Pursuing the Ultimate Music Experiences

Audio Federation High-Fidelity Audio Blog
 by Michael

EMM Labs NS1 Streamer – digital music network streaming device

We got this in a little while ago. Quite reasonably priced in this market. Breaking it in on the small Audio Note system running Roon through it to the not-so-small Audio Note DAC 5 Signature into the OTTO integrated. Sounds amazing [I know, cheating a little bit with the 20X DAC 🙂 but everything else is in the $5K-ish range]

Next is to swap it in for the Auralic on the big system. THAT should be something (it is already something! We are not worthy!) [seriously, not posting much because the Gaku-On on the Apollon speakers still takes our breath away, literally. This probably sounds lame … not sure how to describe this experience on the blog… but working on figuring out something…].

 

 

in Emm Labs 1 comments
 by Michael

HRS SXR Equipment Rack Solid Brace Inserts

Harmonic Resolution Systems SXR equipment racks have an add-on option which are called solid brace inserts. [A geeky post. I know. But it sometimes takes geeky to get the best sound… so there!]

They are often added to the top of the rack to allow support for those heavier turntables that need perhaps a 6-foot HRS isolation platform instead of the usual four-footer. In that sense I think of them often as turntable support or turntable braces.

If you get the solid brace inserts for every shelf of your SXR rack then you have an SXR Signature equipment rack.

The SXR Solid Brace Inserts triples the number of cross braces, pretensions the frame, and adds 4 friction dampers and 2 compression dampers at each component location (Isolation Base location). The added mass, stiffness, control and energy absorption capability provided by the addition of the SXR Solid Brace Inserts pushes the performance of the SXR frame towards that of the very ambitious reference level HRS Audio Stands

These heavy, indestructible pieces of metal come in the most well-packed crate ever 🙂

 

A HRS SXR 3-shelf high side-by-side equipment rack with sold brace inserts on the top right shelf.

HRS solid brace inserts from below. If you look closely you will see some of the special vibration-control polymers (not traditionally part of the older MXR or new VXR solid brace inserts)

 

 

A HRS SXR 3-shelf high side-by-side equipment rack with sold brace inserts on the top right shelf. Audio Note U.K. AN/E SPe high-efficiency speakers. And our embryonic attempt to give YouTube music videos a high-fidelity venue.

 

 

in HRS 0 comments
 by Michael

Mike and Neli get smart…

… or maybe we’re just getting a bit too old for some of this heavy lifting… after putting up and tearing down Campaniles 3 times in the last year or so, we wondered if there could be a better way 🙂

We decided to get this Dayton platform lift with a 880 lb capacity and used it to take down the top 170 lb cabinet of the Acapella Campanile…

.. and put up the 200 lb or so top cabinet of the Acapella Apollon.

[it’s not that these are so darn heavy, it is that they are tall cabinets which makes them a little unwieldy. No. Really. ;-)]

This platform lift, which doubles as a poor man and woman’s palette jack, is just the kind of thing that is so nice to have around the house.

We still do setup the speakers manually ourselves at distant customer’s homes and at shows (sometimes with help from Rusty, the show freight shipper, and friends)

 

The top cabinet of the Campanile coming down

The other Campanile cabinet already down and boxed.

The Apollon getting its upper cabinet into place.

in Acapella / How-to 3 comments
 by Michael

Chillin’ 2

Welcoming a new member to the audiophile Chillin’ community.

Yes, quite a story behind this opportune side-by-side comparison of the similarly priced Acapella “Cellini High” speakers and their “Campanile 2” speakers.

Let’s just say, in my opinion [and I think the others present], in this size of a room (20 feet by 30 feet) the Campanile was better in just about every way and in some ways much better [dynamics, general openness of the sound from bass to midrange].

 

This looks so much more comfortable than putting our feet up on our glass-top table…

Neli, wearing socks! Also chillin’…

in Acapella / Chillin / Featured Acapella Posts 3 comments
 by Michael

Capital Audio Fest 2019 – photos of our giant room

Our room was quite large, and we filled it with music that was musical, well-controlled [except for a little bass overhang around 100 hz and a room resonance freq around 500? hz], smooth, harmonically rich and etc. etc.

It invited comparisons with a ‘live’ performance [not talking here about the overly simplistic demos that are primarily percussion and electric guitar we see out there sometimes]. Wasn’t quite THAT good, but, for me, this is what high-end audio is all about.

Convincingly live music in my room at a push of a button by any artist from any decade. 

 

in Acapella / Audio Note / CAP 2019 / HRS 0 comments
 by Michael

We are exhibiting at Capital Audiofest 2019

Audio Federation will be showing at Capital Audiofest CAP 2019. We have a very large room this year and it should be a blast.

What we are showing:

  • Acapella Audio Arts “Campanile 2” loudspeakers (Porsche agate gray horns with white cabinets)
  • Acapella Audio Arts “La Musika” integrated 2000 watt amplifier
  • Acapella Audio Arts “Audio One” music server.
  • Audio Note U.K. “DAC 5 Signature” digital to analog converter.
  • Harmonic Resolution Systems (HRS) SXR equipment rack and M3X2 isolation bases and Nimbus Couplers/Spacers (feet)
  • Assorted cables from Audio Note U.K., Acapella, et. al.

Neli went last year but this will be the first time I have been at an east coast show since Stereophile New York in 2005

I will try and record video and high-res audio of all the rooms… if you can’t make it with ‘your own eyes’ and ears!

 

 

in Acapella / Audio Note / CAP 2019 / HRS / Show Reports 0 comments
 by Michael

Acapella “Apollon” speaker disassembly after Munich HiEnd 2019

This video was taken on the 3rd, the last, day of this year’s Munich HiEnd Show at the Munich Marriott. The elapsed wall clock time of this 11 minute video was from 6:00pm (show close) to 8:30pm. As we were scheduled for a see-ya-next-year dinner with Audio Note at 8:00pm [luckily, we were by no means the last to arrive! 🙂 ], we had to stop videoing before the speakers were completely disassembled. It doesn’t usually take this long to do this – but it does seem like the Acapella crew take a more relaxed approach to tear down than some others who are almost frantic (some exhibitors are amazing – all done and off to supper they go) – but they did have the other room with a ton of speakers on static display to deal with as well – so there is that.

People in the video: Neli, of Audio Federation. Alfred Rudolph (speaker designer and co-founder), Richard Rudolph (runs the factory) and Robert Rudolph (marketing and Silver Surfer) of Acapella Audio Arts.

The Acapella Audio Arts’ Apollon speakers weigh about 900 lbs each, use a powered plasma (ION) massless tweeter and have four 10 inch woofers per speaker. The top bass unit is about 200lbs heavy [I love the pained look on Richard’s face as they take each one down off of its perch 😉 ].

 

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