Is Atom v.5 the speaker to get?
March 31, 2007
I read your review of the Paradigm Atom v.5. Is that the budget speaker you’d
recommend?
Robert Hache
It depends on what you budget is. If your budget is
$250, it’s obviously a great choice. If your budget is higher, though, you have many
more options. For example, Paradigm has many other speakers, as do companies such as
Energy, Axiom and PSB. However, even though you might have more money, it’s a good
idea to listen to something like the Atom and hear for yourself what you get for that kind
of money. Then move upward in price and see if you hear a commensurate difference. Let
your wallet and your ears be your guide.
Integrated as power amp?
March 27, 2007
I was reading Jeff Van Dyne’s
review of the TAD preamp and noted that in his trial he used his Cayin integrated as a
power amp. He mentioned that it essentially becomes a power amp when the volume is turned
up full in this setup. I have a Canary 608 push-pull integrated, and have been thinking
about purchasing a preamp. The Canary has no pre-out/in jacks. Is there still a way to
utilize it as a true power amp?
Greg Rizzi
Jeff Van Dyne essentially took the Cayin’s
attenuator out of the signal path (obviously at full volume no attenuation of the signal
was taking place). I’m not sure this is ideal; on some designs I’m sure the
signal is still passing through some circuitry. However, whether or not that circuitry
makes for an audible difference (versus no circuitry) is anyone’s guess. So you may
be fine doing just as Jeff did, using a regular input on the amp. Perhaps check your owner’s
manual, and maybe even a call to your dealer to be sure that what you are doing is the
best solution to your problem. Let us know how it works out.
Follow-Up to "Sub
for his Axioms"
March 22, 2007
I ended up with the Axiom 350 as my subwoofer. The AV123,
though very musical and visually beautiful, simply was not able to fill the room. Given
that the room is largish and the AV123 sports an 8” woofer, it was probably unfair to
ask it to move that much air. Unfortunately, I was not able to get the Hsu model in the
maple finish (spouse-required) to test it, but I was able to test, and ended up buying,
the Axiom 350. It does indeed sound great in combination with my Axiom M3 bookshelf
speakers, and produces both a quality and a quantity of bass which works in the space. I
have particularly enjoyed listening to Peter Gabriel’s Secret World: Live
CD, which has some wonderful bass tracks, as well as some of my favorite Lyle Lovett CDs.
All of them have benefited greatly from the bass boost provided by the new sub. Thanks for
your help.
Next purchase for the system: a CD player to replace my
Denon CC-38 CD changer. Any suggestions for something that would provide improved sound,
either as a CD player or a universal player?
Steven
The newest Oppo, the DV-981HD is reportedly very good.
We’ll have a review soon. And the price is right at $229!
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