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A Reference, if you will.....

2/25/2015

1 Comment

 
Picture
  An analog rig worthy of kings, queens, and farmers - I'm in the latter camp-  Stereo Haven is very happy to have on demo the Brinkmann Bardo turntable, the Audio Research REF 5 SE preamp, and the Audio Research REF 2 SE phono preamp, all sitting on Harmonic Resolution Systems shelving, the SXR series shown here in black.  At the end of the Brinkmann 10.5 tonearm sits that jewel of jewels, the Dynavector XV1t cartridge. Notice this rack has been optimized for LP's only.  
There is digital, of course, and one chosen with care, which is on an adjacent rack. Yet it can't compare to what sits here. One of the goals of Stereo Haven is to show analog to this surrounding area the likes that haven't been heard before.
As I was looking for a truly reference turntable line, I and my colleagues went down the list of manufacturers, crossing off most as we went. Always in the back of my mind the name Brinkmann kept coming up. I remember looking at photos of it and thinking it looks beautiful, solid, maybe a bit steely. Sort of like Sibelius, both his face and music.  Don't ask me why- I have strange connotations sometimes. At least it didn't remind me of Bruckner. Well, the steely part did come as I unpacked the box and saw a most wondrously machined device, yet it wasn't cold in appearance at all.  The solid came in the way the table/arm felt to the touch, with machining having that spares-no-expense look, perhaps like an SME, yet surpassing that with a stunning, warming design. (Have you seen an SME in person? Meh! Makes my blood run cold.) Then after the table was put together and began to play, the music came out in this beautiful way that only a few tables I've heard could do.  Stunning is a word I seldom use, but that's all I can say when I get near the table, and then, THEN I get to play that table.  It's simply stunning. And I do use that word in the 2nd Full Definition of the Merriam-Webster dictionary.  Maybe, as in the 1st Full Definition, I'm still rather astonished that it sits in my front room, still in disbelief that Helmut and Andrea Brinkmann would allow me to represent it in my area, or maybe I'm really back to the 2nd Full Definition, I'm so strikingly impressed by its beauty and excellence.  Trust me, you will be, too!
  So yes, this is a reference table, no question about it. It may be out of the reach of most, or so you say. Yet, when you're ready to take a leap for the finest, when you've finally realized that LIFE IS SHORT, that you only have so much time left on this planet, and that you've been putting off having a great record player to go with all those LP's  you've accumulated and fussed over all these years, well, ladies and gents, kIngs and queens, and all those farmers living around me, this is certainly a name to put on your short list. 

Brinkmann.  Now on display at Stereo Haven. Call for an appointment.


-more to come...so much more....
1 Comment
Dr. Greg Griffin
3/10/2015 08:28:24 pm

Charlie is a true gentleman dealer. He provides unparalleled service, and only sells what he truly believes in as an audiophile, and as a music enthusiast whose musical tastes span the gamut from the latest indie rock band to an encyclical knowledge of opera. Whatever your tastes, Charlie can provide you with a listening experience that you will not believe. I was admittedly skeptical about what you get with a system from Stereo Haven, but after my experience in his shop, I can only sing his praise (badly, with my voice), as a retailer and genuine audiophile.

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