Hear like the pros – PMC twenty5.21i booksheld speaker
Date: 2022-05-23
The loudspeaker company PMC has an excellent reputation both in the studio and in the home. And their designs are based on a technology that almost no other manufacturer still plays a role in.
PMC co-founder Peter Thomas said in an interview that his fascination with audio reproduction began with his grandfather's wind-up gramophone. At first he couldn't believe that music could actually come out of such a funnel and wanted to know why. Around 1970 he started with DIY projects until he heard the first really good commercial speaker - an IMF Transmissionline. He and his best friend and later partner Adrian Loader fell in love with this special sound - this is where the story of PMC begins.
Thomas had previously worked for years as an engineer in studio services, later in project development at the BBC. There the engineers were taught every aspect of the subject: from the microphone to the tape machine, including service and construction, they simply learned everything that later came in very handy.
Thomas was then given responsibility for the listening comparisons between the original BBC speakers and licensed models from other companies. At the same time, he began to develop his own loudspeakers. And as it happens in life: One day the BBC needed larger studio monitors and so Thomas and Loader produced the desired monitor under the quickly found name PMC - Professional Monitor Company. But that also meant leaving the BBC, which was not easy for him, but otherwise he would not have received license fees for his loudspeakers.
By the way, this first loudspeaker was called BB5 (Big Box 5) and was built for 25 years. And since the BB5 was initially the only product from PMC, the opposite of it was built for commercial success: A small monitor, also with a TML (Transmission Line), appropriately called LB1 (Little Box 1). And that is exactly the ancestor of our twenty5.21i. From the beginning, PMC made no distinction between professional and private use, so Thomas points out that the tuning is always the same. The hi-fi sector has meanwhile come a long way commercially from the pro segment and has even overtaken it in some areas. So with a PMC you get speakers that - or closely related models - have been used to mix the music you're listening to.
This is also the opinion of Udo Besser from AVM, who has been using PMC loudspeakers at home for a long time, since PMC is the AVM distributor in Great Britain. A friendly relationship had developed over the years and it was logical that he took over sales at the beginning of 2022. In any case, PCM is a real family business in which all members work.
But even if PMC is very traditional, the company works in a highly modern way. And even if the English simply have to love that they have remained true to a design principle such as the transmission line, which is really not easy to master, they have been researching it for decades and today call the technology ATL for "Advanced Transmission Line". The bass is placed at the end of a long tube - the "Advanced Transmission Line" - which is heavily damped to eliminate unwanted rear frequencies from the driver. The air outlet at the front, PMC calls it "Laminair", is visually striking, technically very effective and regulates the considerable air movements from inside the housing. Only the lowest frequency components come through and exit in phase to act practically like a second bass chassis. The air pressure in the housing, which loads the bass, remains constant. This ensures that clean, undistorted bass and frees both the upper bass and the mids from harmonic distortion. This ensures enormous transparency, which I can definitely confirm. This is joined by an insanely fast, dry bass and a spectacularly high undistorted overall volume. The box sounds enormously homogeneous and rich in detail, even at very low levels.
The vertical range of manufacture at PMC is enormous. Not only are most of the drivers in-house produced, the LS connectors are made in-house from pure copper plated with rhodium. They are characterized by a very high conductivity and low resistance and are wired directly to the crossover. And PMC attaches great importance to the exact pairing of all drivers. This is especially necessary in the professional field, where, for example, a Bryan Adams would like to hear the piece he has just recorded in the studio as well as at home without experiencing any changes in the sound from the loudspeakers.
The packages for the PCM-ATL technology are not easy to manufacture. In addition to drivers with very specific parameters, you need a sophisticated housing design with reinforcements and very effective damping, which is why TML technology has almost gone out of fashion. The effective length of the TML tube alone is an incredible two meters in our compact model! But this is how PMC has almost achieved a unique selling proposition.
The ferrofluid-cooled dome is built by Seas for PMC, and the company manufactures the mid-bass driver itself. Its finely woven fiberglass cone with an inverted dust cap made from the same material, very strong magnets, long-throw voice coils and a sophisticated surround minimize distortion - that can be measured and heard. The crossover for the twenty5.21i separates with a steep 24db and works with highly selected and aurally tuned components. And how does the twenty5.21i sound? In one word: fantastic.
I immediately notice the extremely clean reproduction, which reminds me of the water from a crystal-clear mountain stream. The twenty5.21i plays extremely naturally with a completely believable three-dimensionality. With Triycycle by Flim & The BB's it sounds incredibly closed and at the same time incredibly stable and is practically impossible to push to its limits. And then the bass: never fat or thick, but if you really want to know how much undistorted, uncompressed bass can come from almost 30 liters of cabinet volume: voilá. Drums and bass bang into the listening room in an impressive manner and there really seems to be no limit to the twenty5.21i. She also loves voices. For example, when Carolyne Mas sings live, I sit in the middle of the audience. Here, too, the bass springs dry and sparkling clean and Mas' voice almost jumps in my face. The freedom from distortion of the twenty5.21i can be heard at any time and yet it never feels sterile. The live recordings of the ingenious banjo master Bela Fleck with Chick Corea are also good for this. "Bang" Fleck accidentally hits the microphone and after everyone is awake again, a journey into the finest ramifications of transient speed, microdynamics and timbres begins. Small speaker, big audio cinema. begins a journey into the finest ramifications of transient speed, microdynamics and timbres. Small speaker, big audio cinema. begins a journey into the finest ramifications of transient speed, microdynamics and timbres. Small speaker, big audio cinema.
Conclusion
The PMC twenty5.21i makes you forget its compact size from the first notes. She can do almost anything and plenty of it. Sensationally good speaker.
Read the twenty5.21i technical data: https://bit.ly/3yOV7Sn
WHAT HI*FI? Five Star Rating – Chord Company ClearwayX speaker cable
Date: 2022-05-18
Chord’s updated Clearway cable marks a significant step forward for this long-term favourite!
Chord's previous generation Clearway was something of a star, picking up a trio of our 'best speaker cable' awards between 2015 and 2017. Winning the award once is hard enough, but holding onto it is even more difficult in the face of ever-newer competition. So it says a lot about the original cable that it remained successful for so long.
For its latest iteration, Chord has sensibly chosen to build on this solid foundation rather than start with a blank sheet, so much about this new generation feels familiar. We have high purity OFC (Oxygen Free Copper) multi-strand conductors configured in a twisted pair arrangement to improve interference rejection. There’s further protection in the form of two contra-wound high-density foil shields and a soft PVC wrap to hold the conductors, minimise mechanical vibrations and maintain the spacing between those foil shields and the twisted cables.
The big news in this 'X' update is the use of a material called XLPE (Cross-Linked Polyethylene) for the dielectric (the insulation that directly encases the conductor). Chord says that the new material is a cost-effective alternative to the Taylon used in its high-end cables and offers greater phase stability compared to the PTFE used previously, giving a notable improvement in sound.
It turns out that the company is right. We’ve long admired the previous-generation Clearway’s ability to deliver the music signal in an enjoyable and musical way, and none of this has been diluted with this new version. Of course, let's make things clear from the beginning in that a cable is a passive component that just carries the signal from your amplifier to the speakers. It can’t actually make the sound better, so the cable you want is the one that degrades the music signal the least.
Judged in that way, the ClearwayX must count as a huge success. We use it in our reference set-up of Naim ND555/555 PS DR music streamer, Burmester 088/911 Mk 3 pre/power with ATC SCM50 speakers, as well as with Naim’s more price-compatible SuperNait 3 integrated amplifier and the KEF LS50 Meta standmounters. The results are consistent and positive regardless.
With the Chord speaker cable linking the amplifiers to the speakers, we get an organised and musically cohesive performance. Listening to Hans Zimmer’s Interstellar OST, we can’t help but be engaged by the vivid dynamics and punch on offer. There’s an excellent level of insight and a sense of spaciousness that’s impressive.
Tonally, things are nicely even-handed, with the crisp yet controlled higher frequencies being balanced by a taut and authoritative bass. That feeling of cohesion is helped by a surefooted handling of rhythms and a fine sense of drive.
These strengths are highlighted when we play Massive Attack’s Heligoland where our systems render the sound with punch and power. We love the way instrumental textures are reproduced and the expressive way vocals come across. There’s plenty of clarity here and enough insight to dig deep into the dense production should you wish. Most importantly of all, we’re having fun.
Verdict
The Chord ClearwayX is up against some tough competition in the form of Audioquest’s slightly cheaper but hugely capable Rocket 11, but its broad range of talents means that it remains an excellent choice in price-compatible systems.
SCORES
- Sound 5
- Build 5
- Compatibility 5
Do you remember the Carpenters? Their songs are retro and precious
Date: 2022-05-17
Carpenters 樂隊(木匠樂隊),美國流行樂二人演唱組合,由 Karen Carpenter、Richard Carpenter兄妹組成。樂隊獨樹一幟的輕搖滾(Soft Rock)是他們走紅樂壇的法寶。......
PTA review - Siltech Classic Legend 880 cables
Date: 2022-05-16
Review by: Dave McNair
Journey To Ixtland
When I first started writing for Part-Time Audiophile, Scot Hull and Marc Phillips asked me if I wanted to do some cable reviews. I replied something like, “I’m not a believer. Since becoming a mastering engineer I’ve never been able to hear differences in wire, so no, I doubt I’d ever want to review cables.” I then proceeded to skewer anyone on the PTA staff who were believers as having fallen prey to psychological mental traps, as well as common errors in judgment called scientific names such as confirmation bias, aka The McGurk Effect. “Stella, look at all these pretty Siltech Classic Legend 880 cables. Don’t they sound fabulous?”
Words and Photos by Dave McNair
Well, times have changed, y’all. I now can confidently attest to being able to hear differences, albeit very small ones, in cables. WHUUT? I know. Makes no sense whatsoever. The naysayers will be like, “Oh boy, he drank the Kool-Aid.”
The true believers will exclaim, “Now he knows. Welcome to the club.”
Not so fast, Franklin.
After being an avowed tweakaholic in my earlier days (yes, I even used The Green Pen on CDs), I made a hard turn into a test methodology that showed me conclusively that all that kind of stuff was complete mass hysteria. I’m tentatively back.
But this time, things are a little different.
Siltech Classic Legend 880–The Loom
Like many readers, I’ve heard the Siltech name for years. That’s not surprising, given that this Netherlands-based operation has been making cables since 1983. From the beginning, Siltech has been heavily invested in research to determine the hows and whys of perceived sonics. The company wanted to determine if a change in perceived sonics could be measured. Apparently, it can. Siltech correlates perceptions with those measurements for use in design and manufacturing methods in their various lines.
If you’re a cable denier, I know what you’re thinking. Just because it can be measured, does that make it audible? That was my line of reasoning but let’s go with it for a minute, okay?
Siltech (SILver TECHnology) is usually associated with the fundamental concept that silver is the best metal for cabling. However, there is more to the story. The entry-level Explorer series, for example, uses a very pure 6N mono crystal copper with a mix of Kapton and Teflon for insulation.
The next level up is their Siltech Classic Legend series, which includes the Anniversary and Legend. The top-shelf Royal Signature line consists of the Crown, Double Crown, and the uber high-end – Triple Crown series. The Triple Crown and Double Crown series use monocrystal silver, the others use predominantly silver with a small amount of gold. The silver/gold metallurgy is said to be used as a method for filling microscopic cracks in the silver to create more continuity for an electrical signal to traverse.
The Siltech Classic Legend 880 loom I’m reviewing here has SIltech’s ninth generation G9 silver/gold conductors and a combination of Teflon and PEEK (Polyether ether ketone) for insulation. I found out what those bulky barrels on the ends of the cables are for, and it’s not just the bling factor. The barrel allows the fat bulk of the cable to have slimmer, easier to deal with terminations. The barrels also features indicators for proper direction, as well as the model and serial number.
The technical and subjective descriptions on the Siltech website, by the way, are fascinating. There is a lot to digest and it’s not of the typical marketing-copy variety, either. I got the distinct feeling these guys are not playing around.
Test Methodology
After years of looking for ways to quantify small changes in sound for an audio device under test (DUT), I’ve found some guidelines that work for me. While searching for a signal path with the least or most pleasing color for use in my mastering chain of gear, it’s important that I don’t fool my ear and buy something that is initially exciting but will end up not as likeable in the long run. It’s happened before. I figured out that what I thought was an amazing ADC or DAC or equalizer, turned out to simply be a little louder than what I compared it to. So the first rule is scrupulous level matching.
Most audio peeps know that aural memory is short and fleeting, so I have to be able to instantly switch. Then, just as important, simply switching during the flow of music is not a great idea because the music is constantly changing. I’ve switched while a song plays and thought device B was a little warmer. Turns out that exact second I switched was when the vocalist got a little closer to the mic, or something of that nature. So here’s how I get around these issues.
I devise a way to record the same music playing through the DUT and my control device, line both files up in my workstation, and make sure the levels are as close to identical as I can. Then I pick a few bars, maybe five or six seconds, that have lots of information. Then play I that looped section about five or six times, which pounds the character of a vocal sound or transient impact or image cues into my brain. THEN I hit a button that routes the version recorded through the DUT to my system. Sometimes I shuffle the deck, so to speak, and it becomes more of a blind switch.
I’ve heard lots of audiophiles dismiss instant switching for a variety of reasons. I can maaaybe get behind “the switch-has-too-much-of-a-sound and will obscure small differences.” My method only changes the digital routing. It’s totally colorless. I’m using a mastering grade Prism ADA8-XR for conversion and while not being 100% neutral, it has all the resolution I need for comparisons.
The other assertion is that you have to listen for a long period of time to adequately internalize the subtleties of some sonic signatures, like cables. I call bullshit on that one. Our brains just rewire over a long enough time period. It’s science. Look it up.
I’ve used this test methodology several times before in hi-fi reviews and it’s always instructive. In fact it’s how I finally came to hear small differences between line-level cables. Obviously, not all components can be tested in this way–power amps, speakers, and speaker wire come to mind. But cables are a natural.
Siltech At The Studio
The system at the studio consists of a pair of Acora Acoustics SRC-2 loudspeakers powered by a pair of Pass Labs XA-200.8 amps and fed by my custom Knif Audio mastering controller. Jonte Knif is a Finnish audio genius who builds an audiophile-level mastering controller with a minimalist, single-ended design using his own discrete op-amps, select Analog Devices chips, and Elma switches. It has a superb yet extremely subtle sonic imprint. The monitor output of the Knif feeds a Prism Sound Dream DA-2 as the monitor DAC which I had connected to the amps with Siltech Classic Legend 880.
Here’s what I heard:
I used two great-sounding, pre-mastered mixes off of a recent mastering project, 24bit at 96K. I plugged the (source) DAC into the ADC (one Prism Sound ADA8 XR does both) with a variety of balanced XLR cables and recorded at 24/96 in my Sequoia workstation. This is commonly known as a loopback test. The test samples were Mogami 2549, Terry Audio chrome pin, Cardas Clear Beyond, and the Siltech CL 880. I compared captures of the different cables by lining them up on separate tracks fed to different outputs, digitally switchable on my console to the monitor DAC. Once the listening volume level was established, I never changed it.
When I was casually listening at a lower level and the Siltech versions were being recorded, I freaked out and heard what seemed like stark differences from the previous cables.
Once I finished recording everything, lined up some combinations, found a good listening level, and picked some sections to pay close attention to, most but not all the casual listening differences disappeared. The key phrase here is but not all.
The Mogami was solid but nothing special. Maybe a hair thinner in the lower midrange and not quite as dynamic as some of the others, although the sense of detail was good. The Terry Audio cable seemed to have the most color, but in a pleasing way. A hair darker, yet smooth and harmonically beefier but also a little more congealed sounding.
The Cardas and Siltech were the clear winners. I could hear why I’ve enjoyed Cardas in my system for a while now. It just sounds right. The Siltech, however, had a very pleasing overall tonality with a smidgen more fresh air on top and size in the low end, and also a slightly greater sense of dynamic contrast. It almost sounded louder than the others. I heard more complexity to the amount of information that I usually associate with a pleasing kind of coloration, but this was different. Lots of harmonic micro detail and size, without getting blurry.
I then listened to long stretches of the tunes in a less analytical way, which was difficult at this point but not impossible. Something about the flow and juiciness of the music was greater with the Siltech. Confirmation bias? Maybe, but it was real to me and that’s kind of the whole point. If the listener hears something he or she thinks is worth owning, who is anybody to say otherwise?
Lastly, I compared all the cable passes with the source mix. The source mix was clearly the best. My Prism ADA8 XR is fantastic, but no converter is perfect. So which pass sounded closest to the source? None of them. One listener I invited to hear the results felt that there were more differences between cable types than between the Siltech pass and the source. But the best cable is still no cable. To be fair I can’t remove the sound of the Prism converter from the test although I think it’s valid for comparing all passes recorded through it.
Back At The Crib With Siltech 880
Since it takes too long to unhook and swap out an entire group of cables with any real hope of retaining enough aural memory for the minuscule differences between cables, I didn’t do much of that. I did do that a few times with the speaker cables, but even that proved to be inconclusive. It’s not that I didn’t hear differences when swapping out for my reference Cardas Clear Beyond speaker cable, it just didn’t seem stark given the length of time between samples. I should also mention that during the review period I also used Siltech power cords on the DACs, preamp, and power amps.
Yeah, let’s talk about power cables for a minute.
I saved this test for a lazy Sunday afternoon when my ears and mood were in good shape. I wanted the test to be as much of a stark contrast as possible because in the past I have never been able to hear any difference whatsoever in fancy power cables. I mean, really? How could it possibly do a damn thing as the last few feet in a long chain of mystery wire and connections? If the power supply in a component is correctly designed all should be well with any old decently made power cord, right? Apparently not, mi amigo.
For this test, the core system consisted of the most excellent Von Schweikert Audio Ultra 55 loudspeaker, Valve Amplification Company Master Preamplifier, and Parasound JC-1+ power amps. Later I added the newest offering from VAC, a pair of insanely great-sounding Master 300 Musicbloc amplifiers.
I selected the Ideon Audio Absolute (make mine a double with a twist) that I have in for a review, as my power cable Guinea Pig. Spoiler alert: the Absolute is the best sounding DAC I’ve yet to hear in my system.
I tested the Siltech Legend series 880 power cord against a beefy gauge, but generic black power cord. To make it even more interesting I did this comparison in two ways: with the cords plugged directly into a standard duplex wall socket OR plugged into a Cardas Audio Nautilus power bar. I didn’t have enough Siltech power cables on hand to run the amps, preamp, DAC, and the power connection from the Cardas bar to the wall plug so I used a Cardas power cable there.
SONOFAMOTHERFLIPPINGUN. Although subtle, I heard differences. A larger observable sonic contrast between the straight outta wall comparisons, but the results were similar even after some love from the filtered Cardas power bar.
I used two tunes for this test, “Qualquim Coisa” performed by Caetano Veloso off of Los Super Seven – Canto, and “Fast As I Can” from the Fiona Apple album When The Pawn…
The stock cable was just a little bit more nervous and jumpy sounding. Less separation of textures, and generally a mite edgier. Similar to the line-level cable tests, the Siltech 880 power cords almost seemed a bit louder, certainly more fluid, and refined. Textures had a tighter weave to the fundamental flow of the music and things just sounded more expensive. The differences were more subtle using the Caetano Veloso song, even though I know this one well having recorded and mixed it–all analog tape, no less. I’ve noticed many times that very open, minimalist recordings like this one sound pretty effin awesome regardless. But the density and wider pallet of harmonic flavors, and transient information in “Fast As I Can” proved conclusive.
I am fully able to admit to confirmation bias for the power cable and speaker cable tests. I would not swear on my life that these differences were anything other than what I thought I wanted to hear. But on that day, with those tunes, and whatever mindset I was in, I heard what I heard. And I liked it!
Unlike the IC and power cord tests, I didn’t come up with anything conclusive for speaker cable comparisons. It simply took too long to switch. The Siltech and Cardas cables both were spade lugs, and the amp and speaker posts were a variety that was not quick and easy. I don’t trust a comparison that has many minutes in between samples. And as previously stated, I give much less credence to long-term observations because the brain has a very strong tendency to adapt and rewire itself to long-term sensory input. My real reason for wanting to live for a while with a component under review is to average my impressions owing to different moods over several listening sessions. How many times have you sat down to play some music and thought “ Wow, my system is killing today!” Or, “Why does everything I play sound kinda shitty, tonight?” It happens to reviewers too.
The possible exception for me not putting much weight into long-term listening impressions are DACs. I’ve found many DACs will initially sound quite similar, yet extended listening will reveal over time what my ear may grow not to like. My pal and colleague Grover Neville likes to say the best sounding DAC is the one that, over time, you find the least offensive. For me, cables may also exist in this subtle but ultimately meaningful area as well. I will point out that I did hear a bit more clarity when I made some comparisons to Siltech 880 speaker cables when Credo EV One speakers were in the system. At the studio, I was able to set up a more rapid swap on the Acora/Pass Labs system. I heard some small changes there as well, so the speaker cable thing wasn’t a total wash.
Jon Baker and Rich Maez, of Siltech distributor Monarch Systems, were kind enough to send the proverbial baker’s dozen in the form of a Siltech USB cable so I could compare that. I have done digital cable comparisons at my studio and they always null 100% with a 180-degree phase flip which is the gold standard in pro audio tests. That means zero difference. I didn’t try the Siltech USB at the studio but did do a few swaps for a generic USB cable going from my Innuos Zen Mini streamer to the Ideon Absolute. Less conclusive than the power and IC tests but still, I heard something different happening. Really? Damn. Could I pick either in a blind test? No way, Jose.
Siltech Classic Legend 880 Conclusion
Well, I think I’ve said all that I wanted to say.
I didn’t say a whole lot about all the cutting-edge science in the design and construction of Siltech cables. Mainly because if I’m honest, I really couldn’t care less. How it sounds in my system and how much it’s gonna cost me are pretty much my only areas of interest, at least with cables. I don’t need fancy looks, complex science, and impressive packaging to be impressed, although Siltech most definitely excels in all those areas. And for the folks that like to know there is a definite science behind a design, Siltech may be the most serious player in this area.
I had a blast using the cables and more importantly, I learned that I can sometimes, under certain conditions, hear differences in cables. What does that mean for my system?
As far as the Siltech Classic Legend 880, I definitely felt they brought a new level of overall listening enjoyment to my ears in the form of a hard-to-describe sense of luxuriousness to the sound. If they have any major sonic signature it’s the same as all my other favorite components: large, complex, dynamically revealing, yet smooth. I will be a little bummed when they go back to Monarch Systems, although I’m perfectly fine with the performance I get using Cardas Clear Beyond. However, I very well may have to throw down for some at the studio. My kingdom for a power cord!
I feel like cables are the last tiny bit of seasoning on a perfectly cooked meal.
Does an expertly cooked meal that uses the best, freshest ingredients ever really need added salt and pepper? Does a few grains of salt on a perfect tomato at its peak, enhance the taste experience? How much would you spend on that salt? Is the value-added for the salt different for a tomato versus a steak? Does Himalayan, organic, free traded salt taste better than Morton’s? Is there a best type and source of pepper, above all others? Do these questions mean different things to a typical eater as opposed to a hard-core foodie?
I know what my answers are to the questions posed above. I’ll let readers answer for themselves.
感受 TIDAL 揚聲器超凡魅力 – Grand Piano 令你耳目一新
Date: 2022-05-13
輯錄自《音響技術》
TIDAL Audio 是德國電聲工程師 Jörn Janczak 在 1999 年創立的高級音響品牌。阿央 ( Jörn 的德文發音是「央」)在創業之初已經打定主意,產品的製作大方向是不惜工本,以最先進的設計,選擇最佳的物料,以最上乘的製作工藝和不作任何妥協的態度來生產最高質素的音響器材,換句話說只向 Hi-End 音響市場進軍。
獨家型號、耳目一新
「新漢建業」在2019年下旬成為TIDAL Audio的中國(包括港、澳地區)總代理,他們為進一步向發燒友推廣TIDAL揚聲器的高水平製作質素和優越的重播音效,特別和阿央商討,設計一款只供「新漢」獨家銷售的全新型號揚聲器Grand Piano,並且在今年年初空運抵港面世。這對新喇叭的型號喚作 Grand Piano,自然會令人聯想起它應該是屬於二路分音三單元的Piano家族,不過當Grand Piano送抵本刋試音室的時候,才知道它是不折不扣的三路分音四單元設計的揚聲器,嚴格來說,它是一對略為縮水版的Contriva,製作工藝完美是我曾經擁有過的Contriva頂級水準!
它採用與Contriva完全一樣的30mm鑽石振膜高音單元TAD-30,與及173mm (7吋) BCC (Black Coated Ceramic)黑陶瓷音盆釹磁短音圈長磁隙中音單元 TACM-170,低音單元是兩隻173mm BCC黑陶瓷音盆衝程低音單元 TACW-170 [Contriva 採用兩隻222mm (9吋) 低音單元],所有單元都是Accuton與TIDAL合作的獨家產品。分音器的設計同樣是經過精密計算,並且採用最高級別甚至是特別訂製的元件製作,包括Mundorf電容,金屬膜電阻,空氣芯電感器和超低阻抗低頻電感器。
重本製作
Grand Piano招牌式後傾的聲箱當然是採用TIDAL自家開發的TIRADUR板塊製造,它是由HDF和MDF纖維板加上混合了大理石粉的特殊聚合物,再以特製塑化阻尼黏合劑以高壓黏合而成,實行以軟硬兼施來達至既堅固而又具備高阻尼的特性。.....至於TIDAL名揚天下的鋼琴漆打磨工藝在Grand Piano身上同樣保持最高水準,眼前這一對是鋪上非常漂亮的金字塔紋桃花心木皮,並且經過多次重複的掃上厚身聚酯鋼琴漆(Polyester piano lacquer)、徹底風乾和仔細打磨等繁複而又耗時的工作程序,不過出來的效果絕對是靚爆鏡,......
無可比擬
Grand Piano的腳座同樣是重量級的頂班製作,每個聲箱用四支由實芯不鏽鋼塊用CNC車製出來,並且以人手打磨至閃亮鏡面的橫柱型Vario Feet,直接鎖上安裝在聲箱底部的10mm厚鋁合金底板,每支Vario Feet也配上原廠用不鏽車製的平底腳釘。Grand Piano不設雙線分音,接線柱選用WBT nextgen 0703Ag純銀端子,阻抗4Ω。阿央特別強調所有TIDAL的揚聲器都很容易推動,就以Grand Piano為例,阻抗永遠不會低於4Ω,輸出功率大於15W的優質放大器便可以輕鬆驅動,......
樂韻悠揚
播放Daniel Hope領導蘇黎世室樂團演奏「Serenades」裡柴可夫斯基的〈弦樂小夜曲〉,Grand Piano把室樂樂團廿多支提琴拉奏出來的妙曼琴音重播得唯肖唯妙,小提琴的嬌豔瑰麗,中提琴的質感厚潤,大提琴的煙韌豐滿,再加上低音提琴輕描淡寫,舉重若輕的彈奏,所有演奏的特色與細節都重現得既清晰又充滿協調感,音樂旋律的起伏跌宕流暢到不得了,錄音場地ZKO音樂廳那偌大廣闊的空間感也重現得非常真實,整首小夜曲的四個樂章轉瞬播完,音樂的感染力極強。......
後記
在本刋試音室聽了Grand Piano好一段日子,就算身為Contriva與Akira的用家,我仍然對這款新型號喇叭有一定程度的驚喜,接近零瑕疵的頂級製作手工是其一,它那超凡脫俗的清晰、通透、細緻的重播音效,人聲與樂器的線條勾劃得剔透玲瓏,大場面爆棚樂章的強大震撼力,大動態和大音壓的優異控制力與及對付龐大推動力的控制自如,都令我非常滿意,相信假以時日有足夠煲煉之後,靚聲程度會再度提升是指日可待。
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