spike(Warner Bros) 378.190R.E.M.-Eponymous

R$.) 374.777TM Church -Starfish(Arista) 367.235Midnight Oil -Diesel AndDust (Columbia) 366.153Best Of Elvis CostelloAnd The Attractions(Columba) 339.846Adrian Belew-Mr MusicHead 384.867Moja Nixon And SkidRoper -Root Hog Or Defr rwIrnal 384.776Caterwaul -Pin 8 Web

. 384.768King Swamp (Virgol

384-750

Sarah McLachlan -Touch384.636

Bob Mould -Work BookENIIrgirl) 384.586Malcolm McClaren-Waltz Dancing (=pici

383.471P.I.L.-9 (Vier 382978Pixies -Do Little (Elelere

382.887The The -Mint Bomb(Epic) 382.382Julia Fordham

382.317The Cure -Disintegration(Eeektra) 382.09310,000 Maniacs -BlindMan's Zoo (I- lel,tra) 382.077

Earth Girls Are Easy -Original Sound Track(RPnr ,e) 382.069Proclaimers-SunshineOn Leith (Chrysalis) 382.036

China Crises -The Diaryof a Hollow Horse (A&M)

381.897The Neville Brothers -Yellow Moon rAf.Mt 381.889

The greatest music is on CD -andhere's your chance to pick eightfavorites listed in this ad. Astispecial introductory offer to the CBSCompact Disc Club, you can select anyeight CDs for la. All you do is fill in andmail the application -we'll send youreight CDs and bill you la, plus shippingand handling. You simply agree to buy sixmore CDs (at regular Club prices) in thenext three years- and you may thencancel your membership anytime afterdoing so.How the Club works. About every fourweeks (13 times o year) you'll receive theClubs music magazine, which describesthe Selection of the Month for your musicalinterest... plus many exciting alternates.In addition, up to six times a year, you mayreceive offers of Special Selections, usuallyat a discount off regular Club prices, for atotal of up to 19 buying opportunities.

If you wish to receive the Selection ofthe Month, you need do nothing -it willbe shipped automatically. If you preferan alternate selection, or none at all, fill inthe response card always provided andmail it by the date specified. You willSelec ions with Iwo numbers r onia.n 2 CD, and count a, 2

always have at least 10 days in which tomake your decision. If you ever receiveany Selection without having 10 days todecide, you may return it at our expense.

The CDs you order during yourmembership will be billed at regularClub prices, which currently are $12.98 to$15.98 -plus shipping and handling.(Multiple -unit sets may be somewhathigher.) After completing your enrollmentagreement you may cancel membershipat any time; if you decide .o continueas a member, you'll be eligible for ourmoney -saving bonus plan. It lets you buyone CD at half price for each CD you buyat regular Club prices.10 -Day Free Trial: We'll send details ofthe Clubs operation with your introduc-tory shipment. If you are not satisfied forany reason whatsoever, lust returneverything within 10 days and you willhave no further obligation. So why notchoose 8 CDs for la right now?ADVANCE BONUS OFFER: As aspecial offer to new members, take oneadditional Compact Disc right now andpay only $6.95. It's a charce to get aninth selection at a super low price!

numbers c 1989 CBS Records Inc

Beaches -OriginalSoundtrack (Atlantic)

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Making NoNoiseDear Editor:

The June 1989 issue contains a neg-ative critique of the Sonic SolutiorsNoNoise system, by reader Richard P.Clancy of Ashland, Mass. ("Signals &Noise"). With Mr. Clancy's judgment ofwhat he hears from the NoNoise-pro-cessed Jelly Roll Morton vinyl disc, I

suspect that the culprit is not theNoNoise process at all. Here is why.

The Sonic Solutions system is imple-mented in the digital domain, after ananalog master recording has beentransferred into the Sony 1610/1630Compact Disc compatible digital for-mat. The Sonic Solutions process doesnot alter the music in the manner(s)described by Mr. Clancy, but the ana-log -to -digital conversion most certainlycan . . . and probably did!

This is why a great deal of attentionis now being paid to the front end ofthe digital recording process by themusic industry in general. As youknow, our Colossus four -channel PCMprocessor was designed first and fore-most as an audio archival device, inwhich we believe accuracy is requiredwhen converting an incoming analogor digital signal.

As with such things as digital andquadraphony, the technological meritsremain. It is only how they are imple-mented at the design -engineeringstages and then utilized in the creativeworld. I might add that we have experi-enced the NoNoise treatment of liveColossus recordings, in which stagedimmers leaked into the mike cable at60 cycles. Nice hum, no more-thanksto Sonic Solutions.

Brad S. MillerBy The Numbers

Incline Village. Nev.

Review ReviewedDear Editor:

I found the review of the Fuselier3.8D speakers (June) to be most inter-esting. Having been a fan and ownerof John Fuselier's speakers since1982, I was particularly pleased to seehis work finally get the recognition it

deserves. Although I consider myselfan audio enthusiast, I am not a self-confessed technical expert and there-fore cannot comment on the data pre-sented by author David L. Clark. Nev-ertheless. I do believe that I am able to

ascertain high -quality sound reproduc-tion and can unquestionably endorseClark's statement that the Fuselierspeakers produce an amazinglysmooth response and realistic soundimage across all frequencies.

I have owned and evaluated manyfine speaker systems over the years,but I can unequivocally state that theFuseliers are the only speakers I canlisten to for hours without coming upwishing the sound were more realisticor suffering from "ear fatigue." I canonly attribute this distinctive character-istic to the sophistication of the designand the quality of the components uti-lized by John Fuselier. The creativegenius he has focused on sound re-production is definitely to the benefit ofthe "musically mature audio enthusi-ast," as Clark so appropriately stated.

Much of the credit for the develop-ment and continued support of the Fu-selier speakers must go to JulianScharfman of Julian's Audio in Atlanta,Ga. Julian, recognizing John's creativetalents, has personally championedthe Fuselier speakers over the years,through good times and bad. He didthis for one simple reason: He believedin the man and the quality of his prod-uct. Together, John and Julian havestood the test of time, and now, thanksto your article, the rest of the audioworld will know of their work. Congratu-lations on being able to discern, fromwhat must be a plethora of products, aspeaker system that is truly worth thesearch and the money. I feel fortunateto have discovered Fuselier years ago,and hopefully the recognition providedby your article will not make it too diffi-cult for others to obtain a pair.

Roger L. GehriAddress withheld

Won LinersDear Editor:

At $15 per Compact Disc, some la-bels provide minimal liner notes andinformation. (I'm sure most readerswould agree.) However, the nextGrammy award for liner notes can goto Epic Records and producer LutherVandross for Gregory Hines' debut al-bum. The notes, credits, and informa-tion enable the listener to feel closer tothe music. Very thorough.

Al ShakerDetroit. Mich.

10 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

THE 1989-1990AUDIO MAGAZINE-JUILLIARD

SCHOLARSHIP AWARDWILL BE PRESENTED TO

BRIAN DEAN LEWISViolinist

Brian Dean Lewis, a native ofOttawa, Kansas, first took upthe violin at age four. Now 20

wand a highly promising perform-er, he is a Junior in the bachelor's program at

The Juilliard School, NN here he studies with DorothyDeLay. Audio Magazine is proud, to help thisyoung art-

ist achieve his ambitious career goals by providing tui-tion at Juilhard for one year along with a living stipend.

The Audio Magazine-Juilliard Scholarship Award is anexpression of gratitude, a way for Audio to repay its debtto at least a few of the men and -omen who devote theirlives to music. Such dedicated individuals continuallyrebuild the foundation on which the high fidelity equip-

ment industry stands.

Aspiring musical performers such as Brian DeanLewis look to the future and envision dreams. At

11 Audio, we feel helping young performersachieve such dreams is our responsibility

111b,.4'

BRIAN DEAN LEWIS

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The McIntosh MCD 7007 Compact Disc Playermoves performance to a new pinnacle of technologicalachievement producing the highest quality music re-production. Every aspect of performance is improved:focusing and tracking, decoding, error correction, digitalfiltering, digital to analog conversion. Even with dirtyor damaged discs, even when the player is bumped orknocked, the music retains its surpassing purity. Thefull integrity of the sound is preserved from the firstreadout of the compact disc straight through to thegold-plated connectors on the output.

"The unit's broad dynamic range, very low inter-

modulation, and excellent transitory response enhanceseach of the orchestra's instruments in superbly -coloredsounds."*

The value of all -integrated electronics is already wellrecognized. The advanced integration techniques in theMCD 7007 provide virtually all digital functions withinthe integrated circuits. Even the self-regulating andreference circuits are designed in the new VLS (verylarge scale) integrated circuit. You gain value becausethe VLS eliminates the need for factory adjustment.There is nothing to adjust so nothing can go out ofadjustment assuring constant highest quality sound.You get very high standards of performance, consis-tency and reliability.

Demodulation, full -performance, error detection andcorrection and basic concealment of uncorrectableaudio data are all performed in the VLS chip. Thishighly -advanced concept takes performance closerthan ever to the theoretical maximum.

"Tone transcription, melodies, and accompanimentshave a "spontaneous" beauty. Refined, transparent, andsumptuous are words that reflect the MCD 7007. - - - -interwoven throughout is the famous "McIntosh" sound,which can be described as synonymous with power,dynamism, and flawlessness."*

DIGITAL TO ANALOG CONVERTERThe digital to analog converter (DAC) has been com-pletely redesigned. In conjunction with the improveddigital filter, it has yielded important improvement inamplitude linearity, right down to the lowest signallevels. The performance selected McIntosh 'GoldenCrown' DAC delivers the highest achievable per-formance.

"Truly, the McINTOSH MCD 7007 Compact Discplayer sets superlative new standards for musical purityand enjoyment. The massive effort of McIntosh engi-neers - - - - allows us to discover a universe of sound inwhich the least subtleties of harmonic tonal structureand the smallest of range changes are heard in just theright places."*

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Mc I nio s C35SYSTEM CONTROL CENTER

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SUPERIOR SOUNDPinkish QUALITY

The C35 System Control Center is an outstandingexpression of McIntosh research into user desires con-sistent with high quality music reproduction.

Engineering that is aggressively inquisitive in thesearch for better ways to bring these user dictatedrequirements to a technologically superior, innova-tive and clearly useful result.

Appearance design that has long life, complementsthe living style, is complimentary to the owner, and ismade of materials, whose characteristics permit 'alike new always' appearance.

Easy to operate; The unique McIntosh designed pan-els are always easily readable in your choice of home

lighting. They are obviously designed by humanbeings for human beings.

Manufactured of carefully specified and selectedcomponent parts that have high quality and longpredicted life.

Assembled by highly trained craftspeople who arededicated to quality, accuracy and perfection.

Thorough verification of the desired capabilities andquality of performance by constant and completetesting throughout the entire manufacturing process.

The McIntosh C35, above all others, will satisfy theserequirements while it gives you the best sound, the mostflexibility, and the greatest ease of use.

The C35 has many useful features to enhance yourlistening and video enjoyment. They include: High levelinputs to accommodate the traditional as well as all thelatest audio sources. Any one of nine input sources canbe selected from the front panel or by the handheld IRremote. Electronic tape monitor switches for two audiotape recorders, or the audio from two video recorders,or one audio recorder and the audio from one videorecorder, allow either recorder to be heard from themain output.

Volume is adjusted by a motor driven precision poten-tiometer. Left/right tracking accuracy is controlled to afraction of a dB. Volume is displayed on the front panelby LED's which display the percentage of rotation ofthe volume control.

A five -band program equalizer permits the adjustmentand improvement of the loudness contrast of fiveimportant frequency ranges. Musical balance of sourcematerial can be adjusted to compensate for roomrecording differences or listener preferences.

A built-in headphone amplifier provides power to thefront panel headphone jack. All front panel controls areavailable to influence private listening on headphones.

McIntosh Engineering has carefully and expertlymerged the many contributing elements into a superiorquality, versatile and outstanding value, the McIntoshC35 System Control Center.

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The McIntosh MC 7270 power amplifier is designed tofulfill Digital Dynamic Range demands. It outperformsall competitors when listening to sound derived fromdigitally recorded tapes and compact discs.

"That a manufacturer can remain faithful to a certainlistening style, to a "sound signature" recognizable byall through electronics even so different always aston-ishes. Such is the case of McIntosh where, in spite of the

change from tubes to transistors and from medium tohigh power, the basic McIntosh quality has not changedwith the added benefit of an enormous reserve ofpower. Witness the MC 7270 for which this reserve ofpower sensation reaches almost the "colossal".*

The compact disc is capable of real life dynamic rangewhile noise generated from compact discs is inaudible.With the noise restraint removed it is both easier anddramatically more enjoyable to listen to music at muchlouder levels. To fully enjoy this new capability youramplifier must be able to receive three to ten decibels ofoverstress from music, and it must do this withoutseverely distorting the sound! This is the real world ofDigital Dynamics demand. How to achieve the perform-ance demanded, which often lasts from minutes to onlya few thousandths of a second, and to achieve the goaleconomically, is a real achievement. Power Guard isthat achievement.

"The Power Guard system is most effective in making itimpossible to hardclip the output of the amplifier.Regardless of how hard it is driven, it simply cannotdevelop an audible amount of distortion on musicalprogram material - - - - . This feature should also meana greatly reduced likelihood of blowing out a speaker,since clipping is a common cause of tweeter damage."**

McIntosh leadership in engineering has developed thePower Guard circuit which-(1) dynamically preventspower amplifiers from being overdriven into hardclipping-(2) assures that the amplifier will produce itsmaximum output without increased distortion-(3)protects your speaker from excessive heating. PowerGuard is a patented McIntosh design (U.S. patent#4,048,573).

"The feeling of power is never refuted and instead ofstunning the listener, the 7270 recreates an audio envir-onment of a majesty that no other transistor amplifier iscapable of reproducing as well."*

For information on McIntosh products and product reviews pleasesend your name, address and phone number to:

McIntosh Laboratory Inc.Department 989APO Box 96 East Side StationBinghamton, NY 13904-0096

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AUDIOCLINICJOSEPH GIOVANELLI

CDs and Range ExpandersQ. My CD player's outputs are con-

nected to the inputs of my range ex-pander, which is calibrated from 1.0(no expansion) to 1.5 (50% expan-sion). The sound coming from a CD isabout 94 dB; does this mean that byusing the maximum expansion of 1.5, Iam getting an S/N of 141 dB? Themanual for my expander says: "A 1.4setting means that an input signal hav-ing a 40 -dB dynamic range will be ex-panded to 56 dB or that an input hav-ing a 50 -dB dynamic range will be ex-panded to 70 dB (1.4, or 40% times theinput signal)."-Don Lacroix, Woon-socket, R.I.

A. What you gain by using a rangeexpander is dynamic range. Becausethe dynamic range available on CDs isvery large as it is, I am not convincedof the value of a range expander.

As for the S/N ratio, you can expectonly limited improvement. For argu-ment's sake. let's say a recording'snoise level is at - 90 dB and that themusic is recorded within the rangefrom -10 to - 70 dB. In this case, theS/N ratio, when listening to the softestpassages, is 20 dB. At full expansion,the noise level will be driven down to- 135 dB, and the music's range willnow be from -15 to -105 dB. YourS/N ratio, when listening to the softestpassages, is now 30 dB.

However, you have also increasedthe music's dynamic range from 60 to90 dB. If you now adjust your volumecontrol so that you hear the loudestpassages at the same level as you doat present, the softest passages will be30 dB softer than they were beforeexpansion. If you are listening at a lowvolume, you might not even hear thosesoft passages. though you certainlywould hear no background noise.

On the other hand, if you set yourvolume so that you hear the softestpassages at the same level as before.the loudest passages will now be 30dB louder. This may be so loud that itproduces overload in your equipment.You could damage your amplifier oryour loudspeakers if your system hasinsufficient reserve power -handling ca-pacity. Further, and most important.the loudest passages may well be loudenough to cause ear damage. Whileyou can replace an amplifier or a loud-speaker, you cannot replace your ears.

To keep the music s dynamic rangewithin reasonable limits, you will haveto use only a moderate setting of yourrange expander. However. you can ex-pect only a modest improvement inS/N. For example, if you set your ex-pander to "1.1." the music's 60 -dB dy-namic range would expand to only 66dB, and the signal-to-noise ratio at thequietest passages would improve by amere 2 dB.

More About Filtered WaterIn your January 1988 "Audioclinic"

column, you may have spread somemistruths. Recommending inexpensivewater filters to clean up inorganic watercontamination is just about useless un-less the problem is gross sediment.Most water carries suspended sili-cates, carbonates, salts, etc. that aremeasured in millimicrons. Most filters,regardless of price, have elements thatonly filter out particles 1 micron or larg-er in size. (For comparison, a humanhair is about 5 microns in diameter.)The only filters that will work on thesedissolved solids are "reverse osmosis"filters, which degrade rather quicklyand need a great deal of service. Thegood of inexpensive filters is that theymay remove some of the chlorine com-pounds which destroy many benign or-ganisms, such as intestinal flora.

Most filters don't live up to the claimsmade by their manufacturers regard-ing removal rates. Distillation is themost consistent source of pure water.It will also give you the best -tastingproduct over the longest amount oftime.-James Gillette, Berkeley. Cal.

Impulse Noise EliminatorsQ. I recently saw in a catalog a "tran-

sient noise eliminator" designed toeliminate small to medium ticks andpops from phonograph records. Thissounds intriguing, but how does sucha machine work? How can it "know"the difference between noise and theintended content of a recording?

The device's frequency responseonly extended to 10 kHz. How muchloss of music will I notice when using amachine with this restricted re-sponse?-Joel Valder, Oroville, Cal.

A. When the stylus enounters a de-fect in the record groove, the resultingsignal builds up to maximum intensitymuch more quickly than when the sty-

lus encounters music signals. evenfrom percussion instruments. Deviceslike the one you've described recog-nize this difference in rise -time.

If the device is limited in frequencyresponse to 10 kHz, some subtle ele-ments of music will be lost-not thefundamental notes produced by musi-cal instruments (the piano's highestnote is on the order of 4 kHz) but theharmonics of a tone, the "edge" ofstrings, the sheen of cymbals. To me,this makes music sound somewhat life-less. But how much loss you'll noticewill depend on your ears, your system,and the music you're playing. Even ifthe difference is enough to bother you,it may bother you less than the ticksand pops did.

X -Ray Damage to RecordingsIn the February 1988 issue, in re-

sponse to a question regarding X-raydamage to audio recordings, you saidthat X-ray equipment can damagetape recordings because the X-rayspartially demagnetize the tape. I'm notsure that this is correct.

X-ray damage to magnetic record-ings has been discussed off and on formany years, and there has been gen-eral agreement that no one knows howthe notion arose of possible damage tomagnetic recordings. However, it mayhave been an assumption that grewout of a perceived kinship betweenmagnetic and photographic media.There is no scientific evidence that X-rays, per se, damage magnetic record-ings. However, X-ray equipment or,more specifically, transformers associ-ated with it may cause damagethrough the generation of strong mag-netic fields.

The 1970 edition of the 3M Compa-ny's Soundtalk (Vol. 3, No. 1) reportedthat recorded test signals on a com-monly used recording tape were notaffected by even severe exposure to X-rays. The tape was given a 6-S expo-sure at a distance of 36 inches from anX-ray machine operated with 200 mAof current and 110 kV.-Klaus Halm,East Point, Ga. A

If you have a problem or question about audio,write to Mr. Joseph Giovanelli at AUDIO Maga-zine, 1515 Broadway, New York, N.Y. 10036. Allletters are answered. Please enclose astamped, self-addressed envelope.

18AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

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TAPE GUIDEHERMAN BURSTEIN

MufflementQ. I have a baffling problem with my

cassette deck. At times, the soundsuddenly becomes muffled but thenreturns to its wonderful, crisp nature. Ihave tried demagnetizing and clean-ing the heads. Cleaning helps a little,but nothing seems to completely clearup the problem. What's wrong?-PaulMendelowitz, Redwood City, Cal.

A. The muffled sound may be due totemporary azimuth misalignment be-tween the playback head and the tape.That is, the tape may not be consis-tently moving at a right angle to thehead gap. This could be due to a de-fective cassette that allows the tape toskew appreciably within the shell or toa defective mechanism in the deck.

Another possibility is that the Dolbycircuit is not working properly, thatsomething recorded on the tape-orsomething else-is causing it to go er-ratically into sharp treble cut. A thirdpossibility is that the heads have notbeen cleaned well enough, thus allow-ing dirt or dislodged particles of mag-netic coating to cause a slight spacebetween tape and heads. A final possi-bility is an intermittent fault in the play-back electronics.

Are Three HeadsBetter Than Two?

Q. I have a two -head cassette deck,but someone told me that a three -headdeck is better. Why?-Michael Clark,Wichita, Kans.

A. A three -head deck, which hasseparate record and playback heads,plus an erase head, ordinarily has sev-eral advantages over a two -head deck,which has a single head used for bothrecord and playback, plus an erasehead. It permits monitoring the tape(immediately listening to it during re-cording) to assure that the recording issatisfactory and to facilitate tests andadjustments such as bias adjustment.Use of a separate head for playbackpermits it to have an extra -narrow gap,which is essential for extended trebleresponse; such a gap is unsuitable forrecording because it tends to short-circuit the audio signal. A separatehead for recording permits a relativelywide gap-roughly five times the widthof an ideal playback head gap-whichis conducive to accurate, distortion -free recording. A separate playback

head may be designed for maximumsignal output, thus improving the S/Nratio a bit. This is achieved by a rela-tively large number of turns in thehead's coil, but the resulting high in-ductance would make it difficult todrive high -frequency bias currentthrough the head for recording pur-poses.

On the other hand, a two -head deckhas the advantage of not presenting anazimuth problem, provided the samedeck is used for recording and play-back. An azimuth error in recording iscompensated for by an equal error 'nplayback when the same head is usedfor both purposes. With a three -headdeck, it is quite possible for the azi-muth alignment to differ in the recordand playback heads, with a resultantloss in treble response.

Even though a three -head decktends to be superior in performanceand convenience, with good engineer-ing and construction, a two -head deckcan be very satisfactory. If your two -head deck enables you to make re-cordings that sound like faithful repli-cas to your ears, you should not feelsomething is seriously lacking.

Which Type of NR?Q. My cassette deck includes both

Dolby and dbx noise reduction. Fortaping voices, / wonder if one is betterthan the other.-Juan K. Ferry, Wey-mouth, Mass.

A. Whether taping voice or music,dbx NR achieves the greatest noisereduction-typically about 30 dB,compared with about 20 dB for DolbyC NR and about 10 dB for Dolby B NR.Generally, dbx NR doesn't do as gooda job of maintaining frequency re-sponse as either Dolby NR, particularlyat the low end. Also, the greater thenoise reduction, the greater the ten-dency toward undesirable side effectssuch as sudden changes in level andbursts of hiss. Hence, some may preferDolby NR, even though dbx NR is qui-eter. On the other hand, side effectstend to be a very minor problem withpresent-day circuitry.

More on Head DemiseIn the June issue, a reader arced

how to tell when the heads in his tapedeck are shot ("Head Demise"). I re-cently received a valuable commen-

tary from Bob Ursdevenicz of Omaha,Nebr., who is manager of a companycalled National Sound. Ursdeveniczwrites:

A method I have found to easily de-tect a worn tape head is to check it for"grooving." Most inexpensive tapedecks use the softer permalloy tapeheads. With heavy use, these headsdevelop a groove where the tape con-tacts the head. These grooves can befelt on a severely worn tape head, us-ing a cotton swab stick or finger nail(careful!). When the tape travels over agrooved head, one channel will tend tolose treble response more than the oth-er. This is due to the tape edge ridingthe groove and pulling the tape awayfrom the head gap closest to the edgeof the tape. When a deck gets into thiscondition, it is time to replace thehead. If the deck is an inexpensivemodel, it is probably a good time toupgrade to a new machine, since mosthead changes cost $60 to $120.

Playback DiscrepancyQ. I own two high -quality decks and

a CD player. Whenever I record,whether from CD to tape or from deckto deck, the meter readings are slightlylower in playback than in recording.For example, a level that occasionallyreaches +3 dB in recording justreaches 0 dB in playback. Why? Is thisnormal? Is there something I can do orsomething I should have done?-Da-vid Marx, Putney, Vt.

A. Your situation is within normalbounds. The lower playback readingscan be due to tape sensitivity or to theway the playback metering circuit hasbeen adjusted. Sensitivity refers to theamount of tape output, in playback,produced by a given amount of signalinput to the tape during recording.Some tapes have higher sensitivitythan others, although this does notnecessarily mean the former are betteroverall. The deck manufacturer mayhave calibrated the playback readingon the basis of a tape with higher sen-sitivity than the tapes you use. I thinkyou should leave things alone. bl

if you have a problem or question on taperecording, write to Mr. Herman Burstein at AU-DIO, 1515 Broadway, New York, N.Y. 10036. Allletters are answered. Please enclose astamped, self-addressed envelope.

22AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

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BEHIND THE SCENESBERT WHYTE

TOO HOT TO HANDLE

A'though there were experimen-tal TV broadcasts in the late1920s, many think of 1939 as

the year of the birth of TV, and thus thatin 1989, TV is celebrating its 50th anni-versary. As might be expected, there ismuch hoopla about this event in thevarious media. There are, of course,nostalgic forays into the past, in termsof programming and technological de-velopments, as well as much specula-tion and pontification about the futureof the video medium. This includespredictions about the imminent arrivalof high -definition television (HDTV) bystarry-eyed writers in magazines andSunday newspaper supplements whohaven't the foggiest notion about thecurrent state of this technology, letalone its political possibilities.

However, apart from these blue-skyramblings, there are serious writersand engineers who are acutely awareof the actual state of affairs in respectto HDTV. These people know that thereare complex interrelated technological,economic, and political problems withHDTV which are truly formidable. Tocomplicate matters, although HDTV istreated as a sort of Holy Grail by manypeople, there are others who are ada-mantly opposed to any form of HDTV

whatsoever. As an alternative, this lat-ter group is solidly behind the idea ofdigital television and a nationwide fi-ber-optic network.

The avid proponents of HDTV view itnot merely as a device to provide thepublic with a superior form of televisionbut as something that can resurrect theAmerican TV manufacturing industry.In their broader perspectives, they seeHDTV as an opportunity-possibly alast chance-to restore the technologi-cal and economic base of the Ameri-can semiconductor industry. RichardJ. Elkus, Jr., a former executive withthe Ampex Corporation, writing in TheNew York Times on May 28 of this year,pointed out that "three American com-panies created industries that becamethe foundation for many of the strategicworld markets of today. The RCA Cor-poration was instrumental in the devel-opment of television. The ShockleyTransistor Company spawned thesemiconductor industry. The AmpexCorporation developed the field ofmagnetic recording." Elkus goes on tosay that "Ampex introduced the video-tape recorder in 1956 and the VCR in1970. Ampex had nearly 100% of thepatents in this field. But even though ithad the technology, Ampex decided

not to pursue the VCR market. As aresult, it was taken over by the Japa-nese. And with that market went notonly the majority of video recordingtechnology but also a major segmentof the support technologies."

This gentleman and others makevery persuasive arguments for HDTV,and perhaps it is time to take a cold,hard look at the current status of thisnew technology. I suppose the mostcharitable thing to say about the HDTVsituation is that it is muddled and notlikely to be resolved for a long time. Asyou might expect, the FCC is a majorcontributor to the confusion surround-ing HDTV, as their track record withtechnological developments in thepast is not very encouraging. To befair, central to their indecision andpussyfooting is the issue of HDTV com-patability with our 50 -year -old NTSCtelevision. There have been some 19different proposals for HDTV put be-fore the FCC, but only about six ofthem appear to have sufficient techni-cal merit and practicality to warrantconsideration. It is obvious to most ob-servers that after 50 years of limited -resolution NTSC, there is little sense ingoing to HDTV unless the full capabili-ties of this technology can be utilized.This means a system that will provide1,125 lines of resolution, giving a pic-ture quality almost on the order of a 35 -mm slide. Those who 'have attendedCES conventions and have seenclosed-circuit demonstrations of 1,125 -line television know what a dramaticvisual impact these TV images have incomparison to standard NTSC video.

At present, the proposed HDTV sys-tems from RCA, Philips, and Faroudja,as well as the Japanese Muse system,seem to have the most support. One ofthe major problems with HDTV is that ifyou want a full 1,125 -line system, thiswould require a 12 -MHz bandwidth,equivalent to two present, standard 6 -MHz channels in the precious videofrequency spectrum. This is presentlyregarded as technically and politicallyundesirable. Therefore, the RCA andFaroudja HDTV systems propose re-duced resolution of about 700 to 900lines, thereby reducing the video chan-nel allocation. It should be noted thatwhen an HDTV system is considered"NTSC compatible," it does not meanthat standard TV sets would be able to

24 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

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deliver a 1.125 -line picture. Compati-ble in the context of the NTSC systemmeans that standard television setswould receive HDTV transmissions,but without the benefits of the im-proved resolution.

Even as you read this, the Japaneseare transmitting HDTV with their full 12 -

MHz, two -channel Muse system. Muse6 and Muse 9 systems, which reducethe video bandwidth for HDTV by usinga compression/expansion technique,are also available. The Muse HDTV isuplinked to a satellite. with three pro-gram channels available. The satel-lite's transmitter provides 100 watts perchannel, considerably more than the7.5 watts of most North American satel-lites. The usual Japanese rooftop dishantennas range from 15 to 30 inches indiameter. Reportedly, there are about100 HDTV receivers in use that canprovide 1,125 -line pictures. However,there are an estimated one million roof-top dishes installed in Japan, and Mit-subishi is said to have a $135 adaptorthat can convert the non -compatibleMuse signals so they can be receivedby NTSC television sets. Of course, allof this might be dismissed as simply aone-upmanship public relations ploy,but they are undeniably transmittingHDTV signals.

The U.S. and Japan have many mil-lions of NTSC television sets in use.Since the FCC says we just can't goback to square one and start all overagain with HDTV, the enormity of theproblems facing the adoption of HDTVare mind boggling. So, acknowledgingthe formidable obstacles to HDTV, isthe alternative of digital TV and a na-tionwide fiber-optic network any easierto implement?

George Gilder, an advocate of thistechnology and the author of Micro-cosm: Into the Quantum Era of Eco-nomics and Technology, writing in thesame issue of The New York Times,stated, "This new development is nothigh -definition television, which offersonly a fourfold increase in picture qual-ity over existing television. The real ad-vance is the telecomputer, which cou-ples digital and video technology withfiber optics. Unlike broadcast televi-sion, digital computer technology isfully interactive and responsive notonly to keyboards. joysticks, and mice,but to touch. movement, and the hu-

man voice. . . . But interactive telecom-puters have one key requirement: Theymust be fully digital. And because digi-tal signals contain so much more infor-mation than the analog signals used tobroadcast both conventional andHDTV programs, telecomputers will re-quire a fiber -optics network."

This gentleman goes on to point outthat fiber-optic cables can carry thou-sands of times more information thancopper wires or radio waves, and thatit is fortunate that fiber-optic and tele-computer technologies are under in-tense development by Bell Labs, Bell-core, Corning Glass, and hundreds ofcomputer companies. Another interest-ing quote from Gilder's Times article isthe following: "The chief obstacle tothe introduction of telecomputing andthe vast step forward in human com-munications and culture that it willbring, is the strange coalition of inter-ests currently converging on Congressin support of HDTV. By diverting re-sources and political efforts from thevital and difficult drive to replacebroadcasting with digital fiber net-works. HDTV poses a dire threat to thefuture of American technology. HDTV,moreover, will offer its meager gains inpicture quality only if the governmentcontinues to offer big subsidies to de-velop the technology. The biggest sin-gle subsidy asked of the government isto expand free access to the broad-cast frequency spectrum at a timewhen those frequencies are acutelyneeded for higher value uses, like airand ground traffic control, cellular tele-phones, modems, and eventually eventwo-way wrist telephones. But in addi-tion, the television industry now wantstaxpayers to prop up its outmoded,largely analog television technologywith subsidies for the development ofHDTV. It makes no sense for Congressor the country to invest in this technol-ogy. . . . For the United States, televi-sion-including HDTV-is obviously lit-tle more than a pathetic dog. If thiswere not the case. then the privatesector would invest in it without goingto the government and asking for sub-sidies. . . . Congress must choose be-tween the American computer and fi-ber -optics industries-our country'sreal fast-ising stars-and an outmod-ed television technology on which Ja-pan and Europe have already wasted

billions. In computers, the world's lead-ing .ndustry. the United States has70% of the world's market. Americaalso leads decisively in fiber -opticsproduction and installation. But Japandominates TV and HDTV technology.To help American competitiveness,Congress should break down the end-less regulatory obstacles that stoptelephone companies from putting fi-ber -optics networks into the home.

Obviously, the foregoing is one hellof an indictment of analog NTSC televi-sion and HDTV. Some of Gilder's argu-ments are very cogent, but quite a lotof them are just too facile and havetheir share of naiveté. There are somedrastic notions here, as well. In es-sence, Gilder is asking for the aban-donment of television broadcasting,and you can just imagine the tremen-dous lobbying against this by the TVnetworks. He also assumes a greatdeal with his discussion of bringingfiber -optic cables into the home. It istrue that the telephone companieshave already installed thousands ofmiles of fiber-optic cables. However, afiber-optic connection to a home wouldbe quite expensive, as we are not talk-ing about the cheapie plastic fiber-op-tic cable that too often connects theoutput of a CD player to other digitalequipment. The fiber-optic cabling to ahome would have to be made of aspecial high -quality glass for optimumtransmission characteristics. It must beprotected by layers of special and ex-pensive insulating sheathing and ter-minated by special ceramic/metal con-nectors which need precision glasslenses. The length of the fiber-opticcable to the home would also requirethat it be driven by a laser. Gilder alsotalks rather blithely about interactivedigital TV. This would require eitheranother fiber-optic cable or anothersignal at a different wavelength on thesame cable. At present, costs wouldbe about the same for each of theseitems.

In summation, neither HDTV nor thedigital TV/fiber-optic technology is im-minent. In fact, whichever technologyprevails, it will be a long time in com-ing. In the best of all possible worlds,the digital fiber-optic technology wouldultimately prove to be the best andmost desirable, but my instincts tell mewe will see HDTV first.

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 25

AUDIO ETCEDWARD TATNALL CANBY

SPINNING WEBS AND REELS

Is audio a profession? You bet it is,even though it did not exist in anyorganized way-apart from electri-

cal engineering-until after WWII. Doaudio professionals know the extent towhich their products influence peopleway out to the far audio periphery?Very few bother. Too busy.

They are specialists and must be.They live the intensely competitive lifeof the inner circles in any profession.They do not at all resemble the spider,who at the center of a huge web isinstantly in touch with every tiny portionof that web through the elastic tensionsthat bind her to its most distant areas.

In audio, too, as in many profes-sions, the maxim is that if it sells, it is

good. The Great Public is being fedthe right audio diet. (Feedback interms of sales volume.) The public,even so, is often just a convenient setof ninepins-to change metaphors-by the thousands and the millions, tobe bowled over and set up again,ready for another round. Knock 'emdown, they bounce right back. Plentyof truth there! People do enjoy thegame. But it gives one more conve-nient excuse to the busy specialist toavoid thoughts of peripherality-i.e.,what people do and think in the boon-docks of nonprofessionalism.

Nobody can criticize professional-ism as such, especially today whenspecialization goes to such incrediblecomplexities of detail. It is worth aman's life just to keep up, as many anolder audio man knows. Our civilizationdepends on these highly technical ar-eas, and audio, in its way, is as impor-tant as any of them. There just isn'tmuch time to think about the audioperiphery.

And yet the whole audio picture isenormous and getting larger all thetime. Where would we be if all electron-ic communication vanished? Life, as itis almost anywhere on the planet,would collapse in chaos. A nuclear at-tack would not cause as much disrup-tion-even bombs could not cover theworld as does audio.

And so the inner professional worldof audio goes merrily. intensely on inits own way, while the audio peripherydoes what it can and hopes for thebest. It's like the old lady who trusts herautomobile to get her there and back.knowing how to make it go but entirelyignorant as to how it does so. This isthe huge, normal, gigantic, wide-spread audio periphery.

It is a sort of inside -out provincialism.perforce. The very center is that whichis isolated, not the periphery-the sub-

urbs. the ex-urbs, the boondocks! It isout there where the audio impact oncivilization really matters. It seems in-evitable in our present world, the insid-ers being necessarily so professionalthat they live within a sort of cage, aninner chamber of their own devising,jampacked and seething with activitylike some priesthood of an ancient civi-lization. Their language, their thoughtsand attitudes are largely out of touchwith outside ways, though they are ex-pert enough in designing the audiothat will sell, and work, where the big-gest part of audio lives.

The periphery exists on a vast scale.It is made of microcosms. A journalist,writer, video reporter reaches to themicrocosm for a sense of reality-thetelevision close-up, the "man in thestreet" (or woman), the studio inter-view. What one person says, we hope,represents the thoughts of millions,and so it often does. History, after all, ismade up of microcosms, of individualswithin the masses, individual happen-ings inside the great events, single ob-jects (the Rosetta stone) which carrysignificance. I, too, must follow thislead-hence my recent column (June)on Mr. and Mrs. Charles Parent ofCornwall, Connecticut (she born in1871, he, though he didn't say so.probably even older, born in the1860s). These two talked to me froman historical audio tape. totally ama-teur but remarkably valuable as audiohistory. My job as a local "expert," rel-atively speaking, was to transfer thosevoices from an anonymous reel-to-reeltape onto cassettes for current use.

I. too, you understand, am in a partof the periphery-but far closer to theprofessional than to the outer fringe! I

am perhaps the spider's assistant, tokeep the lines of communication alivebetween inside and outside wherever Imay. Out where I live, knowledge ofaudio technicalities is just about zero.And yet audio is very much there.

You can guess why I am back to theParents. I have in hand a letter to theEditor (not to me) concerning that Junecolumn. It is from Tom Christopher, anenthusiastic young (I assume) audioprofessional who seems to find what Isaid almost incomprehensible-from aprofessional viewpoint ("Signals &Noise," August). He was astonished atwhat were, to him, my bumbling, ama-

26 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

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Our civilization dependson these highly technicalareas, and audio, in itsown way, is as importantas any of them.

teurish efforts and wanted to know whyI didn't "consult" any one of the reputa-ble audio pros in my region who could"ponder this obviously major dilemma"(mine) as to what to do with those zanytapes I was trying to copy. He justcouldn't understand: "He [meaningme] sounded like he was consultingThe Audio Farmers' Almanac."

What this man does not understandis that there is a huge, active audioworld outside his own probably well-equipped studio, low on basic knowl-edge of technical things but high onenterprise and appreciation of audiosignificance. Also, of course, low onequipment. And funds. This is not busi-ness! It is audio on its own, far beyondthe commercial fringe. That operationscould be so amateurish offends hisprofessional soul. In his way, he isright. It would be nice to have a fullyprofessional consultant and the latestand most extensive equipment layoutavailable wherever any thought of au-dio exists, periphery or no. I admire hisup-to-date enthusiasm. I suppose tha:he has access to the latest pro equip-ment for his work-he has to as a pro-fessional. No criticism! Good man . .

But he doesn't stop there. Unwisely.perhaps only rhetorically, he suggeststhat he is the audio man I should con-sult. "I qualify and volunteer," says he.

Volunteer? For what consideration, I

ask? A bit of glory, perhaps, a lot offun, and a considerable amount ofhard work. But no cash. That's whatvolunteer means. Out in the boon-docks where it thrives.

The Cornwall Historical Society is theonly enterprise of its kind in our towrand perhaps the only one to have triedso early, courageously, to record theactual stories of earlier inhabitants intheir own words. In the '60s, this tookimagination and understanding of whataudio recording means. Nothing stu-pid about that. You may have read thestory of one major university that be-gan a "Recorded History" series withlong taped interviews of well-knownpersons, strictly confidential (to bringout the scandals as well as the glory ofthe past). Having recorded this price-less material, this school had it tran-scribed into words on paper, in wholeor in part-and erased the tapes. Touse them over again. Can you believeit? I thus lost hours of my own father's

voice telling of his whole life in theliterary world of the 1920s and '30s. I

have only a few moments of that voice,taken off the air by myself in 1950 or soand not erased. However naïve theymay have been in technical knowl-edge, the Cornwall Historical Societywas at the forefront of audio thinking.

But volunteer work? At a wild guess.the treasury of this Society might haveat this moment, say, $169 on hand,with which to buy stamps, stationery,put out historical leaflets, heat the oldhouse now and then, and maybe pur-chase a few audio cassettes in case Iwant to do more work with the histori-cal tapes. (I do.) This is much too smallan organization for big -scale funding-and who, I ask you, would do the high-ly professional job of fund-raising? Atwhat salary?

No salary, of course. This is a volun-teer organization, and there are mil-lions of them throughout our nation out-side of the big cities, and even a fewthere too. Volunteer work is not a popu-lar subject among professionals, busi-ness people, sales executives, but it

lives on! It has to make do with what itcan get. for no money at all-and oftenenough, it finds a bargain. Big -namepeople who give their services.

Yes, you audio professionals, youhave to live. Money counts. But thegreatest pleasure in most people'slives rests in the activities that can bemanaged without pay, beyond money.Some people catch onto this early, andtheir lives are the happier for it, wheth-er for pure pleasure or for a worthycause. Maybe it's just goin' fishing.Model railroading, I hear, is booming.Or better, it is the Cornwall VolunteerFire Department, which protects myhouse admirably. No pay. Or the localambulance corps. No pay. I must saythat the very best things in my own lifehave brought me no cash, ever. Bloodout of a stone? Many really worthwhileactivities are inherently payless-if youcan, you do them.

So let me go on to our friend theprofessional's generously conceivedrecommendations for those Cornwalltapes-the one I copied and the othersto come. It is a marvelous worm's -eyeviewpoint-full of goodies! And repletewith many thousand dollars of equip-ment-somebody's equipment. Thevery best. And most professional.

28 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

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An anticlimactic beginning. "Firstidentify the format." As already men-tioned, I did just that. Only took an houror so, thanks to no identifications, hid-eous volume changes, overlays of oneformat on top of another-as was alltoo common in those early tape daysoutside (and inside!) the pro area. As

noted, the format was 2 -track reel-to-reel quarter -inch, at 71/2 ips, one trackonly used, the other with assorted ech-oes, backwards and frontwards. A re-used tape.

So here's what he would do next."Get some notch filters/equalizers andcompressors . . . ." For free? A couple

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of thousand dollars or maybe muchmore, right there. Out in the boon-docks, we do not "get" that kind ofequipment at the drop of a volunteerhat. "Maybe even a de-esser for akick." This begins to sound like one ofthose luxury cruises to Antarctica. Allyou need is $15,000, plus airfare tosomewhere. "When bouncing to tapefor editing, some noise reduction mightbe fun." As an old noise -reducer andeditor, I doubt this. Neither Burwen,dbx, nor Dolby himself could do muchwith the noise on these tapes. Maybefor a few more thou you could try somefancy digital stuff, the sort that wouldreduce shellac noise on a very worn-out Caruso original.

"A combination of equalization(voice is easy to isolate) and compres-sion/limiting will make the words clearand the levels even." Yes, maybe. I diduse some simple EQ, merely to tonedown the hum and hiss and rumble. Ithelped. I also compressed-by hand.Easy when you memorize the words soyou can hit the volume control at theright instant. But beware! The back-ground noise, even with some NR,jumps up and down so radically that itdistracts from the words. I tried; I

know. So I did only a moderate handcompression. No cost, no extra equip-ment. We boondock people tend to beresourceful.

"If you must use tape (yech!) [in thecopying], noise reduction helps; mypreference would be Dolby SR." Aha,the very latest and best! At a cost. Butif Dolby can do much more than I canwith this material, he's even more of agenius. And why the "yech"? Do westore the stuff in a computer for laterreference in Cornwall? (Computer, ofcourse, donated.) As for the de-esser,no. You can't de-ess an "S" that isn'tthere.

The payoff, of course, is DAT. (I

might have guessed that one.) "I wouldalso transfer the old tapes to DAT, thencompress, equalize, and edit/se-quence while going to another DAT.This gives you a nondegradable mas-ter for cassette duplication." Duplica-tion? And two DAT machines? My non -pro head spins. Is this what our friendis volunteering?

"If all this sounds like overkill, that'sbecause it's 'like' professional." So beit. Amen. A

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30 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

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Stereo Review 1-88

"The sound of the Ohm SoundCylinders was smooth, balancedand thoroughly enjoyable, wellbeyond what anyone wouldexpect from such a small, lightspeaker. Its dispersion wassubjectively complete, and wewere never aware of the speakersas distinct sound sources, nomatter how much we movedaround the room...these speakerscertainly offer impressive valuefor their price and size."'

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A-CT-Ts6. -- - - - - . . Wire Talk

Frank Van Alstine runs a qualityaudio store called Audio by VanAlstine (formerly Jensen's StereoShop) in Burnsville, Minnesota. He'sgenerally regarded as a pretty goodelectronics engineer and hasoccasionally issued products thatshow excellent grasp of the principlesinvolved, together with innovativethought. The following is from VanAlstine's newsletter, Audio Basics.We let the copy speak for itself.

"Too may readers want me to tellthem what magic cable and speakerwire to use! They don't want me to behonest and explain that there is nocorrelation between cable quality andprice. They certainly don't want me toinform them that the only differencebetween the 'sound' of various cablesis the way the real electricalcharacteristics of the cable-theresistance, capacitance, andinductance-load the driving source.They don't want me to say that anysonic differences can be replicatedwith 100 worth of resistors,capacitors, and inductors wiredacross the cable. They don't seemeven to want to know that, if anamplifier is not load sensitive. thecharacteristics of the cable won'tmatter at all. None of that goodelectrical engineering adviceis any fun at all.

"Magic is a lot more fun and ismuch easier to understand. So I keepgetting call after call, and letter afterletter, asking me only what brand ofmagic cable I recommend. And whenI respond, the answer is perceived tobe that I don't like magic cables.

IL

Wrong again! I don't like fraud. I don'tlike products that are representedand priced to have some mysticquality that does not exist and thatthe supplier knows does not exist. I

don't like the fact that the entire high -end and mid-fi market has taken upselling high-priced cables as a way ofmaking a quick buck and convincingyou that their shiny pennies are fairtrade for your quarters.

"I don't like magazine reviewersmindlessly listening to and evaluatingmagic cables and wires in endless,nauseating reviews without everthinking about what is going on,about what they are really hearing ornot hearing, and why. The conceptthat most electronics are excessivelyload sensitive and that changing theload changes the sound seemsto be an alien thought too hard tounderstand. The concept that if thecable changes the sound, thenthe real problem is the sourcedriving the cable, is never discussed.Nobody is willing to stand up andshout, 'Bullshit!'

"So when I demonstrate at a Show,obviously using standard cables andinterconnects, I get to spend my timeexplaining why the sound was sogood with 'bad -sounding' wires. Fartoo many of the visitors to our roomwere so brainwashed that they neverunderstood that the sound was goodbecause the equipment was notscrewing up the source material,because I had done an adequate jobof getting rid of the worst of theroom's acoustic problems, andbecause the brand and cost of thecables did not matter at all."

StereopticonfusionThe "stereopticon" slide of the Eiffel

Tower in the January "Spectrum" wasactually a stereoscope slide. I humblyaccept this correction from KennethH. Fleischer of San Francisco, for thesake of truth and for the sake ofproving I'm not old enough to havebeen around when stereoscopeswere in vogue.

The two words are frequentlyconfused. In fact, I heard someonemake the same error at a party twodays after Mr. Fleischer's notearrived. To my surprise, my gentlecorrection was received only witha frosty look, not the public thanksMr. Fleischer's receiving here.

44:;.0, .-

Walkman Marches OnFew audio inventions actually

revolutionize our listening lives,and the ones that do are rarelyinexpensive-at least initially. So hatsoff to an invention that did createa revolution, and did it on the cheap:Sony's Walkman, which celebratesits 10th anniversary this year.

To celebrate, Sony is bringing outa "Commemorative" collector's model,the WM-701S, in a production run ofonly 2,000 pieces. This $650 unit isa silver-plated version of the $220WM-701C, featuring auto reverse,a wired remote control, rechargeablebattery, and both Dolby B and Cnoise reduction. Sony also workedwith Tiffany's to produce an evenrarer model, the WM-701T. Thismodel will not be for sale but will beawarded, by Sony, to "a select groupof visionary leaders in the music andconsumer electronics industries."

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34AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

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The American credo thata man's home is his castlehas gotten short shriftwhen it comes to airportnoise.

Noise in the NewsWho is responsible for controlling

airport noise? The federalgovernment, say the airlines. Localgovernment, say beleaguered airportneighbors. Who's right?

The answer is still blowing in thewindsocks, but a recent U.S.Supreme Court action may helpnudge the decades -old debatetoward resolution. By refusing to heara complaint brought by a Chicagosuburbanite against O'HareInternational Airport, the Court hasopened the door for citizens to suethe city of Chicago (O'Hare's owner)for noise -related abuses. Though thecase doesn't directly address thequestion of just who sets noise -controlstandards, it does tackle someclosely related issues: Who'saccountable for airport -noise abuses,and what's the proper forum fordisputes over airport noise?

"By putting the ball back into statecourt, so to speak, the Supreme Courtis forcing Chicago to face the realcosts of poor airport planning," saidJoseph Karaganis, a lawyerrepresenting the O'Hare CitizensCoalition, a group of O'Hare'sneighbors. Karaganis also representsLawrence Bieneman, whose 1984 suitcharged that O'Hare's noise lowered

the value of his Bensenville home.Dismissing Bieneman's suit inDecember 1988, the U.S. Court ofAppeals, Seventh Circuit (whoseruling referred to Bieneman as"a frequent filer"), declared thatBieneman, and anyone else, was freeto sue Chicago in Illinois state court."All residual power," commentedKaraganis, "remains with the state inredressing injuries. This is what theappeals court's decision ruled." InMay 1989, the decision was upheldby the Supreme Court.

For America's airlines, local controlis an uneasy prospect. "Federalagencies still have the basicresponsibility," said John Meenan, anattorney for the Airline TransportationAssociation, based in Washington,D.C. "Airport proprietors can go nofurther than taking limited action incontrolling noise." Imposing localairport rules would inhibit airlines'business, said Airline TransportationAssociation spokesman William E.

Jackman, creating "situations whereyou can fly one kind of aircraft intoone city but can't fly the same planeinto another place. That is no way torun an airline."

Yet across the U.S., communitiesand airports are taking steps to curbexcessive jet noise. In California'spopulous Orange County, statedKaraganis, restrictions now preventnoisier jets from landing at JohnWayne Airport. San DiegoInternational Airport, among others,has a nighttime curfew.

O'Hare, the nation's busiest airport,has no such restrictions, saidKaraganis, who claims that 90,000homes in 20 Chicago suburbs areadversely affected by jet noise. Heestimates a 1% to 2% drop inproperty value for every decibel over65 dBA: that's a $15,000 to $30,000loss to the owner of a $150,000 housein an area with levels of 75 dBA.

In Chicago suburbs like Elmhurst,Park Ridge, or DesPlaines, suchlevels are often exceeded, addedKaraganis. "You get pop bottlesexploding in cupboards, you get wallscracking. People can't hearthemselves think. The American credothat a man's home is his castle hasgotten short shrift when it comes toairport noise." Tony Scherman

V15 Turns XXVIt's now been 25 years since Shure

Brothers introduced the first V15phono cartridge. The original V15featured an elliptical diamond stylus-the first of its kind, as Shure and Irecall --and an optimized 15° tracking

angle. With the V15 Type II (1966),Shure introduced its concept of"trackability" and the first of a seriesof trackability test records still in useby reviewers-including ours-today.The Type III (1973) featured aresonant frequency above the audiblerange and laminated pole pieces.With the Type IV (1978), the cartridgesprouted a Dynamic Stabilizer, aviscous -damped carbon -fiber brushsystem that reduced low -frequencyresonance, drained static electricity,and swept dust and dirt from thegroove. When Shure figured out howto make its beryllium MicroWall stylusshank (1982), they introduced theType V, whose box doubled as a neatcartridge -alignment tool. One yearlater, the Type V gained a MicroRidgeStylus tip to become the V15 TypeV -MR. So far, no Type VI has beenhinted at, but even in this CD -orientedera, who knows?

FourplayNot content with merely stretching

the CD's play length, as othercompanies have done ("Spectrum,"September and December 1988),Nimbus wants to double or quadrupleit. In their labs, they've succeeded inpacking the pits on a disc twice asclose as usual-and think they candouble that. Playing the resulting"CD4X" discs would require a bluelaser, and the only solid-state bluelaser we've heard of is anexperimental Matsushita devicewhich costs about $10,000.

Nimbus says the CD4X will be usedfor computer data and video use, notaudio. After all, few four- to seven -hour audio programs are likely to besure-fire sellers (with all due respectto Wagner). On the other hand, I

could see its use in giving CD3 discsand vest-pocket players the 80 -minute capacity of today's full-size CDs.

36AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

"TheyWere Designed To PLAnd Make It Sound Like

This They Do Very Well, In A Most

Unobtnisive Way, At A Bargain Price...It's Hard lb Imagine Going Wrong

With Ensemble: Nam/InchStereoReviewSept .88

Cambridge SoundWprks has createdEnsemble' a speaker system that can providethe sound once reserved for the best speakersunder laboratory conditions. It virtually dis-appears in your room. And because wemarket it directly, Ensemble costs hundredsless than it would in stores.

Henry ass, creator of the dominant speaker models7CLof the 505 (Acoustic Research), '60s t and '70s

(Advent), bringsyou Eitsembk, a genuine , new kind ofspeaker rystemfor the '90s, avail o factoo, direct

from Cambridge Soundlibrks.

The best sound comes in foursmall packages.

Ensemble consists of four speaker units.Avo compact low -frequency speakers repro-duce the deep bass, while two small satelliteunits reproduce the rest of the music, makingit possible to reproduce just the right amountof energy in each part of the musical rangewithout turning your listening room into astereo showroom.

Your listening room workswith Ensemble, not against it.No matter how well a speaker performs,

at home the listening room takes over. If youput a conventional speaker where the roomcan help the low bass, it may hinder the upperranges, or vice -versa.

What Henry Noss tells his fiendsEvery time I came out with a new speaker at

AR. KW, or Advent, my Mends would ask me."Henry is it worth the extra money for me to trade

up?" And every time I would answer. "No. whatyou already got is still good enough:'

But today with the introduction of Ensemble,I tell them, "Perhaps now is the time to give sour oldspeakers to the children':

Ensemble is a Rademark or Cambridge Sounduarks. Inc.

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ibucan put Ensembles lowfirqueng unitseuctb, where theyshouldpforsuperb bass.)bucan't do this with conventionalspeakets becausonu have to be concerned about the upper frequencies comingfmm the same etriosums as the bw ones.

Ensemble, on the other hand, takesadvantage of your room's acoustics. The earcan't tell where bass comes from, which is whyEnsembles bass units can be tucked out of theway-on the floor, atop bookshelves, or underfurniture. The satellites can be hung directly onthe wall, or placed on windowsills or shelves.No bulky speakers dominate your living space,yet Ensemble reproduces the deep bass thatno mini speakers can.

Not all the differences are asobvious as our two subwoofers.

Unlike se mingly similar three-piece systems, Ensemble usespremium quaky components formaximum power handling, indivi-dual crossove-s that allow severalwiring options and cabinets

Unlike seemingly stindarsatellite oistems which use a singksubmxter Ensemble uses two separate, compactbass units. Theyfli mar gracefully into llvingemiromnent, and he0 minimize the e era of thelistening mom s standing waxes.

ruggedly constructed for proper acousticalperformance. 1* even gold-plate all connectorsto prevent corrosion. An even bigger differenceis how we sell it...

Thousands agree: the bestshowroom is your living room.

I* make .t possible to audition Ensemblethe tght way-in your own home. Li fact,Ensemble is sold only by Cambridge Sound -

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WAIL TALE

Changing the Siren's SongMany modern composers stay

safely tucked in academe, but MaxNeuhaus likes to compose for unusualniches of the real world. One of hisworks rumbles away in a subwayventilation chamber two blocks frommy office, quietly convincingpassersby that the subway hasdeveloped musical talent. Andanother Neuhaus opus may becoming soon to an emergency -vehiclesiren near you.

Neuhaus' new siren songs aredesigned to be more informative, andperhaps occasionally more pleasantto hear than those in use today. "Asiren should have a range ofnastiness," Neuhaus told The NewYork Times. "It should be really nastywhen people are in danger and lessnasty when they're not." Consequently,his siren suite consists of foursongs-a bell -like ping, a doubletone, a swooping phrase of fournotes, and a shrill whoop.

fl To help listeners tell where thesirens are coming from, their soundsare punctuated with pauses. Sirentones will be broadcast at differentpitches from the front and rear of thevehicle, so listeners will be able to tellwhether they're in front of or behind it.And the faster the vehicle goes, themore frequently its siren will sound.

As a result, no two ambulances, firetrucks, or squad cars in a given areaare likely to emit the same sound atprecisely the same time. This mayhelp prevent many collisions betweenemergency vehicles responding tothe same alarm-a problem when thesiren on one vehicle drowns out anyothers in the area.

Modern music has been accusedof sounding like police cars. IfNeuhaus' system gets adopted bysome manufacturer, police cars maystart sounding like modern music fora change.

Sneaking in a SubwooferThere are two common, traditional

ways to hook a subwoofer into a carstereo system: Either use a stereoamp and a passive crossover, or anelectronic crossover and separateamp channels for the satellites andsubwoofer. If you want to run a monosubwoofer, you need a summingnetwork after the crossover filters(active crossovers often include this)or a subwoofer with two voice -coils.

Now there's a third and fairlysneaky way to do it. RockfordFosgate, Orion, and Phoenix Goldhave stereo amps that can providea mono subwoofer output in additionto their two stereo outputs. The trickworks because the two amplifier

w.9

channels are wired with oppositepolarity, so a woofer bridged acrossone terminal of each would play allsignals that the two channels had incommon, gaining extra power fromthe bridged configuration. Meanwhile,each satellite speaker system isconnected conventionally to the twoterminals of one amplifier channel,and therefore receives just onechannel of the stereo signal. Addsome passive components to filterhighs out of the woofer signals and tokeep lows from the satellites, andyou're in business. Or you can omitthe filters and use the "extra" speakeras a center channel.

With this type of wiring, that center -channel speaker would play the sumof both the left and right signals,which is just what such a speakershould do. Orion points out that withordinary bridging, which effectivelyturns a stereo amp into a morepowerful mono amplifier, that speakerwould get only the left or right signal.This is because most stereo amps.when bridged. accept signals onlyfrom one input jack.

These techniques would probablywork with most bridgeable amplifiers.Check with your amp's manufacturerbefore you try it, though, just to be onthe safe side.

Taxing SituationBritain, I gather, is one country

where you won't hear a lot of blaring,thumping car stereos going down thestreet. British restraint? No, British taxlaws-not prohibitive imposts on carstereo, but the income tax. Personalincome is taxed at a high rate, butsuch perquisites as the use of acompany car are not. As a result,many people drive company carsinstead of buying their own, and fewinvest their own money in upgradingthe sound system of a car they donot own.

0465

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FORTHE DISCERNING AUDIAND VIDEOPHILE.

The engineers at Philips of the Netherlandssteadfastly refuse to accept the commonly accepted.The result: The Philips FR980.

Arguably the most sophisticated A/V receiveravailable today.

Not only does the FR980 provide the world's mostadvanced technology, it also offers an extraordinaryarray of options to mix and match audio and videosignals. The possibilities are virtually limitless.

Philips has designed and crafted an advancedreceiver that keeps you abreast of emerging technol-ogies like CD -V. Further, the FR980 incorporates threeaudiophile -quality listening modes to pamper youwith impeccable sonic authenticity.

Beyond the experience of true Dolby® SurroundSound, the FR980 features two custom equalization

modes: Movie mode to make special audio effects comealive. And Music mode with a more gentle equalizationto bring out the best in the newest music videos alreadyencoded with Dolby Surround Sound.

With 125 watts* per channel to drive the mainspeakers, and 30 watts for both rear surround soundspeakers, the FR980 recreates the true theatricalexperience.

The world's most sophisticated A/V receiverdemands the most sophisticated remote control: a full

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Audition the new F3980 at your nearest Philipsaudio/video specialist.

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IN CONFERENCER. A. GREINER

BIT BY BIT

wring four days, May 14 to 17,1989, about 400 persons lis-tened to almost 40 hours of

technical papers at the Audio Engi-neering Society's International Confer-ence, "Audio in Digital Times." Thisevent, held in Toronto, was the soci-ety's second major conference devot-ed entirely to digital audio and one ofthe most important conferences sincethe introduction of digital recordings tothe general public some half -dozenyears ago.

As one who has been deeply in-volved in digital signal processing for anumber of years, I was impressed withthe high quality of the papers present-ed and with the frankness and speedwith which the attending audio engi-neers have approached the continued

P. A. Greiner is Professor of Electricaland Computer Engineering at theUniversity of Wisconsin, Madison.He teaches and does researchin electroacoustics, acousticmeasurements, applications of digitalsignal processing, audio systemdesign, and noise control. He holdsover a dozen patents in electronicinstrumentation and audio systemsand was elected a Fellow of theAudio Engineering Society in 1984.

improvement of the technology and artof audio signal reproduction.

The range of the conference can beappreciated by going over a list of thesessions' topics. They included: Stateof the art in technology and basictrends, conversion techniques andperformance evaluation, professionaldigital audio, consumer digital audio,digital studio design and practice, dig-ital signal processing, digital audio infilm and broadcast, and several ses-sions on theory of digital signal pro-cessing. It is impossible to describe allof this in a few pages, so I have select-ed some of the topics which I think willbe of greatest interest to Audio read-ers. I will also give my overall impres-sions of the state of the art of digitalaudio and of future trends which theconference represented.

Digital audio is a new technology-anew art, if you like-and the profes-sionals at the meeting were in generalagreement that it is not at the presentmoment perfect. In recent years, therehave been some very poor digital re-cordings made and produced on bothvinyl and Compact Disc. There havebeen a great number of superior re-cordings done as well, and they clearlygreatly outweigh the poor ones. Theimportant issue, faced at this confer-

ence, is that the problems whichcaused the poor recordings havebeen, for the most part, tracked down.This necessary step has been followedvery rapidly with measures designedto solve the problems. As a result,most current and future recordings willcontinue to be better technically. Thesolutions, many of which were present-ed at this conference, are a combina-tion of hardware advances, softwaredesign, and recording techniques.

One of the major problems hasbeen, and is, the conversion of thesignal from analog to digital and back.In some cases, the analog -to -digitalconverters, the necessary filters, andthe digital -to -analog converters mayhave introduced artifacts into the re-cordings because they have not beenas precise as the technology requires;in other cases, they may not havecome up to the standards which havebeen set for the CD. Some early mas-ter digital tape recorders have not hadfull 16 -bit accuracy and may not havebeen linearized with the correctamount of dither. Some have simplynot been maintained or adjusted withenough care. In most cases, these arehuman problems as well as technicaldifficulties.

The development of digital integrat-ed circuits has more recently madepossible the development of more re-fined and theoretically better ND andD/A conversion techniques. Oversam-pling during both the record and play-back process and the application ofdigital filtering and noise -shaping tech-niques were the subjects of many ofthe technical papers presented. Theresults of these techniques, just nowbeing implemented, are better S/N ra-tios, lower noise floors, much betterlinearity at low levels (probably one ofthe most important factors in perceivedquality), and removal of anti-aliasing(or anti -imaging) filter artifacts thathave made some CDs objectionable.

One of the major points of interest tothe consumer is that these problems,which must be expected in a new tech-nology, are becoming better and bet-ter understood and are being eliminat-ed with advances in digital circuitrythat are taking place on a daily basis. I

believe that the critics of digital audioexpected perfection to leap full grownfrom the bosom of technology. This

42 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

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The critics of digital audioexpected perfection to leapfull-grown from the bosom oftechnology, but technologymust grow and develop.

technology, like any other, has had togrow and develop. It is doing so at arapid pace.

Some comfort and some distressmight be taken from several paperspresented which discussed the techni-cal adequacy of the CD format specifi-cations. The format requires that thesampling rate be 44.1 kHz and thequantization be 16 -bit linear. The ques-tion is, "Is this adequate?" This veryimportant question was discussed insome detail at the conference. in thelight of what we now know about digitalsystems and human perception. Forregardless of the use of frequencyoversampling and higher quantizationaccuracy at either or both the record-ing and playback ends of the systemthe stored data on the CD has only thisaccuracy. The answer, as I heard it,was that the sampling rate is entirelyadequate and the quantization accura-cy was adequate, if carried out with fullprecision for the final storage of thedigitized information, but finer quanti-zation (more bits) is required in theintermediate stages of production be-cause of the digital computations thatneed to be made at these stages.However. the standard is not muchgreater than that needed for the mostcritical applications. In fact, it may bejust a bit on the marginal side for pro-fessional studio applications.

This is generally good news since itconfirms the continued use of the cur-rent CD format for the consumer mar-ket. It is not the best news for thoseCDs which have been produced usinga large amount of intermediate digitalprocessing or equipment that has notbeen in virtually perfect operating ad-justment. Fortunately, professional dig-ital equipment is becoming availablefor studio use. This equipment useshigher bit quantization and oversam-pling. which allow high-speed, high -accuracy digital filtering and much ofthe other digital processing that mightbe required in the production of CDs.

An overview of the conference. I be-lieve. suggests that there is reason forgreat optimism. In the next few years.audio production will move well be-yond its current status and the finalCDs which the consumer hears will allbe of the quality of today's very best.

Over 12 hours of technical paperswere given dealing with signal conver-

44

sion between the analog and digitaldomains. It was made quite clear thatthis must be done with great precisionand care. An excellent lecture/demon-stration was given by Professor Lip-shitz, current president of the AES, andhis colleague Professor Vanderkooy,both from the University of Waterloo inOntario, Canada. This lecture demon-strated all that can go wrong if theanalog signal is not converted to thedigital domain accurately and with justthe right amount of dither. Variouskinds of squeaks, birdies, noise, andhash were demonstrated and shown tobe indigenous to certain kinds of con-version errors. That such errors exist insome currently available CDs wasdemonstrated by playing a number ofexamples. While these clearly audibledefects are not common in commercialCDs, their mere existence is a bitshocking. In one of the worst cases, aMozart piano concerto (CBS MK -37267), the music is modulated withnoise and faded into dismal digitalhash in a number of soft passages.

Several manufacturers presentedpapers describing their latest convert-ers (IC chip sets), which provide 18- or20 -bit accuracy and a high degree offrequency oversampling. While only 16of the bits are ultimately stored on theCD, high -accuracy conversion enablesexcellent digital filtering and assuresthat the rounded 16 -bit words are, onthe average, accurate to a small frac-tion of the lowest bit. It was shown thatit is important to have accurate 16 -bitconversion to actually get the full ad-vantages of 16 bits in terms of S/N andlinearity for very small musical signals.(The reader might appreciate that Au-dio has tested and reported on thisvery important feature of CD playersfor some time.)

The new high -accuracy convertersuse a technique called delta -sigmamodulation, oversampling conversion,or noise -shaping digital conversion.Whatever term is applied. the convert-ers use very high sampling rates-e.g.. 6 MHz-and only a few bits,sometimes one. The data is then digi-tally filtered, decimated. and convert-ed to 16- or 20 -bit words at a normalsampling frequency. This processeliminates the need for anti-aliasing fil-ters and can attain accuracies of 20bits or more if required. The advent of

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

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THEAUDIO

INTERVIEW

Emory Cook

FIRSTTAKE

In the 1950s, the press spun storiesabout Emory Cook which, three de-cades later, read like myth. Considerthe following chapter in this hi -ti pio-neer's media odyssey.

One morning, the founder and pro-prietor of Cook Laboratories got a callfrom a local real-estate agent. A clientwho'd just moved into ahouse near Cook's in theplacid New York Citysuburb of Pound Ridgehad phoned, threateninglegal action. For much ofthe previous night, thenew homeowner com-plained, the sounds oftrains had hammeredthrough the ambientdarkness. Yet duringtheir real-estate deal-ings, the agent had never so much asmentioned the nearby railroad line.

The only trains in Pound Ridge werethose on Cook's recording, Bail Dy-Hain ieS, one of the earliest titles in hishighly popular "Sounds of Our Times"series. In about 1950, the fledgling rec-ord producer was the first to imprint

7t

the realism of railroading on disc, anachievement that won him the endur-ing affection of a growing audiophilecommunity.

Those who took Cook's tour of sonicoddities could visit a chicken farm, aburlesque show, a naval cruiser, or auAir Force base. Hurricane -strength

winds howled on his re-cordings, firecrackersexploded and babiesbawled. There were mu-sical dynamics, too, ofcourse-including a NewOrleans bugler, West In-dian steel drummers,and organs played in aMexican church, NewYork's Paramount The-ater, and Boston's Sym-phony Hall.

All this captured the collectiveimagination of the press, and parablesabout Cook abounded. It was writtenthat valuable equipment had been lostto the tides when Cook recorded Voiceof the Sea, an album of nautical soundsthat took years to assemble. And that,while 'Hiking thunderstorms atop New

DAVID LANDERAUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 51

I got into the record business because of the awful qualityHampshire's Mount Washington, hehad come perilously close to beingstruck by lightning.

"Through ... devotion to soundquality, he has become a kind ofsenior oracle of high fidelity," onewriter reverently noted in MusicalAmerica. Another, in The New York-er, devoted two installments to aprofile of this "brash, quixotic" manwith his "almost mystical reverencetbr sound."

Cook clearly has earned the re-spect these and other media ac-counts afford him. But while theanecdotes they contain are beguil-ing indeed, he now denies the verac-ity of many, including the one aboutthe invisible Pound Ridge Railroad.Although Cook does concede that hemay have come close to a prophet'sfiery demise while recording onMount Washington.

Viewed in the context of its time,this audio apocrypha is easily un-derstood. After all, the '50s wereheady days tbr an industry justentering adulthood. Its founderscompeted in an olympiad of sorts,and the most exuberant player inthe tournament of decibels may wellhave been Cook himself.

Emory Giddings Cook was born inAlbany, N.Y. on January 27, 1913."Father happened to be Steinmetz'sattorney (if of interest)," his curricu-lum vitae states with characteristicdry succinctness.

In 1932, after tour years at l'hil-lips Exeter Academy and one atM.I.T., Cook enlisted in the ArmyAir Corps. Ile was discharged twoyears later and matriculated at Cor-nell, where in 1938 he earned anE.E. degree. .Jobs with New YorkPower and Light and with the engi-neering and construction depart-ments of CBS followed. Then, from1942 to 1945, Cook worked with theNavy as a civilian member of West-ern Electric's Field EngineeringForce. For this, the Navy awardedhim a commendation for developinga device to train fire -control radaroperators.

At the close of 1945, Cook leftWestern Electric and started CookLaboratories in his basement. A fewmonths later, he was offering recordcompanies a feedback cutter of hisown design. In 1949, with the pro -

52 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

of American -made discs.

(Mellon of live radio shows on thewane. WMGM decided to convertseveral broadcast studios for record-ing. Cook, who had been producingmasters tbr the station's sister com-pany. MGM Records, was signed onto design and install recordingequipment. This led to a consultingcontract which lasted several yearsand helped subsidize Cook's otheractivities, one of which was themanufacture of test records. WhenCook hung up a sign at his 1949Audio Fair exhibit, stating that oneof these records contained a 20,000 -cycle tone. his display became a fo-cal point attendees.

The annual Audio Fairs, held atManhattan's hotel New Yorker,were a gathering place for the elec-tronics trade as well as audio hobby-ists and others curious about thenew phenomenon called hi-fi. Atthese events, Cook often teamed upwith speaker maker Rudy Hozak.Ilis records-which included stereoprogram material as early as 1952-and Hozak's loudspeakers proved anirresistible combination. Convertsto the hi -fl cult multiplied alongwith the two men's sales figures.

Al least part of Cook's success canbe attributed to the showmanshiphe displayed at these expositions:One year, he included a parrot ill hisexhibit, with a sign reading "SalesManager" on its cage. II is disdain Ibrhigh seriousness was also evident inthe whimsical copy 1w wrote tbr hisrecord jackets and The Audio Buck-et, a newsletter that seems ironical-ly named, given the amount of aridhumor it contained.

The nature and pervasiveness ofthis humor make it easy to believethat Cook, who once covered thecenter hole of his El's to assure pur-chasers of their virginity, enjoyedinventing romances for innocent in-terviewers. It's also possible thatsome journalists missed the tongue-in-cheek tone of items in The AudioBucket and rewrote them, deadpan,in their own publications.

Whatever the case, since EmoryCook denies so much of what his1950s press clippings proclaim andsniffs at the persona they created,surely it's time to set the recordstraight. Ilere, then, are three war-ranted -to -be -true stories. Their di-

mensions are human rather thanmythic, and they help reveal themeasure of one of hi-fi's pioneers.

In the late '70s, Cook attended arecital by soprano Phyllis Curtin.lle'd recorded her more than twodecades earlier and hadn't seen heronce in the intervening years. As hestood outside the auditorium, Cur-tin passed by, recognized him, andthrew her arms around his neck.

Not long ago, Cook's lovely wile.Mart ha, got a call from a prospectiverecord purchaser. Ile told her thathe was a boy when her husband hadcome to his native Trinidad to re-cord. Ile still remembered that,when Mr. Cook appeared each morn-ing tbr his taping sessions (done, ofcourse, outdoors), he invariably hadpockets full of candy, which hewould distribute to the children.

Lizzie Miles, a black singer fromNew Orleans who Cook discovered

and recorded late in her career, sent (E'

him a number of letters. One of gthese contained a "hello to your astaff" and the benediction, "God 3bless all of them." Miles concludedwith a reminder to her producer,"Always remember," she wrote, "you tmade one old -fashion, creole, an -thine gal very. very happy." D.L.

S

0You were one of those hard-core hob-byists who, before the development oftape, was using a recording turntableto cut your own lacquers.Just off the air. NBC. Toscanini. I thinkthat was probably '44, '45-some-where in there.Wasn't it the poor quality of commer-cial recordings of the time that got youinto the business of making records?Most of the records made by U.S.companies were miserable comparedwith the European produc:. I admiredthe British in a general way becausethey made good records. They operat-ed with greater care. In this country,we were making junk, crark-it-out junkthat was just bad in many respects-acoustics, microphone placement, and

particularly the mechanics of thepressings. The pressings were deplor-able-off center, unflat, distorted, allthat. Somehow, that did two things. I

think it gnawed away at whatever feel-ings of patriotism might have existed ina young man. It also opened up anopportunity. Here was something thatcould be done that was at least worth-while. I wouldn't have been in the rec-ord business except for that-badproouct.Was all American product really thatbad?Sometimes it wasn't bad, but it wasnever predictable. RCA sometimesmace good records, but you neverknew what they would be. They wereunable to control quality.

RAIL dynamicsr

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 )"3

E»101w Cook

An LP's going to be played in a living room 99% of the time,

When you started your company afterWorld War II, though, the point wasn'tto make records. You started out mak-ing cutters, didn't you?Feedback cutters. All cutters that areused today would be feedback cutters,but then there was only one, the West-ern Electric. On a feedback cutter, thedriving coil has a sensing coil on itwhich is used to supply the feedbacksignal in order to discipline stylus mo-tion. It's like a servo. Olson tried tomake a loudspeaker like that, and did,but it didn't come off very well. Proba-bly too fragile. I emerged from the warwith a Western Electric license and,using their patents, built a feedbackcutter for sale instead of for license.The record companies then paid a roy-alty to Western Electric for each opera-tion, each record that was made onWestern Electric's cutter!What, specifically, were the problemsyou were trying to overcome with yourcutter?Distortion and frequency response.The available in those daysweren't very good. The 78 -rpm recordswould establish that.How did you get from cutters to mak-ing records?In 1949, we exhibited test records atthe Audio Fair run by Harry Reizes. Wealso had music records made in thestudio simultaneously with MGM con-cert records. And people weren't inter-ested in the cutter, they wanted therecords. We went ahead and startedmaking records then and there.I understand you put up a sign up atthat show saying you had a 20,000 -cycle tone on a test record. Did any-one else have such a thing prior to thattime?Well, I hardly think so. If they did, theykept it to themselves.I wonder how many people were actu-ally capable of hearing it.The curiosity is always there. Whetheranybody could hear anything or not isanother question. The famous ques-tion: "What! You mean you can't hear20,000 cycles? What's the matter withyou?"You first showed your binaural record-ings at the Audio Fair in 1952. Werethese made with dummy heads andmeant for headphone listening?No. Absolutely not. They were madewith microphones spaced 6 feet or

more apart. I used the term binauraland shifted to stereo after the WestCoast decided that was the language.The reason the West Coast did it isbecause they wanted to be different. IfI called it stereo, they would havecalled it binaural, for all I know. Theydidn't like it that I started up first-naturally. I like [the term] stereo betteranyway.I understand these recordings createdquite a stir at that show. Tell us aboutthem, and about the hardware used toplay them.Well, there were two bands ofgrooves-one for the left channel, onefor the right-two cartridges, and a bi-furcated arm. [A company called] Liv-ingston made an arm. Livingston is atown in New Jersey; Ched Smiley wasthe guy. And Scully made an attach-ment that you could put on any arm.You had the left channel on the out-side, the right channel on the inside.You started them both at the sameplace, and it had half the elapsed timeof a regular record of this time. So youconnected one side to one amplifierand one loudspeaker, and the other toa second amplifier and a second loud-speaker.How well did this system work?I don't think you'd give them away asChristmas presents to your wife or girl-friend. It wasn't just duck soup, but itwasn't all that bad either.It must have imposed serious time limi-tations. How much music could youget onto a disc? Enough to make itcommercially viable?Twelve minutes, roughly, would beabout maximum. I never expected it tobe commercial. It served as a lubri-cant, to get something started. But we

54 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

so you record acconlingly.

certainly sold a lot of records. Probably500. something like that, of each one.We had, four, five, six records.Acoustical space is now an importantfactor in recording. Did people in therecord business think much about thatin the early '50s?I certainly did. All you had to do was goaround New York and see a half -dozenstudios. Commonly, I would say, thebiggest one you'd find would be aboutthe size of this room -28 x 35 feet orso, with a high ceiling. This is some-thing you don't do with a concert or-chestra. If it's a jazz band-well, may-be-but there's going to be no acous-tics. Reverb chambers were some-times used. Other than that, you hadthis horible business of doing it dry ina place this size when it should bethree or four times this size. I don'tknow if you remember Toscanini andStudio 8H. That was one extreme. Thathad no acoustics, and it sounded thatway. Pretty unpalatable.What was your concept of the idealsituation?You have to imagine something that'ssimilar. in acoustical behavior, to atypical living room. There is no suchthing but, keeping that in mind, youhave to recognize that this is the sort ofplace a recording's going to be playedin 99% of the time and behave accord-ingly. Normally, living rooms are terri-bly small, so you can't expect the feel-ing of having been in a concert hall if

it's a concert hall, or a theater if it's atheater, or a nightclub if it's a nightclubjust by putting the microphone downthe throat of a horn and then reproduc-ing it in somebody's living room. It isn'tgoing to sound right. You don't have !obe too smart to know that's not the wayto do it.How did you do it?Well, I used the old live-end/dead-endstudio idea. What you do is plug oneear. You have to get accustomed tothe business of sticking your finger inone ear or the other, whichever, andbecoming a microphone. Two ears arenot a microphone.Certainly not a monaural microphone.A so-called stereo microphone is nottwo ears either. They [the stereo chan-nels] are too close together, for onething-besides which, they don't han-dle incoming information in the sameway at all. So you have to find a place

[for one microphone]-and oftentimes,it's very sensitive, within an inch orso-and then do the same for the othermicrophone. You have to plug one earand listen.How did you arrive at that technique?I think I learned it from a guy who usedto work in the ERPI Studios in theBronx. Gordon Jones. But you can'tjust pick up and do it, see. You have toestablish a norm in this condition, andyou have to listen long enough in yourlife-through the weeks, through themonths-for it to become the norm.The best man I knew for that was JoeKuhn out of Chicago, who I brought into help with the MGM installation at 711Fitth Avenue. He was totally deaf inone ear. I don't know whether it wasthe cortex or the ear or what, but hecouldn't hear a thing out of one ear.This is an interesting thing, because hewas an ideal microphone. Of course,you have to be insensitive to beinglaughed at-the young -timers wouldlaugh-but that never bothered memuch.Did you have a favorite microphoneplacement configuration?No, no. It depended on the scenario. Itjust takes knowing what you're hear-ing. That's all.And the scenario for you invariably in-volved recording in the field.I never operated in studios. I'd alwaysdo it in the field. Let me tell you some-thing that's pretty serious. If you've gotto bring a symphony orchestra into astudio, then they don't feel comfort-able. They can't hear each other: that'snot a normal environment. You get adjferent type of performance-unlessyou've got hard-bitten professionals-

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 55

}bu can't get a concert hall sound by putting a mike in a horn

than in the 'ield, in their own naturalenvironment. it you put a steel bandinside four walls, you can't record it.

You've got to record it outdoors.What microphones did you use?I designed my own. Capps made it. It

wasn't particularly innovative. Whatwas good about it was that I had adamped cavity in the bacKplate which

nicely cancelled the refraction patterr.Oftentimes, an omnidirectional micro-phone-depending on the size (thiswas about an inch in diameter)-willgive you a little bulge at 8 kHz. Thisore went out, bureau -of -standards flat,to 15 kHz, and with that damped cavi-ty, it was set up to cancel the refractionbulge.

You said your mikes were always atleast six feet apart.Never less than six feet. If the room istoo small for that, you don't use it. If

you have a room that small, then it'snot stereo anyhow.Do you feel there should be a maxi-mum space between mikes?

I don't think you can say that. In theParamount Theater organ job, the mi-crophones were 80, 100 feet apartprobably. When recording an organ,you have to get close to the shutters oryou don't get it. It would sound like amammoth cave.You developed a method of manufac-turing records called Micro fusion. In-stead of stamping vinyl discs, youmolded them by fusing powder parti-cles. How did this come about?K. R. Smith [a former executive at Mu-zak who had started his own platingfirm] and some professor had devel-oped the idea of a sintered vinyl bis-cuit, sort of like a sponge. He had amachine in his basement whichcranked out 7 -inch biscuits more orless automatically. One day, he tookme down there after dinner andshowed it to me, and I was completelytaken aback. I'd never seen anythinglike it before; it was a great big sur-prise. So we started out to make onebig enough for 12 -inch. This wouldhave been about 1954.You found that this process resulted inless surface noise?There were a lot of good things aboutit, but at one point, they [Smith's com-pany] were taken over somehow by abird dog for Dutch Philips who soughtout opportunities for them all over. Bythat time, we were trying to run a sinter-ing machine producing 12 -inch bis-cuits. And suddenly one day, this guycalled and said, "You're going to stop.We're going to come over and take themachine out."Did they actually have a patent on theprocess?Oh, yeah. They'd filed. I had a license,but they said, "Sorry-no longer li-

censed." So we decided we'd do itwithout sintering. It took us two years,but we got into doing it with the powderwithout sintering. It's a little difficult todescribe. It's a whole series of proce-dures that allowed it to be done from'he straight powder, which of course iseven better than sintering because

56 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

Iri»Txlifeing it ill somebody's lu»ne.

heat history is the enemy of all plastic.Heat history is the product of tempera-ture and the time during which theplastic has been subjected to thattemperature. Something that has notgone through an oven, that's beenchanged from a powder to a tangiblebiscuit that can be picked up, is boundto be better.And you used this process right upuntil the time you sold your companylast year. Obviously, you still feel it'ssuperior to hot extrusion.Not just that, but you don't have tomake several thousand records at atime to do it economically. You canmake a couple hundred, a hundred,whatever you like.Back in the late '40s, you developed arecording process that you called QC.What, specifically, was that?It was a means of tailoring the signal,before it got to the cutter, in such fash-ion that you could cram a much higherlevel on a record without abusing theplayback function. It's easy enough tomake a record that's impossible to playproperly just by pouring it in. Making itplayable is what that was directed at.Did you compress the signal?Well, it depends on what you call com-pression. We would dip the bottom endvery momentarily; it would come rightback again. It doesn't get noticed.What else gave your records the edgeover so many others?A great deal of attention to detail inmastering and plating.You always did your own pressing?After 1954. we certainly did.You had a pressing plant in Trinidadfor a number of years. When was that?And why did you start it?It probably started in '56, '57-some-where in there. We exported from thereto Barbados. Jamaica, Antigua, andEngland. We had been exporting fan-tastic quantities of records to Trinidad.A lot of the people that bought themdidn't have phonographs. They hadnothing to play them on, but they'd putthem up on the wall or someplace,against the time they would. Music ismore important to many people over-seas than it is to us. To us, you know,it's a pastime and a plaything and veryagreeable. but it isn't food and drink.To some other people it is.You've linked the growth of televisionwith the recording industry's growth.

Didn't you predict, back in the earliestyears of television, that the mediumwould create a backlash and send alot of people running to their musicsystems?The escape was always away from thetelevision set. One way to get awayfrom this thing is to harness yourself toa radio or records. The common prob-lem with radio is that you never canfind a station that plays what you wantto hear at the moment. Record salesstatistically. could be offset against TVsets. They did this. The industry didcareful research of this sort. Let's takenice capsules-the population of Peo-ria, Ill., for example. When they in-stalled [television in] Peoria, it wasdone in an orderly way and all at onceas much as possible. This is the way ithappered in the '40s. TV sets weresold tc X percent of the availablehomes inside of six months. And itturned out that, six months later, yougot this increase in record sales. It isinescapable that record sales wentwell up time after time after time. Very.very interesting. It's never been pub-lished.You did some medical experimentationwith white sound which, as I under-stand it, is actually a derivative of whitenoise.Well, we call it white sound becausenoise is a term which has negativeconnotations.You used it as a pain killer?It's probably more like a distraction. Itdoesn't kill anything. It diverts. Myguess is that it jams up the cortex withmeaningless information. It's like ajammed -up switchboard. All the tele-phones are ringing, and there's noth-ing you can do.And you've documented this on film?Oh, yes. I have film of an elevation ancextraction [of a tooth] on, I think shewas ar 8 -year -old girl wearing ear-phones. And we had a chalazion [acyst in the eyelid] operation done byan ophthalmologist who was a friend ofmine. They're both in the same film. Weshowed these two things down at Be-thesda, Maryland, the Naval Hospi-tal-the dental thing for the dentiststhen the chalazion [for ophthalmolo-gists]. They're both about 10. 20 min-utes long. And when the chalazionthing came on, all the dentists got upand left. They couldn't stand the sight

KING SPARROWS -CALYPSO CARNIVAL

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 198957

You have to stick your finger in one ear to be a mike. Two

of blood coming from the eye [laughs].And vice versa for the ophthalmolo-gists. You know this is true. It hap-pened all morning long.So the technique is effective.Oh, sure. But it takes some control anddiscipline on the part of the patient,which isn't bad. You've got somethingto do instead of nothing. It doesn't domuch good for an appendectomy; I

don't think it would work for that. Theobvious goal is the labor room. It's justbeginning to come into the labor room.And this is now-how many?-nearly30 years later.Let's move on to your recordings. Oneof your first commercial records was acollection of music boxes. What ledyou to produce that?Didn't cost anything. I mean, it costvery little to record. After all, it wasn't aunion musician.What made you think people wouldbuy such a thing?Well, it was coming on Christmas, andit seemed like a possibility. It's aChristmasy kind of sound. Besides, italso had "Jingle Bells" on it [laughs]. Itwas basically nostalgia.Somebody once said your greatest in-novation was the royalty -free record.That was Frank Walker. He was headof MGM Records and, before that,manager of RCA Victor. He was abso-lutely right [laughs]. I have no objec-tion to his having made the remark. Itwas a perfect remark.The first record of yours that audio-philes are likely to remember is RailDynamics, the recording of trains.Didn't you work on that mainly at nightto avoid extraneous sounds?You can't do it any other way. Theyalways have lights. You go to a railwaystation or a switching yard, and you'llfind there's plenty of light around.Just where did you go to record?Mostly Peekskill; some of it was Har-mon [both north of New York City].Harmon was where they used to switchfrom electric to steam to go West.And you wanted the steam?Sure. Peekskill is a mountainous area.Very nice for acoustics, across theHudson River and back. The soundbounced across.Did you have to get permission fromthe New York Central to do this?We got permission. I oftentimes had atleast one person helping because it's a

lot of luggage, a lot of weight to hassleon up the steps of a passenger car.You said the original version of RailDynamics was recorded directly ontodisc. Does that mean you did a laterversion on tape?I added to it with tape later becausethen we went to stereo. The first onewas released in mono on 10 -inch.Then, when it was converted into 12 -inch, we made it into stereo. Of course,that had to be done on tape.And this was around 1950. What madeyou think people would buy a record-ing of trains?Well, I really was very apprehensiveabout the idea. I then became quitesurprised, and apparently some of theother folks [in the record business] didtoo. Because MGM pressed them all, it

was very evident to them that a lotwere being sold. That's where that roy-alty -free record remark came up. Frankwas the boss at MGM.But why trains?Well, is there such a thing as nostal-gia? Ard hadn't everybody ridden on a

train-at that time? Now you find peo-ple all over who've never even been ona train.Well, the toy train industry isn't what itwas in the 1950s, but it's still chuggingalong, isn't it?At one point, we went up here to Amer-ican Flyer [formerly based in New Ha-ven, Connecticut, not far from Cook'sFairfield County headquarters] andtried to get them to use this record inconnection with selling their trains. Theguy came out with a very potent re-mark-finally-a logical reason. "Therecord is too good." He didn't meanthat as a compliment. He meant it's toorealistic. The train takes imagination,the record doesn't. Well, it probablycould have been done by doubling thespeed of the record [laughs].Another one of your recordings wascalled Voice of the Sea. Didn't thattake a long time to produce?It was probably three or four years. I'mjust guessing, but it was a long time.And you did an enormous amount oftravelling for it.

58 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

caiN air not a mike.

Not all at one time. I guess that startedup in 1953, perhaps '54. Going up thecoast of Maine till the roads tended toget narrower and narrower, and backthrough Massachusetts-heavenknows everyplace else. The QueenMary horn came out of Manhattan, theLower West Side. We rode on thecruiser Columbus at one time. Theywere on route from someplace tosomeplace. I already had Navy con-nections of some obvious merit.And your idea was to capture the vari-ous sounds one would hear aboardsuch a ship?Yeah. General quarters and all that.In one of your newsletters, an item al-ludes to the equipment you lost whilemaking Voice of the Sea.That's somebody else's gag. No, thatnever happened. I might have lost amicrophone somewhere, but I didn'tmake an issue out of it.You released a record with some mys-terious ionospheric sounds on it. Pre-cisely what were they?Nobody I know is around anymore whowould be able to answer that questionin scientific terms. It relates to shockimpulses. A high -intensity lightningstrike, let's say in the Southern Hemi-sphere, will be propagated in the iono-sphere to the Northern Hemisphere;very much like a wave guide. But it willdescribe a semicircle and be guidedby the magnetic lines of force. Goingback and forth, these will give off elec-tromagnetic energy, some of which isat audio frequencies.How were these sounds picked up?With a very, very long wire for an an-tenna, away from civilization-no pow-er lines, no homes, no other distur-bances-because the level is very low.These sounds were provided to you bya scientist who did the actual record-ing. Another scientist, someone namedHugo Benioff from the California Insti-tute of Technology, provided you withearthquake sounds. How were thesesounds recorded?That's simply what came off the seis-mograph. But it was reproduced atquite a few times its actual speed.I believe you pointed out that what theseismograph records is not really audi-ble until it's speeded up. Did the resultactually sound like an earthquake?No. Unless you're right on the fault, youwon't hear snapping and crackling.

You once recorded a burlesque show.A New York Times review of that rec-ord reported you smuggled yourequipment in. Was that actually thecase?No, of course not. [The burlesqueshow's producers] were delightec forthe publicity.Where did you set up all your record-ing equipment?In the pit, with the orchestra. I put themikes on stage on a foam -rubber pad.That was the sneaky part of it, becauseit wasn't supposed to be commandingattention from the audience. The bigthing is the gate, you know. You don'twant to interfere with the gate underany circumstances.How did the showgirls react to beingrecorded?Well, these people are hard-bitten. Youknow, it's amusing. At least it wassomething different that night.

At one point you went from pressingyour own records to manufacturingdiscs for other people. When did youget into that?1958, 59.And when did you record the last titlefor your own catalog?Probably '59.In terms of unit sales, at what point didsomething become a best seller?For us? 50,000, I would say.You did a number of recordings thatfeatured New Orleans jazz performers.How did you find these artists? LizzieMiles, for example.Just walking along the street in NewOrleans, in her case. She was a pro.She was 60 when I fourd her.You've transcribed and kept segmentsof letters she sent you. You seem tohave gotten to know her pretty well.Probably as well as any white wouldhave.

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 59

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She says in one letter-it's dated Feb-ruary 12, 1955, Lincoln's Birthday,which is probably a coincidence-that"only an unprejudice (sicJ genius likeyou could realize that I could do bet*than what you heard me with thatbunch of loud discords I was holleringwith."She was trying to be nice. Well, I wasunprejudiced and still am, I think. it

gets in your way, if you're prejudiced,depending on what you want to do.It certainly would have kept you from alot of what you did. All the black musicfrom the Caribbean that you record-ed-the Calypso, steel bands, andsuch. In fact, you had an entire EthnicSeries of recordings in your catalog.Oh, yeah. Much of that is out of Trini-dad. And Granada.Are you an amateur anthropologist?Sure, sure-very amateur [laughs].Seriously, did an interest in anthropolo-gy prompt some of this?Well, I met Herskovits [Melville J. Hers-kovits, a Northwestern University an-thropologist] one time. He was com-missioned by the Carnegie Corpora-tion, back in the early '20s, to make astudy of "the Negro in the WesternHemisphere"-that was the language

Lizzie Miles had something else besides

used-and he went on with that for along time. I remember running into himat one point. A lot of the folk materialcollectors did.Some of the folk material you collectedwas never released. Can you give anyexamples of this?I have some material from the SierraMadres and other parts of Mexico andthe Gulf Coast, I think.What did you record in the Sierra Ma-dres?Indians. Tarahumara Indians. Theysing and whistle and blow on pipes.There's also drumming. They're proba-bly almost extinct now. They're headedfor extinction, if they're not. They're un-able to reproduce. Nobody knowswhy.Don't you think material of this kindshould be made available somehow?It will be made available. It's not goingto burn down with the building. TheSmithsonian has expressed some in-terest in it.We started to talk about Lizzie Miles.What was the first album you did withher?I think it was Clambake on Bourbon St.,the one where she ran with the wholeorchestra and shouted. She was ashouter. She had become a shouter.She didn't need the microphone. Thatwas all right: that's Lizzie. But therewas something else there besides thebusiness of being able to belt it out likea 50 -watt amplifier.She gives you credit for sensing that.Well, sure. I sat her down in a chair andshe sang to herself. I asked her if sheever sang to herself at home.You called one of her albums HotSongs My Mother Taught Me. Werethese tunes really passed down thatway?I think all those songs were in pianosheet music. People don't realize howfar back the sheet music businessgoes.How far back did her songs go?I'm just guessing, but some of themwere 19th century, for sure.You recorded a bugler in New Orleans,Sam DeKamel. Did he make a livingplaying the bugle?Well, he did that and he sold waffles onthe street. That was how it started. Thebugle was how he attracted custom-ers, made them know he was in thestreet, you know. If you don't happen

to be looking out the window and say,"Oh, there's Sam," you wouldn't know.He'd go by. You've got to do some-thing. You've got to sing or wave rattlesaround or make some kind of sound.And there was a singer named La-Vergne Smith.Yes, LaVergne Smith, whose boyfriendwas a calliope player.You pronounce it "cal-ee-ope." I al-ways thought it was "cuh-lie-uh-pee."Well. we call it "cuh-lie-uh-pee" uphere, but they call it "cal-ee-ope."Is he the performer on your record,Calliopes & Nickelodeons?No, that's not a calliope. That's a di-minutive version of a calliope. It's acontraption that was made up for Mil-ton Kaye, who used to play it on theHenry Morgan show on WOR. Itsounds sort of like a calliope, and it'llgurgle if you threaten it, but it'spowered by compressed air instead ofsteam. The other instrument on the re-cording was a Link piano. Link was acompany in Binghamton, N.Y. thatmade a version of a player piano thatincluded a full-blown marimba. Thebiggest player pianos were commonlyused in bars or places of communitygathering, where you dropped in a

slug and got three, four minutes of mu-sic. They're built like organs. They allrun on air with perforated paper,parchment.But LaVergne Smith's boyfriendplayed a real, steam -driven calliope?Where?He played on the [river boat] DeltaQueen. That's where he was playingthen. These boats had pretty much dis-appeared by then. There weren't toomany of them left.You said this instrument's keyboard re-quired so much force that it actuallywore down his fingers.His fingers really were stubby like that.They were worn down to the firstknuckle.Come on!It was really true. You wouldn't believeit. They were shorter. He wasn't bornthat way. you could be sure of that.You also recorded a New Orleans jazzperformer named Wilber DeParis forAtlantic. Engineering other companies'recordings wasn't something you didmuch of, was it?No. Very little. But that was stereo. It

was important to do something in ste-

60AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

the ability to bclt it wit like a 50 -watt amplifien

reo for the 1952, I suppose it was.Audio Fair. And that was produced inbinaural form.One of your recordings was calledSpeed the Parting Guest. According toan item in The Audio Bucket, the ideafor this was generated at a dinner par-ty, and it was supposed to be a collec-tion of jarring sounds-somethingsomeone could play "to get rid of avisiting fireman," as it was phrasedthere.No, no. It was a percussive record,and we just called it Speed the PartingGuest because of the wild music. Butit's music. They were all musiciansplaying instruments. The idea was per-cussion. The fellow that organized itwas Jimmy Carroll, Mitch Miller's ar-ranger. He was a good friend. The titlecame later. You know, what are yougoing to call it? God knows. So wecalled it, Speed the Parting Guest. Butit wasn't a bunch of sound -effects mendoing this. that, and the other. It wasn'tsupposed to be tongue in cheek. It

was percussion-one of the things thatis very difficult to reproduce.And the record from Cuba, Jawbone ofan Ass. An animal's jawbone was ac-tually used as an instrument?Oh, yes. Like a chac-chac, a gourdwith pebbles. You rub a stick acrossthe teeth.One of your top artists was an Englishorganist named Reginald Foort. Tell ussomething about him. When did youfirst record him?1952. Reggie. after the war, had some-what of a problem. During the war, theBBC had an organ in a couple of trail-ers, and he used to go around Englandgiving concerts. It helped the war mo-rale a lot. He was very popular. He wason the BBC constantly before the waras well as through the war, so his pop-ularity was immense in England. Every-body knew his name. But that faded.You had him play in a number ofplaces. Was the so-called "Mosque"in Richmond, Virginia the first?Well, yes. The first job was in the Shrin-er's Temple, which really was just arather large theater. I guess it seated acouple of thousand people. It had aworking organ in it. It was being main-tained by a fellow that worked in thetelephone company.You were apparently the first to recorda 16 -cycle organ tone. I believe that

was with Foort in Symphony Hall, Bos-ton. Didn t even he tell you it couldn'tbe done?That's right. I said, "Do it anyway," sohe did. He was cooperative enough todo that.And you really did get it?Oh. yes.But how many speakers of the timewent down that far?These did [indicates speakers at oneend of his 35 -foot listening room]. Inthe [Audio Fair] exhibit in '54, thesewere the speakers that were used. It

was in a masonry room in the HotelNew Yorker.These are the legendary Bozaks.What's in them?Eight 12 -inch woofers. You can't getmore than eight without making thebox bigger. Then it won't go throughthe door.That's in the bottom cabinet [4 feetwide x 5 feet high x 21 inches deep].What's in the enclosure resting on topof each one?Two 6 -inch midrange speakers and atweeter cluster.Right. Rudy's aluminum drivers.Someone who was at that show de-scribed standing in your room. He saidhe could feel the legs of his trousersflap.The pedal frequencies were heard inthe lobby sometimes-felt was morelike it. It s not something you couldresolve and say, "Oh that's an organ"

or whatever, but it's strange how itwould travel around the hotel and upand down the elevator shafts, thencome out in the lobby. A feeling-nomusic, a feeling. It was perceived assomething to alert you. It wasn't intend-ed [laughs]. And it wasn't loud in theroom. These things were played onlysomewhat louder than you would playthem in your own living room. Becausethe room was full of people, you know.It was simply jammed.Let me suggest something to you.Back in the early '50s, high fidelity wasa novelty to most people, and the me-dia was naturally curious. Not just in-dustry press or buff press but generalinterest publications like Time maga-zine and The New York Times. Theirwriters came to the Audio Fairs andran into a pair of real showmen, youand Rudy. They heard your recordingsof trains and organs reproduced overhis speakers. They heard stereo discsfor the first time. Then they went backto their typewriters, described the ex-perience, and got millions of readersinterested in the phenomenon of audio.So maybe, just maybe, you and RudyBozak deserve a large part of thecredit for making high-fidelity a house-hold term.Well, I don't think it was planned thatway by anybody, including me orRudy. It just happened that way be-cause, I guess, it did sound good topeope. A

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 61

-

AN'- N NNNNWININN10.-.-

The THX-equippedscreening roomat Lucashlm'sSkywalker Ranch.

Photograph 1989, Douglas Satin

n the early 1350s, the introduction )f the magnetic-str pe soLndtrac< to theatrical film releases made excel-lent sound possible in the cinema. B" the mid -1960s,however, the number of magnetic -stripe releases wassharply reduced primarily for economic reasons, andexcept for a col- paratively few theaters egLipped forth 3 rare 70 -mm 'road show" release, most theatersound systems had become "standard' e , designed'or 35 -mm "Academy" mono optical sou idtracks) While-his promoted uniformity of reproductior both -rationallyand international if, improvement of theater sound for alltiterts and purposes came to a halt. In the meantime,borne stereo equipment development surged ahead, ulti-mately providing wider frequency rang 3, lower distor-tion, and better cctave-to-octave musical balance thantheatrical system

Several new technologies were applied in the early'10s to both sour dtracks and the old theater systems.Colby noise redaction, applied to both magnetic andcptical sound re,eases, permitted considerably widerfrequency range and lower distortion

fa new, highly practical four -channel 35 -mm release -our t format, with tie Dolby Stereo Variable Area (SVA)out cal soundtrack, was developed to arswer such ob-

jections to magnetic formats as high release -print aidtheater -maintenance costs. Widespread J se of "room"'equalization became possible because of advancir gtechno'ogy. But along with the use of equalization can ethe realization, by theater installers, that widely usedtheater loudspeaker systems-unchanged in fundamen-tal des gn since the 1340s-had very notable deficien-cies. Indeed, "room" equalization was actually beingused af.. an attempt to compensate more for loudspeakerdeficiencies than for acoustical variations among movetheaters.

Against this background, Lucasfilm Ltd set out, 11

1980, to design a new dabbing theater for soundtrack re-

Tomlinson Hol ' n is assistant professor at theUniversity o uthern California School o; Cinema -Television I d cerporaie tepwical director atLucasfiiin Ltd. He co-feJnded Apt Corporation, whichmade the Apt/Helectrical engovernar and

ociety

an greamplifigr and was chieft Advent Corp. Holman is a

f the AES. He is als) a Fellowure and Television

rese im with the Samuelregress in film sound.

recording at its SprocketSystems division in San Ra-fael, California. For thesound system, the objectivewas to bring together for thefirst time:

New knowledge, includ-ing the research of NevilleThiele, Richard Small, andSiegfried Linkwitz, amongothers, in the field of loud-speaker and crossover de-sign;

Recent hardware devel-opments such as constant -directivity high -frequencyhorns and high-poweredamplifiers of moderate cost;

The greater understand-ing of speaker/room interac-

Lucasfilm sets standardsfor a THX theater's soundequipment, its acoustics,sonic isolation, and even

its projection quality.

tion resulting from the research of Roy Allison and others;Further research into the acoustics of large rooms,

which had continued all along in the field of soundreinforcement, where speech intelligibility (as in the cine-ma) is of great importance, and

The substantial improvements in soundtrack and the-ater -electronics technology (such as third -octave equal-ization) promulgated by Dolby Laboratories.

The installation was finished in 1982, and what firstsurprised us was that it didn't sound like a movie theaterbut much, much more like a great, big home high-fidelitysystem. The frequency -range extension and smoothnessapparently accounted for the difference; it just didn'tsound like the honky, narrow -band systems we expect-ed. People experienced with home systems and thoseexperienced with theatrical ones were both surprised.Out of a conviction that particularly the increased claritywould be of significant benefit to the soundtrack mixingprocess, several of the new systems were ordered andinstalled in dubbing theaters in the Los Angeles area.After the equipping of dubbing theaters-a prerequisitefor any new technology to "make it" out in the real worldof film exhibition-it was an easy step for Lucasfilm tothen introduce the THX Sound System concept for use inexhibition theaters. Presently, more than 300 theaters areequipped with the system, both in the U.S. and overseas,with new theaters being added at an ever-increasing rate(see "Where to Hear THX").

THX in BriefThe word "system" is properly used in describing the

THX development, though apparently something of amisnomer. With the exception of the proprietary electron-ic crossover network leased to licensed theaters, Lucas -film does not manufacture or supply hardware. Rather,the licensed theater is required to meet a series ofstandards for loudspeaker drivers and their installation,power amplifiers, sound processors, theater acoustics,extraneous noise from sources both within and withoutthe theater, and projection (brightness, screen condition,

etc.). A theater which meets -%these standards is then li-censed as a THX theater-initially. Thereafter, it must tbe inspected by Lucasfilmtechnicians every sixmonths and recertified as aTHX theater every year. In

this way, Lucasfilm attemptsto prevent the corruption of ZIthe initially high standards 'Athat would inevitably resultfrom wear and tear and mis-adjustment.

The improvements whichresult from the synergy of allthese elements can besummed up, in comparisonto the best pre-THX sys-tems, as a frequency range

wider by a full octave in both the bass and in the treble;noticeably smoother, more naturally balanced soundoverall; audibly lower bass distortion; more even audi-ence coverage, and greater dialog intelligibility. The THXSystem should not be confused with a soundtrack pro-cess such as Dolby Stereo; it has been designed to

the reproduction

Screen LoudspeakersThe loudspeaker systems of the 1940s, whose direct

descendants include the Altec A4, are still used in themajority of theaters. They were competently and evenbrilliantly designed, using all the theoretical and practicalknowledge then available, to accommodate the require-ments of the theaters and soundtrack technology. How-ever, since then several factors changed which called fora reassessment of theater loudspeaker design. For one,high speaker efficiency was paramount among earlydesign goals because amplifier power was expensiveand limited; today, amplifier power is not difficult to comeby. For another, the loudspeakers of the 1940s werearranged to have their best midrange dispersion charac-teristics cover both the main floor and the balcony, yetfew current theaters have balconies. Further, today'sstereo is enhanced by using more uniformly controlleddispersion characteristics.

In addition in the '70s, a great deal of new knowledgewas added to the field of loudspeaker design. The tradi-tional theater speaker system-a short -horn bass sectionwith multi -cell tweeter-had served long and well, butwhen the THX Sound System parameters were estab-lished, there was a need to develop new standardsbased on current theory and practice. The most notice-able problems of older loudspeaker designs are: Defi-cient low bass and high treble response; distortion athigh sound pressure levels, which is particularly evidenton bass material; a characteristic "camel -back" shapedfrequency response, resulting from a combination ofcrossover -network and midrange dispersion characteris-tics documented by third -octave pink -noise measure -

64AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

WHERE TO HEAR THXThe following theaters were otpped with the THX Sound System as of June 1989

AlaskaTom Moyer Fireweed, #1, Anchorage

ArizonaCineplex Eldorado. #3, TucsonMann's Buena Vista. #2, TucsonMann's Christown Fiveplex. #3. PhoenixMann's South West 8. #3, PhoenixMann's Galleria 6, #5 & 6. Tucson

ArkansasUA Cinema City 7. #6, Little RockUA Lakewood. #4 & 5, Little Rock

CaliforniaAMC Century City, #1-4, Los AngelesAMC Kabuki, #1. San FranciscoAMC Main Place, #5 8 6, Santa AnaAMC Puente Plaza. #5, City of IndustryCineplex Beverly Center. #1 8 2, Los AngelesCineplex Century Plaza, #2, Los AngelesCineplex Plaza, #1. Daly CityCineplex Universal City, #1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10. 11,

13. & 14, Los AngelesCineplex Odeon Cinema/Westwood. WestwoodEdwards Hutton Center, #1 & 8. Santa AnaEdwards Towngate. #8. Moreno ValleyEdwards Upland. #6 & 8. UplandGCC Avco Center Cinema, #1, WestwoodGCC Fa°brook Square. #3 8 5. Canoga ParkGCC Fremont Hub, #1, FremontGCC Sherman Oaks Cinema. #1 & 2, Sherman

OaksGCC South Bay, #1, Redondo BeachKrikorian Terrace Cinema 6. #1. Rancho Palos

VerdesMann's Bruin Theatre, WestwoodMann's Chinese Theatre, #1-3. HollywoodMann s Crow Canyon. #1. San RamonMann s Festival 9. #7, HaywardMann s Grove 9, #1-9, San DiegoMann's National Theatre. WestwoodMann's Puente Hills, #1 & 4. City of IndustryMann's Village Theatre. WestwoodPacific Crest Theatre. WestwoodSyuly Cinema 21. San FranciscoUA 8 Brea Marketplace, #7 8 8. BreaUA 8 Movies. EscondidoUA Citrus Heights, #5. SacramentoUA Coronet Theatre, #1 & 2. WestwoodUA Galaxy Theatre, #1 & 2. San FranciscoUA Granada Hills, #3, Granada HillsUA Horton Plaza, #2. San DiegoUA Lakewood Movies 6. #6, LakewoodUA Movies 8, #8. ClovisUA Thousand Oaks. #2, Thousand OaksUA West Pasadena, #4, PasadenaUA Woodland Hills, #2, Woodland Hills

ColoradoUA Academy 6. #4, Colorado SpringsMann's Century 21 Theatre. Denver

District of ColumbiaAMC Union Station 9. #3Cineplex Wisconsin Avenue Cinemas, #4 & 5

FloridaAMC Coral Ridge. #5 8 6, Ft. LauderdaleAMC Crossroads. #1 & 2. St. PetersburgAMC Olde Hyde Park. # 6 & 7, TampaAMC Pleasure Island, #2, 5. 6. & 9. OrlandoCineplex Hillsboro West, #3 & 6. TampaCineplex Hoff ner Center, #1 & 6. OrlandoCineplex Mandarin Corners. #1 8 6, JacksonvilleCineplex Sandlake. #3, OrlandoFox Pompano, #5. PompanoFox Sunrise. #3-6, Ft. LauderdaleGCC Coral Square Cinema, #4. Coral SpringsGCC Northdale Court Cinema #5. TampaGCC Miracle Center. #4 & 5, Coral GabesMuvico Apollo, #1. HialeahMuvico California Club. #1-6. North MiamiWometco Shadowood Square. #6 & 7. Boca

RatonWometco Weston 8. #1 & 2. Sunrise

GeorgiaCineplex Southlake Festival, #5 & 6 MorrowGCC Merchant's Walk, #1, MariettaGCC Parkside. #5, Atlanta

IllinoisCineplex Brioktown. #1. ChicagoCineplex Commons at Chicago Ridge, #4,

Chicago RidgeCineplex Grove. #1 & 2. Downers GroveCineplex McClurg Court, #1. ChicagoCineplex North Michigan. #1 8. 2. ChicagoCineplex Oakbrook Plaza, #1, OakbrookCineplex Ridge Plaza. #3, Arlington HeightsCineplex River Oaks. #1, Calumet CityCineplex Rivertree Court. #1 8 4. Vernon HillsGCC Woodgrove. WoodridgeGCC Yorktown Cinema, #1, Lombard

KansasUA Ranch Mart. #1. Overland Park

LouisianaGCC Esplarade, #4, Kenner

MarylandFox White Marlin. #1. Ocean CityGCC Security Square. #1, Baltimore

MassachusettsGCC Chestnut Hill, #1. Newton

MichiganJack Loek's Lincoln Park. #3, Lincoln ParkJack Loek's Studio 28. #1 & 7. WyomingNat. Am Showcase Cascade. #2, Grand Rapids

MinnesotaCineplex Ecina Cinema, #4. EdinaGCC Har Mar Cinema. #1, Roseville

MissouriAMC Metro North. #5 & 6. Kansas CityWehrenberg Clarkson 6. #1. ChesterfieldWehrenberg Kenrick. #1. ShrewsburyWehrenberg St Charles. #1, St CharlesWehrenberg Union Station. #3 8 4 St. Louis

N evadaGold Coast Theatres. #1 & 2. Las VegasRiverside Casino, #1-3. Laughlin

New JerseyCineplex Newport Center. #4 & 5, Jersey CityGCC Bridgewater Commons. #2. BridgewaterGCC Essex Green. #1, West Orange

N ew MexicoUA Winrock, #4. AlbuquerqueUA Four Hills. #6 & 7, Albuquerque

New YorkCineplex Green Acres, #3 & 6. Valley StreamGCC Pittsford Plaza, #3. PittsfordGCC Thruway, #6. CheektowagaGCC University, #5. AmherstNat Am Brookhaven Multiplex, #13. MedfordNat Amusements Sawmill, #3 & 4, Hawthorne

N orth CarolinaCineplex Matthews Festival 10. #5 & 6.

Matthews

OhioGCC North and Mall. #1, ColumbusGCC Ridge Park Square 8. #1. BrooklynNational Cinema South, #1. BoardmanNational Montrose Movies 8. #3. CopleyNational Severance Center, #2, ClevelandNational Great Northern Movies, #7, North

Olmsted

OklahomaGCC Penn Square. #8. Oklahoma City

OregonCineplex 82nd Street, #1-6, PortlandMoyer Salem Center Movieland. #1, 3. & 4.

SalemMoyer West 11th. EugeneTom Moyer Eastgate. #1. PortlandTom Moyer Lloyds Center. #1 & 2. PortlandTom Moyer Tigard, #1, Tigard

PennsylvaniaFox Coventry. #3-6. Pottstown

TennesseeAMC Fountain Square. #7 & 8. NashvilleCinemark Movies 7, #5. KnoxvilleMalco Germantown, #5, MemphisMalco Winchester. #5. MemphisUA East Towne, #1, Knoxville

TexasCinemark Main Place, #1 & 4, McAllenCinemark Movies 12. #3 & 4, San AntonioCinemark Movies 12. #3 & 4. AustinCineplex Spectrum. #2, 3. 8 8. HoustonGCC Barton Creek, #3. AustinGCC Highland 10, #5. 6. & 9. AustinGCC Northpark West Cinema. #1. DallasGCC Towneast Mall Cinema. #4, MesquiteGCC Valley View. #2. DallasPresidio Arbor Cinema 4, #2-4, AustinPresidio Lakehills, #1, AustinPresidio Lincoln Center, #1-3, AustinPresidio Southpark Cinema 3. #1, AustinSantikos Century South, #1, San AntonioSantikos Embassy, #6-9. San AntonioSantikos Galaxy, #3. San AntonioSantikos Galaxy Annex, #11, San AntonioSantikos Northwest, #8. San AntonioSantikcs Northwest Annex. #11. San AntonioSantikcs Westlakes Landing, #9. San AntonioUnited Artists Theatre. #2. 6. 8 7, Da lasUA Arington South Cinema. #4 & 5. ArlingtonUA Bedford. #5 & 6. Ft WorthUA Berkeley Square. #4 & 5, PlanoUA Cinema 6. #1. HurstUA Cinema 6. #1, AmarilloUA Hu en 10 Theatre. #4, Ft WorthUA La'; Vegas Trails. #4 & 5, White SettlementUA Northpark, #6, OdessaUA No-thstar, #4 & 5, GarlandUA Ph. an 6 Theatre. #1. BeaumontUA Pres'onwood Creek, #1 & 2, DallasUA Sk'llman 6 Theatre, #4, DallasUA South 8 Theatres, #4 & 5. DallasUA Towneast 6 Theatre, #4, MesquiteUA Walnut Hill Cinema. #3, Dallas

UtahCinemark Movies 8. #3. ProvoCinemark Movies 7. #4. Sandy

VirginiaAMC Courthouse Plaza. #8. ArlingtonCineplex Pembroke. #1 & 8. Virginia BeachGCC Springfield Mall, #1. SpringfieldNat. Amusements Lee Highway. #1, 2, 11, & 12,

Mer 'fieldNat Amusements Mt Vernon, #1, 2, 9. & 10.

Alexandria

WashiingtonCineplex Oak Tree Cinemas, #3. SeattleGCC Gateway Center, #8. Federal WayGCC Lincoln Plaza, #4. TacomaTom Moyer Alderwood Cinemas. #1 & 2.

LynnwoodTorn Moyer Crossroads, #1. Bellevue

TNX Certification PendingUA West Esplanade. #4 & 5. Kenner. La.Holiday Briggsmore, #1, 2, & 5. Modesto, Cal.Rand Anon Park. #2 & 4. San Antonio, Tex.Rand Exchange Park, #3 & 6. San Antonio, TexCineplex Chelsea. #h & 7, New York, N.YKrikorian Diamond Bar, Diamond Bar, Cal.Pittsburgh Galleria, #3 & 4. Mt. Lebanon, Pa.Wometco Kendall 9, #1 & 2. Miami, Fla.UA East Hills Mall. #2. Bakersfield, Cal.UA Sierra Vista Mall 6. #2. Clovis. Cal.Commodore Theatre, Portsmouth, Va.Cinerama Rowland Plaza. #1. Novato, Cal.Rancho Niguel, #1-8, Laguna Niguel, Cal.Cineplex World Wide Center, #1. New York, N.YGCC Bay Plaza. #1. Bronx, N.YGCC Great Hills Plaza. #1 & 8. Austin, Tex.GCC The Fountains. #8. Plantation. Fla.Blockbuster Palace. #7 & 8. Wichita, KansCinemark Sugar Creek. #5. Tallahassee. FlaEdwards Newport Ctr #1. Newport Beach, CalUA Emery Bay 10, #3 & 4, Emeryville. CalH & M Wharf Theatre. #1-3, Lahaina. HawaiiTrans-rexas Shawnee Cinema 6, Shawnee, Okla.

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 65

MAGNETIC

r/OPTICAL 1 1

PROJECTOR

CINEMAPROCESSOR

THX MONITOR 3417

MONITOR THXCROSSOVER

SURROUNDSPEAKERS

Fig. 1-Block diagram of typical70/35 -mm THX Sound System.Theaters using only 35 mm do notrequire the "Left Extra" and"Right Extra" screen speakers.

LEFT

LEFTEXTRA

CENTER

RIGHTEXTRA

RIGHT

SUB

Fig. 2-The behind -screen speakerbaffle, as seen from the rear.

ments of hundreds of movie theaters, and non -uniformaudience coverage.

For improved low -frequency performance, a direct -radiator woofer system was specified for the THX screenloudspeakers (see "Approved THX Equipment"). Two15 -inch drivers are stacked vertically in a vented boxdesigned according to Thiele -Small parameters, whichcharacterize the loudspeaker driver and box as mechan-ical analogs of an electrical high-pass filter. At the higherend of its operating range, because of the stacked con-figuration of the two drivers and their dimensions, thedispersion characteristic of the woofer system narrows tomatch that of the high -frequency system, which is neces-sary to ensure consistent response over the horizontaland vertical angles required for maximum dialog intelligi-bility and proper left, center, and right stereo localization.The crossover frequency is chosen as that where thedirectivities of the woofer and tweeter sections match.

Thiele -Small theory predicts that this woofer systemwould have relatively flat response to 40 Hz, below whichit would fall otf at 24 dB per octave. However, initialmeasurements. with the speaker placed as it would be ina typical theater, did not confirm this. Further investiga-tion revealed that the first system tested was measuredby its manufacturer mounted flush in a wall, well awayfrom floor reflections. Once we duplicated the conditionsof measurements, the predictions of theory could beconfirmed; these woofers do go down to the predicted 40Hz. We therefore specified that the three behind -screensystems (five in some 70 -mm installations) be resilientlymounted in a large rigid baffle just behind the screen(Fig. 2). This baffle is treated with absorbent material toprevent high -frequency reflections between it and thescreen, eliminating the destructive and constructivecomb -filter effects of early reflections; the baffle has thefurther benefit of preventing the loss of low frequenciesinto the cavity behind the screen. No "Allison dip," asdocumented by Roy Allison, is found, since the wooferbox is flush with the baffle. Low -bass distortion of thissystem is far less than in traditional theater systems, andpower handling is adequate for theaters seating up toapproximately 1,000. In larger theaters, the woofers canbe used in multiples (devotees of low -frequency horndesigns who question our use of direct radiators shouldsee "Direct Radiators and Horns"). Additional sub -woofers are required for 70 -mm installations and aretypically used in 35 -mm installations to handle the spe-cial effects between 20 and 40 Hz recorded on manymodern movie soundtracks.

Above 500 Hz, frequencies are handled by a compres-sion driver combined with a constant -directivity hornwhose directional characteristics are specified for theparticular theater. Horns remain the best high -frequencychoice for theater sound because of the need for highintelligibility in large spaces-one of several ways inwhich the requirements for theater sound reproductiondiffer from those in the home. Compared to direct radia-tors, horns deliver the maximum amount of direct soundto listeners while minimizing delayed reflections off thewalls and ceilings that degrade intelligibility. Stereophon-ic localization is also improved by using directional loud-speakers to keep the ratio of direct -to -reverberant ener-gy high at the listening location.

The constant -directivity horn (Fig. 3) is a relatively newdevelopment, originally designed for sound -reinforce-ment applications. The high -frequency compressiondrivers required for adequate power handling in largerooms, although improved in recent years with such new

66 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

diaphragm materials as tita-nium, nevertheless have in-herent high -frequency roll -offs caused by movingmass, air trapped betweenthe diaphragm and phasingplug, and non -ideal suspen-sions. Previous multi -cell, ra-dial, and exponential hornsachieved flat on -axis re-sponse by narrowing verti-cal dispersion with increas-ing frequency, a form of"spatial equalization." Theconstant -directivity horn, onthe other hand, is designedto produce a uniform direc-tivity pattern with non -flat re-sponse, reflecting the roll -offinherent in the driver, whichcan then be equalized electrically. The result is thatuniform response is obtained over a much wider "isten-ing window" than was possible with earlier designs.

A whole class of such horns has been developed, withcoverage ranging from 120 x 40 degrees to as narrow

Theater speakers of the'40s were brilliantly

designed for their day,but things have changed

in the last 40 years.

Fig. 3-Two constant -directivity horns, theElectro-Voice 9040T (A)and the JBL 2360A (B).

as 50 x 30 degrees; ofthese, the 90 x 40 -degreehorn is the most commonlyused. The high -frequencysections of the screenspeakers can thus be tai-lored to the geometry of anindividual theater's seatingarea. Like the low -frequencysections, the high -frequencysections can be used inmultiples for covering un-usually large areas or forspecialized coverage of the-ater balconies.

The THX CrossoverThe THX System's screen

speakers are bi-amplified inconjunction with the propri-

etary THX electronic crossover, which is leased to thetheater as part of the licensing procedure. Bi-amplifica-tion has several benefits which have been demonstratedin other professional applications, including the ability toplay at higher levels without audible distortion for a given

DIRECT RADIATORS AND HORNSHorn or direct radiator? For years, pro-

ponents of low -frequency horns havebeen spreading such rumors as "directradiators have 10 times the distortion ofhorns because they work 10 times harder"and touting the "high efficiency" of horndesigns (indeed they are highly efficient,but only over a very narrow frequencyrange). To resolve this controversy onceand for al, we measured simple total har-monic distortion of a bass horn and of avented -box direct radiator of equivalentcone area, installed side by side in a baf-fle wall at a dubbing stage. Each speaker

was fed with sine -wave signals having thesame voltage as that which would pro-duce pink -noise levels of 85 dB, C -weight-ed (the calibration level for mixing andreplaying Dolby Stereo releases) at thelistening location. The results, shown inTable I, speak for themselves-note thatthe larger the negative number, the lowerthe distortion. Particularly at audible, sig-nificant higher harmonics, the direct radi-ator's distortion is lower. Apparently, thetouted theoretical advantage of the hornsystem is overwhelmed by sources of dis-tortion not considered by its advocates.

Table I-THD of a bass horn and a vented -box direct radiator of equivalent area.

HarmonicNumber

40 -Hz Distortionby Harmonic, dB

Horn VeitedLoaded Box

U U

80 -Hz Distortionby Harmonic, dB

Horn VentedLoaled Box

U 0

400 -Hz Distortionby Harmonic, dBHorn Vented

Loaded BoxU 0

2 -6 -16 -36 <-70 - 44 - 503 -28 -24 -41 -39 -51 - 674 - 40 - 34 - 70 - 68 - 67 < - 705 - 32 - 40 -47 - 58 - 67 - 706 -50 -37 -75 < - 807 - 33 - 42 - 54 - 708 -47 -46 < - 80 < - 809 - 36 - 50 - 63 - 77

10 -50 < - 50 < - 80 < - 8011 -42 < - 50 -70 -8012 -50 < - 5013 -43 < - 50

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 67

he teehn ca he ivat LocashIrrfsSkywalker Ranch.

amount of amplifier power and the ability to do moresignal processing at low levels with an electronic cross-over than at high levels with a passive crossover. In mostinstallations, a stereo power amplif er is assigned to eachscreen speaker, with one channel handling the low -fre-quency system and the other the high frequencies; typi-cal installations use 250-watticharrIel power amps. Whileon average program material the tweeter requires lesspower thar the wooler, having the same power availablefor the tweeter as the woofer ensures proper reproduc-tion of non -average peaks, such as a cymbal crash.Since in theater sound the source material is known, thesound system can be designed to have more headroom

than the program source, thus ensuring that distortiondue to clipping never occurs, and this is the course takenin THX.

The THX crossover network circuit is fourth -order Link-witz-Riley (L4). The network has steep skirts -24 dB/octave measured acoustically on both the woofer lowpass and tweeter high pass-and is 6 dB down at cross-over (500 Hz). This amount of attenuation leads to great-er tweeter power handling than do most retworks, whichare only 3 dB down at crossover. Unlike some otherelectronic crossovers, the THX crossover is matched toknown drivers, thus providing accurate L4 characteris-tics This combination of network and drivers yields iden-

68 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

Altec 8154Altec 8184Cerwin Vega SW18Electro-Voice TL3512

APPROVED THX EQUIPMENTThe equipment specified for THX use

will vary with the specific installation Thelist below shows equipment approved forTHX Sound Systems as of May 1989, theequipment used in a given installation willbe based upon theater volume and di-

mensions Additional models in all cate-gories are regularly undergoing evalua-tion by Lucasfilm, and several manufac-turers have developed products specifi-cally designed to meet THX SoundSystem standards.

LOUDSPEAKERS

CompressionScreen System Drivers

Altec 10A:MR945A Altec 906-8AElectrc-Voice TS9040D-LX Electro-Voice DH1AJBL 4675A-8LF JBL 2445J or 2450J

Morns WoofersA tec MR -945 Altec 8254Electro-Voice 9040T Electro-Voice TL606DXJBL 2360A JBL 4648-8

Peavey 215

Subwoofers Surround SpeakersJBL 4645 Boston Acoustic A7OT JBL 8330JBL 4788 Electro-Voice TS8-2 Kintek KT -340Kintek KT -90 (powered) Frazier F2350Peavey 118

BOOTH EQUIPMENT

Power AmplifiersAltec 1270B Crest Audio 1501A JEL 6260 OSC 1400Altec 9444A Crest Audio FA -800 JEL 6290 QSC 1700ART SS1200T Crest Audio 4000 Kintek 1100 QSC 3350Ashly FET-500 Crown Micro Tech 600 Kintek 1110 QSC 3500BGW GTB Crown Micro Tech 1200 Kintek 1111 Smart TA -440BGW 750E Crown PS400 NAD 2200 Soundcraftsmen 900X2BGW 7500 Electro-Voice AP2600 Peavey CS 400 TOA P150-0BGW 7500T Hatler DH -500 Peavey CS 800 UREI 6300BGW 3000 Hatter P-505 Perreaux 8000C XeTRON XPA-240X2Bryston 4B JBL 6230 RAMSA WP -9220 Zetka 600 Series II

Monitor/CrossoverCard Frame

THX Monitor 3417

tical phase versus frequency response for both wooferand tweeter and complementary amplitude versus fre-quency responses: hence, there are none of the frequen-cy -dependent radiation tilts of conventional networks.The result is uniform axial, power, and phase responsethroughout the critical midrange. When the system's am-plitude and group -delay responses from 250 Hz to 1 kHz(from one octave below to one octave above crossover)are measured by FFT methods, both amplitude andgroup delay are remarkably flat.

The use of an electronic crossover network allows foradditional signal processing critical to system perfor-marce. Close -tolerance high-frecuency equalization

ProcessorsDoloy CP-55Doloy CP-100 with SA4Doloy CP-200

compensates for the characteristic falling high -frequencyresponse of the compression driver, as well as compen-sating for screen loss and adding a correction factor tomatch the system 'o the worldwide standard "housecurve" described by ISO 2969 curve (Fig. 4), sometimesreferred to as the "wide -range" or "Dolby Stereo" stan-dard, as opposed to the Academy standard. These com-pensations minimize the requirement for tuning the finalinstallation; in many instances, less than ±3 dB of"room" equalization has been necessary to achieve thecenter line of ISO 2969 from 40 Hz to 16 kHz. The THXcrossover also incorporates a 1.9-mS time delay to com-pensate for the distance between the acoustic centers of

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 69

the direct -radiating woofersand the horn tweeters. Final-ly, a high-pass filter at about30 Hz prevents woofer over -excursion from program ma-terial and from noise belowthe lower frequency limit ofthe vented-box/speaker sys-tem.

Attempts to move thescreen loudspeakers outfrom behind the screen, toreduce the screen losses,have been made over theyears. The problem is thatthe sound directed to theleft, center, and right loud-speakers is intended by thesound designer to occur onthe screen. Sound systems

si' I

.120

I ;. .4

S T A R VgAlIf the speakers weren'tbehind the screen, the

sound locations would nolonger match the action

occurring in the film.

above the screen inevitably draw one's attention upward:those outside the screen draw it outward. It doesn't makemuch sense for Indiana Jones' footsteps to come fromthe black masking at the side of the screen when we seehim enter the cave in Raiders of the Lost Ark on screen

0

-6

50

FREQUENCY - Hz

Fig. 4-1S0 2969 "house curve."

2.0

LO

0.5

04

0.3

0.2

0I

8k

10

VOLUME - THOUSANDS OF CUBIC FEET

Fig. 5-Upper and lowerreverberation -time (RT60) limitsfor THX theaters of variousvolumes, at 500 Hz.

left. Humans localize ex -1?tremely well in the plane thatincludes the three screenspeakers, so errors in direc- f,tion are quite important. Mix-ers spend a great deal oftime placing sounds cor- -""erectly, and it is the job of thesound systemsystem to reproduce 15:them in the same positionthey were placed. Sincescreen losses amount to asimple 6-dB/octave filter,they are easy to overcomewith electrical equalization,and so cinema screen loud-speakers properly belongbehind the screen.

The Surround ChannelThe objective of the surround speakers and their instal-

lation is to envelop the audience with nondirectionalsound through the use of a large number of small, broad-ly dispersive loudspeakers with overlapping patterns.This approach is directly opposite to that taken for thescreen speakers, where the objective is the highest ratioof direct -to -reflected sound possible, consistent with uni-form audience coverage. The surround field should beas diffuse as possible: we do not want the audience to beparticularly aware of where the sound is coming from,which is precisely what we do want with the screenspeakers. This is because there is no meaning for soundimages which are not associated with the picture. Giventhe need for broad dispersion and the fact that thespeakers are used in multiples so no one speaker needhandle undue power, the systems we have found mostappropriate are modified versions of home bookshelfmodels.

The number of surround speakers, their spacing alongthe side and rear walls of the theater, and their height arecalculated using formulas developed to ensure uniformi-ty of coverage. The final requirement for the surroundchannel as a whole is that it have the same power -handling capability as one screen channel. An additionalformula for calculating the required amplifier power isbased on the number of surround speakers, their sensi-tivity, the average distance from the speakers to thecenter of the room, and the maximum sound pressurelevel required. To further minimize the need for post -installation tuning, surround speakers are now availablewith high -frequency response tailored to provide the ISO2969 curve.

Theater Acoustics and NoiseAll the foregong u* course, be of limited use it

a theater with poor acoustics, or with a high ambientnoise level from a defective air-conditioning system, orwith an adjacent theater in a "multi-plex" operation. Inaddition, widely varying theater acoustics would make it

70 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

impossible to achieve a prime goal of those involved infilm production-that the audience accurately hear whatthe director intended in the final sound mix, as well assee it. The goal in enforcing theater acoustics standardsis not just good sound, but sound as close as possible tothe sound in the dubbing theater.

In a room, the listener is exposed to three sound fields:The direct field, the early reflections, and the reverberantfield. THX speaker systems are designed to provideappropriately uniform response of the direct field at virtu-ally all seats in the theater. By working closely with thetheater owner and acousticians, as necessary, it is ourgoal to achieve the same response as the direct soundfor early reflections and for longer term reverberation aswell. Among other things, this means choosing construc-tion and decoration materials that do not absorb or en-hance any particular frequencies.

Reverberation in theaters must be within reasonablelimits to produce good articulation throughout the room.Too little reverberation may lead to an unnaturally deadsound, while too much smears together the speech sylla-bles so vital to film sound articulation, and can altermusic and effects as well. After considerable research,THX theaters are required to have an RT60 (the time ittakes for a stopped sound to drop 60 dB in level) at 500Hz within the limits shown in Fig. 5. Ideally, the RT60 atother frequencies should be the same; measurementsare made at each octave band from 63 Hz to 8 kHz(some variation from the ideal times shown in Fig. 5 ispermitted at various octaves). Finally, the character ofthe decay should be as smooth as possible-tree of"flutter echoes" and the discrete echoes which can oc-cur from long delayed reflections from the back wall.Contrary to current practice in some recording studios,which are comparatively small rooms, this usually re-quires deadening the back wall of the theater.

Standards are set for maximum permissible noise lev-els within the theater and isolation from noise outs de thetheater. The start is a simple listening test, which oftenidentifies easily remedied problems such as an improp-erly gasketed door to the outside, noise from the projec-tion booth, or an air-conditioning system which hasn'tbeen properly cleaned and maintained. The absolutemaximum background noise level in the theater with theair-conditioning on is specified, by octave band, in NoiseCriteria curve NC -30 (NC -25 is recommended) as shownin Fig. 6. The curves reflect the ear's decreasing sensitiv-ity to lower frequencies. As Fig. 7 shows, most non-THXtheaters do not meet NC -30.

With the popularity of multiple -theater complexes, itwas necessary to set minimum standards for isolation ofthe THX room from adjacent theaters. These standardshave been based upon playing a variety of films in thedubbing theater and recording the level in each octavefrom bass to treble, moment by moment: it turns out thatisolation at lower frequencies is most often the problem.From this data, the minimum standards for isolation be-tween theaters were developed (see Table II). Thesestandards take into account the masking effect of air-conditioning noise, the fact that such noise does notprecisely follow the NC -30 curve, statistical analysis ofsoundtrack measurements, and a realistic requirementfor wall construction. The underlying engineering princi-ple is economic; to require that nothing at all be heardfrom an adjacent theater under any condition is unrealis-tic, but it is acceptable to permit something to be heardless than 1% of the time when one theater is playing softdialog and the other is playing loud music and effects.

90

80

70

60

50

40

20

103 5 63 125 ;250 500 1k 2k

FREQUENCY - Hz

4k 8k

Fig. 6-Background-noise criteriacurves. The NC -30 curve is themaximum allowable in a THXtheater; NC -25 is recommendedwhere practical (after Beranek).

I0-

1

0 T -7

NC - 65

NC - 60

NC -55

NC -50

NC - 45

NC 40

NC 35

NC -30

NC -25

NC -20

NC -15

16k

NC -20 NC -30 NC 40

NOISE LEVELS

Fig. 7-StEtistical distribution ofbackgrounc-noise levels in typicaltheaters. Most of the theaters in thissurvey, made by the TheaterAlignment 3 rogram for the NationalAssociatior of Theater Owners.would not qualify for THXcertification without modifications.

NC -50

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 71

Theater CertificationIt is one thing to recom-

mend improved hardware,ways of installing it, andspecifications for the roomitself; indeed, we are notaware of any prior attempt toattend, in such depth, to somany elements of sound re-production in the theater si-multaneously. It is, however,quite another to see that it isall carried out properly in thefirst place, and then, a fewmonths or years later, checkthat it all still sounds the wayit should. This is where theTHX licensing programcomes in, with its certifica-tion and recertification pro-cedures. The goal is that the movie goer will hear whatwas originally heard in the dubbing theater whenever hesees and hears a film in a THX theater.

After a theater has received preliminary information onwhat the THX program is and requests the next step,engineers go out to inspect the theater and run a batteryof tests. We then develop a specific package for thatparticular theater, including the equipment and the stepsthat need to be taken to bring the theater in line withrespect to acoustics and noise levels. The services of anacoustical consultant may be necessary. As the workproceeds, consultation occurs, as needed, with theequipment installer, contractor, architect, and/or acousti-cal consultant to provide assistance and to ensure thatstandards are met. For example, many practical mea-sures are recommended, such as changing the diffuserson an air-conditioning system for lower noise, steps tominimize "flanking paths" (i.e., direct sound paths fromthe outside or an adjacent theater), and when to sched-ule "down time" for installation. We also warn theaterowners that taking down an old screen to install the bafflemay result in damage that will require the screen's re-placement.

Once the installation is complete, Lucasfilm engineersthen return to the theater, fully align the entire soundsystem, make measurements, andmake sure that theater personnel andservice technicians are aware of thesystem's proper operation and mainte-nance. Assuming all tests are passed,the theater is then certified for oneyear, with the further requirement that,in six months, proof of continuing per-formance is provided. The systemmust then be tested again at the end ofthe first year and recertified, startingthe cycle over again-proof of perfor-mance in six months, and recertifica-tion one year later. This ensures thatthe audience hears what it is supposed

IOW,-

,y

:--1114114

THE LAST CHUSPDTheater acoustics mustbe carefully controlled sothat the audience hears

what the director heard inthe final sound mix.

to, and that a theater using 2the THX trademark is genu- tinely and regularly meetingstandards.

Typical SpecsScreen channels, left,

E

center, and right, should 1.test within ±2 dB of ISO2969 curve, 40 Hz to 16 4kHz, when measured with Ea

pink noise and temporal andspatial averaging through-out the listening area atseated ear height. Bass ex-tension should go to 25 Hzby means of subwoofers.The calibrated sound pres-sure level, for reproducingthe absolute levels during

the mix correctly, should be maintained within ±2 dBover the seating area. The system must be capable ofplaying any film format without clipping distortion, whilethe theater's background noise level must be less thanNC -30 and its reverberation time within the boundsshown in Fig. 5.

ConclusionWhen Lucasfilm set out, about eight years ago, to

create a state-of-the-art dubbing theater for use in post -production work to begin with Return of the Jedi, we hadlittle idea that it would involve improving the state of localcinemas. In retrospect, however, that involvement nowseems logical. For one thing, we found the state of the artto be practical and surprisingly affordable. For anotherthing, as producers of films reflecting new technology insuch areas as special effects, it only makes sense tofacilitate the best, most advanced methods for their exhi-bition to the movie -going public. No one could reason-ably expect that the majority of theaters will make theeffort and expenditure necessary to install the THXSound System. Yet we are impressed and pleased withthe significant number of theater and theater -chain own-ers who feel that offering their patrons "the best" isworthwhile artistically and is profitable. With the addition

of the next -generation improvement tooptical soundtracks, Dolby SpectralRecording, we think the theater experi-ence has come to be what it was forme as a kid, the best recorded soundyou could hear.

Since the THX Sound System is anelaborate collection of theoretical andpractical improvements combined intoone comprehensive program, it is im-possible to credit everyone who partic-ipated. From mathematicians to mate-rials scientists, and from measurementspecialists to acousticians, all whohave helped are thanked here.

Table II-Acoustic notquired between adjacent

OctaveBand, Hz

31.5631252505001,0001,0004,0008,000

se reduction re -

theaters.

RequiredReduction, dB

384852546666666666

72 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

-Leonard Feather, Celebrated Jazz Criticfor the L A Times, Washington Post NewsService and Author of many books including"The Jazz Years- Ea/witness to an Era"

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Enter No 8 on Reader Service Card

EQUIPMENT PROFILE

PARADIGM IseLOUDSPEAKERManufacturer's SpecificationsSystem Type: Bookshelf -size, two-

way, vented box with critically tunedresistive port.

Drivers: 8 -inch (200 -mm) woofer, 1 -

inch (25 -mm) dome tweeter.Frequency Range: On axis, 60 Hz

to 20 kHz, ±2 dB: 30° off horizontalaxis, 60 Hz to 15 kHz, ±2 dB.

Sensitivity: 88 dB SPL at 1 meter for2 83 V rms input.

Crossover Frequency: 2.3 kHz.Impedance: 8 ohms nominal.Recommended Amplifier Power:

15 to 100 watts at 10% clipping.Dimensions: 24 in. H x 101/2 in. W

x 113/4 in. D (61 cm x 26.7 cm x29.9 cm).

Weight: 55 lbs. (25 kg) per pair.Price: $469 per pair.Company Address: c/o Audio -

Stream, P.O. Box 2410, NiagaraFalls, N.Y. 14302.

For literature, circle No. 90

"Paradigm (par' a dim), noun: Serving as an example ormodel of how something should be done." Thus start anumber of ads for AudroStream, the American distributor ofthe Canadian "Paradigm" line of loudspeakers. This defini-tion is a lofty goal indeed for a company to strive for in anyproduct they make. This review describes the ParadigmModel 7se, a moderate -size, relatively low-cost, two-wayvented system with an 8 -inch woofer and 1 -inch dometweeter. Read on to find out how well the 7se matched thegoal stated in the definition.

The 7se is the middle member of a line of 10 moderatelypriced two- and three-way systems from Paradigm Electron-ics. Paradigm, formed in 1982, is one of a number ofCanadian manufacturers that have taken advantage of re-search and test facilities made available by the Canadiangovernment through its National Research Council (NRC).

The NRC is the Canadian equivalent of our National Bu-reau of Standards but with the added mandate of perform-ing research that helps Canada be competitive in worldmarkets. The research results are made freely available toanyone through a national information network, technicaljournal articles, and NRC research publications.

The NRC also provides facilities for hire that any companyin the audio industry would be proud to call their own. Thesefacilities include anechoic and reverberation chambers withsophisticated computer -controlled measurement equipmentand an IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission)Standard listening room for conducting listening tests.

The NRC Acoustics Department is headed by Dr. FloydToole, who is well known in the U.S. audio community be-cause of his involvement in the Audio Engineering Society andthe Acoustical Society of America. Dr. Toole has written a

74AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

number of AES papers describing the results of his researchin the area of subjective loudspeaker testing and the correla-tion of a speaker's measured performance with listener prefer-ences. (See "Testing at Canada's NRC" for more detailedinformation on the NRC and Dr. Toole's research.)

Paradigm has drawn heavily on the work of Dr. Toole andthe facilities of the NRC to optimize the 7se. The designobjective was to come up with a moderately priced systemthat emphasized those loudspeaker design features whichdirectly improve its subjective sound as verified by exten-sive double-blind listening tests.

Dr. Toole's research has found that experienced listenersprefer a loudspeaker that has wide bandwidth, flat andsmooth amplitude response, and uniformly wide dispersion(again, see the sidebar for more details). These were justthe areas concentrated on in designing the 7se.

The 7se is a rather conventional -looking, two-way ventedsystem of modest appearance. The one striking feature ismade evident when the grille is removed: The front panel islight gray and looks somewhat metallic in nature. The out-side of the box is walnut vinyl covered with the 3/4 -inch (19 -

mm) particle board used in all of this box's construction. Aninternal brace connects the front and rear of the box tominimize front and rear panel vibration. Good workmanshipwas evident throughout.

The rear is painted flat black and contains recessed,double -banana, five -way binding -post connectors. Notweeter level control is provided. (I personally don't likedriver level controls because they change the system'sfrequency/time-directional characteristics in a nonlinearmanner. It's best to change the tonal balance with a goodline -level minimum -phase equalizer in the feed to the poweramplifier.)

The flush -mounted tweeter, woofer, and port are centeredhorizontally in the cabinet, with the tweeter over the wooferand the port below. The port is roughly 1.8 inches (48 -mm)in diameter by 3 inches (76 -mm) long and tunes the 1.2-

cubic -foot (34 -liter) box to approximately 35 Hz (see the"Measurements" section of this review).

Paradigm completely designs and manufactures theirown woofer and midrange drivers, including all crossovernetworks. The tweeter is custom -manufactured for Para -

TESTING AT CANADA'S NRCThe National Research Council was established by the

Canadian government in 1916 to promote scientific andindustrial research that would help Canadian firms becompetitive in Canadian and world markets. It now em-ploys over 3,000 people at 11 locations and operateswith a budget of over half a billion dollars.

The NRC maintains several world -class laboratoriesdedicated to pure and applied research in many diversedisciplines, including biotechnology, robotics, space sci-ences, advanced manufacturing, physics, and chemis-try, among others. The NRC also develops and providesstandards as an active part of national and internationalstandards organizations and systems.

The NRC's heavy research emphasis and its mandateto provide technology and research information to pri-vate industry is paralleled by organizations in many othercountries, including France, Great Britain, Germany, Ja-pan, and Australia. The U.S., however, has no equivalentto the NRC's research -promoting activities.

Dr. Floyd Toole is a Senior Research Officer in theAcoustics and Mechanical Standards department in theNRC's Division of Physics. He heads the Sound Repro-duction and Psychoacoustics project in the Acousticssection, where acoustic and subjective research has ledto well-defined technical design requirements for loud-speakers. Several Canadian loudspeaker manufacturershave taken advantage of the Division's know-how andfacilities to design loudspeakers for both the consumerand professional audio markets.

Under Dr. Toole's direction, research was undertakento determine the relationships between loudspeakermeasurements and listener perceptions. The methodused was that of identifying the perceived dimensions of

sound and relating them to the corresponding technicalattributes of the loudspeakers. In addition, extensive re-search was done on the measurement and perception ofresonances.

In the study, several cifferent types of measurementswere made on a relatively large number of domestic -styleloudspeaker systems with forward -facing radiators.These speakers were then auditioned by many listenerswith normal hearing, anc the resultant data was statisti-cally analyzed to yield a perceived fidelity rating.

It was found that, among other measurable attributes,listeners "like the sound of loudspeakers with a flat,smooth wideband on -axis amplitude response that ismaintained at substantial angles off axis" and loud-speakers which "had phase responses that were smoothand only gently undulating in contour" (F. E. Toole,"Loudspeaker Measurements and Their Relationship toListener Preferences: Parts 1 and 2," Journal of the AudioEngineering Society, April and May 1986).

High ratings were given to those systems that, in par-ticular, had smooth midrange responses with no sharppeaks or dips. These local aberrations are indicators ofboth the presence and severity of resonances which maycause audible colorations. Dr. Toole goes on to point outthe importance o' high -resolution free -field measure-ments with sufficient spatial averaging (not frequencyaveraging) to remove the visual clutter of acousticalinterference effects on the measurements. Interestedreaders may order a collection of Dr. Toole's papers,entitled "Subjective and Objective Measurements ofLoudspeaker Performance," for U.S. $3.75 (includingpostage) from the National Research Council, Div. ofPhysics, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1A OR6. D.B.K.

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 75

The 7se is optimized fordesign features Canada'sNational Research Councilhas found can make speakerssound better.

100

90

0

CE 90A/1 0

CO33 -180

1 80

a.C/1 - 270

70 0.a-360

20 100 1k 10k 20k

60 FREQUENCY - Hz20 1k

FREQUENCY - Hz

Fig. 1-One-meter on -axisfrequency response, withan input of 2.83 V rms(equivalent to 1 watt intothe rated 8 -ohmimpedance).

EE 0.5

>-

ta.1 0

0- 5

100 10k

20 100 1k

FREQUENCY - Hz

Fig. 3-Group delaycorresponding to phaseresponse of Fig. 2. Thewoofer lags the tweeterby about 0.17 mS, anequivalent distance of2.3 inches.

10k 20k

20k

Fig. 2-One-meter on -axisphase response, with delayadjusted for the tweeter.An additional 0.17 mSwas required to achievea flat phase curve in thewoofer's upper range.

digm by an unnamed European maker. The woofer has adie-cast aluminum frame with a forged, single -unit, back-plate/pole-piece assembly. The cone is clear polypropylenewith a butyl surround. A Kapton voice -coil former is used inthe 1 -inch (25.4 -mm) diameter, long -excursion voice -coil.The tweeter uses a 1 -inch polyamide soft dome with ferro-fluid cooling and damping. Both drivers have sizable ferritemagnet assemblies.

The internal passive crossover is of quasi -Butterworthdesign (in the manufacturer's words) with a second -order

high-pass filter (shunt inductor and series capacitor) feed-ing the tweeter and a first -order filter (single inductor) feed-ing the woofer.

MeasurementsMost of the measurements were made using the Techron

TEF System 12 Plus analyzer, which uses the Time DelaySpectrometry (TDS) technique. The measurements weremostly done inside my employer's (Crown International)large microphone -production test facility, using elevatedfree -field measurements and near -field measurements.Some of the tests were done outdoors, using ground -planemeasurements.

The system's on -axis frequency response was measuredat a distance of two meters, directly on axis of the tweeter.The input level was 2.83 V rms, which corresponds to a levelof 1 watt into 8 ohms. The on -axis response was correctedto the standard distance of 1 meter for display of the data.The parameters of the measurement were set so that thedata was essentially smoothed with a tenth -octave filter.

Figure 1 shows the on -axis 1 -watt, 1 -meter frequencyresponse of the 7se with the grille off. The speaker exhibits acommendably flat response ( ± 2 dB) from roughly 60 Hz to10 kHz, with a moderate rise of about 4 dB covering roughlytwo-thirds of an octave between 10 and 16 kHz. In theimportant bass -midrange region between 100 Hz and 1

kHz, the system is even flatter, staying within about ± 1 dB.This measurement reveals a sensitivity of approximately87.5 dB SPL over the range from 100 Hz to 10 kHz, whichessentially confirms the manufacturer's rating. A separatetest, comparing the axial response of both the right and leftspeakers, yielded a commendable match of ±0.5 dB overthe frequency range from 50 Hz to 15 kHz.

Note that this on -axis frequency response represents afree -space measurement taken without the effects of anyreflective boundaries. It represents essentially the frequen-

76 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

We're mofpractic

The most difficult job for a compact discplayer is to reproduce low amplitude signals.Fortunately, Yamaha has created a remarkableCD player that rises to the occasion.

The CDX-1120 reproduces those lowamplitudesignals that until

N ii ;!11 i s ii now, have been distorted or lostin the noise generated by the digital -to -analogconversion process in most CD players.

Allowing you to distinguish the subtlevariations between, say, both an oboe andclarinet softly playing middle C.

As well as enjoy improved ambiance,revealing the acoustic characteristics wherethe performance took place.

And superior imaging, clarifying the place-ment of each instrument in an orchestra.

All worthy reasons to take a good, softlisten to our remarkable new CDX-1120. Onlythen, can you truly appreciate Yamaha's SuperHi -Bit Technology.

Yamaha's exclusive Super Hi -Bit Systemutilizes the additional information generatedby our 20 -bit digital filter to more accurately

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reproduce the low amplitude signals comingfrom the disc.

To achieve this superior sound definition,Yamaha uses four 18 -bit D/A converters, eachwith an exclusive 4 -bit FloatingSystem to boost linearity to 22 -bits.

Delivering four times greaterresolution of low amplitude signalsthan even fixed 20 -bit D/A convertersystems.

What's more, Yamaha's exclusiv(sSuper Hi -Bit DAC Direct Outputprovides phase accuracy so close tothe original recording, it's unpre-cedented in the industry.

The CDX-1120 also featuresDigital DeEmphasis and DigitalVolume Control to give the best access pro-

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To fully appreciate the phenomenal CDX-1120, pay a visit to your local Yamaha dealer.

Once you hear it for yourself, theadvantages will comeacross loud-and soft YAMAHA- and clear.

1989. Yamaha Electronics Cirporation, USA. For the dealer nearest sou call 1-800-662-6800.

A full -functionremote lets youcontrol every-thing. With 24 -track random

Frequency response iscommendably flat from60 Hz to 10 kHz and isflatter in the importantbass and midrange regions.

w

60

6 0

4

500

Fig. 4-One-meter on -axisETC for test signal sweptfrom 200 Hz to 10 kHz. Inthis range, most of theresponse shown is fromthe tweeter.

+20

1-10

0

I0

20

`4,/\,,

20 00 lk

FREQUENCY - Hz

Fig. 5-Effect of grille onaxial 1 -meter frequencyresponse. (The graph isnormalized to show onlydifferences from grille -offresponse of Fig. 1.) Thegrille adds fairly severeresponse aberrations inthe range from 3 to10 kHz.

10k 20k

cy spectrum of the first arrivals you hear when listening tothe system in its normal listening environment. The balancebetween low and high frequencies will change when thesystem is placed near reflective boundaries in an actuallistening situation.

Figure 2 shows the on -axis phase response of the system,corrected for the time arrival of the tweeter. Figure 3 shows

the related group delay versus frequency for the phasecurve of Fig. 2. This group delay indicates that the wooferfollows the tweeter by about 0.17 mS (170 µ.S), whichcorresponds to a relatively low offset distance of 2.3 inches(58 mm). At the crossover (2.3 kHz), this offset representsapproximately 0.4 wavelengths, or 140° of phase. Althoughthis is not a linear -phase system, most available researchindicates that this amount of mid -high frequency all -pass(flat frequency response) delay is not readily audible. Theincrease in delay below 500 Hz is due to the normal mini-mum -phase delay caused by the high-pass characteristic ofthe speaker's low -frequency response.

The 1 -meter on -axis energy/time response (ETC) is shownin Fig. 4 for a test signal swept over the range of 200 Hz to10 kHz. In general, the ETC looks good, except for abroadening of the response at levels greater than 20 dBbelow the first arrival peak. Be aware that this ETC repre-sents essentially the tweeter's response only, due to thespecific frequency range swept.

Figure 5 reveals the grille's effect on the on -axis frequen-cy response. The grille produces moderate frequency re-sponse anomalies of about ± 3 dB in the range above 2kHz. I suggest removing the grille for serious listening; mostof my own listening was done with the grille off.

The system's off -axis frequency response was measuredin two different ways. The first method displays the data in athree-dimensional format similar to the one seen in Audioequipment reviews for the last few years. The second meth-od essentially follows the way the on- and off -axis responsecurves were measured and derived at the Canadian NRC'stest facilities, which were used extensively in the design anddevelopment of the 7se.

Figures 6 and 7, respectively, show the 3-0 horizontal andvertical off -axis frequency response curves of the 7se in thefrontal hemisphere. These curves were derived from fre-quency -response measurements made at 5° incrementsalong the major horizontal and vertical planes in the front ofthe system. No additional smoothing was done on thesecurves except for the fairly high resolution, 200 -Hz, con-stant -bandwidth smoothing that results from the TDS data -gathering process.

Note that these plots differ from the usual Audio format, inthat the frequency scale is logarithmic rather than linear andthat all curves have been referenced (normalized) to the on -axis frequency response. The on -axis response curve ineach of the displays is easy to find because it is a straightline. The normalized format is beneficial in that it clearlydepicts the differences between the on- and off -axis curves.The same display would result if the system's on -axis fre-quency response were carefully equalized flat over therange from 200 Hz to 20 kHz.

The 3-D horizontal off -axis curves in Fig. 6 indicate a fairlywell behaved off -axis response, with extension up to 10 kHzout to about 30° off axis. Beyond 10 kHz, the response rollsoff quite rapidly with increasing off -axis angle. The responseripple which appears in many of the off -axis curves above 4kHz is actually a localized aberration of the near on -axisresponse. The normalization of the response curves dis-places this ripple to the off -axis curves, making it morenoticeable than if rormalization were not used.

78 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

"If there was something we could have doneto make them better We'd have done it."

Bill DudlestonDesign Engineer

Legacy Loudspeakers

Since 1983, Legacy LoudspeakerSystems have been considered bymany to be the best executedspeaker designs available.

The underground press has de-clared them an "exceptional value".

You see, we do things differentlythan most manufacturers. Forsome strange reason (pride?)we'drather let our speakers sell them-selves than pay marketing typesto hype them.

How did we become one of audio'sfastest growing manufacturers?By giving you more quality for thedollar than the other guy. Some-how, we just knew that you wouldtell your friends (Boy, did youever!).

Why do our speakers sound somuch better? We start with match-ed pairs of ribbons, metallizeddomes, cast frame woofers andthen hand tune each cross -overnetwork. We use oxygen -free cop-per wiring and gold plated bindingposts to assure the best possibleinterface with your amplifier.

Our cabinets are made of MDF(not particle board) and are bracedto 11/2" thickness. They are impec-cably finished in the finest hard-wood veneers and solids.

We stand behind our speakerswith a full ten year warranty, andoffer the kind of technical supportthat a dealer just can't give.

Factory DirectFree Literature

3021 Sangamon Ave.Springfield, IL 62702

(217) 529-8793

We invite you to come visit our factory - or better yet, audit onour speakers risk -free in YOUR home, with YOUR music. Weship anywhere in The world. You'll also be pleasantly surprisedwith the savings when buying factory -direct.

If you want to chat about speakers, amplifiers or your listen ngroom, or just want our technical literature, call or write us today.

Erter No 41 on Reader Service Card

1

n designing the new LS 400

luxury sedan, Lexus engineers

were as preoccupied with fre-

quency response and harmonic distor-

tion as horsepower and handling. Their

aim, you see, was to create car audio as

advanced as the LS 400 itself.

The Engineers At LexusWere

Just As Concerned With Impressing

Audio Magazine As Road Si

Impressing

The Lexus LS 400

They began by setting perfor-

mance goals beyond the best premium

level systems available. In the end,

they'd created two of the finest audio

systems ever engineered for the

automobile.

The first is the standard Lexus

7 -speaker high -output audio system

with bi-amplified subwoofer. Its

continuous average

output is 65 watts; with a maximum of

A remote 6 -CDauto -changer isoptional.

Tweeters are locatedhigh and forward foraccurate imaging.

4 door -mountedextended -rangespeakers arehoused inbass -reflex

enclosures

for superiorpowerhandling.

'Into 4 OHMS, 20-20000 Hz, at less than

of both the casual listener and the

confirmed audiophile.

The optional Lexus/Nakamichi

Premium Sound System is simply car

140-enough power to please the ear audio without compromise.

For more information, call 800-USA-LEXUS. © 1989 Lexus, A Division of Toyota Motor Sales, USA., Inc. Lexus reminds you to wear seat belts and obey all speed laws.

POWER -VOL

TUNESEEK

The LS 400 audio system is pre -equalized to the interior's uniqueacoustics.

ANTI -THEFT SYSTEM R,....TAA

AM FM1/2 TAPE CD

PROD REW APS

SCAN 1 2 3 4 5

SCAN DISC < TRACK >

SASS MID -RER_E

The Lexus/Nakamichi system iseven equalized for the differencebetween cloth and leather trim.

IMMO

NalkamteN

°F RPT

BALANCE FADER

BASS

A bi-amplified 8 -inch subwoofer punches outdeep, tight bass.

fv, of - iNiea":"ile pa711

(

.v.01:\'." Vaik o rr

7 speakers are ideally -located for accurate balance and sound stagingElectronic cross -over networks feed specific frequencies to each.

Car audio withoutcompromise: theLeasu/NakamichiPremium SoundSystem. Lexus isthe first to offerNakamichi as orig-inal equipment.

The power mastantenna evenadjusts to 3 posi-tions for idealAM and FMreception.

The PremiumETR radio/auto-reverse cassette

includes an FMdiversity tuner

with dualantennas.

Its RMS output power is nearly And with its more sophisticated But then, doing what's never been

doubled to 126 watts; with a maximum specifications, refined circuit design done before is what Lexus is all about.

of 220. The result? Bass response and advanced speaker technology,

so deep, so tight, you don't just hear it. you'll hear sound reproduction like

You feel it. you've never heard before in a car. The Relentless Pursuit Of Perfection.

Enter No. 37 on Reader Service Card

The flat off -axis responseimplies that the Paradigm7se speakers should imagequite well over a broadhorizontal listening area.

RIGHT -90 -

-60-!,;.1,

OFFAXIS -

FRONT 03.,

DEGREES .30- c:14,,

LEFT +90

Fig. 6-Horizontal off -axisresponse plots taken fromthe left side, around thefront, to the right side ofthe system. Note thatfrequencies are shown ona log scale and that allcurves are normalized toshow differences from theon -axis response.

2k

FREQUENCY - Hz

20k

BELOW -90

-60-_30_

OFFAXIS -

FRONT 0--

DEGREES.30

60 -ABOVE 904-

200

Fig. 7-Vertical off -axisplots taken from above tobelow the system. Notelog frequency scale andnormalization of allcurves to the on -axisresponse. Also notecrossover responseirregularities between 1.5and 3 kHz, at roughly 20°to 40° off axis up and down.

2k

FREQUENCY - Hz

20k

The vertical off -axis curves in Fig. 7 denote clearly theeffects of the crossover in the domain from 1.5 to 3.5 kHz.Off -axis null regions exist at angles about 30° up and down.The 6.5 -inch (165 -mm) center -to -center separation of thetweeter and woofer corresponds to about 1.1 wavelengthsat the 2.3 -kHz crossover frequency. The symmetrical upand down positions of the vertical off -axis nulls indicate thatthe woofer and tweeter are approximately acoustically inphase throughout the important crossover frequency area.This very desirable behavior minimizes the "Iobing error" ofthe system. An independent confirmation of the driveracoustic phasing was done by running a response curve onthe system with the connections of the tweeter reversed.This resulted in a sharp 15 -dB dip in the frequency re-sponse at the 2.3 -kHz crossover frequency.

The curves also show that the response is significantlyrougher off axis vertically than horizontally. I suggest listen-ing to the system no farther than about 10° vertically off axis,for best results.

Figures 8 and 9, respectively, show the mean horizontaland vertical on- and off -axis response curves of the system,measured and derived in the manner of the NRC tests.These response curves were derived from the previous 3-Ddata by calculating response averages of several adjacentcurves in specific on- and off -axis angular regions. Thisspatial averaging, rather than frequency averaging orsmoothing, tends to suppress the effects of localized re-sponse aberrations due to diffractive effects, without mini-mizing overall frequency response problems exhibited overbroad angles. The mean axial response was calculated byaveraging all the individual responses in a ± 15° window,both horizontally and vertically. The mean off -axis respons-es were computed separately, in both the horizontal and

vertical directions, from the ±30° to ±45° and the ±60° to± 75° off -axis curves.

The mean horizontal response curves are shown in Fig. 8.The mean axial response curve is quite flat and extended,within a ±2 dB envelope out to 19 kHz. Surprisingly, exceptfor a roll -off above 10 kHz, the off -axis curves over the rangefrom 800 Hz to about 11 kHz are actually flatter than the on -axis curve. This smooth, wide-angle response trait impliesthat the 7se speakers should image quite well over a broadhorizontal listening area.

The mean vertical responses are shown in Fig. 9. Thesecurves are somewhat similar to the horizontal curves, ex-cept for a 2 -kHz, octave -wide hole in the response at thecrossover frequency in the 30° to 45° angle range.

Figure 10 shows the input impedance of the 7se, plottedover the range from 20 Hz to 20 kHz, with a logarithmicvertical scale coverng 1 to 100 ohms. A minimum imped-ance of 5 ohms at 150 Hz and a maximum of 28 ohms at 1.5kHz were measured in the operating range of the speakers.Though this system is rated at 8 ohms, the 5 -ohm mimimumreached in the upper bass range makes paralleling two setsof these speakers a possible hazard for some amplifiers-especially at high levels.

The double -humped impedance characteristic of thevented -box (bass -reflex) cabinet was apparent at low fre-quencies. The Helmholtz -resonance tuning frequency of thebox occurs at the impedance dip-about 32 Hz. At thisfrequency, most of the acoustic energy is radiated by theport, with the displacement of the woofer cone minimized.

The complex magnitude -phase (Nyquist) polar plot of theimpedance is shown in Fig. 11. The curve nicely rotatesclockwise with increasing frequency, which it ought to, aspointed out by the late Richard Heyser, Audio's former

82 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

38

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audiophiles and music lovers the world over fortwo years. It's a proven performerBoth preamplifiers reflect the 20 -year AudioResearch tradition of distinguished engineering.Ultra -critical parts selection and unstintinghandcrafted manufacture assure honest musicalsatisfaction today, and reliable performance foryears to come. Like every Audio Researchproduct. the SP14 and SP9represent not just a purchase.but an investment.Audition either model soon atyour authorized Audio Researchdealer

HIGH DEFINITION"

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The polar impedance curveis extremely well behaved,with no minor loops-proofthat there are no spurioushigher order resonances.

100

90

80

70

6020 100 lk

FREQUENCY - Hz

Fig. 8-Mean horizontalon- and off -axis frequencyresponse curves above200 Hz; see text. Topcurve is mean on -axiscurve, an average ofresponse measurementsmade within ± 15° ofvertical and horizontalaxes. Middle curve is

average of measurementsbetween 30' and 45°either side of axis; bottomcurve is average ofmeasurements 60° to 75°either side of axis. Notethe very smooth off -axisresponse, even at anglesout to ± 75°.

100

90

80

70

60

III

20 100 lk

FREQUENCY - Hz

Fig. 9-Mean vertical on -and off -axis frequencyresponse curves. Topcurve is mean on -axiscurve, an average ofresponse measurementsmade within ± 15' ofvertical and horizontalaxes. Middle curve isaverage of measurements

10k 20k

between 30° and 45°above and below axis;bottom curve is averageof measurements 60° to75° above and below axis.Note the off -axisresponse dips in thecrossover region (1.5 to2.5 kHz); see text.

senior loudspeaker reviewer. The polar curve is quite wellbehaved, with no minor loops exhibited; this indicates thatthere are no spurious higher order resonances in the cabi-net or woofer moving system. When looking at polar imped-ance plots, remember that simple second -order resonanthumps show up as circles on the display. The circular,looping nature of the three impedance humps is clearlyshown in the plot.

The distortion characteristics of the 7se were measured inseveral different ways. These included three single -frequen-cy distortion spectra versus power level, IM distortion ver-sus power level, and swept second- and third -harmonicdistortion measurements versus frequency.

Figures 12, 13, and 14, respectively, show the single -frequency harmonic -distortion spectra versus power level atthe musical notes El (41.2 Hz), A2 (110 Hz), and A4 (440Hz). These curves indicate how much harmonic distortion isgenerated by the system with the application of a single -frequency sine wave at power levels covering the range of0.1 to 50 watts ( - 10 to + 17 dBw, a 27 -dB dynamic range).The power levels were computed assuming the rated im-pedance of 8 ohms. The curves show the second to fifthharmonics of the input sine wave-except at El (41.2 Hz),where the sixth harmonic is also shown.

The curves were run by successively increasing the sine -wave input level in 1 -dB increments (each step about 26%higher in power than the previous level). At each powerlevel, a swept spectrum analysis was done over a frequencyrange covering the desired harmonics. Two precision, 1 -dB -per -step attenuators were used in the setup-one in thesend path and one in the receive path-to ensure that thepower level steps were accurate. The receive attenuatorprovides a constant fundamental level to the spectrum ana-

lyzer so that distcrtion percentages can be read directlyfrom the plotted data scales.

Figure 12 shows the El (41.2 -Hz) harmonic data. Datacollection was stopped at a power level of 50 watts (20 Vrms into the rated 8 -ohm impedance) because the distortionlevels were getting excessive (35% third harmonic at 50watts). The actual power accepted at this voltage and pow-er level was about 70 watts, due to the measured 6 -ohmimpedance. At most power levels, the third harmonic wasfound to predominate. At this frequency, most of the distor-tion was generated by the high excursion of the system'swoofer. Third -harmonic distortion is generated from a sym-metrical nonlinearity, which, in this situation, corresponds tothe woofer's running out of excursion capability in bothdirections equally. The distortion levels reached in this Eltest, although quite high, are not unreasonable for an 8 -inch(200 -mm) woofer when it is operated at these fairly highacoustic levels.

The 7se speaker's vented -box tuning provided only amoderate amount of cone -excursion reduction at 41.2 Hz.This was due primarily to two factors. First, the test frequen-cy did not coincide with the box resonance frequency of thevented enclosure; at the box resonance frequency, theloading of the tuned box provides the maximum cone -motion reduction. Second, the 0 factor of the vented boxwas not very high, which limited the amount of reductionavailable.

As stated previously, the manufacturer describes the 7seloudspeaker's vented -box enclosure as having a "criticallytuned resistive port." In the context of the 7se, this meansthat a relatively large amount of damping material was usedinside the box (none was found in the port). This increasesthe internal box losses and, hence, decreases the box Q.

86 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

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The 7se's internal dampingshows that Paradigm weighsmidrange smoothness moreheavily than the absolutelowest bass distortion.

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100 150

FREQUENCY - Hz

Fig. 12-Harmonicdistortion for the musicaltone El (41.2 Hz). Noterelatively high third -harmonic level at highpowers; see text.

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Considering only low -frequency behavior, the vented -boxenclosure works best with a minimal amount of internaldamping material. However, in the case of the 7se, a two-way design, the low -frequency loudspeaker is used all theway up into the midrange. In this range, standing waves andreflections inside the box can potentially color the midrangereproduction through radiation or re -radiation via the portand cone. Using a relatively large amount of damping mate-rial inside the enclosure will decrease the effect of theseinternal waves and. hence, their effect on the midrangeresponse. In most vented -box enclosure designs, decidinghow much damping material to add to the inside of the boxinvolves a real engineering trade-off. It is quite clear that thedesigners of the 7se put more weight on smooth midrangeresponse than on attempting to achieve the absolute lowestlow -frequency distortion.

Even though this system's enclosure 0 was somewhatlower than it could have been, separate tests revealed thatthis vented -box enc.osure provided a very usable reductionof cone motion in the frequency range from 23 to 58 Hz. Inthe range from 30 to 40 Hz, the reduction was approximate-ly 50%. This test was accomplished by alternately coveringand uncovering the port while driving the system with a 10 -to 20-V rms sine -wave signal. Above 10 V rms (12 watts), inthe range from 30 tc 40 Hz, windage (air movement) noiseswere quite noticeable from the port. This type of noise isusually not very audible with normal wide -range programmaterial.

The A2 (110 -Hz) 'narmonic data is given in Fig. 13. Thedata essentially shows that only the second and third har-monics were significant. The nonharmonically related spikesin the graph are byproducts of the measurement setupenvironment and are not generated by the loudspeaker. Thethird harmonic was found to increase gradually with powerlevel, reaching only 1.5% at 50 watts. The second harmonicwas very low, up to a power level of about 10 watts where itquickly increased to 7% at 50 watts. The significance of thissharp increase in second -harmonic distortion just aboutslipped by me until I removed the system's woofer and ranan excursion test or it.

Second -harmonic distortion is caused by a one-sided,asymmetrical nonlinearity. The specific cause of this nonlin-earity in the 7se speaker's woofer was found to be an effectthat occurs quite commonly in long -excursion, overhung -motor (voice -coil longer than top -plate thickness) woofers.The effect is called "dynamic offset," "oil canning," or some-times "self -rectification" (see "The Oil -Can Effect"). It oc-curs only in specific low -frequency ranges where the mo-tional impedance (back EMF due to the movement of thevoice-coil/cone assembly) is a significant part of the totalimpedance and only where the impedance is falling rapidlywith increasing frequency.

The effect causes the cone to actually displace outwardor inward at high drive levels. In the case of the 7se woofer,the cone always moved out of the motor assembly in therange from 50 to 115 Hz, at drive levels above approximate-ly 12 V rms (10 watts). At 20 V rms (50 watts) at 100 Hz, thenet outward displacement actually exceeded the peak -to -peak alternating displacement. This sudden outward shift incone displacement caused the sudden increase in second -

88 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

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The IM distortion measuredfor mixed tones of 41.2and 440 Hz was fairly lowfor a woofer of this sizeup to 50 -watts input.

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Fig. 13-Harmonicdistortion for the musicaltone A2 (110 Hz). Thesecond and thirdharmonics were the only

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Fig. 14-Harmonicdistortion for the musicaltone A4 (440 Hz). Onlymoderate amounts ofsecond and thirdharmonics are evident.

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FREQUENCY - Hz

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significant ones in thispower range. Note therapid increase in secondharmonic at power levelsabove 10 watts; see text.

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harmonic distortion exhibited in Fig. 13. Research hasshown that dynamic offset also increases transient distortionand hangover for short-term, low -frequency signals. Re-search also indicates that vented -box (bass -reflex) systemsare more susceptible to transient distortion from dynamic -offset effects than are closed -box (acoustic -suspension)systems.

Figure 14 shows the A4 (440 -Hz) harmonic measure-ments. Again, the predominant distortion is a moderateamount of second- and third- with only small amounts offourth- and fifth -harmonic distortion. The third -harmonic dis-tortion is seen to stay at roughly the same distortion percent-age, a low 1%, over a fairly broad range of input powers.

Figure 15 shows the IM distortion on a 440 -Hz (A4) tonecreated by an equal -level (input power, not output acousticlevel) 41.2 -Hz (E1) tone. Again, power levels in the rangefrom 0.1 to 50 watts were measured. The IM distortiongradually rises with power, reaching a level of about 10% at20 watts and 14% at 50 watts. Only intermodulation prod-ucts out to the third order (f2 ± 3f1) were significant in thesemeasurements. These IM levels are fairly low for a woofer ofthis size at these power levels. At 440 Hz, 50 watts gener-

THE OIL -CAN EFFECTDynamic offset is a nonlinear effect exhibited by driv-

ers having a long -throw voice -coil moving assembly cou-pled with a very linear suspension system. The effectcomes about because the magnetic field decreases asthe voice -coil moves out of the magnetic gap. At pointswhere the motional impedance is falling with increasingfrequency (the upper slope of impedance peaks), thephase relationships are such that the cone tends tospeed up as it leaves the gap. This is because themagnetic field weakens as the cone moves out of thegap, which reduces the back EMF generated by thevoice -coil's motion; on this slope of the impedance peak,the reduced motional impedance causes the speaker todraw more current, raising its speed.

For those who may have taken a class on d.c. electricmotors, the effect is very similar to the speed of a d.c.motor increasing (not decreasing, as you might predict!)when the current through the field winding is decreased.For constant -voltage drive, the motor has to increase itsspeed of rotation so that the back EMF again roughlyequals the voltage applied to the rotor. The back EMFgenerated by the rotor is directly proportional to theproduct of the speed of rotation and the strength of themagnetic field generated by the field coil. As the fieldcurrent decreases, thus decreasing the magnetic fieldstrength, the motor has to go faster in order to maintainits equilibrium.

The dynamic -offset problem in woofers can be mini-mized by designing the suspension system to actuallypush back more with increasing displacement than aperfectly linear suspension would. This added suspen-sion nonlinearity compensates for the nonlinearity of themagnetic field. 0.8.K.

90 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

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Enter No. 29 on Reader Service Card

The Mirage M-ls have garnered their fair

share of raves from the industry. They've

invoked such comments as "...I'm completely

honkers over this product..." and "...the best

conventional loudspeaker of the decade!'

Upon first listen, most people are astonished

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Erter No. 20 on Reader Service Card

The Paradigm's good vocalseparation and clarity onchoral music shows smoothresponse in the upper -bassand midrange regions.

CO

0.

100

BO

60

40

'0

FUNDAMENTAL

SECOND HARMONIC

THIRD HARMONIC

20 00 ik

FREQUENCY - Hz

Fig. 16-Second- andthird -harmonic distortionlevels vs. frequency for90 dB SPL mid -bandoutput at 1 meter on axis;input signal is 3.6 V rms(1.6 watts into 8 ohms).

100

10

0.1

Ok 20k

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90

1 70

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50

30

I 1100

10 1

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SECOND HARMONIC

HARMONICTHIRD

20 100 1k

FREQUENCY - Hz

Fig. 17-Same as Fig. 16but for 100 dB SPLmid -band output, usinginput signal of 11.3 V rms(16 watts into 8 ohms).

10k 2-1,

ates a respectable 105 dB SPL at 1 meter, measured on thesystem's axis.

Swept sine -wave second- and third -harmonic distortiontests were also made on the system at axial 1 -meter levelsof 90 and 100 dB SPL (Figs. 16 and 17). The purpose ofrunning these curves, in addition to the previous measure-ments, was to show the harmonic content at a fixed -outputmid -band sound pressure level and to display the second -and third -harmonic levels over a continuous interval in thelow -frequency range. Using fixed sound levels of 90 and100 dB SPL facilitates comparison with measurementsmade on previous systems. Note that in the low -frequencyrange below 60 Hz, where the system starts to roll off, theactual distortion percentage is higher than shown on the

scale fo me right of the g- rapn oecause the fundamental islower in level.

The swept harmonic tests at a level of 90 dB SPL areshown in Fig. 16. The distortion stayed below 2% at frequen-cies above 60 Hz and rose to about 5% at 35 Hz (mostlythird harmonic). The corresponding measurements at 100dB SPL are plotted in Fig. 17. The distortion above 60 Hzstays below 3% except for a second -harmonic peak of 8%at 85 Hz. The input level of 16 watts (11.3 V rms), requiredfor the 100 -dB midband level, is just below the point wherethe cone starts to move out due to the dynamic -offseteffects noted earlier. The second harmonic is seen to pre-dominate between 50 and 90 Hz. At 20 Hz, third -harmonicdistortion actually rises to 100%, primarily due to the sus-pension's running out of excursion capability to the samedegree in both directions.

Overall, the distortion measurements on the 7se are quitelow for a system of this size. The windage noises in the ventat high power levels in the low -frequency range will fortu-nately be masked by most program material. The dynamic -offset problems observed could potentially be a problemwith program material such as loud rock music, whichcontains high -power narrow -band material in the region of50 to 100 Hz. However, the added second -harmonic levelsmay make some types of program material sound betterrather than worse. (It ain't high fidelity though!)

Figures 18 and 19 show the short-term peak -power inputand output capabilities of the system, plotted as a functionof frequency. The tests were run by applying a shaped tone -burst test signal consisting of 61/2 cycles of a sine waveshaped using a Hamming raised -cosine envelope. The re-sultant test signal covers a one -third -octave bandwidth witha time duration that increases as the frequency goes down.The burst is presented at such a low duty cycle that thelong-term thermal characteristics of the speaker under testare not exercised. The test consisted of evaluating themaximum peak -input power -handling capacity and maxi-mum peak -output sound pressure levels, at all the one -third -octave center frequencies, in the range from 20 Hz to 20kHz. A very powerful amplifier that can generate 5,500 peakwatts ( + 37 dBW, or ±210 V into an 8 -ohm load!) was usedto drive the system.

The test sequence began with determining how much ofthe special test signal could be handled by the speaker, ateach frequency, before either the output sounded audiblydistorted or the acoustic output waveform appeared distort-ed, whichever occurred first. At each frequency, the maxi-mum peak -input voltage and the corresponding generatedpeak -output sound pressure level at 1 meter were recorded.

Figure 18 shows the maximum peak -input electrical pow-er -handling capacity of the 7se. The peak -input power -handling capacity is seen to rise with frequency until 6.3kHz, where the amplifier's power capacity of 5.5 kilowattswas reached! Above 125 Hz, the system can handle morethan 600 peak watts. From 40 to 100 Hz, the peak powerhandling is limited to the range of 50 to 100 watts. Below 25Hz, the power should be limited to 10 watts or less, so as notto cause any intermodulation of the higher frequencies. The7se can actually handle more power than the curves showbut at the expense of much greater distortion.

94 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

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Enter No. 24 on Reader Service Card

The Fruit Doesn't Fall Far From The Tree

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The delivery of high-levelupper -frequency transients,such as explosive soundeffects, was good enoughto clean your ears out!

40

30

20

10

10,000

320100 Ik

FREQUENCY - Hz

Fig. 18-Maximumpeak -input power formoderately clean output.Above about 6 kHz(dashed portion of curve),limitations are imposedby clipping of 5.5 -kilowattamplifier, not by thespeaker. Input signal wasa shaped tone burst;see text.

130

120

110

100

90

80

1,000

100

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10k 20k

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FREQUENCY - Hz

Fig. 19-Maximum peakSPL output at 1 meter,on axis, for input levelsshown in Fig. 18. Thesystem can generatepeak levels in excess of115 dB SPL above 150 Hz.

10k 20k

Figure 19 illustrates the maximum peak sound pressurelevels generated at a distance of 1 meter on axis for thelevels shown in Fig. 18. The graph shows that the Ise cangenerate very respectable levels in excess of 110 dB SPL atfrequencies above 100 Hz. Between 20 and 100 Hz, themaximum output rises at about 15 dB per octave. Of course,two of these systems operating in a typical listening roomwill be able to generate much higher levels in this criticallow -frequency range. due to mutual coupling and boundaryeffects. The room will provide some 5 to 10 dB of low -frequency gain, while a pair of speakers increases the levelsome 3 to 6 dB.

Use and Listening TestsThe listening tests were conducted in my basement listen-

ing room, which is somewhat small with a volume of about1,500 cubic feet (43 cubic meters). The systems were locat-ed 20 inches (0.5 m) away from the rear wall and separatedby about 8 feet (2.5 m), with most near reflective objectsremoved. The Ise speakers were placed on the suppliedstands, which elevated them about 13 inches (0.33 m) offthe floor, placing the tweeter 33 inches (0.84 m) high. At myseated listening position, my ears were within 2° of thetweeter axis. Most of my listening evaluation was donebefore the measurements were made.

My first listening impressions of the Ise were quite posi-tive. I was impressed with how well the system did overall, incomparison to my reference. Later, more serious, evalua-tions did not change this impression. My listening testsconducted after the measurements revealed no perceptiblechanges in the sound, even though by then the system hadbeen subjected to some rather abusive power testing!

The supplied speaker stands were made of Vs -inch (3 -mm) thick metal sheet stock, with 1 -inch (25 -mm) longspikes on the bottom of a 131/2 -inch (340 -mm) square base.The 10 -inch (250 -mm) square speaker mounting surfacewas separated from the base by four 1 -inch (25 -mm) squareby 12 -inch (305 -mm) long metal tubes. My initial impressionof the stands was somewhat negative, due to some high -Qresonances in the metal structure. After the speakers wereset up in the normal configuration, with the systems in placeand the base (with spikes) on the carpet, the resonanceswere much diminished and did not cause any discernibleeffects during the listening tests.

Input connection was made at the rear of the system,through double -banana red/black, five -way binding postsseparated by the standard 3/4 -inch (19 -mm) distance.However, the wire insertion hole in the post was not largeenough to handle any reasonable -sized stranded speakercable. I suggest that you use spade lugs or solid wireextensions (that will fit the hole) and solder these to yourcables.

Listening to some pop/rock material (The Nightfly, DonaldFagen, Warner Bros. 23696-2) revealed a somewhat brighthigh end that emphasized instruments such as top -hat cym-bal and tambourine. The emphasis was not at all objection-able, however.

Reproduction of female vocalists was quite realistic, withno sign of harshness on vocal peaks (Love Songs, sopranoArleen Auger and pianist Dalton Baldwin, Delos DCD-3029).

96 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

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The Ise was very accurateand revealing-a pleasureto listen to. At its lowprice, I might considerbuying a pair myself.

The reproduction of male vocalists with acoustic guitar wasalso quite good, with no upper -bass or lower -midrangetubbiness (Folk Era's Live Sampler, Folk Era FE2066CD andDepth of Image, Opus 3 Test Record 1, Track 7).

A capella choral music was also reproduced well, withgood clarity and vocal separation (Depth of Image, Track10). Smooth response through the upper -bass and mid-range response regions is required for good results onchoral music. Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 13 (MidsummerMozart Festival, Bainbridge BCD -6273) was reproducedwith a good sense of space and realism.

Off -axis vertical and horizontal high -frequency coveragewas subjectively quite adequate, with good response out toabout ± 40°. The system's delivery of high-level mid -highfrequency transients, such as explosive sound effects, wasvery effective. (You can clean your ears out on Track 4 of EinStraussfest, Telarc CD -80098!)

Program material containing high-level bass transientsplayed at high levels, such as rock kick drum, was repro-duced with a moderate amount of muddiness when com-pared to my reference system (Sheffield Drum and TrackRecord, Sheffield Labs). After making the measurements, Iattributed this muddiness to the dynamic -offset problemsexhibited by the woofer in the 7se. To check this out, I

searched for program material containing low -frequencyinformation that would cause the cone assembly to travel

appreciably out of the gap, in one direction, on loud pas-sages. (This movement was determined by viewing thecone at close range while playing the material.) One discthat did this consistently contained the cannons on Beetho-ven's "Wellington's Victory" (Telarc CD -80079). An outwarddeflection of the cone resulted even when the speaker leadswere reversed, because dynamic -offset problems relateonly to the amplitude, not the polarity, of the low -frequencysignal. Even with appreciable offset, the cannon reproduc-tion was still quite impressive. (I made sure my wife was outof the house when I listened at the levels required to gener-ate the offset effects!) Reproduction of other types of low -end material, such as pipe organ pedal tones and concertbass drum, was quite adequate and was consistent with thesystem's size.

To sum up, I am quite pleased with the overall perfor-mance attained by these speakers, considering their rela-tively low price and moderate size. The smooth bass -mid-range response contributed to a very accurate and reveal-ing system that was a pleasure to listen to. Except for somelow -end muddiness exhibited infrequently on very high levelbass passages, the system did a very good job. I wouldrecommend the 7se loudspeakers for anyone who wants avery cost-effective speaker for use as a main system or foruse in a secondary situation. At their price, in fact, I mighteven consider buying a pair for myself. D. B. Keele, Jr.

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EQUIPMENT PROFILE

SOUNDCRAFTSMENPRO -POWER TENAMPLIFIER

Manufacturer's SpecificationsPower Output: Four -channel mode,

205 watts per channel into 8 ohmsfrom 20 Hz to 20 kHz, 300 watts perchannel into 4 ohms: two -channelmode, 600 watts per channel into 8ohms.

THD: 0.05%.SPAPTE-IM Distortion: 0.05%.Frequency Response: 20 Hz to 20

kHz, ±0.1 dB.S/N: - 105 dB.Slew Rate: 50 V/p.S.Dimensions: 19 in. W x 51/4 in. H x

12 in. D (48.3 cm x 13.3 cm x 30.5cm).

Weight: 55 lbs. (25 kg).Price: $1,399.Company Address: 2200 South

Ritchey, Santa Ana, Cal. 92705.For literature, circle No. 91

100 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

This new amplifier from Soundcraftsmen uses Class ABMOS-FET power output stages and the manufacturer'sphase -controlled power supplies. Soundcraftsmei chose touse a rather stiff power supply-one that adjusts its supplyvoltage to match the demands of the loudspeaker. Thus,you won't find much "dynamic headroom" in this amplifier-but then again, you won't need much, in view of this unit'scontinuous power rating.

The Pro -Power Ten is actually two separate stereo amplifi-ers, each with its own massive power transformer and ultra-high -storage filter capacitors. Each of these stereo amplifi-ers can be "bridged," allowing four-, three-, or two -channeloperation. Unbridged, the amplifier is especially suited foruse in surround systems. When operated in the three -chan-nel mode, with one pair of channels bridged together, theamp lends itself to driving a pair of satellites with a power-hungry common subwoofer.

I have always admired Soundcraftsmen's straightforwarddesigns, and the Pro -Power Ten is no exception. After firstsubjecting the amplifier to the FTC preconditioning test forone hour at one-third its rated power, I removed the cover.There were no great surprises inside-just high -qualitycomponents, well located, and a prominently visible pair ofhuge power transformers. During the course of my tests, I

confirmed the fact that the two halves of the Pro -Power Tenare completely independent-from the primary windings oftheir respective power transformers down to the speakeroutput terminals. The Pro -Power Ten amp is completelyprotected against short-circuits, open circuits, and inputoverloads. Thermal protection is provided by multi -sensorphase -control regulation.

Control LayoutThe Pro -Power Ten's front panel features four indepen-

dent 12 -segment LED power output meters calibrated from0 to 800 watts, referenced to 8 -ohm loads. Clipping indica-tors for each channel are also found on the front panel. As istrue of many other Soundcraftsmen power amplifiers I havetested over the years, this unit incorporates a rack -mount-able front panel, but optional hardwood side panels areavailable to '.'dress up" the unit for domestic use The folksat Soundcraftsmen tell me that a Pro -Power Nine model willbe available and will be similar to the Pro -Power Ten I

tested, except the LED power meter displays will be omit-ted. It will carry a suggested price $100 lower than that ofthe Pro -Power Ten.

The rear panel is equipped with color -coded five -waybinding posts on standard 3/4 -inch centers for connectingspeaker cables. Channels are indentified "A," "B," "C," and"D," rather than "Left" or "Right," and the unbalancedphono-type input jacks are similarly labelled. Separate slideswitches for each pair of amp channels are used for switch-ing to the bridged mode of operation.

MeasurementsExcept where stated otherwise, I hooked up the Pro -

Power Ten as a four -channel amp fbr all my tests andmeasurements. When testing the amp in this mode, I droveall four inputs and connected separate loads (first 8 ohms,then 4 ohms) to each output.

Anyiktude (dB, versos Frequency MO; Soonderaftswen Pro Power Ten2.0000

5000-

1.0000

.501100

11.

-2.000,0300

Fig. 1-Frequencyresponse of theSoundcraftsmenPro -Power Tenamplifier.

101( 5011

91;e4Sruu Ana sssss of ResiAual Me/se (AB/ vs. Fresuenes (Be); Pro Power Ten-50.0

-70.00 -70.0

-90.00 -90.0

-100.0

-110.0 -110

-120.0.- -120

-130.000100 IA 101( 201.

Fig. 2-Spectrum ana ysisof residual noise for leftchannel (solid curve)and right channel(dashed curve).

Figure 1 shows the frequency response of one channel ofthe amplifier. Response was flat to within + 0, -0.1 dB from10 Hz to 20 kHz. At 50 kHz, response was down only 0.5 dB.I measure the S/N ratio of an amplifier with respect to 1 wattoutput, as mandated by the EIA Amplifier MeasurementStandard. Soundcraftsmen and others continue to publishS/N specifications referred to rated output. I guess thedesire to come up with higher numbers outweighs the needto follow an industry -accepted standard. In any case, wherethere is no volume control involved-as with the Pro -PowerTen-it's easy enough to translate one form of S/N readingto the other. I measured an A -weighted S/N value of 82 dB,referred to 1 watt output. Now 205 watts of output is slightlymore than 23 dB greater than 1 watt, so the S/N referred torated output would be very slightly greater than 105 dB-exactly the value claimed by Soundcraftsmen in their pub-lished specifications.

I also used the spectrum -analyzer, or bandpass, functionof my Audio Precision System One test gear to analyze thenature of the residual noise (again referred to 1 watt output

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 101

Soundcraftsmen's productsinvariably meet all theirpublished specs-and thensome. The Pro -Power Tenis no exception.

DistcTion . %else v% Power Output. SeunArreltsmen Pro Pune, Ten

0.1

0.01e.

Fig. 3-THD + N vs.power output into 8- and4 -ohm loads. Just beforecurves slope upward,top curve is 20 kHz,

le lee sae

straightest curve is1 kHz, and remainingcurve is 20 Hz.

THD s Nets. (P.) versus Frequency (NO t rated power output; Pr. Power Ton

4ONNIS

lee

Fig. 4-THD + N vs.frequency, at rated power,for 8- and 4 -ohm loads.

SPIPTVIN D tttttt ten (./.) vs. Power Output, Pro Power Ten

9.1

4 OHMS

Cele:

11.90/..

. ago se.

Fig. 5-SMPTE-IMdistortion vs. poweroutput for 8- and 4 -ohmloads.

lee

lek 20k

see

but with no weighting curve). I discovered that much of theresidual noise that contributed to the previous A -weightedoverall measurement of S/N was caused by some residualpower -supply hum and its harmonics, as shown in Fig. 2.Still, an A -weighted S/N of 82 dB below 1 watt-or 105 dBbelow 105 watts- s no cause for concern or criticism. Fewamplifiers I have tested do much better than that.

Figure 3 is a plot of THD + N versus power output into 8 -

and 4 -ohm loads. Each plot was repeated three times forthree different reference frequencies: 1 kHz, 20 Hz, and 20kHz. At 205 watts per channel into 8 ohms, THD + N wasonly 0.017% at 1 kHz, 0.02% at 20 Hz, and 0.038% at 20kHz. At the rated output of 300 watts per channel into 4ohms, THD + N was 0.023% at 1 kHz and 20 Hz. For a 20 -

kHz test signal, THD + N was somewhat higher, 0.042%,but still well below the 0.05% claimed by Soundcraftsmen.At 1 kHz, the amp was able to deliver nearly 370 watts perchannel into 4 -ohm loads. with all channels driven. While theplots of Fig. 3 are for one channel only, measurements at theoutputs of the other three channels revealed that distortionlevels were substantially the same at rated output.

Figure 4 shows how THD + N varied with frequency atthe rated power output values of 205 and 300 watts perchannel into 8- and 4 -ohm loads, respectively.

I also measured SMPTE-IM distortion versus power outputfor both load conditions (Fig. 5). Once again. this type of IMdistortion was well below the published figures: 0.03% at205 watts per channel for the 8 -ohm load and 0.03% at 300watts per channel for the 4 -ohm load.

Although Soundcraftsmen does not specify CCIF (twin -tone) distortion, I feel this is an important performancecharacteristic of any amplifier, and so I measured it usingequal -amplitude 18- and 19 -kHz signals (Fig. 6). With 8 -ohmloads at a level equivalent to rated output, CCIF IM was aninsignificantly low 0.0059%, while for 4 -ohm loads, CCIF-IMdistortion measured an even lower 0.0032% at 300 wattsper channel.

Damping factor, referred to 8 ohms and using a 50 -Hzsignal, measured 210. Sensitivity for 1 watt output into 8 -ohm loads measured approximately 90 mV, which trans-lates to very nearly the 1.23 V of input Soundcraftsmenspecified as required to produce rated output. Finally, I

measured the dynamic headroom of the amplifier. Becauseof the Pro -Power Ten's stiffly regulated power supplies,dynamic headroom was only 0.7 dB, but as I indicatedearlier, dynamic headroom is not a measure of the soundquality or performance of an amp if that amp can deliverenough continuous power to meet the demands of thespeakers with which it is used. The Soundcraftsmen Pro -Power Ten is just such an amplifier.

I made a few spot measurements of this unit's perfor-mance when it is operated in the bridged mode. Underthose conditions, the amplifier's THD + N measured justover 0.01% when output levels were increased to 600 wattsper stereo channel. I could not accurately plot graphs ofdistortion versus frequency for this operating condition. sim-ply because of the power -handling limits of the variable autotransformer I use to maintain my line power at an accurate120 V. When the Pro -Power Ten's two halves are operated inthe bridged mode at full rated power. it demands more

102 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

Eugene Hummelmyerhas the MTX advantage.

Things used to be pretty dull for Eugene. That is, un-til he visited his local MTX dealer. An hour later,Eugene roared away with MTX Thunder in his car.

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No matter how hard Idrove the Pro -Power Ten,it always seemed to coastalong, with a reserve ofextra power on tap.

CT -III Ihstortaen <V./ wersus Peon, Output Watts); Pre POI., Ton

..

.i

.....10.-.,

..., .

"nal 8.2 . I is in 388

Fig. 6-CCIF-IM distortionvs. power output for 8-and 4 -ohm loads.

Use and Listening TestsIt's always a pleasure to listen to music via an amplifier

that you know is not going to run out of power when youreally want to let go with some wide dynamic range music.No matter how hard I drove the Pro -Power Ten as it poweredmy reference KEF 105.2 speakers, this amplifier alwaysseemed to coast along, with an extra reserve of poweravailable if I needed it. There wasn't the slightest bit ofstrain, nor was there any evidence of clipping-even at theloudest listening levels and when using CDs with extremelywide dynamic range.

While I have tired of the well-known Straussfest (TelarcCD -80098) demon disc, I couldn't resist using it with thisamplifier as a test of just what kind of peaks the Pro -PowerTen would be able to handle. Of course, adequate power inan amplifier doesn't begin to tell its whole story. There is aninherent quality of ruggedness, reliability, and sonic integritythat has always impressed me favorably when I have had an

current than this variable auto transformer can supply for opportunity to test and listen to Soundcraftsmen products.any length of time. However, based on the spot measure- The engineers are serious people whose primary goal is toments I made for this high -power operating condition, I have create audio products that will give years of trouble -freeno reason to suspect that the Soundcraftsmen would not service, deliver accurate signal amplification, drive mostmake its published specifications in the bridged mode with any speaker load. and provide all of this performance atplenty of room to spare. The one thing I've found true about prices that are fair and reasonable. The Pro -Power Ten joinsSoundcraftsmen is that they invariably meet all of their a distinguished group of Soundcraftsmen products whichpublished specifications-and then some. fulfill all of these goals. Leonard Feldman

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EQUIPMENT PROFILE

CAMBRIDGESOUNDWORKSENSEMBLELOUDSPEAKER

Manufacturer's Specifications Company Address: CambridgeSystem Type: Four -piece stereo

system; acoustic suspension,sealed -box woofers.

SoundWorks, 154 California St.,Newton, Mass. 02158.

For literature, circle No. 92Drivers: 8 -inch (203 -mm) woofer, 4 -

inch (102 -mm) midrange, and 13/4 -inch (44 -mm) tweeter.

Crossover Frequencies: 140 Hzand 1.9 kHz.

Impedance: 6 ohms nominal.Recommended Amplifier Power:

25 watts minimum.Dimensions: Low -frequency units,

41/2 in. H x 21 in. W x 12 in. D (11.4cm x 53.3 cm x 30.5 cm); satel-lites, 81/8 in. H x 5Y4 in. W x 4 in. D(20.6 cm x 13.3 cm x 10.2 cm).

Weight: Low -frequency units, 16 lbs.(7.3 kg) each; satellites, 5 lbs. (2.3kg) each.

Price: $499 per speaker system.

106 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

The Cambridge SoundWorks Ensemble loudspeaker wasdesigned by Henry Kloss, a man whose name is synony-mous with audio revolution. Is revolution too strong a word?Consider that, in 1954, about the only way an audiophilecould get clean 30 -Hz bass was with a refrigerator -sizedcabinet in the listening room or a concrete horn built outsidethe room. However, in the fall of 1954 at the New York AudioFair, Edgar Villchur and Henry Kloss unveiled the AcousticResearch AR -1. a 2 -cubic -foot speaker with astounding 30 -Hz bass.

Villchur and Kloss battled the "refrigerator" technology forseveral years, slowly gaining acceptance for the radicalacoustic -suspension design. The stereo LP, introduced in1957, gave audio enthusiasts three choices-mono, tworefrigerators, or acoustic suspension. The giant speakersdied like dinosaurs. The makers of the mighty Klipschorneven introduced a bookshelf model which they defiantlynamed the "Heresy."

Kloss later founded KLH, which specialized it smallerspeakers and integrated high-fidelity systems. In 1967, hestarted Advent and developed large -screen television aswell as some good small speakers. This was the birth of thehome video theater. Today, the Kloss three -tube design isused by every home projection system. Kloss introducedthe Advent loudspeaker to help finance the expanding vid-eo business, but it became the largest selling speaker of alltime. Another "side" project was the development of the firstcassette deck with Dolby B NR. After starting Kloss Videoand later selling it to Ampro Corporation, Kloss returned tospeakers, teaming with former Advent and Kloss Videoassociate Tom DeVesto to form Cambridge SoundWorks.

Naturally, one wonders if Cambridge's Ensemble loud-speaker will further the Kloss legend by kindling anotherrevolution. History will probably not honor it as anotheracoustic suspension. video projector, or Dolby cassettetype of audio breakthrough, but it could set new standardsfor value and marketing savvy. It might even replace theAdvent as the best-selling loudspeaker ever.

The Ensemble is sold direct from the factory in a 50 -pound box for $499 plus shipping. It is a four -piece stereosystem: Two woofer and two satellite enclosures. Plenty ofspeaker wire and detailed setup instructions are included.You can send a check or phone Cambridge's toll -free num-ber (800-252-4434) and put it on your credit card. You'llreceive the package in one to five days, depending on howfar you are from the Boston area. An Ensemble can be airshipped in the U.S. overnight or to any place in the world inthree days and still look like a bargain. Cambridge willaccept the system back within 30 days and give a fullrefund. You are only out the shipping-one way.

Hassle -free home listening, Cambridge believes, is theonly way to find out if a speaker system is right for yourroom. Given this, the factory -direct route seems to be asgood as lugging a system home and back to a stereo store.Of course, a good stereo store has other models for you tosample as well as qualified advice. At this writirg, Cam-bridge offers only the Ensemble, but they take pride in theirtoll -free telephone advice, available seven days a week.

"Value," which means a high performance -to -price ratio,is stressed by Cambridge. Direct -mail selling helps keep

the price low: performance is advanced by using a woofer/satellite format and by concentrating on factors Kloss be-lieves to be perceptually important.

The satellites are tiny, so it is easy to place them for bestsoundstage and imaging The woofers operate up to 140Hz, so they should be located in the same end of the roomas the satellites, to avoid rearing upper bass coming from astrange direction. Still, this gives great ability to acousticallymatch tie system to the room. For more bass, you move thewoofers closer to room boundaries and to each other. Theeffect can be very strong. A recent paper in the Journal ofthe Audio Engineering Society, Glyn Adams' "Time Depen-dence of Loudspeaker Power Output in Small Rooms" (April1989). predicts 20-cB, position -dependent variations in low -frequency response. The small Ensemble woofer cabinetsare designed to tap this "free" bass, which translates to"value" by increasing performance.

Henry Kloss has long espoused the concept of "octave -to -octave balance" as the most critical element in perceivedloudspeaker quality. This means that the frequency re-sponse measured in the room and averaged over an octavebandwidth must be uniform. Another way of saying this isthat an octave -band equaizer can be used to fix many bad -sounding loudspeakers. t's not that gross nonlinearity orextreme narrow -band peaks can be ignored-Kloss justbelieves these are not the problems usually encountered.The portability of the four Ensemble components allows theuser to acoustically equalize the loudspeaker for best oc-tave -to -octave. balance.

Another Kloss tradition embodied in the Ensemble is theacoustic -suspension sealed -box woofer. The driver's conesuspension is made extremely compliant, with 90% of thenecessary stiffness being provided by the very linear airspring of the sealed enclosure. The most popular alternativeis the vented design, which uses an acoustical resonance toload the driver and extend bass response. Although ventedsystems have been around for at least 50 years, they suf-fered from a poor reputation for "boomy" bass until the early'70s. That was wher the work of Thiele and Small simplified

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 107

The portability of the fourEnsemble components letsyou acoustically equalizethis system for the bestoctave -to -octave balance.

18

16

14

12

10

8

6

4

2

0I0 100 1k

FREQUENCY - Hz

Fig. 1-Magnitude ofimpedance.

Fig. 3-One-meter on -axisanechoic frequencyresponse with an input of1 watt into 4 ohms (2.0 V).

10k 20k

Fig. 2-Compleximpedance.

100k

proper design to equations which could be evaluated on ahand-held calculator. Their work started the vented -box era,which dominates in today's designs. The "vented boxers"claim a lower -3 dB point, increased efficiency, and asmaller cabinet. The "acoustic suspenders" counter thatthere is too high a price to be paid for these advantages.

The price paid for the vented box's lower -3 dB point is afast roll-off-typically 24 dB per octave-below that point.My own experience indicates that listeners perceive bass"cutoff" to occur when the response is about -10 dB. Otherthings being equal, an acoustic -suspension system, with its12-dB/octave roll -off, might be perceived as extending low-er in frequency, even though its -3 dB point is higher thanthe vented design's. In addition, the vented box's faster roll -off results in more ringing on transients.

The vented boxers point out that their system's acousticresonance at cutoff results in greatly reduced cone motionand reduced distortion. The acoustic suspenders counterthat, in the range below the acoustic resonance, vented -boxcone motion increases dramatically and will cause evenmore distortion. In addition, they say that a large vent isnecessary for low distortion, and this can add significantly tothe cabinet volume.

The arguments go on endlessly, leaving one with thefeeling that there is no free lunch, only a choice of restau-rants. I feel that the choice is only difficult for systems whosegoal is response to between 30 and 40 Hz. I would tend togo sealed for classical purity and vented for maximum rockpunch. For small systems not aspiring to extend below 40Hz, I prefer sealed for transient response and for protectionfrom below -band `requencies. For big systems intending todo damage below 30 Hz, I say you might as well take theadvantages of vented, because 25 -Hz ringing is not a musi-cal or audible issue. Also, there are few signals low enoughin frequency to cause below -band overexcursion. (Thesesimplified recommendations are subject to other designoptions, such as the use of high-pass filters.)

The Ensemble uses a woofer enclosure for each satellite,as opposed to the popular single subwoofer module. Al-though I can accept the common-subwoofer concept atvery low frequencies, the Ensemble's 140 -Hz crossoverfrequency is a little high for the common -bass assumption.Also, be it necessary or not, two small woofers are easier toplace than one double -sized driver. The Ensemble woofersare especially easy to position because of their flat slabcabinets, finished in dark gray laminate on all six sides.

The tiny satellites, each housing a 4 -inch midrange and a13/4 -inch tweeter, are solid, dense, and precisely machined.The box has a perforated black metal grille, rounded cor-ners, and a gray Nextel finish which makes it feel a little wet.Whether this modern styling appeals to you or not, thesatellites are so small and neutral in appearance that theyare unlikely to conflict with any decor.

There are no controls on the woofer or the satellite. Be-cause there is a crossover in both the satellite and thewoofer, connection can be made from the amp to either thewoofer or the satellite, with another cable connecting thetwo boxes together. It is easier than hooking up Christmas -tree lights. Terminals are gold-plated, five -way bindingposts on standard 3/4 -inch centers, with big holes that will

108 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

Elegant new styling.

Balanced (600 i2 XLF )or unbalanced (50 kid RCA)input selection.

True dc capEbility.

Refined front-end cinuitdecoupling.

Increased bias levels Thresholdthrough enhanced optical' biasing presentsand improved heat sink wi-ling the

Custom manufactured,e series

extremely high -current outputterminal assemblies 'd:rectly SA/3.9eaccept WeberWire). SA/4e

The e series progresses from SAI6e60 Watts/channel STASIS SA/10epure class A through I horsepower SA/12emonoblock STASIS class ri/AB.

To see and hear these neap Si350eamplifier benchmarks from S/450eNelson Pass and Rene Bewe,

S/550evisit your nearest Author zedThreshold Dealer. S/1600e

For more information, wrIle.Threshold C)rporation12919 Earhart Ave., AubJrn,California 95603: or call1(800) 88E 8055.

Threshold

model SA /12,DAserire class AJWOr amplifier

Threshold

Thresloidcomponents are

st1=di by

Arguments over sealed andvented boxes leave youfeeling that there's nofree lunch, only a choiceof restaurants.

A

B

C

Fig. 4-Effect on systemamplitude below 1 kHz ofplacing low -frequencymodule at same distancefrom microphone assatellite (A), 24 inchescloser than satellite (B),and 24 inches farther thansatellite (C). At the 140 -Hzcrossover frequency, 24inches is 1/4 wavelength.

directly accept large -diameter specialty speaker cable. If

you are into the exotic, the speakers can easily be bi-wiredto a single amp.

Cambridge recommends initially hooking up the full 100feet of 18 -gauge zip cord supplied, so you can experimentwith speaker position. When you find the best location, youcan cut the cable to size or, if you want, purchase the exactlengths of specialty cable. If you need additional cable, callthe toll -free number, and Cambridge SoundWorks will sendit free of charge. Although the Ensemble manual is the bestI've seen for installing speakers, additional phone help isalways available. I was told that the manufacturer's goal isnot merely to satisfy but to delight the customer; they figure25% of their business comes from referrals by such "de-lighted" owners.

MeasurementsInput impedance magnitude as a function of frequency is

plotted in Fig. 1. A peak at 40 Hz is followed by a broad lowarea averaging 4 ohms between 60 and 500 Hz. This lowarea qualifies the Ensemble for a 4 -ohm nominal rating.Figure 2 shows the impedance in terms of reactance andresistance. A large reactance (vertical) with little resistance(horizontal) is difficult for an amplifier to drive. The Ensembleis most difficult around 60 Hz but should not prove a prob-lem for any 4 -ohm -rated amplifier.

-free or anechoic measurementthe Ensemble required a modification of Audio's usual tech-nique because of the woofer and satellite being in separateenclosures. The satellite, which operates above 140 Hz, willsuffer a response modification from reflections off of thewoofer cabinet if the two are too close together. I movedthem apart for this measurement; this is how they very oftenwill be used in the home. The satellite was measured in theusual manner, one meter away along the axis of its frontpanel. The woofer was also placed one meter away from theomnidirectional microphone, but off to the side to avoidreflections. This TDS measurement geometry provides near-ly anechoic data from the satellite combined with in -phasewoofer output.

The anechoic measurement is made in two parts: Anindoor, time -windowed measurement from 200 Hz to 20kHz, and an outdoor. ground -plane measurement from 10Hz to 1 kHz. The overlapping range from 200 Hz to 1 kHzserves as a calibration check; the curves are spliced togeth-er somewhere in this overlap range.

The combined plot of Fig. 3 is spliced at 350 Hz. Thelower range does not have reflections windowed out, so aslight roughness is visible. Some of this is due to the interfer-ing reflections between the two cabinets of the Ensemble.

The response shows bass roll -off below 60 Hz, a fairlysmooth midrange, and slightly elevated highs extending to20 kHz. This measurement does not reflect the bass boostand extension available by placing the woofer enclosurenear room boundaries. These effects would depend onexact placement and the specific room.

In practice, the length of the air paths from the woofersand satellites to the listener will most likely differ. One effectof this is phase shift and the possibility of cancellation nearthe crossover frequency of 140 Hz. As a rule of thumb,

110 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

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Warning: If you read this ad you'll wind up at your Sherwood dealer.Why? Well, it won't be the fact that our current line of home components is the finest we've

ever built. Or because our engineers didn't cut corners to assure excellent, long lasting performance.Or because you'll have enough jacks to handle an entire home entertainment center.

No, the reason you'll see your Sherwood dealer is to listen tothese components for yourself Because putting our sensibly priced P.Ifr

components to the test -is -a -heck of a krt more important than eri4vwx.ianything you'll find in an ad.If you think they sound good now, wait until you hear them. LIVE PERFORMANCE MIND"

13815 t fFSIA BIND CERRITOS, CA 90701 IN CANADA: NORESCO CANADA INC., TORONTO, ONTARIO ©1989 INKEI, 4515)R44611.

23

30

Enter No 31 on Reader Service Card

Even at 41.2 Hz, the SPLof the distortion is notall that great, and at 440Hz, the distortion becomesexceptionally low.

61'

Fig. 5-One-meter on -axisanechoic phaseresponse.

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Fig. 7-Horizontal off -axisresponse plots taken fromthe front, around the side,to the rear of speaker.

Fig. 6-Three-meter roomresponse measured onaxis and 30° off axis;off -axis curve has beenlowered for clarity.

Fig. 8-Vertical off -axisplots taken from below,up the front, to top ofspeaker.

holding phase shift to less than 90° should prevent cancella-tion. This translates to holding the distance between listenerand woofer to within 24 inches of the distance from listenerto satellite. Another source of interaction is the reflection ofsatellite radiation off the woofer enclosure or any othernearby object. Both these effects are shown in the threefrequency response plots of Fig. 4. The lumpy curvesshould not be too distressing, as this is just a glimpse of thereal world instead of anechoic measurement. Here, a fre-quency response notch indicates that this range of sound isradiated in a direction other than toward the microphone. Ina real room, this sound will arrive at the listener after one ormore reflections, which does not sound nearly as bad asnever hearing the sound.

Psychoacoustic studies reported by Jens Blauert in Spa-tial Hearing (MIT Press, 1983, p. 206) indicate that time

shifts of 1 mS or less can cause an image shift of 10° forfrequencies as low as 100 Hz. For this reason, one shouldkeep the woofers an equal distance from the listener, ifpossible. What all of this means is that despite CambridgeSoundWorks' wide range of recommended woofer locationpossibilities, the sound will probably be best if the woofersare the same distance away from the listening position asthe satellites.

Anechoic phase response of the system is shown in Fig.5. Having 720° of phase shift over the audio band is com-mon in well -designed three-way systems. While it is notcause for concern, it makes one think twice about laying outa couple hundred dollars for speaker cable that promises0.5° improvement at 20 kHz. The fact that the phase shiftnears 0° below 50 Hz indicates that the Ensemble system'swoofer polarity is the reverse of normal.

112 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

THE ULTIMATE REFERENCE

The KEF Reference Series began as an idea to design a range of loudspeakers built to such close tolerances thateach and every model would match the performance of its laboratory reference sample.

The Model 107 represents the pinnacle of this Reference technology It embodies such KEF proprietary loud-speaker engineering as the couple -cavity bass loading system for deep bass from elegantly proportioned enclosures.Its impedance load -matching crossover extracts the maximum performance from your amplifier.These and other technological accomplishments have earned KEF its "Reference Class" reputationamong the most knowledgeable audiophiles.

If you are seriously interested in the very finest loudspeaker, audition the KEF Model 107 or anyof the KEF Reference Series. The speakers against which all others are judged.

KEF Electronics of America, Inc.,14120-K Sullyfield Circle, Chantilly, VA 22021Enter No. 16 on Reader Service Card

The Speaker Engineers

It's not that the Ensembleis unusually sensitive toits location-just thatusing separated woofersallows fine tuning.

FREQUENCY - Hz

Fig. 9-Harmonicdistortion for the musicaltone E1 (41.2 Hz).

2nd, 0.36%

1

10

POWER-WATTS

MAXIMUM POWER 125 WATTS

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Fig. 11- Harmonicdistortion for the musicaltone A4 (440 Hz).

2nd, 4.9%

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POWER-WATTS

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FRFTJFNrY -Hz

Fig. 10-Harmonicdistortion for the musicaltone A2 (110 Hz).

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Fig. 12-IM producedby mixing A4 and E1(440 and 41.2 Hz) inequal proportion.

The Ensemble's interaction with the walls, ceiling, andfloor of a real listening room, during the first 10 mS, isplotted in Fig. 6 for on axis and 30° off axis. The reflectionsadd to and subtract from the speaker's direct sound in anormal manner. Tweeter directivity is only evident at fre-quencies above 15 kHz.

Horizontal and vertical off -axis anechoic plots are shownin a 3-D presentation in Figs. 7 and 8. The Ensembleexhibits the omnidirectional radiation expected from anysmall speaker at low frequencies. The fairly narrow yetuniform directivity above 5 kHz is surprising. This could beused to widen the stereo "sweet spot" around the centerline between the two speakers by rotating the satellitesinward so their axes cross in front of the listener.

Figures 9, 10. and 11 show the level of harmonic distor-tion products for power inputs from 0.1 to 125 watts, for

frequencies of 41.2 Hz (E1), 110 Hz (A2), and 440 Hz (A4),respectively. The percentage of distortion at 41.2 Hz, for allpower inputs, is on the high side because it is shown as apercentage of a rolled -off fundamental. Up to the 100 -wattlimit, distortion SPL is not great. Distortion at 110 Hz isreasonable, and at 440 Hz, distortion is exceptionally low.

When a speaker simultaneously reproduces two tones,they may interact or modulate each other. Audio uses twomusical tones, E1 and A4, 41.2 and 440 Hz, to test for this.Results for the Ensemble, plotted in Fig. 12, are the lowestIM readings I have yet found in testing speakers for thismagazine. The reason is that the 140 -Hz crossover pointassigns the tones to two separate drivers, so there is almostno interaction. This is not a trick of the measurement; theEnsemble will have little modulation of highs due to low bassnotes in music.

114 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

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Home Body. This is you- time. And you enjoy it most when your home emertainmentsystem is performing at i3 best. Which is why Pioneer created the VSX-9300S audio/video receiver

It actually improves the performance of all your components. The VSX-9300S featuresthe latest innovation from Dolby Labs, Dolby Pro -Logic: This surround sound experiencerivals even the most sophisticated movie theaters. There is also a split-screen video enhancerthat sharpens and focuses every video image. And a "Smart Remote" " con-sol that turnsyour existing components into a unified A/V system.

Pioneer's VSX-9300S A/V receiver. There is PIONIEFErzsimply no better way to get it all out of your system.

We Bring The ReNoolution Home."

1988 Pioneer Electronics (USA)ilnc., Ling Beach, CA. For more information, call 1-800-421-1404_ Dolby Pro -Logic is a ttademark of Do.by Labs, Inc.

Enter No. 27 on Reader Serv.ce Card

The Ensemble is not thebest speaker system in theworld, but it may be thebest speaker value around.It's a winner.

24

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Fig. 13-Power linearity(input power handling vs.frequency for 1 dBcompression of theoutput).

Li0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

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9 10 12 13

30k

Fig. 14-One-meteron -axis energyvs. time.

Power linearity, plotted for the Ensemble in Fig. 13, is afull -range test of power handling. Power is increased ateach frequency, until the acoustic output fails to increasealong with it. The Ensemble accepts only moderate power inthe bass, but it is linear in most of the upper range, with themaximum 256 -watt input I use for these tests. It is evidentthat using amps with more than 150 watts output would beof little benefit with the Ensemble.

Dispersion of acoustic energy in time is plotted in Fig. 14.The Ensemble behaves in an excellent manner, showingsynchronized midrange and tweeter arrivals and freedomfrom diffraction. reflection, and resonance.

Use and Listening TestsThe Ensemble is efficiently packaged and well protected

for shipping, and I was amazed at the sheer amount of stuffyou get for $499. In addition to the four fully finished speakerboxes, there are four lengths of wire with the ends stripped,solderless wire nuts, two sizes of stick -on rubber feet (thelarge ones didn't stick too .well), and even screws andplastic anchors for hanging the satellites on a wall. The 13 -page manual, as I mentioned, is excellent.

As Cambridge suggests for initial setup, I ran the fulllength of supplied wire between the four cabinets and a200 -watt -per -channel amplifier. I positioned the satellites

where small speakers generally sound best in my 18 x 25 -foot room, centered along the short wall, about 8 feet apart,30 inches off the floor, and well out from the wall behindthem. Initially, I placed the woofers below the satellites onthe floor. The sound was spacious yet retained a seamlessstage of instrument locations. This told me that the satelliteswere in a good starting location. The bass was too thin,however, so I searched for more.

The next position of the woofers was in the corners behindme. "Bass is nondirectional, so it doesn't matter where thewoofers are-right?" If you believe that, I've got a great dealfor you on some beach -front property in Phoenix. Mayberear placement works for true subwoofers most of the time,but with the Ensemble woofers going up to 140 Hz, it

sounded weird-especially when I turned my head. Thecorner location did increase the bass, however. Next, I triedwoofers along the walls at my sides and got separated lowsand highs on male voice. Front corner placement providedtoo much bass, giving a woolly sound.

To save time, I used a third -octave real-time analyzer toposition both satellites and woofers for smoothest response.Room response with woofers at the side walls, but forward,ended up being impressively flat: About ±2 dB from 80 Hzto 16 kHz. However, a peak at 63 Hz remained, with fast roll -off below that. I think a careful listener can also accomplishoptimal placement while listening to music, but it will takelonger. Optimum locations will, generally, be different fordifferent rooms, but I do recommend keeping the Ensem-ble's woofers in the same end as the satellites and approxi-mately the same distance from the listener as the satellites.But don't get the impression that the Ensemble is unusuallylocation sensitive; it's just that the separated woofer allowsthe option of fine tuning.

Longer term listening confirmed the Ensemble's spa-cious, airy quality and accurate soundstage. Spectral bal-ance, however, was a little too bright on the top end for mytaste. This was corrected by angling the satellites inward sothat I was slightly off axis. I was also bothered by a bassresonance when listening to the massed strings in the ThirdMovement of Schubert's Symphony No. 9 (Telarc CD -80110). This was probably due to the 63 -Hz peak. I pre-ferred this and other pieces of classical music with thewoofers farther away from room boundaries.

The satellites have flat response and almost no distortionin the midrange: Their crossover is seamless, and directivityis excellent. Detail and focus, however, were not as good asI expected on some music. For instance, the title song fromJennifer Warnes' Famous Blue Raincoat (Cypress YD -0100)can be so detailed and intimate that it sounds like you areinside Jennifer's mouth. With the Ensemble, she was singingfrom the other side of the room. That's okay too. but for me,the communication of this gloomy piece comes from itsintimacy.

So the Ensemble is not the best speaker system in theworld. (I'll bet Wilson Audio and Infinity are breathing a sighof relief, knowing that their $50,000 systems survived thechallenge.) What Cambridge SoundWorks had in mind,however, was the best value in the world, and they mayhave it. Henry Kloss will have to settle for less than an audiorevolution this time --just a winner. David L. Clark

116 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

Old Records,New Life

Iwanted a better cassette deck.So one Saturday I dropped by ahi-fi store. The salesman took meinto one of the sound rooms for ademonstration. Racks of equipmentwere everywhere. He started tomake a recording and I immediatelyfell in love with the music. It wasso clean, so rich, so dynamic.

"What CD is that?" I asked.He didn't hear me over the

music but it didn't matter because Iquickly saw that I wasn't listeningto a CD at all. It was a record.

I made quick mental notesof the system I was hearing. I walkedover to the wall of speakers anddiscovered that KLIPSCH® kg4s®were playing. That was the first timeI had truly heard wide dynamicrange.

I didn't buy a cassette deckthat day. I spent less money andbought a new pair of kg4s. They'veput new life in my old recordcollection. My CDs sound simplyawesome. I never heard music soclearly.

For your nearest KLIPSCH dealer,look in the Yellow Pages or call tollfree, 1-800-223-3527.

41011clipschA LEGEND IN SOUND'

P.O. BOX 688 HOPE, ARKANSAS USA 71801

Enter No 17 on Reader Service Card

EQUIPMENT PROFILE

JVC XP -A1010DIGITALACOUSTICSPROCESSOR

Manufacturer's SpecificationsDigital Inputs: Optical, coaxial, and

DAT play (coaxial) with automaticselection of 32-, 44.1-, or 48 -kHzsampling frequency.

Analog Inputs: Line in and tapeplay.

Digital Outputs: Optical and coaxialline out, coaxial DAT record.

Analog Outputs: Main, front DAP(Digital Acoustics Processor), andrear DAP out, and tape record.

Input Sensitivity: 500 mV.Maximum Output: 5 V.THD: Main, 0.002%; DAP, 0.004%

from digital sources and 0.005%from analog sources.

Frequency Response: Main, 5 Hzto 100 kHz, +0, -3 dB; DAP, 5 Hzto 20 kHz, + 0.5, -1 dB (digital) or+0.5, -3 dB (analog).

S/N: Main, 110 dB analog and 100 dBdigital; DAP, 94 dB.

D/A Converter: 16 -bit linear withfour -times oversampling digital filter.

A/D Converter: 16 -bit with 64 -timesoversampling, left and right inde-pendent.

SoundField Patterns: 20 pro-grammed and 20 manual.

Power Requirements: 120 V a.c.,60 Hz.

Power Consumption: 25 watts.Dimensions: 18 /4 in. W x 4 in. H x

143/16 in. D (47.5 cm x 10.2 cm x36 cm).

Weight: 15 lbs. (6.8 kg).Price: $1,200.Company Address: 41 Slater Dr.,

Elmwood Park, N.J. 07407.For literature, circle No. 93

Theater 5Standard

118 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

The XP -A1010 is the digital acoustics processor part ofJVC's Super Digifine line of digital -ready audio components.Its digital circuits simulate the sound fields of live musicperformances by digitally replicating directions and levelsof reflections and reverberation. The processor containsROM (read-only memory), where a vast amount of data fromactual sound -field measurements is stored. A newly devel-oped digital acoustics processing LSI (large-scale integra-tion) device synthesizes the early reflections with properdirection, timing, and reverberation, in accordance with thestored data. The digital processing is performed in 16 -bitquantization at a sampling rate of 48 kHz, using a tour -timesoversampling D/A converter and a 64 -times oversamplingND converter. The entire process operates independentlyin the left and right channels to ensure accurate re-creationof the sound fields.

Twenty sound -field patterns are stored in ROM and 20user -programmable sound fields can be stored for one -button recall. Several acoustical parameters can be adjust-ed, including room size, liveness, and reverberation level.Ambience compensation can be set for both the source andthe listening room. The system can be configured for eitherfour- or six -channel operation and the six -gang volumecontrol adjusts all channel levels simultaneously. Figure 1 isa block diagram of half (left or right) of the XP -A1010. Thefront -panel fluorescent display is programmable. The unit isfinished in titanium but is also available at the same price inblack, with wood end panels, as the XP -A1000.

In any performance hall, reflections from the room sur-faces create a sound field unique to that particular site. Theacoustical characteristics of the hall can be analyzed bymeasuring these reflections. JVC uses a pulsive sourcelocated on the stage and an array of six microphonesplaced at the best listening position. These measurementmicrophones are located on X, Y, and Z axes, as shown inFig. 2. Each microphone pair is spaced a distance "d"apart, and each microphone is 1/2d from the origin "0."Usually, there are many peak signals among the impulseresponses of the microphones. For accurate analysis, it is

TAPEMONITOR

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Fig. 1-Block diagram ofone set of channels (leftor right) of the XP -A1010processor.

DIGITALSIGNALPROCESSING

necessary to identify the peak signals caused by the samereflect on of the pulsive sound source.

Three relationsftps lead to correct identification. The firstis that the arrival times to each pair of microphones aredifferent but symmetrica! for each pair, relative to the arrivaltime at the origin (Fig. 3). Second, the arrival angles X, Y,and Z are related, in that the sum of cos2 X, cos2 Y, and cos2Z is equal to 1. Finally, the peak signals from the samereflection are very nearly equal in amplitude at all six micro-phones. The advantage of this measurement system is thatvirtual images can be obtained with reasonable accuracyby identifying individual reflections-even when more thanone reflection is received in the same time span.

Control LayoutAt the left end of the front panel are large pushbutton

switches for, top to bottom, "Digital Direct," "Power," and"Remote Sensor." To the right are three orange status lightsfor "Sampling Frequency": "48 kHz," "44 kHz" (actually44.1 kHz, for CDs and some prerecorded DATs), and "32kHz." With a digital source connected, the unit automaticallyswitches to the correct frequency and illuminates the corre-sponding LED. "Digital Direct" is a light -touch switch; if itssmall orange status light is on, this indicates that the analoginputs are disconnected When the switch is off, the analoginputs, are connected and the 48 -kHz LED is on.

Further to the right are red status indicators for "TapeMonitor" and "DAP Recording." (Although "DAP" stands for"Digital Acoustics Processor," the "P" can also stand for"Processed" or "Processing," depending on the context.)The two associated switches, which will be described later,are interlocked so they cannot both be on at the same time;their circuit positions can be determined from Fig. 1. When"DAP Recording" s selected, the front DAP signal is mixedinto the main -channel feed to "Tape Rec." "DAP Recording"is not available with the digital input.

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 119

The XP -A1010 offers 20preset programs, lets youstore 20 more, and allowsadjustments for listeningroom and source material.

Fig. 2-Two-dimensionalrepresentation of thethree-dimensional arrayof measurementmicrophones used indeveloping the XP -A1010.The "Y" axis, shown hereas a diagonal, wouldactually be at right anglesto this page; see text.

X1

X2

Y1

Y2

Z1

Z2

Fig. 3-Symmetry ofsounds' arrival timesat measurementmicrophones, relativeto arrival time at origin;see text.

The amber, multi -mode display covers a good part of thepanel, and its large size and the contrast of its charactersmake the display easy to read at a good distance. Operat-ing modes, parameters, and other information are shown invarious combinations, depending upon choices made withfront -panel and remote -control switches. For example, thetop line might show "P10: Church" and the second line"High-Ceilinged Space." The "P10" indicates that this is thetenth programmed preset. I will describe more of what isshown when the switching is discussed. The "Master Vol-ume" control, with its really large knob and helpful whiteindex, is at the far right. The knob's side is smooth, but itslarge size makes this control easy to turn. It is motor -drivenwhen the remote is used. A small, orange "Mute" indicatoris just above the knob.

A fold -down access cover extends from the remote sen-sor on the left to the volume knob on the right. Behind it area total of 15 small, light -touch buttons. The first two, "TapeMonitor" and "DAP Recording," are electronically inter-locked, as mentioned before. The next three, to the rightand slightly separated, are "Spread/Point," "Source Re -verb," and "Listening Room"; all three buttons are on theremote control as well. Pushing any of these switcheschanges the display. "Spread/Point" selects either a modefor spread sources, such as orchestras, or a mode for pointsources, such as piano. A push of this button shows thepresent mode, "Spread" or "Point," on the bottom line of thedisplay; a second push changes to the other mode, with thedisplay reflecting this change. About 5 S after "Spread/Point" is pressed or a change is made, the display returns toits original content.

Pushing "Source Reverb" changes the display's secondline to "Source Reverb = M.Ns" ("M.Ns" is the time inseconds and tenths). Up and down buttons toward the rightend of the row can be used to set the time anywhere from0.0 to 5.0 S in 0.1-S steps. A single push of either buttongets a one-step change. After the button is held in for about0.5 S, the time changes continuously at about 10 steps perS. One limitation of the XP -A1010, in my view, is that anychange in this parameter is applied to all programs, not justthe one in use. The second line of the display continues toshow this information for about one minute after "SourceReverb" is pressed or after a change is made, then switch-es back to its original content.

A push of "Listening Room" changes the second line to"L. Room Reverb = M.Ns," and "M.Ns" can be set in 0.1-Ssteps from 0.2 to 0 6 S. A second push of "Listening Room"changes the display to "L. Room Size = " and one of thethree selectable room sizes: "<10 m2," "10 - 16 m2," or">16 m2." Being able to adjust these two parameters,listening room reverb and size, is certainly unusual, and JVCargues persuasively for how important this is in obtainingthe best listening conditions.

Next on the right is a simple but important LED input -levelmeter, with only three LEDs for each channel. The first two ofthe three are yellow LEDs for "15 Bit" and "16 Bit" levels; thelast LED in each channel's row is red and is labelled "Over."Pressing the "Input Level" button, just to the right, causesthat legend to appear on the top line of the display, with a13 -segment level meter on the line below. The meter is

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JVC persuasively arguesthe importance of beingable to adjust for the sizeand reverb time of yourlistening room.

calibrated from " - 24" to "0," and its bottom segment re-mains illuminated even when there is no input. The first stepdown is about 1.5 dB, followed by a series of 2 -dB steps to- 16.6 dB, a 1 -dB step to -17.6 dB, and two 2 -dB steps to-21.7 dB. This range and resolution is quite acceptable forsetting the levels into the DAP A/D converters. It is best toset the input level high enough for a 16 -bit indication, but ifyou switch to a higher level source, be careful. In case ofdoubt, always check the level indicator to make certain that"Over" is not turning on.

Pushing "Input Level" again resets the display to show"Input Balance," with a 13 -position balance scale runningfrom "L" through "C" to "R," and a balance -indicating cur-sor block. When the block is right on the center, it blanks out"C." The six steps each way from center are roughly 2 dBeach, with a total reduction of 11 dB when all the way left orright. Correct balance is indicated when the L and R bitindicators in the little level display flash equally. This bal-ance adjustment affects only the surround outputs, not themain ones.

"Character," the next button on the right, is for titlingmanual -preset programs. A push of this button starts acursor flashing under the first available position in the sec-ond display line. Pushing the up and down buttons at theright steps through the alphabet (upper and lower case)and the digits 0 to 9. When the desired letter or number is onthe screen, pushing the "Character" button again entersyour choice and steps the cursor one position to the right,for your next entry. The result can be saved in memory.

The next button, "Parameter," selects the processing pa-rameters to be adjusted for the 20 user -programmablesound fields. For the first 15 programs, successive pushesof this button select "Room Size," "Liveness," "LPF" (low-pass filter), "Reverb Level," "HF Reverb," and "Offs Delay"(offset delay-more on that later). For programs 16 to 19,"Rear Delay" is added between "HF Reverb" and "OffsDelay"; only "Rear Delay" can be adjusted for program 20.The parameter being adjusted and its current setting ap-pear on the second line of the display-e.g., "Room Size =1.0"-and remain there for one minute. "Room Size" and"Liveness" have a range of 0.5 to 2 in arbitrary units. Theprogram preset values are 1.0, and adjustments can bemade in steps of 0.1 units, using the up/down buttons. Thelow-pass filter ("LPF") can be set anywhere from 1 to 16 kHzin 1 -kHz steps or to "Thru" (flat). Program preset valuesrange from 3 to 16 kHz, depending on the particular pro-gram selected.

"Reverb Level" is adjustable over an arbitrary scale from0 to 2 in 0.1 -unit steps, starting from an initial value of 1.0.The calibrations for "HF Reverb" are the ratios between thesignal's high- and low -frequency reverberation and rangefrom 0.1 to 1 in 0.1 -unit steps. The initial preset values forthis parameter range from 0.3 to 1.0, depending on theprogram.

According to the manual, offset delay is used only whenthe stereo system's main amplifier is JVC's AX2911BK oper-ating in its Digital Pure -A mode. In this mode, digital inputsignals are delayed while the amplifier's circuits assess thesignal, predict the output level it will require, and adjust thepower supply's voltage so the amp will be able to stay in

Class -A operation when the signal finally reaches it. "OffsDelay" on the XP -A1010 processor adds an extra delay tothe surround channels to compensate for this delay in theamp; it's a unique feature and a sign of the times.

"Rear Delay" has an adjustment range from 15 to 30 mSin 1-mS steps. Its initial value is 20 mS for programs 16through 20.

To the right of the "Parameter" button are the "F/DAPLevel" and "R/DAP Level" buttons. A push displays theparameter name and a horizontal, 13 -segment level meter.Each attenuation step down from maximum level is about 2dB, for a total of close to 22 dB when the first 12 bars areturned off. A 13th push turns off the 13th bar and mutes thefront and rear outputs. The DAP level display stays on for 5S after the last change.

The next two buttons are for "Programmed Preset" and"Manual Preset." The first of these selects the suppliedprograms stored in ROM (read-only memory). When the XP -A1010 leaves the factory, its 20 manual preset programshave all the same parameter settings as the equivalentprogrammed presets. But in "Manual Preset" mode, theseparameters can be changed, and the second line of eachprogram's title display can be edited.

Just to the right are the "Down" and "Up" buttons, eachmarked with an open -V arrowhead; the many functions ofthese switches have already been discussed. The last but-ton to the right. "Memory," is for entering modified programswhen in "Manual Preset" mode.

I removed the wood side pieces, then the top and sidemetal cover. The power transformer is in a relatively narrowsection along the left of the chassis. It was just warm to thetouch after some hours of operation. Electronic circuitrycovers the remainder of the chassis area. The front portion,just behind the front panel controls and display, has a metal

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As soon as I began foolingaround with the XP -A1010,I was struck with thesmoothness of its sound.

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cover which I did not remove. The p.c. board is large and ofvery good quality. It extends from the covered portion to theback panel and has high -quality parts in a neat, orderedlayout. Parts are identified, and adjustment pots and func-

with favor the generousheat -sinks for a number of transistors.

The soldering, in general, was excellent. There were a fewspots with flux remaining-some apparently from last-min-ute changes. Interconnections were made with multi -con-ductor cables, most with plugs. The multi -section masterlevel control and its motor drive are at the right front, with ashaft extension to the front -panel knob permitting directmanual adjustment. A horizontal, medium-sized p.c. boardis mounted to the back panel. The board is light, but I

thought it would benefit from additional support. The backpanel itself is springy, but the rest of the chassis is fairlyrigid-more so with the cover in place.

From the left, the rear panel has gold-plated stereo jackpairs for "Line In," "Main Out," "F/DAP Out," "R/DAP Out,""Tape Rec," and "Tape Play." A pushbutton farther to theright selects "DAP Mode" ("4 Ch" or "6 Ch").

Close to the center of the panel are six jacks and a slideswitch for "Digital" connections. The "Line" connectionsinclude both optical and gold-plated coaxial jacks for digi-tal -signal "In" and "Thru Out." The latter simply feeds thesignal on to other components with digital inputs. The slideswitch selects either the optical or coaxial connections; afiber-optic cable is supplied with the XP -A1010. Gold-platedcoaxial "DAT" record and play jacks complete this connec-tion array.

The remote control, like those for most sound -field pro-cessors, is somewhat complex, with a total of 41 buttons.However, the remote's light -gold labels are easy to readagainst the black background.

The four buttons at the transmitting end of the controlselect either programmed or manual presets, enable man-ual preset changes to be stored in memory, and controldisplay modes. Pressing the "Display" button once turns off

the input -level indicator, pressing it again turns off the paneldisplay, and a third push turns both back on again.

The 20 numbered keys in the next five rows select individ-ual programmed or manual presets. Having only numbersfor these preset buttons frustrated me at first, until I hadused the remote control long enough to remember thenames of the associated programs. The first six programsare all named "Symphony Hall" and are numbered the sameas their memories. Numbers 1 to 3 are labelled "ShoeboxType" on the second display line; numbers 4 to 6 are"Vineyard Type," which indicates a fan -shaped layout withtiered seating. The seventh program is "Recital Hall," subti-tled "Small Musical Space"; next come "Opera House," with"Tiered Seating," and two churches: "Cathedral/GothicStyle" and "Church/High-Ceilinged Space."

The rest of the preprogrammed sound fields are orientedmore toward pop music. First come two "Live Club" pro-grams ("Jazz Club" and "Discotheque"), "Pavilion/LiveConcert," "Gymnasium/Hard-Floored Hall," and "Stadium/Outdoor Live Concert." Last come the five "Movie Theater"sound fields, subtitled "Small Space," "Medium -SizedSpace," "Large Space," "Extra -Large Space," and "Stan-dard."

The remaining 17 buttons fall into two main groups. Thefirst group includes buttons for "Character," "Parameter,""Source Reverb," and "Listening Room," as well as buttons(" + " and " - ") for adjusting these functions and "Spread/Point" and "Main Mute" buttons. All of these duplicate frontpanel buttons except "Main Mute." When "Main Mute" ispressed, the main stereo channels are muted, the orangeLED above the volume control flashes, and "Main Muting" isshown in the second line of the display until another buttonis pressed. A second press of the muting button turns off themute, stops the flashing, and returns the second line to itsoriginal content.

The final three rows, which control "F/DAP Level," "R/DAPLevel," and "Master Volume," have identical layouts. Eachhas, from the left, a "Mute" button, the control title. and"Down" and "Up" buttons. When the front or rear DAPchannels are muted, the LED above the front panel volumecontrol flashes and either "Front Muting" or "Rear Muting"appears in the display. The "Master Volume" muting buttonturns off all six channels. Therefore, there is no displayreadout when this mute is activated-although the orangeLED goes on steadily. Either the F/DAP or the R/DAP hori-zontal, 13 -segment bar graph appears whenever an associ-ated "Down" or "Up" level button is pushed.

MeasurementsAll measurements were made after the listening and view-

ing. As Fig. 4 shows, the right main -channel response wasvery flat, down only 0.04 dB at 20 Hz and 0.02 dB at 20 kHz.The -3 dB points were at 4.1 Hz and close to 200 kHz. Theleft -channel results were almost exactly the same. Figure 5shows the comb -filter -type response of the F/DAP outputwith a mono input and one of the preset programs; anotherprogram would have a different response.

Input sensitivity was 362 mV, the input level which justturned on the level indicator's "16 -Bit" LEDs; the maximumacceptable input level (red LEDs just on) was 768 mV. I did

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Dialog centering turnedout to be better than Ihad expected, despite thelack of a center channel.

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not find anything I could call input clipping for the DAPchannels, but waveform distortion was obvious at 600 mV,which is actually below the level where the red LEDs turnedon. The maximum, no -clipping input level for the main chan-nels was 6.5 V; output clipping did not appear at the 6-Voutput obtained with "Master Volume" at maximum. The S/Nratio, with a 1-V reference, was 118 dBA for the mainchannels and close to 99 dBA for the DAP channels. Theright R/DAP channel, however, measured 95.3 dBA, whichis still excellent. Figure 6 shows THD + N across the bandfor the main channels at 1 V input. The excellent figures areless than 0.001% over most of the band, reaching only0.0025% or so near 20 kHz.

The output/input level difference was -0.7 dB on the leftmain channels and - 0.6 dB on the right, with the "MasterVolume" at maximum. Input impedance was 42 kilohms;output impedance was very close to 660 ohms on all chan-nels. The two sections of the input -level attenuator trackedwell within 1 dB over the control's complete range. All sixsections of the "Master Volume" control tracked within 1 dBover a range of nearly 70 dB, which is outstanding. Fairlyexact balance with a mono input-null in the R/DAP out-puts-was achieved with the input balance set to "C." The40 -dB null at 1 kHz might have been better if balance wereset with a trim pot rather than in 2 -dB steps.

In the "Movie Theater" modes, the rear -delay adjustmentrange was from 16 to 32 mS, in accurate 1-mS steps. Withthe "Master Volume" at maximum, the 48 -kHz residual wasmore than 100 dB below 1 V in the main outputs, 88 dB inthe F/DAP outputs, and 99 dB in the R/DAP outputs. With thevolume at a more normal 1 o'clock position, the residualswere down another 10 dB. Separation between the main leftand right channels was 80 dB or better across the band.Figure 7 shows the DAP outputs in manual preset, with the"Symphony Hall 5" program, when a 2 -cycle, 300-Hz toneburst with a 100-mS period was fed to the inputs. Twoperiods, a total of 200 mS, are shown. Other programsproduced other patterns in the four channel outputs.

Output polarity was the same as input; this was true forboth the main and DAP channels.

The red "Over" LED was triggered by a 10-mS burst of 5 -kHz tone only 1 dB above the continuous signal level re-quired for indicator turn -on. This is good peak detection, butthe user should still adjust levels for minimum flashing of thisLED, even on peaks. The decay time for turn-off of the 15 -bitLED was about 150 mS, which is slightly short.

Use and Listening TestsThe reference processor for the listening/viewing tests

was the Yamaha DSP-1. A Yamaha AVC-50 amp was usedfor switching the various sources: A Yamaha TX -900U AM/FM tuner, a Magnavox 1041 CD player, a Sanyo VCR -7200Beta VCR, an Akai VS -555U VHS VCR, and a Yamaha LV-X1videodisc player. I adjusted responses of the various chan-nels with a Soundcraftsmen DC2214 octave -band equalizerand a TEAC PE -40 four -channel parametric equalizer. Forpower amplification, I used the second section of the AVC-50 for the main stereo channels and a Yamaha four-channelMX -35 amp for the surround channels. The speakers weretwo JBL 4301s (main stereo), a self -powered Triad DesignHSW-300 (subwoofer), and four Dynaco A -25s (front andrear surround).

The Akai VS -555U VCR was used as the stereo -TV decod-er. I connected a two -channel oscilloscope across the leftand right inputs and operated it in X/Y mode to show theexistence or lack of stereo and surround information. As Fig.1 shows, the JVC processor has no center or subwooferchannel outputs. I have always considered a center outputto be essential for the best results with movies, but the proofwould be in the viewing and listening. Self -powered sub -woofers, such as my Triad Design HSW-300, can be con-nected across the main speaker lines. so this lack is not afundamental limitation on subwoofer use.

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With music sources, theXP -A1010 generated manysatisfying, even exciting,sound -field illusions.

--****Im&AFig. 7-Surround outputsfor modified version of"Symphony Hall 5" presetprogram, with 2 -cycle,300 -Hz tone burst fed toinput. Results shown are,from top to bottom, forleft F/DAP output, rightF/DAP output, left R/DAPoutput, and right R/DAPoutput.

The owner's manual is fairly good, with considerabledetail on combining and interconnecting associated equip-ment. The descriptions of panel and remote control func-tions and the instructions on balancing are well written. I dofeel, however, that there should have been more details onthe acoustics of the programs and on what parameters tochange for particular sonic modifications. The manualstates that the remote control is effective up to 23 feet onaxis. I got response at 30 feet, which was confirmed by theflash of the front panel "Remote Sensor" red LED. At greatdistances, the control must be pointed accurately, and thesensor's reception angle is narrow. At short distances, reli-able operation is possible with much wider angles.

I spent some time just fooling around with the XP -A1010,trying various sources. Immediately, I was struck with thesmoothness of the sound. I also felt that a number of theprograms sounded very close to one or more others. Thedefault balances provided too low a level of surroundsound-at least with my equipment-and I increased F/DAPand R/DAP levels for all of the programs to meet my prefer-ences. I changed parameters for most of the programs toget combinations that produced what I felt were more realis-tic illusions, and set the parameters for listening room rever-beration and size which matched my room. I could not setindividual source reverberation times for each program,which was a little frustrating. I programmed a value of 1.2 Sbut ended up changing it for some programs.

Although the JVC processor does not have a center -channel output, I concluded that movie dialog required thatcenter source. Roman Polanski's Frantic, with Harrison Ford(Warner Home Videodisc), had excellent overall soundquality. I tried "Spread/Point" to see its effect on dialog;

there was little change between settings, and I sometimespreferred the results with "Spread." The presence of thedialog was noticeably better than I had expected, but it wasnot a match for the results I would have gotten from a centerspeaker. The character of the surround was very good, andthe sound quality was excellent. One puzzlement: Therewas no surround sound during scenes inside the movie'sdisco -like Blue Pa'rot Cafe; there could have been morethan an occasional pan of dialog or effects. Among themovie theater programs, I preferred "Medium -Sized Space"or "Standard."

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, also with Harri-son Ford (Paramount Home Videodisc), had very goodmusic and effects for surround sound. I found that I couldset the R/DAP level quite high and at twice that for F/DAP.

I

preferred the "Large Space" movie theater program, but thesurround was so good at points that "Extra Large Space"was a better choice. "Spread" was better for dialog than"Point" in a number of places. Top Gun, with Tom Cruiseand Kelly McGillis (Paramount Videodisc), really needs sur-round sound to be effective. I could set the F/DAP and R/DAP. levels quite high without speaker localization. Thepositioning of effects, especially jet flyovers, was very goodby ear and in the oscilloscope X/Y display. Once again, thequality of dialog without a center speaker was better thanexpected.

Stevie Nicks-In Concert (Pioneer Artists Videodisc) puz-zled me at first, in that I couldn't find any program I reallyliked or disliked. This source had very strong in -phaseinformation and little that could be called "surround." I foundthat some preferences emerged at higher levels: "Live Club1/Jazz Club" and "Live Club 2/Discotheque." The source,however, remained a disappointing one.

The first thing I tried on TV was a CBS broadcast of aGeorgetown versus Pittsburgh basketball game. There werestereo signals, and it was curious to watch the considerableout -of -phase information during the announcing-stereosynthesis anyone? I did get much more of a "you are there"feeling, though, with modified "Live Club 1/Jazz Club," "LiveClub 2/Discotheque," "Pavilion," and "Gymnasium." I

turned the TV speaker on at a low level at times, and I didprefer that.

I also liked the increased sense of being there during theABC Wide World of Sports coverage of the U.S. FigureSkating Championships and the World Alpine Ski Champi-onship. In this case, my preferences were for "Live Club 1/Jazz Club," "Gymnasium," and the movie theater programssubtitled "Small Space" and "Standard." I know some ofthese choices sourd odd, but that's the way it turned out.B. L. Stryker, with Burt Reynolds on ABC, had all dialog cen-tered, according to the oscilloscope; announcements dur-ing the commercials, however, had some "stereo." Thebackground music and effects had good, worthwhile sur-round elements. Preferred programs were the movie theaterprograms subtitled "Small Space" and "Standard."

For each of the CDs, I chose between "Spread" and"Point" as well as whether to lengthen or shorten the rever-beration time. I had previously made modifications to eachof the programs and stored them in the manual presets.Unless noted otherwise, these presets and "Spread" were

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When the emphasis is onlistening to music, JVC'sXP -A1010 surely deservesserious consideration.

used for orchestral works. The first CD I tried was Beetho-ven's "Quintet for Piano and Winds," with Andre Previn andthe Vienna Wind Soloists (Telarc CD -80114). Although I

thought I might prefer "Point" for the small group, "Spread"was definitely better. I enjoyed the results with "Recital Hall"the most, and a slight increase in reverb time made it better.My second choice was "Symphony Hall 3," with the sameincreased reverb. Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons," with SeijiOzawa and the Boston Symphony Orchestra (Telarc CD -80070), also was best with "Spread." I preferred "RecitalHall" and "Symphony Hall 3" again, but I found others thatwere nearly as good. I used slightly longer reverberation forthis music: It seemed to fit the mental image of the largergroup in a larger space.

I increased the reverb time further, to about 3 S, with"Cathedral" for Handel's "Dettingen Te Deum," with theWestminster Abbey Choir (Archiv 410647-2). The surroundsound was just right for the music, but I did not greatlyprefer this program to using "Church" with the reverb timeset to about 2 S. When I tried Berlioz's "Symphonie Fantas-tique," with Dutoit and the Montreal Symphony Orchestra(London 414203-2-LH), I had to reduce the reverb time toabout 1.6 S. In the early parts of this music, I preferred"Symphony Hall 1" or "Symphony Hall 4," but with morelistening time, I came to select "Symphony Hall 5" as thebest. On the other hand, Tchaikovsky's Symphony No 4,with Maazel and the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra (TelarcCD -80047), seemed best to me with "Symphony Hall 1,"and I didn't pick out any others as very close.

A number of programs delivered very good sound forStravinsky's "Firebird" Suite, with Robert Shaw and theAtlanta Symphony Orchestra (Telarc CD -80039). I reallythought "Symphony Hall 2" was best over a good listeningperiod and "Symphony Hall 5" and "Symphony Hall 6" wereclose, as were "Opera House" and a couple of others. I

retained my preference for "Symphony Hall 2" for the earlyportions, but I liked "Symphony Hall 5" for the later parts. I

certainly would have enjoyed either program for the entirepiece. I then tried some overtures from William Tell & OtherFavorite Overtures, with Erich Kunzel and the CincinnatiPops Orchestra (Telarc CD -80116). My choices varied a bitfrom one piece to the next, but my preference was quitestrong for "Symphony Hall 4" when playing Herold's over-ture from "Zampa." It was a good choice in general and wasespecially good on the bass drum beats in one spot.

Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 3, with Rudolf Serkin,Seiji Ozawa, and the Boston Symphony Orchestra (TelarcCD -80063), got me switching back and forth between"Spread" and "Point." The sound was good with eitherchoice, but I concluded that I liked the concentration of thepiano sound that went with "Point." To my ears, "SymphonyHall 3" was best, with "Symphony Hall 6" not far behind. I

mentioned before that I had modified all of the programsand stored the changes in the manual presets. However,when I tried Saint-Saen's Symphony No. 3, with MichaelMurray, Eugene Ormandy, and the Philadelphia Orchestra(Telarc CD -80051), one of the original programs soundedbest. At first, I thought that modified "Symphony Hall 1" wassuperior, followed by "Symphony Hall 4," also modified.Then I tried "Symphony Hall 2" unmodified and had to

conclude that it was better-less muddy sounding, for onething. I increased the reverb time a little and got one of thebest sonic results in the entire listening period. I tried"Point," but the emphasis put on the organ made for poorsound.

Creedence Clearwater Revival's Chronicle, Vol. I (FantasyFCD623CCR2) benefited from modified programs "LiveClub 1/Jazz Club," "Stadium," and "Live Club 2/Disco-theque." Although "Point" was best many times, the choicevaried from number to number. I found that the modified"Pavilion" and "Gymnasium" programs just didn't work atall; the unmodified "Pavilion" and "Gymnasium" presetswere certainly better. The two "Live Club" presets and theone for "Stadium," however, were not a match for the modi-fied versions. I was a bit surprised when Star Tracks, withErich Kunzel and the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra (Telarc CD -80094), was best with my modified "Pavilion." The music didsound very good with a number of other programs, bothmodified and unmodified, all with "Spread."

Jennifer Warnes' Famous Blue Raincoat (Cypress661111-2) seemed best to me with modified programs,especially "Live Club 2/Discotheque," mostly with "Point.""Live Club 1/Jazz Club" was better for a couple of numbers,and "Stadium" was also good. I found "Pavilion" good for asurrealistic effect, particularly with "First We Take Manhat-tan." Spirituals, with Simon Estes and the Howard RobertsChorale (Philips 412631 -2 -PH), sounded very good withseveral modified programs. "Recital Hall" and "Church"seemed best to me, and "Opera House," "Live Club 1/JazzClub," and "Pavilion" were also good. "Cathedral" was not agood choice, which seemed sensible, considering the mu-sic, but "Gymnasium" was quite good and that was a bitconfusing. Well, the name of the surround -sound game iswhat gives the best illusion, not what the program name is.

ConclusionThe XP -A1010 did quite well with broadcast and video-

disc movies-bette than I thought it would without a center -channel output. With this type of source, however, it was nomatch for the reference Yamaha DSP-1 processor and evenless of a match for the units designed primarily for hometheater use. The stereo on TV broadcasts remains a ratherpoor thing in most cases, and the JVC processor did fairlywell with the programs tried. With music sources, the XP -A1010 could generate many very satisfying, even exciting,sound -field illusions. I would have preferred being able tostore different source -reverberation times in each of theprograms, as is possible with the DSP-1. With much of themusic, however, the JVC processor produced a more ap-pealing smoothness in the surround sound.

The XP -A1010 has admirable responses and low distor-tion and noise. It has many worthwhile features, includingthe input -level bit meter, front panel control of functions andparameters, inputs for listening room characteristics, theexcellent display, and a remote control with much flexibility,including control of channel and overall volume. The price ofthis unit is high, but it is in the same range as other proces-sors. When the emphasis is on listening to music, the JVCXP -A1010 deserves serious consideration.

Howard A. Roberson

130 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

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For literature, circle No. 94

I suspect few readers think of Audioas a "religious" magazine. First, audioreally isn't quite that serious. Second,anyone who reads Audio has to sharea common and pragmatic interest inthe finest in music and sound quality.At the same time, it seems there arethree schools of opinion regarding au-dio reviewing. These sometimes aretaken far too seriously and are thenpushed to the point of becoming cults.One school holds that only technicallymeasurable differences matter in judg-ing the quality of audio equipment; the

second holds that only subjective dif-ferences matter, and the third holdsthat some technical and subjective dif-ferences do matter but can only bevalidated through controlled listeningtests.

As a largely subjective reviewer, I

have to confess to belonging more tothe second school than the first orthird-although I read my more techni-cally inclined colleagues with consid-erable attention and take their resultsvery seriously indeed. I also pay closeattention to the ongoing debate overwhether controlled listening tests reallywork. My interest in audio equipment,however, is largely in what it can deliv-er in terms of providing a more con-vincing illusion of a live performance-not in its terms or technology. I alsobelieve that sound quality can only bedetermined by weeks or months ofcareful listening to a wide range ofperformances, and I believe in the kind

of comparative listening that takeshours, not minutes or even moments.

Now, all of this introduction would belittle more than a statement of personalphilosophy if the value of the product Iam about to review was not so depen-dent on subjective sound quality. TheTheta DS Pre is one of the most sophis-ticated consumer audio products nowavailable, but it does not necessarilymeasure any better than many otherunits which perform a similar function.The Theta's whole purpose is to pro-duce subjectively superior results inthe process of digital -to -analog con-version. It also is only fair to point outthat D/A conversion is an area whereexperts and reviewers are still sharplydebating whether any serious differ-ences are audible and what aspects ofdigital sound, if any, need furtherimprovement.

Let me preface my remarks on thesound of the Theta DS Pre by estab-

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

lishing that it is not merely the result ofa minor "tweak" or improvement in ex-isting D/A systems. The Theta DS Preis based on some major innovations intechnology-as might be expectedwith any unit that costs $4,000. The DSPre is the equivalent of a sophisticatedcomputer system and uses a propri-etary, composite algorithm producedwith the aid of a supercomputer. Ac-cording to the manufacturer, this al-lows digital decoding to be optimizedfor time domain, group delay, transientability, and frequency response. Incontrast, virtually all other decodersoptimize only for frequency response.

The digital -to -analog conversionprocess in the DS Pre is programma-ble. It can be used with both CD play-ers and DAT machines, and its perfor-mance can be steadily upgraded oroptimized by changing the ROM chipsin each channel. The design also mini-mizes the amount of analog circuitryinvolved. Rather than try to correct oralter the sound once conversion hastaken place-which is what goes on inmany CD players-the DS Pre doesthis during the actual digital conver-sion process.

The unit's main designer, Mike Mof-f it, describes the design philosophybehind the Theta as follows: "All over -sampling, digital playback devices-and recording devices-utilize digitalfilters to filter the signal at half the sam-pling rate, as well as to actually gener-ate the oversampling itself. It takes amicroprocessor to compute the neces-sary interpolated samples. All micro-processors need some kind of pro-gram or software to run.

"So far, all of the CD players andR-DAT machines available to the pub-lic have utilized a simplified digital fil-ter, which consists of a simple proces-sor with a program masked onto amemory portion of a chip. The only wayto change the performance of the digi-tal filter, which is critical to the sound ofthe decoded music, is to replace theCD player or the R-DAT machine.When the best CD players cost over$5,000, this is a less than ideal way todeal with progress, as better and fasterfilters are developed.

"My research has indicated that dif-ferent methods of processing in thedigital domain of the filter have moreimpact on the final decoded sound

than what can be achieved by the rela-tively trivial improvements to be gainedin the analog section of what has to bea flawed medium.

"The Tneta DS Pre uses a separate,digital signal processor for each chan-nel, which is programmable by theuser or the dealer by simply changingROM chips. There are at least 50 dif-ferent ways to design and optimizedigital signal processors or filters. Theyall sound different. They all performwonderfully when measured on normaltest equipment. The Japanese and Eu-ropean companies which produce dig-ital audio devices all use the same filterdesign, simply for the reason that it

was one of the latest methods pub-lished in the Bell Laboratories andIEEE references. Unfortunately, it is theone that sounds the worst."

The Theta preamp also has a num-ber of other technical features worthyof note. The unit uses nonswitchingeight-times-oversampling filtration andconversion with only a single -pole fil-ter. There is said to be less than 5° ofphase shift from 20 Hz to 20 kHz. Inter-ference from digital control signals isprevented by an exceptionally heavysolid -steel chassis, which is platedwith copper and then with zinc. Thereare seven power supplies, to preventcurrent draw in one area from affectinganother.

The DS Pre has a wide range ofcontrol features that have practical val-ue and greatly improve Vie flexibilitywith which this preamp can be used.The rear panel has two switchable digi-tal inputs, and a source -monitor switchon the font panel can be used to di-rectly compare the decoded output ofthe Theta with that of the original signalsource or of some other digital input.The channels can be reversed, andthere is an absolute -phase switch.

While the DS Pre is not a true pream-plifier, it has a number of analog con-trols wh.ch allow it to perform some ofthe functions of a preamp. The audiooutput is switchable between a fixedline output and a volume control withright- arid left -channel trim pots to pro-vide control of balance. There is a"Mute" switch, and a "Normal/Thruput"switch makes it extraordinarily easy tocompare the sound of the Theta withthat of the D/A and analog circuitry inany CD player or R-DAT unit which the

DS Pre is used with. In other words,this unit has all the controls needed forit to be used to drive power amplifiersdirectly. In a truly simple audio installa-tion, you could combine CD andR-DAT units with a high-level sourcesuch as a tuner and do without a con-ventional preamp entirely.

All of this technology and the fea-tures would be unimportant if the Thetadid not produce impressive soundquality. "Gilding the lily" has no morebenefit in audio than in any other artform. neither, for that matter, does"gilding the ear." A unit such as theTheta preamp only has meaning to theextent that it is capable of producingaudibly superior and more enjoyablemusic reproduction.

The DS Pre does this in spades! Itnot only reproduces music far betterthan the D/A conversion stages of anyCD player or R-DAT unit I have yetheard but also promises that digitalsound, in addition to its own benefits,can surpass any of the claimed bene-fits of analog. In fact, this Thetaprearnp provides such superior repro-duction of the finer details in recordedmusic that we may not be able to tellwha- digital can do until the producersand manufacturers of CDs and R-DATcassettes begin to use equally goodequipment during studio monitoringand production.

Let me be more specific. I haveused the Theta DS Pre with over adozen top CD players and two R-DATunits. Given the rapid change in digitalproducts, there isn't much point innaming names, but the units I usedhave had very favorable mention in thisand other top audio magazines. In ev-ery case, the Theta improved thedepth and imaging of the soundstage.With the exception of a few CDs thatwere one- or two-dimensional to thepoint where the recording engineer ap-peared to have performed an act ofmalice, this improvement in the sound -stage was clearly perceptible, and inmany cases, it was striking. For exam-ple, in listening to the Proprius record-ing. Jazz at the Pawnshop (PRCD-7778), I found for the first time that theCD could equal or surpass the analogrecord in revealing the details of thesoundstage.

The Theta preamp also added tomany recordings a degree of subtlety

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 133

Used with 12 top CD playersand two R-DAT units, theTheta DS Pre improved boththe depth and the imagingof the music's soundstage.

and transparency that was sadly lack-ing in virtually all the CD players I audi-tioned. Audiophiles may disagree as towhether or not phonograph recordshave an added degree of "air," or mixof soft harmonics and overtones, that islacking in CDs. I doubt, however, thatmost audiophiles who hear the Theta

preamp will argue about whether or notit reveals more "air" than the D/A con-version stages in virtually all compet-ing CD or R-DAT units. You can hearthe difference on everything from WillieNelson to Gregorian chants, and it isparticularly impressive in choral works,opera, and complex vocal music.

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anyone having reliabilityproblems with this one.Sure, more money, spentwisely, can buy more pitchcertainty, stronger bass,an "airer" top end, a littleless artificial texture, etc.But then, more money can(and very often does) buya lot less.For $500, the B&K ST -140seems almost unbeatable.

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There is a consistent improvement,ranging from slight to immediately im-pressive, depending on the recordingand on the competing D/A circuit.

I am not a supporter of those whoclaim that most digital equipment's up-per octaves drive you out of the room,are lacking in musicality, or somehowproduce a consistently unpleasantedge. A bad recording is a bad re-cording, and the better high -frequencyperformance of CDs can scarcely beblamed for revealing this. Neverthe-less, I often do find that many digitalrecordings seem to have upper octaveinformation which is slightly amusical,and they sometimes contain smearedor hardened music. The DS Pre doesnot save bad recordings, but it doesdo a great deal to show that manyrecordings actually have far better andmore musical upper octave detail thanI had previously believed. The Thetapreamp often makes a particularly im-pressive improvement in the reproduc-tion of violin, piano, vocal sibilants, andupper octave woodwinds.

Finally, I found that this preamp pro-duced a more convincing and dynam-ic mix of bass, upper bass, and lowermidrange. I had previously found thispart of the musical spectrum to be a bitflat on many CDs, and to lack naturalmusical life and interest. The Thetamay not always produce more power-ful bass, but it consistently producesmore musically detailed bass. It alsoreproduces the natural richness of thetransition from bass to midrange-something I find critical to enjoying livemusic but often miss in recordings.

At this point, I have to return to thethree cults, or schools, of audio review-ing discussed at the beginning of thisreview. If you already believe in sub-jective listening, you can test the valid-ity of my praise of the Theta simply byauditioning it at any high -end dealerwho carries it. The benefits of the DSPre are not all that subtle. They shouldshow up clearly after listening to a fewof your favorite CDs on any system thatis set up to provide a revealing sound -stage and that is quick and extendedenough to be called transparent. Fur-ther, if your CD player has a digitaloutput, you can plug it into the Thetaand immediately compare the im-provement it makes in sound quality.'=ew products provide an easier way to

Enter No. 7 on Reader Service Card134 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

The Theta DS Pre does notsave bad recordings butdoes show that many CDshave far more musical topends than I had believed.

make sure you do not get carried awaywith reviewer claims or :technical hype.

If you sincerely believe that onlytechnical measurements matter,you've got a problem. There is no way Ican possibly prove that the DS Prereally sounds better, although the sum-mary of its design philosophy andtechnical features may at least per-suade you that it could. You may thenhave to compromise your beliefs a bitto enjoy this preamplifier.

Similarly, if you only believe in con-trolled listening tests. I am afraid myproof of the Theta:s merits is equallylacking. It is easy to "A/B" this unit-ithas A/B switching built in. I also ranenough blind tests to confirm that afterextended auditioning, non -audiophileshear a real improvement when listen-ing to carefully chosen passages andto their own favorite CDs when com-paring the Theta DS Pre to their favor-ite player. What I cannot offer, how-ever, is a statistically valid sample toshow that the Theta is better-if for no

that I know of no wayto determine how to structure an ex-periment in which the exposure to giv-en lengths and types of music wouldreally determine what is statistically rel-evant in terms of perception. This re-view is not the place to get into statis-tics, but it is very easy to measure thestatistical validity of a large samplefrom a given experiment. What is diffi-cult is to structure the experiment sothat the actual test is relevant. All myexperience with audio equipment indi-cates that controlled or blind listeningto short periods of music does little totell most people about the sound char-acter of a given piece of equipment,and it quickly confuses most listeners.Similarly. tests of large numbers of lis-teners-to determine what levels ofdistortion and frequency can be per-ceived-have tended to produce re-sults that minimize hearing abilitiesand maximize the levels of distortionthat matter. This occurs, in part. be-cause the tests often are not relevantto the results of prolonged listening tomusic.

All I can suggest is that. even if youdo firmly reject subjective. open, long-term listening as a major criterion forselecting equipment. you should stillaudition the Theta preamp so you canplay the role of devil's advocate. At

least you will be able to say that youpersonally tried to figure out why sub-jective reviewers get so enthusiasticabout "nonexistent" differences insound quality, and that you cannot seeany reason why there is a debateabout digital sound. Further, if you dohear the benefits I claim for the Theta

DS Pre, this may prove an occasion forjoining one of the few cults that areharmless. You give up nothing, andyou may well find that the sport of au-dio becomes far more enjoyable-andthat your system can reproduce farmore musically convincing sounds.

Anthony H. Cordesman

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AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 135

ROCK/POP RECORDINGS

GOLDEN GIRLSSomething Real: Phoebe SnowElektra 60852-1, LP.Sound: B Performance: B

For over eight years, the onlynew recordings we've heard ofPhoebe Snow's singular vocalinstrument are those fromguest appearances on othermusician's albums and on ad-vertising odes praising retailstores or coffee beans. It's tak-en all this time to escape from afortress of personal, creative,emotional, and legal problems.and get back to doing what shedoes best. Ironically, some ofthe singers that owe Phoebe adebt-among them SuzanneVega and Tracy Chapman-are also responsible for creat-ing the present musical atmo-sphere that makes Snow's lat-est release, Something Real,possible. The cynic in mewants to think that only when itseemed most profitable did alabel come out of the shadowsand do the right thing, but let'sjust say that Phoebe simplywasn't ready to get back towork . . . for a long time.

And back she is, with a 10 -song collection of pop/jazz/rock hybrids, delivering variedmoods and musical feels.There are touching, straightfor-ward pop songs such as thethree written by Snow-"Some-thing Real," "I'm Your Girl," and"Touch Your Soul"-anchoredby Snow's particular acousticguitar playing, and there are re-worked uptempo numberssuch as Maurice White's "Bestof My Love" and Peter Anders'"If I Can Just Get Through theNight." David Frank provides aquality, electronic, dance -club -type arrangement to "Best ofMy Love." Unfortunately, Phoe-be Snow's more languid, legatostyle of phrasing never seemsto catch up with it. In an at-tempt to get control of the tune, sheseems at times both to be caught be-hind the beat and anticipating thebeat. Individually, the arrangementand Snow are excellent; together, theydon't work.

Four separate producers were in-volved with Something Real: The highlytalented Warner Bros. exec Russ Titel-man on three tracks; Rob Fraboni and

Ricky Fataar (Fataar also plays drums,percussion, and bass on severaltunes) on six, and long-time Snow sup-porter Phil Ramone on one. Ramonewas the engineer and co -producer ofSnow's first album release in 1974. His

track, Rhonda Schuster's "We MightNever Feel This Way Again," is thestrongest bid for commercial success.The song could have been even stron-

ger, however, if Snow had de-veloped the vocal, taking timeto build it as she progressed.As it stands, Phoebe deliversthe goods in toto by the middleof the first chorus, thus leavingthe remainder of the songsomewhat static.

Something Real is, in manyways, a continuation of Snow'searly musical period-the onewhich gave us "Poetry Man"and "I Don't Want the Night toEnd." It was this period whichmeant so much to a now -older,CD -buying crowd. This audi-ence likes variety in its musicaldiet, and since Phoebe Snowhas always been and alwayswill be a musician without a cat-egory, expect these music lov-ers to once again latch ontoPhoebe. Don't for one moment,though, think that this is somekind of nuevo-retro album. Thisis a musical move forward.Snow definitely has changedover the years. Her songwritingis neater, and her voice hasgrown a ton. It is now stronger,more fluid, more capable. Shedoes resort to more vocal"tricks" (slides, falsetto climbs)than in the past-and perhapsdoes so more often than sheneeds to-but I assume this isdue to her years of jingle sing-ing, where you need to sell thepoint in 10 to 30 seconds oryou're nowhere. Slow down,Phoebe. You're good enoughto wait for.

Phoebe Snow's SomethingReal is not a great album. Itlacks the continuity andstrength of a great album be-cause it does not have the sixor seven excellent songs nec-essary to give it sufficient stay-ing power. However, it is a

good album with some remarkablehighlights. More importantly, Some-thing Real marks the return of a raremusician-one we haven't had thepleasure of listening to for eight years.

Hector G. La Torre

136 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

A Night to Remember: Cyndi LauperEpic EK-44318, CD; ADD; 39:53.

Sound: B Performance: C +

Whoever recorded this album lookslike Cyndi Lauper, sounds a little likeCyndi Lauper, and is even namedCyndi Lauper-but it must be a differ-ent Cyndi Lauper than the one whobecame our darling by cutting throughthe pin-striped '80s with humor, irrever-ence, and a Queens accent thickerthan anything in Working Girl. On this,her third album in five years, it's clearthat Cyndi Lauper has gone throughthe makeover machine. The songs arelistenable if not inspiring, and thecraftsmanship is impeccable. But thisrecord could be anybody's.

It doesn't start out that way. Theopening track gives us a nice bit ofkitsch that promises good things: Ascratchy, old -radio -style song with Oa-kie overtones. Then Cyndi suddenlydisappears, replaced by someonewho has a very good voice but is miss-ing the emotional range from kewpie-doll cute to powerful anguishedbelter-and, most sadly, is missingthat sense of humor and individualstyle that set Lauper apart from theclones.

The material itself is a big problem.Lauper has gotten hit -makers BillySteinberg and Tom Kelly ("Like a Vir-gin") to write or co -write half the songshere, and they're by -the -numberstorch jingles. She's also retained pro-ducer Lennie Petze of her mediocreprevious album, True Colors. (Petzewas also executive producer of herspectacular debut album, but RickChartoff-sorely missed and needed-was the actual producer there.)

What results from all this high-pricedtalent is a slick, anonymous recordthat, with a few alterations, could befitted onto Madonna, Belinda Carlisle,or any number of singers in thatschool. On "I Drove All Night," shegives us, on cue, Rickie Lee Jones -sensitive phrasing; on "Insecurious,"she makes with Dolly Parton tremolos.Why such obvious swipes? Where'sCyndi? Her voice can still punchthrough walls and do acrobatics, asshe demonstrates on "My First NightWithout You," but her singing hereshows technique without soul, pro-grammed and calculated.

So is most of the playing, which byany technical standard, is world -class.But the credits list no less than EricClapton among the seven guitaristshere, and aside from my suspicionsabout a couple of guitar solos, I

couldn't pinpoint where his character-istic style appears. On this record,even Eric becomes part of a smooth,slick machine lacking in personality.

By coincidence, I suppose, the twobest cuts-the uptempo ballad "ANight to Remember" and the muscular,swirling "I Don't Want to be YourFriend"-are co -produced by Lauperand Phil Ramone. He's as slick andhigh-priced as anyone, but on thesetwo songs, he does seem to helpCyndi relax. You can hear a colorationin her voice, a sadness-something in-effable, perhaps, but nonethelessthere.

Unfortunately, there is a sound like asoft wind between many of thetracks-not exactly tape hiss butclose. I hate that on CDs. And in thiscase, it's one more reason why A Nightto Remember is an album to forget.

Frank Lovece

Touch: Sarah McLachlanArista ARCD-8594, CD; 47:50Sound: A Performance: B +

Sarah McLachlan is only in her early20s, but she has already been trainedin classical piano, guitar, and voice.She has been influenced by many ofthe rock greats-Peter Gabriel, KateBush, and Jane Siberry, to name afew-and she wears these influencesas if they were badges. Like these art-ists, McLachlan makes music whichis arty and precious in the best senseof each word. And her work is veryvery serous.

McLachlan's songs are ever intense,often nearly florid, but they have afierce beauty. Her training gives herthe savvy and confidence to take risksin shaping and styling songs, and sheusually brings them off. Her voice hasa passionate yet cool sound that issimilar to Enya's, and she uses similarwordless vocal washes, too. ButMcLachlan does not work with the kindof enforced distance which Enyaseems to need.

"Vox," the first single, is sleek andmodern, deceptively simple melodical-

ly, and extremely seductive. Smallthing that the lyrics are little more thanpsychobabble. They hardly matter inthe fullness of the sound. The title trackis ail layered keyboards and voiceswith no words. "Out of the Shadows"offers a wafting 6/8 meter and lovelyclassical guitar work. "Steaming" is thepunchiest song here, with a mightydrum part that virtually serves as leadinstrument. "Trust" is at once dreamyand disturbing.

Producer Greg Reely engineered,mixed, and played percussion on sev-eral tracks. He has crafted a lovelysounding record which is particularlyfine on that most crucial element, thepiano. The CD adds one bonus track,an expanded, remixed "Vox" that maybe unnecessary but not unwanted.

Michael Tearson

Oranges & Lemons: XTCGeffen GHS-24218, LP.Sound: B + Performance: B +

Ever since XTC managed to gener-ate some controversy via "Dear God"(from 1986's Skylarking), their recordshave been taken more seriously.They're not seen as just another Britishband of post -punk leftovers but(gasp!) as neo-Beatles with progres-sive ideas. This group is now the dar-ling of college radio rather than a non -touring band stuck in the quandary ofbeing just a bit over the hill. They haveoffended; therefore, they are impor-tan!. But let's get one thing straight:XTC already said everything it had tosay on Black Sea, and nobody gave

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 137

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CRUTCHFIELD

Tex Ritter is one of manywell-known greats whosesongs appear on Capitol'sentertaining collectionof hillbilly classics.

them the time of day. The albums XTChas made since then have been de-lightful in their own ways, but nothingapproaches the consistency and sonicbreakthroughs of "Towers of London"or even "Burning with Optimism'sFlames." Not to begrudge XTC anysuccess-it is well deserved-butAndy Partridge and Colin Mouldinghad their pop epiphany early in thedecade and have since been makingrecords which are more timely thantimeless.

Oranges & Lemons is the latest ex-ploration of pop music to use jazzchords, clever and often adult -orientedlyrics, and inventive melodies. Yet anew drummer joins the band for thisrecord-Pat Mastelotto, of Mr. Mister-who obviously has listened to XTC'searly records and has tried for a TerryChambers -type feel. Although he is insync with what the other three mem-bers of the group are trying to do, it isvery difficult to slot a drummer into aband and have things anchor firmly.The musical textures are guitar -heavy,and the bass is mixed very upfront.These problems only accentuate thelack of a "live feel" rhythm section. Still,even measured against its own yard-stick, XTC manages to come acrosswith plenty of gems this time around.The first single, "The Mayor of Simple-ton," coasts along nicely-eventhough it could groove more in the "B"sections of the verses-and "PinkThing" will probably raise an eyebrowdue to its lyrical content, which is full ofdouble-entendre. But if this is what ex-cites the 15 -year -old record buyer, wailon. "Hold Me My Daddy" is about aspoignant as we'll ever see Andy Par-tridge get, and "Merely a Man" showsthat even when he condescends, theman maintains a high aesthetic level."King for a Day" is the best of the CohnMoulding compositions, and isn't it

time for his solo LP?Compared to the rest of the releases

we've seen so far this year, Oranges &Lemons is a singular masterpiece. ButXTC's finest moments (check out theSingles Going Steady anthology) con-tinually remind one of the greatnessthe group achieved when it was a realworking unit with a permanent drum-mer. We keep hoping they will get overtheir allergy to live performances andonce again go out and visit the real

world, where playing in front of a liveaudience teaches you things that norecording studio ever can. Good isgood, but in this case, it's not goodenough. Jon & Sally Tiven

Hillbilly Music ...Thank God! Vol. 1:Various ArtistsBug/Capitol CDP-91346-2, CD; 60:33.

Sound: B+ Performance: A -

This is a highly entertaining collec-tion of hillbilly music from the CapitolRecords archives. The material datesfrom the '40s through the '60s, andevery selection is top rate. MarshallCrenshaw compiled songs from well-known greats like Merle Travis, FaronYoung, Rose Maddox, Tex Ritter, TheLouvin Brothers, and Buck Owens sideby side with some wonderful obscuri-ties from the likes of The Farmer Boys,Skeets McDonald, and The Milo Twins.

Leslie Ann Jones' engineering andLarry Walsh's mastering make it allsound much cleaner and better thananyone would have a right to expect,given the age of these performances.The only serious flaw is the lack ofannotation. Original recording and re-lease dates and sidemen should havebeen part of the package. However, asCrenshaw notes, the session files ofthese tracks were destroyed in a fire in'65. That one carp aside, this is a high-ly recommended release.

Michael Tearson

138 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 19891 Crutchfield Park, Dept. AU, Charlottesville, VA 22906

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Hindemith: Mathis der Maler. SanJose Symphony, George Cleve.Bainbridge BCD -502, CD; DDD;26:57.

Here's a stunning version of the onereally outstanding symphony amongthe prolific orchestral works of the lateGerman composer, Paul Hindemith.The Mathis der Maler is significantlythe very first of its genre, built out of anopera banned by the Nazis in the early'30s. The CD is a reworking of a 1984Sonic Arts recording via the Colossussystem. The performance, actually, is abit on the heavy side, but Hindemithwas always so inclined himself, both inmusic and in body. Also, in the liveperformance, with audience, there area few strangled string noises here andthere, indicating less than total assimi-lation of the music by these players.Nevertheless, there is power and con-viction. The Third Movement, "Tempta-tion of St. Anthony," indeed becomesquite terrifying.

The recording is the real stunnerhere, even with a live audience and a

140

few mild coughs. It is a vivid, super -real symphonic sound, huge andforceful, about as convincing as any-thing I've ever heard. This is the workof Leo de Gar Kulka who, if I am right,founded the Sonic Arts label for hisown work and is instrumental in theseBainbridge reissues on CD. The earlySonic Arts products, as I've noted be-fore, were naive to the point of absurdi-ty in their "direct -to -something [disc ordigital]" live concert format: Greatstretches of audience noise, music be-gun and hastily faded out, lots and lotsof musical boo-boos. Not so this re-cording, nor any so far put out by Bain-bridge. Kulka, who came to L.A. frommusical Central Europe, obviously haslived and learned in the classical field.The huge, fat brass chords that char-acterize so much of Hindemith's or-chestra are simply awesome in soundhere. I have heard leaner, faster, moreprecise versions of the music but noneever had this sort of audio! A realshowpiece.

You will note the length of the CD.You can buy it for less-it's one of

those new "shorties," 20+ minutes,now arriving.in the stores. It's also oneof the "longies" in the packaging-double size and all cardboard. Weknew the CD was too long (that is, formany a listener's limited attentionspan) and too small (for the propereye-catching sales appeal). Hence thefrantic search for better sizes on bothcounts, to supplement the real longiesin length. Maybe we should packagethe three-inch CD in leftover LP cov-ers? That might sell. Just punch a holein the center and put in a three-inchblister. . . . Edward Tatnall Canby

Saint -Satins: Le Carnaval des Ani-maux (original instruments); Septet;Allegro Appassionato; Bagatelles.Sinfonia da Camera, Ian Hobson;Claude Hobson and Ian Hobson, pi-anos.Arabesque Z-6570, CD; 60:09.

Familiarity doesn't always breedcontempt-more often, contentment.Almost everybody knows this "Carnivalof the Animals" in the alternative formatfor orchestra with two pianos. This isthe original, kept out of circulation fordecades by Saint -S., though oftenplayed privately for friends. It is cham-ber music, music -room music, for twopianos neck to neck and a group ofnine instruments surrounding them,audience a few feet away. Very loud, ofcourse, in that situation, and you canmake it as loud as you want for yourown listening.

The unfamiliar format will probablyjar and jolt you a bit with its very differ-ent sound, but it will also intrigue you tolisten further. Instead of a whole stringorchestra, there's a string quintet withone instrument on each part, plus thewind and percussion instruments youhear in the larger version-flute, clari-net, celesta, xylophone. The real differ-ence in the listening is proximity.Everything is very close to you, insteadof way off at concert stage distance.

Ian Hobson, the prime mover here(two Hobsons, Ian and Claude, playthe two pianos), is an indefatigablycommunicative pianist. (Listen to hismonumental and fascinating set ofthree CDs, The London Piano School.)He is the nominal conductor, presum-ably via head and eyebrows since hishands are decidedly busy. Neverthe-less, the sprightly playing stems fromhis leadership, without a doubt-alsoin the accompanying works, all withpiano or piano solo (himself).

There is a yet later posthumous ver-sion of the Carnival which really sews itup to perfection: The little verses byOgden Nash, summing up each ani-mal in a few choice and wonderfulwords. (Nash himself spoke the lines,deadpan, in an early recording.) Theperfect companion to "Peter and theWolf," this combination of Saint-Saensand Nash beats "Peter" all out, for ev-erybody from adults to children.

Now listen to me, Arabesque Re-cordings. You must do an Ogden Nashversion of this Carnival! Just jettisonsome of the other music, do some digi-tal editing, and insert an appropriatevoice. Not Nash-he is no more-butsomebody, preferably elderly and fa-therly, with a benign sense of humorand a good close-up voice (for thechamber music surround). WalterCronkite? Betcha he'd do it. It could bea winnah-for Christmas maybe,whichever Christmas comes next.

Edward Tatnall Canby

Dvorak: Concerto pour Violoncelle;Tchaikovsky: Variations Rococo.Boston Symphony Orchestra, SeijiOzawa; Mstislav Rostropovich, cello.Erato ECD-88224, CD.

The Dvofak Concerto in B Minor forCello and Orchestra is one of the greatseminal works for this instrument, and

it is widely used as a benchmark toevaluate the technical prowess and ar-tistic and musical capabilities of a cel-list. Thus far, there are some 23 CDrecordings of this work, ranging fromrecordings by Du Pre and Feuermann(mainly of interest in a historical con-text) to modern digital recordings by

such artists as Lynn Harrell, Yo -Yo Ma,and Mstislav Rostropovich.

While taking nothing away from theexce lent recordings of Harrell and Ma,it is Rostropovich (affectionately knownin musical circles as "Slava") who hasbeen most closely identified with thiswork In fact, he is represented on CD

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 141

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Mstislav Rostropovich maybe getting along in years,but there is no sign ofa decline in his technicalor interpretive artistry.

with recordings under Giulini and theLondon Philharmonic and von Karajanand the Berlin Philharmonic, as well asthis latest effort with Ozawa and theBoston Symphony. However, Rostro-povich also has made quite a numberof analog recordings of the DvorakCello Concerto, dating back to those

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done in his native Russia. Musicolo-gists endlessly argue which representshis best performance of this work.

The recording of the Dvorak CelloConcerto under review here was madewith Seiji Ozawa and the Boston Sym-phony Orchestra in December 1985.Although Rostropovich is getting alongin years, there is certainly no evidenceof a decline in his technical or interpre-tive artistry. His tone remains firm, yethis expressive vibrato really makes theinstrument sing. In the great vaultingarches of glorious melody in the FirstMovement, no other cellist quite equalsthe emotional intensity of his perfor-mance. The Second Movement isequally compelling, while the last partof the Finale conveys a sort of world-weary resignation that is really heart -wrenching, even though the work endsin the uplifting fortissimo fanfares of theorchestra.

The familiar Tchaikovsky VariationsRococo for cello and orchestra areequally well played and make an ap-propriate filler for the Concerto. SeijiOzawa and the great Boston Sympho-ny Orchestra have obviously estab-lished a fine rapport with Rostropovich,and they furnish him with an unusuallyperceptive and sympathetic accompa-niment. Add a splendidly clean record-ing by John Newton, with a most natu-ral balance between cello and orches-tra, and it all contributes to an outstanding sonic and musical expe-rience. Bert Whyte

Pops Britannia. Boston Pops Orches-tra. John Williams.Philips 420-946-2, CD; DDD; 54:43.

John Williams and the Boston Popsoffer an engaging program of somefamiliar British folk -song -inspiredpieces, such as "Londonderry Air"("Danny Boy") and "Greensleeves,"along with Delius' haunting "BriggFair" and Davies' sprightly "An OrkneyWedding." The CD is rounded out withexcerpts from John Williams' film scorefor Jane Eyre and Walton's stirring"Orb and Sceptre." The last number,"Scotland the Brave," is replete withthe skirl of bagpipes and the rattle offield drums. Add a nice, clean record-ing with the usual superb Pops musi-cianship, and this is a CD to delight theheart of any Anglophile. Bert Whyte

42 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

JAZZ & BLUES

BLAME IT ON RIO

Rain Dance: Nana VasconcelosAntilles 91070-2, CD: AAD: 47:07Sound: A Performance: A -

Nana Vasconcelos is a Brazilian per-cussionist who gained fame playingwith avant-garde jazz artists Don Cher-ry and Gato Barbieri in the late 1960s.Although Brazilian. his music is anamalgam of African and Latin Ameri-can instruments and rhythms. He isespecially known for playing the berim-bau. a one -stringed African lute playedwith a stick.

The metallic rhythms of the berim-bau are still in evidence on RainDance, where Vasconcelos continuesto reach beyond the traditional percus-sionist's role. finding the melodies im-plicit in his rhythms. He has composedworld music improvisations with thecollective Codona: on his own, his1980 album Saudades (ECM) and1983's Zumbi (Europa) were lush. sen-sual excursions into rhythm and per-cussion. With Bush Dance (Antilles).he began getting involved with synthe-sizers and more contemporary rhyth-mic motions. This is carried farther anddone more successfully on RainDance.

Vasconcelos and the Bushdancersorchestrate a propulsive. sensually vol-atile rhythmic landscape mixing syn-

thesizers, acoustic percussion, andchanting vocals that sound like a tribaldance for the world. They've found asound space where electronics takeon earth tones and acoustic percus-sion takes on new dimensions.

Rain Dance opens with the simple,childlike themes of "Bird Boy," withVasconcelos singing the plaintive callover a lazy rhythm that soon explodesinto a heavy-metal African crunch. Onthe title tack, Vasconcelos creates apush-pull sensation in the rhythm,while flutes and bird -like synthesizersounds chirp and gurgle in melodiccommunication.

Throughout, Vasconcelos and hisensemble sprinkle fragmented melo-dies with breathy synthesizer soundsand Sergio Brandao's earthy, gut -

grabbing bass melodies. Recordedand mixed in analog formats, the RainDance Compact Disc erupts from thespeakers with crispness and visceralpunch.

There are references to Weather Re-port, with the Zawinulesque synthesiz-er lines of "Batida." and nods to Afri-can percussive giants such as KingSunny Ade and Babatunde Olatunji.But few have achieved the kinetic andsensual mix of technology, rhythm, andpercussion as successfully as NanaVasconcelos. Rain Dance is a tribal

celebration for the techno-age-a joy-ous vet intelligent romp into a newworld music groove. John Diliberto

I Ain t Beggin' Nobody: Larry DavisPulsar PUL-1001, LP. (Available fromPulsar Records & Publishing, Suite 11,#1880, Bogey Hills Plaza, St. Charles,Mo. 63302.)

Sound: B + Performance: B -No less a blues authority than B. B.

King picked Larry Davis as a futurestar when he signed the St. Louisbluesman to King's own short-lived Vir-go Records. King's foresight was prov-en when Davis won a Handy Award forcontemporary blues album of the yearfor his 1982 debut. Funny Stuff (Roost-er Blues). I Ain't Beggin' Nobody is thelong-awaited followup. cut with manyof the musicians heard on Funny Stuff.

The title track. which opens the al-bum. forecasts another success. Pro-ducer/engineer Oliver Sain's over-dubbed horns and piano provide apulsating backdrop for a strong soloand Davis' polished vocals. The dy-namics that propel "I Ain't Beggin' No-body." however, are too often absentelsewhere. Without brass or an ag-gressive rhythm guitar on most of thealbum, the songs never build up ahead of steam. The absence of drum-

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 143

mer Billy Gayles, a key member of IkeTurner's Kings of Rhythm who helpedgive a spark to Funny Stuff, is readilynoticeable. To compound the lack oftension, Davis' vocals are rarely an-swered by his band, let alone his ownbusy. clipped guitar runs. Most tracksend with a fade-out rather than any -

Larry Davis is a polished,affecting blues singer andguitarist with a claim toa much wider audience.

thing decisive. as if to acknowledgetheir own lack of focus.

Davis is a polished, affecting singer.but he tends to an ethereal approachreminiscent of former band mate Fen-ton Robinson, rather than the guts -and -gravel attack of gospel singers.Davis' singing and the meandering ar-

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rangements work best on the B. B.

King ballad "Sneaking Around," whichhighlights Davis' wonderful falsetto.

I Ain't Beggin' Nobody isn't a badalbum, merely a disappointing one.Davis, a former member of the bandsof blues Kings B. B. and Albert, is amature bluesman with a claim to a wid-er audience. Both Davis and the newlylaunched Pulsar label bear watching.

Roy Greenberg

Pardon Me!: The Bruce Forman Quar-

Concord Jazz CCD-4368, CD. AAD47:45.

Sound: A Performance: A

If the new Bruce Forman Quartet al-bum were an audio textbook instead ofthis blowing record, its title might besomething like A Survey of TraditionalJazz. Guitarist Forman is totally in con-trol, with a smooth, fat, liquid tone thatraces, soars, and brakes all over tunesranging from a no -holds -barred jam-ming of Coltrane's "Count Down" tooriginal hot be-boppers like the titlecut, one -take improvised standardslike "Autumn Leaves." the daring har-monic contrasts of David Liebman's"Once Again," and a stunning, octave -technique tribute to the master, "Blues

144 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

0

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for Wes." Billy Childs is no slouch inthe ivory area, and you can't find faultwith Jeff Carney's bass or Eddie Mar-shall's drumming. If you like the classicsound of a very talented, enthusiastic.be -bop -style combo, check out TheBruce Forman Quartet's Pardon Me!

Michael Wright

Miss Peggy Lee Sings the BluesMusicMasters CIJC-60155, ,) DDD,48:27

Sound: A Performance: A

To anyone who has ever attended aPeggy Lee event or just heard her singon record, the enduring quality inher-ent in her latest work will come as nosurprise. She has remained a peerlessinterpreter of American song through-out a career which spans several de-cades.

Renowned for the meticulous excel-lence with which her artistry is consis-tently portrayed, Lee projects an hon-est emotion and unique personalityinto a song, and she does so withseemingly effortless. witty. impeccablestyle. As a vocalist and accomplishedsongwriter, she instinctively feels andunderstands the subtle distinctionsand variations of timing and meter in asong. Peggy Lee never fails to bring toa lyric and melody a totally distinctivepoint of view.

The blues is one of the oldest formsof American music. It is rarely expand-ed beyond its specific harmonic struc-ture, and its interpreters, consideredperhaps too generic, seldom crossover. Similarly. very few mainstreamvocalists would attempt to essay theart. That Peggy Lee is so utterly con-vincing in this collection-which in-cludes Fats Waller's "Squeeze Me";W. C. Handy's "Beale Street": two BillieHoliday tunes. "Fine and Mellow" and"God Bless the Child," and the morerecent Leiber and Stoller R&B classic,"Kansas City"-is testament that thesinger's power has not diminished. Thematerial may be old, but Peggy Leebrings it to life anew. The superlativeaccompaniment is supplied by MikeRenzi, piano: John Chiodini, guitar: JayLeonhart, bass; longtime associateGrady Tate on drums, and Mark Sher-man on percussion and vibes.

The sound has been beautifully digi-tally recorded at New York City's Clin-

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 145

Peggy Lee's new album isall but flawless. She isutterly convincing in thisset of blues standards.

I ton Sound by the uncredited AndrewMilano. Produced by Gregory K.Squires, the result is all but flawless.The mellifluous elements of a stellarperfcrmance have been perfectly cap-tured in a studio setting, with PeggyLee sounding as intriguing as ever.

Michael Aldred

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Aragon ... Apogee ... Audible Illusions...Audioquest...Audio Research ...Bryston ... Canon ... Compact Discs...Counterpoint ...Creek ... CWD...Denon Dynavector GradoLexicon ...Livewire Magneplaner... Magnum Dynalab Mariah

Mark Levinson ... Mission ... NADNova . . . Pinnacle . . Revolver . . . SME...Sota ...Sumiko ...Sumo ...StaxSymdex...Vandersteen...VPI...YAMO

And Much More!

Hi Fi ExchANciEFORESIDE MALL ROUTE ONE

FALMOUTH, ME 04105

(207) 781-2326

5;4414-,T4tEe/a!The Best BRANDS

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New York's Custom Installation Experts!

AR Adcom Apogee Audible Illusions AudioResearch Bang & ()lutsen Belles. B&K B&WCounterpoint Dahlquisl Dual EminentIechnnlog Grado Hannan.Kardon Janis.1 (' Kinergetics Live Wire Monitor AudioMonger Genesis NAD NEC Nakamichi['hi lips Pioneer 1 idea Pioneer Elite Polk AudioProton PS Audio Shure I Itra Sony SpenderMax Straight Wire Systeindek Tara TargetTDL Thorens VPI And More of the Best!

AucreoBrealcthroughs199 Amsterdam A,C. 13.4 Northern Blid. lurnbun CommNe fork, NI 1002.3 Manhasset. NI 11030 M oodbur, NI II,'

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AcoustatAragonAllstonAudible IllusionsA udloquestBEA CALCelestionconrad-JohnsonCreekEminent TechnologyGradoHeybrookKimber KableKoetsuMadrigal CarnegieMagnum DynalabMIT MeitnerMonsterProA cPS AudioQuadQuicksilverRega PlanarRotelSMESonographeSpendorSpicaSTARSuperphonVandersteenVPI VTLWell -Tempered

Rhode Island sState -Of -The -ArtAudio Store.

eCEA-NSTATE

AUDIO304 Thayer StreetProvidence. RI14011 521-1140Doe. Mow CCIII 5.1110

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The Most In Musical EnjoymentFor The Novice & Connoisseur

Apogee Arcici Atma-sphereAudio Prism Audioquest BasisBerz Cardas Cello CaeskyChicago Speaker Stand Classes

Clearauctio Cogan Hall Creek DistechElectron Kinetics Eminent Technology

Garrott Lantana Last MagnanMerrill Mod Squad March NestorovicRega Reference Recordings Sequerra

Sheffi?Id Lab Souther SuperphonTara Labs Tice Audio Vendetta

Reseon h VMPS VPI Wadia Yankee& More

287 Clarksville RoadPrinceton .N'.J. 08550

(609) 799-9664

Classic ValuesTubes

Conrad -Johnson VTL

SourcesCalifornia Audio Labs

Nakamichi Sota SonographeTheta Well -Tempered

TransducersMagnepan Mirage Rogers

Sota Synthesis Stax Velodyne

Audio Den2(121 Smith Haven PlazaLke Grove. N.Y. 11755

(516) 360-1990

OMNI SOUNDFor thesoundmind

ArkeogIc De5ge GroupASC Tube TrapsAthenaAudible Illusion.;Audio questAvalon AcousticsChicago Speak .?1" StandClearaudroDuntechEminent Techn)logyForte' AudioGradoJell Rowland 09sign GroupKimber KableMITMonster CableNifty GrittyOnkyoPrecise Acoust csProton 1.14PS AudioSony rE

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DALLAS, TEXAS...214/931-66644832 Keller Springs Road (75248)

THE FINEST IN HOME AUDIO,CAR STEREO & VIDEO EQUIPMENT

AUTHORIZED DEALER FORADSADVENTAIWAAKGALTEC LANSINGAUDIO CONTROLAUDIO SOURCECERWIN-VEGACITIZENCWDdbxDCMDENONHAFLERINFINITY (car)KENWOODKICKERMITSUBISHI

Sound

MONSTER CABLEMISSIONONKYOORION CAR AMPSPHILIPSPINNACLE AUDIOPOLK AUDIO (bar)PROTONSAESANSUISONANCISONYSOUNDGI-U,STAXTOSHIBATRIADYAMAHA

Mein:flown Shopping CenterRoute.

lon23

, N.J. (201)South 838-3444Kinne

audio expertsIntegrity and Service!

SPECIAL EVENTWednesday, Sept. 13th 6-9pm

Pease join us for the longawaited introduction of Bang &Clufsen Television.Representatives from B&O willIce on hand to present theirrevolutionary new line of tvs,v.Drs, and of course their worldc ass audio systems. Reservationsimperative.

We Specialize in CustomInstallations.

(914) 698-4444 pcin875 Mamaroneck Ave.,N.lamaroneck, NY 10543

J4 NSIBLE,RRSONAL HIFI ADVICE,

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PERE IN VERMONT; PEOPLE DEMAND VALu£We DONY WASTE CUSTOMERS. /IONS?,

AND NtiTNEA Do rese POLAS:

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OFACLE POLK ROTEL WNARFEDALE

5- YEAR 'ilARRANTIES ON ALL NEW EGILIIPMENI;

INCLUDIND CD RAW., tLersurs, Coo team Drc4si

No CAARGE r, SAWING.

118 MAIN Sr

SC IENT 1FIC STEREOrrtcrs;:(514

I-800- 466 -HIFIFor complete niormatIon. call Carol Bermai at (212) 719-6338.

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING

CLASSIFIEDADVERTISING RATES

BUSINESS ADS -$2.30 per word, 20 word $46 mini-mum charge per ad.

BOLD FACE ADS -$2.75 per word. 20 word $55minimum charge per ad.

EXPAND AD -$3.45 per word, 20 word $69 minimumcharge per ad.

EXPAND AD BOLD -$3.90 per word, 20 word $78minimum charge per ad.

JUMBO TYPE -57.50 per word. 3 word $22.50 mini-mum charge PER LINE (2x larger than normal typeand bold).

CENTERED or SPACED LINE -$16.00 additional.

BOXED AD -515.00 additional for a one -point ruled box.

ALL LINE ADS -First line set in bold type at no extracharge. Additional bold words at $2.75 extra per word.

CLASSIFIED LINE ADS ARE PAYABLE IN AD-VANCE BY CHECK OR MONEY ORDER ONLY.(Sorry. we cannot accept credit cards or bill for lineadvertising.) ALL LINE ORDERS should be mailed to:

AUDIO MAGAZINE, P.O. Box 9125Dept. 346-01. Stamford. CT 06925

ORDERS WILL NOT BE PROCESSED WITHOUTACCOMPANYING CHECK OR MONEY ORDER FORFULL AMOUNT.

CLOSING DATE -First of month two months preced-ing the cover date. If the first of the month falls on aweekend or holiday, the closing date is the last busi-ness day preceding the first. ADS RECEIVED AFTERTHE CLOSING DATE WILL BE HELD FOR THENEXT ISSUE UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED.

PREPAYMENT/FREQUENCY DISCOUNTS -3 timesless 5%, 6 times less 10%, 12 times less 15% Thesediscounts apply to line ads only and all payments mustbe made in advance to qualify. Agency discounts donot apply to line advertising.

GENERAL INFORMATION -Ad copy must be type-written or printed legibly. The publisher in his solediscretion reserves the right to reject any ad copy hedeems inappropriate. ALL ADVERTISERS MUSTSUPPLY: Complete name, Company name. Full streetaddress (P.O. Box numbers are insufficient) and tele-phone number. Classified LINE ADS are not acknowl-edged and do not carry Reader Service Card Num-bers. FREQUENCY DISCOUNTS not fulfilled will beshort rated accordingly. Only those line advertiserswho have prepaid for their entire contract time will beRATE PROTECTED for the duration of that contract,in the event of a rate increase.

CLASSIFIED DISPLAY RATES1 col < 1 inch1 col x 2 inches1 col x 3 inches2 cols. x 1 inch2 cols. 2 inches

$369$581$832$661

$1117

One column width is 21/2" Two columns wide is 41/4".For larger display ad rates and 6. 12, 18 and 24 timesfrequency rates call (212) 719-6338.

DISPLAY ADVERTISERS should make space reser-vation on or before the closing date. Ad material (filmor velox) may follow by the tenth. DISPLAY ADVER-TISERS MUST SUPPLY COMPLETE FILM NEGA-TIVE READY FOR PRINTING OR VELOX. PRODUC-TION CHARGES WILL BE ASSESSED ON ANY ADREQUIRING ADDITIONAL PREPARATION.

ALL DISPLAY CORRESPONDENCE should be sent to:Carol A Berman, AUDIO MAGAZINE.1515 Broadway, New York. NY 10036

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: CLASSIFIEDDISPLAY ADS: Carol A Berman (212) 719-6338.CLASSIFIED LINE ADS: 800-445-6066.

cilysterns,a!Since 1910

. attention to details ... Room acoustics & Connectors & connections

acoustical treatment Speaker cable A/C power line conditioning & interconnects

& power cords-everything matters & makes a dif terence-

HaflerIRIS ye dm,DIRIS tuner system

XL 280 - mono's'XL 600 powerful

-'SE series -100 pre amp120 amp130 AM -FM

2525 Arapahoe Ave. E4/284Boulder, CO 80302303/443-4443 by appt.

...will Improve the sound of your system! CD stabilizer rings Equipment racks & Isolation bases. spikes. etc speaker stands

Future 'fully balanced system'

'watch for our continuing informative bulletins!

Hafler speakers Audio Pro subwoofersSonrise audio cabinets Xylophile

audio cabinets Sound Anchors speaker an FM tuner for thestands Target van den Hul Distech

Straightwire Aural SymphoniesAudioquest Sound Connectors WBTTiffany ZSE speakers ATC speakers

Tice Audio, Power Block 8 TitanNelson -Reed Audiophile. Analog & CD's

'audio elite'

-ror.46eafe, ,lysernwLegacy 1

Legacy 2 Plus

elassiDR -5 pre amp

OR -8 amp

DR -6 pre amp

DR -9 amp

Class A OR -38 ampDR-3-VHC amp

DR -7 pre amp

ANNOUNCEMENTS

AUDIO CLASSICSPrecision Stereo Components Bought -Sold -Traded -Repaired -Modified -Updated -Appraised. AMPLIFIERS:conrad-johnson Premier 1B ($5950) $3900. Eagle 2 $595:Haller XL280 Demo ($675) $575, XL600 Demo ($1195)$995, Krell KMA100 II ($6000) $3500, KSA100 II ($3650)$2500, McIntosh MC 30 $2-300. MC40 $400. MC50 pr.S500. MC60 $550. MC225 $700. MC250 $350. MC2100$500, MC2105 $650, MC2120 $850, MC2125 $1050.MC2002 ($1895) $1600. MC2250 ($2495) $1700, MC2300S1700. MC2500 ($3495) $2200, MC7270 ($2195) $1800:SAE A201 ($650) $300, Threshold S200 ($1950) $1200. CDPLAYERS: Magnavox: McIntosh MCD7000 ($1399) $8-900,MCD7005 ($1599) $1200. MCD7007 ($1995) $1600.EQUALIZERS: Audio Control Octave ($179) $149, Ten$229, Ten Plus ($329) $295: dbx 20 20 ($1700) $800. CelloPallette ($12.864) $7,500, McIntosh M0101 $99-175.M0102 $60, M0104 ($5001 $99-285. M0107 ($650) $400:SAE E101 ($650) $300. HEAD AMPS: audio -researchMCP33 ($1395) $700. INTEGRATED AMPLIFIERS: McIn-tosh MA230 $399: MA5100 $400, MA6100 5500-600. PRE-AMPLIFIERS: Cello Etude ($1200) $800: conrad-johnsonPV1 $375: Hafler Iris Demo ($800) $679, Krell KRSI A($8200) $5900; McIntosh C11 $700. C20 $600, C24 $250.C26 $400. C28 $500. C30 $1200. C31V ($1895) $1500.C34V (52195) $1800. PROCESSORS: Audio Control PhaseCoupled Activator ($279) $239. dbx 110 NEW ($99) $49:Lexicon CP1 ($1295) $1050. RECEIVERS: McIntoshMAC1700 $450. MAC4100 $1050. MAC4275 ($1798)$1200. SPEAKERS: Acoustat Spectra 33 ($2250) $1999:Apogee Duetta Signatures ($3735) $2585, Dahlquist D010$600; JSE Infinite Slope Demos .6 ($599) $475, Used 2(52295) $1200: McIntosh ML1C $550. ML2C ($1598) $800,ML4C ($2400) 51000-1800. XL1 ($525) $375. XL 1W ($549)$375. XL1O ($858) S350. XR5-19 $900. XR6 $800. XR16$800, XRT20 $3200: Velodyne ULD 12" ($1195) $1095, ULD1511 ($1795) $1669, ULD 18 II (52595) $2395. TAPEDECKS: Kyocera New D811 ($750) $545. TandburgTCD330 $300. TEST EQUIPMENT: Audio Control SA3050A

1 3 Octave Real Time Analyzer ($965) $877: Sound Tech-nology 1000A $1500. 1701 A ($4950) $3250. TUBES: Manymajor brands. TUNERS: Magnum Dynalab FT101 Demo(5698) $599, 205 Demo ($229) $199. FT101A Demo($1195) $995. FT11 Demo ($449) $425: McIntosh MR55$100-350. MR65B $200-500. MR66 $350. MR71 $600.MR73 $450. MR75 ($1349) $800. MR80 (52495) $1500,SAE T101 ($650) $300. TUNER PREAMPS: McIntoshMX110 5250-500. MX112 $450. MX117 $1200 TURN-TABLES: Anston Forte ($625) 5569. Icon (5520) $439.0 -Deck ($365) $289. Dual CS5000 ($569) $399. AudioRepairs -Updates -Modifications by Richard Modaffen andClif Ramsey. Over 55 years combined -experience. AUDIOCLASSICS invites you to visit our new retail location at theUnited States Post Office Building in Walton. NY. FREECatalogue. Layaway Program. Major Credit Cards accepted.8AM-5PM EST Mon -Fri , POB 176, Walton, NY 13856.

607-865-7200-Audio Advertiser for over a Decade -

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Aaaannouncingggg!! Aaaannouncingggg!!MOSCODE

HYBRID HAFLERPOWER AMPS -Enjoy the benefits of Moscode " TubeTechnology with a Moscode ' Conversion for Hailers. CallWrite SOUND SERVICES. 238 Liberty Ave . New Rochelle.NY 10805 19141 633-3039.

AUDIO RESOURCE HAS MOVED to its new 4400 sq ft

store at 3133 EDENBORN AVENUE. METAIRIE.LOUISIANA 70002. We now have five private listening roomswhere you can audition one of the LARGEST SELECTIONSof HIGH END AUDIO EOUIPMENT in the country. AUDIORESOURCE continues to offer precision -matched tubes,plus sales, service. and restoration of vintage components.Call or write for information on our products and servicesAUDIO RESOURCE. 3133 EDENBORN AVE, METAIRIE.LA 70002 (504) 885-6988

HOUSTON TEXASAudiophiles are listening to important audio compo-nents by Alchemist, Aural, Symphonies, Celestion. Emi-nent Technology Speakers. Euphonic Technology.Forte, Kiseki, MIT. Talisman, TARA Labs. Threshold.Van den Hul, VMPS, Well Tempered Labs. Chesky.Sheffield, MFSL and more at Stereoworks. By appoint-ment only, 713-497-1114

audio.techruca

YOUR SEARCH IS OVER!maw

r.16- "WOWe specialize in hard to findphono cartridges and orig-inal replacement styli only!!

(800) 221-0906CALL TOLL.FREE FORFREE PRICE QUOTESAND viSA/MC ORDERSN Y STATE (SIM Seeo ,,t

SEND SELF ADDRESSED - - ,STAMPED ENVELOPE FOROUR FREE CATALOG

VISAT

L-21LYLE CARTRIDGES

Dept. A, Box 158Valley Stream, N.Y. 11582

Phones Open Mon sat 9 amR pm

0

(0Qo

orrolon SHARE sTa'suat

I

148 AUDIO SEPTEMBER 1989

ANNOUNCEMENTS

High -end and hard -to -find audio compo-nents. New and used. Foreign and domestic.Low, low prices! AUDIO AMERICA(Virginia). Call 1-703-745-2223.

INVESTORS WANTED: On Dec 20. 1989. the most ad-vanced and unique acoustic generating device will be avail-able to the discriminating esoteric audiophile This state ofthe art speaker shall be the best and like no other. Period(Pat. Pend.), For more information on the concept of becom-ing associated with this speaker company: please send$15,00 to. AWH. PO. Box 591. Bellport. N.Y. 11713.

MOSCODES, FUTTERMANS, AUDIO RESEARCH SP3, 6& 8'S MODIFIED & SERVICED BY GEORGE KAYE.Moscode Designer Tremendous improvement. Protectyour investment SOUND SERVICES. 238 Liberty Avenue.New Rochelle. NY 10805. (914) 633-3039.

NONSPEAKERTMRESOLUTE, MUSICAL &ULTIMATE. 619/480-4804.TIFFANY ELECTRONICS

GROUPCONNECTORS AND MUCH,MUCH MORE

As a direct result of the continued support of bothconsumers and the major manufacturers of specialtyaudio products throughout the world. TIFFANY CON-NECTORS has evolved into TIFFANY ELECTRONICSGROUP: a manufacturer of specialty audio products

In addition to adding 30 new connectors. we recent-ly purchased a manufacturer of specialty wire and cable(who does everything to wire except draw the copper)and are now manufacturing our own patent -pendingTIFFANY TC-10 INTERCONNECT CABLES and UL -approved TIFFANY TPC-60 POWER CORD (60Hz 850Hz versions) Also being introduced are the TIFFANYLINE CONDITIONERS, the only audio -specific. full -

spec power line conditioners that are UL approved.The same attention to design and materials that

has made TIFFANY CONNECTORS the choice of everymajor audio manufacturer (hence our designation THECRITICS' CHOICE-) has been given to all these newproducts now being introduced by your local dealer.

OEM & EXPORT SALES: M. BERNS INDUS-TRIES, INC., BOX D. GRACIE STA . NEW YORK. NY10028. PH: (212) 744-4456, FAX: (212) 744-5276

U.S. DEALER SALES: PANTHER ENTER-PRISES, 1431 OCEAN AVE., #400. SANTA MONICA.CA 90401, PH: (818) 989-HIFI, FAX: (213) 399-HIFI

CANADIAN DEALER SALES: DAUMIER MAR-KETING. 5109 HARVESTER RD., UNIT 10B. BUR-LINGTON. ONTARIO L7L 5Y9, PH: (416) 333-0017,FAX: (416) 333-0984

THE CRITICS' CHOICE

FOR SALEAAA-AUDIO ELITE IN WISCONSIN!!!

DENON. HAFLER, PS AUDIO. YAMAHA. B8K. JSE. NA-KAMICHI. PROTON, CARVER. ONKYO. ADS. VPI. DCM,SPECTRUM, SONOGRAPH, AR. FRIED. NITTY GRITTY.SUMIKO, THORENS, KEF, ADCOM, SUPERPHON.SNELL, M&K, LUXMAN, SPICA and any others you desire(414) 725-4431.

CALL US WE CARE!!!

AAA -CALL US LAST! LUXMAN. DENON, AR, YAMAHA,CARVER, BOSTON ACOUSTICS. ADCOM, PS AUDIO.HAFLER, ADS, B 8 K. ONKYO, KEF. PROTON, SNELL,DCM, NAKAMICHI, INFINITY. JSE, SPICA, SUPERPHON.M 8 K. BOSE SPECTRUM. VPI. SONOGRAPH. SUMIKO,THORENS. WHY CALL US LAST? 414-727-0071. WEHAVE THE LOWEST PRICES!!!

AAA-LOW PRICES-HIGH END EQUIPMENT!!!DENON, PS AUDIO, HAFLER. YAMAHA. MK. CARVER.AR, NAKAMICHI. SUPERPHON. LUXMAN, THORENS,WK. SNELL, SPECTRUM, INFINITY, ONKYO, PROTON,KEF, SONOGRAPH, FRIED. NITTY GRITTY, SUMIKO,SPICA and any others you desire. AUDIO ELITE. 1414)725-4431. Menasha. Wisconsin

OUR PRICES CAN'T BE BEAT!!!

AAAAH! FREE UPS SHIPPING MK, PS Audio. Celes-tion. Superphon, Anston. Ortolon. Onkyo. Classe.B&W. Expert consultation-ask for Audio Dept.THRESHOLD AUDIO. 605 Hebron, Newark -Heath,Ohio 43056. 614-522-4501

AUDIOPHILES * TRADERS * COLLECTORS

Join our nationwide network of buyersand sellers for used audio and videoequipment. The Audiophile ConnectionNetwork is comprised of music andvideo enthusiasts from around thecountry. End the frustration andinconvenience of trying to sell yourequipment on your own, and takeadvantage of our dedicated staff whowill do tie searching for you. We willquickly match your needs to selectedaudiophiles and videophiles nationwide.

Call for membership information:

914-268-02409:00 am -6:00 pm Monday -Friday

AUD'OPHILE CONNECTIONNETWORK

P.O. Box 592Palisades, NY 10964

DATIDIGITAL Ready. Probably the mostaccurate speakers you will ever ownfar the price. Exquisite ii. cabinet workwilt!) oak veneer. Available unfinished,oiled, or black matte wood grain. Builtwith the finest speaker componentsfrom America, Denmark, and England.Samarian Cobalt tweeter 1,100-20,000bx. 61/2 Rolled edge woofer. 40-4.000bx. Gold plated binding posts.Transparent sparkling highs withthunderous bass. $260.00 pr/Tu'o YearWarranty. Hand Made In The USA ByFourth Generation Family. Personal/Cashiers Check Only.

TeleParc Communications310 North Lapeer DriveBeverly Hills, California

90211.1638 12131 271-468924 Hour Ordering Available

Superior in everycharacteristic:Resistance0.00053 Ohm/tt.for transmissionand return pathsCOPPI/ 7 ,,,

Current capacity100 RMS amperes,500 pk. amperesInductance0.024 mH/ft.8 ft. lengths exhibitless than 0.2 dB loss a100 Id if with typicalloudspeaker loadsCapacitance0.2 naroFarads/f t.enable .ise withoutexternal "damping -networksWeberWeavedistributes imped-ance characteristicsto suprress reso-

nance and reducephase noise

Balanced -laminaPure silver surfacingon oxygen -treecopper balances skineffect resistance tomaintain constantresistance to thehighest frequenciesTeflon* insulationMaintains a 2.1dielectric constantfrom dc to 100 kHz.(Other insulationsmay vary by as muchas 100% over thisrange.)

High -currentterminationsGold plated con-nection hardwareexceeds weldingrequirements

'Teflon , a trademarkot Durom

Transmission char-acteristics for 15 ft.of WeberWire-1source, 8 resistivekrad-cammunicat-ing a 100 kHz squarewave. Tic upperlimit of WeberVVireis just beginningto he observed asthe extremely highharmon.cs of theovershoot from thesignal generator arenoticeably reduced.

Nevertheless, thebandwidth ofWeberWire permitsthe wave itself to bereproduced withouttilt or other anomaly.

Exclusivelydistributed bydivision ofThreshold Corporation12010 Earhart AvenueAuburn, CA 951503800-888-8055

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 149

LOWERLOUDSPEAKERDISTORTION

(rj

I he VMPS MiniTower Ila is a dual 10", com-pact floor standing system with many of thefeatures and much of the performance of ourhighly acclaimed large speakers, at a veryattractive price. Sensitivity (92dB/ 1 W/ Im),power handling (200W rms/ 8 Ohms), max-imum undistorted output levels (122dBSPL/ Im) and bass extension (-3dB at 28Hz)are outstanding for a system this size. TheMini Tower Ila shares the same mid and highfrequency complement as the VMPS TowerII (a "Recommended Component" of Stereo-phile magazine, April 89).Also available from VMPS are the SuperTower/ R ($699ea kit, $969ea 030s -ern),reviewed in Audio, June 89 as having "norival anywhere near its price" (Anthony Cor-desman). the all-out high end assault SuperTowerlIll$3895/pr kit.$4795/pr assem),our three Subwoofers ($229 -$439ea kit,$299- $549ea asseml, the two 050 Seriesof bookshelf speakers ($149 -$345ea) andJohn Curl's breakthrough SCP2A phono pre -amp ($2250).Hear VMPS at the dealers listed below, orwrite for brochures and test reports. Kitsare supplied with fully assembled cabinetsand all prices include free shipping in 48 USstates.

VMPS AUDIO PRODUCTSdiv. (tone Audio

3412 Eric Ct. El Sobrante Ca 94dU3(415) 222-4276

Hear VMPS at The Listening Studio. Boston. Par TroySound. Parsippany NJ. Dynamic Sound, Washington DC,American Audio, Greenville SC. Arthur Morgan. Lake MaryFI, Audio by Caruso. Miami Fl, Stereoland. Natrona Hts. Pa.Audio Specialists. South Bend. In, Shadow Creek Ltd. Min-neapolis Mn. Encore Audio. Lees Summit Mo. Stereoworks.Houston To. Exclusively Entertainment. San Diego. Ca. Ref-erence Sound. Eagle Rock. Ca. Sounds Unique. San Jose Ca.Ultimate Sound. San Francisco Ca. Custom Audio. Novato.Ca. Private Line Home Ent. Stockton Ca. 'tone Audio. ElSobrante Ca. Sound Room. Vancouver BC Can

Brown Electronic Labs2530 Berryessa Rd , Suite 126, San Jose, CA 95132

FOR SALE

AAA -YAMAHA, DENON, CARVER, BOSTONACOUSTICS, LUXMAN. AR. ADCOM, PS AUDIO. HAF-LER. ADS. B 8 K. ONKYO. KEF. PROTON. SNELL, DCM.NAKAMICHI, INFINITY,NAD, JSE, SPICA, SUPERPHON,M 8 K. SPECTRUM. VPI. BOSE. SONOGRAPH, SUMIKO.FRIED. THORENS, PLUS A LARGE SELECTION OF OTH-ERS 414-727-0071

ADCOM and B&K MODIFICATIONSby MUSICAL CONCEPTS

Musical Concepts. enjoying our 10th successful year,brings unmatched expertise to Adcom and MK. Ourrecord is clear' When our products are reviewed. they'recompared to the best (The Absolute Sound.' #55). Nowowners of MK and Adcom can enjoy the kind of soundthat has made Musical Concepts a "runaway" success'Adcom modifications from $195, 138K from $219. op-tions include special wireconnectors and dual -mono.Musical Concepts. One Patterson Plaza. St. Louis, MO.63031. 314-811-1822 or Al ER INQUIRIES INVITED.

FOR SALEABARGAIN: TECHNICS STYLUS GUAGE $159.:100CMK4 $475 STAX PRO LAMBDA (#3) $799.. PRO -LAMBDA (#1) $499.: GRACE 747 $169.; F9E (SUPER)$160.; F93RUBY $229.: DENON 103D. KOETSU,FR1MK3F $235.; SGT. PEPPER UHOR $169.; ZEISS BIN-OCULARS. ALL UNUSED: (212) 966-1355 (Day); (201)863-4278 (Eve.).

ABSOLUTE POLARITY LEVELBALANCE infinite resolu-tion remote controller for virtual direct -wire auditioning by theserious Audiophile. Change polarity instantly, select alter-nate inputs, make precision level balance adjustments fromyour favorite listening position. The Thornton ControllerModel 100. $985 from TBG Productions. P.O. Box 34710,San Francisco, CA 94134. FAX (4151 468-5481. PHONE(415) 467-5697.

ADCOM, B&K, ARAGON& HAFLER MODS

PROPRIETARY CLASS A" F.E.T. CIRCUITRYTRANSFORMS THESE AMPLIFIERS INTO PRISTINEMUSICAL INSTRUMENTS. OUR MONEY -BACK POLI-CY PROVES IT, ADCOM AND 88K $269.00 IN-STALLED: ARAGON $449.00 INSTALLED; REPLACE-MENT INPUT BOARDS FOR HAFLER OH SERIES$200.00 KIT, $300.00 INSTALLED.

CD PLAYERSF.E.T. MAGIC FOR YOUR MAGNAVOX PLAYER$159.00 INSTALLED. ALSO, OUR COMPLETECDB-582 WITH CLASS 'A" DISCRETE F.E.T. OUT-PUT. A FIRST AT THIS PRICE, $599.00 INCLUDING2ND DAY AIR SHIPPING AND OUR MONEY -BACKGUARANTEE'

SUPERMODS2375 WEST 21ST. AVE.. EUGENE. OR 97405. (503)344-3696

WAVETRACE TECH.4215 EAST BAY DR. #1205G. CLEARWATER. FL34624. (813) 536-2904.

AFFORDABLE HIGH -END AUDIO. ACOUSTIC ENERGYAE -1. AE -2, AE -4, ASC TUBE TRAPS, AUDIBLEILLUSIONS (NEW S- 1 2 0 POWER AMP).AUDIOOUEST-LIVEWIRE, TARA-LABS NEW TFA-RETURN. 08K -SONATA, CELESTION SL -SiSERIES. CHICAGO STANDS. ENTEC-SUBWOOFERS, EPOS, GOLDAERO. KEF CUSTOMSERIES, KIMBER KABLE. LEXICON,MAGNUM DYNALAB NEW FT -101 ELITE, MISSIONCYRUS, MOD SQUAD, MERLIN LOUDSPEAKERS,NILES AUDIO. PHILIPS AUDIO VIDEO. PSE. REGA,PLANAR. STAX. SONRISE CABINETS, SONUSFABER ELECTA, TARGET STANDS. TERA VIDEO.VELODYNE. CUSTOM INSTALLATION AVAILABLE,FOR FREE BROCHURE AND LITERATURECALL -301-890-3232. J S AUDIO ONE CHILDRESSCOURT. BURTONSVILLE, MARYLAND 20866. AUDI-TION BY APPOINTMENT, MONDAY THRU FRIDAY10AM TO 7PM, SATURDAY 11 TO 5, WC, VISA, AMEX.FAX: (301) 890-3819.

ALABAMA -WEST GEORGIA: Quad. Spica, Meitner, CalAudio, Well Tempered, VPI, Audioquest. MIT and morelACCURATE AUDIO, 110 E SAMFORD AVE.. AUBURN, AL36830 (205) 826-1960

APOGEE DIVA LOUDSPEAKERS, perfect, $4900.00:Janis subwoofer W-1 w Interphase 1-A x -over. $995.00:Eminent Technology LFT-IV speakers. latest w custom cov-ers; $1300.00. Audio by A.J. Conti (603) 888-6017.

A SOUND EXCHANGEUtah's New, Used, Demo. Classics store. Examples:Superphon DM -220 $749, Revelation II $619 (demo)Mark Levinson ML -7A $3350 B&K 202 t $598, KlyneSK -5a $2650 (new 8 demo). Klyne SK -6 $1700 (new 8demo). Rowland 7S $5500, pr.. Coherence I $2750,Soundlab Dynastat $1199. Linn LP -12 Ittok Arm $1199.Sound Exchange 5130 South State Street. Murray, UT84107 (801)268-6066.

AUDIO ARCHIVES IN SAN DIEGO. We have MERLINSIGNATURE speakers (Cardas-wired). CARDAS cables,WINGATE Class -A amps. CONVERGENT tube preamp.SOUND ANCHOR equipment stands. (619) 455-6326.

BEST TRADES OFFERED. We buy sell. trade, consignmost high -end products. Audio Doctor, 1518 W. Commercial,Buffalo, MO 65622. 417-345-7245. COD -VISA -MC. News-letter.

150AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

Accurate. Superb Imaging. Only $155 Per Pair.

dana audio model 1

French made AUDAX TITANIUM tweeterAUDAX 61/2 woofer GOLD plated bindingposts Hand soldered, SOLID CORE wiring15 day home trial program.

S155 PER PAIR plus S10 for shipping.

Call for information or order at 512 251-7701Visa. MasterCard or Money Order

danaaudioP.O. Box 1 Austin. Ten. 78767

FOR SALE

ATTENTION HAFLER, DYNA, MAGNAVOX OWNERS!Audio by Van Alstine builds complete new higher perfor-mance circuits for you. Not modifications, but original newengineering designs that eliminate transient distortion, haveno on or off thumps, are durable and rugged, and soundcloser to live than anything else at a rational price. Ourcomplete do-it-yourself rebuild kits start at $200, including allnew PC cards. Complete wonderfully -musical factory wiredamplifiers, preamplifiers, tuners. CD players, and a great $99phono cartridge. Write or call for our new illustrated catalog.Audio by Van Alstine, 2202 River Hills Drive. Burnsville, MN55337. (612) 890-3517

AUDIOPHILE PARTSWonderCap. Rel-Cap, Solen, Wirna, Aselco. Vishay,Holco, Resista. Cardas, VandenHul. MIT, TaraLabs,Teflon. WBT, MisicPost, Tiffany. Gold Aero (100/n dis-count). Grado, Q.E.D., Target. etc. PreAmp (Daniel) andPowerAmp Kits Parts upgrade Kits. Call Write,FAX forfree catalogue. SONIC FRONTIERS, 181 KenilworthAve.. Toronto. Ontario, Canada. Tel! (416) 691-7877,FAX (416) 338-2562

CABLE TV CONVERTERS. Jerrold, Oak. Scientific Atlanta, Zenith, and many others "New" MTS Stereo Addon. Mute 8 Vol., 400 and 450 owners! Visa, Mastercard,American Express. B 8 B Inc.. 4030 Beau -D -Rue Drive.Eagan, MN 55122. (1-800-826-7623)

FOR SALE

AUDIO NEXUS =EXCELLENCE

Featuring legendary VANDERSTEEN loudspeakers 8COUNTERPOINT tube electronics.

STEREO COMPONENTS THAT HONOR MUSIC

APOGEE ARISTON AUDIOOUEST BEL MK BRITISH FIDELITY COUNTERPOINT EMINENTTECHNOLOGY FORTE FRIED JSE KIMBERKABLE KLYNE MELOS MERIDIAN MIT MONSTER CABLE MUSICAL CONCEPTS NITTYGRITTY ORTOFON PREMIER PS AUDIO PRECISE ROTEL ROWLAND RESEARCH SME SONOGRAPHE SONY ES SOTA SPECTRUM STAX SYSTEMDEK TALISMAN ALCHEMIST TUBETRAPS VAN DEN HUL VANDERSTEEN VENDETTA VTL Summit, NJ 1201) 277-0333.

BUY/SELL IN THE MONTHLY AUDIO VIDEO TRADER$15 yr, SAMPLE $1 SASE. FREE ADS' 330 S MAINWAKE FOREST, NC 27587

CABLE TV CONVERTERS AND DESCRAMBLERS, ZE-NITH. JERROLD, TOCOM, SCIENTIFIC ATLANTA, HAM-LIN. OAK. CODER YOURS TODAY! VISA -M C -COD.1-800-327-8544.

SPEAKER COMPONENTSCROSSOVER COMPONENTS

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scanspeaK

(seas)

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FAST CAPACITORSMetallized Polypropylene (Non -Polarized)Values from 1.0 mfd to 200 mfdVoltage Rating 250 VDC / 150 VAC

SOLEN INDUCTORSPerfect Lay Hexagonal Winding Air CoredValues from 10 mH to 30 mH.Wire Sizes from a20 AWG to a 10 AWG

HEPTA-LITZ INDUCTORSSeven Strands Litz -Wire ConstructionsValues from 10 mH to 30 mHWire sizes -mom a 16 AWG to a 12 AWG

SOLEN CROSSOVERSCustom Computer DesignPassive Crossover for Professional, Hi-Fi andCar Hi-Fi. Power up to 1000 Watt

" CROSSOVER, SPEAKER PARTS-- Gold Speaker Terminals. Gold Banana Plugs

Gold Binding Posts. Crossover Terminals.Power Resistors. Mylar Capacitors.

a Plastic Grill Fasteners, Nylon Ty -WrapsGrill Cloth. Car Speaker Grills, Misc Parts

SOLEN INC.4470 Thobaull AveSt Hubert OC J3Y 7T9Canada

Tel (514) 656-2759Fax (514) 443-4949

COMPUTER AIDED DESIGN FORENCLOSURE AND CROSSOVER

AVAILABLE TO CUSTOMER

avadable upon request

)111:UTPENA

TRBA

4

Use AudioQues: Bluespeaker cable - it willmake you think you arehearing your favoritemusic for the first time.

AudioQuest Blue usessurface -only conduc-tors. This technologywas previously avail-able in orly our mostexpensive cables. Asurface -only canductohas a single layer spiralof strands around anon-conductive coreEvery strand is alwayson the surface andevery strand has thesame electrical valuesSkin -effect indi_ceddistortion is elininatedcurrent does not crossbetween strands andmagnetic interaction isgreatly reducec.

The result is a cablethat sounds much moredynamic, dimensionaland focused than thecompetition's. The mid-

range andhighs aresweeter,moreextendedand less"confused"soundinc,while the

bass is tighter andbetter defined.

So, replace your currentcables with AudioQuestcables and rediscoveryour entire music col-lection. Call today forthe AudioQuest dealernear you.

audioquestTel 714/498-2770 Fax 498-5112PO. Boa 3060San Clemente. CA 92672 USA

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 15'

Here's a book about an upgrade that's so good and costs so little, high-end autosound installers don't want to hear it-or even about it!

Killer Car Stereo on a Budget.Now you have got a simple choice when it comes to upgrading your car stereo Instead of paying a few thousand to a good high -end dealer, you can pay only a few hundred. With a good in -dash unit in place, you needonly follow author Dan Ferguson's instructions for buying and replacing your front speakers. main speakers.and adding the killer-a subwoofer with enclosure, power amp and crossover.

We tell you where to buy all your high quality upgrades at low cost, including a five -function crossover kit(parts less than $30) or completely assembled, tested and warranted for $70 Your total cost for the upgrade?Can be less than $500-about a third-or even less-than you'd expect to pay to have it done for you

Order Today. Only $19.95. Add $1.75 shipping. Check/money order MCNisa # exp. date(Canada: add $3.50 postage.) Remit in $U.S. only.

NameSignatureAddressCity State Zip(Please allow up to 6 weeks for delivery.)

Old Colony Sound LabPO Box 243, Dept. KA99, Peterborough, NH 03458-0243

\NIFIF AUDIO INTERCONNECTS

to

a.

F't' HU L MATCHED CRYSTAL CABLE HEADSHELL LEADS BINDING POS1

SoundwaveBaffleless Speakerspatent pending)

REFLECTION FREE SOUNDSoundwave loudspeakers have theopen. seamless, and transparent soundof the best "panel" (electrostatic.ribbon, and planar) speakers, whileoffering the superior dynamic rangeand extended bass response of thebest "dynamic" designs. And they offera stereo image that is second to none.

A revolutionary design. achieved bythe utilization of acoustic intensitymapping techniques. Soundwave loud-

speakers have a unique "baffleless" enclosure, special drive units, and a180 degree radiation pattern. The result is sound so natural and threedimensional, you'll think there are live musicians performing in yourlistening room.

"Soundwave loudspeakers create a breathtaking stereo image, possess tremendousdynamic range, and are harmonically correct; they're the most musical speakersI've ever heard," says Dr. Christopher Rouse, world famous composer.

"From jazz through the classics, the response (o( the Western New York AudioSociety members) was always glowing praise!" -Tom Kasperzak.

For further information, write Soundwave Fidelity Corp.3122 Monroe Avenue, Rochester, New York (716) 383-1650

FOR SALE

BARCLAY CD PLAYERSTARA LABS, DNM and MUSIC METRE-Custom Ter-minations. Audio Prism Antenna. Creek Electronics.Epos ES14. Musical Concepts, Revolver. SUPERPHON,VISA MC. AUDIO EXCELLENCE. LIVERPOOL. NY(315)451.2707

CALL 1-800-648-6637 FOR THE SWEETEST CD MODSthat you can install yourself. We have the Crown SI D Aconverters. $55 Premium Digital Filter chips. $45 Call orwrite for info on these and many other CD player modificabons. Soloist Audio 348 Tuttle, S.A., TX 78209.

CALL TOLL FREE! 1-800-826-0520 FOR: ACOUSTAT, Ap-ature, Audio Control, Nitty Gritty, M&K, Oracle, Proac,Proton, Stax, Thorens, Dahlquist, Hatter, Monster Cable,Belles, CWD, dbx, Fried, Harman Kardon, 3D, Onkyo.Grado, Audioquest, Celestion, DCM, Duntech, Niles,Citation, Kinergetics. Sound Seller, 1706 Main St..Marinette, WI 54143. (715) 735-9002.

CARVER AMPLIFIERSCARVER-MAGNETIC FIELD AMPLIFIERS-M-1 at$479, M-1 5t$599-Full U S A Warranty - Advanced Akus-tic, 455 Pershing, Suite 33, Stockton, CA 95207 12091477-5045

CARVER, NAKAMICHI, BANG & OLUFSEN, A.D.S.,CROWN, REVOX TANDBERG. HAFLER. ADCOM. MIS-SION. N.A.D.. HARMAN,KARDON, KYOCERA. YAMAHA,LUXMAN. DENON. KLIPSCH. B & W, KEF, D C.M E -V.

J.B L.. INFINITY. D.B.X.. AKG, AND OTHER QUALITYCOMPONENTS. BEST PRICES --PROFESSIONAL CON-SULTATION. OPEN 24 HOURS A DAY ALL PRODUCTSCOVERED BY MANUFACTURERS' U.S.A.WARRANTY.AMERISOUND SALES, INC., JACKSONVILLE. FLORIDA32241. EAST: (904) 262-4000 WEST- (818) 243-1168.

CASH for USED AUDIO EQUIP. BUYING andSELLING by PHONE. CALL for HIGHESTQUOTE. (215) 886-1650. The Stereo Trading Out-let 320 Old York Road. Jenkintown, PA 19046

CASH FOR USED PWR/PREAMPS -ARC. Levinson.Krell. Threshold & Conrad -Johnson. Pickup amps from yourhome or just ship UPS COD. Call CA (213) 257-6726 Seri-nie, or Fax (213) 258-7525

CLASSIC AUDIOCA260 DUAL MONO TUBE AMPLIFIER -10 DAYHOME AUDITION- MADE WITH REAL McINTOSHTRANSFORMERS-SAVE" FACTORY DIRECT --INSTOCK -CLASSIC AUDIO. LTD., 238 LIBERTY AVE .NEW ROCHELLE. NY 10805 (914) 633-3039

COMPACT DISC PLAYERSBY MUSICAL CONCEPTS

EPOCH'', with dual -mono outboard supply and soundrated Best of Summer CES by many' ERA replacesand improves CD -3 TPS (reviewed The AbsoluteSound" #52), separate analog supply. superb imaging.transparent' The ENIGMA'. so much for so little, Com-plete new ''582" chassis. 1yr. warranty, ENIGMA$595. ERA $895, EPOCH- $1195 Weil modify 16 -bit Philips Magnavox'ADCOM, BSA AND HAFLER MODIFICATIONS BY

MUSICAL CONCEPTSInductorless, refined, transparent' Many former tubelovers are using our amplifiers9 Haller modificationsfrom $149. MK from $219 installed. Adcom (GFA-555.545, 535) from $195 installed. Options. include specialwire connectors. Dual -Mono.

NEW STANDARDSTEFLON ' MC -2 preamplifier retrofits Hafler. MK andAdcom preamps. Why is the MC -27 replacing $5000tube preamps" MC -2T is the ultimate priceperformance standard'SuperConnect IIp You cant buy better' $55 1M pair.

DEALER MUSICAL CONCEPTS SENDINQUIRIES ONE PATTERSON PLAZA FORINVITED ST. LOUIS, MO 63031 REVIEWS/

314-831.1822 BROCHURE

CARVER, NAKAMICHI, BANG & OLUFSEN, A.D.S.,CROWN, REVOX TANDBERG, HAFLER, ADCOM. MISSION. N.A D.. HARMAN KARDON. KYOCERA. YAMAHALUXMAN. DENON. KLIPSCH. B 8 W. KEF. D C.M . E -V

J.B L., INFINITY. D.B. X.. AKG. AND OTHER QUALITYCOMPONENTS. BEST PRICES- -PROFESSIONAL CONSULTATION. OPEN 24 HOURS A DAY. ALL PRODUCTSCOVERED BY MANUFACTURERS U.S.A. WARRANTY.AMERISOUND SALES, INC JACKSONVILLE. FLORIDA32241. EAST: (904) 262-4000 WEST. 1818) 243-1168.

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

FOR SALE

DAYTON WRIGHT SPEAKERS MODEL XG8MK3 WITHST 300-A BIAS SUPPLY TWO PAIR AVAILABLE. NEEDWORK. $500 PER PAIR OR BEST OFFER 1404) 321-6333

DYNACO ST70 UPGRADES. Gold EL34 Sockets 1215Microfarad on -board solid state B triode output. more.Complete service. DoReTech Audio Services, Box 6054.South Hackensack, NJ 07606-4354 12011233-2659.

GAS EQUIPMENT OWNERS: Since 1977 we have offeredexpert service on GAS equipment. From repairs to completerebuilds with a one year guarantee. Our work compares withtoday s finest. We've kept the fire burning, Call or write:GASWORKS 5563 Kendall Street. Boise Idaho 83706 1208)323-0861

"GOLDMUND STUDIETTO TURNTABLE," 15 arm. Gold-mund interface. super Alin power supply. clamp, cones. MITtonearm cable. plus GOLDMUND GOLD CARTRIDGE withonly 15 hours use. All absolutely mint $4500 Stax Ouattro ICD player. mint. $1375. MIT Shotgun interconnects, threepair in each. $325 each. Speaker cable 750 MusicHose. one8 pair. $725 Athena Polyphasors, one ML -1 line Polyphasorand one MS -1 speaker Polyphasor. $295 each (213)390-6182.

HAFLER, TEXAS BIGGEST DEALER, TOBY CORPORA-TION. Also ROTEL, TOBY HI -TECH HOME. CAR SPEAK-ERS. SATELLITE. SUBWOOFER SYSTEMS 1817)732-6301. 2060 Montgomery. Fort Worth 76107.

HIGH -END, LOW PRICES. ADSBANG &OLUFSENCARVERDBXDENONH KNAKAMICHI AND MANY MORE, FULL MANUFAC-TURERS WARRANTY. TECH ELECTRONICS SYS-TEMS. SINCE 1981. GAINESVILLE. FL 19041730-3885

IMPROVE YOUR IMAGE! Quality, hand -made accousticabsorption panels 2 x 4. off -white or light -blue. $39.00 each,UPS included Brent Williams Applied Technologies. 570Woodlawn Drive. Marietta. GA 30067. 404-565-8112

JAY'S AUDIO. NEW HAMPSHIRE'S AFFORDABLE AU-DIO DEALER. AMPS. PREAMPS. SPEAKERS. TURN-TABLES, CABLES AND CD PLAYERS. WILL BUY MINTUSED HIGH -END EOUIPMENT. (603) 883-1982.

LIVEWIRE CLOSEOUT SALE! 50°. OFF ON AUDIO.QUEST TYPE 12 SPEAKER CABLE' LIMITED SUPPLY,CALL FOR PRICES & ORDERING INFORMATION. HCMAUDIO. 1-800-222-3465. 1-916.345-1341 VISA MC AMEX

MAGNAVOX CD's: CDB480 $135, C DB482, $159, C DB486,CHANGER $259. CDB473 $199. CDB582, CDB586.CDB650--CALL. TRADES WELCOME Mod Squad, Audio -

quest. Philips MODS. Soundcraftsmen. Monster Cable.Heybrook. Apature FREE CATALOG" DIGITAL SOUND(312) 674-8024.

MARANTZ 10B $1295.. 7c $1200. 8 $675.. 8b $850. SsS950.. 3 $300.. 1 $550.. 7T $175.. SLT 12 $275.. McIntosh2205 $1050., 60s $950.. 240 $850.. 225 $495.. 20W2 s$600.. C20 $395.. MR 78 $1050_ MR71 $525., 67 $425..MX110 $375.. 1700 $395. Sequerra FM $3600.. OctaveResearch black chrome $2100.. Futterman-Tympaui ID$975., H3a $1100.. H3aa $1450.. A R C . SPI $900.. SP3al$500 D51 $600.. 0250 $2400., R.0 A. 220 w.p.c. monos$1m C.J. pv2a $295 Lafayette 550 overhauled $595 Strat-herns $300 pr K. Monks CR500 $300 1 4 TK prerecordedtapes $5 up. Fisher SA1000 Scott LK150 b o. N YS Iafternoons (718) 377-7282

MCINTOSHBought -Sold -Traded -Repaired. fHL) Catalogue. See ourad at the beginning of the classifieds AUDIO CLASSICS.POB 176MM. Walton. NY 13856. 607-865-7200. 8AM-5PMEST Mon. -Fri

-Audio Advertiser for over a Decade -

MCINTOSH. JBL (ALNICO), Krell. M Levinson, and otherhigh end audio components. Let us find your hard to getitems. Call John Wolff. 313-229-5191 (24hrs machine)

McIntosh (solid-state & tube). Marantz, Mark Levinson.Krell. Audio Research. Conrad -Johnson, Audiophile Turntable. Will buy yours or sell mine. Trade Possible Call Yanq12011935-4026 (NJ)

McINTOSH...MARANTZWANTED: McIntosh. Maran1z. Western Dec Inc. Vain 110,1other tube components from the 50s & 605. ALSO SPEAKERS W.E., Altec. Patricians. Hartstields. Jensen. Richard.Box 521, Belmont. MA 02178. 617-484-5784

MONSTER CABLE PRODUCTS AT LOW PRICES' CALLFOR PRICES & ORDERING INFORMATION HCM AUDIO.1-800-222-3465, 1-916-345-1341 VISA MC AMEX.

VTL TubeCD Player-only $99500

If you follow CD player reviews inStereophile, TAS, and elsewhere, youknow that many reviewers tout tubedCD players for their smooth sound,true timbres, and natural soundstag-ing. The new VTL CDB582 combines thelatest Philips technology ( I 6 -bit twinDACs, 4X oversampling) with a newtubed circuit by David Manley.

The result is MAGIC!"The 582, made by Philips, gets data

off the disc more accurately than anyother machine we tested," says Manley."To improve performance, we install myspecial tubed output stage."

The VTL CD582 starts with the Mag-navox CD582. All convenience featuresare retained. 20 track memory. 3 -speedmusic search. Shuffle play. 19 -function

VTL CDB582

wireless remote. Don't look for the VTLCD582 in stores -we're buying all theycan make. Phenomenal value at $995.00.Add $9.95 shipping in US. Satisfactionguaranteed.

Charge It!Amex Discover MC Visa1-800-942-0220

00 aucioadvisor, inc.

225 Oakes SW Grand Rapids, MI 49503616-451-3868 FAX 616-451-0709

.Low -Price AccessoriesHard to hnd Audiophile LPs CDs

Get em *Mae they last'Preprhis: Cartate Domino lcCIAIH 17 95

Jab at Pawn Shop' Iccli 16 95 1211:151 34 95Anhpnone Blues Jazz ICCl/1p) 17 953 -Blind -Mice Jazz CD #1 (CM 17 95

Mobile Risley Beatles LPsSot Peppe-s. Please. Hard Day's Night. For

Sale Help. Yellow Sub. Lel It Be Opal 17 95Chesty New Jut CDs J01 Johnny Engo

JD2 Clark Terry. JD3 Phil Woods lcdsi 14 98JD28 Gram. Rio Alret Dark 1c01 14 98JD29 Bent -a, Nonstop to Brazil lcd) 14 98

Lrila Ins CallReference Recordings COs and LPs

All Titles (Iplcd) 15.01Sheffield Labs: Kodo Drums lcd, 14 99

Moscow Sessions Set Ird/M1 39 95Mom Aulic Recordings

All Titles (1P/cdl 15.98

Everything for CD Players

MonsterCabla CD Sound Rings112, 14 35 ?Si( 29 95 150,

Monster Farm: New, Smal:

Reg ,CD, 49 95 Large

Interconnect' 'or CD PlayersPdagnavoe C) Players

CDB262 w remoteCDB582 w remote008586 CD ChangerCDV485 CO Video Player

14i 19 95

49 95

29 9599 95

Call

Everything for TurntablesAlphas°, automatic tonearm raiser 29 95AR ES -1 armless turntable '41995DB Cartridge Alignment Protractor 24 50Grads Caitridges: Grado ZTE1 19 95

Grads, Signature 8MZ MCZ. TLZ .STZ CaliElectronic stylus cleaner 19 95Record Doctor vacuum powered re, ord

cleaning machine 169 95LAST Record Products #1 Cleaner It 95

*1 Preservative. 14 95

#4 Srytus Cleaner 795#5 Stylus Treatment - 16 95

Headshells: Summo110. 12 29 95H14800411 aims: SME fitz 22 95Record Brushes: AO or Not Gritty . 9 95Record Cleaning Machine Solutions:

Wiry Gritty First (6oz I 14 95 llGan 24 95Torumat Fluid 16 oz 14 95

linty Gritty Purifier 2 116ozi 11 9511gall39 95Record Mats: AO Sorbothane Mat 29 95

SO TA Acrylic Mat

Shire VNR5MR Replacement Stylus.SOTA Reflex Record Clamp

Stylus Gaspe: Shure GaugeSumac: F13-1 MC DemagnetizerSumiko Blue Point MC cartridgeTip Toes for turntables C3 'or AR

For VP' Sota Oracle

129 95

125 00

129 9514 95

149 95

99 954 95

895Lind Balloon Turntable Stand '249 95

"14995 Turntable Wall Shelves"19995 Target" r "10995 '279 95 Target PS ' for erg Lobbies "49 95"659 95 VPI Record Cleaning machines

, CaliVP1 Suction tubes for 15 5 & 17 19 95

Powerstrips for Audio and VideoWith hne tiltenng

Trippile IBE 6 outlets 89 95Trppile 1E1-8 8 outlets 99 95Powerlme regulators win filtering

12013-220 or 220 volt. 4 outlets "24995.0 1800 6 cutlets. for 120 volts '29900Graces Sublect to change

Target Equip Racks Iron England

AIR Floor Stands for ampsTT3 33 -tall 3 shelvesPS3 Like TT3 for Wig. gearT15 331111 5 shelvesTT5T 401a1 5 shelvesTarget heavy-duty speaker stands

75 00

219 95

275 00275 00299 95

Cali

Cables and Cable Accessories

Interconnect Cabin:As -One Cardas EMS Distech. Livewire. MITMonster Vanden Hui CallCustom length cableS Can

Dotal, Powsrbridge Cables 8 ft 169 95Speakor Cables Aural Cardas. FMS L veer.

Monster Space & I-ne Call

Banana Connectors King Size l8gal 995Monster 0 -terminators len 24 95

Tiffany RCA connectors Call

Wonder Solder. IT Soil 999 Me) 39 95WBT Silver Solder 250 mg roll 29 95

Video Cables: Monster Itml 19 95 in )49 95VandenHul video 11 ml 24 95 (2m) 30 95

Truk Contact Conditioner 74 95

Coenobite, Conrad cleaner 15 95

Specialty Speaker Stands

Chicano Hercules Stands: 12 -25' 14995ARCICI specialty stands B&W 801M '39995Quad 63 Stand '17500 ESL stand '17500Sound Anchors specialty stands for

VS liC '21995 Spica TC-50 '19995B&W 801M '39995 MOO '29995

All kinds of other Accessories

ASC Tube Top room dampers Call

AO Sorbothane Isolation FeetLarge 141 34 95 Small (for CDs) 141 19 95Audiophile Books Good Sound Dearborn12 95

The VTL rube Book D Manley 12 95irrardynamie headphones Call

Mu 2000G tape routing selector "9995Sans Acoustic Roam Treatment

Sone. Juniors 2 .2 a2' sheets 141 49 95Niles SPS-1 4 -speaker selector 75 00Niles HDS-6 6 -speaker selector 175 00

AudioNideo switching systems CallTerk EM2000 antenna 19 95Terk -Pr" FM antenna 79 95Vacuum Tubes: RAM Labs Premium CallVP, hW 540 Magic Br r 39 95

Shipping ChargesUPS, Insured. 48 States

Accessories One Item 3 95Each Extra Item 1.25'Turntables. Stands 12.95 Electronics 895

Europe, New Zealand and Australia M audio

1-800-942-0220Amex / Visa / Mastercard / Discover

UPS International Air to the Far East.

advisor, Inc225 Oakes SW Grand Rapids. MI 49503FAX 616-451-0709 Service 616-451-3868

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 153

FOR SALE

KOFTSU

USA

For information on Koetsu moving coil cartridges, the world'sfinest, please contact the exclusive American importer:

Koetsu USA, Inc.712 South Military Trail, Deerfield Beach, FL 33442

Telephone: 305-698-6102 Fax: 305-480-6410

MAGNAVOX

-na 0

COMPACT DISC PLAYERS

CDB582 $199.88CDB586 Low PriceCDB473 Super DealSpecial prices on closeouts & fac-tory renewed models. Call. We willnot be undersold.

PHILIPS

Mr,When in Boston, visit us.

We stock & displayHIFI IDTV CDV CD PLAYERS

smallest Hi-Fi shop for new

SONY ES

CARVERMONSTERPIONEER LVAR

THORENS

PREMIER

MAGNAVOXHAFLER

SOTA

JBLDBX

AUDINUESTTARGET

PARADIGMLEXICONAPATURE

STAX

MERLINACOUSTATGRAN

FRIED

SUMIKOPLC. Pyramid MET-?

PHILIPSPS AUDIOHARMAN KARDON

GI AUDIO95 Vassar Street Cambridge, MA 02139

'617-547-2727

ATTENTIONDENON CUSTOMERS

Not everyone offering Denonproducts for sale is an authorizedDenon dealer. This has greatsignificance to you as a potentialDenon customer.

Denon America's warranty appliesto the original purchase only. Denonproducts sold by non -authorizeddealers are not covered under this orany other warranty

Additionally, some of this equipmentmay have been designed for foreignmarkets and therefore will not meetDenon America's specifications.

So look for the Authorized DenonDealer Sticker before you buy.

To find your nearestAUTHORIZED Denon Dealer call:

1-201-575-7810 (9:00am- 5:00pm EST)

FOR SALE

NITTY GRITTY RECORD CLEANING MACHINES & SUP-PLIES. MOST ITEMS IN STOCK. AUTHORIZED DEALER.CALL FOR PRICES & ORDERING INFORMATION. HCMAUDIO, 1-800-222-3465, 1-916-345-1341. VISA. MCAMEX.

DIMENSIONAL PURITY VANDERSTEEN AUDIO

1

8

Vandersteen Audio was founded in 1977with the commitment to offer always thefinest in music reproduction for the dollar.Toward this goal there will always be ahigh degree of pride, love, and personalsatisfaction involved in each piece before itleaves our facilities. Your Vandersteen dealershares in this commitment, and has beencarefully selected for his ability to deal withthe complex task of assembling a musicallysatisfying system. Although sometimeshard to find, he is well worth seeking out.

Write or call for a brochure and thename of your nearest dealer.

VANDERSTEEN AUDIO116 WEST FOURTH STREETHANFORD, CALIFORNIA 93230 USA(209) 582-0324

MIT cables, custom terminations, Camacs. XLR balanced.hi -flexibility tonearm sets, Shotgun CVT: MIT hookup forinternal rewiring; Athena PolyPhasors; ATMA-SPHERE OTLamplifiers, CLEMENTS speakers, VENDETTA RE-SEARCH. VAN DEN HUL GRASSHOPPER, ASC TubeTraps: Wonder Caps -solder -wire; Resistas: Edison Price,Odyssey. Tiffany connectors; Simply Physics Tone Cones &Isodrive: many accessories -mod parts. $1 catalog ($3 over-seas): Michael Percy, Box 526. Inverness, CA 94937. (415)669-7181.

NOW FOR MAGNEPANSImprove bass and imaging at minimum cost! Stop speak-ers from rocking on thick carpet. Our GROUNDING SPIKEfirmly couples your speaker to the floor. Call write for freeinformation. SOUND FUNDAMENTALS. 24002 Swallowtail,Laguna Niguel, CA 92677. (714) 831-9721, 8-5PST.

NYC HI -Fl AND MUSIC COLLECTIBLES FLEA MARKET:An Earful. September 10th, Sunday at downtown NYC CafeHam Heaven. Classic and collectible Hi-Fi, theater andstudio sound equipment, radios, records, tapes and tubesgalore. Exhibitor spaces $30 & $40, Buyers admission: $4.An Audiomotivating event. Reserve now-call Larry (609)426-9744. before 10PM. EST.

60 YEARS IN BUSINESS...WE MUST BE DOINGSOMETHING RIGHT! If it's a much -in -demand audi-ophile product, we're likely to have it for immediateshipment. Consult with one of our quiet experts or lustorder U.S.-warranteed components directly. VISA,MC. Ask for Steve K. or Dan W SQUARE DEAL, 456Waverly Ave.. Patchogue, N.Y. 11772. (516) 475-1857.

PAUL HEATH AUDIOAudible Illusions, B&K, Classe Audio, Cardas Theta,Iverson Eagle 400. Gryphon, Dynalab, Epos, PS Audio,Philips Audio -video, Melos, MFA, MIT, Mod Squad.Merlin, TDL. Quicksilver, VPI, Well -tempered, 217 Alex-ander, Rochester, NY 14607. (716) 262-4310

PHILA. AUDIOPHILESWe proudly represent:AdcomApogeeAntonB&K ComponentsCambridgeCeleshonCounterpointEminent Tech.Infinite SlopeKimber KableKinergeticsKlyneKoetsu

LazarusMaplenollMicro SeikiMission CyrusM&K SoundMod SquadNADOracleParasoundPS AudioRega PlanarRogers,ArcamRotel

Royd AudioSnellSoundcraftsmenStaxStraightwireSumiko SMESuperphonSystemdekTargetTriad DesignVan Den HulVPIWell Tempered

Plus 15 brands of cartridges and more'

SOUND SERVICE CO.8010 Bustleton Ave. Philadelphia, PA 19152(215) 725-1177-78 Bank Cards Accepted

PS AUDIO - SUPERB!Fast, FREE shipping' Knowledgeable, friendly service'Audire. Chesky, CWD. Fried, Grado, Kinergetics, Mirage,Monster Cable (M -series). Quad, SME. Sota, Spica, Stax,Straightwire. Thorens, more. READ BROTHERS STEREO,593 King Street, Charleston. South Carolina 29403 (803)723-7276.

REVOLUTIONARY 35MM 3 -DIMENSIONAL CAMERA.Incredibly Beautiful Photographs. Easy To Operate.Brochure, Including Sample Photograph, ONLY $2.NEW AGE OPTICAL, (714) 731-2129; 1088 Irvine Blvd.,Suite. 371-20, Tustin, CA 92680.

SAN FRANCISCO AREA-IRRESISTIBLY priced audi-ophile components. Shipped delivered. New used. World'sbest CD Players speakers electronics cables turntables.1548 Center Rd. Novato. CA 94947 (415) 898-1464,

SAVE 4Q% ON HIGH -END home speakers,subwoofers, amplifiers. FREE CATALOG!CATALOG, 3021 Sangamon Ave., Spring-field, II. 62702. (217) 529-8793.

Savings to 40%. Nobody beats our prices. Mid!i tohighend. Over 150 product lines. Free Shipping. Full USWarranty. Quality Audio 902-582-3990 7.10pm East-ern Time.

54 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

FOR SALEESOTERIC SOUND

ORDER TOLL -FREE 1-800-222-3465. AUDIO -QUEST B&K BOSE ' CELESTIONGRADO SIGNATURE HARMAN KARDON JBL MONSTER NITTY GRITTY PRE-MIER SONY SOTA STAX STRAIGHT -WIRE SUMIKO SUPERPHON PLUSMANY ACCESSORIES CALL FOR FREEPRICE LIST! HCM AUDIO, 1015 MAN-GROVE, CHICO, CA 95926 (916) 345-1341VISA/MC/AMEX

SPRINGFIELD, IL IS NOT BORING! Adcom. Aragon. B&WInfinity. Counterpoint. Magnum Dynalab. Proton. Energy.Velodyne. Maplenoll, Rega, HarmanKardon, Rotel. CWD.Chesky. Kimber Kable. Philips. Dual. Mission. Ortofon. AKG.Stax. Livewire, Anston, Apature The Kings Stereo. 1275Wabash. Springfield. IL 62704 (217) 787-5656 Thank youfor your help and past consideration. I look forward to ourcontinuing business relationship

STRAIGHTWIRE CABLES IN STOCK! CALL FOR PRICES& ORDERING INFORMATION. AUTHORIZED DEALERHCM AUDIO. 1-800-222-3465. 1-800-345-1341 VISA MCAMEX

TRANSCENDENCE THREE-Finally musical reality!Announcing the stunning original new hybrid Fet-Valve de-signs from Audio by Van Alstine. The Fet-Valvethe Fet-Valve Preamplifiers. and the Fet-Valve CD Players. Aperfect combination of tubes for voltage gain and power Petsfor current gain, each used ideally. The result is musicalreality -- the closest approach to live music in your homeshort of bringing in the musicians One listen and you will besatisfied with nothing less. Now ultimate musical enjoymentis much less expensive. Write or call for our illustratedcatalog. Audio by Van Alstine, 2202 River Hills Drive,Burnsville, MN 55337.1612) 890-3517

USED AND DEMO EQUIPMENT: Aragon 2004. Audio Re-search D-70. Counterpoint SA -20. Infinity IRS Gama. Lurneturntable. Vandersteen 4a: speaker wire and interconnectsfrom MIT, Monster and Livewire. Call Audition Audio forpricing and details at (801) 467-5918 Visa. MC. Amexaccepted

Want A CD? But no amplifier input! Unique selectors givethe input capability you need for any audio accessory. Writetoday for details. JEL. 409 Angus Blvd -59. Warner Robins.GA 31088

LOUDSPEAKERSA&S SPEAKERS uller,tilgh end spedker components. kitsand systems in the Bay Area and mail order We have all ofthe legends Audax. Dynaudio. Scan -Speak. SEAS. MorelPeerless, Focal. Eton. VMPS. others Free literature. ASSSpeakers. 3170 23rd Street, San Francisco. CA 94110(415) 641-4573.

FRIED SPEAKERS & KITSState-of-the-art, Amazing performance price, FREE ship-ping. Knowledgeable, friendly service. Audire. Chesky.CWD. Grado, Monster. PS. Quad. Sota. Spica. Stax, Tho-rens. more READ BROTHERS STEREO, 593 King Street.Charleston, South Carolina 29403 18031 723-7276

Can't afford the loudspeakerof your dreams?

We'll show you how to build it! Frombookshelf to horns to electrostatics.Classic kits and new designs. A richmix of how-to and theory. From theworld's only magazine devoted toloudspeakers. Only $35 for two years(12 issues). 1 year for $20 (6). U.S. $only. Outside U.S., add $4/year forpostage.

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Coherence U -

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CARVER. NAKAMICHI. BANG & OLUFSEN, A.D.S..CROWN, REVOX. TANDBERG. HAFLER. ADCOM.MISSION. N A D., HARMAN KARDON. KYOCERA.YAMAHA. LUXMAN, DENON, KLIPSC-I. B & W KEF.D.0 M.. E -V, J.B.L., INFINITY. D B.X . AKG. AND OTHERQUALITY COMPONENTS. BEST PRICES-PROFESSIONAL CONSULTATION. OPEN 24 HOURS ADAY. ALL PRODUCTS COVERED BY MANUFACTURERSU S.A WARRANTY. AMERISOUND SALES. INC..JACKSONVt_LE. FLORIDA 32241 EAST (904) 262-4000.WEST (8181243-1168

DUNTECH SOUVEREIGN 2001 SPEAKERS 8 months old.Perfect Condition. $11.750.12131 479-1135

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LOUDSPEAKERSFIND OUT WHY AUDIO CONCEPTS INC., sells more high.end speaker kits and parts than anyone in the country.Catalog Toll Free: 1(800) 346-9183. Allow 4-6 weeks fordelivery. First class mailing send $2 to Audio Concepts, Box212. LaCrosse, WI 54601

Does your system sometimes sounddifferent for no apparent reason?

The reason could be your power A refrigeratoror air conditioner. even in another part of thehouse. may cause voltage to vary whenever theykick on or off. Or you may be getting line noise-electrical interference that your preamplifier andamplifier amplify and send on to your speakers.

Solution', Tripplite LC -1800. It regulates volt-age so i"s constant-not too low, rot too high.Full voltage-even in brownouts. LEDs show youwhat Tripplite is doing:

Tripplife's patented ISOBAR circuits providethree 'banks" of isolation, two receptacles perbank You can eliminate interference between criti-cal components It's like putting your CD player.preamp, and power amp all on separate linesSonic benefits may be subtle but real

Protection, tooAnd Tripplite prevents spikes anc power from

damaging your equipment. This protection is ab-solutely essential if you leave any of your gear onall of the time.

Take a Power Trippe-No Risk!Try the Tripplite LC -1800 for 30 days If not

satisfied with the performance (and protection),return it for a full refund of your purchase price.Made in USA by Trippe Manufacturing Co.. Est.1922 Only $299.00 plus $9.95 sh.pping in theUS If you want a clean musical signal, start withclean. consistent power. Order now

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AUDIO'SEPTEMBER 1989 155

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HIGH -END SPEAKER KITSWE BELIEVE SUPERIOR SOUND QUALITY SELLS IT-SELF. To that end. we extend to you, the AKUSTIC-DYNAUDIO experience. Advanced Akustic. 4555 Pershing.Suite 33 184. Stockton. CA 95207. Catalog $1 or Call1-209-4775045

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SIONE1\,_

SOTA Panorama: Small is BeautifulTo neutralize the loudspeaker

enclosure -so drivers move only withthe music -that is the first task of theSOTA design team. Minimize colorationsat the source and you neutralize all sortsof room gremlins.

That is what SOTA does best. We neu-tralize gremlins. l'sing mass. rigidity andall the energy controls for dampingresonances that made us America's pre-eminent turntable maker. we propose totransform the small monitor just as SOTAturntables redefined the high end turnta-ble world eight years ago. Our goals:

Resolution and coherence second tonone, especially in bass extension.

Compatibility with the widest rangeof electronics and moms.

A gorgeous form equal to the gor-geous performance.

ETA

The result of our research: the opti-mum "truncated pyramid" shape: allcurved corners to minimize refraction:and heavily -braced, laminated 11/4" thickwalls. Plus, the latest kevlar drivers andultimate crossover components. The clas-sic two-way speaker may never be thesame.

LOUDSPEAKERSCustom -Finished Loudspeakers We solve speaker vs.decor problems without compromising either. FREEbrochure. Environmental Acoustics 1-800-EA-SPKRS.

BEST SELECTION -50 HOME. SUBWOOFER. CAR &PRO SPEAKERKITS. JBL. B&W, AUDAX, MOREL.PEERLESS. SEAS, VIFA, 24DB ELECTRONIC CROSS-OVER. 40p CATALOG. $2. GOLD SOUND. BOX 141A.ENGLEWOOD. CO 80151.

HIGHTECH Loudspeaker Manufacturer Home Auto: DieCast Drivers, Metal Dome Tweeters. RepresentativesWanted. AudioLab. Box 18009. Seattle. WA 98118. 1(206)323-4987. Fax 1-206-325-7601.

LOUDSPEAKER COMPONENTS -KITS. Dynaudio. Morel.Eclipse, Focal. Peerless. Eton. Vita. morel Crossoverparts -design books also. Catalog $1. Meniscus. 2442 28thSt. S.W.. Wyoming. Michigan 49509. (616) 534-9121.

LEGACY -1 LOUDSPEAKERS BY REEL TO REALDESIGNS: Probably the most accurate speaker systemyou'll ever own, Samarium Cobalt leaf tweeter hands offto a 30mm European dome. Vocals are recreated by themost remakable cone driver anywhere. A multi-chambered, slot -loaded dual woofer configuration ex-tends bass response to 16 Hz. Biampable throughTiffany gold binding posts and high definition cable.Elegant 43" tower design. Ten year warranty. $1648 prshipped prepaid. Ten day home trial. RTRD. 2105 Clare-mont. Springfield, IL 62703. 1(800) 283-4644.

SOUND ANCHORSSpecialty Audio Stands

SOUND ANCHORS stands come PREFILLED with specialmaterials to dampen resonances and add mass. you don'thave to fool with sand or shot, SOUND ANCHORS standsare engineered to interface with your specific componentsand speakers so they sound their best...period. Specialstands are available for these speakers. Vandersteen 2-C,B&W 801 Matrix, Spica TC-50, Sota Panarama and nowMagnepan models MG 2C 2,5 and MG 3A. For informationand the name of your nearest dealer please call (407)724-1237

CD PLAYERSCOMPACT DISC PLAYERS

Knowledgeable, friendly service, Finest brands. FREE ship-ping. READ BROTHERS STEREO, 593 King Street, Char-leston. South Carolina 29403 1803) 723-7276.

ORGANIZE AND ALPHABETIZE YOUR CD SELECTIONSWITH THE NEW 26 CARD INDEX SYSTEM, SEND 55.99EACH SET PLUS $2.00 SHIPPING TO: AARON DISTRIBU-TION. 3262 SUPERIOR LANE. SUITE 101-1Al. BOWIE.MARYLAND 20715.

PHILIPS COMPACT DISC PLAYERS PHILIPS CD -960 &CD -880. REMARKABLY SMOOTH & DETAILED,EXCELLENT DYNAMICS. CD -680 EXCEPTIONAL VALUEUNDER $300.00. FOR INFORMATION CALL (3011890-3232. J.S. AUDIO, ONE CHILDRESS COURT.BURTONSVILLE. MD 20866. MONDAY THRU FRIDAY10am. TO 7pm. SATURDAY 11-5 M C VISA AMEX.

COMPACT DISCS"AND GOD CREATED GREAT WHALES" (Hovhaness);Whale songs with orchestra. Cd $16.95. Cassette $10.98($2. shipping). CRYSTAL RECORDS. Sedro-Woolley, WA98284.

'WELD-:EARS

- Free Catalog of CDs Same day shipping if you order

before 12 hoon EDT sin DISCOUNT per disc on orders

of 10 or more,2`. for UPS Cont U S. shipments

Call Toll Free to order:1-800-333-4422

P.O.Box 616, Clifton Park, NY 12065518-383-4855

tolItISCOM PACTD

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P.O. BOX 7075, Berkeley, CA 94707156 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

COMPACT DISCS

COMPACT DISCS-AT LOW WAREHOUSE PRICES. Nowin our 5th year CATALOG. Send $2.00.Oz Warehouse.1575P Hwy 29. Lawrenceville. GA 30244.

DIRECT -TO -TAPE RECORDINGS -CD's and 70 DATtapes plus other tape formats. Primarily classical jazz. Send75 cents 13 stamps), lor CATALOG NEWSLETTER to.Direct -to -Tape Recording. 14-R Station Avenue. HaddonHeights. NJ 08035

FREE JAZZ CATALOG: CD'S, LP'S, CASSETTES, VID-EOS. SINCE 1975. WRITE TO DEPT. AU, DAYBREAKEXPRESS RECORDS, P.O. BOX 150250, VAN BRUNTSTATION, BROOKLYN, NY 11215-0005.

RECORDS

albumTRAK'"Provides the album enthusiast with the complete soft-ware package to track group, title. label, style. substyle:recording mode and date purchase price. source anddate. and comments Handles 1 billion albums -diskspace providing Also tracks wanted albums. Runs onany IBM PC compatible. Send check money order for$39 99 to BLH Systems Group. 920 N 4th Street.Second Floor. Philadelphia. PA 19123 Or call (215)829-9213

RECORD COLLECTORS SUPPLIES. REPLACEMENTJACKETS. INNER SLEEVES. 78 RPM SLEEVES. OPERABOXES. LASER DISK BOXES. ETC FREE CATALOGCABCO PRODUCTS. BOX 8212. ROOM 662. COLUMBUS.OHIO 43201

AUDIOPHILE RECORDSAUDIOPHILE ALBUMS FROM SOUND ADVICE! Mobilefidelity. Reference Recordings. Sheffield Lab. Chesky, Wil-son Audio. UHOR 's collection. etc SOUND ADVICE8215 Grand. Kansas City. MO 64114 (816) 361-2713 Audi-ophile albums represent the final effort for the analog record-ing medium Keep the faith

AUDIOPHILE LP'SAND CD'S

IN PRINT

Mobile Fidelity. Reference Recording, Sheffield Labs.Chesky. Wilson, M 8 K, American Gramophone, Pro-prius. OPUS 3. Lynda. Linn Re -cut. EMI. Watertilly, NorthStar. Odin. Japanese and British Imports (los). ManyTAS recommended LPs'

OUT OF PRINTS

Nautilus. Super Disks. Nimbus. UHOR. MFSL Beatles,Stones. Sinatra Boxes. Direct to Disc by Crystal Clear.Umbrella. EMI. RCA LSC. Mercury SR. Casino Royal,CBS Mastersounds. Etc.

AUDIOPHILE CD'S

MFSL Gold 'Ultra Disk , Bainbridge Colossus. EliteStereo play". Three Blind Mice. Telarc. plus the above

labels.

ACCESSORIES BY:

Nifty Gritty. LAST. Audio Quest

ALSO. ONE STOP distributor pricing for Audio Recordstore, offering all brands above The LARGEST inven-tory and FASTEST service'

Call for catalog

Acoustic SoundsP.O. Box 2043

Salina, Kansas 67402913-825-8609

REFERENCE RECORDINGSEILEEN FARRELL - the very name summons affection andrespect - is without doubt one of the most celebrated andversatile singers of the century. Now we are proud beyondmeasure to have Miss Farrell s glorious singing available inProf. Johnson's celebrated sonics. First up. songs by HaroldArlen, with whom Farrell worked closely, in cabaret style witha small combo. Inventive arrangements by LoomsMcGlohon feature trumpet solos by jazz great Joe Wilder.Eileen Farrell Sings Harold Arlen (RR -30) is now available

on Digital master CD ($16.981. Pure Analogue JVC LP($16 98). or DAAD HX-Pro cassette ($9 98) at your localdealer or postpaid from Reference Recordings, Box 77225X,San Francisco CA 94t07 (Visa MC check) 415-355-1892Free catalogue reviews Dealer inquiries invited

You heard it right.

The newest audio magazineis all about vacuum tubes!Glass Audio is designed for you dedicated music lovers who've always known that tube equip-ment sounds better than solid state. We think you'll be pleased to have a magazine to keep you cur-rent wits all the on -going developments in vacuum tube technology, applications and equipment.

Here's a sampling from our premiere issue: An elegant driver for elec-0Ael trostatic and electrodynamic headphones. A self -bias servo for push-pull output0,'" , tube amplifiers. Upgrades 'or the classic Revox tape recorders. A stereo

balanced transformer input microphone preamp. A quality dynamic headphone\ tube amplifier. Plus a major update on the entire field by Ken Kessler.\ These articles aren't just for reading or browsing. They're for doing.

Glass Audio includes schematics and instructions, just like our otherpublications, Audio Amateur and Speaker Builder.

We don't expect everyone to subscribe-just those with the special. taste for warm, satisfying tube sound. A sample copy of our premiere

_---\\>:.---. - issue is yours for the asking. Please write or phone. 603-924-9464

(during business hours.) $1011 yr. (2 Issues); $1812 yrs.

PO Box 176. Peterborough, NH 03458 Ga+LILZIO

ACTIVE ELECTRONICCROSSOVERS

MODEL 120 CABINET & NEW 120-R"RACK AND PANEL" DESIGNS

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PHONE (213) 397.9668

= = =We have digital audio home. portable andprofessional cassette recorders and tapes(blank 8 prerecorded) IN STOCK NOW!

We were the first U.S. company to importboth CD and DAT into the U S. We carry

. irious DAT decks and offer the latest modelsas soon as they become available. We alsoar-y DAT Rax 60. solid oak cassette holder.

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Your Records will sound betterand last longer.Audio Acvisor's New "Record Doctor" vacuumcleans records... spotless! Only $169.95You don't t ave to spend $300 or more tc clean your recordsright-liquii application and vacuum suck -up New "RecordDoctor" exclusively from Audio Advisor cleans records right foronly 5169 55.

Get seriousSerious auc iophiles ALWAYS vacuum -dear their records --forless surface noise and fewer ticks and pops Sound is clearer.cleaner the music more natural Your amplifier doesn't have toamplify not :el

Longer record lifeRecords LAST LONGER because your stylus no longer pushesparticles of dust into soft vinyl grooves You protect irreplace-able. priceless LPs for years to come The "Record Doctor" paysfor itself!

Sucks up debrisRecord Doctor's powerful vacuum sucks up fluid, safely remov-ing dirt. dust. grease and fingerprints. Debits is sucked up. NOTpicked up from one part of the record and left on another

"I can't believe how good my records sound Record Doctorgets rid of the grunge that was getting between me and themusic." says D P G Brooklyn NY

"You are right Record Doctor does the lob lust as well as anexpensive machine," writes 0 K from LA. 'And I'd rather rotatethe records myself anyway," (Expensive machines have an extramotor to rotate records Rotate them yourself and save!)

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You get the complete package vacuum machine. profes-sional applicator brush and cleaning fluid-all for only 5169.95(220v version $189 95) plus $8 95 shipping & handling in USSatisfaction guaranteed-no other machine near this price cleansrecords better

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AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 157

Say "G'day"to Greencorp's

new tapefrom Australia.We call it our "Music -PLUS" grade, butyou'll call it the best -sounding tape youever heard, short of genuine chrome. Itscustom formulation - at the high end ofnormal bias - produces a higher fre-quency response and lower noise levelthan the heavily advertised brands. Theresult is a noticeably smoother sound,the best in its class.

Of course, we're still stocking andshipping the same wonderful XDS tapesthat American duplicators have grown toknow and love. The same music -gradetape that the big recording companies(Phillips, EMI, & overseas divisions ofRCA) purchase for their pre-recordedcassettes.

As for our famous genuine chrometape that gets an ad of its own, rightnext to this one.

Order today on our 800 line!

QUANTITY(price each)

25 100 500Music Grade C12 37 26 .24

The " " C32 43 32 .28Good C47 47 35 .32Stuff!

DO 91

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Music -PLUS C12 .43 32 30The C32 49 38 .36Better C47 53 41 .38Stuff! C62 60 47 .43

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18 .16 .14A) Self-adhesive, white cassette

labels $3.00 per hundredB) Blank inserts

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TELEPHONE ORDERS:TOLL FREE 1 (800) 972-0707

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F.0 B Deerfield Beach, FL Taxes (if any) plus ship-ping extra CALL FOR SHIPPING CHARGES &LARGER QUANTITY PRICES.

Minimum quantities are 25 per size, and may bemixed to get the larger quantity discounts

'Orders of 6.000 or more shipped road freight atcost

We accept company or personal checks. orcharges toEXPRESS

VISA, MASTERCARD, and AMERICAN

Prices subject to change without notice.

SATISFACTION GUARANTEED! If not satis-fied for any reason, return the cassetteswithin 30 days for a full refund.

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The Right Stuff from Down Under.

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AMBRIA

Now in all 5 lengths:Greencorp's

genuine chrome tape!This is the same outstanding tape thattook the American market by storm.Manufactured in our Australian plant,this tape is coated with Dupont's chro-mium dioxide powder, which is formu-lated in the U.S. and then shipped toGreencorp in Sydney.

The end product is genuine CD -grade chrome tape, which performs farbetter than so-called "chrome -bias" fer-ric oxide tapes. The difference is in-stantly audible, especially if there arequiet moments (no sound) in the record-ings you plan to make or duplicate.

Order your genuine chrome tape to-day: it's the real thing.

(price each)QUANTITY 25 100 500

Genuine Chrome C12 .52 .40 .38The " C32 .58 .47 .45Best C47 .62 .50 .47Stuff; C62 .68 .55 .52

C92 .92 .78 .74For Ordering information, terms & condi-tions, see adjacent ad

GREENCORP USA Inc.

The Right Stuff from Down Under.

Suite 105, 1015 W. Newport Center DriveDeerfield Beach, Florida 33442

AUDIOPHILE RECORDSAUDIOPHILE WAREHOUSE LIQUIDATION! Direct -to -Disc. Halfspeed, Quiex II Recordings. 2000 available. GreatPrices -example: Donald Fagen "Nightfly" (sealed) $30.Now $14.00! Elusive Disc. 4216 Beverly Blvd.. Suite 230,Los Angeles, CA f)e: (213) 388-7176.

BLANK TAPES

315 SHIPPING ANY SIZE ORDER. UPS 1.800-245-6000

441. 1FlAt le >OM

VISA MCNO EXTRACHARGE

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so 4000 04.4.0040 IOC Ka LW

401101 za;: tun loa...xe 231. 11,

00/01040

104 1000 70 OM040 $101444NOMA 44.

SPIrai 0.414. MEE ITN. Mr,P.1,1V MATO 0010(0444,4, 04. 4, 0 r40 040, AN 0.0441'04400 u 00410 Paaa.P. Ca

TAPE WORLD 220 SPRING ST STITIER PA MODvaArs TRIAD DAT CASS

844 130-500412'N16621SOO 255-6000

0

AMPEX OPEN REEL TAPE -USED ONCE: 1800'. or2400'. (Boxed) -10 Reels: $25.00. Sample: $2.50. Also:New MAXELL reelscassettes. AUDIO TAPES, Box 9584E,Alexandria, VA 22304. (703) 370-5555, VISA/MC.

DATDAT RECORDERS: The Time is Now. Join the DAT Revolu-tion. AudioLab, Box 18009, Seattle, WA 98118.1-206-323-4987, Fax 1-206-325-7601

DAT REPAIRS Performed on all SONY,TECHNICS, JVC And AIWA models. GUARANTEEDWORK. FREE ESTIMATES. FET Electronics, 17718 Vanoven Street. Reseda. CA 91335 (818) 345-8565

WANTED TO BUYAAAALWAYS PAYING TOP $$ for McIntosh. JBL parts andsystems. M Levison. Krell. ARC, and Similar high qualityproducts. Call John Wolff- (313) 229-5191 eves. EST oranytime on machine.

Challenging Prices For Last Call: Sequerra. McIntosh,Marantz. Quad. Audio Research, Western Electric, Westrex.Vintage speaker systems, units, from Tannoy, JBL, Altec, EV,Jensen RCA LC -1A, W.E. Tel.: (818) 701-5633, David/AudioCity, P.O. Box 786.Northridge. CA 91328-0786.

DON'T CALL First- MARANTZ, McINTOSH, all tube com-ponents, vintage speakers, esoteric hi -end. Outbidding ev-eryone on certain items. N.Y.S.I. (7181377-7282 afternoons.

IT'S WORTH IT CALLING ME! McIntosh. Marantz Tubecomponents, Western Electric, Altec, JBL, Jensen, TannoyLan-Gevin Trusonic Raw speaker. Tube etc., top cash. HenryChang, 309 E. Garvey Ave., Monterey Park. CA 91754 (818)571-6274 LAX.

I WILL PAY RETAIL for all tube MARANTZ or used McIN-TOSH tube or solid state. Need not work (504) 885-6988days.

PAIR OF PIONEER SPEAKERS -MODEL #CS99. CALLJIM (5161 334-5195

TOP PAYING FOR MCINTOSH, MARANTZ TUBE AMPMcIntosh Solid State. Western. JBL. Altec, Tannoy, EV,Jensen, Speakers & Horn, EMT Turntable. Ortofon, Arm.Temma--(516) 997-7633. (516) 496-2973.

WANT-JBL Hartsfield, EV Patrician. Brociner Transcen-dent, Singles OK. Larry Dupon, 2638 W. Albion, Chicago. IL60645 (312) 338-1042 evenings.

WANTED: MARANTZ, McINTOSH, WESTERN, JBL, AL-TEC OLD EOUIPMENT JOE (213) 320-7020 9am-5pm.TORRANCE, CA

SERVICES

AUDIO PULSE SERVICE. Factory trained technicians. Wemanufacturer and repair digital time -delay (ambience) sys-tems. White Labs, 10528 Lower Azusa Rd.. Suite 192A, ElMonte, CA 91731. (818) 446-5346.

"CROWN PRO 700 AND 800 OWNERS:" Parts. serviceand information update. Equalization with tape of yourchoice. Service by appointment. (John Haines) JEMAHSERVICES, 54226 Echo Lane, Bristol, IN 46507 (219)848-4561

SPEAKER REPAIR. 4" to 18" speakers reconed. OrbanAudio. 119 7th St , N.W., North Canton, OH 44720. (216)497-9932. 6pm - 9pm EST

158 AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989

SERVICES

Audio Repairs and Restorations by Richard Modal ten.former Senior Engineer at McIntosh and Clif Ramsey, formerSenior Service Technician at McIntosh. Over 55 yearscombined --experience. See our ad at the beginning of theclassifieds AUDIO CLASSICS United States Post OfficeBuilding. POB 176AR, Walton. NY 13856. 607-8657200.8AM-5PM EST Mon. -Fri.

-Audio Advertiser for over a Decade-

INVENTIONS WANTEDA NEW IDEA? Call NATIONAL IDEA CENTER of Washing-ton D C FREE INFORMATION --1(800) 247-6600 EXT. 155Come see THE INVENTION STORE',

RETAIL MARTAUDIO BEST: LA, ORANGE, SAN BERNADINO,CALIFORNIA. HOT COMPONENTS: CELESTION SL -700,COUNTERPOINT SA3000. TARALAB, PS4.6 100C. MITCVT. AUDIBLE ILLUSIONS AMPLIFIER. MODSOUADPRISM CD: ACOUSTAT SPECTRA 22623: SPICA AN-GELA, WELL -TEMPERED: VELODYNE, MAGNUM. FOS-GATE. ADCOM, BAK, SUPERPHON. MUSIC REFER-ENCE. PALANTIR. SPECTRUM, RAUNA, SOUNDLAB.VPI. MAPLENOLL. SYSTEMDEK. GRADO. ALPHASON.GARROTT. VDHUL. MONSTER. STRAIGHTVVIRE. (714)861-5413. APPOINTMENT.

HIGH -END AUDIO IN SALT LAKE CITY: Audition Audiofeatures speaker systems by Magneplanar. Vandersteen.Celestion. Spica, Infinity IRS. Electronics by Audio Re-search (new Classic 30 8 60 in stock) Mark Levinson.Aragon. Counterpoint. NAD. Adcom, Luxman Front ends byVersa Dynamics, VPI, Well -Tempered. SME AR. AccuphaseCD players. Also Sumiko, MIT. Audioguest, etc. Three hard-wired sound rooms including a new room built for the InfinityIRS 2144 Highland Dr., Suite 125, SLC, UT 84109. (801)467-5918. Visa, MC, Amex accepted.

HIGH -END AUDIO IN ST. LOUIS: Audio Research. AudioDynamics. Audroguest. Avia. California Audio Labs. Forte,Grace. Kiseki, Onkyo. Precise. Premier. Rotel. SME, SOTA.Straight Wire. Sumiko, Talisman. Theil, THE GREAT STLOUIS SOUND COMPANY. 1341 S Lindbergh Blvd.. Suite1. St Louis, MO 63131 13141 993-0002

WE HAVE THE FINEST SHOWROOM in our area withthe best selection of audio video components available.We represent Adcom, Infinity, Thorens. Dual. Jamo,Yamaha, Canton. Luxman. Klipsch. SONY ES. andmore. CONTINENTAL SOUND, 98-77 Queens Blvd.,Forest Hills. NY 11375 (718) 459-7507

MISCELLANEOUS

TERMPAPER assistance 15,278 papers available, 306 -page catalog-- rush $2.00 Research. 11322 Idaho#206AD, Los Angeles 90025. TOLL FREE HOTLINE (800)351-0222 (California. (213) 477-8226)

DATWE OFFER DIGITAL AUDIO TAPE RECORDERS with oneyear warranties SONY, JVC, TECHNICS, and more, Home.studio and portable State of the art sound for $995 8 up'NEW DATRAX-60 attractive. solid oak. DAT storage unitAUDIO GALLERY. 2716 Wilshire Blvd.. Santa Monica, CA90403. (213) 829-3429.

HELP WANTED

EASY WORK, EXCELLENT PAY, Assemble Products AtHome. Call for Info 504- 64 1-8003 Ext 5737

CAR STEREO"STEREO WORLD" is your discount mailorder sourcewith super deals on your car stereo needs. Lines in-clude: Kenwood, Technics. Panasonic. JVC, Sony, Pyle.Pioneer, Sherwood, Philips, Clarion. Blaupunkt, Aiwa.GAS Designs Amps. Uniden and many others. Pleasecall or write for free catalog. Free UPS in 48 states10AM-6PM Mon -Fri.; Wednesday till 7 PM. Visa MC. CODextra. "Celebrating our 3rd year," P.O. Box 596. Monroe.NY 10950 (914) 782-6004.

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES

PRESTIGIOUS HIGH -END SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA AU-DIO STORE offering partnership share Exciting opportunityfor music lover audiophile to realize dream and benefits ofownership in solid. growing audio business. Write P.O.Box50351. Pasadena. CA 91115-0351

00NR NELSON -REED

THE ACCURATE LOUDSPEAKERob

Music is an expression of emotion, communicated-o between the composer and the listener. By allowingg the true dynamics and clarity of the music to reach the

listener, Nelson, Reed loudspeakers actually accentthat communication which is music.

15810 Blossom Rill Rd, Los Gatos, CA 95032 408-356-3633

BRANDS AND

POOLS ON DISPLAY

KRELL

LUXMAN TUBEHYBRID CD PLAYER

DAHLOUIST D0.20IMPROVED

CAL ICONCD PLAYER

CARVERSILVER SEVEN -I

MARANTZ C0-94

MIT MUSIC HOSEEXTENDED'.

ONKYO GRANDINTEGRA

1917 S. WEBSTER

GREEN BAY WI 54301

14141 43743721

Critical music listenersagree that Forte com-ponents furnish a levelof performance com-parable to state-of-the-art "exotics:.

Model 3amplifierModel laamplifierModel 2prec mplifier

CALL US

FOR QUALITY AUDIOAT THE LOWEST PRICES

WITH FAST SERVICE.

EVEN ON ESOTERIC ITEMS

SOUND ADVICE . - . without the price

UDIO (9141666-0550

UTLET PO Box 673Bedford Hills, New York 10507-0673

The performance of "exotics" for the heartof your music system

The Forte Model 2 pre-amplifier provides gain foreither moving coil or mov-ing magnet cartridgeswith a sink, ultra -lownoise stage "Straight-line"circuit design, class Aoperatloa throughout, thehighest quality parts, anda separate power supplyassure that the phase andamplitude characteristicsof the source material areprecisely maintained.

The /torte Model to pureclass A, or Model 3 highbias cicss A8 power ampli-fiers can be used to bi-amp,hi -wire or conventionallydrive any high -accuracyloudspeaker-even thoseconsidered "difficult "asa load.

State-of-the-art musicalaccuracy coupled with thereliability of superior partsand construction makethese Forte componentsworthy of consideration forony high performancemusic :ystem.

For more information onthese Forte products. writeForte Audio,12919 Earhart Avenue.Auburn, California 9.5603,or call 1 (800) 888 8055.

Forte products are exclu-sively distributed by

I i dr,

division of ThresholdCorporation.

AUDIO/SEPTEMBER 1989 59

SOUNDINVESTME

If you own vibration sensitive equipment like CDplayers, turntables, VCR's or videodisc players youcan greatly improve your systems sound qualitywith AQ's Sorbothane Big Feetand CD Feet. They aresimply amazing in theirability to eliminateunwanted vibration.

"You can't buy moreimprovement for less!"

MAIL ORDER

MODIFICATIRCOur speaker cables and toterconneetS bong the muse back to you'

Upgrades for Thorens turntables 8 Grado cartlidges

Corktone Platter mat F-1 Dustcover Weight and more

Complete catalog $3.00. refundable with purchase.

1925 Massechusets Avenue, Cambridge, MA 1617)354-8933

ANALOG BREAKTHROUGH! Our ACOUSTICOVER turn-table isolation system improves sound of all record players.Beautiful wood, glass, acrylic design $1.00 for photo, info.The WallWorks. RD #1, Box 503, Sanfords Ridge Road.Glen Falls, NY 12801. (518) 798-1844

aoucJioquestq

P.O. Sox 3060San Clemente, CA 92672 USA

Tel 714/498-2770F. 714/498-5112 Tla 205864

MAIL ORDER

THE BEST RECORD RACK IN AMERICA. Stackable, portable. oak units hold LP's, CD's and tapes Free Madorde,Brochure. (please mention Audio). Per Madsen Design:(415) 928-4509. P.O.Box 330101, San Francisco, CA 94133.

CARVER, NAKAMICHI, BANG & OLUFSEN, A.D.S..CROWN, REVOX. TANDBERG. HAFLER. ADCOM, MISSION, N.A.D., HARMAN'KARDON, KYOCERA, YAMAHA,LUXMAN, DENON, KLIPSCH, B & W. KEF. D.C.M., E -VJ.B.L.. INFINITY. D.B. X.. AKG. AND OTHER (DUALITYCOMPONENTS. BEST PRICES-PROFESSIONAL CON-SULTATION. OPEN 24 HOURS A DAY. ALL PRODUCTSCOVERED BY MANUFACTURERS' U.S.A. WARRANTY.AMERISOUND SALES, INC.. JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA32241. EAST: (904) 262-4000. WEST: (818) 243-1168.

FREE MAILORDER CATALOG. MID. HIGH -END AUDIOLOW. LOW WAREHOUSE PRICES. CALL (602) 829-6710NOW! NO TAX OUTSIDE ARIZONA. AUDIO ADVANTAGE.SINCE,1981.

SINGERS!REMOVE VOCALS

FROM RECORDS AND COs!

a I ,t*.r

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SING WITH THE WORLD'S BEST BANDS!An Unlimited supply of Backgrounds from standard

stereo records! Record with your voice or perform livewith the backgrounds. Used in Professional Performanceyet connects easily to a home component stereo. Thisunique product is manufactured and sold Exclusively byLT Sound Not sold through dealers. Call or write for aFree Brochure and Demo Record.LT Sound, Dept. A(1.3 , 7980 LT ParkwayLithonia, GA 30058 (404)482-4724Manufactured and Sold ExchasIvely by LT Sound24 HOUR PHONE DEMO LINE:14041482-2485

Ambiance by HeruyIclOSS

TM

Ambiance is an ultra -compact speaker that

proves high performance, small size and low

cost need not be mutually exclusive. Factory

direct from Cambridge SoundWorks for $109-

$129 each (plus freight), depending on finish.

1-800-AKA-HITIAn Canada 1-800-525-4434.

154 California Street. Newton, Massachusetts 02158

160

AD INDEX

Firm (Reader Service No.) PageAccuphase 135Acoustat (1) 98Acoustic Research (2) Cover IVAdcom (3) 89American Wood Products 28Apogee Acoustics (4) 27Audio Research (5) 83Audiostream (6) 45B & K (7) 134BBE Sound, Inc. (8) 73BMG 24 a & bBrystonvermont (9) 47California Audio Labs 99Cambridge Soundworks (10) 37Canton (11) 84 & 85Carver Cover II & 1CBS Records 139Columbia House 8 & 9, 35Counterpoint (12) 105Crutchfield 138Design Acoustics (40) 97Ford/JBL (13) 39GlenMonitor Speaker

Systems (14) 29GRP (15) 129J & R Music World 46KEF (16) 113Kinergetics Research 123Klipsch (17) 117KNI Loudspeakers Cover IIILevinson 3

M & K Sound (18) 121

-Madrigal 142McIntosh (19) 12 - 17Mirage (20) 92 & 93Mobile Fidelity (21) .. 127

ondial (22) 30MTX (23) 103Music Interface

Technology (24) 95NEC (39) 43OHM (25) 31

Parliament 79*Philips 40 & 41Pioneer (26, 27) 23, 115Polk (28) 48 & 49Proton (29) 91Reel to Real (41) 79*Satellite Source 19Sherwood (31) 111

Sonance (32) 5Sony 6 & 7Soundcraftsmen (30) 32 & 33SSI Products Inc. (33) 141Stereo Exchange (34) 125TDK (35) 4The Absolute Sound (36) . ... 145Threshold 109Toyota (37) 80 & 81U. S. Army 20 & 21

;Well Tempered Labs (38) 104Windham Hill 87Wisconsin Discount Stereo . 131Yamaha 77*Regional Ads

AUDIO SEP-EMBER 1989

SPEAKEROF THE HOUSE.

When they call the roll forthe finest in bass -specializedspeaker systems - the major-ity in your "house" will votefor kni LoudSpeakers, inc.

Smooth, deep bass .. un-paralleled dynamic range andminimum distortion.

Quite simplyThe System Works.

To order factory direct. contact.

kni LoudSpeakers. inc.

Route Two Box Twenty NineWest Fork. Arkahsas 72774Phone: (501) 839-3320 '

se

OD

oN

Perfect Partnersfor Perfect Sound

Concert hall sound from unique award -winningloudspeakers. Developed to give you AR's famous

sound anywhere you want it.

On the beach, in the car, at a picnic, in your dorm room,in the kitchen, on the patio.

Wherever you are . . Whatever your lifestyle ..AR has tie perfect portable, affordable Partner for you.

TIMELESS INNOVATIONWIELEDYPE Aoousnc RESEARCH

Enter No. 2 on Reader Service Card