MOD Audio Video Issue 15

CEOL N7

AVR-1912

Malaysia Distributor

Wo Kee Hong Trading Sdn Bhd

(225801-X)

2nd Floor(Left Wing), Bangunan Infinite Centre, Lot 1, Jalan 13/6, 46200 Petaling Jaya, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia Tel:+603-79548088 www.wokeehong.net

Lansche No 5

New! Lansche No 7

Lansche Corona Tweeter

The Corona ‘plasma’ tweeter is the heart of every Lansche loudspeaker. The plasma tweeter is massless with no membrane hence no coluration. Used in the range from 1.5 kHz to 150 kHz. the plasma tweeter have no equal, it moves nothing but air. The plasma tweeter uses a high voltage to ionize air according to the modulation of the signal. The sound is generated in the small ionized airspace and expands out from within the plasm generating chamber of the tweeter. Hear the Lansche loudspeakers today and experience the most accurate and responsive sound quality in any loudspeaker.

Accustic Arts - AET - Acoustic Revive - Acrolink - Arte Aurelia - Audio Replas - B.M.C. - Copulare - Cryo Audio Technology - CSE Japan - Fiio - KingRex Kojo Seiko - Kryna - Lansche Audio - Nanotec System - Madison Audio Lab - Mimetism - Millennium - MSB Technology - Musica - Octave Oyaide - Parasound - Phase Tech - Phiaton - SAEC - TAOC - Usher Audio - Vivid Audio - Zonotone

X Audio Pte Ltd 1 Jalan Anak Bukit #01-01S Bukit Timah Plaza Singapore 588996 Tel: +65-6466 2642 Fax: +65- 6466 2652 www.xaudio.com.sg

The Jubilee series retain the faithfulness of the music – faithful to the highest standards of high fidelity according to the principle that nothing is more beautiful than the original.

Accustic Arts - AET - Acoustic Revive - Acrolink Arte Aurelia - Audio Replas - B.M.C. - Copulare Cryo Audio Technology - CSE Japan - Fiio KingRex - Kojo Seiko - Kryna - Lansche Audio Nanotec System - Madison Audio Lab - Mimetism Millennium - MSB Technology - Musica - Octave Oyaide - Parasound - Phase Tech - Phiaton SAEC - TAOC - Usher Audio - Vivid Audio Zonotone

X Audio Pte Ltd

... revolutionize tube amplifier technology A newly developed driver stage perfects the push-pull principle and results in unequalled load stability. The combination with the high-capacity power supply, which is backed by a double transformer with full-wave rectification, the Jubilee monobloc amplifiers provide a pulse-power of 300 watts per channel at the output in the bandwidth of 20 Hz to 80kHz. These unusual reserve capacities explain the brute dynamics as well as the superior performance of this singular tube power amplifier. ... represents utmost reliability The power management, soft-start of all tube functions and precise stabilization circuitry lead to perfect conditions that enable incredible tube reliability and longevity. ... and protection The power amplifiers are protected extensively from operator error or tube faults by the comprehensive safety electronic systems. In the rare case of a tube short circuit, the worst-case scenario results in a fuse protection of the power supply virtually instantaneously.

1 Jalan Anak Bukit #01-01S Bukit Timah Plaza Singapore 588996 Tel: +65-6466 2642 Fax: +65- 6466 2652 www.xaudio.com.sg

Vincent SV400 - Luscious Sounding Integrated with USB Input and Internal DAC Vincent anchors its brilliant new 400-series product line with the luscious sounding SV-400 integrated amp. Conservatively rated at 50 watts-per-channel at 8 ohms, the SV-400 sounds far more powerful than its specifications would suggest. Its sonic hallmarks are a dynamic presentation, a large soundstage, and ultra-quiet operation. Taking up nearly half of the interior space in its own shielded compartment is an oversized, custom-wound toroidal power supply with 6800uf filter capacitance for exceptionally smooth and quiet operation. Electronic switching and an electronic volume control keep operation especially quiet.

USB Input for Digital Audio Files - With its five line stage inputs, the SV-400 will not only do all of your analog source components proud but also breathe new realism into your digital audio files via the rear panel USB and internal DAC. The USB input allows you to connect your computer for lots of listening choices.

Authorised Dealer

Musiclink AV 100 Beach Road #02-46/49 Shaw Tower Singapore 189702 Tel: (65)-6291-1106 Distributor for Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore

Intercessor LLP 1090 Lower Delta Road #07-07 Singapore 169201 Tel: (65)-62730873 Fax: (65)-62210959

AURUM ORKAN VIII The little giant of sound

The AURUM ORKAN VIII intricately combines bass reflex and pressure-chamber technology for rich, clean bass. With a frequency range up to 65 kHz, it brings a radiant sheen to all DVD audio and SACD software and is based on innovative technologies like quadral’s ALTIMA® and ribbon tweeters.

Intricate frequency separating filters and bi-wiring terminals with gold connectors round out the technical profile of this gem of sound.

For its size, its performance capabilities are incredible: a 160-watt nominal capacity and 250 watts of music muscle leave power to spare amidst high dynamics. The AURUM ORKAN VIII makes the case for its unique character as either a stereo unit or a front speaker in a multi-channel system.

Available colours include high-gloss lacquer in black or white, as well as genuine wood veneers.

Technical Data Type: 3-way Design principle: pressure chamber/bass reflex Nominal/music power (W): 160/250 W Frequency response (Hz): 28-65,000 Hz Crossover frequency (Hz): 330/2700 Hz Efficiency (dB/1W/1m): 89 dB Impedance (Ohm): 4-8 Tweeter: ribbon Midrange: 170 mm Ø ALTIMA® Woofer: 2 x 170 mm Ø ALTIMA® Dimensions: 102.2 x 22.2 x 44.8 cm HWD Weight: 31 kg

Authorised Dealer

Musiclink AV 100 Beach Road #02-46/49 Shaw Tower Singapore 189702 Tel: (65)-6291-1106 Distributor for Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore

Intercessor LLP 1090 Lower Delta Road #07-07 Singapore 169201 Tel: (65)-62730873 Fax: (65)-62210959

L

emon law, like it or not, is coming. How would that

impact us buying hifi? From what I gather, the interpretation of the law can be extremely subjective. I can truly

Creative Editor

symphatise with the one who have bought an obviously sub

Terence Wong

standard product and prior to the lemon law, have no

terence@mod-avi.com

Sales n Marketing Singapore

Wong Ng Lai Leng laileng@mod-avi.com

Malaysia

Simon Chang

simon@mod-avi.com MOD AudioVideo is published by MODAVI Private Limited 10 Anson Road International Plaza Unit 21-02 S 079903

MICA (P) 169/07/2011 The title MOD AudioVideo, its associated logo or devices and contents of this magazine is the sole property of Modavi Private Limited. Reproduction of either in whole or a part of, is strictly prohibited.

Modavi Private Limited is not responsible for any ommissions, errors, unsolicited manuscripts, photographs or other materials. We reserve the right to edit all relevant materials. Modavi retain ownership of all materials received published or otherwise.

recourse to seek redress. What if someon deliberately make use of this loophole by creating an impression of a sub standard product, to seek a partial or even full refund.

Who is any wiser?

For one, the hifi industry better stop describing music reproduction equipment as ‘high fidelity’. This open the first can of worms - if one can define the sound quality of any piece of hi fi gear who falls short of ‘high fidelity’ as some form of misrepresentation and hence qualify for some degree of compensation under the lemon law? Or a customer pressures a dealer with the lemon law for a partial refund? There is a real need for a more substantive reading of the law to ensure it is applied only where there is a clear indication a product is substandard vis a vis a similar product.

On another note, there will be a major hifi event come August this year - MOD AV magazine is organising its first show - MOD Digital Audio Convention 2012! There will be more details in the next issue. Stay in touch!

Larry Gullman of MSB has been very busy lately, their new Diamond DAC blaze a new trail in the

digital audio scene. The relentless onslaught did not end there, MSB has just introduced the world’s most accurate clock - MSB’s FemtoSecond galaxy clock that reduces jitter to a new low and extending the dynamic range to 145 dB! Larry was in town for a quick stopover to meet up with X Audio, the distributor for MSB and brought along some goodies - the Diamond DAC with the new clock, and a WiFi interface.

MOD AV: The introduction of the new Diamond DAC to complement the Platinum and the Signature DACs is the highlight. In the scheme of things, it seems the new Diamond DAC is set to raise the bar for your competitors!

Don’t you feel a little ‘guilty’ setting a new ‘standard’ in the price of a DAC as well? Or is it necessary? I can appreciate the fact that you have emphasized a lot on tolerances, the design of the digital filters, resolving power beyond 24 bits and so on. Just for the record, is there any need to go beyond 24 bit when we barely arrived there? How does the performance of a 32bit DAC improves the sound from 16 and 24 bit files?

LG: For twenty years we have set the technical bar for the industry in many ways. 24 bits of DAC resolution has been great. (not to be confused with DSP processing resolution. Others talk about 32 bit DACs but what they mean is 32 bit processing in the digital filter. We do 80 bit processing in our digital filter but do not call the DAC an 80 bit DAC!) So the Signature DAC has 25 bits of resolution and the Diamond 26 bits. You can clearly hear the improvement. Of coarse I hope people realize each time you add 1 bit, you double the number of resistors in the ladder!!

MOD AV: You mentioned about a new clock for the Diamond DAC? I understand it works with the Platinum and Signature DACs as well. But that's a $10,000 clock! To be honest, what's in it that make this, erm.. clock tick?

LG: This is a fascinating case. When you plug the new clock into the DAC absolutely NOTHING changes except the jitter of the clock. It is reduced by an order of magnitude. We have never had such a clear opportunity to evaluate the sonic contribution of jitter. The results have been stunning. Last week I got this comment from David Chesky: "First impression: Big improvement. Sounds like analog, there is no grain, more low level resolution."

The clock has been an amazing success. I promised all customers a refund if not happy and have none back. In every system with every speaker and amplifier, the result is always the same. MORE like an ANALOG microphone feed!

Ticking Clock

MSB’s Larry Gullman keeps time...

I know the system is getting expensive. But it takes some effort for a small audio company to produce a clock with lower jitter than all the monster clock manufacturers in the world, a DAC with higher performance than companies like Burr Brown, etc, etc. Our costs are really very modest. 90% of our revenue goes right into the product. Less than 10% into advertising and marketing. This is just about opposite the industry standard!

MOD AV: Your I2S 'feedback' loop, if I may call it that way, would eliminate jitter and signal loss, wouldn't this negates the potential benefits of this premium clock?

LG: Not so, as this PRO I2S interface is to send the clock from the DAC back to the transport, to keep it in Sync. The DAC conversion is directly controlled by the DAC clock, and in this case the Galaxy clock.

MOD AV: Next, a significant question about the progression of the MSB lineup – from the Platinum to the Signature and finally, the Diamond.

Please elaborate what sort of differences (in terms of the design and construction) a customer would expect?

LG: We are looking at a trade off between sound quality and cost. For each level we tried to balance the technical aspects that matter with the cost of the system. So many small things are improved as the sound quality is increased. There are also many features such as inputs and volume control that effect the cost. This page http://www.msbtech.com/products/dac4comp.php has a nice comparison.

MOD AV: Given your expertise in high peformance digital audio playback (and given the inevitable and eventual demise of the CD), is there a possibility of a high performance MSB music server to be used in conjunction with the high performance design of MSB DACs? LG: We are currently suppling OEM DACs to several music server manufacturers. We are also working on one that will record and playback at 384 kHz and 32 bit. But to be honest a super system is a MAC MINI and iTunes with USB2 out to our DAC. Super simple, really cheap, great sounding and always kept up to date by Apple.

MOD AV: Anything else that may be of interest to our readers, eg what will MSB be exhibiting at the 2012 CES. LG: I am just adding the new products we are introducing at CES to the website (today actually). WiFi interface is done, new Signature Data CD and new Amplifiers are on the way…

The USD10,000 upgrade for Diamond DACs!

MSB is distributed by X Audio 10 MOD AV

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The new S5 coming soon!

Magico Loudspeakers

by Alon Wolf

The Adelphi #04-35 1 Coleman Street Singapore 179803 T: +65-9636-8838

Mention Ong Radio

, and many will associate the company with McIntosh Audio. Like McIntosh, one of the oldest hifi companies still in existance, Ong Radio is also the oldest hifi company in Singapore and in 2012, celebrates its 75th Anniversary with a massive revamp of their flagship Centrepoint showroom.

LED lights around the screen. A nice touch!

The revamp clearly reflects the changes in the audio video market, with video projection systems and digital music servers becoming the norm.

The new showroom enables proper demonstration of multi-room applications with in-wall touch screens.

As homes become smaller, not many have the luxury of space even if the budget allows for a large speaker system like the Utopia series. For this reason, a smaller room with Focal Chorus speakers driven by the new Sherbourn electronics with an LCD TV as the video component provides a good example of how good sound need not be constricted by the room but only by your imagination!

Last year Ong Radio clinched Focal, the premium line of loudspeakers from France. With large loudspeakers from Focal such as the Grande Utopia EM to small multi-media speaker systems like the Bird, the revamp would also need to showcase small home cinema systems as well as larger projector based home theatre systems.

To achieve this, the existing showroom were segmented into three main demo areas – the Projector Home Theatre system, a smaller secondary home cinema system and a flagship showroom to showcase the best high end two channel systems.

As it is, the Projector Home Theater system greets the visitors. Here a Barco projector on a Screen Innovation ‘Black Diamond’ projection screen provides the visual element while a full McIntosh amplification setup with a Kaleidescape HD movie server system provides the source.

Speakers are Focal Scala Utopia with the new Viva LCR for center channel. An interesting feature – behind the screen were a string of blue

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The doorway leads to the High End 2-channel system – an impressive array of McIntosh finest MC 2kW amplification drives the Focal Grande Utopia EM.

convenience over quality. Cables can have a big difference in moving analogue signals but how about digital?

Chord Cables

is one of those cable manufacturers that never fight for front row attention – no personalities fronting the company, no space age technology in the cable design or manufacture, no quorum of the wise men sitting around a fire deciding what gauge of wire for the next cable…

Chord takes shielding of its cables seriously, shielding is important not only to keep the signal in but also to keep rubbish out. Mains cables and signal cables can cross contaminate. With a good shield, you will have a lower noise floor.

So what is it that make Chord Cables tick? For that we have to ask Mr David Amey, the international marketing guru for Chord Cables, who was in town recently, under the auspices of Wo Kee Hong Distribution, we got together for an interview.

MOD AV: Who does the design in Chord?

MOD AV: What goes into every Chord Cable?

DA: Chord is 100% assembled in the UK, the materials come from different places – UK, US, Germany. No cable company actually makes the cable itself. At Chord, we terminate and test every cable we make in the factory. Its about as British as it gets! Many people make cables in China but not Chord.

MOD AV: When did Chord Cables started?

DA: Sally, started Chord in the mid eighties when she was married to the current Director of Naim. Naim doesn't make cables and there was demand for RCA interconnects for other brands of CDs players to mate with DIN sockets on Naim amplifiers. Over the years, Chord no longer just make DIN interconnects. Now Chord makes a full range of analogue and digital cables for moving signals around.

Now with music servers or PC audio, you use a USB cable to put out the digital signal to a DAC. You can get an inexpensive USB cable to do the job. There shouldn't be too much trouble transfering 1s and 0s right? Nigel demonstrated to us, the Chord USB cable and suddenly the music comes alive! The improvement is quite remarkable, definitely nothing to sneeze at. You improve the transfer of data and the music sounds better.

DA: We have a guy Nigel Finn who has been with us for over twenty years. This chap lives and breathes cables! He can talk cables with you for three straight days! His obsession is what drives Chord Cables and our products. He would come up with a design, makes samples, work around it and more often than not, it goes into a bin for disposal.

Then he starts all over again. He believes in using oxygen free copper, the more expensive range will have silver plating. The way the silver goes onto the copper have a profound effect in the way the cable behaves. Nigel believes in the conductivity of silver and yes, he has tried pure silver but you need to speak to Nigel about this.

MOD AV: Does Chord have plans for products other than cables? For example isolation footers or platforms?

Wireless is susceptible to interference, wired connection has no such problems – hard wired definitely sounds better than wireless. Of course wireless is more convenient but if you desire quality, go wired!

David Amey (middle) with Henry Loo and Russell Wong from Wo Kee Hong

DA: No, Chord will only make cables for now. Who knows, if everything goes wireless, we'll be out of business! But how do you make a wireless power cord? Lower end audio will probably take the wireless route, streaming audio is about

MOD AV: How about the car audio market? Car Audio is starting to appreciate what good cables can do for better sound.

DA: We do not sell loose runs, the termination of the cable can have an effect on the performance of the cable. However we have sold spools of cables to Indonesia and Thailand. Car Audio need well screened cables – both interconnects and speaker cables.

Wo Kee Hong Distribution is our authorised distributor for Chord Cables in Singapore and Malaysia.

Do contact them if you need more information or review samples from them.

Chord’s soundroom

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MOD AV: Thank You David!

Nigel Finn

MOD AV 17

Sound Decisions has just moved to

a more prominent location at #04-49/62 The Adelphi.

Taking over the premises of former Asia Sound, Sammy Low, the Managing Director of the company conducted a major upgrade of the shop space to reflect its business direction.

Together with Sales and Technical Manager, Eugene Bey and Sales and Technical Executive, Sergio Cardoso, the Sound Decisions team offers a showroom that is more spacious than before, affording a larger demonstration room for 2-channel audio and a large home cinema demonstration with JVC, Mitsubishi and Runco projectors together with BG Radia in-wall speakers and JL Audio subwoofers.

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The Adelphi #04-35 1 Coleman Street Singapore 179803 T: +65-9636-8838

Resonance is what gives musical instruments its

‘sound’. For loudspeakers, resonance is the prolongation of the original sound produced by the speakers. While it may be argued that is what gives the loudspeaker its character – the sound produced by the drive unit together with the resonant from the enclosure. It is also true that more often than not, the resonance colours the sound and changes the character of the musical instruments being reproduced.

For this reason, Magico loudspeakers eschew the use of traditional MDF enclosures, used by almost every other speaker manufacturers, for one made from a strong aluminum matrix frame and aluminum panels. The Magico enclosure satisfy and balance the three elements that constitute the perfect loudspeaker enclosure – stiffness, mass and damping. The Magico enclosure is inert with no discernable colouration and allows the drive units to perform with utmost clarity and unrestrained dynamics.

Magico is one of the few high-end loudspeaker companies who developed and manufacture their own drive units.

Tweeter – Beryllium is extremely light and rigid, capable of delivering extended frequencies when used as the tweeter diaphragm.

Magico developed a proprietary motor system – the MR-1 coupled with the beryllium diaphragm resulted in the MBe-1 tweeter. This tweeter design delivers the widest frequency extension, lowest distortion and greater power handling than any other tweeter design.

Midrange and Woofers – Using carbon fiber ‘nano-tubes’ to weave the speaker membranes, together with a Rohacell foam sandwiched with nano-tec skinned cones. It results in a cone that resist bending, has inherent self damping and extreme lightness.

Crossover – Magico developed their proprietary ‘Elliptical Symmetry Crossover’ enables steep roll off slopes. Mundorf caps – Supreme silver, gold and oil capacitors together with bulk metal foil resistors are used for the best possible sound performance.

The Q7 is the new flagship loudspeaker, one Magico calls ‘the finest unlimited class loudspeaker’. From the faintest whisper to the most ear deafening sound pressure levels yet ‘with utmost composure and fidelity’. It uses a new three-axis matrix frame with copper elements in the decoupling frame and a ‘floating’ midrange enclosure, which eliminates all cabinet colouration.

Specifications: 1 x 1” MB7 tweeter 1 x 6” MG70 midrange 1 x 10” MG107 midbass 2 x 12” MG1207 bass Sensitivity: 94 dB Impedance: 4 ohms Frequency Response: 20 – 50,000 Hz Power handling: 50 – 1200 watts rms Dimensions: 152 x 38 x 81 cm HWD Weight: 340 Kg

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Phono stages is in a way, the anathema for amplifier

designers. Having to deal with noise in a preamp stage is bad enough, a phono stage is a hundred times lower in output, with different demands of load impedances and capacitance from different cartridge makers, different demands of RIAA curves, it is no wonder the number of really good phono stages can be counted with the number of fingers on your hands.

When someone makes high end phono stages for a living, that have to be someone living on the edge, thrives on pain or suffers from erectile dysfunction. I have never met James Henriot of Whest Audio but I believe none of the above applies to him! It just so happen Whest is the ONLY high end phono stage manufacturer. And nothing else. Right.

Whest makes three phono stages – the MC Reference V, the PS.30 in three versions and the entry level Whest Two. They differ in terms of performance, construction and hence reflects on the price. Whest phono stages are all solid state – using a specially designed discrete bipolar transistor input stage, the DBPM, which has the lowest noise level compared to op amps. With a lower noise floor, it enables the dynamic range to extend to the lower input levels, enhancing resolution and dynamics.

The MC Reference V comes in a dual chassis construction ensuring a true dual mono operation. The less expensive PS.30 is a single chassis while the Whest Two is a compact half-width chassis.

The PS.30 is quite unusual to be offered in three versions – the PS.30R, the PS.30RDT and PS.30RDT Special Edition.

PS.30R is lauded by a German LP magazine as the best phono stage in its class. The PS.30R starts with a welded alumninum chassis, not the usual folded steel sheet metal. The equalization and gain circuit uses discrete Pure Class A with 6 user selectable gain and 6 load settings.

This enables the best match to any phono cartridge to maximise the dynamic range from the low noise floor to its overload limit.

The PS.30RDT differs considerably from the PS.30R being a true dual

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mono design with dual transformers and power supplies. Critical components are hand selected and matched to optimise the dual mono design. The PS.30RDT offers low noise and highly dynamic sound quality with unmatched channel separation, only limited by the quality of the cartridge you use. The PS.30RDT made it to the Stereotimes ‘Most Wanted’ phono product.

The premium model in the PS.30 series must be the PS.30RDT SE – the Special Edition version comes with ‘ClarityCaps’ capacitors which are used for the top of the line MC Ref V. But what takes the cake is the DBPM – Whest’s Discrete BiPolar Module. This module is first used in the MC Ref V, making the SE version a sort of hybrid between the MC Ref V and the PS.30RDT. James Henriot claims the DBPM gains an increase in audio resolution, broadband signal power, soundstage and realism. The new DBPM has the ability to handle ultra low output cartridges with ease with no input transformers. The ability to be free of input transformers means the tiny and delicate signal from a moving coil cartridge does not have to 'drive' metres of coil wire which degrades the signal adding unwanted harmonics to the final output. With the 'SE' edition of the PS.30RDT, the signal is now amplified instantly in the DBPM. Because the signal is amplified instantly, the conversion process to the RIAA filter happens alot sooner and faster. The signal path has been 'trimmed' in the 'SE' to maximise the benefits of the DBPM. The latest 'SE' casework sports an access panel underneath the unit to facilitate easy changes of the load and gain dip switches without the need to remove the outer case. The Gain and Loading options inside on the PC board are controlled via two sets of 6-position DIP switches. The Gain can be set from 40dB for a typical moving magnet cartridge to a maximum of 72dB, which should provide plenty of gain for even the lowest output moving coil cartridge. The Load settings are 100, 220, 470, 1k, 15k, and 47k ohms with intermediate values may be obtained by paralleling two or three of the resistors together.

Whest Audio is distributed by Modular Audio, the analogue specialist.

Better late than never Reader Bernard got into vinyl just over a year ago… … and what a year it has been! In the short span of the past year, Bernard has been feverishly collecting LPs from various sources – buying off the internet and scouring local shops selling LPs. Till date he has built a respectable collection – well over 500 LPs. If you think, there couldn’t be that many ‘audiophile’ LPs to choose from, you are right. Almost his entire collection of LPs are of non-audiophile variety though they are premium Japanese pressings in most cases. Like me, Bernard grew up listening to the music of the seventies and the eighties. Creedence, Pink Floyd, Alan Parson’s Project, Led Zep, Deep Purple, you name it, its in his collection. I am sure he would have all his favourite music in CDs as well but therein lies the hard truth – his CD collection is more ‘audiophile’ than his LPs. “CDs are Ok for audiophile quality recordings but to reproduce the hard edgy seventies analogue recordings is an absolute disaster” Bernard proclaims, “digital has its limitations.”

CDs have been more of a convenience than for absolute musical enjoyment. There is no CD player in his system after he sold his Wadia 381 (his only optical player – an old Oppo DV-980H DVD player doesn’t count for a system of this stature - it has been gathering dust ever since he got his Apple TV), he ripped his entire CD collection into his 13-inch Mac Book Pro in Apple Lossless format. Using Pure Music as the preferred software, a brief listen to a ripped track by Alison Krause didn’t sound too bad. The USB DAC is from Calyx with a King Rex PSU upgrade.

Bernard’s current turntable is the Clearaudio Innovation Wood, which just replaced another Clearaudio, the Avantgarde Magnum. He wanted the magnetic bearing upgrade for the Avantgarde but on the advice of Modular Audio, who took care of his analogue department (including the Whest phono stage), decided to go a step up to the Innovation Wood for the synchoronous motor drive as well as the magnetic bearing. He also opted for the Delrin platter over the standard acrylic platter, again saving an upgrade step. The arm and cartridge are Clearaudio’s Top-of-the-Line pivoted ‘Universal’ tonearm and the Symphony MC cartridge.

pre-owned 8Ti power amp matches nicely with the Criterion.

Jeff Rowland released the new 625 stereo power amplifier this year and Bernard made the upgrade immediately. Prior to the Jeff Rowland, his setup is all tube – Audio Research Reference 3 preamp and Cary Audio 805 monobloc. “The Cary was under-powered for the Sophia”, says Bernard “I want the tube sound but the Audio Research/Cary combo couldn’t deliver the speed and dynamics.”

His concern for the preamp stages includes the phono stage. Modular Audio recommended Whest Audio’s Reference PS.30RDT Special Edition. Whest is a UK based company and specializes in phono stages only. The Special Edition gets improved caps, an improved power supply design and a new discrete bipolar amplifier module to better handle low output cartridges over the standard PS.30.

Today, the beautiful Sonus faber Amati completes the system. Bernard’s wife absolutely love the glossy classical lute shaped speaker, which replaces his earlier speaker, the aforementioned Wilson Sophia 2. A Richard Grey RGPC1200 power conditioner supplies clean mains power to all the components save the Criterion preamp (remember the battery supply?)

The system also serves the need for home cinema. A Denon AVR-2807 drives the Dynaudio Focus 200C center channel and a 10-inch Dynaudio 300 subwoofer together with an old pair of Sound Dynamics satellite for surround. A 50” Pioneer Kuro serves as a general display for TV and video viewing. Bernard is contemplating a projector system in the near future (which means sooner than you think!). With a TVIX and Apple TV media players, Bernard is able to access a large collection of video both online as well as stored in hard drives.

I was most keen to listen to his LP setup with the Whest phono stage. I was not disappointed, listening to Creedence and Pink Floyd, I doubt any CD or digital front end would be able to come close.

Bernard is a strong believer of the importance of the preamplifier and in particular, that of the Phono stage. An audiophile friend recommended Bernard to check out Jeff Rowland’s best preamp – the Criterion, which makes use of a battery supply to ensure a clean and stable DC supply to the delicate low level circuits. Initially after the purchase of the Criterion preamp imposed a budgetary limitation for the power amplifier so a

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Top The beautiful carbon fiber and aluminum finished Clearaudio Universal tonearm and Symphony MC cartridge

Top The Whest Reference PS.30RDT Special Edition Phono stage. Below is the TVIX media player with a couple of HDD enclosures.

Middle The Clearaudio Innovations Wood tunrtable - the ‘Wood’ is a bullet proof wood as used in the flagship ‘Statement’ turntable. This model sports a synchronous motor drive system, a Delrin platter and a magnetic bearing.

Middle Jeff Rowland’s two box Criterion Preamplifier.

The lower chassis houses the battery supply.

Bottom The new 625 stereo power amplifier

Bottom The small Apple TV rest atop the Oppo DVD player.

Below is the Calyx USB DAC with the King Rex power supply.

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For every music lover, the collection

of music on CDs and LPs would reach a point it would need some sort of cataloguing system to be able to keep track of what you have. Or you can choose to digitize the collection into hard disks. Kelly Malone’s collection of over a thousand CDs reach the breaking point when he realized as an expatriate, he would have to move every once in a while.

He figured the best option is to invest in a music server with ample hard disk storage to archive his music collection.

After doing some research on the internet, Kelly is sold to the Aurender music server. Also his system was getting a bit long in the tooth, he would need to acquire a completely new setup. Of the few speakers he shortlisted, the one he really fancied is the Gradient Helsinki. Having settled in Singapore just seven months ago, it will take some time to go through the audio stores here.

“After going through some ten or fifteen stores, it seems

apparent everyone is keen on selling a brand name instead of taking a holistic approach to system matching” says Kelly, “and not one of them are into digital music management.” He discovered a small audio saloon selling Aurender, which incidentally also sells Gradient loudspeakers. “Ray (of Raindrop Audio) was a refreshing change! He understood what I am looking for. Being a former IT person, Ray was one of the few people who has a good understanding of digital music. If not for Ray, I would have probably bought a B & O system!”

“I am a novice when it comes to hifi, my last system was bought some twenty years ago and the whole system cost less than a power cable I bought from Ray.” “I left the system behind when we left Europe and headed back here to Singapore.” It transpired he has been working in Singapore for a few years before he headed to Europe. Now that he is back, it is time for a new setup.

Kelly ends up buying the entire system from Raindrop Audio. Apart from the Helsinki loudspeakers and the Aurender music server, he also bought the M2Tech Young DAC with a Teddy Pardo power supply, a Wyred4Sound ST Integrated amplifier, Gigawatt PF-2 power distributor and power cables, Tellurium Q digital cable, interconnects and speaker cables. Plus a nice rack from AVID called Isorak.

“The Aurender is a superb music server! The iPad App makes navigation through the music library such a convenience! Together with the M2Tech Digital Converter, I am very happy with its performance.” Kelly's music taste expands across a wide spectrum of genres and the bulk of his music collection is classical and jazz.

“The Gradient Helsinki is a remarkable loudspeaker, who would have thought the Finns could make such a loudspeaker?” I think so too! Kelly took delivery of the system last December, “The design of the Helsinki enables the speaker to direct the sound to the listening position and avoid triggering the room resonance.” Given the rather large living room, which would easily accommodate a speaker twice the size of the Helsinki, the system sounded very balanced and refined.

Picture perfect - Kelly comfortably seated on his club chair, sipping a glass of wine and listening to his music!

I was curious and asked - “have you got ‘round to ripping your entire CD collection?”

“Working on it!!”

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The technology of the Plasma Ion driver is not new, it has been proven to work since the

fifties and in 1978, a small company in the US, Plasmatronics introduces the first commercially available loudspeaker using a plasma tweeter. This tweeter requires the use of helium gas to provide ionization of the gas, and you can imagine, there is a running cost of providing a supply of helium for this tweeter to work. The speaker was imported by a shop in High Street centre and if you request for a demo, you have to pay for the gas!

Forward to today, there are just a handful of speaker manufacturers using a variant of the plasma tweeter, one that obviates the need for helium gas – the plasma corona tweeter. Plasma tweeter uses the electrical discharge to ionize the air and in doing so creates sound. It is extremely efficient and with the massless field of ions generated is very fast compared to a vibrating membrane in a typical tweeter. Not having the need for a membrane means the sound does not have the typical colouration associated with the materials used for the membrane. Say goodbye to harsh metallic tweeters for instance.

Lansche from Germany is one of the few speaker manufacturers that uses plasma tweeters for their speakers – previously we have featured the larger Lansche No 5, a mid-sized floorstanding loudspeaker. Here we have the smaller Lansche No 3. A simple two-way floorstanding loudspeaker suited for smaller rooms. Resplendent in its glossy rosewood veneered finish, the speaker flanks the system driving it.

On two units of TAOC racks from Japan is an all tube system – a mix of Accustic Arts CD transport, DAC and preamp with Octave Audio power amps. Incidentally the entire system is German made, with the exception of the racks! The transport, DAC and preamps even have an additional isolation shelf for each component!

The Accustic Arts Drive II CD transport is a solidly built player using a premium top loading Philips mechanism. Accustic Arts takes great pains for their Reference series components – a special design power supply with a built-in mains filter and voltage stabilizer and a special silver wire for the digital output.

Accustic Arts claims their Reference DAC II will handle a maximum word length of 24 bit and has the processing ability of a true 32-bit resolution by using 26 processors! It uses a ‘hybrid tube’ stage to process the analogue and it is said that the tubes undergo a stringent selection process. It offers both balanced and single ended analogue output.

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Left: A closer look at the Plasma corona tweeter Below: Behind the simple lines of the Lansche No 3 is a sophisticated speaker design.

The preamp carries over from the DAC II, again using what Accustic Arts calls hybrid tube concept where tubes are only used where there are sonic benefits when doing so. It is also a true balanced design with dual input stages and dual output stages.

Since all Accustic Arts power amplifiers are solid state, to maintain the all-tube based system, a pair of Octave MRE 130 monobloc amplifiers are chosen to drive the Lansche No 3. Second only to the flagship Jubilee series, the MRE 130 uses a quartet of 6550/KT88 per monobloc delivering 130 watts rms into 8 ohms. To augment the performance of the MRE 130, the Super Black Box power supply booster, one for each monobloc, enhances the amplifier’s overhead capability by a factor of ten, increasing the ability of the amplifier to drive difficult loads and handle dynamic peaks with ease.

Top: Accustic Arts Drive II CD transport is a master -piece in CD transport engineering!

Centre: The Accustic Arts Reference DAC II is a tube based DAC.

X Audio designed and supplied the system. Placed in the living room, this apartment is actually undergoing some minor renovation as we are there for the shoot. The sound is extremely clean and relax with an airy and spacious character. A nice system for those who listen to a lot of classical music as well as vocal performances.

Bottom: Equipment isolation is a very serious business!

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Aurelia was started by Amphion’s ex designer – Antti Louhivaara, so it won’t come as a surprise to see there is more than a passing resemblence when you see the entry Magenta loudspeaker vs the Amphion Argon – the distinctive shallow horn loading for the tweeter, one which Antti calls ‘Energy Controlling Waveguide’. The purpose of the waveguide is to ‘direct’ the high frequency energy towards the listening area and avoid the ceilings and floor. This is but one of the many unique loudspeaker design details by Antti. Since his departure from Amphion to set up Aurelia Loudspeakers, Antti had more time to further develop his speaker designs – the line source loudspeaker, the Aurelia Graphica for instance but that would be another story!

The Little Magenta however, is more of a small point source monitor – using a 1-inch titanium dome tweeter and a 5.25-inch midwoofer does make for a speaker with a pretty narrow front footprint. The choice of drive units is married to the concept Antti developed at Amphion - a low crossover point between tweeter and midbass – 1.8 kHz with a first order crossover! Typical crossover using first order, at 6 dB per octave, the gentlest of crossover slopes, is usually in the region of 3 times the tweeter’s Fs (the tweeter’s resonant frequency where it will literally self immolates while trying to reproduce sound at that frequency. The use of a larger 1-inch tweeter will lower the Fs, coupled with a good surround design to allow for longer excursion along with good power handling would go a long way.

The midbass driver uses what Antti calls ‘Dynamic Damping Control.’

Many smaller ‘high performance’ midwoofers make use of short gap/long coil to maintain linearity on extreme excursion when asked to deliver high output and low bass extension. Antti contends that this adds resistance loss and makes it more demanding on the amplifier to drive the load. The woofer used in the Magenta is designed to have a smaller excursion, which makes it more amplifier friendly.

What matters most to Antti, is the tweeter and midwoofer design is their matching of both their off-axis and on-axis waveform with a linear phase behaviour. Coupled with a first order crossover, gives the speaker a similar sonic characteristic of a single full range driver but with greater power handling, superior dynamics and frequency extension.

The Magenta comes in a small enclosure just over a foot high, a narrow front of less than half a foot and a depth about 10-inches. The side corners are rounded, a nice departure from the squarish Argon though I am sure that have no bearing on the sound. A variety of finishes – painted or veneered. The red is nice.

Power handling is a minimum of 20 watts for it to squeak and a maximum of 120 watts. Coupled with a 6 ohm load and an 87 dB sensitivity, it seems the speaker is more of a near field monitor like the LS 3/5A. Tall stands of at least 18 inches would put the speaker at the right height.

The rear facing port means it would best be placed a little distance from walls. There are no protective grills for the speaker drive units though there is a wire mesh to protect the tweeter dome. All the better for sound I suppose?

Sonically, the Magenta bears a strong resemblance to the Argon, but with better bass extension. The sound has a very ‘electrostatic’ feel – very open, clean and airy, a little on the leaner, cooler side. Definitely not the warm and thicker sound of say, the Harbeths. You would probably prefer one or the other. That said, the Magenta has such a neutral character that everything seems in its proper place.

On the imaging aspect, the Magenta is a champ - the phase coherence between the tweeter and midbass must have played a big part on this aspect. Being a small loudspeaker with a simple crossover design plays a very large part in this as well. Speaking of phase coherence, it must be said the waveguide dispersion is a strong feature for this speaker – the sound projected from the tweeter is directed towards the listening position instead of allowing the sound to bounce all over the room.

I would be most happy to have them as a near field monitors – on my desktop for instance. A small room would be perfect, most of us are living in smaller space today so the Magenta should be a big hit given its design, price and looks. I reckon this to be one fine small loudspeaker you can buy for less than $2k.

Aurelia is distributed by X Audio.

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First Sound Presence Deluxe Preamplifier First Sound first came out with a very high performance passive preamplifier more than twenty years ago. Emmanuel Go the man behind the company stunned the audiophile community about the merits of a passive preamplifer, not to mention the price tag for which is nothing more than a box, a selector, some wires and a volume pot. Passive means no amplification stage and no amplification means no distortion added. The success of passive preamps such as the First Sound preamps led many manufacturers to take another look at their own preamplifier designs – reducing the gain stages to just one, use premium internal wiring, chassis damping, stepped resistor potentiometers and selector switches, which contribute to a superior sound quality.

First Sound now offers a range of active preamplifiers. Acknowledging many audiophiles still prefer an active rather than a passive preamp, Emmanuel designed a new active preamp wit just one gain stage using a triode vacuum tube with a tube rectified power supply.

From the entry level ‘Presence’ series to the Paramount series and finally the top end Statement preamplifiers, Emmanuel’s objective is to create the same musical qualities of his passive design but with the benefits of an active line stage.

To this end, he employs a common construction using a damped copper plated chassis, full dual mono construction, one or more separate power supplies, premium audio grade internal wiring, premium selector switch and resistor pot potentiometers using Holco, Cadock or Vishay resistors depending on the grade of the preamp.

First Sound is now available at Jay Audio.

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Pioneer who introduced the concept of affordable music mixing to every aspiring DJs has launched their most affordable music making machine ever – the Pioneer DDJ-Ergo.

The hobby of mixing a selection of music to call your own has been the precept of the home DJ consoles. Pioneer’s range of pro and amateur DJ consoles have moved from LP to CD to solid state storage devices with music files in your laptop computer. Your laptop is conveniently tucked below and behind the console so as to use up less space on your table.

The unit includes a copy of the Virtual DJ Limited Edition software with a proprietary Pioneer GUI (graphic user interface) with all the necessary basic functions for the aspiring DJ to mix songs, add effects, create loops and even create video. The software comes with a simple to use 4-channel mixer.

One of the design highlights of the DDJ-Ergo must be the ‘Pulse Control’ feature.

(1) Mix Pulse: The difference in pitch of the songs you are about to mix is designated via light on the jog. When the pitch matches exactly, the intensity of the light increases. The less the pitch matches, the more the light weakens. This way you can tell both audibly and visually when your pitch does not match, improving your DJ skills in the process.

based on the output sound level, which ultimately represents the state of your mix.

(3) Launch Pulse: When pressing Load button, it shows the song has been loaded with a red light starting from Load button towards the Jog wheel.

(4) FX Pulse: The effect being applied to the song will be represented not only audibly but also via light movements on the Jog wheel.

No DJ console is without the all too familiar ‘scratching’ dials. Here the palm sized 115mm dials are designed for ease of use. Using the same layput at Pioneer’s professinal DJ models, the enthusiasts starting with the DDJ-ERGO will easily progress to the more advance models up the range. Finally for convenience and portability, the DDJ-ERGO is a USB powered device – connected to a laptop, the unit draws its power from the laptop.

The Pioneer DDJ-ERGO is available at authorized Pioneer DJ dealers.

(2) Beat Pulse: The LEDs embedded in the channel faders light up along with the beat of the song playing. The light also strengthens and weakens

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The Quadral brand comes in two flavours

– the standard Quadral loudspeakers and the premium German made Aurum loudspeakers. The latter offers a superior range using a ribbon tweeter and their unique reflex (ported) with pressure chamber design. The Orkan VIII is their second smallest floorstander sporting a three-way design. The Aurum series offers a special treat - using a ribbon tweeter, an ‘isodynamic’ design, What is an ‘Isodynamic Ribbon Tweeter? Using a thin aluminum foil, bonded onto a mylar film, the membrane assembly then is positioned between two rows of magnets.

The ‘North-South’ magnetic field of the two rows of opposing magnets over the membrane controls the excursion of the aluminum film. The lightness of the mylar film assures the tweeter with an extended frequency response with very low level of colouration. A good example of an isodynamic tweeter is the quasi ribbon tweeter from Magneplanar.

The 170mm midrange crosses over at 2.7 kHz from the tweeter. The crossover comes biwired – one set of terminals for the midrange and tweeter and another for the twin 170mm bass drivers. The midrange crossover to the bass drivers at 330 Hz. There is a large port in the rear – Quadral is quite vague about how the ‘reflex with pressure chamber’ bass loading works. The twin woofers are reflex ported (for high efficiency and high output capability) to the bottom of the enclosure while the midrange is in a separate sealed

enclosure. The twin woofers are recessed into the main cabinet with elastic bands giving some cosmetic protection to the woofers from curious fingers when used without the grill. The cabinet looks well made and there is an integral speaker base. Quadral claims spikes are not necessary as the base decouples the speaker from the floor. As such, spikes are not provided, nor are threaded inserts. If you like, of course you can experiment with various type of speaker footers.

Quadral claims all the drivers are made in-house and the whole speaker is German made. The midrange and bass drivers are made from a combination of aluminum, titanium and magnesium. Finishing of the cabinet is impeccable – the review pair comes in glossy black but my favourite is the glossy white finish - it is drop dead gorgeous! For those who are more trad, you can opt from a selection of veneers for those who like a more traditional look. The Orkan looks more expensive than it really is.

At a rated 88 dB, the Orkan should be an easy load for most amplifiers even for its 4-ohm load - a light workout for any decent modern amplifier. Starting with the high frequencies, some may find the highs a tad muted. In reality, there is no roll off in the high frequencies, the tweeters simply have so little distortion compared to cheap and nasty tweeters that you are missing the absence of distortion. Some may miss the tizz but not me, I enjoyed the rather subdued character of this speaker to any ‘impressive’ sounding speaker. The refined high frequencies help the listener to draw its attention down to the midrange. Vocals are nicely controlled, neither too warm or too lean. Here the Orkan exhibits some degree of the sound ‘holding back’ a bit, as if the amplifier is under powered. Or the speaker is too polite. I believe it's the latter.

The midrange blends very well with the tweeter, creating a seamless transition as if it were a full range drive unit. The soundstage appears nicely scaled between the speakers with good layering of the instruments. This is noticeable when playing small jazz ensembles. In a mid sized room of no more than 300 - 400 sq feet, the Orkan is about perfect in the bass balance where it seems more extended than it should give the speaker’s size and possibly its asking price.

The Orkan VIII is an excellent mid priced loudspeaker for its asking price of $6400. It’s well made with its polite demeanour and easy load means it is likely you will achieve the sort of sound I have just described without spending too much on matching equipment. Speakers of this ability is rare - a good all rounder loudspeaker for all genres of music. It would be a treat to hear the more expensive offerings from Aurum to see if the Orkan VIII is indeed a ‘best value for money’ loudspeaker.

Aurum

You can audition the Aurum Orkan at Musiclink AV.

Orkan VIII

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Alessandro is well known for their guitar amplifiers and speakers. I

adaptor. Alessandro sells the headphones with a standard set of ear foams but offers a larger set of ear foams that turns the MS Pro from an on-ear to an over-ear set of cans. However the larger set of foams also changes the character of the sound.

suppose their foray into headphones stems from the demands of musicians in studios for monitoring their recordings. So they turn to one of the best headphones makers in the US. If the Alessandro bears a strong resemblance with Grado’s well-regarded headphones, you are partly right – Grado makes the headphones for Alessandro. However, Alessandro headphones aren’t just rebadged Grados, they are differently specified from Grado. In fact Alessandro make no bones about Grado’s involvement – ‘Grado Labs’ are proudly engraved on the wood cups of Alessandro headphones.

With the standard set of ear foams, the Alessandro settles nicely over my head. The grip is gentle, the way I would like, though there are reports of some reviewers prefer something a little more ‘tight’. To each his own. I had them on for over two hours without feeling hot or unduly uncomfortable so even if the MS Pro sounds daft, I am perfectly and comfortably daft!

Headphones are like speakers except you get really intimate with the music when using headphones. Things like a comfortable fit and not getting ‘hot ears’ are just as important as sound quality. I am glad my experience with Alessandro’s best headphone – the Music Series Pro – scores very well indeed in comfort and sound quality. But as usual, I am getting ahead of myself – I am excited about this transducer!

Sounding daft is not something I would expect of a Grado derived headphone. The Alessandro MS Pro is indeed a slick and refined performer. Strong on neutrality, unlike some headphones that deliberately bump up the bass, the open back MS Pro is best savored in a quiet environment. Open back headphones tend to have a more open and extended sound with the downside of having to a fair share of noise leaking in from the environment. The solid oak body would also add a richer and softer resonant character than the use of plastic or metal parts.

The headphones come in a simple white box – it would be nicer if they can put it in a nice wooden case for a product selling at $1288. Snuggled within the protective foam is the headphones with an extension cable and a 3.5mm

Alessandro Music Series ‘PRO’

The larger over-ear foams are even more comfortable – the slight pressure over the ear is spread over a larger area around the ears on the sides of the head. In doing so, it seems the drivers are moved slightly further away from the ears, and thereby change the balance of the sound. With the standard on-ear foams, the sound is inside the head, which is how headphones usually sound, with the exception of a few. The larger foams trade the soft and delicate nuances for a slightly dryer and leaner sound. However I was stunned to hear a strong semblance of a sound stage! At the end of the day, I am not prepared for loosing the luscious and rich balance just for soundstage. I value correctness of tonality and balance across the entire bandwidth. It's a choice and guess what, you can have both!

Go Vibe Porta Tube+ USB Dac There are two versions of this compact portable headphone amplifier – the standard version which accepts a line in via 3.5mm socket and the ‘+’ designation USB version. The ‘+’ USB version offers an additional convenience of USB powered along with the wall socket brick power adapter. It comes in a bright blue casework compared to the non-USB version in its staid black so it should not be too difficult to distinct between the two.

For $988, the Porta Tube+ is a compact headphone amplifier that taps the digital stream from your PC. It draws power from the USB input so it is actually quite convenient to use on the go, the down side is it will drain your laptop battery even faster! The USB is also to power and charge the internal batteries, which is said to last about 10 hours. It has an identical faceplate as the non ‘+’ version – one line input with a 3.5mm socket, a 3.5mm and ¼ inch headphone socket. A small toggle on/off switch allows the unit to be switched off when not in use along with the mandatory volume knob. The DAC is unspecified and accepts up to 24 bit files.

The Porta Tube+ uses small military type tubes, which have an indefinite lifespan. I am sure the tubes are selected for their hardiness and non-user replaceable. The unit weighs a scanty 300+ gms and is definitely small enough to pocket with its 132 x 74 x 28mm LWH dimensions. Yes it gets a bit warm but not excessively so.

The Porta Tube+ is one nice sounding headphone amplifier; it has excellent clarity and exhibits micro dynamics beautifully. The noise level is imperceptible so no worries on this. Go Vibe claims a frequency response of up to 100kHz but I guess that’s a whole lot better than my hearing. The bass has a rich balance, and with the MS Pro, a very full bodied sound. It also has a slight upfront emphasis, a tendency to push the mix forward. It’s a matter of preference, this veers slightly away from neutral, I am sure some might like this presentation as better clarity and punch.

The Porta Tube+ is quite transparent to the source – the better the recording, the better it sounds. If for some reason the sound comes up a tad on the harsh or bright side, I can assure you the unit is just the messenger. Mighty impressive performance from this little bugger that sells for just under a grand. It may seem expensive for a small device but once the hours passes, you would agree it is money well spent when you are getting optimal performance from your high performance (read: expensive) headphones.

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Teac UD-H01 USB Dac Teac’s new range of desktop hifi starts with this USB Dac, an

iPod/iPhone docking unit and a compact amplifier. I was told there will be a complete range to come – CD transport, CD player, pre power amplifiers in addition to the existing range – all in the same compact footprint – 215 x 231 x 61mm WDH. The unit comes in a sexy brush aluminum case with a glossy black top.

Unlike the plug and play Porta Tube +, the Teac UD-H01 requires an interface software which you can download from the Teac website. Also the Teac is not a portable device, it is meant to plug into the mains. The Teac UD-H01 sells for $599.

The faceplate is uncluttered, one button to toggle between source selection, a row of LEDs to indicate the source selected, a quarter inch headphone socket and a volume pot, which only affects the headphone output. Around the back, there are both RCA and balanced analogue out as well as Toslink, SPDif and USB input. The IEC socket allows you to choose your favourite power cable. The unit feels solid and well built.

Sonically, driving the MS Pros, the Teac unit gives a very different

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presentation. The midband is less forward, in fact a little laid back in comparison to the Porta Tube+. Noise level is non-existent. The bass end however is thunderous, muscular and extended compared to the rather reserved sounding Porta Tube+. The UD-H01 certainly sounds very impactful and decisive with an excellent feet-tapping ability. The high frequencies also seem to give the Ms Pro a more open and spacious character. This may also be an attribute of the laid back midband; the forward midband of the Porta Tube+ may have led to a slight ‘closed in’ effect in comparison. However the Achilles heel of the Teac unit could well be its rather cold presentation. In comparison, the Porta Tube+ breathes life into the sound.

The short time I spent with both units, which for all purpose, are almost new units straight from the box with just a couple of hours running in. Who knows, maybe after a hundred hours or more, the Porta Tube+ may sound less forward or the Teac may sound a little less mechanical. Also, with another pair of high performance headphones, the results may be a little different. As always, audition for extended period if possible before you buy. Good equipment grows on you as time goes by. The Teac UD-H01 is an excellent DAC and Headphone desktop amplifier. For the money, it's a steal.

In-wall loudspeakers are fast replacing free standing

loudspeakers for the discrete ‘built-in’ look. However to design a home cinema system with in-wall speakers would entail consideration during the design state of the home and its interiors. More often than not, the home cinema is one of an after thought, one that would be added into the home when all the structural work has been done. Such is the case for this setup. A last minute decision to incorporate a home cinema in the attic means any form of in-wall speakers is out of question. Slim on-wall speaker seems to be the only option.

However, most on-wall speakers have design compromises on the drive units to achieve the shallow mounting depth. Ray from Raindrop Audio suggested the new on-wall loudspeaker he has just introduced – Cornered Audio C5.

Simply put, it helps the subwoofer to drive the room more efficiently while reducing the room and subwoofer interaction induced resonance.

The front end is the popular Oppo BDP-95 blu-ray player, feeding its HDMI output to the Onkyo TX-NR809 AV receiver. The HDMI output from the Onkyo is then converted to CAT5, which then runs a long cable all the way to the projector before it converts the signal back to HDMI. This allows longer run of the cable than HDMI’s specifications is capable of supporting. The Sony VPL-HW30ES 3D projector and the 120-inch Elite Screen are supplied by another vendor.

What separates the Cornered C5 to typical on-wall loudspeakers is the design of the speaker for corner mounting thereby reducing the visible footprint of the speaker. By utilizing the space between two walls, the C5 practically speaking, blends into the room. The quarter cylinder shaped enclosure also allows for the use of normal drivers instead of an ultra flat and shallow design with its many compromises such as limited cone excursion, limited loudness capability and especially limited bass extension. The quarter cylinder shape of the enclosure mounted at or near a corner also helps to direct the speaker output towards the listening area thereby enhancing the sound pressure level using room gain and boundaries.

So how does the system perform in practice? The owner of the system has this to add: “the visual element is easy to decide – the Sony is one impressive 3D projector. All it takes was to decide the biggest screen the room can accommodate.”

The audio part of the system is quite a different issue all together. “I went down to the Adelphi with a friend and we sort of went through a few shops, listening to various options. I also want something affordable.”

“Someone mentioned about this small audio saloon selling speakers that can be placed in corners. I went down to see Raindrop Audio to have a

A Cornered Solution

The Cornered C5 is their smallest loudspeaker comprising a one inch soft dome tweeter and a 5.25-inch midbass with an additional 5.25-inch passive radiator to enhance the diaphragm surface area. The whole enclosure is a strong aluminum extrusion. For a flush mounting arrangement, the speaker cable runs along a small channel behind the enclosure and the terminals are on the front of the speaker baffle. Hence the need to grapple with binding posts behind the speaker does not apply here.

Cornered also suggested an unusual placement for the center channel – using two units of the C5 – one above and one below the screen. This not only adds 3 dB additional sound output but also places the sound smack in the center of the screen as if the speaker were placed behind a perforated screen. There is no need for special equalization for dual center channel, wired in parallel, the 8 ohm C5 will become a 4 ohm load, well within the specifications of a typical AV amplifier. Each C5 is capable of a peak output of 114 dB which is plenty enough for any application!

The system uses 6 units of the C5 – dual center, front left, front right, surround left and surround right. The low frequency effect channel is handled by a 10-inch AVI subwoofer. This active subwoofer is housed in a sealed enclosure with a 200 watt bipolar amplifier instead of the popular Class D digital amplifier found in most subwoofers. The subwoofer cone looks impressive – a heavily doped paper cone with a large butyl rubber surround and a large 3-inch voice coil. AVI claims the sub is capable of sub 30 Hz output and high output level. To max out the capability of the subwoofer, Ray incorporated a subwoofer Eq system – DSPeaker Anti-Mode 8033 subwoofer equalizer. How does it work? “…Anti-Mode™ technology eliminates the resonances of the speaker and the room by equalizing both amplitude and time domain responses using very accurate digital signal processing filter structures and anti-phasing technology.

This way, the listener can hear frequencies down to the cut-off frequency of the subwoofer. Transient response is also drastically improved in the process, making bass sound faster and more controlled…”

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look and Ray, the guy who runs the store, gave pretty good advice about the importance of speaker placement and room acoustics. He even took the effort to come down to my place to look into the speaker placement.”

“At the end of the day, I felt the sound was critical to a good home cinema setup and Raindrop was instrumental in convincing me they know what it takes to setup a great sounding home cinema system. I went the Cornered route, I think they are great speakers to begin with and Ray meticulous speaker positioning allows the speakers to maximize its potential. I am happy with the setup!”

Theatre by The Sea Front A nice living room theatre system on A prestigious Meyer Road condo This system seems to be a first for me, instead of a typical flat screen TV dominating the living room; it's a large 110-inch projection screen system! There is a large flat screen TV at the other end of the living room – where the dining area is. Clearly the setup shows the priorities of this movie lover’s home – the big screen.

Ong Radio who designed and commissioned this setup was given several objectives – good picture and good sound is to be seen and heard, the equipment is to be hidden away, yet accessible. Being in the 21st century, automation with wireless access is a must. The system must also be easy to use and yet there should be no compromise in the quality of both the picture and sound. Ong Radio’s team of system design specialists designed this showcase of a system.

For ease of use, the team has to custom developed a control interface using the popular Apple iPad touch screen tablette. Using the iPad, the user could easily turn on the equipment and select the source – either from the movie server, Theatrevision BR Media Library, cable TV or through Apple TV for access to thousands of videos online. In doing so, the projector lift quietly lowers the projector hidden in the false ceiling and powers it up. A couple of taps on the iPad and within minutes, a movie is up and running.

While this seems simple enough, there is a lot of consideration and planning before the system comes to light. The living room environment does not offer the privilege of a totally darkened environment that is important when it comes to a projector-based system. If you cannot control the ambient light, then the system has to be able to work well in a variety of conditions - from low ambient light to total blackout. The design team chose the dnp Supernova Core HD Noir screen from Denmark. The screen materials that goes into the white reflective surface has a treatment that enables a contrasty image even when there is some degree of ambient light and yet able to maintain a colour neutral and high contrast image when a total blackout room is achieved using a normal low lumens theatre projector like the Cineversum Blackwing 2 MK2010 LCoS projector with just 1000 lumens on ‘normal’ lamp mode as used here.

The design team built a feature wall for the dnp fixed screen with a built-in Sonance LCR2 center channel speaker placed

near the ceiling, angled downwards to the viewing area. This frees the space required below the screen for the SCV cable TV box and other peripherals for easy accessibility. Instead of onwall or inwall speakers, a pair of McIntosh XR200 Column Technology Loudspeaker was ordered with a custom gloss white paint job to match with the feature wall.

The XR200 is a smaller version of the acclaimed XRT 1K line source column loudspeaker. Seven 0.75-inch aluminum dome tweeters arranged in a vertical row, flanked with six 2-inch titanium dome midranges on each side (making it a total of twelve midrange drive units per speaker!) makes up the tweeter/midrange array. Three 8-inch long throw woofers provide a big and beefy sound, even without a subwoofer.

But for home cinema applications, there is a .1 channel where all the low frequency information goes into. A little bit of innovative thinking allows an active Sonance 12-250 subwoofer with a 12-inch woofer driven by a 250 watt amplifier be shoehorned into the cabinet – out of sight and out of mind, unlike little children, should be heard (felt?) and not seen! The large living room allows a 7-channel surround setup. Two pairs of Sonance inwall SUR1 surround speakers hide behind the false ceiling, allowing only the (painted) grille to be seen.

The electronics driving the system is a full McIntosh setup – the MX150 Full-HD AV Control Center receives the HDMI (through the Silverlink Tangnet HDMI 1.4) signal from the Theatrevision Video server and feeds the respective 7 channels of surround sound to the MC402 (2-channel 400 wpc stereo amplifier driving the XR200) and a MC205 (5-channel 200 wpc amplifier for the centre and surround channels). McIntosh has always advocate room correction and with a 5.1 or 7.1 system, is even more important than ever. McIntosh latest room correction software – Roomperfect Technology is built into the MX150 Control Center. Ong Radio’s design team is able to calibrate the sound output to blend seamlessly without exciting room resonance. With ample power reserves, the XR200 have an effortless time filling the whole room with a powerful and dynamic sound we have come to expect from McIntosh systems. Cabling for the system is from Silverlink (interconnects and speaker cables) with the exception of the front speakers – a pair of Stradius Classical offers a smooth and transparent sound that befits the XR200.

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Bottom and Right Now you see it, now you don’t!

A projector lift tucks the projector safely away after a session. Notice the ceiling mount surround speakers or did you missed them?

Bottom Right Peek-a-boo hideaway subwoofer behind the XR200.

Above A closer view of the equipment - from top - McIntosh MC402 stereo power amplifier, MX150 AV Control center, Theatrevision video server and MC205 5-channel power amplifier.

Left The store room houses the equipment - easily accessible for maintenance. Note the ventilation slots below and above the glass door.

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Looking at the svelte S500 AVR

reminds me of the old adage – Less is More. Having said that, there is nothing intrinsically wrong with implementing technology where possible to make a better product than the one before. Sometimes, it is a necessity, sometimes it can be an extravagance but with AV Receivers, more features in each succeeding generation simply mean they get more and more complicated to use.

The new slim line series from Pioneer may well set a new trend - that only really essential features are there. The S500 comes in a slim chassis – typically no taller than the usual 2-channel amplifier. It doesn’t look like your typical AV receiver either – apart from the LCD display, you have a power switch, a selector switch with an additional iPod/iPhone direct selector with USB port and a large volume knob. There are two other input sockets – a 3.5mm headphone socket and a MCACC microphone socket. We’ll talk about that later and that's it!

Surprisingly, the S500 offers not only the mandatory subwoofer line output but the surround back channel line output (for a full 7.1 surround if so desired) as well. This enables the use of wireless surround speakers via line rather than the speaker output. This makes the S500, one of the leanest AV receiver available with a grand total of just 7 RCA sockets!

The speaker terminals are all plastic screw on type, not the cheapo spring terminals and are nicely spaced for easy connection. It will take banana plugs with the centre pin removed.

The six channels of amplification offer 100 watts into 4 ohms at 1 kHz and 1% distortion (single channel driven). That should translate into something like 50 watts into 8 ohms 20-20k Hz with 0.1% distortion. By any means the use of Class D amplifier modules in the S500 will save on efficiency, weight (the S500 weighs in just 4.3 kg) and less heat generated. Still it would be a good idea not to place the Blu-ray on top of the S500 to prevent overheating.

Around the back, things are simplified as well. It is nice to see a full size IEC power socket which means you are free to experiment with your favourite power cable. There are six sets of speaker outputs – the front, center, right as well as surround. The sixth channel can either be designated as surround back (for a 6.1 surround system) or to drive a passive subwoofer.

Setting up the S500 is a breeze, using the supplied microphone and the MCACC setup software, in a matter of minutes, the S500 is ready to rock. Ditto the LAN connection to my router, I can access internet radio. I wasn’t supplied the wireless kit so I cannot report on its stability. The GUI is quite primitive looking though, but it serves the purpose just the same.

With the S500, Pioneer is truly ushering in the age of digital – the unit offers only ONE pair of legacy analogue input (with its companion composite video input/output). There isn’t even an optional component or S-Video for those who may be using older equipment. The rest are digital - there are two toslink, one coax SPdif input together with four HDMI inputs with one HDMI output. The HDMI supports Audio Return Channel if your display device, eg TV, must also have Audio Return.

Sonically, the S500 sounds detailed and on the leaner side of neutral.

The bass end is extended but again, a tad lean for my taste. I don't have a passive subwoofer to test the 6th powered channel but my concern with using the built-in power amp to drive a subwoofer is the potential mismatch of the subwoofer sensitivity and the power output of the amplifier section. On 5.1, the panning tend towards abrupt rather than smooth so it would be better off using the sixth powered channel for the centre back.

The S500 also comes with a LAN input to access your network for media files as well as the internet for internet radio. If you would prefer a wireless connection, you would need to buy the optional wireless adapter AS-WL300. There is also a Bluetooth option should you want to stream audio from your mobile devices. Or you can use the front panel USB connection for your thumb drives and iPod. The S500 will play WMA with a network connection to the internet, you can access thousands of internet radio stations via SHOUTcast database service, who needs the crummy FM? Do note like all the other AV receivers in the market, you can only play audio files, not video files through the network.

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The VSX-S500 opens a new segment in the AV Receiver market – with emphasis on user friendliness and simplicity in operation. Its slim dimension is definitely a plus and would fit into ‘designer’ TV furniture. I don't think it will replace the more expensive (and capable) LX series for instance with its more extensive suite of connectivity in the legacy analogue as well as digital. I can see where the appeal for the S500 is – the HTIB upgraders. The passive sub output channel is the dead giveaway. Yet, the set of features in the S500 is as complete as it should.

No one should need to complain its all ‘r nothing.

Home Cinema has certainly grown

beyond the TV and HTIB option, those who build their homes invariably designate one room as the entertainment room. Such is the case for this home off Changi Road. Mr G who bought this old house, tore it down and then rebuilt into a four storey unit with ten bedrooms, thirteen bathrooms and an attic for his home cinema!

Sound Decisions who installed the system went an extra step with some wall treatment to cut down some dominant standing waves, you can see some cloth covered wall panels around the room. The system comprises a Mitsubishi HC4000 2D projector with a 110-inch Cyrus ‘Crystal White’ fixed screen. The screen material has a slight gain of 1.2 to give the image a little more punch. The projector is mounted high up, in this case we should called it a ‘roof’ mount instead of ceiling mount! A long Wireworld Chroma 6 HDMI cable connects the Denon AVR to the projector.

The sound system comprises a Marantz SR-6006 AV Receiver driving the Thiel SCS4T front speakers with a SCS4 centre speaker. The rear speakers are 8-inch in-walls from BG Radia mounted on the ceiling. The subwoofer is JL Audio’s massive F112. The video source is a Silver Screen movie server with a 5-disc CD changer from Denon (I thought nobody makes a CD changer anymore?) providing the music playback source.

A cabinet is custom made to house the equipment. The centre channel and subwoofer reside within the cabinet with the sound project through acoustic grill cloth – in other words, you don’t actually see the equipment. The rest of the electronics are also hidden behind the frame doors with acoustic grill cloth stretched over them.

Infrared remotes can go through the grill cloth so the standard remotes supplied by the equipment manufacturers can work without any problem. Equipment cooped up inside of a cabinet can heat up pretty quickly, to avoid overheating, there are vents above the cabinets for warm air to escape while the ‘open’ front for cool air to be drawn through the grill cloth and into the cabinet.

Karaoke is part and parcel of the home entertainment for Mr G and his family, so the I-Cube movie server doubles for karaoke duties. A small touch screen LCD and iPad are used for track selection. A clean and uncluttered setup that would bode well for long tern use.

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Pioneer launch a new genre of music products last November – the Steez - marry that of passive music listening with proactive music making with their DJ products. Pioneer call their innovation - Mixtrax – a music management software taking music from various multimedia devices and automatically create a non-stop mix of music.

Pioneer’s MIXTRAX technology transforms a consumer’s music library into customizable tracks that can be processed by selected Pioneer products. Using Pioneer’s free MIXTRAX music management software, the user’s entire music collection is analyzed and various musical attributes including tempo and beats per minute (BPM) are identified. The software then tags each song and creates an assortment of playlists categorized in different genres and musical styles such as Beat, Chill, and Thump. The advanced analysis of the software identifies the best transition points of each song in the music library and seamlessly mixes and blends the tracks together, much like a DJ performing live.

In addition, the Mix Style can be selected between Active, Standard and Simple, adjusting the intensity of the effects and transitions used, as well as the duration of each track within the mix. The custom MIXTRAX playlists can be transferred to a USB or SD memory device (not included with the product) and played through an assortment of Pioneer in-car Audio Video products and STEEZ products, as well as transferred directly into STEEZ products for playback. Pioneer’s in-car Audio Video receiver takes advantage of its large LCD touchscreen by animating the album art of the track playing in time with the mix, creating a truly unique in-vehicle music experience.

In order to facilitate easy use of MIXTRAX, a simpler version of the technology called MIXTRAX EZ is built-in to several new Pioneer in-dash products for both in-car CD receivers and in-car Audio Video receivers. Featured in new in-car CD receivers, three types of DJ-style transitions (Flanger, Echo and Crossfade) and six sound effects (Backspin 1 and 2, Echo, Trans, Roll and Scratch) are automatically added between songs for a nonstop, continuous listening experience.

The in-car CD receivers are also designed to be aesthetically pleasing to the eye, with the illumination buttons and display changing colour with the pulsating beats. There are two modes of illumination (defeatable), each with six colour patterns, creating different light effects to give users an astounding visual experience while enjoying their very own DJ mix.

AVH-P8450BT The top of the new range of multimedia capable in-car entertainment systems from Pioneer is equipped with Mixtrax a new technology by Pioneer that allows users to create their own mix of music, complete with added transitions and effects, simulating a club-like atmosphere in their own car. This new technology allows drivers to be their own DJ, without having to compromise their safety as MIXTRAX is easy to use and fuss free.

DEH-6450BT and DEH-5450SD With Pioneer’s latest innovative technology at the forefront, the DEH-6450BT and DEH-5450SD come equipped with MIXTRAX. Designed for music aficionados and avid party-goers, MIXTRAX transforms music from devices like iPhone/iPod or USB/SD into a nonstop mix. This smart innovation plays back music with added transitions and effects, creating a club-like atmosphere within the comfort of one’s car.

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Bewith’s new amplifiers may be ‘super’ compact in size but is a certifiable

1: The midbass driver is hidden behnd the door panel so you will have to settle for just the tweeter in the tweeter pod.

powerhouse! So compact (and lightweight thanks to the judicious use of aluminum for the chassis), JM Audio is able to fit five units of the R-107S monobloc around the the Subaru Forrester’s spare wheel well of without resorting to modification or having to vacate the spare tyre for space. Owners of performance cars need not worry about their hifi weighing and slowing down the car! Each of this (literally) pocket sized monobloc is rated a healthy 70 watts (4 ohms). Four unit of the R-107S drive the two-way Focal PS 165 component speakers in active mode while a fifth unit of R-107S drives the two 10” Crystal subwoofers wired in parallel! Focal speakers have an appetite for power and if the R-107S could deliver the juice, that is saying something!

Alpine’s IVA-W520E multi-media LCD/DVD head unit provides the source component. The Alpine unit only comes with 2-channel stereo output. For discrete 3-way system, an add-on crossover network processor, in this case theAudison Bit-One is necessary for the network functions.

2: The Audison Bit One controller is con -veniently mounted near the driver’s seat for easy access.

3: Alpine’s IVA-W520E multi-media head unit.

4: A close up of the glossy Bewith R-107S monobloc power amplifier.

5: When I say dual 10-inch, it really is!

6: R-107S lined up neatly. The monobloc configuration allows the installer lots of leeway in deciding where to mount the amplifiers.

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The power supply is an important element for an audio system especially one that employs a high performance outboard processor. Finally, the Bewith R-60 power stabilizer has its place to maintain a stable power supply to all the electronics.

155 Kaki Bukit Ave 1 #01-00 Singapore 416012 Tel: 6444-7277

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150 watts rms into 4 ohms, the smaller A4 drives the tweeter and midrange with its 86 watts x 4 into 4 ohms and the third amplifier, an A6 monobloc drives the Iridium subwoofer with 1200 watts rms. Nice trimmings and a long strip of yellow LEDs provide the visual impact for the install.

Darren Auto

21 Toh Guan Road East #01-24 Toh Guan Centre Singapore 608609 Hotline : +65 6795 3636

The ODR processor is hidden below a panel which also hides the battery and tool kit. Having the battery in the boot means the need to run a heavy gauge power cable is unnecessary. Here a Soundstream power capacitor bank and the ODR processor sit beside the battery.

Scanspeak’s Revelator is a rare sight in car audio. Used extensively by high end loudspeaker companies from Sonus faber to Neeper Acoustics for its excellent performance but as for car audio, the Revelators prove to be quite a challenge for installers. The large tweeter phase plate means some form of A-pillar fabrication is a necessity, not an option. Then the tweeter only works well when crossover as high as possible, typically at least 5 kHz when using first order crossover, in this instance, a midrange unit would be necessary to bridge the gap between the Revelator midbass and the Revelator tweeter making a 3-way system a necessity. The Revelators are expensive transducers and demanding of good amplification.

In this instance, the BMW X3 has all the elements for a successful install – top of the line Pioneer ODR CD only head unit fronts the system with an AVH-4250 DVD multimedia player for all other file formats – video, Mp3, etc. Amplification comes from a trio of DLS finest solid state amplifiers – the Ultimate series which is second only to the TA tube series. The speakers is of course the Scanspeak’s 3-way Revelators.

The first problem of fitting two head units is the lack of space. Removing the OEM player only afford a single DIN space, just enough for the ODR player, the 2-DIN AVH-4250 would need a custom fabricated home – Jack from Darren Auto custom built a housing over the dash top console which originally was a small storage compartment, perhaps for a small GPS unit or some gizmo. The dark grey suede covering however, does not mimic the desired ‘factory look’. Perhaps a complete re-upholstery with suede for the entire dash may be in the works at a later date.

The installation of the Revelator tweeter and midrange is more successful - mounted close together on the A-pillar and wrapped with similar suede. A metal plate cut into the Scanspeak logo protects the midrange unit while the tweeter stands in all its naked glory. The doors of the BMW do not come with 6.5-inch speaker bins so once again, a fiberglass molding has to be fabricated to house the midbass unit. It is astonishing that Jack is able to source the tan leather wrap that colour matches the tan leather seats and trims! The workmanship of the door panels is remarkable.

The electronics and subwoofer go into the boot. The huge 12-inch DLS Iridium subwoofer also has its own sealed fiberglass enclosure. An amplifier rack is built to house the three DLS ‘Ultimate’ amplifiers – the large A3 powers the midbass with 2 x

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BMW claims to be one of the finest motoring experience money can buy. For the sound system, you have

to look elsewhere! For starters, the BMW iDrive system is a bane for customizers. For BMW owners craving for a better audio video experience than what BMW dishes out need to be very careful when it comes to working on the electronics of the BMW.

The usual arrangement is to use a third party multi-media interface to ‘bypass’ the iDrive system, after which, the audio custom installer will be able to design almost anything he wants. In this BMW 5 series, a complete Alpine system (it is meant to be an Alpine showcar after all) is custom fitted by Darren Auto. The planning and installation took about a month, the result speaks for itself!

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The installation is complicated by a few structural elements of the 5 series. First, the OEM head unit need to be surgically removed and a new housing has to be custom made to accommodate the single DIN IVA-D800E DVD multi-media player with a retractable screen. The optical signal from the D800E is then routed to Alpine’s new PXA-H800 8 channel processor. One nice feature trickled down from the defunct flagship F#1 is the ‘RoadEQ’ function, a microphone in the cabin picks up the music and noise, compare with the signal and then generates an out-of-phase signal to cancel out the noise. Cool huh?

each between the subwoofer box. The 12-inch Alpine SWR-1243D dual voice coil subwoofer fires upwards through the opening behind the rear parcel shelf. Darren Auto used a clear acrylic on the panel that faces the boot to show off the incredibly large cast basket magnet of the sub.

Another row of blue LED lights does the trick of lighting up the sub enclosure. As a whole, the system layout is neat and attractive – worthy of the title - an Alpine showcar!

The amplifiers are the new compact PDX digital amplifier – an Alpine’s PDX-F6, a 4-channel amplifier and an Alpine PDX-M12 monobloc for the sub -woofer. Any new car should be iPhone friendly given the popularity of this device. This BMW is no exception, an iPhone interface allows convenient access to the phone to make a call.

To complete the front end, a DVD changer, an Alpine S690 with an overhead monitor, the 8.5-inch Alpine TMX-R850P won't make a long trip shorter but at least a more pleasant one!

Navigation is becoming very common among car owners as their driving trips now extends further and further from Singpore. Alpine's PMD-B100E navi -gation-dock keeps the driver on track.

The door panels of the BMW’s do not come with 5.25 or 6.5-inch speaker mounting, given the available space, Darren Auto only manages to fit in the 5.25-inch woofer for the Alpine SPX -Z18 component speakers. The tweet -ers get the tried and tested speaker pods mounted on the A-pillar.

Housing the electronics entails sacrifi -cing the spare tyre, with the space, A nice amp rack is custom fabricated to fit the two amplifiers with a clear acrylic sheet to show off the blue LED lighting.

The processor and a battery capacitor are mounted behind the rear bench,

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