The Sound
I listened to the M2.2s with a Yamaha SACD player,
McCormack CD transport and DAC, BAT VK-5i preamplifier, Lexicon MC-12B SSP,
Final Sound electrostatic speakers, and Carver Amazing Mark IV ribbon
speakers. Cables were Nordost. I used the XLR balanced inputs on the M2.2s.
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The "Fanfare" to Dukas' La Peri
has some wonderful brass sequences. What I listen for is the
separation of trumpets from the trombones, which the Lamm M2.2s
easily performed.
In the Second Movement, the
introduction has violins playing very, very softly, extremely
delicate. The quiet background of the M2.2s let that come through
clearly.
Muted trumpets vs. violins. Another
item that is difficult for some amplifiers, but not the M2.2s. Even
the triangle was clear in the midst of the brass and strings. |
This incredible SACD has become one of my favorite discs.
It has a combination of electronic music and percussion that is very
intricate.
It was not too intricate for the M2.2s. Keyboard was easily
distinguishable from percussive instruments. |
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The sound track to Gettysburg is a
great disc to listen to as well as use for testing, in part because
the violins are electronic, so they are incredibly crisp.
The M2.2s gave a terrific presentation
of the strings, but also kept the snare drums distinct in the full
orchestra swell. |
This is one of the few recordings out there which have a warning on
the label about the sound intensity, in this case, digital cannons.
It was clear to me that the M2.2s put out far more than their rated
power in transient demands such as the cannons in the climactic
moments of this piece. |
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This new SACD of the Jaco Pastorious
Big Band, The Word is Out (Heads Up HUSA 9110) has a lot of musicians playing fast
and furious.
The flute and trumpet were
distinguishable, the tick of the cymbals was clear, and apparently
the saxophone player needed to clear his spit valve. |
Sarah Chang plays Shostakovich and Prokofiev in this new EMI
Classics CD (0946-3-46053-2-8).
In the Prokofiev piece, opening, Andante, the soft violins are so
quiet, it takes a fine amplifier like the M2.2 to make them
palpable. |
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The M2.2 amplifiers made the transients
so clear, I think that if I had the expertise, I would have been
able to tell what kind of violin Biondi was playing, compared to
Sarah Chang.
The sound was so real, I found myself
trying to analyze the differences in the way these two violin masters
attack the strings.
So, the M2.2s were giving me the
experience of the music, but also the musician and the instrument.
The CD is Virgin Classics
0946-3-44706-2-9. |
Having played trombone in the high school band, I heard sounds of
instruments near where I sat that I don't usually hear in
recordings, but this is the first time I heard the click of keys on
clarinets in an orchestral CD.
In part, that is the speed of Class A operation.
EMI Classics 094634-34242-1. |
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The music was never fatiguing with
all this detail, because it was detail that was actually in the recording,
not an artificial edge that you hear with some amplifiers that use too much
negative feedback (in fact, the M2.2 does not use any global negative
feedback).
I listened for hours and hours on end. The timbre was
correct as well, with no emphasis on any particular region of the audible
spectrum. You can see why in the Bench Tests, where the THD+N vs. Frequency
graph shows that distortion remains relatively constant throughout all frequencies.
Click Here to Go to Part IV.
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