919X Auto Reverse Stereo Cassette Deck PEMOTE SENSOR Marlboro Red Or Longhorn 1110'S- You Get a Lot to Like
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MARCH 1S90 --''-I.- IC-I i-o-o-o 4- 0- o - ê I I -I INCORPORATING HIGH FlOILITY' 0-.1.-1,.0 1.0 0.0.-1.,1, 0041 r- ti 61 1'8 4-.41 4-11 4.14 if 0.1..1,1,0, 0,1.-1 I 0. 4 00 4 4 4 1 I 8 , 1 1 - 2-111 C.1.1-111-11 0.444-4,110,411.11,11.-108-1.-1.1- 4111-14 C-0t,11 4 .`,1 4 .1, 1,9 +.1,0..1,1.10 o -o- I p 4 0 40040-40-4 1.'0 t-4.-$--I.-I- 1-4,10.401000.11.-1.-1.11, 140.40,4041.-4,4,11.-1...0,1,101 N1,011-4'10-1,8 I- 8,1.-1-1,1,1 Nq 0.4 t4o e-s.a r a .1I .-4,40,11,110.11.1,-8,1.0.1..-1.-11I r-ro vie too ,oo .^4^0.-4.-1...5.1,1,-4,1,1,1-A Id OILL11 0.1 - .40-0041.-4,1,1-4,6.4.1,1-1,-1, 1,1 CHOOSING A CUSTOM INSTALLER J"410.1.1-4.-4.8.-1,11.11.- I -411, # I 4"..0 I .11, -1,..11.1,1..0 -10.0,10.1.1.- 414.41-.1...4.-1,14.1,4,1.........8..8...p 4.0 1.4 0.4 -4 .4 0'.I ...11.4 I 10. a - I TEST REPORTS: YAMAHA RECEIVER, .5,5 0,4 0-1..0,.8.8..10-1,11-0,...0.1.. ROTEL CD PLAYER, BOSTON ACOUSTICS ".4:1,1181411,1-11,14.1c.14-4, SPEAKER SYSTEM, MORE... N N 0 Qa. 00 --014 HILD-o <U)>>4> Cloo-o CD cealo *3 .1 T DK CLEAR EJECT DOUBLE ACCULIGN ROTATING -1EAD SYSTEM TIMER PLAY OJT REC BI-DIRECTIONAL AUTO REVERSE RECORD! PLAYBACK R -919X Auto Reverse Stereo Cassette Deck PEMOTE SENSOR Marlboro Red or Longhorn 1110's- you get a lot to like. -*P1111111.16. Philip Morris Inc 1990 SURGEON GENERAL'S WARNING: Smoking Causes Lung Cancer, Heart Disease, Empiysema, And May Complicate Pregnancy. BACARDI AND THE BAT DEVICE ARE REGISTERED TRADEMARKS OF BACARDI F. COMPANY LIMITED 1990 BACARDI IMPORTS INC. MIAMI FL RUM 400o ALC BY VOL Su iii Having good tasteis knowing what tastes good. Stereo Review. Incorporating High Fidelity® BULLETIN 5 TECHNICAL TALK 32 LETTERS 10 POPULAR MUSIC 83 NEWPRODUCTS 13 BACKBEAT 90 SIGNALS 25 CLASSICAL MUSIC 93 AUDIO Q&A 28 THE HIGH END 112 EQUIPMENT A USER'S EVALUATION 19 At home with the Proton 600 Series by David Simon HIRSCH-HOUCK LABS EQUIPMENT TEST REPORTS 37 Yamaha RX-530 Receiver, page 37 Boston Acoustics SubSat Six Speaker System, page 42 PAGE 66 Rotel RCD-855 Compact Disc Player, page 48 Ortofon PPA600 Power Amplifier, page 52 Linn Kaber Speaker System, page 56 How To BUY A CASSETTE DECK 58 Decide what you want it to do, and be prepared to test the candidates by David Simon TAPE BUYING GUIDE 63 Features, specs, and blank tapes THE BASICS 69 Making waves-the device that turns electricity into sound by Ian G. Masters CHOOSING A CUSTOM INSTALLER 72 How to have it your way by Rebecca Day MUSIC ROSEMARY CLOONEY 66 "If you can just hang on long enough, you get to be woven into the fabric of people's lives." by Alanna Nash BEST RECORDINGS OF THE MONTH 77 di John Cale, American violin masterpieces, the O'Kanes, and Mozart piano works 0 RECORD MAKERS 110 The latest from Narada Records, Aerosmith, James Galway, Gary Burton, Pat Metheny, and more Cover: Teac's top cassette deck, the R -919X, loaded with TDK's high -bias SA -X100, represents one of the many options for fine tape recording; see page 58. Design by Sue Llewellyn, photo by Roberto Brosan. COPYRIGHT © 1990 BY DIAMANDIS COMMUNICATIONS INC. All rights reserved. Stereo Review, March 1990, Volume 55, Number 3. Stereo Review (ISSN 0039-1220) is published monthly by Diamandis Communications Inc. at 1633 Broadway. New York. NY 10019: telephone (212) 767-6000. Also publishers of Car Stereo Review, Stereo Buyers' Guide, Compact Disc Buyers' Guide, and Video Buyers' Guide. One-year subscription rate for the United States and its possessions, $13.94: Canada, $18.94; all other countries. $21.94, cash orders only, payable in U.S. currency. Second-class postage paid at New York, NY 10001, and at additional mailing offices. Printed in the U.S.A. Authorized as second-class mail by the Post Office Department. Ottawa, Canada, and for payment of postage in cash. POST- MASTER/SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE: Please send change -of -address forms and all subscription correspondence to Stereo Review, P.O. Box 55627, Boulder, CO 80322-5627. Please allow at least right weeks for the change of address to become effective. Include both your old and your new address, enclosing, ifpossible, an address label from a recent issue. If you have a subscription problem, write to the above address or call (800) 876-9011. PERMISSIONS: Material in thispublication may not be reproduced in any form without permission. Requests for permission should be directed to: Editor, Stereo Review, Diamandis Communications Inc., 1633 Broadway, New York, NY 10019. EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTIONS must be accompanied by return postage and will be handled with reasonable care, but the publisher assumes no responsibility for return or safety of unsolicited art, photos, or manuscripts. VOL. 55 No. 3 STEREOREVIEWMARCH19903 Conceived in total dedication to the pursuit of eX cellence, the time required to develop the research grogram for this system has spanned at least two decades. The elusive combiiation of variables re- quired to yield a uniform field has been tantalizing -..-.-searchers for many years. Finally, after McIntosh 7uilt one of the most advanced and best instru- -nented acoustical laboratories in the world was it ---ossible to follow the many theoretical leads to :heir conclusion. Then, after this extensive effort of analyzing so many different approaches to uni- formity of field, was it possible to snythesize all of this knowledge and in one flash of intuitive genius tne director of our acoustical laboratory saw a seemingly simple solution in the correct matching of diameters, masses ar d compliances End 14Iaat evolved is a new measure of accuracy d realism. The ii- b-llectual and emctional experience of listening to the XR 1052 is szJmething you simply no 1st enjoy in you- own tic me. For information on McInt3sh products and product reviews ple.c send your name, actress and phone Dumber to: McIntosh Laboratory Inc. Departm.Ent 2905 STEINWAY & SONS. STEINWAY and the LYRE Ectice are PO Ite3x 96 East Side Station Registered Trademarks of Steirtsra). Inc. and S.einwi.y & Bingtamton, NY 13904.0096 Sons. and are used with permission of Steinsta:%. Inc. CIRCLE NO. 29 ON READER EEFVICE CARD Handcrafted with pride in the United States by dedicated, highly trained craftspeople. Bu L LET I N by Rebecca Day and new shows are a concert by Joan redeemable for a Fuji/Enigma William Livingstone Baez with Jackson Browne as T-shirt featuring Red Flag and guest star (March 3) and a XYZ.... BASF's "Playback - DAT AT LAST? special Austin City Limits Payback" promotion will run from Following previous false starts featuring Lyle Lovett (March 8). May through June, offering by Marantz, Casio, and others, The Great Performances Series customers three chances to win manufacturers of digital audio will feature Mozart in Salzburg cash (up to $1,000) with the tape equipment are again poised (March 9) with James Levine purchase of selected to hit U.S. streets with DAT conducting the Vienna videocassettes. recorders in the next few months. Philharmonic and soloists Jessye At a press conference held a day Norman, Anne -Sophie Mutter, and MUSIC NOTES before the Winter Consumer Murray Perahia. Patti Page will Estonian conductor Neeme Electronics Show in Las Vegas in host Jukebox Saturday Night II Jarvi has been named music January, Sony said it would (March 10) with such singers as director of the Detroit Symphony. market a DAT recorder (at an Teresa Brewer, Julius La Rosa . Rumors persistthat Lee undisclosed price) in the first half and Margaret Whiting. Many Atwater, guitarist, Republican of 1990, with a portable to follow country artists, including Dwight Party Committee Chairman, and by the end of the year. Both Yoakam and Minnie Pearl, will lead vocalist, will be recording an machines will be equipped with perform on The Hank Williams album for a major company.... the Serial Copy Management Tradition (March 12), and a show And are you ready for the return System (SCMS), which limits the will be devoted to The of Iggy Pop? According to making of digital copies of digital Unforgettable Nat King Cole authoritative sources, he will star tapes. (March 13). In the movie Crybaby produced by The following day Technics said Other new shows this month Ron (Cocoon) Howard and it would have its SCMS-equipped feature great moments from the directed by John (Pink SV-DA1O DAT recorder in stores Metropolitan Opera (March 14), Flamingos) Waters. The cast is "by summer" at a price of $1,200 music by Richard Rodgers (March said to include Polly Bergen, Patty to $1,300. JVC and Denon 16), and a Julie Andrews concert Hearst, Troy Donahue, and followed suit, disclosing plans to (March 18). Among repeats are ex -porn queen Traci Lords. The introduce DAT recorders with programs by Linda Ronstadt and mind reels. SCMS at $1,100 and $1,000, Louis Armstrong (both March 2), respectively, early this summer.