Le Magazine de son de tres haute fidelite (France)

Prima D/A Converter 24/192

See full review (in French and English) on http://www.thf.fr/BancEssai01.htm#Prima

The AUDIOAERO Prima converter 24/192

Overall Presentation:

Just before we start, we'd like to make it quite clear that we have no vested interest in the company AUDIOAERO! We received nothing under the table, no invitation to a three star restaurant in the company of forlorn young ladies, not even the offer of an exotic holiday. They just handed us an anonymous-looking box from the suburbs of Toulouse, near the Clement Ader plant where the Airbus are built. Inside is a black, standard format case with a very sober front, just two buttons which, pressed simultaneously, switch the machine on. This was our first contact with the PRIMA converter. A choice of input data for the connectors appears in a small window: BNC - RCA - ATT. The Prima converter accepts all kinds of digital format: CD - DAT - DVD - MiniDisc (SPDIF - AES/EBU) apart from SACD, for the time being! Inside is a classic power supply, a big moulded casing engraved with the acronym of the ANAGRAM company, and an original output stage equipped with two sub miniature tubes equivalent to ECC88 triodes polarised in Class A. The conversion technique S.T.A.R.S. (Solution for time abstraction re-sampling) has been developed exclusively for AUDIOAERO by ANAGRAM from the ANALOG DEVICES ADSP21065L circuit. The data conversion into 24 bits is already common in the latest models of converters. The originality of the system lies in the anti-jitter programme, which replaces the entry clock with a high accuracy clock at 192 kHz and with the use of "hidden" information in the 16 bits of the CD, combined with the totally original calculation algorithms. On a technical level the result is manifested in an impressive dynamics of 140 dB and a noise signal ratio of 125 dB. The performances are very similar for a DVD and a CD, although the high frequency of the latter is still limited to 20Khz.

Sound:

To be completely honest, we were so shaken by the Prima that it took several days to recover and, even now, we're not completely over it! And, no, we still don't have a vested interest in AUDIOAERO!!! The first totally puzzling impression was that we had never really heard a CD properly before! It's not a question of 'something better' but 'something else'. The gain in dynamics is, of course, very notable, but hereafter each sound source is perfectly individualised, perfectly "deflected", positioned in space. Each instrument takes on its own 'life', without being blurred by the ensemble. The slightest intention or nuance makes the music more immediate. It is the art of interpretation in its full expression, each sound in its place, and at the desired level! Even the applause, realistic at last, is in perspective: the slightest cough in the depths of the hall gives the real sense of a "live" recording. The range between the softest and loudest sounds seems infinite. The richness of the timbre adds yet more to the audio extravaganza. In the high notes, the violin finds the 'grain' it lacked, another much criticised effect of the smoothing of the "artistry" in CDs, compared to vinyl. There really is an alto in a quartet! The saxophone rediscovers its real breath without the needless grandiloquence and the piano recaptures the last octave in the left hand without the soppy purring. Voices, what can we say about voices? Nothing, no need for comment, they speak for themselves in a stunning nature.

Advantages:

Our first puzzling impression upon listening was that we had never really heard a CD properly before. Fortunately, this was followed by the reassuring conclusion that we could keep our CD collection!!! In a comparative listening test, the gain for a DVD Audio or a SACD was very difficult to perceive. Just to the point where, during a 'blind test', representatives of a big, well-known company positively identified the PRIMA converter as their system…

Disadvantages:

The price is certainly very high but, taking into account the previous information, if you no longer need to replace your CD collection, let's say 900 CDs at 120 francs each, that is a saving... of a lot of money! It may look a little drab but a converter can easily be concealed. A version with adjustable volume by motorised potentiometer at the output stage, to avoid impairment of the digital signal, will soon be available. It will mean saving on the cost of a preamplifier.

Overall mark : 9

Mark for value for money and user friendliness : 8

Mark for purchase value: 8.5

Conclusion :

We should take out shares in AUDIO AERO! It is with pleasure that we award the Prima converter our first distinction: the '!!!' of thf.fr.

System 1 tested: TEAC VRDST1 (modified SICOMIN) cd player, AUDIO AERO Capitole amp, APERTURA Kalibrator speakers, AUDIOQUEST Slate cables, at COGEDIS in Bordeaux.