home entertainment 2007

set of wireless multichannel audio and
video components from Neosonik
(www.neosonik.com), including an
A/V controller-transmitter, receivers,
and a slew of
speakers in two
series. The
biggest speaker,
the Series 6
Tower, isn’t the
most graceful
design, but it was
m a k i n g
respectable
sound with only
an AC wire.
(Yes, you still
need one to
power the wireless
receiver, the
DSP, and multiple
power amps.)
Among the less
conventional
devices shown
was a nearlyready-for-primetime
duo from
Theta Digital:
their Valis preamplifier-processor
and Virtu 150Wx7 power amplifier. The
Valis and Virtu may not look unusual
(though they do look nice), but, as I
learned when I saw the prototypes last
year, the combo is completely digital
from pre-pro input to power-amp output
because 1) they’re interconnected by four
digital cables running S/PDIF-compatible
signals up to 24-bits/192kHz, and 2)
the Virtu is a digitally controlled PWM
(class-D) amplifier running at 1MHz
whose signal is converted to analog only
at its output.
Also unconventional was the
stealthy Magnepan woofer. Magnepan’s
Wendell Diller made a strong
case, verbally and by demonstration,
for the development of a fast but unobtrusive
woofer to extend the lower end
of Magnepan’s small but otherwise
worthy wall-mounted speakers—not a
true sub for extreme sound effects, but
the prototype’s planar-dynamic drivers
made it as “fast” as the satellites. I heard
it, but it was invisible until Diller
pointed to where it was posing as an
end-table.
Staying with the low end, SVS
showed the prototype of an Audysseybased
subwoofer controller-equalizer
that may be a killer app. Adapting
Audyssey’s MultEQ technology to a
dedicated subwoofer EQ, the Audyssey-
MUSIC IN THE ROUND
The Magnepan woofer masquerading as a lamp
table. This modified planar-dynamic speaker can
connect to up to three wall-mounted Maggies with
independent crossover settings for each.
SVS Digital Audio Correction Device
can handle up to eight measurement
positions and has independent equalization
for two subwoofers.
Less unusual
but equally compelling
was the
prototype of
Parasound’s P7
multichannel
analog preamplifier,
a product
category close to
my heart. I asked
Richard Schram
if the P7 has flexible
analog bass
management,
XLR inputs and
outputs, channel
and input-level
balancing, if all of
the above is
accessible from
the remote con-
trol, and if the P7
has a MM/MC
phono input. His
answer was
always ‘yes.’ And
yes, an empty
place on my equipment rack awaits it.
Mark Levinson No.433
three-channel power amplifier
Good things come in threes, they say.
Well, three-channel power amps suit
me just fine. My main component rack
is at the back of
the room, so I
split power
duties between
a two-channel
amp under the
rack to drive my
rear-channel
B&W 804S
speakers and,
way at the front,
either three
monoblocks or a three-channel amp
for the front three B&W 802Ds. I do
this to ensure that the timbre of the
front three channels is consistent. The
outstanding performance of the
Simaudio Moon W-8 dual-mono
power amp (Stereophile, March 2006)
almost tempted me to go with a stereo
amp and a monoblock, but voicing and
balancing a multichannel system with
equanimity makes me want as much
simplicity as possible. I guess manufacturers
and users see it the same way;
many new three-channel amps are
coming on the market.
I first saw the Mark Levinson
No.433 at the 2006 CEDIA Expo, and
immediately asked about getting one
for review—I’d never had a Levinson
amp in my system, and this one
seemed perfect for my setup. It looked
relatively sleek and compact for its
impressive specs, and besides, I just
wanted it. (All specs are at www.
marklevinson.com/products/
overview.asp?cat=pa&prod=no433.)
ML calls the No.433 a “triple
monaural” amp because each channel is
supported by its own power supply
consisting of a 684VA transformer and
48,000μF of filtering and storage. 1 Each
channel has balanced and unbalanced
inputs, is fully balanced through all the
voltage-amplification stages, and is built
on its own Arlon PC board, which is
supported and connected to its individual
power supply by bus bars of oxygen-free
copper. Fault sensing includes
detection of DC on the output, excessive
output current flow, over- or
undervoltage at the AC input, and
unsafe temperatures anywhere in the
amp. In addition, ML says that there’s a
controlled clipping circuit that both
prevents the output devices from saturating
and, by a wave-shaping action,
eliminates HF harmonics that would
be generated by clipping. Real-world
bottom line: The No.433 costs $10,000,
puts out 200Wpc into 8 ohms or
400Wpc into 4 ohms, and weighs 122
lbs (55.5kg).
The sleek chassis of the Levinson No.433 amp is a disguise. It contains 3
high-performance 200W monoblock channels.
So it was with great effort that I single-handedly
maneuvered the No.433
into place between my front left and
center 802Ds. The handles on the rear
panel were a big help, and transferring
the cables from the Bel Canto
REF1000 monoblocks was a snap. I
used the No.433’s XLR inputs, so it
was necessary to first remove the pin
1–3 shorting straps and save them for
1 “Monaural” literally means “single-eared,” which may
be fine for listening, but we prefer “monophonic” when
referring to single-channel products. —Ed.
www.Stereophile.com, May 2007 39