By Juan C. Ayllon MOUNT PROSPECT, IL –- SOTA Turntable's proprietor, Christan Griego, delivered a masterful presentation of his prototype direct drive turntable to an appreciative crowd of 35 at a Chicago Audio Society meeting at the Unitel Technologies offices this past Sunday, February 18. Machined from a hefty Aluminum slab, this rugged utilitarian design employed an Orion speed control and a Schroeder CB Tonearm fitted with a ZYX MC phono cartridge. Slated to retail for $20,000 when it's released, it sat on a wooden isolation platform atop a stainless steel stand linked to a Doshi preamplifier, Doshi stereo amplifier and Doshi phono stage. The last component is "a killer piece", according to Griego; it allows for remote control loading of the phono stage to suit different phono cartridges. This system delivered sumptuous sounds to a pair of Usher Audio UA-50 Anniversary loudspeakers ($7,800) atop Sound Anchor stands via Dyrholm Audio speaker cables. Power Distribution was handled by PS Audio, connected via Clear Audio cables. Employing a core-less 75-watt motor, Griego says, "You don't get lobing from the poles of this motor like you will from say a 24-pole motor." Measuring wow and flutter from the encoder ring allows you to know absolutely what is happening. Measuring from an album becomes meaningless, he asserts. By employing an encoder ring with 315,000 lines, the speed control extends accuracy down to six to seven digits, "...controlling at the millisecond level"; and with its three torque rings, the speed remains at a steady 33.333. This prototype turntable employs the same aluminum platter that the SOTA Millenia and Cosmos turntables use. The warm vinyl glow of Errol Garner's piano, rich in tone and timbre, shines against the light cymbals and hi-hat in this 1959 blues ballad mono recording of "Avalon" despite the abundance of pops and clicks. Next, a pristine pressing of the Dixie Dregs' 1979 album, Night of the Living Dregs, rocks the room with its frenetic first song on Side One. Blaring electric guitars, violins, keys, an organ, and drums trade leads energize and impress. On Side Two, a fast-picked electric guitar, accompanied by a snare, raises the energy to another level. Mesmerizing dueling leads with a violin draw follow. The crowd roars! Dramatic strings, woodwinds, and horns fill the room with "The Bash", an adaptation of Shostakovich Symphony No. 6 in B Minor. Ominous horns, a kettledrum flourish, and crashing snares lead the assault. "That's heavy metal!" Griego exclaims with a smile afterwards. "That was probably recorded on a two-inch tape by David Baker, who was a great recording engineer," offers the attendee who shared the record. A deep and sonorous bowed bass is accompanied by violins renders a lovely version of "I'm in the Mood for Love" in a recording entitled, World Bass Ensemble, which is directed by music director, Brian Smith. "Brian Smith lives on the South Side of Chicago!" the African American guest who provided the record asserts with a smile. A more abstract song with more heavy bowing plays next. The recording was purportedly made in Italy, but mixed at the Vanguard in New York City. The Art Ensemble of Chicago's Full Force album (ECM, 1979) entreats with Lester Bowie's rich trumpet lead, enjoined by a saxophone and an assortment of horns on Side B. The walking lead bass, blaring horns, snares, duck squawks, cymbal, and percussion are all very lucid and present. Lester Blowie plays with a smaller mouthpiece for a tighter, more focused sound, someone volunteers. During a lull, Griego notes that he's good friends with the Doshi owners, adding that he likes giving business to small family-owned proprietorships like theirs. Norah Jones' Come Away with Me is vivid and lifelike with the double bass and Jones' piano and vocals on another pristine pressing. The electric guitar's comping and swells are a lovely touch. Baffling Baffles During intermission, Stephen Merryweather of Merryweather Air Disturbing Objects sets up a pair of tall speakers that he extracts from several large flat pack boxes in a side room. Meriweather is a slender, energetic, and elderly cabinet maker who creates customized turntable plinths and loudspeakers, as well as his unique designs and adaptions of others' works. His latest development is a slot-firing, open baffle speaker that has boasts four first-order crossovers. It features a Diatome four-inch driver at the top that "handles 85 to 18,000 cycles," he says. Several feet below that are two woofers -- a multi-comp woofer at the bottom and a 410 D Dual Voice Goldwood subwoofer driver that handles some midrange duties, as well as the low end. It employs two four-inch coils and runs eight ohms for both drivers on the bottom. Seated on the top of his cabinet is a fluted Karlson K-tube, which was invented in 1957, that handles tweeter duties. "Nobody else is making them now," Meriweather claims. They are mounted on an adjustable angle base to tailor the highs to your liking. On the woofers, he says that a single inductor midrange has a large, 50 microfarad capacitor, while on the driver side, a .5 micro Henry inductor is used to roll-off a little faster." The coupler, he adds, has a one-inch Selenium JBL compression driver for a range of 500 to 1800 frequency response. However, the real magic is what's called the Karlson Slot. "The Karlson slot does for frequency what laser does for light," Meriweather says. When test frequencies were conducted at left, center and right positions in front of the speaker, plots of the results were virtually undistinguishable. As a result, he says, the volume of the tweeter is the same at the front of the room as the rear of the room. Whatever the science is, the results are undeniable. Boasting a large, rich, and lush midrange, it blankets the room with a vivid saxophone and acoustic bass duet on a Ron Carter CD. Minutes later, guests are treated to rhythmic drums, bass, and electronica with James Asher's Shaman Drums CD. In terms of marketing, Meriweather says he's trying to reach the younger crowd. Currently, he's selling one to a 21 year-old YouTuber based out of Milwaukee. That makes sense; very musical and immersive, they don't sound like many of today's more treble- and bass-forward audio products; instead, they bring a more Old World analog presentation. Judging from the response, these musical speakers will appeal to those who simply want to relax and enjoy the music. When they are released for sale, these Merryweather Air Disturbing Objects open baffle loudspeakers will retail for $1500 to $2000 per pair.
Audio Appetites Sated The show resumed in the main room, and patrons continued sharing treasured vinyl over the SOTA, Doshi, and Usher system right through closing time. Bundled in his winter coat, scarf and cap, vinyl tucked under one arm, a smiling guest gushed about the quality of the equipment showcased at Chicago Audio Society meetings. "It's been very good this last year!" he quipped. Indeed it has.
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