Re: CD-програвач AMC CD6b / 30-10-2009 12:07
Price: CD6b-MD5404as, $899; CD6b, $699
Source: Manufacturer loan
Reviewers: Tom Lyle and Karl W. Nehring
Regardless of present-day opinion, history will remember AMC as the manufacturer of two classic American automobiles: the Gremlin and the Pacer. At present, these historic American Motors Corporation cars are maligned; consequently, their surviving numbers are small. They will surely be a sought after collectors item in years to come. It`s great to see that AMC has branched out into making audio equipment. I hope they have good fortune with this endeavor.
OK, back to reality. Sorry.
AMC products by Weltronics have been reviewed in these pages before, and their reputation precedes them. They are regarded as being well made, good sounding, and more than reasonably priced.
The subject of my review is a player that has a couple of features that set it apart from many other units costing under $1,000. First, it has both balanced and unbalanced audio outputs, which AMC says are provided for flexibility. Second, and more important, the AMC CD6b-MD5404as is essentially an upgraded standard CD6b fitted with an additional analog output stage that uses vacuum tubes operating in class A.
AMC says that the CD6b-MD5404as (as well as the standard CD6b reviewed below by KWN) has a drive system that incorporates a sophisticated servo system that controls the spindle, tracking, and slew motors to ensure constantrate data retrieval and unsurpassed tracking performance. The company goes on to say that its transport mechanism is teamed with four high-quality Burr-Brown Digital to Analog converters arranged in a unique "Quad-DAC" configuration. These 24-bit, 96 kHz DACs are touted as highly revealing. The four DACs, two per channel, operate in balanced mode via digital phase inversion resulting in cancellation of phase coherent aliasing and elimination of errors in linearity. AMC says that this means ultra-quiet playback, significantly improved signal-to-noise ration, increased dynamic range, and exceptional sound quality. The player also has a 5-pole linear active low-pass filter that prevents interference from the ultrasonic noise that AMC says is commonly found in other CD players.
On the rear panel is a coaxial digital output that is fitted with a BNC connector rather than the standard RCA jack. An adapter can be purchased from Radio Shack for just a few dollars if one wishes to use RCA connections for extracting digital data. A Toslink optical outlet is also on its rear panel. Also on the rear panel are balanced outputs along with the more common unbalanced RCA jacks. The power cord is attached to the chassis.
Rather than use tubes sourced from Eastern European or Russian manufacturers, AMC has fitted the MD5404as version of the 6b with the Phillips NOS (New Old Stock) military spec 12AU7 (5814A) tubes. There isn`t much information about the tubes in the manual, but one should rest easy. I had no trouble opening the cabinet, removing, and reinstalling the two tubes. Moreover, these are fairly common and not expensive tubes to replace. I`ve seen this make of tube on sale for less than ten dollars each.
I auditioned the AMC in a system has remained unchanged since my last review other than a couple of small changes. I now have the front-end`s AC plugged in to the very effective PS Audio Power Plant P300. The turntable is still my modified Oracle Delphi, but it now sports a Benz-Micro H2.0 cartridge mounted on the Wheaton Triplaner VI tonearm. The preamplifier is a conrad-johnson PV12a, the power amp a Krell KAV-250a, and speakers Legacy Classics. CDs are played on a Meridian 200 transport connected to a Meridian 263 DAC.
I used the AMC in my system for quite some time without performing any serious listening tests, and I had no complaints. As far as its ease of use is concerned, when not using a remote control I preferred it to my Meridian. The Meridian is getting a bit old, 1995 vintage I think. Meridian has come a long way in the ergonomics department, but this older player is a pain in the neck to use when not using its remote. For me, sound quality is most important so I`ve put up with the inconvenience.
The front panel controls for all almost all the transport functions are arranged in a row beneath and to the right of the display; however, I rarely used them, instead opting for the well laid-out remote. It also worked flawlessly, and from quite a wide angle.
The controls and design of the front panel are pretty generic other than the display that shows which track is currently playing. All tracks on the disc are shown, but the current track flashes. This was a bit disconcerting at first. To me, a flashing display usually indicates something other than normal, such as that a track is on pause. On the other hand, it could mean something worse, such as something is wrong or it is acting as a warning signal (self-destruct mode?). I eventually got used to it. Of course, all the front panel controls are duplicated on the remote, which adds a numeric keypad, random playback, and A/B repeat functions.
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