July 25, 2000
Subject: Power conditioning for a power
amp
I am thinking of buying a line
conditioner for my hi-fi system. However, I am really afraid that the power conditioner
might limit dynamics since I intend to use it on my Ayre V-1 power amplifier. I heard that
the Chang Lightspeed series of filters are best for
high-current gear. However, the Audioprism Foundation III receives very good comments too.
Please recommend a suitable filter for my
system as dealers in my country are really unwilling to loan any for home demo. My other
equipment includes a Sony CDPX-3000 as transport, Musical Fidelity. X-24K with X-PSU,
Sonic Frontiers Line 3, with interconnect, speaker and power cables AudioQuest, XLO and
Synergistic Research. All equipment sits on DH Jumbo cones.
Also, please comment on the RoomTunes
equipment rack. Your help is greatly appreciated.
Regards,
Ivan Wong Siu Man
Dear Ivan:
In my experience -- and I
haven’t tried either the Chang Lightspeed or AudioPrism Foundation III in my system
-- power conditioners do limit dynamics on power amplifiers. Although I like my API
Ultra Power Wedge 114 a lot, I do not plug my power amps into it.
If you live in a country wired at
220/240V, your mileage may very well vary (as it might with any of the products I
haven’t tried).
As to the RoomTunes racks,
I’ve never used them, but Jonathan Scull used them in his system for several years
and his systems always sounded fantastic. They’re pretty fiddly, but the results J-10
coaxed out of them would argue that they might be worth the hassle.
ATB...Wes
July 19, 2000
Subject: In search of the "magic"
I'm extremely glad to find you on the Web.
I have recently been put in a situation where
the only way I can listen to quality music is through headphones. My new flat is not big
enough for a full system, so I've decided to give the 'phones a go instead of upgrading my
amplifier.
After reading your splendid article about the
Sennheiser HD-600s in Stereophile, I was fully convinced that these would be the
way to go. My source is a Sony XA7ES CD player isolated by Vibrapods and running a
dedicated Wireworld Electra Reference power cord. At present, I'm listening through the
adjustable volume headphone jacks of the Sony XA7. I've also read that the HD-600s need a
dedicated headphone amp to sound their best.
Here lies my problem -- I will be getting a
headphone amp shortly, but I'm desperately looking for that "magic" that
connects one to the music. I'm only 25-years old, and have never tried LPs, but I want to
know what it feels like to "connect" and to "feel the passion" of the
music, as you and the other Stereophile reviewers have so often described with your
favorite recordings. I haven't auditioned any headphone amps yet, but even on some pretty
expensive separates setups I've listened to, the emotion and magic are often lacking. The
closest I got to feeling the "magic" was on a setup consisting of a Krell KPS 30
CD player, Krell KRC 3 preamp, VTL 125 monoblocks and ProAc 1S speakers. I'm trying to
replicate that sound with headphones.
My musical preferences range across the board
from classical to rock to jazz to choral. I'm looking for maximum detail and resolution,
and above all, musicality and that "you are there" feeling. I was considering
the EARMAX OTL triode headphone amp that had rave reviews some time back, but it's hard to
do a home trial here in New Zealand. Am I another doomed audio soul who needs to get into
the mega-buck electrostatic headphones to get this passion, or is there hope for me in a
more reasonably priced product such as the Musical Fidelity X-Can V2 or HeadRoom
Supreme/Max? I will be putting a real good interconnect between the source and headphone
amp as well -- my beloved Nordost SPM reference. Please help if you can. I thoroughly
enjoy and have very high regard for all your reviews.
Thanks in kind,
Champi Elwela
Dear Champi:
One of the things I love about this
website is the intelligent e-mail I receive at Ask Wes. This letter, like many an
audiophile conversation, asks more than one question simultaneously. On one hand,
it’s the kind of equipment-oriented question that any two ’philes would wile
away the hours with. And on that level, my answer is that you have a great source in the
Sony XA7ES, Mr. Elwela. I suspect that any high-quality headphone amp paired with the
Sennheiser HD-600s will allow you to experience the magic.
Like you, I suspect that the EARMAX
OTL would have "tube magic" in spades. I contacted the US distributor for a
review sample when I was at Stereophile, but he declined to have the product
reviewed. He offered to sell me one, but only on the condition that I not write about it
-- an offer I declined, since I agree with John Atkinson that the only reason a writer has
a life is to provide him with grist for the mill.
However, I do have a HeadRoom Max and
I recommend it highly (technically what I have is a Maxed-out Supreme). I have it set up
next to my comfy chair in my new listening room and am currently auditioning a whole batch
of high-end headphones through it for a review to appear here later this summer.
But your deeper question goes to the
very core of our ability to derive enjoyment from our audio systems. "I want to know
what it feels like to ‘connect’ and to ‘feel the passion’ of the
music," you write.
Indeed yes.
It is far too easy to approach the
hi-fi hobby with a cynical attitude. After all, even stereo is a "trick" -- and
there are all sorts of people ready to sap the pleasure out of your enjoyment, ranging
from those who’d convince you that there’s no difference between one amplifier
and another to those who’d deny you the pleasure of listening to your preferred
format. Heck, some of them would even dictate what type of music you should listen to.
Einstein said "There are only two
ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though
everything is a miracle."
I find nearly everything about music
miraculous. How can something as insubstantial as breath be so powerful? There’s no
real answer to that -- that’s what makes it a miracle.
And there are times when that miracle
can reach through the years, miles, transistors, tubes, resistors, and (yes, even) wires
to touch my soul directly. How can we account for this?
You could say that that’s
simply part of the miracle of music. But if that’s true, why doesn’t it happen
all the time? Why do some combinations of equipment seem to make it happen, while others
merely reproduce the noises that make up the music?
That’s the real magic, in
my opinion. And I doubt I’d experience it very much if I were constantly on the
lookout for some "trick" that manufacturers or magazines were playing upon my
gullibility.
Maybe that sounds like some sort of
mystical claptrap to you, but actually remaining open to the magic of the moment can be
scary. It’s certainly not fashionable to wear your emotions on your sleeve in these
cynical times. As a culture, we don’t show much respect for innocence or emotional
openness. It’s so much easier to sneer knowingly: been there, done that.
Elbert Hubbard said, "I would
rather be able to appreciate things I can not have than to have things I am not able to
appreciate," and I don’t think he was simply referring to his inability to
afford the finer things in life. It’s like music -- we all know that merely
possessing a recording is not the same thing as owning the music, you cannot own music
except by absorbing it directly into your soul.
This doesn’t mean that every
audio experience is supposed to elicit goosebumps. If they all did, what would be special
about that? But you must approach every experience as though it could.
That’s the magic. It
can.
ATB...Wes
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