BAASnotes.com – Bay Area Audiophile Society

Blue Coast Records Hosts Invite-only Holiday Gig

On Saturday, December 11th, Blue Coast Records will host their annual, invitation-only “Blue Coast Artists
Holiday Party with the World” event in their Belmont, CA studio.

The gig will feature Keith Greeninger, Dayan Kai, Jane Selkye, Chris Kee, and a few other new artists performing live in the studio…and uploading the music to the internet in DSD and High Resolution PCM formats.

And BAAS has received a block of tickets! I’ll be there with a score of other BAAS members and special guests.

Sign-up emails have been sent. It should be great!

Bob

The Tape Project and Focal Rock Bay Area Audiophiles

BAAS members got a special treat treat today, served up hot at 1340 Mission Studio in San Francisco.

Members coming out of the mastering room uniformly commented that they had just experienced the best sound that they had heard in a long time. I had to agree.

In my experience, this level of fidelity requires attention to all elements of the reproduction chain. In the case of today’s event, four elements stood out:

• THE TAPE PROJECT SOURCE MATERIAL – Have you ever heard a master tape? We came about  as close as mere mortals can. We listened to direct dubs of the master, recorded on 1″ two-track media at 15 ips! Wow. Nothing quite like it. And I’m not sure that I ever heard an analog source this quiet.

• SUPERB ELECTRONICS BY EAR and VTL – These premier brands need no introduction. Top-of-the-line line-level components designed by Tom deParavicini himself. And power from the mighty Siegfrieds.

• FOCAL GRANDE UTOPIA LOUDSPEAKERS – About 7′ of pure linearity. The effortless bass was  striking to me. The smooth treble from a Be inverted dome was also quite moving. But the degree of driver integration was perhaps their most impressive quality. These huge multi-driver boxes sing with a single voice.

• CUSTOM, PURPOSE-BUILT LISTENING ROOM. No parallel surfaces. Balanced use of absorption and diffraction. Ballast (mass) in key areas of the structure. A great showcase for sound.

Our hosts made a great event even better. Many thanks to Bob Hodas, Paul Stubblebine, Michael Romanowski, and Bea Manley. Your hospitality, expertise, and enthusiasm were terrific!

PSI Audio Studio Monitors Impress Audiophiles

BAAS members enjoyed a hours of great listening yesterday, courtesy Tim Ryan of Simplifi Audio. [Thanks, Tim, for bringing your entire inventory up from San Diego!]

Loudspeakers from DSPeaker, Gradient, and PSI Audio were all on hand. Resolution Audio provided the front end. Regrettably, the Audiovolver II DSP platform did not quite survive its recent round trip through Germany.

Judging from member comments, the PSI Audio full-range, self-powered speakers were the star of the show. An honorable mention goes to Resolution, whose new component line is GORGEOUS (see pic).

Also, many thanks to Blaine and Gerald at West Valley College – a great place for BAAS events!

Bob

Proof that Digital Cables Matter? – A Prism Demo

I had a good time at the AES 2010 Conference in San Francisco.

I saw interesting people: Dan Weiss, Bruno Putzeys (Hypex Class-D inventor), John Curl, Jack Bybee, Alan Parsons (really!), etc.

I listened to cool stuff: the new Antelope DAC that Head-Fi’ers seem to like, various pro monitors (JBL, Adam, Genelec, ATC, Grimm), Apogee’s cool modular DAC, etc.

But – most importantly – I learned stuff. Like this….

It seems to me, that of all the cables in a modern audiophile rig, the one with the toughest job is the digital cable (SPDIF or AES/EBU). Why? Because it has to carry a very-dynamic, very-high-bandwidth analog signal. And it can’t be noisy.

Well, it turned out that the Prism folks – who make both pro audio gear and test gear – had a perfect rig to put this to the test. Specifically, they had the gear to analyze the dynamics, jitter and noise of a word clock signal. Further, the gear could be configured to use either internal soldered connections or an external cable. I took pictures of the results on my Droid. (Yes, the quality sucks.)

Word clock jitter was discussed in detail almost 10 years ago in “The Jitter Game,” an epic treatise appearing in Stereophile in early 1992. The illustrations below depict “eye patterns” of the word clock signal. Both these references are recommended.

Let’s get to today’s measurements….

For all of the pictures that follow, a key metric is that the signal be stable at its max or min during the time depicted by the horizontal red bars. Another key metric is the cleanliness of the zero-crossings. Finally, it’s vital that the eye stay open! As the area within the eye closes down

The first image (below) shows an eye pattern for the Prism clock at 48khz.  Importantly, the signal is both generated and measured in the same box, i.e., the wiring between the clock and the o’scope is internal and soldered. As you can see, this curve is very clean in terms of both the red bars and the zero-crossings. In fact, the only flaw in the signal is the slight-but-well-damped overshoot.

At 192khz, the signal remains very clean, but rise time starts to become an issue, closing the eye slightly.

But what happens when an external cable and its connectors enter the mix? To find out, we patched in a 100′ balanced AES/EBU cable of typical studio quality between the word clock and the o’scope. This should represent a ‘worse case’ scenario – long cable, noisy XLR connectors (BNC would be preferred), and mediocre cable quality.

The result: jitter! At 48khz, the signal showed noticeable variations in timing. Notice how the timing errors lead to amplitude errors. This signal would still be usable, though it might lead to audible distortion.

At 96khz with the cable in place, things get worse. Jitter becomes sizable, and the eye shuts down significantly. This signal is a mess.

We couldn’t even get the scope to sync at 192khz with the cable in the loop.

So what can we conclude from all this?

Given that we threw this exercise together in real time on the AES 2010 show flow, documented it loosely with my Droid camera, and had no scientific controls in place – not a lot. Let’s put it this way: I’m not rushing these results into peer review!

But on this day with that system we seemed to show that ‘regular sudio’ cables can create signal distortions in a word clock signal that are likely audible.

Your milage can – and quite possibly will – vary. Caveat lector (reader beware)!

Anyone care to try Nordost Odin?   ;~)

Bob

Disclosure: I own a Prism Orpheus.

Acoustic Sounds – LP Pressing Plant Tour

Guest post by
Peter Truce

I just returned from my annual trek to the Acoustic Sounds mothership in Salina, Kansas.  The concert at Blue Heaven Studio, Chad Kassem’s over the top recording and performance venue was excellent as usual – assuming you like the blues.

But this year along with all of the SACD, vinyl and equipment goodies to drool over, we received a tour of Chad’s soon to be operational record pressing plant.

As we know, vinyl has been making an amazing comeback, so strong that the existing boutique record pressing plants just can’t keep up.  So Chad decided to do his own.

Easy formula:  figure out who the very best record plant setup person is, find him, convince him to leave Arizona for the frozen tundra of Kansas by promising him too much $$ and the chance to do what he always wanted:  make records the right way.  That would be Mark, from the old Wakefield Manufacturing record plant in Arizona.  You know, the plant that pressed Rounder, ECM, and the other great records back in the day.

Below is Mark showing off the new feed augers that they had built along with new barrels to feed the vinyl to the press.  As he says, if the tolerances aren’t right, make new ones …

You know the problem, you drop the needle on the lead-in groove and hear a bunch of noise before the music starts.  Mark tells us that the reason is that the vinyl was burned during the process – a basic problem when using the stock water temp controller which used a thermocouple.  Max precision was +/- 15 degrees F and it was better to burn than go too cool as the vinyl wouldn’t flow.

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Velodyne Impresses at Audio High

It’s great when a manufacturer is willing (and able) to put aside sales and marketing and just teach.

Yet that is exactly what Velodyne did for BAAS members yesterday at the impressive Audio High facility in Mountain View.

Members heard – and felt (!) – what real bass means to audio reproduction. Moreover, we experienced just what those dreaded “room modes” can do to bass frequencies.

Impressive indeed. Thanks, guys!

Bob

Amarra and Salk Treat Bay Area Audiophiles

About 50 BAAS members were treated to great music and great sound yesterday, courtesy of the Amarra music player system and Salk Soundscape 10 loudspeakers.

Not only did we have the fine Amarra software on hand, but the Amarra team arrived in force to teach, answer questions, and evangelize computer playback. In addition, we sampled the Sonic Studio 305 ADC/DAC and brand-new (and uber expensive) linear power supply for same. Both were excellent IMO – powerful features and great sound.

And members were literally raving about the Salk speakers (see forums). At their $10K introductory price (internet-direct), many members considered them a huge value as well.

Great stuff – and many thanks to the Amarra team and Jim Salk!

Bob

2010 Sonoma Classical Performance Schedule

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 17, 2010                        Media Contact: Wallace Breitman

707-939-3683

wa11yb@hughes.net

CYPRESS STRING QUARTET INAUGURATES SEVENTH SEASON OF CLASSICAL MUSIC IN SONOMA ON SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 21

The Sonoma Classical Music Society inaugurates its seventh season of bringing great classical music to Sonoma and the Sonoma Valley when it presents the acclaimed San Francisco based Cypress String Quartet on Sunday, November 21, 2010, at 3:00 pm in Burlingame Hall, 252 West Spain Street, Sonoma.  Formed in 1996, the Cypress String Quartet, comprised of Cecily Ward, violin, Tom Stone, violin, Ethan Filner, viola, and Jennifer Kloetzel, cello, is noted for its elegant performances and its sound has been called “beautifully proportioned and powerful.  Tickets are $20 for members of the Society, $25 for adults, and $10 for students.  They will be available from the Society’s website, www.sonomaclassical.org, Reader’s Books, Pharmaca, and at the door

At the November 21 concert, the Cypress String Quartet will perform Mozart’s String Quartet in C major, K. 465, nicknamed “Dissonant,” the last of the set of six quartets which Mozart dedicated to his friend Franz Joseph Haydn and one of his most famous works; Czech composer Erwin Schulhoff’s Five Pieces for String Quartet, a set of delightful dances which integrates modernist vocabulary, neoclassical elements, jazz and dance rhythms from a variety of sources and cultures; and Debussy’s String Quartet in G minor, op. 10, premiered in December 1893, influenced by Javanese gamelan music, and based solely on four tones and their relation to one another.

The Cypress is recording the Beethoven late quartets, having released the first of three discs in August 2009 to great acclaim (Gramophone praised it as “revealing artistry of uncommon insight and cohesion.”), with the second disc released in August 2010 and the third scheduled for a 2011 release.  The quartet members trained individually at institutions including the Juilliard School, Interlochen Arts Academy, Cleveland Institute of Music, Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and the Royal Academy of Music.

Don’t miss this opportunity to hear a superb ensemble perform great classical music live in Sonoma!

The next concert in the Sonoma Classical Music Society’s 2010 – 2011 season will be in January 2011.

About the Sonoma Classical Music Society

The Sonoma Classical Music Society was formed in 2004 with the mission of sponsoring a series of classical music concerts in Sonoma of the highest professional quality.  An application for membership in the Sonoma Classical Music Society may be obtained at the website: www.sonomaclassical.org.

Silverman Masterful in Audio High Concert Series

— Guest Post by Ori Mizrahi-Shalom —

Background.  Many of us know pianist Robert Silverman through the Stereophile CD projects. In those, Silverman always showed a great mastery of the instrument. His touch is firm and his delivery smooth and powerful.

Prelude: 2009. BAAS members had the opportunity to hear Silverman last year at the Sherman Clay Steinway Store in Santa Clara (also organized by Audio High’s Michael Silver). During that rehearsal gig, I felt that he excelled at the virtuoso pieces, where speed and brilliance coupled with decades of familiarity with the instrument definitely pay dividends. It’s easy to like Silverman with “popular” music! I was less drawn to his interpretation of the more intimate pieces, however, where a musician must connect with the music and the audience by creating the ‘right’ mood and atmosphere. In those, technical qualities take a second place to deep soul-searching. I came out of the session last year not quite satisfied: it left me wanting for something more.

Recital I: September 9th 2010. I know the Le Petit Trianon Theater in San Jose from other concerts. It is a jewel! This 340 seat theater offers superb (!) acoustics. It is small enough to enjoy the music from practically every seat in the house but it’s even better when you pick your own… I was disappointed to see so few BAAS members. The theater was far from being full and that is a real pity, especially considering the good cause of raising funds for Stanford Children’s Hospital “rooms of magic” project. Perhaps the Thursday evening timing proved a challenge.

[If you'd like to attend Recital II this Thursday (9/16), let me know.  - Bob]

This concert was the first of a planned eight recording sessions encompassing the complete Beethoven piano sonata cycle. There was no soundman on stage, no drama. Just a few microphones and some equipment behind the piano. And a cover on the piano bench to absorb the squeaks…

My Reaction. Silverman showed up more than ready for the challenge.

Like all things in life, music requires a warm up and I found the first two movements to be in that category: decent but not entirely thrilling. But as the evening progressed, things got better and better.

The second sonata was the “highlight” of the evening and it suited Silverman’s style well. The “Waldstein” offers a virtuoso player anything he could wish for, and Silverman stepped beyond mere technical mastery. He added sensitive phrasing and smoothness that I haven’t heard from his previous recordings or the live session last year. It was the kind of music that I was hoping to hear but wasn’t sure I would.

I was delighted to hear music of great elegance, music which meshed delicate interpretation with a brilliant performance. I was for me a moment of musical heaven, and I’d like to believe that most of the audience had recognized the same joy. The cheers at the end of this second sonata left no mistake about that.

After the short intermission the audience was treated to more of the same. Silverman was “in the zone” and continued to deliver the goods. Suffice to say that the second half of the program was even better than the first!

I can sit at home and listen to great recordings on my system and I do enjoy that aspect of my love of music. On the other hand, any time I hear great music performed live by a master of the instrument, I recognize immediately how much the live music is superior to the recorded one. It’s the kind of experience that adds to my appreciation of music and musical arts.

If you got to this point in this article and did not doze off then you must be a music lover yourself. Take my advice and attend some of the follow up sessions. Beethoven sonatas seem to have just the right mix of soul and playfullness that matches Silverman to the tee and the result is pure musical joy. In a sense, Silverman faithfully followed the note for the first movement of sonata no. 28 by the Master himself: somewhat lively with the deepest feeling. Bravo!!!

More on the Beethoven Sonata Series

Sumiko to Hold Open House in Berkeley

See the flyer below for details of Sumiko’s Open House (9/15/2010):

Aaudio Demonstrates High-Value Audiophile Gear

Following the awesome California Audio Show, Brian Ackerman of distributor Aaudio Imports agreed to “export” his fine wares to Jason’s Oakland castle.

The result: lots of good listening and good learning for dozens of members.

The gear on hand included:

- Aaron no.22 preamp  -  $3,900 retail

- Aaron no.3 amp  -  $3,950 retail

- Lindemann 825 cd player  -  $12,000 retail

- Stage III Cables – $Various

- Weizhi PRS-6 Power Distributor – $3,200 retail

I found it quite interesting to hear Jason’s system powered by quality solid state amplification.

We also got to taste the Stein Harmonizers and the luscious Wavelength USB Converter.

Thanks, Brian & Jason – we enjoyed it!

Bob

My Impressions of the California Audio Show

Overall

• Smashing success
• Advanced audio awareness in Bay Area
• Well-organized; friendly environment

My Favorite Rooms

• TONIAN – Nothing better for small-scale music, and can stretch to bigger things
• EFICION – “Classic” high-end formula: great drivers, inert cab, and smart design (new F250 is great)
• MAGICO/KINGSOUND – My fav Magico (V-2) sung; Kings needed bigger room and amps
• GRADIENT – Innovation in loudspeakers lives…rejoice!
• SONIST/deHavilland – Tapes! Tubes! Good economics!
• TERESONIC – BAAS member MZ has broken the code on Lowthers (Step 1 Horns, Step 2 SET,…)
• Trenner & Friedl – Amazing sound from small things
• BLUE COAST – Live music, neat tech, and smart (nice) people who just want to deliver fidelity in music. Whats not to love?

Disclaimer: I own Tonian and eFicion speakers.

Best Bargain

The $4000 system by GRANT FIDELITY. Yes, it’s Chinese. So what?

Conclusion

I had a great time. I have also lined up six new events to round out the year.

Many thanks and congratulations to Constantine Soo and Dagogo for a temendous debut!

Interested in more?

For the most complete coverage on the web, check out Jason’s Stereophile blog.

How about you?

About 120 BAAS members attended. If you were one of them, what did you think of the show?

Just comment and let us know…

by Bob Walters

Silverman to Return to Beethoven Sonatas

Audio High will bring pianist Robert Silverman back to the Bay Area, this time for an eight-concert series of the entire cycle of Beethoven piano sonatas (32 in all).

These events will be open to the public and all proceeds will benefit the Elf Foundation. Dates are Sept 9th & 16th and Nov 11th & 18th, 2010; Feb 3rd & 10th and Apr 7th & 14th, 2011.

Audio High will be recording and producing a CD set of all 32 sonatas with Mr. Silverman that will also contribute to the Elf Foundation’s Rooms of Magic program. The recordings will also likely be offered in a high-resolution format. (Yah!)

BAAS was treated to Silverman’s masterful playing in a private session last year.

More information will be available at www.audiohigh.org (note the .org).

Win Analog Event this Saturday

To “tune up” our auditioning muscles for the Cal Audio Show, we have a great event coming up on Saturday, July 17th at Win Analog in Milpitas (at 355 Fairview Way).

What we’ll see and hear:

Blue Coast “BAAS Session III” Coming June 26th!

Matt & Jenna at Blue Coast BAAS Event II

Great news: BAAS members and their guests have been invited to another “insider” recording session at Blue Coast Records.

The recording artists include Jane Selkye and Chris Kee (think “Blue Coast Collection”). Yeah!

In addition to the recording session itself, two other special events will be featured:

Invitations are being sent today.

Bob

Lotus Group “Granada” and SMc Audio “VRE-1″ Impress Audio Group

BAAS members ventured up to lovely Marin County for a day of music played on a truly ‘reference-quality’ system.

Hosted in the lab of Sausalito Audio, we were treated to a stunning example of open-baffle speaker design and engineering. For most members, this was an introduction to this unique speaker architecture. The use of a custom DSP-based crossover/EQ device was also a first for BAAS. The words that I heard from members re the Granada’s included “accurate,” “articulate,” and “balanced.”

Of course, significant credit for the sound must go to the SMc VRE-1 preamplifier. A signature piece from SMc, this solid state design was found by members to be crisp, dynamic, and color-free.

But as good as the music and equipment was, an equal highlight was the chance for BAAS members to interact with the system’s designers:

• Joe Cohen – CEO of importer/distributor Lotus Group, Joe set the vision for the Granada speakers – from the uber-high-end Feastrex drivers to the provocative open baffle form factor.

• Steve McCormack – CEO of SMc and designer of the VRE-1, the fruits of Steve’s skills have enhanced amplification in many a listening room. We expect power amps and a phono amp from SMc in the future.

• Manny LaCarrubba – CEO of Sausalito Audio and chief architect of the Granada. Many audiophiles will recognize Manny as the design talent behind several highly successful Bang & Olafsen audio products.

On behalf of BAAS – Thanks, guys, for some great listening!

Bob

Jaton Debuts REAL ‘DIY’ Speaker at BAAS Event

Last Saturday, high-end manufacturer Jaton hosted Bay Area Audiophile Society members at their Fremont facility.

The highlight for most was the very-cool REAL DIY (some would say ‘kit’) loudspeaker. A relatively petite floorstander, the vented boxes produced big, full-range sound in an acoustically-challenged room.

The highlight for three members might have been the substantial door prizes – three speaker systems.

The lunch was great too.

Thanks, Jaton!

Music@Menlo to Kick Off 2010 Summer Festival

If you love chamber music, let me recommend a local festival put on by Music@Menlo in – where else – Atherton (near Menlo Park!). This Merc article provides a nice preview.

Great music, performed well. And sometimes much better than “well.”

If you don’t believe me, try a couple of their well-produced CD’s (available on the web site).

Good listening!

Lang Lang Plays iPad at SF Davies Hall

Virtuoso pianist Lang Lang stunned SF’s Davies by whipping out an iPad and playing “Flight of the Bumblebees.” Video here.

The software powering the performance was Magic Piano from Smule.

I wish I had been there…makes me want an iPad too!

Bob