Isotek Syncro Active $2200

Isotek has created a sine wave rebalancer to rid your system of transformer hum and electronic backwash. Syncro Active is ideal for the customer who is also getting an Aquarius or Sigmas line conditioner. Dave’s Fave’s Syncro

Peachtree Separates

Peachtree’s range of electronics is made in North Carolina. How nice to have very well built and price competitive American gear! These models support balanced and single ended operation. While each product is strong on its own, the package pricing when adding preDAC is especially enticing!

GaN400 Power Amp $3000 (400×2)

(4.33h, 14.17w, 13.77d, 16 lbs, Mocha or Black Gloss)

Peachtree has introduced a brand new power amp with a cutting edge output transistor design. The GaN400 amplifier uses GALLIUM NITRIDE FET technology, which they prefer to the tried and true MOS FET designs that have become popular. GaN transistors switch faster and require less feedback than MOS FETs.

PT brings more to the party with a regulated power supply of just under a thousand watts and truly balanced circuit design. GaN400 is comfortable with virtually any impedance.

Peachtree designers feel GaN technology will take over the world and they’re among the first to employ it. GaN400 is a cut above the few competitors that do exist. GaN400 has a unique and superior input board which features very short, shielded cables. The other guys use long unshielded cables inviting noise into the signal. The other guys run internal speaker cabling to the rear jacks right over large inductors and GaN modules- again, inviting noise. Peachtree has full CE & FCC safety approvals due to proper AC mains grounding techniques. Peachtree vents GaN400 to dissipate heat- while the other guys don’t vent their amps. Peachtree builds for long life. Heat is an electronics killer! Peachtree has an on/off switch and trigger operation. Most of the other guys run trigger only. GaN 400 is a partner for any preamp. PT has a 3 year warranty- the longest of the category.

PT promises an airy presentation with superior transient attack. We expect our shipment to arrive any day and await it with avidity!

Amp 500 Power Amp $1500 (500×2)

(4.33h, 14.17w, 13.77d, 15 lbs, Mocha or Black Gloss)

Amp 500 has a touch more power than GaN400. It runs MOS FETs instead of Gallium Nitirde FET output devices. At this price point, if you need oodles of power, please consider Amp 500. We’ve sold a load of Amp 500s for customers replacing older, hotter, heavier amplifiers. Amp 500 sounds better than the old boy, runs cooler and is more reliable. It takes a lot of power to fight through those ancient complex crossovers. Consider one of these progressive new designs to replace your old boat anchor. Time marches on.

preDAC $2500 {or $1500 if purchased with either power amp}

(4.33h, 14.17w, 13.77d)

preDac is an outstanding matching preamp/dac for any power amp. It is a truly balanced preamp with a nice array of additional features.

PT is so enamored with the package of preDac with its amps that they’re running a super duper promo to kick them off. Get preDAC for only $1500 if purchased with either Peachtree power amp above. Limited time promo!

preDac uses the latest SABRE 8ch DAC in a stereo configuration to improve dynamic range and S/N ratio. The background is dead silent. There is a line level in/out LOOP for a myriad of uses.

Inputs:

*MM phono

*2 Aux (one can be phono or line in)

*2 OPT

*1 Coax

*USB-B

*USB-A

Outputs:

*One set RCA analog out

*One set XLR analog out

NAD C538 Single Play CD Player $380

Don’t believe that nonsense you may be hearing that CDs are “over.” That’s what many dopes said in the 80s about LPs. How did that turn out?!

There are many ways to enjoy our great hobby of music and the silver disc is indispensable! In fact, two of the highest end manufacturers in the world, Gryphon and CH Precision, have just introduced new CD players- for a mere $40k each. I’m thinking the NAD might fit your wallet better.

NAD’s C538 has been on back order most of the year due to C19. We just received a shipment.

C538 is a clean sounding, well built CD player. You can use it as a CD player or as a CD transport into your fancy dancy DAC. It has Coax and OPT and analog outputs.

First of all, C538 tracks like a champ! The drawer runs in/out smoothly and quickly. You can tell this boy is built well when you operate it.

C538 is built on a steel chassis vs a plastic toy like the other guys in this price range. It uses a Toroidal transformer and high quality, low noise op amps. It uses a Wolfson 24 bit DAC- which you will see in fine players like Regas for $1200.

We have sold this model for a couple of years and it has proven to be a home run in terms of sound and reliability.

My guess is that most of you have an old CD player of some sort now- that hiccups when it plays some discs. What you’re hearing is the mistracking of your laser. Further, we have found a number of expensive CD players from esoteric companies that can’t track their way out of a wet paper bag. Why? It’s because the transport mechanism they buy from their vendor is el cheapo. Even though they can include fancy electronics around a chip to make it sound good, they’re limited to the generic tracking mechanism.

Visualize a basketball hoop with a ball going through it. If aligned DEAD CENTER when new, the ball goes swishes through easily. Precision alignment allows the machine to go mechanically eschew a bit over the years and STILL allow the ball to go through the hoop. THIS… is NAD.

What you’ll find with most inexpensive players is that the ball barely makes it through the hoop when it’s brand new, due to sloppy laser alignment. As soon as the flimsy construction allows the laser reader to shift, the ball hits the rim and bounces/skips off. That… is what is happening with your skipping CD player.

Of course I’m nuts for CDs and SACDs. I’d love for you to buy the Marantz SACD-30n. But I get it. You might be a streamaholic and use your silver discs more sparingly than I do. Please… make C538 your player of choice for the next dozen or more years!

Stephen Hough: A Double Threat!

Hough is one of the wonderfully talented pianists on the magnificent Hyperion label. He’s a serious painter as well. As if ONE talent wouldn’t have been enough!

MoFi MasterTracker MM Cartridge $800

One of the best phono cartridges on the market doesn’t get much attention. That would be MoFi’s MasterTracker.

MasterTracker sounds smooth instead of biting. Yet it has outstanding definition and plenty of output to run into your MM phono preamp. If you love the piano without sibilance, please consider the MasterTracker cartridge.

The name MasterTracker is derived from MoFi’s combination of choices to achieve superb groove tracing. MasterTracker mirrors the design of MoFi’s record cutting head in its studio in California. It uses a V-Twin dual magnet generator. That is, it uses TWO powerful magnets running parallel to the grooves. MasterTracker is literally the best tracking cartridge we’ve experienced.

• The body is formed from a solid billet of aluminum.

• Highest quality pure Ohno copper coils are used

• Stylus shape is Micro Linear- identical to the cutter head shape.

• Output is 3mV. (MM)

• Weight 9.7g.

• 47K ohms

NAD C-700 Streaming Integrated Amp $1500

(80×2, Bluesound streaming built in!)

If you’re looking for a small, simple musical solution that offers the right array of options, consider NAD’s new C-700. For most customers, just add speakers and you’re ready to go.

It is an integrated amp with MQA Bluesound streamer on board! Considering the streamer alone is worth $600, C-700 is looking like a steal.

The on board amplifier is 80×2 and a close cousin to NAD’s C-268 ($950, 80×2). This amplifier features NAD’s Hybrid design where the power supply is analog. Putting a tough amp in a convenient piece is conspicuously different from the wimpy amps NAD’s competitors build in.

The NAD is comfortable with the impedance of literally any speaker you’ll choose. If you read the fine print by the other guys, you’ll see they don’t like anything under 8 ohms. Every speaker goes well under 8 ohms during its impedance path.

C-700 supports Bluetooth and Airplay 2. You can shake hands with high end services like Tidal and Qobuz, as well as more main stream services like Spotify Connect and Tidal Connect.

There’s much more.

C-700 has a large 5” screen to display cover art and other music information. Nice.

Please also note, C700 has preamp outputs! This means you can connect it to a ferocious amp like NAD’s C298. Tuck that C298 away somewhere. Then you’ll have the beauty of a cool, very B&O looking piece like C700, with the fire breathing engine of a C298 under the hood!

Inputs include:

*2 analog RCA

*1 Coax digital

*1 Optical digital

*1 HDMI eARC

Outputs include:

*R&L RCA preamp out, YES!

*Subwoofer out. Yes!

You can hook up C-700 to your speakers and call it a day. Or…

Remember those pre out jacks allow you to connect a more powerful amp if you ever want to head down that road. Hence C-700 is fine for now, and fine to build with as the hobby bites harder.

Naim’s Unity Atom runs $3300, has 40×2, and a less reliable streaming platform without MQA. NAD’s C700 is a SMOKIN’ value!

Quad ERA-1 Headphones, $800

Headphones are among the most personal of transducers. How they fit and how they sound, is all in the head of the beholder.

Quad has had electrostatic speakers of great fame since the 1950s. Quad hasn’t made headphones- until about 2019.

ERA-1 is a Planar Magnetic phone of prodigious performance. We used to carry Audeze. They’re very nice. Yet ERA-1 at $800 competes apples to apples with the Audeze at $1800. Goodbye Audeze.

I’ll let TAS tell you about them:

TAS:

“First, the headphone exhibited powerful yet also extremely articulate bass, with an excellent combination of impact and pitch definition. Listen to the deep snarl of the bass and the thwack of the kick drum on ‘Prodigal Son’ from Billy Idol. Some might feel the bass is elevated in level, but it is presented in such a tasteful, musically uplifting manner that I think many will embrace it over a strictly neutral sound.

Second the ERA-1 has wonderfully well defined, nuanced, and revealing mids and highs, especially relative to the norms for its price. Many models in this class are either bright sounding or else dark sounding- and slightly softly focused, but the ERA-1 instead hews toward a more satisfying and accurate middle path.

To appreciate how this plays out in musical terms, listen to the hauntingly beautiful ‘Nublado’ from Sera Una Noche. It features delicate, shimmering percussion and the solo voices of guitar, cello and wind instruments. In every case, the ERA-1 deftly captures the defining tonal colors and textures essential to each instrument’s sonic character, not to mention the reverberant acoustics of the recording venue.

In short, ERA-1 now stands as one of the finest sub $800 headphones that money can buy.”

• Open back

• Planar Magnetic

• SPL 94dB

• 420 grams

• 20 ohms

• 10-40kHz

Taylor Swift

Has been named the most charitable musician by Money Inc. Also on the short list are Elton John, Rihanna, Beyonce, Garth Brooks, Dr Dre, Sean Combs, Gwen Stefani & Alicia Keys. Famous musicians… generous people!