Thiel's CS3.7
(Credit: Thiel)Here's the concept: It's no secret young consumers don't get high-end audio. It just seems like either total BS or an extravagance for the rich. Yes, it can be both of those things, but there's a lot of great, affordable high-end audio that's available to anyone who's truly passionate about music. Here's one quick example, Usher Audio's staggeringly good S-520 speakers that go for $400 a pair (I'll review them in this space soon).
Anyway, a high-end publicist friend of mine proposed this reach out to the youth concept through Rolling Stone magazine. He wanted to blow the magazine's writers away with high-end sound and convinced two of his clients, Canadian electronics manufacturer Bryston, and Thiel, a speaker company from Kentucky, to loan Rolling Stone $40K worth of gear for their reviewers to enjoy for three months. Seems like a great "what if" idea to me. Obviously, the reviewers know music, and I can't wait to hear how they're affected by hearing music like never before.
It's a killer system, with a Bryston BCD-1 CD player, Bryston BP-26 preamp, and Bryston 28B-SST power amps mated with Thiel's astonishing CS3.7 speakers and SS2 subwoofer. For guys used to hearing music over $29 PC speakers it's the equivalent moving up from a skateboard to a Chevy Corvette. Now they'll actually get to hear the music they're critiquing at least as well as the people who recorded the tunes in the first place. Who knows, maybe they'll communicate that experience to their readers. Point is, sound matters, and hearing it with the best possible speakers and electronics is a good idea. We'll see.
The gear, installed at Rolling Stone's NYC office
(Credit: Bryston)
Bryston's hand-made CD player.
(Credit: Bryston)Bryston doesn't believe automation has a place in high-end audio manufacturing. They still hand-build CD players, and their full line of preamplifier and power amplifiers at their Peterborough, Ontario factory. The BCD-1 CD player was conceived with the audiophile in mind, someone who appreciates exceptional build quality and outstanding performance.
Rather than rely on inexpensive, off-the-shelf chipsets, the Bryston player's audio circuits use "discrete" devices--individual transistors, resistors, and capacitors. Each part is hand selected and installed, every wire is cut and bent by hand, every connection is hand soldered. This strategy, while expensive to implement allows Bryston engineers to more precisely match the player's analog audio circuits with its digital-to-analog converters.
Bryston workers individually test each and every product they manufacture. Bryston claims its construction techniques are on par with military and aerospace industries. The BCD-1 is backed by a three-year parts and labor warranty and has a MSRP of $2395.
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