Atoll MS120 Streamer/DAC, $1600

We have been looking for a CUT ABOVE streamer with built in DAC for years. We’ve finally found something SPECIAL that doesn’t cost an arm and a leg. It’s made by Atoll in France with a 3 year warranty, as opposed to something made in China, that has a one year with fingers crossed warranty.

Before discussing the new MS120, I want to say we’ve been pleased with the various Bluesound units we’ve sold over the years for their price points. They have the streaming operational aspect down cold. That’s a great start. Yet anytime you build in China with small switching power supplies, you know there’s room for improvement.

We’re especially happy with the Nodes when run into fine DACs like the Mytek Liberty 2, Brystons or Macs. But the Atoll MS120 has excellent Burr Brown DACs built in and is ready to rock with refined performance all on its own. MS120 is actually quite a bit less expensive than buying a Node with any of these other high performing DACs.

I haven’t been convinced that streamer/DACs made in China or S Korea, using similar parts to Bluesound, are worth ANY more money. You really need to move into linear power supplies and DACs without feedback to derive top level performance. That brings us to Atoll of France.

And by the way, who runs DACS without feedback besides Atoll? That’s right, nobody. Atoll’s implementation of its DAC componentry, whether in MS120 or any of its CD players, takes music to a higher echelon to give you warmer sound quality. Let’s take a look.

MS120 starts with three substantial linear power supplies. Have a look at the pair of large transformers (one 6VA, one 4VA). These are MONSTERS compared to what you’ll see in Asian built streamers at close to this price point. The Node is a respectable performer, but as you can see from the intestines, it’s not even close to MS120 in build quality. MS120 is supported by stiff caps, 5354uF. Atoll’s multi power supply design dwarfs the other guys and contributes largely to its rich sound. Atoll uses Vishay caps, a choice you won’t see from the other side of the globe.

Atoll runs Burr Brown DACs without employing negative feedback. The DAC section has its own dedicated linear power supply. The Asians use high processing Sabre chips with a clean, but more sterile sonic signature. Like cranking up contrast on a TV picture, more isn’t necessarily better. Atoll achieves a smoother sound with its BB DAC implementation. MS120 has a notably rounder, less edgy sound quality than the Asian built streamers.

Now, having said all this nice stuff about MS120 producing excellent streaming sound, I still prefer the sound of a CD through a GREAT CD player like an Atoll. My recommendation is to get a fabulous Atoll CD player and play CDs for the music you truly love the most. We all have albums we can listen to a million times. Use CDs for that. It’s fine to stream everything else.

The SOUND of the MS120 beats Bluesound and the other guys in several definable categories. First of all the sound is more forward and dynamic. Lighter weight streamers have that distinct aura of FM radio sound. But most notably, MS120 doesn’t exhibit the sibilant (SSSS) sound that flimsier units have. Once you hear the sibilance in a streamer, you can’t un-hear it. It’s similar to playing a record with a tad of dust on the stylus. It’s noticeable and annoying.

Please have a look at the photos of the bottom of our Dave’s Faves listing for MS120. Please note the large and hearty parts choices Atoll makes vs the top competitors- the Bluesounds.

Most Covered Songs In History

Prefaced by how many times covered:

397: With A Little Help From My Friends, Lennon/McCartney (LM going forward)

419: In My Life, LM

430: Here Comes The Sun, George Harrison

447: Jingle Bell Rock, Jim Boothe, Joe Beal

461: Come Together, LM

562: Here, There & Everywhere, LM

565: Imagine, John Lennon

567: Something, George Harrison

568: Hey Jude, LM

577: Let It Be, LM

I’ve written about how Bryston contracted Axiom, a friendly Canadian speaker company down the road, back in 2009, to create the ground breaking Bryston Model T speakers. Model T is a full range tower of prodigious performance. Its bass is deep and defined. The midrange and top end are Steinway Smooth. There’s no bite or edge to Bryston’s sound.

The combination of Bryston’s designs and Axiom’s manufacturing prowess / efficiency resulted in immediate success and the companies merged. The resulting entity is simply called Bryston.

The Model T sold so well that Bryston’s CEO and speaker designer, James Tanner, developed a broad lineup of speakers. The first benefit of the marriage was the creation of Bryston’s T and A series of speakers. Both series have conspicuously deeper, more tuneful bass than “the other guys” and mate that solid bass with a Steinway Smooth middle / high end. Their power capabilities are already legendary as all Bryston speakers are built in house in Canada and have a 20 year warranty.

It makes sense that James would work on his top dogs first. Bryston has since added the T-10 Series to the Ts and As. With this extensive Bryston work completed, James and his team have worked to trickle down Bryston technology within the Axiom brand name.

The goal is to make speakers competitive with Bryston at significantly lower price points. By dissecting every detail of the design, James ultimately found that he could achieve much of Bryston’s sonic refinement while sacrificing mainly power limits. If you love the Bryston sound but don’t need the sports car top speed, Axiom is a perfect fit.

Axiom models are similar to Bryston models in many ways, but don’t have quite the bass control or power handling capabilities that Bryston has. The drivers and cabinets used in Axiom models aren’t as robust as Bryston. But for customers that don’t demand the muscle that Bryston produces, Axiom provides an outstanding alternative for much less money with a 5 year warranty. Keep in mind that virtually all of Axiom’s competitors are built in job houses in China!

Doubles

These two new towers are based on Bryston’s “doubles” blueprint. Each model uses a pair of tweets, mids & woofs. Well, M100 uses three woofs. M80 uses a pair.

The purpose of running doubles is multi-fold. Doubles allow much higher power handling. Doubles produce a taller, wider sound stage. You’ll be pleased, and surprised, by just how massive and spacious the soundstage is with Bryston and Axiom speakers running the doubles technology. There’s the added benefit of higher efficiency as well.

Tanner introduced the doubles in the big dog Model T at the beginning of Bryston’s speaker journey. He further implemented it into the Bryston models A1 and A2, with great success soon after. We have sold truckloads of A1s and A2s over the years. And by the way, they are all still under warranty to the original buyers. M80 and M100 are the same sizes as their Bryston brothers. They just don’t pack quite the punch.

Axiom M80 Towers, $2300 Per Pair

{39.5h, 9.25w, 17d, 63 lbs, 4 ohms, 94 dB SPL}

Black Ash, Walnut, Boston Cherry

M80 runs PAIRS of drivers. Think of M80 as a Bryston A2 “light.” You get a pair of Titanium tweets, a pair of 5.25” Pure Aluminum Mids and a pair of Pure Aluminum 6.5” woofs.

M80 is in the same price class as speakers like Wharfedale, KEF and Monitor Audio. With all due respect to these Chinese built speakers, M80 can put them in a headlock. The deeper bass and power capabilities of M80 will make the Chinese models tremble at the prospects of having to measure up.

Axiom M100 Towers, $3000 Per Pair

{47.5h, 9.25w, 17d, 81 lbs, 4 ohms, 92 dB SPL}

Black Ash, Walnut, Boston Cherry

M100 is in a higher, tougher class than even M80. M100 adds an additional woofer in a larger cabinet with a more sophisticated crossover. Think of M100 as a Bryston A1 “light.” M100 has more air, space and power than M80.

While the woofers in M80 and M100 are all 6.5s, the M100 woofers are stronger and deliver more impact. M100 is an amazing value as it casts a huge soundstage and can drop a sledgehammer on your living room floor.

More On Axiom

I’m very happy that Bryston has gotten around to upgrading the Axiom speaker lineup. Much of the technology of the Bryston models has trickled down to the Axioms.

Bryston’s A2 beats its M80 brother fairly handily at a price difference of $4k to $2300.

Bryston’s M100 puts up a stiffer battle in comparison to the Bryston A1. While the A1 is deeper and tighter, I’m happily surprised by how impressive M100 is.

$3k is a very popular price point. In M100 we now have a speaker that is smooth on top and can produce house quaking muscle. It’s a treat to hear the music moving along and then all of a sudden your floorboards are ROCKING. You FEEL it as much as hear it. If you have the right music M100 can be downright DEVASTATING. When you look at the $3k competitors from China… they’re not even close to producing the realistic size and muscle of M100.

Up until now the Axiom lineup has focused on good value at low price points. With these two new models, Axiom has moved up into new territory. M100 in particular, is able to produce subterranean bass. M100 delivers class shattering size, space and power!

Axiom’s Black Ash finish has nice grain structure. The walnut finish is brown with good looking “veins.” The Boston Cherry finish is quite red, think rosewood.

Reckless Bound

Please stream ‘my girls’ Emma & Sidney of Reckless Bound. I luv these country rockers who are having too much fun!

The First Album To Sell A Million Copies

Harry Belafonte’s “Calypso” came out in 1956. Calypso set new sales records by being the first ALBUM to reach one million sales. Before Calypso, some singles had sold a million copies- but this was the first LP to do so. The first single to sell a million was Enrico Caruso’s “Pagliacci” in1902. The song to sell the MOST singles in history is Bing Crosby’s “White Christmas” in 1942. It’s still selling! In distant second place is Elton John’s “Candle In The Wind” of 1997.