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Since we had the Moon series of components on last issue's front cover, we have had a number of calls. Some people thought that the cover was misleading, some thought that we forgot to review the Moon and some accused us of outright ignorance. The explanation is relatively simple: We didn't get a unit into our studio because Simaudio had pre-sold almost all of the first production run and business is business, as they say. We lowly reviewers are on the bottom of the priority list, perhaps we don't even appear there at all. However, we have here the first unit, the power amplifier. Before we get into the nitty-gritty of things, allow us to recap the company's biography. Simaudio has been in business since 1980 manufacturing electronics under the name Sima (the original founder's name is Victor Sima). The name Celeste didn't appear until about five years ago. Shortly thereafter, the company changed ownership and is now headed by John Poulin who used to work with Sima. Unlike Victor Sima, John Poulin had ambitions to build a killer amplifier, based on his experience with live music&emdash;his design criterion. In other words, Poulin has "ears" and-according to him-his regular Celeste line of components have reached the point where improvements are no longer possible in their price ranges. Therefore Poulin decided to design and manufacture a no-holds-barred, high-resolution, high-end line of components which will be marketed via a limited network of specialty dealers in Canada and the U.S.
Appearance:
The Moon is one of those rare components which looks impressive, sounds impressive-as we shall see later-and blends sheer masculinity with almost architectural styling. Its front panel is a massive, thick plate finished in a steel-gray shade featuring a gold-colored logo with the name Celeste in raised lettering. The logo dominates the front panel although there is also the model's name (W5) in small lettering and a tiny LED indicator to see the unit's status. The chassis still features Celeste's unique rounded heat sinks, they are, however, a bit smaller than the front panel. A couple of handles are cleverly arranged on the side and top of the heat sinks to help move the unit around. They are part of the unit and do not appear to be ordinary handles, but rather, a complement to the integral appearance. The rear of the amplifier accommodates four RCA inputs and two XLR (balanced) inputs, the power switch- a tiny button which activates a relay-the fuse, the socket for a detachable AC cord and four WBT speaker binding posts. The unit rests on four brass Tiptoe-like cones to eliminate potential vibrations. It weighs in at a hefty 72 pounds, measures 19 inches wide & deep and 7 inches high. We aren't kidding you when we tell you that the Moon is a great looking component, perhaps the most beautiful we have come across. Now to the more important business-the Moon's...
Technology:
About five years ago, Simaudio introduced a radical technology along with the Celeste line of products. It's named Renaissance Technology and features as its fundamental design, zero feedback everywhere within its circuitry. This design isn't necessarily unique in its conception and has been used in other high-end designs, but with limited success. Many amplifier manufacturers have employed no-feedback designs, but not globally, because feedback is often used somewhere in the circuitry to help lower distortion. John Poulin's tests have revealed that feedback loops slow down an amplifier's transient response which prompted him to reconfigure each output stage of Celeste products. The Moon's design benefits from Poulin's years of experience with zero-feedback Renaissance Technology, but there is more. All components used in the amplifier have been carefully hand-selected and all critical components which may influence sonic quality have been auditioned. Additionally, attention has been paid to synergy, whereby various parts, when assembled, can achieve the best possible sonic match. Premier components from Motorola, Dale and Cornell Dubilier undergo a tight tolerance check before they are used in a Moon series component. The Moon is a dual mono design which sports two large toroidal transformers as its heart and soul. Eight output transistors for each channel are connected directly to the aforementioned unique heat sink-a method by which thermal impedance is zero. The resulting temperature stability of the output transistors yields better reliability and allows the emitter resistance value to be as low as 0.01 ohms (the industry's typical figure hovers around 0.3 ohms). Poulin claims that this small difference results in better detail, more air, better transparency as well as greater dynamic range and high-frequency extension. No less than eight capacitors are employed and complement the military-grade circuit boards in an immaculate arrangement. The Moon is rated at 180 watts per channel into an eight ohm load, 360 watts per channel into four ohms and it can be strapped into a monaural mode which delivers seven-hundred and twenty watts into eight ohms. Its distortion is quoted as no more than 0.04 % at 20 kHz at full power. Signal to noise ratio is 100 dB, damping factor is 500, sensitivity is 1.25 volts for 250 watts and the input impedance is 50 k. All that and then some, but we now get to the interesting part...
The Sound:
We believe that we had the correct type of loudspeakers in house to come up with a sound evaluation of this new Moon (love the name). We used this amp with a pair of Ruark speakers, a pair of Polk speakers and the fussiest of them all-the Meadow Song Labs. We also had a few great listening sessions at the recent WCES in Las Vegas, where Simaudio shared a room with Gershman Acoustics and the GAPs had been connected to the Moon (GAP/Moon?). The Gershman speakers were in our studio for about six months and we are intimately familiar with their sonic attributes. A Blue Circle BC-3 preamplifier, Classé CD1/DAC1 player/converter and cables by Straightwire made up the rest of the auditioning systems.
All loudspeakers instantly revealed the Moon's speed and transparency- Poulin's design philosophy seems to be correct. This became most apparent when we used the Moon to drive the Meadow Song Labs electrostatic panels. It's difficult to describe the finesse, the air around instruments and voices, and the amplifier's management of high-frequency information. With the GAPS, we did experience a little brightness occasionally, but this may also be attributed to poor recordings and it wasn't apparent with all program material. This indicates that the amplifier is mercilessly reproducing whatever material it is asked to amplify. Midrange information with all speakers we had in house left, nothing to be desired, revealing the subtle shades of instrumental finesse with resolution and coherence. The bass is equally fast and resolute all the way down to the bottom of the scale. We drove the MSLs subwoofers and achieved outstanding resolution and (here it is again) speed. The substance and body of the lower frequencies, while quite correct, didn't please all of our panelists and some remarked that the Moon sounds much like a Krell- whatever this may be. The majority of our panelists concluded that the bass offers an elevated degree of resolution which may restrict a loudspeaker's natural resonance. We believe that this is perfectly accurate and that the choice of loudspeakers will ultimately determine the all-round sound of the amplifier.
It's almost pointless to mention the multi-dimensional sound-stage which prompts listeners to reach out and touch someone (playing an instrument)-imaging is great.
Synopsis & Commentary:
We read the company's advertisement and we must agree: it begins saying "Once In A Blue Moon-something magical happens". The magic is the amp's ability to recreate the art-form flawlessly. We disagree with the magical part, because the design isn't based on witchcraft-it's based on sound engineering, common sense and (credit must go to John Poulin) good old-fashioned listening tests. We understand that it took years of research and development, countless hours of listening and loads of money. It isn't easy for a midsize electronics firm located in the province of Quebec, away from easily accessible components, to come up with a world-class amplifier which competes favourably with any high-end manufacturer of solid state devices of which we know. As always, hearing is believing; and if your musical tastes (and your budget) have graduated and you are looking to acquire one of the best amps in high-end hi-fi land, you must listen to the Moon-it ain't so blue, it is however, a vehicle to achieve great sound. (Our hats are off, Mr. Poulin.)
