NEWSLETTER

 June 2006

Dear hi fi enthusiast

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Recent reviews and news

6 Moons has reviewed the new Conductor tonearm from The CartridgeMan. Edward Barker says “I have no hesitation in describing it as a world-class performer and a genuinely exciting and valuable new entry into the analog world.”

Pete Riggle, an engineer in USA, has produced a vertical tracking angle device for Rega tonearms. Named the VTAF it enables the vertical tracking angle to be changed “on the fly” as there is no locking nut underneath that has to be loosened first. It has been receiving considerable praise from reviewers and users. Decibel Hi Fi is now a reseller of this product, and the Teflon upgrade. Read about it at www.vtaf.com or in the Tonearm upgrades category http://www.decibelhifi.com.au/category10_1.htm . The VTAF is A$200 plus GST, the Teflon upgrade $40 plus GST.

Anti-static devices like the “Dust Bug” arm and Zerostat gun were popular accessories in the 70s when vinyl was king. Versions of these still exist and have been added to the website in the Vinyl Accessories category. http://www.decibelhifi.com.au/category5_1.htm

Recent Customer Feedback

I am always very pleased to receive feedback from customers, and the SACD article prompted a couple of interesting responses.

To your question about SACD vs. Vinyl. I have 2 SACD players (a Marantz and Yamaha). I have 3 versions of Dark Side of the Moon. The Vinyl is a Mobile Fidelity pressing. The first thing I will say is that the conventional CD is just not in the race. I played several tracks a few times to become accustomed to the sound of the standard product. I must say it did not sound too bad. Then I put on the SACD version and the difference was staggering. Far more depth, superior stereo imagery, and awesome bass. And some subtle sounds that you just could not hear on the conventional version. The Vinyl version is just as impressive and I would say a little warmer in tone. I am a Vinyl fan but at least we now have a CD medium that does not compromise sound quality.

I also have some other examples with either a SACD or DVD-A duplicate. The DVD-A format is also very impressive. If you get a chance to listen to Elvis 30 #1 hits on DVD-A it will blow you away as it has done to everyone who I have played it to.

Thanks to Peter Sloss for those comments. I bought the Elvis DVD-A and have to agree it is very impressive.

And from John Lancaster … I've been comparing SACD vs vinyl for about 2 years now. Firstly there is some real garbage released on SACD which doesn't do justice to the medium and Sony's back release catalogue of classical is good example of this. For really good SACD we have to look to the independents such as Chesky and it's good they support SACD and vinyl.

My system SACD: Sony SCD-XA333ES Vinyl: Michell Gyro SE/Rega 600/Garrott retipped Ortofon MC30 Supreme ---> Gyphon amps and B&W 800 speakers.

Comparing Rebecca Pigeon on SACD vs vinyl: Very good vs  Heavenly - vinyl definitely wins !

Why ? (The hard part) - in my system vinyl has marginal, but audibly better dynamics, 3D staging and tone. The vinyl has a softer, more complete tone - the organic factor, based I guess on micro-dynamics and micro-resolution, which elicits a visceral, rather than intellectual response.

I think the Sony has a hard edge to it which may contribute to the above findings - I also have an early Sony DVD player (9000ES) which has 2 channel SACD and to my ears sounds nicer than the stand alone player.

John also had some comments about record cleaning … WRT cleaning the Disc Doctor kit is fabulous and I think the brushes are the best obtainable. I have also purchased a Nitty Gritty cleaner which is easier and less messier to use but doesn't clean as well as the Disc Doctor manual method. I have adopted a hybrid method - clean with DD then rinse and suck with the Nitty Gritty machine.

Robert Shewan had this to say about the Boston Audio Mat 1… Out of this world. I can’t believe what I am hearing. Everything improved out of sight.

.

If anyone has comments on products they have purchased or other topics they would like to share, please email them to me. I can’t promise to have room to include everything but I’ll try.

The Cartridge Man strikes again

Leonard Gregory has a reputation within the industry as an expert in the area of vinyl reproduction. But he has maintained an independent position and not been a part of the obscenely over priced products that sometimes result from innovative ideas. When I visited him a few years ago I was impressed by his down to earth approach to developing products which are at the absolute forefront of the industry.

There have been many attempts to make parallel tracking tonearms over the years. Most don’t work all that well. The ones that do work are incredibly expensive … until now.

Len Gregory has taken the air bearing principle and simplified it as much as possible. The Conductor uses a simple high flow low pressure aquarium based air pump system that negates the need for expensive stainless steel pressure fittings and fixings. This is an important point.  It is low pressure rather than high pressure as employed by other air bearing tonearms.

The Conductor consists of an aluminum head shell glued to a thin hollow carbon armwand through which the wiring travels. There is a brass counterweight fixed by a grub screw. The highly polished stainless steel outer bearing tube floats over finely machined air bearing tube with about a dozen fine nozzles machined into the tube's apex. The tube is bolted to a rugged steel chassis, to which a support stud is fitted with four adjustable grommets. These allow for fine adjustments of setup in both dimensions. Unusually for an air bearing, the air is pumped into the bearing tube from both ends and the inner chamber is divided into two sections. This ingeniously solves the problems inherent in the single chamber approach where air pressure tends to be higher at one end than the other.

It is mountable on many brands of non-suspended turntables, and is available now for $3300.00 including GST. The complete package includes all the bits and pieces, arm, pump, smoothing tank, tubing - the lot. Incognito wiring is standard in the arm tube itself down to the output phono sockets on the chassis.

Esoteric Audio Rek-o-tek Rondine 3 turntable.

This is a professional looking unit that offers tremendous versatility to anyone wanting to be able to play almost any record ever made.

There are two ways to consider it: firstly for its versatility, and secondly for its sound quality with high quality LPs.

Twelve speeds with + or – 15% pitch adjustment means you can set the speed to suit any known recording standard. The removable headshell on the longer than normal tonearm allows for easy changing of cartridges. The longer tonearm also allows for larger records (up to 16”).

From an audiophile point of view, the construction quality is very good, functional rather than stylish. It is using a DC motor (as promoted by Origin Live). The chassis is heavy and Vibrapods are provided to give a vibration free platform. The light and strong long tonearm handles a wide range of cartridge weights. The counterweight tracking weight adjustment is accurate. Vertical tracking angle is easily adjustable by means of a grub screw on the main pillar. The cable from the base of the tonearm uses the standard DIN plug so better quality external cables can easily be substituted, but the ones provided are very good. The removable headshell allows for easy swapping of cartridges to enable comparisons. I’d imagine the tonearm will work with all but the very lightest, highest compliance cartridges. It’s possibly a bit light for heavier, lower compliance cartridges. I tried it with a Garrott P77 (medium compliance) and found it worked very well. The platter is quite thick and heavy, made of Delrin, a plastic with similar characteristics to vinyl, so you don’t need to use a turntable mat.

Overall, this is most versatile turntable I have ever seen, and the performance is very good, making it a very sound purchase. There’s no hesitation in endorsing it. Price is $1800 plus GST.

The Rolls Royce of record cleaning machines

Loricraft Audio UK are the manufacturers of a range of Professional Record Cleaning machines which have been widely acknowledged as the most thorough on the market.

The Loricraft PRC3 is based on the work of the late Percy Wilson, Technical Editor of the Gramophone Magazine in England. The prototype (hand made) machine was demonstrated at the Buxton Hi-fi show in the 1960's and drew quite a bit of attention for it's ability to thoroughly clean a record. The design was improved and modernized using state-of-the-art components and by Loricraft Audio. Thousands of units are now used around the world by leading record studios, record dealers, and serious collectors. The product is also very simple to use. A more compact version which utilises the same basic design principles and cleaning effectiveness - the Loricraft PRC3 is now being distributed in Australia by Decibel Hi Fi.

There are number of vacuum record cleaning machines on the market, and all use large industrial, noisy, motors to suck the cleaning fluid off the record through a long slot. The Loricraft system uses a vacuum arm (similar to a phono tone arm) to clean the record locally instead of globally. The tiny orifice in the center of the vacuum nozzle cleans each groove separately. A nylon thread in the opening provides a soft spacer to hold the nozzle a few mils above the record surface. This spacing produces a huge vortex of airflow above the groove. This is called Bernoulli's law (or Bernoulli effect.) The "leading edge" of the mechanical sound pattern and the "lagging edge" are cleaned simultaneously as the air rushes through the "V" groove and straight up into the vacuum nozzle at high velocity. The platter turns at quite a high speed so it only takes about 75 seconds to clean a side. I found I could do about a dozen LPs in an hour. But records in good condition become pristine and the music seems to just flow from them.

The first most obvious advantage of this technique is the low noise level, making it possible to listen to music whilst cleaning a batch of records. The second is the thoroughness of the cleaning. Tests have shown a record previously cleaned on a different brand of record cleaning machine to be quieter after being Loricleaned. I wish I could say that every record I cleaned became perfect with absolutely no clicks and pops. Unfortunately I cannot. Some of them have had a hard life, and no amount of cleaning can get rid of every noise, but the improvement is dramatic.

Being a large and heavy item the freight cost from UK to Australia is high and this contributes to the $3000 + price tag. The unit based in Brisbane is available for hire at $110 per week and we are also offering a cleaning service. The price is $55 for 20 LPs.

New Ortofon moving coil cartridge

The Ortofon distributor in Australia has advised that the MC15 MkII has been replaced by the Salsa. With a body made from bright orange see through plastic it looks cheap but is actually a little more expensive than the MC15 at $319. By the way the plastic is called Noryl and is the same as used for the MC15. The initial impression was that it was clearer, but with less warmth. Off course it was straight out of the box whereas the MC15 had been used previously. Most components tend to improve over the first few days of playing. Inspection of the specifications reveals that the 2 cartridges are very similar, with the MC15 having a more extended high frequency range and a 4db rise at 20hz. In that area the Salsa seems to have a flatter response. After playing it over a several LPs I came to be more impressed with the clean well defined sound it produces. A couple of days later I changed back to the MC15 and this confirmed my initial impression. I actually prefer the warmer sound of the MC15 but I imagine many people would like the cleaner sound of the Salsa. A worthy successor, pity about the colour.

I then changed back to the Garrott P77 I started with, and it does very well against both these. A warmer, fuller sound like the MC15, but not as open or spacious – thoroughly listenable. It confirms why the P77 is our best selling cartridge over $100.

Then I changed to a brand new Audio Technica AT440MLa. Very flat, non-spectacular, slightly recessed midrange. Overall very neutral, tracks brilliantly at light pressures – needs a lightweight arm. Works very well with all types of music. Excellent value for just over $200.

DIY Speaker Drivers

The Jordan JX92S drivers are great, providing a simple way to great sound, and many people are now experiencing the wonderful sound quality they provide, and the satisfaction of having assembled the systems themselves. And they are reasonably priced. Nevertheless if there was some alternative that while not as good was still a cut above commercial systems I am sure there would be lots of people interested. I received an email from DIY HI FI SUPPLY in Hong Kong last month. They have two new drivers that look very interesting. The Neofone is similar to the JX92S in that it is a 5” wide range driver with a frequency response from about 40 to 15K. Not as extended or smooth as the Jordan but still a very useful range. The Dynafone is a 10” bass driver that they claim works very well in conjunction with the Jordan JXr6HD. I have added these into the Loudspeaker Kits category. I’ll be trying them out in various enclosures over the next few months and will report more in the next newsletter. Their attraction is the price point. The Neofones sell for $95 each plus GST, and the Dynafones are $205 plus GST. I’m thinking a pair of JXr6HDs with a pair of Dynafones could be a great combination. I’ll experiment with some enclosures and let you know how they perform. Enclosure designs are very simple – a sealed 30 litre box for the Dynafone, and a 14.5 litre vented enclosure for the Neofone.

LP to CD conversion

I get a lot of enquiries about putting LPs onto CDs and so am always looking for products which help in that process. One of the most popular is the Pro-Ject Debut 3 turntable with an inbuilt phono preamp because it will connect directly into a computer. So if you have your stereo set up in the lounge room and your computer is in another room it’s more convenient to have a second turntable that you use for the transfer.

Another area of interest is the software to use. We sold quite a few copies of the Steinberg Clean program, and then the Magix Audio Lab. Both were effective, simple to use, and very reasonably priced. Another program that fits that description is CakeWalk Pyro 5. Also selling for $110 it provides a much wider range of facilities than just LP to CD.

Chris Burrowes a software company in Adelaide called CFBSoftware (www.cfbsoftware.com). His LP Recorder program has got to be about the simplest way to transfer from your vinyl records onto your PC. It can also be used to record from tapes or the radio. It’s an easy program to download and install, and I particular like the auto level feature which helps prevent signal overload by automatically adjusting the signal level down during loud passages. This helps ensure you get a nice undistorted copy on your PC’s harddrive. The program creates a WAV file on your harddrive. The next phase is to clean it up to get rid of the clicks and pops which seem to be on almost any record. Of course proper cleaning with the Disc Doctor fluid will help here. LP Recorder doesn’t include that facility but there are programs available from other sources that you can download. There’s also a companion program LP Ripper to assist with splitting the file into separate tracks.

In the more professional realm is Diamond Cut version 6 software. This sells for nearly $400 but has wonderful tools for the serious transcriber. EZ Clean is a powerful new automated system that seeks and destroys clicks, pops, hiss, hum and other disturbances common to older recordings. Another facility in particular that seems very useful is the ability to play 78s at 45rpm. The software will adjust the speed to be equivalent with any of the speeds that are needed. There are also a wide range of modifiable filters to enable almost any noise to be eliminated. A version of this program is widely used in forensics because of these facilities.

The fact still remains that conversion to CD means a drop in quality. What if you want to make a copy of your treasured LPs at much higher than CD quality? The answer is to burn them to DVD-A using a program called discWelder Bronze, available in Australia for under $200. One of our customers reports that he is achieving great success with this.

You’ll find these software products in the PC Products category. http://www.decibelhifi.com.au/category26_1.htm

Specially Priced Combinations

As we try out various products we find that there are some combinations which really work together very well, and so we will be offering special prices when they are purchased together. For example the Ortofon Rondo Bronze moving coil cartridge and Graham Slee Gram Amp 3 Fanfare phono preamplifier. So we have set up a new category for these and will be adding to it regularly. Please check out http://www.decibelhifi.com.au/category41_1.htm

That’s about it for this issue.

Happy Listening.

Brian Maddern

brian@decibelhifi.com.au

Unit 1, 201 Evans Road, Salisbury, Queensland, 4107, Australia

PO Box 536, Sunnybank, Qld 4109

Phone: 61 (0) 7 3272 7660  Fax 3216 6284