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In Reply to: It seems Jonathan Valin doesn't think much of the $100k Caliburn... posted by howard on April 23, 2007 at 09:10:02:
Valin:
"Another letdown, for the second year running, was the $100k+ Continuum Caliburn record player and Cobra arm (equipped with Lyra Olympus cartridge)
To be fair, the system that the Continuum was feeding wasn’t to my taste: $80k German-Physiks PQS-402 loudspeakers (which use two Walsh-like drivers and a sub tower), powered by Boulder electronics. Nonetheless, I tried my damndest to “listen through” to the turntable itself. I first asked to hear some chamber music and was told not just that they didn’t have any but that didn’t know what chamber music meant. We’re into AC/DC, said the guy running the turntable. Not an auspicious start.
I persevered and found a record that I know by heart sitting in a pile of jazz and rock–Joan Baez’s Farewell Angelina in the excellent Cisco repressing. I listened closely to several tracks and–just like the year before–came away wondering what the fuss was about. Baez’s voice is like a piece of Dale Chihuly glass, filled with delicate little tremolos and ripples of color. Through the Caliburn these nuances were uniformly coarsened and damped down. Oh, everything was there all right, but nothing there was right. Even Baez’s guitar lost the full glory of its tone colors and the delicacy of her touch.
Thinking that it had to be the speakers and the electronics that were the problems, I moved to a different room where Continuum was showing its new cheaper record player, the Criterion and Copperhead arm, with Peak Consult speakers. Though the sound was better here–livelier, albeit brighter–it still wasn’t close to world-class."Stereomojo:
"And finally…
The Continuum Caliburn. Not the best looking table. Not even the most expensive table. It’s only about $100,000. Made in Australia. Australia! With the Cobra arm system, it was running through Boulder amps and the German Physiks model 402 loudspeaker. The cart was a Lyra Titan I believe. I have never been a big fan of omni-directional style speakers and these featured two large DDD drivers in each speaker delivering an omni-directional, full-range (180Hz to ultrasonics) presentation while the large cabinets that stood behind them were handling the low end. I have simply not heard anything like this system.
When we entered the room, we were greeted warmly by Rich O’Neil. He did not ask what we’d like to hear, but rather said “Let me play something special for you - Louis Armstrong singing St. James Infirmary”.
Louis Armstrong? Did he even record anything in stereo? And is that the best they can come up with for a vocal? I was a bit chagrinned, but sat down gracefully expecting to be underwhelmed. I have never been an Armstrong fan. He played a great trumpet, but his guttural, gravelly voice and short, choppy phrasing never did anything for me. I just hoped they were not going to play “Hello Dolly” by mistake.
He cued up the Cobra arm. The music started. Dead quiet pressing. Hey, it’s stereo. That’s when the magic started. If I told you that Mr. Armstrong was “in the room”, it would be no big deal. Lots of systems can achieve that illusion. No, what I was hearing was much more than that – I was witnessing genius. Louis was telling the story in a way that was compelling and ravishing. Spellbinding. His phrasing and articulation was astounding. Moving. Engrossing. I forgot that I was listening to a turntable, speakers or any other contraption. I forgot my aching feet and lack of sleep. I forgot I was at CES. I was only hearing the mastery of a great artist delivering a great song. I was transfixed.
Like I said, I’ve never heard anything like it, not at CES, not at Rocky Mountain Fest, because it was much more than just “hearing”. It was a sensory odyssey. Now, was it the Caliburn, Lyra, the Boulders or the German Physiks that garners the credit? That I cannot say. Obviously, if the table was generating the sound I was hearing, there had to be something pretty wonderful happening. What I can say is this system MORE than deserves an award.
We gladly present our MAXIMUM MOJO AWARD toContinuum Caliburn, Lyra, Boulder and German Physiks
For BEST SOUND AT CES 007"Audio is kinda subjective I guess.
Follow Ups:
I tried my damndest to “listen through” to the turntable itself.That's hard without an A-B comparison IMO.
A Road & Track writer were to test drive a car on four flat tires and were to try to still evaluate its handling? How does one possibly listen through a bad system -- some kind of mental inverse filter mechanism?The St. James Infirmary track, from Sachmo Plays W.C. Handy, is an amazing track, but it is hardly obscure. I am a bit surprised that an insider was not aware of its existence.
These are indeed strange comments.
yes; the 'St James Infirmary' track is 'famous' to show goers and such as demo material.....but since it has never been 'officially' released on digital there are many that have never heard it.another great reason to listen to vinyl.
i've had many a vistor to my room hear that track for the first time and go bananas.
mikel
Still, there is quite a bit of Armstrong material in stereo that has been released digitally, such as his covers of Ellington. I am surprised that a reviewer would not have heard this stuff. If I were so unaware, I would not have made any comment at all on the subject.
"... if Mr. Armstrong was “in the room”, it would be no big deal. Lots of systems can achieve that illusion. No, what I was hearing was much more than that – I was witnessing genius. Louis was telling the story in a way that was compelling and ravishing. Spellbinding. His phrasing and articulation was astounding. Moving. Engrossing...."Wow! Not only did he get to listen to a TT that's- "...only about $100,000. Made in Australia. Australia!" with "aching feet and lack of sleep", at a TRADE SHOW but he found out that Mr. Armstrong DID record in stereo ( that particular LP being a recognized gem of an audiophile recording for some 20 years...) and lo, and behold! - he discovered that Armstrong's "phrasing and articulation was astounding". What a sterling day for this writer!
Imagine how he would feel about Armstrong's astounding phrasing and articulation played on a Okeh Hot Five 78! Oh, wait, you couldn't play one of those on that "not the best looking TT", and it certainly wouldn't be in stereo...
Nothing like getting a glowing/gushing report on high end gear from a music history novice. Akin to an eight year old "discovering" the Beatles played through a Bose Wave system: "WOW! They are SO good! That sounds so AWESOME".
Zzzzzzzzz
"I always play jazz records backwards, they sound better that way"
-Thomas Edison
and general ingnorance regarding the brilliance of Louis Armstrong. Live and learn. Cut the guy some slack.
Why?He's reporting his views and experiences with some VERY expensive equipment and is completely bowled over by "discovering" an artist he's previously not familiar enough with? Two seperate experiences that need to be approached that way.
Like I said, it's akin to an eight year old "discovering" the Beatles on a Bose Wave system: They sound SO GOOD, and they can SING too! They never really "heard" the Beatles before, nor a source as good as the Wave.
IF he'd heard the Armstrong recording on a "familiar" system and been equally blown away by the PERFORMANCE, that's one thing. IF he'd heard a familiar recording on the reveiwed system and was blown away by the SYSTEM, that's another thing.
Hearing that particular Armstrong performance on that TT didn't magically make it a superior performance - THAT performance has alwayd been in them grooves and available to enlighten through any decent system. Maybe it DID sound "better" on that system, but where is the reviewers point of reference?
Some semblance of objectivity should be used when reporting on expensive, high end equipment, if not ALL equipment. Reviewing equipment shouldn't be influenced by "discovering" how great a historically well established artist is at the same time as auditioning new equipment.
While there is no ideal time for enlightment - it should be welcome with open mind whenever granted - the "live and learn" aspect of this reviewer's rise from ignorance and preconceived notions would be considerably more appreciated seperate from a review of a $100,000 turntable.
Even if "it's not the best looking table". And made in Australia.
"I always play jazz records backwards, they sound better that way"
-Thomas Edison
It's about impressions. He was enlightened by the brilliance of Louis Armstrong on that recording on that system. That's all there is to it. It's crystal clear that the writer's intent was not to provide an in-depth analysis and assessment of the variables involved in his epiphany. Whether he is capable of doing so is moot.
.
Anyone who would write "is that the best they can come up with for a vocal?" about Louis Armstrong is too f%$&ing stupid and shallow to be commenting on music, sound, or anything else.
I missed that comment the first go 'round. Wow! I don't know WHAT to say!!! That degree of ignorance is beyond description.
"Man is the only animal that blushes - or needs to" Mark Twain
N/T
"I always play jazz records backwards, they sound better that way"
-Thomas Edison
who can still legally write a check. for 100k music should come out of your ass.
"I tried my damndest to “listen through” to the turntable itself. "What a strange thing to say.
Only subjectivists could think that you can listen through a system and abstract all the rest to hear the source.
"Only subjectivists could think that you can listen through a system and abstract all the rest to hear the source."Basically focused on the downstream system based on his original sources, not realizing that it may have ended up being a "synergy" with that particular source, where a better source would likely not provide such effect.
It also illustrates that in audio, merely throwing $$$ into a system often does not achieve satisfaction. The most-dissatisfied audiophiles I know personally all own systems whose retail price add up to over fifty grand. (I've also come to the realization that the driving force behind tweaks is the need to tailor the sound to make the expenditure seem worthwhile.)
This is why I think getting the source down first is paramount. It is amazing how the downstream portion of a system can be optimized in a cost-effective manner with a good source. And the resultant satisfaction is lot higher as well.
Amen!!
"Man is the only animal that blushes - or needs to" Mark Twain
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