TASTY
RAY BROWN
JIMMY ROWLES
"AS GOOD AS IT GETS"
RAY BROWN
JIMMY ROWLES
DUKE ELLINGTON: THE ELLINGTON SUITES
DUKE ELLINGTON & HIS ORCHESTRA
By Michael Miguest
TASTY RAY BROWN JIMMY ROWLES "AS GOOD AS IT GETS" RAY BROWN JIMMY ROWLES DUKE ELLINGTON: THE ELLINGTON SUITES DUKE ELLINGTON & HIS ORCHESTRA
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MEET JEAN NANTAIS AND DISCOVER HIS TOUR DE FORCE IDLER-WHEEL-DRIVE LENCO REFERENCE TURNTABLE DESIGN9/23/2015 By Michael Miguest Jean Nantais lives and works in Ontario, Canada. We have been communicating via email for well over a year. I contacted him because I wanted to review his Lenco Reference MKII and as fate would have it, Jean had a client that had just purchased one near Chicago and he proposed the possibility of reviewing his design through him. Unfortunately, circumstances beyond our control have not made that a reality yet. However, our most recent correspondence suggests this will come to fruition very some. Stay tuned for that review.
This Blog serves to introduce the man responsible for the resurrection of the Lenco Idler-Wheel-Drive system which he has proven to be the "Superior" turntable system. He has his own website: http://www.idler-wheel-drive.com/models-pricing/ He also rebuilds Garrards and Thorens, and has similar plans for them as he did with the Lenco Reference. He has also upgraded the Sony 2250 and various other heavy direct-drives. Jean's Lenco project began in 2004 with an Audiogon post entitled building high-end tables cheap at Home Depot. This served to have the then-unknown Lenco record players taken seriously, and to accumulate the evidence required to prove to the world that the idler-wheel drive system was the best of the three systems: belt-drive (which at that time reigned unchallenged as the only serious system), direct drive, and idler-wheel-drive (and the Lencos are the most evolved idler-wheel-drives ever designed). This thread – and others around the world in which Jean participated – forced the world to take the Lenco seriously, as it had two things going against it in a world then dominated by belt-drive: #1 it was an idler-wheel-drive and #2 it wasn’t a Garrard 301 or 401. Jean says "We know things now they didn’t know when they were manufacturing idler-wheel ‘tables. We can now realize their potential. Due to the high rotational speed of these motors, great relative mass and so high torque, no expensive solutions need be made to address the weak motors now used in high-end decks. The platters on the Lencos weigh about 8-10 pounds, with much of the mass concentrated on the periphery: the old boys understood flywheel effect to ensure stable speed". The Lenco platter is a single cast piece, of a zinc alloy of some sort, very inert for a metal, and then machined and hand-balanced in a lab. No ringing two-piece platter problems to overcome. Even the motor is hand-balanced in a lab, and weighs something like 3-4 pounds, and runs silently on its lubricated bearings. Think of it: a high-torque motor spinning at well over 1000 RPMs (compared to a belt-drive motor’s average 150-300) which pretty well wipes out speed variations by itself. The idler wheel contacts the motor spindle directly, while contacting the platter directly on its other side, thus transmitting most/all of that torque without any belt stretching. In 2010, Jean was first (and still only) to prove to the world, officially by review, that the Lenco had enormous potential and ranked with the world’s best (and beyond: working on it as per his new models), by submitting the Reference Lenco to Salvatore for review. As is now common knowledge, the Reference Lenco achieved a complete conversion of Salvatore as to the superiority of the idler-wheel-drive system, with no caveats, with a noise floor the equal of his Forsell, and equaling it or surpassing it in every single sonic parameter. This victory facilitated the emergence of a host of Lenco and classic ‘table businesses, all of whom owe a serious debt to this watershed review. Per our last communication, I asked Jean the following questions: What makes your design so special? How much does your plinth weigh? Is your plinth all wood? What tonearm and cartridge combinations are your favorites? What have you done to the MKIII reference to improve performance over the MKII? Jean responded with the following: Hi Michael, OK, to your questions. Yes, my plinths are all wood (different more exclusive woods as the models go up), being made up of layers of different woods and wood products, staggered as to follow the Constrained Layer Damping principle (i.e. bond different materials, each with its own resonant frequencies, in order that they cancel each other out). I use certain very specific woods arranged in a very specific way in order to achieve my results. However, I am also very specific when it comes to the metals I use in my 'tables (bearing, platter, etc.), and even in the plastics (for example the mat). The References, all together with 'table, platter, footers, comes to approximately 100 pounds. My designs are special because I am very careful in the selection of my materials, I concentrate on optimizing torque and speed stability, and I achieve extremely low noise floors. Also, I believe in the absolute superiority of idler-wheel-drive, with no caveats and in all areas, and so work at raising the idler bar ever higher in order to prove this, which I have been doing for more than 10 years (starting with the Audiogon thread "Building high-end 'tables cheap at Home Despot" which brought the lenco to the world's attention) , and continuing to do so with continuing development. Which is not to say that other record players all sound bad - I can appreciate a good belt-drive or DD, love analogue - just that a properly-rebuilt (ay, there's the rub) idler-wheel drive sounds better. Tonearm/cartridge depends on associated equipment, but I've found one of the best combos is the Ikeda 407/Ikeda MC, which has supreme life (i.e. PRaT, coherence, dynamics) AND supreme detail-retrieval and imaging & etc. On the other hand, Graham Phantoms I like because they are relatively unfussy (i.e. they sound good with a wide variety of cartridges, unlike many which only match a few), they are dynamic and rhythmic, and they are excellent in terms of information-retrieval. I also "play" with a variety of cheaper tonearms and cartridges, always looking for that perfect result of timing, dynamics and coherence, the "magic" which makes you sit back and simply spin records into the night, concentrating on the music. For instance, the match of Funk Firm FX-R and Dynavector 17D MKIII is excellent. The Reference Lenco MKIII is a result of my ongoing development for my "Ultimate Lenco" (which will have a different platter and a different chassis). I evaluate the sounds of materials, including metals, which had to be sized to work in a known context to allow comparison and evaluation, which was a Reference Lenco MKII. The Reference Lenco MKIII has a new chassis and the "Ultimate" main bearing, designed to deal with the coming "Ultimate Lenco" platter. The new chassis, dimensionally identical to the stock Lenco chassis, was a great success sonically, and so too was the Ultimate main bearing: but both together, on a Reference Lenco plinth, proved to be far greater than the sum of their parts. And so I made it official as a new upgrade/model. In conclusion, as to the apparent simplicity of the design, Jean is a firm believer in the KISS Principle: Keep It Simple, Stupid. The Lenco drive system is an example of simplicity and supreme effectiveness. He is not swayed by gimmicks, difficult or rare materials or unnecessary complexities (a gimmick in their own right), but only in results: musically-satisfying results. There is an economic positive to this uncompromising approach to musicality vs performance. He, and so by extension his customers, are spared the cost of machining difficult and/or pricey material by his use of wood and metal, which constitute the materials of instruments (and what materials are better-researched and tested than these?). Furthermore he doesn't use metals which are rare and pricey simply because they could tap into a marketing mentality, but simply those which sound best. As a result, he is relieved of pricing his work according to flavour-of-the-month metals which are popular precisely because they are rare and pricey and pass this savings on to the audio consumer. By Michael Miguest My Teac A6600, which I blogged about, developed an electronic problem that the technician I purchased the unit from was unable to resolve. As a result, I returned the unit and immediately began my search for a replacement. I have always had an affinity for the TEAC Brand RTR. I have owned them since the '70s.
However, after my TEAC A6600 experience, I decided to explore other options. My research led me to the German/Swiss made RTRs.The most difficult part was finding this roughly 50 year old product in excellent condition. I got lucky. This blog is about the Revox A77 MKII which I purchased from Kyle of turntableanddeckinc on EBAY. In addition, this company was located in Illinois relatively close to Chicago where I reside. I arranged an audition with Kyle who told me I would be pleasantly surprised with the Studer sound in comparison to my TEAC experience. The difference is night and day. The sound presentation from this machine is ineffable. Once you go here, you can never go back. In the January 1969 edition of the North American specialist magazine "Stereo Review", the authors from the Hirsch-Houck Laboratories called the servo-controlled drive system "unique and effective", and described the frequency response as "phenomenal" and came to the telling conclusion: "We have never seen a recorder that could match the performance of the Revox A77 in all respects, and very few that even come close". In 1978, the Japanese specialist magazine "Audio Specialist", awarded the Revox A77 1st prize as the best "non-Japanese reel-to-reel tape machine". Things happen for a reason! REVOX A77 Professional Tape Recorders The well-known reliability of the Revox A77 is a result of a professional design concept, a concept which successfully combines the advantages of a solidly constructed tape transport mechanism with the advantages of an advanced electronic circuit design. A 3-motor transport mechanism with electronically regulated capstan motor and solenoid operated servo-brakes possesses few parts which are subject to mechanical wear. The use of a diecast motor chassis and head support ensures that a high degree of mechanical precision and long term stability are maintained, even under excessively heavy use. The mechanical and electronic properties thus complement each other in a most successful way. Rugged 3-Motor Tape Drive with its 3 motors on a solid die-cast chassis, the A77 possesses the basic design features of a professional tape recorder. Due to the direct drive principle, there are no friction wheels, clutches or belts needed. This makes for a mechanically simple drive system with only a few movable parts. Thus, wear is reduced to a minimum, a point of vital importance for the long life of a tape recorder By using this 3-motor principle, each function has been optimized. The spooling motors are designed to cope with normal tape tension and high speed winding, which can be made very fast even with 10.5 inch reels, while the capstan motor is solely responsible for the linear forward motion of the magnetic tape. Electronically Regulated Capstan Motor Uniform motor speed - and with it even tape motion - does not rely on utilizing the power line frequency, but is controlled instead by an internal electronic regulating system. Tape speed is thus stable and to a high degree independent of any variation in power line voltage or frequency. Therefore, the A77 may also be used by driving it from batteries (via an inverter with sine wave output) and nothing whatsoever has to be changed when moving from a 50 Hz to a 60 Hz electric supply area or vice versa. The change of tape speed is also achieved electronically, free of any mechanically wearing parts, and free of any influence on the characteristics of the tape drive mechanism. Electronic Control of Tape Drive Functions All functions of the tape drive mechanism are controlled by a simple relay logic. This makes possible soft "finger touch" switching, as well as remote control of all operating modes. Solenoid activated servo-brakes ensure safe and positive stopping of the tape even from the highest winding speed. Modular Amplifier Circuitry The audio electronics of the A77 offer the following typical characteristics: extremely low distortion; high signal to noise ratio; linear response and exact equalization characteristics. All amplifier boards plug in for easy servicing. Only the combination of these properties makes for a recorder of outstanding quality. Two input channels may be switched separately to work from either low or high impedance microphones or from other sound sources as well. Two microphones may be connected directly to the front panel or to the socket strip on the rear. Separate input controls for each channel permit the mixing of two monophonic signals, or the exact balancing of stereophonic recordings and two precisely calibrated ASA VU-meters ensure accurate modulation of the recording tape. REVODUR Sound Heads The REVODUR sound heads have improved magnetic characteristics and a much higher life expectancy. Consistent quality is thus assured since STUDER REVOX designed and built their own magnetic heads. By John Wheeler
Roy Hall is no dummy! He knows that one of the best selling points of his Music hall turntables is that they come completely set-up. They include a cartridge, and all though his choice of brand and model likely have more to do with wheeling and dealing with the manufacturer than it does performance, the fact that it has a cartridge at all, has sold countless turntables to newbies and vinyl veterans alike. Forget the fact that surely down the road, you will realize that there are better cartridges out there and for whatever reason you will likely bite the bullet and change. I am not immune to the wiles of good salesmanship or value. That is how I came to own my Goldring Eroica H, the cartridge that came mounted on my MMF-7. Despite the negative opinions from some reviewers with regard to high output moving coil cartridges, I found The Eroica H to be a wonderfully detailed cartridge. At times it may be a bit too detailed, particularly on older records that it plays “warts and all”, it’s the brilliant sound that I find so involving. One day, as fate would have it, it suffered a twisted cantilever. Not willing to let it go, I decided to send it off to Soundsmith for a re-tip and a ruby cantilever. I’ll keep you posted on that adventure, but in the mean time, I couldn’t resist the temptation to try one of the audio world’s best bargains. I refer to the original giant killer, the Denon DL103R. This thing has been around for so many years in one form or another and so much ink has been spilled extolling its virtues, it should be in an “Audio Hall of Fame”. There isn’t much I can say about the 103R that has not been said before. Trust me, it is all true, the good and the bad. To compare the two is like apples to oranges, but let’s face it, performance is performance. So forget that one is low output and the other is high output. Forget that one sports an elliptical stylus and the other a line contact. Forget that one costs around three hundred fifty dollars and the other more than twice that. No concessions. No handicaps. As expected, the only thing they have in common is their function; they both play records very well, each one having its distinct character, which it presents the moment the stylus touches the record. Surface noise that the Eroica H tends to display in all of its ugly glory is moved to the background with the Denon. However, details that smacked me in the face with the Eroica are subtle with the Denon. It doesn’t fuss with the little details. They are there but it doesn’t make a big deal of them. It’s like my laid back older brother who is aging better than I because he just doesn’t sweat the small stuff. The Glodring on the other hand gives it to you like your best friend that “calls em like he sees em”, doesn’t pull any punches and will tell you when your fly is down. It won’t over look a flaw anymore than the nuance of a harp string or the resonance of a Stradivarius’ wood. It’s all there, the good and the bad. The Eroica H is never lacking in bass and it has a surprisingly sweet high end that sizzles. I do find its tone to be a bit analytical which is not a bad thing and often that is what I am looking for. But as records get old and pick up a pop here and a tick there, I find myself wishing for a little less honesty and a bit more forgiveness. After all, I am supposed to be listening to music not dissecting it. Far too often don’t we find ourselves listening for that creak from the bassist’s instrument and upon hearing confirmation we make some declaration about the resolution and detail coming from our rigs. The Denon makes it easy to listen to the music. It has a sense of rightness that is non-fatiguing, smooth and warm and a sound stage that is, in a word, impressive. It’s huge and open, with everything in the right place. The Denon is known for its fine bass and a tonality in the midrange that is rich and satisfying but it lacks some of the sparkle on the high end that a more detailed cartridge would bring forward. Common wisdom tells us that the DL-103 and a Project 9 tone arm are a slight mismatch, (close but no cigar), which could explain some of the performance shortcomings. The addition of about 3 or 4 grams to the head shell should remedy this. There is also an unfortunate side effect of using a low out put cartridge with a high gain phono amp, that being noise in the form of gain hiss, something that I was not prepared for. The Goldring as it is in my system is a church mouse. While the hiss is not excessive, you know it’s there and whether I stick with the Denon may very well depend on if I ever come to terms with the noise. No doubt the use of a step-up transformer may aid to reduce the hiss, but this is yet more equipment (read “more money”). Frankly, it is my hope that the Soundsmith re-build of the Goldring will address some of my negative issues with the Eroica H without adding new quirks. I have read countless testimonials and reviews that praise the work of Peter Ledermann, the wizard of Soundsmith. If he can tame it, that is to say, make it a bit more forgiving of surface noise, it will be well worth the $250 spent on the face-lift and I will likely drop the Denon romance like a fling with a mistress and go back to my true love. By Michael Miguest
Carnival Personnel
Sumi-e Personnel
Benny Golson and the Philadelphians Personnel By Michael Miguest
My Blog from September 2013 introduced the High-End Audio world to Sound Design Labs. SDL is the brain-child of Donald Smith whose cables and power distribution products have no equal in the present high-end audio marketplace. My September 2013 Blog was about the revolutionary Joule Case Reference AE Hybrid power Distribution Unit/ Bias Power Supply employing their paradigm shift Active-Link Technology. In April of 2014, I reviewed SDL's HPC-4 interconnect cables. http://www.audiocognoscenti.com/blog/archives/04-2014 This year, Mr. Michael Fremer at AXPONA 2015, declared the Lakeview Audio Room which presented with David Berning components, Lahave single-driver Speakers, Artisan Fidelity Turntable, Lampizator Dac4, and Sound Design Labs cabling and Power Distribution products his favorite of the show. Here is the latest vindication for Sound Design Labs, David Berning, Lahave Audio, and Artisan Fidelity courtesy of AV Showrooms. Artisan Fidelity, Lake View Audio, LaHave Audio, David Berning Co , Sound Design Labs, AXPONA 2015 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b91ydKjb7HQ Better Late than Never! By Michael Miguest Collectors of audio and recording equipment know the value of a vintage reel-to-reel tape recorder. I recently purchased the 1978 Teac A-6600 which in my humble opinion, is one of the finest Teac decks ever made. I owned the Teac A-2300SD thru-out the 70's and 80's. Reel to Reels were in use before the rise of cassettes and compact discs and offered fast recording and playback speeds without suffering a hit in quality. Recording at faster speeds also proved beneficial to the tape's signal; spreading the signal over a larger area decreased dropouts and various forms of background noise, so a reel-to-reel tape recorder still comes in handy for users who insist on perfect recordings. Like any magnetic recording medium, reel-to-reel recorders store the full analog wave by using a very small electromagnet (the head) to create a magnetic field, which magnetizes the ferrous oxide (rust) on the tape. During playback, the magnetic data on the tape creates a magnetic field that the head converts back to electrical signals. Reel-to-Reel offers the advantage of being a quality analog recording medium. While many rave about the clarity of digital recordings, audio signals are analog, not digital. Any digital recording is a modification of the original sound wave that converts it to digital data. When it is time to convert the data back into analog sound waves, the wave is reproduced from the digital data. While this produces a very clean sound wave, it is not exactly the same as the original. For this reason, many audio enthusiasts prefer the true sound of analog recording methods, such as reel-to-reel. The reel-to-reel provides the highest recording quality among the magnetic recording methods. The earliest form of magnetic recording was the wire recorder, invented in 1900 by Valdemar Poulsen. The wire recorder used a wire instead of a magnetic tape. It was not until the 1930s that magnetic tape was invented and perfected. However, when compared to Compact Cassettes, and 8 Tracks, it is the least convenient to use and is not portable. The higher quality of the reel to reel comes from a combination of the tape speed and width. The higher the tape speed is, the lower the signal-to-noise ratio is. The wider the tape is, yields a better frequency response and lower distortion. With the cost of vinyl skyrocketing, I plan to use this vintage and superb sound quality technology to record newly purchased Lps thus minimizing wear and tear on the actual albums. In addition, I plan to record albums I don't have or can't find that my music lover circle possesses. For those interested in greater depth with regard to this medium: http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/mar10/articles/taperecorderadvice.htm MICHAEL FREMER DECLARES THE SOUND OF THE LAKEVIEW AUDIO ROOM (420) HIS FAVORITE OF AXPONA 20154/27/2015 By Michael Miguest Kris Kosiba, the owner of Lakeview Audio and dealer of David Berning components and Lahave Audio Loud Speakers, together with Christopher Thornton of Artisan Fidelity, and Donald Smith of Sound Design Labs totally mesmerized Mr. Michael Fremer who said: "Many rooms produced interesting, accomplished sound, including those containing gear from familiar companies like Wilson, Magnapan, Audio Resarch, Tidal and others, but overall, for whatever reason or reasons, the sound in the Lakeview Audio room was my favorite". Here's the video: Lakeview Audio at AXPONA 2015 By Michael Miguest
Anyone attending AXPONA 2015 should put Lakeview Audio, Room 420 at the very top of their list of must hear rooms. Kris Kosiba, the owner of Lakeview Audio will be demonstrating with Sound Design Labs, Donald Smith and Artisan Fidelity's Christopher Thornton. In addition, Mr. Allan Bhagan from the David Berning Company will be on hand. Kris will be spinning vinyl with his modified Artisan Fidelity Achates Wraith Turntable with the Kuzma 4 point arm, Lyra Kleos SL cartridge with the David Berning Preone Preamplifier, the David Berning Quadrature Z Monoblocks, Lahave Audio Avaza Loudspeakers, and the Lampizator 4 Dac for Digital. All equipment will be using the Revolutionary Sound Design Labs' cables by Donald Smith: (1) T3C-11 AE Power Cord (Pre-Amp) (2) RCS-25 Signature Power Cords (Mono Blocks) (1) RCS-50 Reference Power Cord (Joule Case Reference AE) (1) Pair TSC-8 AE Reference Interconnect (between pre-amp and mono blocks) (1) Pair HPC-4 SDL modified digital cable (between pre-amp and Dac) (1) HSC-9 SE Power Cord (DAC) (1) Pair TC-8 Signature positive+ speaker cable (LaHave Speakers) All equipment will be connected to the Sound Design Labs' Joule Case Reference AE Hybrid Power Distribution Unit/ Bias Power Supply using their Revolutionary Active-Link Technology. |
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