Articles, Reviews and Measurements of Audio Products

Matrix Audio X-SABRE 3 Measurements (DAC & Streamer)

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Matrix Audio X-SABRE 3 Measurements

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Hi folks,

Here is another review, measurements-based, of the Matrix Audio X-SABRE 3 DAC and streamer. This unit has been kindly loaned to me by @Audiophonics for the purpose of this review. This is the third version since the original X-SABRE Pro, which has been initially released in 2017 and by the way, one of the very first ES9038 PRO implementations on the market. For the record, the second model was at the time one of the few DACs to hit 120dB SINAD in Amir's measurements, more than three years ago.

The X-SABRE 3 has been released in mid-2021 and now comes with streaming features... and a premium price...​

ASR Forum Member Tag/Title Descriptions

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Hello everyone. Good suggestion was made to post the various titles we have on the forum. Some are obvious, some are not so. Here they are.

Founder/Admin = Amir’s Account Tag. Owner, Creator of ASR.

CFO (Chief Fun Officer) = Amir’s Tag.

Administrative = I don’t usually login under this but it is what it says it is.

Audio Luminary = Assigned to Members whom are recognized industry wide as Audio Professionals and Specialists. Have Published various Audio Engineering Works and/or hold Patents or were instrumental in the development and design of various Audio technologies. Were or are Foundational Leaders in the Field of Audio Science and Engineering. Requires a very high bar to be granted. These Members are considered Highly Valued and Honored ASR guests.

Dealer = Assigned to Members who Represent a Commercial Audio Product(s) dealer/distributor for retail sales. Have no affiliation with ASR other than a Guest Vendor.

Editor = Assigned...

Simulation Overview of the 'Double Bass Array' Configuration.

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I will give a short introduction via simulations in COMSOL Multiphysics to the ‘Double Array Bass’ subwoofer setup and how the response will differ between an idealized situation of two walls moving compared to having a finite number of subwoofers.

Imagine first a 3x4x5 meters room. We can calculate the associated room modes as shown below.
7Modes.png


These modes are an inherent feature of the room geometry and air being the medium inside it. They exist independent of any sources and are calculated without any regard to sourcing. Whether a mode is a problem or not will be evaluated when a source(s) is activated. Let us now put a subwoofer in the corner and evaluate the sound pressure level in 6 preselected places at a height of 1.1 meters.

RoomPoints.png


The responses in the points vary quite a bit.
[ATTACH type="full" width="616px"...

boXem Arthur 4222/E1 Amplifier Review

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This is a review and detailed measurements of the boXem Audio Arthur 4222/E1 mono power amplifier. It was sent to me by the company and costs €1,490.00.
BoXem Arthur 4222E1 Monoblock Amplifier review.jpg

The design is quintessential European with gray body and colorful front panel which I like. The only power button is on the back:
BoXem Arthur 4222E1 Monoblock Amplifier back panel balanced review.jpg

Fortunately you have trigger input so you can set it to power up when the source turns on. Three gain settings are provided which is very nice. Unlike some amps in its class, it has both XLR balanced and RCA unbalanced inputs.

The amplifier is class D and is based on Purifi 1ET7040SA module.

EDIT: amp is 4222, not 4215.

boXem Arthur 4222/E1 Measurements
I started with the input gain set to low:
BoXem Arthur 4222E1 Monoblock Amplifier Measurement.png
...

Kenwood L-08C Pre-amplifier Review (Vintage Audio, QuirkAudio restored)

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Kenwood L-08C Pre-Amplifier Measurements (Vintage Audio)

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Part 1: Kenwood L-08M Monoblock Amplifier Review


If you haven't read Part 1, please give that a read first. There's a much better description of the history of this product line in part one. If you haven't read Part 1 and just want to continue, then spoiler alert... the L-08M was coming surprisingly close to the type of performance we get from HypeX NC500 amplifieres, made more impressive since this was achieved in 1980 with the benefits of 1V input sensitivity and the higher gain and 2 years before the compact disc.

What about the matching L-08C pre-amp? This L-08C was recapped and restored by Peter at QuirkAudio. Thankfully, while the pre-amp is made with a lot of...

Sutherland KC Vibe MK2 Phono Stage Review

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This is a review and detailed measurements of the Sutherland KC Vibe MK2 phono preamplifier. It is on kind loan from a member and costs US $999:
Sutherland  KC Vibe Phono pre-amp stage stereo review.jpg

The box is quite substantial and deep despite the fact that power supply is switching and external:
Sutherland  KC Vibe Phono pre-amp stage stereo back panel power supply review.jpg

Where do you think the power supply plugs in? You would never guess. It is through a hole underneath! I suspect that optimized the circuit layout together with disjointed inputs and outputs.

The power supply is rated at 48 volts so hopefully that translates into good bit of headroom.

Gain and loading is programmable but sadly through jumpers inside the box:
Sutherland  KC Vibe Phono pre-amp stage gain and loading.png


I went with the recommended 45 dB gain for the measurements.

Sutherland KC Vibe MK2 Measurements
Let's start with our usual dashboard:
Sutherland  KC Vibe Phono pre-amp stage measurements.png

Very nice to see no distortion spikes which is my target. Noise is controlled enough to almost...

Leema Acoustics Element DAC & Preamp Review

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This is a review and detailed measurements of the Leema Acoustics Element stereo DAC and analog input preamp. It is on loan from a member and costs US $2,195.
Leema Acoustics Elements Precision DAC balanced preamp review.jpg

It is a substantial unit with controls that feel good. What sets this DAC apart from others like it, is larger number of digital input and importantly, analog input:
Leema Acoustics Elements Precision DAC balanced preamp back panel USB stereo review.jpg


For people like me who are forced to use a pre-amp because we have an analog source (reel to reel in my case), this is a highly desirable feature.

As sent, the unit is rated for 230 volts so I powered it with my lab AC generator set to that. Initially I just plugged it into our 120 volts mains and everything seemed to work as far as the display but there was no output. Took me about half of our to realize it needed 230 volt input.

I see reviews dating back to 2014 so it is an older design.

For reasons I won't get into, this is an abbreviated review.

Leema Acoustics Element Precision...

Fosi Audio TB10D Amplifier Review

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This is a review and detailed measurements of the Fosi Audio TB10D stereo amplifier. It was sent to me by the company and is only sale for US $70 on Amazon including shipping.
Fosi Audio TB10D stereo amplifier cheap review.jpg


We have the typical compact desktop aluminum case. Controls feel nice for the class. Tone controls are not centered however for flat response (you can see in the picture what I set them to). Typical of these budget amplifiers, power is provided externally through a switching supply:
Fosi Audio TB10D stereo amplifier cheap back panel power supply review.jpg


Binding posts are spaced out a bit more which made it easier for me to plug in my large cables.

This is a class D amplifier based on TI TPA3255 single chip amplifier.

Fosi Audio TB10D Measurements
Let's start with our usual 5 watts measurement of 1 kHz tone into 4 ohm load:
[ATTACH type="full" alt="Fosi Audio...

Kenwood L-08M Monoblock Amplifier (Vintage Review)

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Kenwood L-08M Monoblock Amplifier Review
(Vintage Gear; QuirkAudio restored)
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Where were you in 1980? In Tokyo, Japan, a small team of engineers released the most sophisticated amplifier of its time...

A bit of history
In the 1970's, an elite team of veteran Trio-Kenwood engineers left the company to form what is today known Accuphase. Half-rivals and half-colleagues, Kenwood would actually maintain a sizeable ownership of Accuphase all the way through the mid-1990's. Accuphase had the goal of building flagship audio equipment using the very best in craftsmanship and engineering. With a focus on quality not quantity, Accuphase continues today as a leader in high-end Class A and Class AB amplifiers and has a deep inventory and vault of spare components and parts for their electronics going all the way back to its founding.

Meanwhile...

Eve Audio SC305 Studio Monitor Review

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This is a review, listening tests and measurements of the Eve Audio SC305 studio monitor (powered speaker). It is on kind loan from a member and costs US $999.
Eve Audio SC305 3-way studio monitor speaker Review.jpg

You may think this is an MTM configuration but it is not. It is actually a 3-way speaker with one of the woofers playing down low like a small sub. As such, there are three amplifiers. You can choose which woofer is playing the major role and which is acting like a "sub." The front volume control and lets you setup a handful of parameters. Kind of hard to navigate but does the job. The LED ring around it is "smart" and changes function based on what it is showing.

Eve Audio SC305 3-way studio monitor speaker Back Panel Review.jpg


As you see, the ports are in the back. Even though this is a DSP speaker, it doesn't have digital input which is a bit of a shame.

Back to the controls, the LEDs flash when the input level is too high which is very useful. It lets you know when the ADC is being overloaded which can create...
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