Excerpts From Volume 8 Issue Number 4 (Spring 2000)

Music, Sound and Personalities
Year 2000 CES and T.H.E. Show

Dave Glackin

The Most Highly Evolved Loudspeaker System was being shown by Bobby Palkovic of Merlin Music Systems. Bobby was using a VPI TNT turntable with a JMW Memorial 10" tonearm and a Cardas Heart cartridge, a Joule Electra LA/P-200 preamp, and the Joule Electra Marquis tubed amps, to power his Merlin VSM/SE loudspeakers, with the BAM (Bass Augmentation Module). The latest improvement made during the (so far) seven years of development of this speaker is the battery power for the BAM. It takes four 9.4V metal-nickel- hydride batteries, on which it can run for 12 hours. It can also be used in a mixed 50/50 battery/AC mode, in which the batteries last 18 hours. The sound, as always, blew me away with its combination of aliveness, dynamics, pace, rhythm, and incredible cleanliness, coupled with delicacy, inner detail, transparency, and timbre. All this, and a deep and wide soundstage to boot. This was one of the top three rooms in the show. Bobby continues to make a good thing even better. Kudos to you my friend, and I can't wait to see the subwoofers next year.

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Reprinted from Positive Feedback, Vol. 8, #2, Spring, 1999, and Copyright 1999, all rights reserved, by Positive Feedback. Positive Feedback is a creative forum for the audio arts published four times per year. Subscriptions are $20 per six issues in the U.S.A., U.S.$30 in Canada, and U.S.$50 elsewhere on the planet. To subscribe to Positive Feedback, to sign up as a distributor, or to advertise, contact: Positive Feedback, 9388 S.E. Hunters Bluff Ave., Portland, OR 97266. Phone numbers: (503) 771-6200 (Business Office Phone), (503) 771-6400 (Business Office Fax), (503) 771-6300 (Editorial Office Phone). Editorial E-mail address: davidr@ix.netcom.com Web page: http://www.positive-feedback.com . Positive Feedback encourages the submission of articles, essays, and reviews to the above address. Ad rates available upon request.