truly desirable audio

note: this article is taken from this issue of av xpress for your reading pleasure!



We dedicate this section to the hottest, best-selling and most desirable hi-fi in Malaysia for the last quarter. The accuracy of this information may be questionable as it is solely obtained from the audio grapevine and may invite arguments or debates. However, the true spirit of this article is to share the excitement and in turn, we hope to excite the local hi-fi industry. Believe it or not, we try to be impartial and are not affiliated to any particular dealer or manufacturer.

Audio Research Reference CD7 CD player

Coming from a highly respected tube amp manufacturer that does not specialize in digital playback, Audio Research Reference CD7 CD player has done extremely well since its launch. In fact it is the first digital product from Audio Research to justify the "Reference" badge.

Following the remarkable success of its reference-status sibling, the flagship Reference 3 preamplifier, the same ground-breaking technology is employed with a gain stage taken directly from the Reference 3 and it also incorporates the latest proprietary capacitor technology found only in the Reference series components.

The good news to ARC supporters is that now they can finally purchase a full-suite of Reference products (save for loudspeakers) and proudly proclaim that they have the best of everything-under-one-roof system in the ARC universe and beyond.

Audionet ART G2 CD Player

Relatively low-profile, this German audio marque has caused quite a stir in the local market recently. Audionet products are developed, produced, and distributed by Idektron GmbH, a company that has its headquarters in Bochum, Germany. When it was founded in 1994, Idektron was a spin-off of Ruhr University Bochum, one of the leading universities in Germany, and was dedicated to making medical instruments. It now makes a nearly full range of audio products.

The ART in "ART G2" stands for Aligned Resonance Transport, a proprietary technology that decouples transport unit and boards as well as the clock generator. The G2 stands for Generation 2. It is a direct-drive top loader. The transport is mounted on a suspended, 22-pound slab of granite.

If the popularity of the G2 continues to grow at this speed, it won’t be long before Audionet becomes a formidable audio brand in Malaysia.


Promitheus Audio TVC Passive Preamplifier

Nick Chua (see interview in the “Personality Profile” section), the local 26-year-old young man who builds a superb value-for-money Transformer Volume Control (TVC) passive preamplifier, did not mince his words when he admitted that “TVC sells to international markets in huge volumes through online channels”. To find out what the fuss is about, just google “TVC”.

The key strength of the TVC is its impedance matching. It allows listeners to hear greater inner detailing and micro dynamics, a more natural timbre, and greater airiness, compared to conventional passive preamps.

Competing well with products 3-4 times the price of his TVC, Nick has certainly scored a minor victory in the price/performance war for passive preamplifiers. More importantly, the Promitheus Audio TVC heralds a new era for Malaysian audio designers who have shown that they are ready to take on all challengers in the global arena.

For further discussion on Nick’s remarkable TVC, check out the humongous 150+ page thread on the Audio Circle forum.

Link: http://www.audiocircle.com/circles/index.php?topic=31621.0