It has become clear to me that some people, like Robyn Wyatt of Robyatt, are having way too much fun at these audio shows.
Yes, I know — they’re a dreadful amount of work. The hauling, the setting up, the long hours, and the interminable questions from media jackasses (that would be me) — all that conspires to put a not inconsiderable amount of pressure on an exhibitor. And some folks fold under that. Some, like Wyatt, seem to revel in it.
The last time I ran across him (I think it was the last time), he was showing off a pair of reconditioned Quads — and stole the bloody show by pairing those beautiful loudspeakers with some OTL amps. Wow, that was hot.
While nothing is as sexy as a pair of vintage loudspeakers, I’ll be damned if he didn’t give himself a run for his own money with a pair of stand-mount horns from dc10audio, the $6,500/pair Berlin:
The Berlin features an 11-inch hand-turned solid Maple horn loaded with our 1-inch textile dome tweeter. The horn-loaded tweeter also serves as the port (an exclusive innovation).
- Exclusive horn-loaded tweeter doubling as bass-reflex port
- Exclusive internal tonewood resonator — the “Instrument”
- Solid one-piece Sapele baffle set in semi-suspension
- Shortest path internal wiring
- 7-inch high-impact carbon fiber composite wide-range driver
- Hybrid crossover (no sound-depleting circuit boards)
- Frequency response: 35 Hz-25,000 Hz
- Sensitivity: estimated 95 dB
- Impedance: 8 ohms
- Size: 19″ high x 11″ wide x 16.5″ deep each
- Weight: 36 lbs each
A Tektron TK2A3/45S-I-REF integrated, which can support both 2a3 or 45 tubes to produce a whopping way-less-than-a-handful of output watts, ran the demo with surprising authority. This never fails to amaze me — 2 watts and concert-level audio? That’s not supposed to happen … yet … there it was.
A Tektron TKPREMM phono stage with Miyajima step-up transformers fronted that amp. A honking big $10,000 dual-arm VPI Classic 4 turntable spun smartly in the center of the setup.
Tel Wire cabling was used throughout.
- Miyajima Labs Kansui Stereo Cartridge: $3,600
- Miyajima Labs Shilabe Stereo Cartridge: $2,995
- Miyajima Labs Zero Mono Cartridge: $1,995
- Miyajima Labs Premium Mono BEII Cartridge: $1,260
- Miyajima Labs KSW Stereo Step-Up Transformer w/demag: $2,475
- Miyajima Labs ETR Mono Mono Step-Up Transformer w/variable loading: $1,995
- Tektron Italia TK 2A3 integrated amplifier without output tubes: $3,950
- Tektron Italia TK Phono Stereo: $1,925
- Tektron Italia TK Phono Mono: $1,625
I appreciated the hard work that Robin displayed in his room. I sat for quite awhile, being though the Berlin spkrs were on my short list to check out. (1st time at the RMAF) I couldn’t get a handle on them, as far as being a speaker that would surplant my favorites. (Mod Quad esl57, PTE Phoenix, Avant Garde duo’s, etc) The charm of the aforementioned spkrs is very hard to surplant. He is a fun guy…