Launched with the 371 all-in-one model, the Compass line from Canadian manufacturer Moon (by Simaudio) is now expanding with two new additions.
Simply put, the two new components take the elements of the 371 model and improve upon them by separating them into two chassis. On one side, we find a stereo power amplifier, the 461; on the other, a network player, DAC, and preamplifier, the 491.
461 Power Amplifier
While the integrated all-in-one model delivers 100 W per channel into 8 Ω, the 461 amplifier demonstrates its superiority with an output of 2 x 150 W into the same impedance, which doubles to 2 x 300 W into 4 Ω.
As a pure power amplifier, the Moon 461 can also be bridged to deliver its full power on a single channel, reaching up to 450 W at 8 Ω. The heart of the Class AB amplification is derived from the high-end North series, featuring an MDCA (MOON Distortion-Cancelling Amplifier) module designed to reduce distortion. This is combined with two MOON Hybrid Power modules, in an overall dual-mono configuration.
To connect it to an analog preamplifier or a server with digital volume control, the 461 features a pair of RCA inputs and a pair of XLR inputs—the latter being the preferred option given the product’s design. Bi-amping is also possible instead of bridging, selectable via a three-position switch on the rear panel. When bridged, only the red (+) speaker terminals should be used to connect the speakers.
As always with Moon, the front panel can feature micro-beaded gray aluminum reinforcements around the front display; these can also be selected in black to make the product entirely black. The price is three-quarters that of the Moon 371, which means 5 200 € (5 000 USD / 6 800 CAD)
491 Preamplifier-DAC-Network Player
As the ideal companion to the 461, the 491 enhances the source, headphone amplification, and preamplification features found in the 371.
For network playback, the device uses the manufacturer’s proprietary MIND 2 platform, which also supports multiroom functionality. Compatible with most protocols, it supports UPnP, Roon Ready, and AirPlay, and also features a Bluetooth chip for quick connections.
While the network card can be connected via Wi-Fi or two RJ45 ports (MOONLink), and even via USB-C to read USB drives, the DAC surprisingly cannot be integrated via USB; however, it does offer modern HDMI eARC, in addition to the standard optical, AES/EBU, and coaxial S/PDIF inputs.
Its architecture is based on an ESS ES9039Q2M chip per channel and a high-precision clock.
On the analog side, there are three inputs: one balanced XLR and two unbalanced RCA. The XLR input also allows for connecting a turntable, thanks to a phono module compatible with MM and MC cartridges, adjustable for five impedances, four gain levels, and three capacitances. There are also three outputs: a pair of XLR terminals and two pairs of RCA terminals—one fixed and the other variable—plus a 6.35 mm headphone port on the front panel.
Also equipped with an MHP (MOON Hybrid Power) power supply and a large display—which allows you to manage settings and view the album art of streamed tracks—the Moon Compass 491 boasts a signal-to-noise ratio of 120 dB and a harmonic distortion rate of 0.0004%. These figures, which are better than those of the 371 (108 dB & 0.003%), demonstrate the even greater refinement of this separate component, which is also priced at the same level, namely 6 800 € (6 500 USD / 8 800 CAD).
The first units are expected to be available by the end of June.
Founded in 2016, B.Audio is still run from Saint-Hippolyte by Sébastien and Cédric Bermann. After making a name for itself with its very first DAC, the Haut-Rhin-based manufacturer expanded its product line by creating a more affordable series called One, which included a DAC that could be paired with a preamp section and a network card, followed by a power amplifier. Today, the combination of these devices makes it possible to introduce a groundbreaking all-in-one unit—a combination of a DAC, preamplifier, and network player with an amplification section—to create the B.Audio Alpha One. Self-contained, this device simply needs to be connected to a pair of speakers to enjoy its full finesse and purity of sound.
As streamlined versions of the B.Dac and B.Dpr, the B.Dac One and B.Dpr One are only slightly less robust in terms of their power supplies and a few components, delivering approximately 85% of the performance of the Reference line at a price about 35% lower. Offering some of the best value for money in the very high-end segment, the products in B.Audio’s One series subsequently expanded into amplification with the B.Amp One power amplifier, directly derived from the B.Amp Reference stereo amplifier (switchable to mono), with a later B.Amp Mono version further refining the design.
B.DPR ONE EX + B.AMP = B.AUDIO ALPHA ONE
Released very recently, two years behind the initial schedule—such was the extent of the development efforts to create the best possible product—the Alpha One is the latest addition from the Haut-Rhin-based brand and combines all the features of the aforementioned models.
In a chassis with an anodized aluminum front panel that remains as sleek as ever, slightly redesigned to accommodate more control buttons, this new all-in-one combines the B.Dpr One Ex player-preamplifier with a B.Amp stereo power amplifier, the latter slightly scaled down to fit within a width of 45 cm, a depth of 39.5 cm, and, most importantly, a height of just 10.2 cm.
ANALOG AMPLIFICATION AND PREAMP
Based on IOD (Intelligent Output Drive) technology, designed to minimize the crossover distortion typically found in Class AB output stages, the amplification circuit follows the B.Amp design with Class A transistors—four rather than six to achieve greater compactness—positioned between the voltage gain stage and the output transistors. To also limit feedback, particularly return currents from the speakers, local loops are integrated, combined with a high output impedance relative to the preceding stages to maintain high linearity in the output stage’s operation.
For the preamplification stage, the technology is identical to that of a B.Dpr One: a perfectly symmetrical stage without a coupling capacitor, in which the ASP (Analog Symmetrical Preamplifiers) patent allows for the addition of a circuit outside the signal path, featuring four discrete resistor networks (compared to six in the Reference series) switched by relays; one network for each positive and negative point per channel.
To allow for the integration of unbalanced sources, active balancing is incorporated before the input selection stage; this enables the addition of two pairs of RCA terminals on the rear panel in addition to the balanced XLR pair, which serves as a reference given the Alpha One’s dual-mono preamplification structure. To further limit interference, the entire analog section is powered by a large toroidal transformer, while the second, smaller transformer from Talema powers all the digital sections.
DIGITAL BOARDS
Already well-known for its DACs, the digital-to-analog conversion section stands out not so much for the conversion itself—which is based on a DSP chip whose algorithms have been refined over several years by Cédric Bermann—but for its proprietary jitter elimination technology.
Called SJR (Source Jitter Removal), this technical patent builds on existing technology and combines the use of PPL phase-locked loops with proven oversampling technology, while allowing the source data retrieved by a control algorithm to remain intact, while generating a clock signal decoupled from the input signal, designed to directly drive the D/A conversion before the analog signal is sent to the output stage. This has the advantage of never being affected by source jitter and allowing the output signal to be maximally purified by the clock, resulting in a more supple and airy sound.
Integrated since the EX versions, a network playback card benefits from the same clock processing, allowing the B.Audio Alpha One to connect directly to the Internet via an RJ45 port, through which data can be transmitted with a sampling quality of up to—as with USB audio—PCM 384 kHz, DXD, and DSD256.
The standard optical inputs (two of each), SPDIF, and AES/EBU allow playback of files up to 24-bit/96 kHz PCM for the former and 24-bit/192 kHz for the latter. With just one fewer coaxial input than the B.Dpr One EX, the Alpha One retains a USB Data input for connecting external hard drives, and loses the pair of RCA terminals on the analog output, keeping only the balanced XLR output. The need to route the signal to a power amplifier is becoming almost obsolete anyway, since amplification is inherently integrated into the all-in-one unit.
USE OF THE B.AUDIO ALPHA ONE
Unveiled at the 2023 Munich High-End Show alongside the new Dyptique panels, the Alpha One was recently tested on one of our reference systems for several weeks before being put through its paces with amplification-hungry speakers such as the ATC SMC50 PSLT and the EgglestonWorks Andra III at Concert Home.
Used primarily as an all-in-one system via its digital network player, it was also successfully paired with the CH-Précision P1 phono preamp, with which it shares a genuine philosophical alignment regarding sound neutrality and purity, and was compared in its digital-to-analog conversion capabilities to the Idéon Ayazi MKII and Mark Levinson 5101. The preamplifier section was also connected via XLR outputs to Accuphase (Class A) and Spec (Class D) amplifiers. However, the fact that we did not have a B.Amp One available at the same time prevented us from testing bi-amping, although the gain and output power of this unit are the same as those of the Alpha One, allowing them to be paired if necessary.
THE SOUND OF THE B.AUDIO ALPHA ONE
Typical of the B.Audio sound, the Alpha One is a synthesis of what the Bermann brothers have managed to create in less than ten years. As always, the benchmark digital-to-analog conversion of the B.Dac One is integrated here into a device that does everything—and does it all extremely well.
Initially connected to compact speakers, the all-in-one device from Alsace demonstrated its flexibility along with great purity, perfect for rendering all the clarity and detail of the violin sections in the opening of “La Nuit” from Richard Strauss’s Alpensinfonie (Thielemann’s version with the Vienna Philharmonic, DG) or to hear the Berlin Philharmonic’s decay down to the very last note in György Kurtág’s “Stele” (Abbado’s version, DG) for even longer than at the Berlin Philharmonie a few days earlier with Kirill Petrenko.
Very well defined but without being overly sharp, the textures unfold with tonal nuances consistently well-highlighted, benefiting almost as much from the Qobuz Hi-Res files streamed via Audirvana as from HD files sourced from an external hard drive connected via USB.
The very airy soundstage does not appear dark as with other converters, but rather a perfectly pure whiteness, which gives it a volume ready to expand as soon as the musical masses grow. With grand operas, but also noticeable on an album by Drake or The Weeknd, the bass explodes with great control at the lower end, without ever spilling over.
Even more impressive is the amplification, which we knew was limited compared to that of a B. Amp One, however, proves more than sufficient for very large speakers, such as the ATC SCM50—which are notoriously difficult to drive—or even better with the Eggleston Works Andra III, which, under the Alpha One, maintain a surprising fluidity alongside control across the entire spectrum, with excellent handling of each register across the various drivers.
Equally interesting, the pairing with the CH.Precision P1 phono preamp proved to be an unexpected match, as this Swiss device, much like the Alsatian all-in-one, strives to excel as much as possible in the neutrality and purity of the musical signal’s reproduction.
OUR CONCLUSION
Seven years after the founding of B.Audio and the release of the brand’s first DAC, Cédric and Sébastien Bermann have once again made a major impact with their first all-in-one, the Alpha One, for which it would be difficult to find a competitor as pure and refined in this price range.
Still a benchmark in terms of conversion and the quality of its resistor-relay preamplification, this model—directly derived from the B.Dpr One EX—manages to pack amplification comparable to that of the B.Amp One into a chassis that hasn’t been enlarged. With the same signal-processing technologies and a Class AB output power of 2 x 120 W into 8 ohms, the Alpha One is more than sufficient for high-sensitivity speakers, to which it delivers a sound that is consistently refined while being beautifully smoothed by every stage of the signal chain.
At €15,990, this all-in-one system is certainly not for everyone, but it easily replaces a source-amp pair in the same price range or higher, while also eliminating the need for any interconnect cables and serving as a NAS with the simple addition of an external hard drive. Discreet thanks to its modest height and refined by its design and anodized aluminum front panel, it will blend seamlessly into any environment to deliver a listening experience that is consistently ethereal and remarkably luminous.
Author(s): Vincent Guillemin
Technical Sheet: B.Audio Alpha One
Origin: France
Price: €12,200
Dimensions: 255 x 1000 x 265 mm
Weight: 18 kg
Frequency Response: 40 Hz to 30 kHz
Sensitivity: 86 dB
Country of Origin: France
Price: €15,990
Dimensions: 450 x 395 x 102 mm
Weight: 15 kg
Output power
120 W into 8 ohms
200 W into 4 ohms
Audio inputs and outputs: 1 x XLR; 2 x RCA; 1 x SPDIF; 2 x Toslink; 1 x AES/EBU; 1 x USB Type B; 1 x RJ45; 1 x USB DATA
Recently acquired by CH Precision, Wattson Audio had not yet been tested by us. But rather than starting with the new Madison LE Amplifier power amplifier, unveiled last May in Munich, we decided to go back to the company’s basics: its streamers. The smaller of the two ranges and available in analog or digital versions, the Wattson Audio Emerson Digital, despite its compact case, demonstrates all the finesse and purity of reproduction that have made the Swiss brand’s reputation.
Having entered the market with two series of network players, Wattson Audio is now expanding its catalog with a stereo power amplifier that can be bridged to create a mono amplifier for even greater power and drastic channel separation. Called the Madison LE Amplifier, this device joins the Madison series, which already includes the Streamer and Streamer LE, the latter enhanced with even better components.
Below this, the Emerson series offers two versions of network players: the first has a DAC and Leedh Processing digital volume control for exclusive RCA output to an integrated amplifier; the other is purely digital and offers only two outputs to connect to a DAC.
Integrated into the same solid black or silver aluminum chassis, entirely handmade in Switzerland and sold at the same price of €1,750, the Emerson Analog and Digital also use the same network playback architecture, based on a Sitara ARM processor developed by Texas Instruments—a version that does not support USB, which is currently absent from all Wattson products.
For this test, and in anticipation of an upcoming review of the Madison range (which only includes DACs), we chose to focus on the Digital version of the Emerson. And while the identical price of the two models may come as a surprise, it is justified in this version without DAC by the quality of the digital circuit, purified to the maximum on the coaxial S/PDIF RCA (75 Ω) output and the AES/EBU XLR (100 Ω) output; both synchronized by the main clock and isolated by two wideband RF transformers.
On the other side, a carefully chosen connector (PulseJack) allows the small Wattson to be connected to the Internet, necessarily via this 100 Mbit/s RJ45 Ethernet connection, as Wi-Fi is not yet supported. On the same side, a final connection links the device to an external medical-grade power supply, as the Emerson’s power supply circuit is designed to achieve infinitesimal noise levels (<1 µV RMS 10 Hz-100 kHz).
In order to make the signal as reliable as possible, this little Wattson (10.4 cm long, 8.7 cm wide, 3.8 cm high, and weighing only 371 g) already uses bit-perfect technology thanks to two alternately operating oscillators and ultra-low jitter (<-135 dBc/Hz at 100 Hz and <50 fs RMS), with active clock synchronization at sampling rates up to 24-bit 192 kHz PCM.
To manage music and settings, Wattson Audio has developed an app for Android that is used solely for configuration, which becomes a true control app on Apple iOS by adding streaming—also possible with AirPlay. Development is underway to enable streaming on Android, which can currently be managed with any UPnP app, such as MConnect or BubbleUPnP.
Audirvana is also a recommended partner, or simply Roon, since the Emerson is Roon Ready, as well as Tidal Connect and soon Qobuz Connect, these two music platforms being the only two selected on the proprietary Wattson Audio app, along with Tuneln for radio.
THE SETUP OF THE WATTSON AUDIO EMERSON DIGITAL
First connected via coaxial cable to our Mark Levinson 5101 and Atoll ST300 streamer-DACs, the little Swiss Emerson was then paired with Ferrum Audio’s Polish Wandla DAC, via AES/EBU and S/PDIF, for a near-perfect match.
Purely digital and without a USB output, it only allows you to go up to 192 kHz, but that’s more than enough to enjoy high-quality, perfectly timed Hi-Res streaming, the purity of which allows this little Swiss player to be integrated into mid-range and high-end systems. Improving the Ethernet cable in particular enhances the speed or substance of the sound, depending on the brand.
THE SOUND OF THE WATTSON AUDIO EMERSON DIGITAL
Compared to the network playback section of our Mark Levinson, which usually requires products costing around €3,000 to be surpassed, the Emerson Digital, at €1,750, already refines the rendering.
Slightly less direct, the sound is concentrated or rather refined, leaving a very open soundstage, which it illuminates particularly in the midrange. Even with 44.1 kHz files, the feeling of clarity and neutrality of the timbres is almost reminiscent of analog listening, with a rare fluidity considering the price range and size of the product.
Surprisingly, it was with the Wattson Audio mother app that we obtained the best results: this demonstrates how important the links between the hardware and software developers were in enabling data packets to be sent in the most ideal way possible, in order to maximize the flow.
Less shimmering than the midrange, the extreme registers are not to be outdone, especially the ever-silky treble, while the bass does not seek to overwhelm, but remains very well contained within the overall balance. This finesse still surpasses our reference streamer, while offering the same level of precision – as long as we stick to a 24-bit 192 kHz stream, since the Emerson Digital does not go any higher.
Note: it is possible to further improve the performance of this little Wattson by upgrading the separate power supply, which we experienced with the Ferrum Hypsos in a test with the Wandla GoldenSound Edition DAC in this issue.
OUR CONCLUSION
Released more than four years ago, the Emerson Digital has lost none of its appeal for listeners looking for a highly reliable and pure network transport. Without offering the versatility of many new entrants to the market, either in terms of connectivity (no USB or Wi-Fi), a front panel display, or its app (currently being updated), it clearly remains an absolute benchmark in its price range, surpassed only by products that are often at least twice as expensive.
Inspired by the spacecraft in 2001: A Space Odyssey, the Soulines Kubrick DCX features an all-aluminum base designed around the golden ratio and the Fibonacci sequence. Adaptable to a wide range of tonearms thanks to three interchangeable bases, this Serbian-made turntable is available in France with a Japanese tonearm that is particularly well suited, both in terms of its modern design and innovative technology: the Sorane SA-1.2, also made entirely of aluminum, giving it a fast and tight sound that is as neutral as possible in its tones.
SOULINES KUBRICK DCX: INTERSTELLAR SPACESHIP
With a background in mechanical engineering and parallel training as a conservatory musician, Serbian Igor Gligorov began designing turntables from recycled materials in 2009. Two years later, his research led him to create the Soulines brand, whose first product was released in 2011. Named Hermes DCX, this turntable, messenger of the gods, already featured very modern curves and introduced the 40 mm thick, 3.2 kg acrylic platter, which is now found on all models, including the Kubrick DCX.
Subsequently, Igor Gligorov developed other, even more complex approaches with the compact tt42, before returning to greater simplicity with the Elgar DCX (which bears a resemblance to a bicycle pump, like the Kuzma Stabi S), and finally launching a conventional rectangular turntable, the Dostoyevsky DCX, and another with a smaller base, the Satie DCX.
The Kubrick DCX is particularly successful, incorporating not only curved lines, but above all a structure directly derived from the golden ratio φ and the Fibonacci sequence, which allows the proportions considered ideal in the development of the base to be maintained at all times.
Discovered by the Pisan mathematician in the 12th century, this sequence consists of always adding the sum of the two previous numbers, i.e., 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5… resulting in a structure with exceptional resistance to vibration, making it useful in the construction of certain designs (Greek temples are derived from the golden ratio), with applications that are also valid in the world of hi-fi.
Made of multi-layer aluminum, the main base of the Kubrick DCX is coupled at three points with the secondary base, also made of aluminum. The entire turntable is finished in silver anodized aluminum, giving it an extremely refined look. Three interchangeable bases are supplied as standard, allowing the integration of SME 9″, Jelco or Rega/Origin Live/Audio Note tonearms.
Three support cones, whose proportions are also related to the golden ratio, are coupled to the main base by means of rubber-cork washers. Their screw thread allows the turntable to be aligned as perfectly as possible on the horizontal axis.
Integrated into a block made of stacked aluminum layers, the DC motor is connected to a small external power supply; Soulines does not yet offer an optional hyper-regulated power supply to further improve the already very precise rotation. As for the platter mentioned above, it is made of laminated acrylic and mounted on an inverted bearing machined from solid brass and stainless steel, with a Derlin stop plate. Always useful for protecting against dust, a modern-looking platter cover is included with the turntable.
SORANE SA-1.2: THE SPATIAL TONARMS
While many photos found on the internet show the Soulines with relatively conventional tonearms—those from Rega, for example—the kit offered in France by Delta Audio with the Sorane SA-1.2 tonearm seems to offer a particularly ideal combination, both to the eye and the ear. Meaning “spatial sound,” Sorane is a brand created by IT Industry, known in the industry for manufacturing Ikeda Sound Labs tonearms and recently developed with the help of Mr. Hiroshi San, whom we interviewed in 2023, notably to talk about Hana cartridges.
Presented with its TA-1 “S” tonearm coupled with the Transrotor ZET-1 turntable in our VUmètre n°49, this innovative brand sought other design solutions that led to the 12“ square tube tonearm, the ZA-12, and then to a ”J” tonearm, also carved from aluminum.
Particularly suited to cartridges with medium to low compliance, the SA-1.2 is available in an even more advanced version called BCS, which further improves the internal wiring and adds a negative counterweight to the positive counterweight. For our test, we used the classic version, sold in Europe for €2,150, which offers the advantage of a radial bearing, a weight placed on the front of the arm, making it very easy to control, and anti-skating that can be easily adjusted using the side knob.
At the other end, an SME shell also simplifies the mounting of one or more cartridges according to individual needs, while the base can be chosen at the time of ordering to fit directly with Rega, SME, Clearaudio, or Linn models.
THE SETUP OF THE SOULINES KUBRICK DCX & SORANE SA-1.2
Very easy to assemble, the Kubrick DCX turntable only requires screwing in its counterweights and the base chosen from the three available to integrate the arm. All that remains is to adjust the 3.2 kg platter on the spindle, then slide a thin silicone belt around it, which is also inserted into the motor block rotation. The turntable is connected to the mains via the external power supply provided.
The Sorane tonearm is also supplied pre-assembled, with only the rear counterweight to be screwed on, as well as the SME shell, on which we successively adjusted the Hana ML, Nagaoka MP-200 & MP-500 cartridges to check the response of the Soulines-Sorane combination with MM and MC cartridges.
The 5-PIN tonearm cable loaned to us for our test, which is integrated under the tonearm base, matched perfectly with the rest of our cabling, as we used an Esprit Aura G9 model, in line with our HP and modulation cables. For phono preamplification, we chose to go directly through the dedicated tubes of the Luxman CL-38uC when listening to the Hana ML, and through the Kora Phono with the MM cartridges.
Once calibrated with a small scale and adjusted with the Sorane’s protractor, adapted to its unconventional 9.4″ length and J-shape, we were able to listen to our black discs with and without the cork mat (which we quickly decided to keep), and we always used the tt-Clamp (available as an optional extra) to secure the disc to the platter.
THE SOUND OF THE SOULINES KUBRICK DCX & SORANE SA-1.2
Modern in appearance, the Soulines Kubrick DCX is also modern in sound. Manufactured like an aerospace vessel to absorb and dissipate vibrations caused by rotation as effectively as possible, this Serbian turntable provides rock-solid stability, concentrating the sound with tension, somewhat in line with the philosophy of certain Vertere models.
In perfect harmony, the Sorane arm also dissipates all vibrations to provide excellent bass response, almost bouncy on certain masterings, again with a speed and tension that almost make our Hana ML (MC) cartridge sound like a nimble MM.
Very well separated, the left and right channels bring out a wealth of information, with the best analog pressings standing out with details usually only perceptible in digital listening on DSD files. On the other hand, this raw rendering has a slight tendency to accentuate the high frequencies, slightly noticeable with the Hana ML and even more so with the very dynamic Nagaoka MP-500.
The midrange, which is also fast, is impressively neutral, and while some listeners may prefer more substance, upgrading the phono preamp compensates for this, restoring the silkiness often expected from analog listening.
Reflecting its build quality and design, the Soulines Kubrick DCX is a modern turntable that delivers impressive results with modern music. Even more so than Marvin Gaye’s soul, you can enjoy the full impact of the electronic bass in the R&B music of Tyler and Kendrick Lamar, or the dynamics of Adele’s vinyl records (very well pressed and mastered depending on the source).
Jazz and classical music (Holst’s The Planets by Mehta/Decca or Richard Strauss’s Also Sprach Zarathustra by Karajan/DG, in homage to Kubrick’s film) benefit from the neutrality of the timbres, with a rendering that always focuses on energy and contrasts rather than softness. Because even if some people tend to forget it, this is above all an analog listening experience: a tense sound with dynamic ranges far superior to those compressed by the size of digital files played from CDs, further diminished since then by MP3s.
OUR CONCLUSION
Modern in style and spirit, the Soulines Kubrick DCX is also modern in sound, demonstrating through the neutrality of its timbres and the roundness of its bass that the aluminum base is stable and not subject to vibration effects.
Ingeniously designed by engineer Igor Grigolov, this €5,000 turntable is ideally suited to the design and musical philosophy of the Sorane SA-1.2 tonearm, with which it forms a pair costing around €7,000, to which you still need to add a cartridge, recommended from the Hana ML or Nagaoka MP-500 range (around €1,000), or even higher-end models, which are perfectly suited to the low compliance of the Japanese tonearm. With such a spaceship, you’ll be ready for a musical leap into space.
Founded in the United States in 2002 with the aim of creating very high-fidelity speaker models, YG Acoustics had remained relatively unknown in France.
At the start of this year, it is taking advantage of a new distribution network to regain the upper hand, especially as it now offers a new range that is more affordable than the Reference. Named YG Acoustics Peak Ascent in homage to the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, this new series of six models starts with two compact speakers, a subwoofer, and three floorstanding speakers, of which we are testing the mid-range, a magnificent three-way model called Ascent.
Since its inception, YGAcoustics has been known as a benchmark brand, a name given to its first series of speakers made entirely from aerospace-grade aluminum for the cabinet and drivers. Amplification and network data management were then used to modify three models in this series to create the Live range, consisting of the Vantage 3, Sonja 3, and XX in active versions.
But while a few subwoofers had been added to the Colorado-based manufacturer’s product line, including the highly innovative Invincible 21.1 & 21.2, there were no bookshelf speakers in its catalog, and all models remained firmly positioned in the ultra-high-fidelity market due to their price points.
MOUNTAIN JOURNEY
It wasn’t until 2022 that the brand shook up its fundamentals by launching a new, more affordable series consisting of two compact speakers, in addition to three floorstanding speakers and a subwoofer. Named YG Acoustics Peak Ascent in homage to the Rocky Mountains in Colorado National Park, not far from the company’s headquarters, this series consists solely of names referring to mountains.
Smaller and designed with specially made stands, the two bookshelf speakers are named after rock formations: the smaller one after a pile of stacked stones (Cairn) and the second after a naturally formed rock (Tor). YG then takes us up with its three two-way (Talus) and three-way (Ascent) floorstanding speakers, to an even more ultimate final version (Summit), from which we can still descend if necessary thanks to a subwoofer (Descent).
ASCENT TO ELBERT
On this journey to Colorado’s highest mountain—Elbert, at 4,399 m, located just under 130 km from YG’s headquarters in the suburbs of Denver— we were able to choose several passages before settling on this ascent on the Ascent, with the firm intention of one day checking out the extra echo of the Summit, or comparing the two smaller models, equally curious to stray for a while onto the Reference series with its Carmel 3 if the opportunity arises.
A center floorstanding speaker, the Ascent is a Talus with a bass driver added, so that only its midrange driver is dedicated to the midrange. Like all the other models in the range, this speaker is manufactured in a sealed cabinet made of dense, one-inch-thick resin fibers, dotted with reinforcements and acoustic absorbers to eliminate the vast majority of internal reflections and resonances.
The thick aluminum front panel is shaped by computer modeling into more than 15 million points and then cut by CNC machine.
Comprising three drivers, the Ascent features the same ForgeCore tweeter found in all Peaks series speakers. Based on steel forging technology optimized by 3D geometry with CNC cutting, these high-frequency management units with magnetic motor systems stand out from the Reference series Lattice speakers, which are made from aluminum billet.
However, all other diaphragms are the same as those in YG’s large series, patented BilletCore because they are cut from a solid billet of aerospace aluminum alloy to create a 0.2 mm thick cone weighing less than 30 g. To perfect the precision of the responses, these diaphragms are integrated into the front panel, again making extensive use of computer modeling, which analyzes not only the cone, but also the surround, the suspension, the interaction of the magnet and the voice coil, and even the different air waves depending on the lacquer used.
Leaving nothing to chance, the engineers, led by Matthew Webster, chose to place the filter in the soft aluminum base to remove all internal pressure from the cabinet and leave its components completely free.
Also the result of many hours of research, the circuits are designed to optimize amplitude, phase, and phase curve so that the drive units are consistent with each other over a very wide frequency range, with the result that all the speakers are synchronized in their movements, thus avoiding any auditory disturbance related to possible delays between membranes.
Like all Peaks starting with the Tor, and therefore like the Talus column with which it shares height (101.5 cm) and width (27 cm), the Ascent features an 18 cm (7.25″) membrane in the center, but this is only used to handle mid-range frequencies, as the bass is handled by a third speaker, located at the bottom of the cabinet at a critical distance of more than 10 cm from the base in which the filter is located.
Measuring 22 cm (8.75“), this latter driver is the main difference between the Ascent and the Summit, with its 26 cm (10.25”) bass driver, but above all with the Talus, which does not have this third driver at all. Available with ebony, oak, or rosewood veneer, the Ascent weighs 54 kg each, well supported by four superb spiked feet.
THE SETUP OF THE YG ACOUSTICS PEAK ASCENT
With a sensitivity of 90 dB and an average impedance of 4 ohms, the Ascents are relatively easy to amplify, but their design and pursuit of neutrality place them in a category that requires high-quality upstream components if you want to get the most out of them. Responsive to the slightest change, they can highlight the smallest detail, and for this reason, a source such as an Aurender N20 or N30SA or the Luxman NT-07 network player tested in this issue will allow the YG to reproduce every nuance of frequency and music.
Available from Concert Home in Paris—our partner Music Hall has chosen to include the Reference range—the Ascent speakers were tested alongside the first Cairn compact and other American speakers such as the EgglestonWorks Emma and Andra III SE. To amplify them, we preferred the results of the Accuphase E-5000 and Wavac MD-805m blocks, but separate Accuphase components could bring out even more detail, which we will attempt to confirm in a future test at Music Hall with the Carmel III.
THE SOUND OF THE YG ACOUSTICS PEAK ASCENT
When listening to a speaker from the Peaks series, two things immediately become apparent, making it clear that we are listening to YG Acoustics models: the first is that this small series makes no compromises in terms of quality; the second is that these are American speakers, with the musical philosophy that goes with them.
To elaborate on these points, let’s start with the first: even though the tweeter is no longer the Lattice from the Reference series, the ForgeCore design allows for a high-frequency response up to 40 kHz, which, while it can create a hint of acidity in the very high frequencies, otherwise covers this entire range with the slightest detail. For the rest of the sound spectrum, the BilletCore speakers, with their aluminum diaphragms, deliver perfectly neutral detail and nuance, which immediately places these models at the very top of the range.
Less directive than the Cairns—the only ones without a 7.25“ speaker, as theirs is actually 6”—the Ascents are also much more open, both in width and depth, but also impressively in height. This is undoubtedly due to their base, inspired by the Rocky Mountains, but listening to them gives you a real impression of altitude, capable of taking you very high. The summit targeted by the speaker of the same name is not far off with the Ascent,
which loses only 2 Hz in the lower range compared to the highest, covering a bass range from 26 Hz, while the Talus, still a two-way speaker, already descends to 32 Hz.
To return to our second point, the Ascent is very much like an American speaker in that it aims for versatility in musical styles and a neutrality of tone that is sometimes close to studio listening. Thus, on “City of Stars” from La La Land, we are less under the impression that Ryan Gosling is right in front of us, since it is clear that the actor’s voice has been retouched by a mixing console, but rather that he is just behind the glass, allowing us to enjoy the studio experience a few meters away, once all the parameters have been optimized.
Every instrument behind him is audible, down to the slightest sensitivity of the strings (guitar) or keyboard (piano), while every movement of his lips, tongue, or breath is audible.
With real singers like Abbey Lincoln, whose voice is wonderfully enhanced by the Luxman streamer upstream, the same sensations of participating live in the recording and hearing the slightest detail come through, while with rock music, we are simply lulled by the electric guitars, as if we were in the recording studio or right in front of the stage listening to the live performance.
As for trying out a large orchestra, we realized the superiority of the reproduction when we upgraded the amplification, as the Ascent can undoubtedly go even further and take us even higher with systems that are more advanced than those used for our test. Here again, with flawless precision, the detail of the great polyphonic works also benefited from a pure image thanks to research on phase curves, in addition to taking advantage of the Ascent’s three-way design and the center speaker used only for the midrange, to deliver every part of the spectrum with the same clarity.
OUR CONCLUSION
Created to offer reference sound, YG Acoustics has carved out a place for itself in the high-fidelity market over the last twenty years, without being affordable for a large number of music lovers. With the new Peaks series, the dream can now become a reality for a less restricted group of enthusiasts, for whom the €11,900 Cairn is a possibility.
At €27,990, the Ascent speakers are close to the price of the Carmel III speakers from the Reference series, but they have three channels and a large 26 cm (10.25″) woofer. These American speakers, which are finally available in France, are extremely neutral and allow you to travel for hours on end in the heights sought after by the Colorado engineers, taking you on a musical journey from your living room to the most sumptuous mountains.
