AUDIO Verstärker und DACs (Vorschau)

42 Loudspeakers Floorstanders
really loud is even better advised with
massive power. A loudspeaker that almost
scratches the 120dB mark without any
noteworthy distortions – over the entire
frequency range, of course – will need
several hundred watts despite of a high
efficiency to fully display its talents. With
a pair of the excellent Musical Fidelity M8
high-power monos, driven directly by a
Linn network player, authentic rock concert
levels were achieved, and this without the
bugging notion that beyond a certain
volume everything gets louder, except for
the bass. This compression is totally strange
to the Stella’s electromagnetic woofers;
even in such extreme situations the speaker
completely stayed out of the musical
events.
Due to her extremely low distortions,
the Stella also belied the actual listening
levels like very good headphones. But
contrary to headphones she manages to
conjure up a large, credible atmosphere
into the room even with very soft music.
In this case the clearance between the
speakers should be a bit wider than normal
– already a slightly angled position
towards the listening spot will do to create
a continuous, solid stage. And when
Emma Kirkby is standing there singing an
aria from Handel’s Messiah at Christopher
Hogwood’s breathtaking pace (Handel
– Messiah, Academy of Ancient Music,
Decca/L‘Oiseau-Lyre), one is not only
amazed at the accurate reproduction of
the recording venue and the unfamiliar
attack of the historical instruments, but
particularly at the pure, intense soprano
which caused already head- and toothaches
over quite a few loudspeakers, yet
leaves nothing behind now but awe and
pleasant goosebumps. We could hardly
imagine a tougher test for the mid/high
range of a speaker, nor a more wonderful
result.
On “The Drover“ by Bill Callahan (of
“Apocalypse“, Drag City), played via the
astonishing Clearaudio player from page
44 in this magazine, the bass precision of
the second largest Focal became evident:
the bone-dry drum staccato, which gives
the song its rhythmical spine, made the
whole room pulsate, yet remained totally
clean even in the louder, tighter knit passages
towards the end of the song, with
Callahan’s husky voice above it showing
lots of body with perfect articulation. The
13“ woofer always stayed relaxed, its interaction
with the room precisely adjustable
using the described setting options:
in AUDIOphile’s acoustically well-dampened
40 sqm listening room the combination
of lower magnetic flux density
(power supply in position “1“) and a moderate
upper bass boost (bass jumper set
to “Low Q“) finally came out on top with
a placement mostly far from the wall.
In other rooms there can be and there
will be other ideal settings, yet none is
more or less audiophile than the rest.
However, the remarkable point is that for
every room (except factory halls and
broom closets) and every amp (except
single-ended triodes and nastily distorting
cheapo transistors) an optimum adjustment
is possible – and this without digital
technology and even largely without analogue
filters, but right at the origin of the
bass energy by direct manipulation of the
drive parameters. This and the relatively
high efficiency are qualities that turn an
already first-class large speaker into an
almost ideal sound transducer, a utopia
come true.
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Audition LP
Bill Callahan
Apocalypse
(Drag City)
One of todays great songwriters, in a
simple yet highly dynamic recording.
A relaxed and unpretentious masterwork
of great depth both in the lyrics
and in the music. Available on vinyl,
CD and FLAC download.
The Author
Bernhard
Rietschel
Has lost his fear of large loudspeakers
when he had to uncrate and install
three pairs of Grande Utopia for the
“World‘s Most Expensive HiFi System“
Demo in Berlin – helped only by his
colleague Stefan Schickedanz and a set
of cheapo giveaway screwdrivers.
Open, Sesame: Behind the
hinged back cover the user
finds numerous opportunities
for fine-tuning the
sound to his or her tastes,
to the listening room acoustics
and to the proberties
of the electronics used.
All adjustments are made
with lossless, massive 6mm
banana jumpers.
Focal
Stella Utopia EM
List price: 72000 Euro
Warranty: 5 years
Weight: 165 each
Maße (W x H x D):
55 x 156 x 83 cm
Finishes: Front and back granite
black,side panels in any RAL colour.
Custom finishes by appointment.
Distribution:
Music Line, Hamburg
Phone: 0 41 05 / 77 05 0
Internet: www.music-line.biz
www.focal.com