|
German Physiks Newsletter No. 6 $$PLAIN_TEXT_PREVIEW$$
|
September 2019 | Newsletter No. 6
|
|
We recently we participated in The China Northwest International High-End Audio Visual Expo, which was held in the Chinese city of Xi’an. Xi’an is approximately 1,000km (600 miles) south west of Beijing, at the eastern end of the famous silk road trading route. It was the original capital city of China, a position it held for about 2,000 years. It is also home to the famous Terracotta Army. The show was held over 3 days. It had about 60 rooms, almost all showing Chinese made products. We had time to look around and saw a lot of interesting tube amplifiers, but the most notable feature was the large amount of vinyl and CD software on sale: about 10% of the rooms. This is possibly because access to some overseas web sites is restricted, which explained the absence of anyone using streamers. The other notable feature was the friendliness of everyone we met at the show and their clear enthusiasm for music and audio.
|
|
This is one of nine shows in China where our distributor, NC Audio, will exhibit our products this year. Because of strong interest in our new electronics, they have been showing larger systems where the electronics can be demonstrated to their best advantage. NC Audio had the largest room in the show, which allowed them to bring for the main system: The CD source was from Accustic Arts in Germany. We will be releasing our own Emperor CD player later this year. This will be housed in a similar chassis to the Emperor preamplifier. The continuing strong demand for CD software in China makes this product viable. Power cabling was of course our own Pion power cable. This worked nicely and being relatively flexible, it was much easier to route tidily than some of the thicker cables we have used in the past.
|
|
The PQS-402 uses 2 DDD drivers, which enable it to produce sound levels up to 118dB. This is well beyond what most conventional loudspeakers can achieve and combined with the DDD driver’s high speed, gives exceptional dynamics. This in turn gives a greater sense of reality. The bass system uses two 10-inch woofers and four 8-inch passive radiators. These can move a lot of air and were extremely well controlled by the power amplifiers, so that we had very extended and very clean bass. The overall sound was extremely good, especially considering that this was a hotel room, which are usually very challenging acoustically. Vocals were smooth and clean; dynamics were very fast, with no hint of compression and detail was excellent, with good clarity, even on complex high level passages. Even we were impressed.
|
Emperor mono power amplifier
|
|
The Emperor mono power amplifier can provide 1,200W RMS continuously into 4 ohms, so we could have driven the PQS-402s with just one on each side, but bi-amping allowed us to demonstrate the exceptional dynamics that the PQS-402/Emperor mono combination can provide. The Emperor power amplifier offers three different voicings and this feature came in useful in tuning the system, especially as we could use different voicings on the woofers and DDD drivers. The ground lift function also came in handy, allowing us to deal very quickly with an earth loop.
|
|
Like the power amplifiers, the preamplifier worked flawlessly throughout the show, with no clicks or other misbehaviour. Both sets of electronics received a lot of close attention from visitors, who, when they weren't running their hands over the metalwork, were taking pictures of the electronics, or of themselves with the electronics. This must have been our most photographed show ever. Visitors even wanted to be photographed with us, proving that there is no accounting for taste.
|
|
We did several 45 minute long presentations during the show and these were all well attended, though I am sure that the models the local dealer hired will have helped. The use of models like this appears to be a common practice at Chinese audio shows. We had seating for about 50 people and these were nearly all taken during the presentations and most visitors stayed for the whole 45 minutes. After the demonstrations, many visitors took pictures of themselves with the models. The loudspeakers were raised up relative to the listeners on a small stage, but the wide vertical dispersion of the DDD drivers allowed those seated to hear a well balanced sound. Going from standing up to sitting down, you heard very little change at the top end. The large room also allowed us to very effectively demonstrate the ability of our loudspeakers to provide a clearly defined stereo image in almost all positions in the room, as you would experience in a live concert. We encouraged visitors to move about the room and confirm this for themselves, which many did.
|
|
We had four other sets of our loudspeakers on display. From left to right: PQS-402 Custom, Unlimited Ultimate, HRS-120 SE and Borderland Mk IV.
|
|
PQS-402 Custom: This is a custom version of the PQS-402 made for the Chinese market. It was originally designed to be used for the rear and centre channels in 5.1 systems built around our Emperor Mk II model, but it also works very well as the main loudspeaker in medium size rooms. It uses two DDD drivers and two 12-inch woofers. The set shown here was bought by a visitor to the room and we had it delivered and set-up in his apartment 3 hours after the show ended. Even without being fully run in, the sound was very smooth, detailed and relaxed and the customer was thrilled with his new system. Interestingly, they replaced a set of Tannoys. |
PQS-402 Custom: This is a custom version of the PQS-402 made for the Chinese market. It was originally designed to be used for the rear and centre channels in 5.1 systems built around our Emperor Mk II model, but it also works very well as the main loudspeaker in medium size rooms. It uses two DDD drivers and two 12-inch woofers. The set shown here was bought by a visitor to the room and we had it delivered and set-up in his apartment 3 hours after the show ended. Even without being fully run in, the sound was very smooth, detailed and relaxed and the customer was thrilled with his new system. Interestingly, they replaced a set of Tannoys. |
|
Later this year we will release the PQS-203, which will fill a similar spot to the PQS-402 Custom in our standard range. It will have a similar construction to the PQS-402 Custom, with two DDD drivers, so we expect a maximum output level of around 112dB. It will stand about 1,300 mm tall, which is about 10cm taller than the Borderland, but it will be narrower than the Borderland, so the footprint will be quite small. The PQS-203 will be available in two versions. Standard version: This will be fitted with a conventional passive crossover. Active version: This will have built-in amplification and also streaming and room tuning capability. |
Later this year we will release the PQS-203, which will fill a similar spot to the PQS-402 Custom in our standard range. It will have a similar construction to the PQS-402 Custom, with two DDD drivers, so we expect a maximum output level of around 112dB. It will stand about 1,300 mm tall, which is about 10cm taller than the Borderland, but it will be narrower than the Borderland, so the footprint will be quite small. The PQS-203 will be available in two versions. Standard version: This will be fitted with a conventional passive crossover. Active version: This will have built-in amplification and also streaming and room tuning capability. |
|
HRS-120 SE: This is another special China only model. It is based on the HRS-120, but is fitted with a 10-inch woofer instead of the original 8-inch unit. The finish is walnut high polish veneer, which we have found to be very popular in this market. The same finish is shown on the PQS-402 and PQS-402 Custom. The nearest model to the HRS-120 SE in our standard range is the HRS-130. For more information on the HRS-130 please click here. |
HRS-120 SE: This is another special China only model. It is based on the HRS-120, but is fitted with a 10-inch woofer instead of the original 8-inch unit. The finish is walnut high polish veneer, which we have found to be very popular in this market. The same finish is shown on the PQS-402 and PQS-402 Custom. The nearest model to the HRS-120 SE in our standard range is the HRS-130. For more information on the HRS-130 please click here. |
|
|
Borderland Mk IV: This unit is finished in papple cluster high polish veneer. This is another popular finish in China. This model has proved popular in the Chinese market as it offers a high level of performance, whilst at the same time not taking up a lot of floor space. |
Borderland Mk IV: This unit is finished in papple cluster high polish veneer. This is another popular finish in China. This model has proved popular in the Chinese market as it offers a high level of performance, whilst at the same time not taking up a lot of floor space. |
|
A nice and much appreciated touch laid on by one of the staff from the local German Physiks dealer, was a table where refreshing Chinese black tea was served. To sum up, a very interesting and educational trip. We even got to see the Terracotta Army and will post pictures of these on our Facebook page later.
|
|
Thank you again for signing up to our newsletter and thank you for your interest in our products. Please don’t forget to visit our Facebook page. If we can be of help with anything at all, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us here. You can find your national distributor here.
|
|
Holger Mueller | German Physiks
|
|
|
|
|
