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Listening Room
natural, prov-
ing once again
that the sibilant
artifacts we often
hear are the result
of problems in the
playback, not the origi-
nal recording.
But it’s not even the voice
that strikes you first. Rather
it’s the perfect balance of voice,
piano, cello, bass and percussion. We
all asked for a second listen, and then
we noticed the other virtues: a drum kit
that was clearer and much more natural,
and details of diction we are not used to
hearing quite so clearly. Gibson’s presence
was notable too.
We continued with Eric Bibbs’
Gospel Blues piece, Needed Time. It
opens with a soft and subtle duet
between Bibbs’ own guitar and Göran
Wennerbrandt’s bottleneck, and it was
well night on perfect. The balance
between the actual sound of the guitar
strings and the resonance of the instru-
ment bodies was just right.
As for Bibbs’ voice, it was pretty
well nailed by the CEC as well. It was
very clear, putting the lyrics in
evidence, full of life and expression, but
without at any point overemphasizing
any aspect of it. “He’s just there,” said
Albert, “and there’s a lot of space
all around him.”
We ended with the
Stölzel piece sung by
Karina Gauvin, and
once again we were
delighted. She sang
with lots of power,
and indeed we all
reached for the volume
knob to turn her down a little, though
only because this CD is recorded louder
than most. Gauvin’s voice remained
smooth and effortless even when she
rose in both pitch and volume. The
harpsichord was clear, but a little way
back, as it should be. Albert, it must be
said, thought this recording sounded
superb with all three amplifiers.
With the session over, we hooked up
our Living Voice speakers to the output
binding posts. They’re the same horrible
posts as on the CEC integrated amp,
unfortunately. The sound was clear,
without artifacts that made us cringe, but
we would consider this a stopgap bonus,
not something you would plan on using
for the rest of your life.
The clear winner here, I think, is…
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CROSSTALK
Brand/model: CEC HD53-R
Price: C$990/US$790
Size (WDH): 22 x 26 x 6 cm
Most liked: Fine performance, two
independent sections
Least liked: Crapola output binding
posts
Verdict: Worthy of the best phones
you can afford
Summing it up…
42 ULTRA HIGH FIDELITY Magazine