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Reviews

Newform Research Ribbon Tower Speakers

Jim Milton

Made in Canada, Newform Research manufactures unique ribbon loudspeakers and sells them factory direct worldwide. Their ribbon designs offer the transparency, detail and sound staging of the classic large panel electrostatic and ribbon loudspeakers, but because of their narrow compact footprint, are easier to drive and setup, even in smaller rooms. Here, we review a pair of their ribbon towers, which are a hybrid design, with a 15" ribbon as the tweeter, and six conventional cone drivers for the mid/bass.

Floor Standing Speakers

KEN KREISEL DXD-12012 Dual 12″ Push-Pull Subwoofer

John E. Johnson, Jr.

Ken Kreisel of M&K sold his company years ago, and it continues to thrive. Now he is back, selling subwoofers and speakers mainly to the pro market, under the company name KEN KREISEL. The DXD-12012 is the foundation for a subwoofer system that, when combined as two subs, one on top of the other (called the DUO) or more (sixteen subs, called the QUATTRO-QUATTRO), produces the kind of SPL that movie and music studios need when they are in post-production. However, what differentiates the DXD-12012 from other subs is its accuracy.

Subwoofers

MartinLogan Motion Vision Soundbar

Jim Milton

I have always wanted to experience the MartinLogan planar speaker systems, but I lack the room size that is needed to really allow them to breathe. ML's new Motion® series allows for a planar speaker that is designed to resemble a more conventional box speaker, and is designed for placement under a flat panel HDTV.

Soundbars

Definitive Technology AW 6500 Outdoor Speakers

Jim Clements

Today's consumers have lots of choices to fill their home with music inside and out. I, for one, have a rapidly growing digital music library and I've been on a quest to find better ways to enjoy this music while in the great outdoors ("My Backyard"). Definitive Technology's AW 6500 might just be the answer.

Bookshelf Speakers

Pass Labs XP-10 Stereo Preamplifier

John E. Johnson, Jr.

 In the past, we reviewed the Pass Labs XP-20 and XP-30 stereo preamplifiers. Now, we come full circle with a review of the remaining member of their preamplifier trio, the XP-10, which is the least expensive model. It is fully balanced, and has a slightly different sound character compared to the other two, which also sound different from one another. All three are great products, so you can choose based on price and/or sound characteristics.

 

 

Preamplifiers

Classe SSP-800 Surround Sound Processor

John E. Johnson, Jr.

Classé is considered one of the finest audio product manufacturers in North America. They market preamplifiers, power amplifiers, and surround sound processors (SSPs). The SSP-800 is their current processor. It's been around for awhile, and they have no plans to replace it with a new model in the near future, but there have been some firmware updates along the way. So, I decided that Secrets should have a look and listen to what I was sure would be a fine product. Was I right?

Processors

CalMAN Calibration Software Version 5

Chris Heinonen

 

There are a few different programs out there to assist in calibrating a display, but CalMAN from SpectraCal is currently the most prevalent. CalMAN is used for ISF Level I and II training, and is available in a variety of different configurations ranging from the DIY user to the full time calibration professional.

Video Calibration

NAD M51 Direct Digital DAC

John E. Johnson, Jr.

 

Most audio component manufacturers have a DAC in their product lineup, and NAD is no exception. However, the NAD M51 is unusual in that it takes the incoming digital PCM bitstream and converts it directly to a PWM bitstream, which is then fed directly to the output. The idea has been around for about a decade, but the technology for implementing it was not fast enough in those early days. Now, with modern technology and techniques, NAD has produced what they call a "Direct Digital DAC", where the digital signal does not go through digital to analog conversion in the normal sense, but converted to PWM at 844 kHz sampling, with 35 bit word length. As you will see with the bench tests, the results are quite amazing, and the price is very affordable.

DACs

Audio Desk System Automated Vinyl (LP) Cleaner

Rick Schmidt

For all of these years that I've been extolling the virtues of analog (LP a.k.a., vinyl) playback I've known that it just isn't really practical for most people. Even less practical, is the necessity to clean your LPs once in a while to keep those pops and ticks out of the music. Several companies make devices that clean your LPs. The Audio Desk System Automated Vinyl Cleaner is one of them, and we review it here.

Audio Accessories Misc

HiFiMan HE-500 Over-the-Ear Planar Magnetic Headphones and EF5 Headphone Amplifier

John E. Johnson, Jr.

HiFiMan is a relative newcomer (2006) to the audio product scene. Their specialty is headphones (including over-the-ear and earbuds) and headphone amplifiers. We have reviewed several of their headphones, with positive and enthusiastic findings. The HE-500, reviewed here, are over-the-ear headphones, meaning that they completely enclose the ears. This model also uses planar magnetic drivers, which unlike cone drivers, are flat, very thin plastic membranes, on which is attached a thin conductor. The membrane is near permanent magnets, and when the signal flows through the conductor, the opposing electromagnetic field on the conductive membrane is pushed away from or attracted to the permanent magnets, producing the sound.

Headphone and Earphone Reviews

JVC X70 Three-Chip D-ILA Projector

Chris Heinonen

Just two years ago, 3D was the all the rage at the CEDIA Expo. Now 3D is in almost every display you buy and is not the hot, new thing. It has been supplanted by 4K, promising to offer so many pixels that we will never see them again, and out-HD our current High Definition. JVC took a half step onto the 4K platform with their e-Shift projectors, which use a slight pixel shift to potentially produce an effective resolution of 4K, though with only 1920 x 1080 panels and no 4K input capability. The JVC X70 is one such projector, and is reviewed here.

Projectors