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  1. Brian Beck

    Kuzma SAFIR 9

    I think the McIntosh gang would like this arm more if there were blue-green LEDs inside the translucent arm tube.?? At this year’s Munich show I had an opportunity to chat with Franc Kuzma while we stood over his Safir 9 arm. I am fascinated with the extremely high effective mass of this arm (5...
  2. Brian Beck

    Whither Audio Research

    I spoke to long-time ARC exec Dave Gordon yesterday afternoon at the ARC booth at the Munich show. He told me that Valerio Cora of Acora Acoustics Corp. has indeed bought ARC, and plans to run the two businesses as separate entities. Trent Suggs is out. Apparently Cora has a relatively larger IT...
  3. Brian Beck

    Is Audio Research becoming a “lifestyle” brand?

    I hate to say that I told you so…but I did. https://www.whatsbestforum.com/threads/whither-audio-research.36751/ https://trackingangle.com/features/valerio-cora-of-acora-acoustics-corporation-to-lead-new-corporation-for-audio-research-brand
  4. Brian Beck

    Kuzma SAFIR 9

    “Resonance frequency being ‘too low’ doesn't matter.” Well, it matters IF your turntable is susceptible to floor vibration and has a loose, bouncy suspension. Kuzma writes this in his white paper: “In reality, better turntables now have less bearing and motor noise as well as better support...
  5. Brian Beck

    Alsyvox - Hi end Munich 2022 - your thoughts

    Without mentioning brand names, I would suggest “3D”-style diffraction panels like these pictured - the deeper the better. Expensive generally, but you could DIY. Then augment with absorptive panels, which are much easier to DIY. Make panels from 2”, or preferably 4” thick rock wool wrapped in...
  6. Brian Beck

    Alsyvox - Hi end Munich 2022 - your thoughts

    Absolutely correct. They are very pretty cosmetically, but too shallow to be very absorptive. About 2/3 of the surface area is hard reflective wood too. There will be some diffractive benefit, but not much. The regularly spaced (periodic) wood strips will emphasize some frequencies over others...
  7. Brian Beck

    Alsyvox - Hi end Munich 2022 - your thoughts

    The usual business reasons: lowered costs would stimulate increased sales volume along with more total profit, if managed well. And more people get to enjoy a fine speaker. I’m NOT suggesting becoming another Magneplanar (as great as they are for the price). For a whole lot less than $80K one...
  8. Brian Beck

    Alsyvox - Hi end Munich 2022 - your thoughts

    I recently got a chance to audition at some length the baby AlsyVox model, the Tintoretto, driven by an Aurender A30 and a Pilium integrated at Rhapsody’s West Palm Beach showroom. I am an Apogee Full Range owner, BTW. The Tintoretto speakers were placed way too close to the wall. But the very...
  9. Brian Beck

    Kuzma SAFIR 9

    Somehow the discussion drifted to how this tonearm looks. But I think the very high effective mass is far more interesting and I look forward to some comparison reviews. I mostly use a trusty Triplanar Mk.VII U2 with medium effective mass. The Saffir’s extremely high effective mass has me...
  10. Brian Beck

    Kuzma SAFIR 9

    Sure, that’s been done a lot. Somewhere around here I have heavy knurled thumb screws that are placed on top of the head shell to receive the cartridge mounting screws. This added mass must be countered by moving the arm’s counterweight farther from the pivot, to maintain the same VTA. I’ve also...
  11. Brian Beck

    Kuzma SAFIR 9

    The elephant in the listening room is the extremely heavy effective mass of this Safire 9 arm. Most medium-mass arms suitable for moving coil cartridges have effective mass figures in the 12 to 15 grams range. That mass works with the compliance of the cartridge to produce an arm-cartridge...
  12. Brian Beck

    TAD 3415 Horn System

    I just found your post from 2017 showing your Fulton FMI-100s which are used in your home theater system. I too have a couple of pairs of this model as well as other models, including the big J Modular. It's been decades since I moved on from Fulton speakers in my main audio system, where I...
  13. Brian Beck

    Is Audio Research becoming a “lifestyle” brand?

    “Free at last, Free at last, Thank God almighty we are free at last.”
  14. Brian Beck

    Is Audio Research becoming a “lifestyle” brand?

    About the CEO of Audio Research, from Barron’s: “Poggi, 50, boasts over two decades in the industry, with previous stints at Harman International and the Bose Corporation. At Bose, Poggi managed the General Motors account and also oversaw car audio at Harman, where he worked with BMW, Toyota...
  15. Brian Beck

    Apogee Diva with Infinite Baffle

    Another vintage amp that MIGHT be worth auditioning is the Marantz MA-9S2 monoblock. A good buddy of mine, a former Pass Labs engineer, uses a pair of these with his huge Sound Labs electrostatic speakers. Granted that electrostatics and ribbons present different challenges to the power amp. But...
  16. Brian Beck

    Most beautiful amp and or preamp

    Analog meters are irrepressibly cool, aren't they?
  17. Brian Beck

    Most beautiful amp and or preamp

    I tend to like things that look like they just crawled out of a laboratory. Form fits function, as they say. I tend NOT to like the current trend in some parts toward organic, swoopy, curvy objects that look like self-absorbed statements by art majors. Just sayin'... I'm glad that someone...
  18. Brian Beck

    Apogee Diva with Infinite Baffle

    Thanks Christoph. I don’t have the time, or, frankly, much inclination, to post in forums these days.
  19. Brian Beck

    Apogee Diva with Infinite Baffle

    To the OP: Congratulations on getting Divas! I have Divas and Full Ranges. I wanted to make sure you saw the following post to avoid a pitfall that happens to many Apogee users. Enjoy. https://whatsbestforum.com/threads/apogee-full-range.19104/page-36#post-498198
  20. Brian Beck

    Is Audio Research becoming a “lifestyle” brand?

    I have been an ARC fan since the mid seventies when I bought an SP-3 and D75A. I’ve had numerous ARC models since then and I still have 6 pieces (a few are silent “museum” pieces). I was a little concerned when Bill Johnson sold ARC to an Italian investment group, and it is now of course part...
  21. Brian Beck

    Apogee Full range

    I just saw your ceiling limitations. Tough situation!
  22. Brian Beck

    Apogee Full range

    I’d be the last one to arm-twist someone into a speaker that might not work for him. There are just too many variables in room acoustics and listening preferences to make blanket predictions especially from afar. But consider this: the Eminence 12” subs in the Zu have a driven surface area of 78...
  23. Brian Beck

    Apogee Full range

    Except that a 300mm (11.8”) ribbon cannot confer the all-important advantages of a line source that the bigger Apogees have.
  24. Brian Beck

    Apogee Full range

    My room is about 18.2’ x 26’ x 12’ H. It clocks in at about 5500 cu ft. But the back wall and part of the rear left wall are irregular and open up to a much larger part of my house; so the 26’ dimension is not completely descriptive. I think the key here is that I listen fairly closely to the...
  25. Brian Beck

    Apogee Full range

    I don’t see why not, especially with the 1-ohm Scintillas. Side note: I have been involved in electronics industries my entire adult life, both as design engineer and as a head honcho. I have always loved audio but never attempted to offer anything commercially in audio because the hi-end...
  26. Brian Beck

    Apogee Full range

    LOL indeed. I’ll grant you the “simpler” part anyway...
  27. Brian Beck

    Apogee Full range

    Hello Ron, Thanks for asking, but I have nothing new to report regarding my TSW FR system. I have reached a level of satisfaction where I have been enjoying it more than improving it. It is by far the best sound I have enjoyed in my decades of audiophilia. Yes, I will be working on...
  28. Brian Beck

    Apogee Full range

    Geesh! And I thought I was a collector. I need to show that list to my wife...
  29. Brian Beck

    Apogee Full range

    Somehow this Apogee thread devolved into a discussion of field coils and paper cones :)
  30. Brian Beck

    Apogee Full range

    Sure, pure tones can work. The reason I recommended noise is that pure tones will set up standing waves with peaks and nulls in the room. If you move your head even a little bit the perceived loudness will vary a lot, due to reflections, even between left and right ear. This might confuse the...

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