With the burgeoning number of adults working from home, the office-audio category has become an industry bright spot.  Filling this space is Blue Aura’s $549 v30 Blackline music system, which satisfies the craving for vacuum tubes and matching speakers, and does so in a space-conscious package.

The handsome, three-piece system looks sharp wherever I place it in my office—I tried both my bookshelf and credenza—but the system’s striking aesthetics never dominate the décor.  Los Angeles–based Blue Aura wraps the speakers and the body of the amp in black faux-leather, and accents the amp with chrome trimmings.

The amp is 10 inches wide, 7.5 inches deep and 5.5 inches tall, and the plated handles on either side of it double nicely as bookends.  Adorning the front panel is a pair of matching chrome knobs—one for adjusting the volume and one for selecting from the three inputs (USB, LINE, and AUX).  Two 6N1 tubes flank the taller 6e2 tube, with its decorative but unnecessary green glowing light filter.  A four-post tube guard with a plexiglass-and-chrome top shelf protects the tubes from inadvertent fingers or the common office mishap.  On the back panel, from left to right, are three inputs (RCA, mini-headphone, and mini-USB B), followed by a mini-headphone output jack, four brass speaker jacks, the power-cord socket and power switch.

The 5.5-inch tall speakers look similar to the Audioengine A2s, with forward-facing slits towards the bottom of each speaker serving as bass ports.  The 3/4-inch tweeter and 3.5-inch paper driver surprised me from the outset with some obvious low-frequency grunt and detail.  With the speakers set on their over-sized-hockey-puck stands and with the bookcase as an additional cabinet, the sexy, sultry vocals of Sade fill my 11-by-10-foot office.  Changing out the included 18-gauge speaker wire for some 12-gauge wire further defineds the speaker’s impressive resolution.

Dishing It Out

Forget the typical tinny computer sound and irritating fake subwoofer output—the v30 avoids that pitfall.  This is a setup I find enjoyable listening to for several hours, which helps me grade papers without becoming restless.  When playing rounded sharp-edged recordings, such as Donald Fagan’s Kamakiriad, the v30 settles down nicely.  I then play some lossless recordings, with my laptop and Audioengine D2 wireless DAC system on my desk and the v30 on the bookcase, and intoxicating sound fills the office.  Even with the speakers just 30 inches apart, the system offers impressive instrument placement.

It’s obvious that the Blue Aura engineers understood that the typical home-office setup limits how far apart speakers can be placed.  The result is a nice, expansive soundstage and subsequent enjoyable listening experience.  Even stepping down to my MacBook’s analog output and running a wire to the v30 yields worthwhile results.

The system excels at reproducing jazz music, and quickly makes Vince Guaraldi’s classic Charlie Brown Christmas a playlist favorite.  The v30’s ability to recreate the individual bass notes in “O Tannenbaum” bests the budget bookshelf speakers that normally occupy my office—and those are more than three times the size of the v30’s speakers.  Guaraldi’s piano matches the glow that the three tubes adds to the keystrokes.  The slight loss in absolute detail is easily made up by the system’s warmth and rich decay.

As the days pass, the v30 becomes the reason to listen to music, the goal being to see what it can handle musically.  While blasting Slayer at house-party levels isn’t realistic, the unit has no problem getting into the 90-plus-dB range before hitting its sonic wall.  It delivers more complex rock with ease.  John Mellencamp’s Lonesome Jubilee, with its multitude of instruments, sounds open and uncongested—a neat trick for such a diminutive setup.

As expected, the v30’s three glowing tubes make the midrange beguiling.  Female vocals and instruments are lush and warm, and void of the syrupy slow quality that creeps into many budget tube systems.  In this price range, the v30 is downright first-rate, especially in the level of clarity it brings to Pink Martini’s “Mar Desconocido,” with its tempo-leading bongos, and to the plucked guitar and xylophone in the next track, “Taya Tan.”

Just For Fun

One Sunday afternoon, I pair the 20-wpc integrated amplifier with the 92-dB-efficient Verity Audio Finns.  The v30 does itself proud here, powering the Finns with confidence.  Though the amplifier section won’t make one forget PrimaLuna’s resolution, particularly in the higher register, it does move some serious air, representing the basics of tone and balance remarkably well.

Even in larger spaces, such as my 13-by-19-foot family room, the v30 delivers open sound.  With the amp and speakers on the rock fireplace hearth with the angled puck speaker stands tilted upward, the room fills with warm holiday sounds.  Even with the sliding door to the kitchen closed, I was still able to enjoy the details emanating from the system.

For those that desire tunes but need focus on work in their office, the musicality of the v30 Blackline make it a top-tier choice for the home office.  Looking to add a source wirelessly? Just add Blue Aura’s WSTxR wireless transmitter/receiver kit for $149.

www.blueaura-audio.com

Three of my favorite things come in bright blue: Smurfs, rare Porsche 911’s (only a few came from the factory in Mexico Blue), and Koetsu’s Urushi Sky Blue phono cartridge. To most audiophiles, Koetsu summons up a vision of analog exotica that defies definition and affordability. Produced by hand and in small quantities, these Japanese beauties are the stuff of waiting lists and privilege, with the cost of top models inching towards $20,000. But you don’t have to drop five figures to get a substantial helping of what Koetsu offers.

Every Koetsu cartridge features hand-wound coils and hand-carved bodies from various woods and stone, which determine the ultimate tonality of each model. Various models use different wire for coil windings, and alternate magnet materials give each a unique sound. The lacquer finishes even impact the final result. Here, the Urushi Sky Blue utilizes a rosewood body with Samarium-Cobalt magnets and a set of silver-plated coils. Packaged in a simple but elegant wooden box, it runs $4,300.

Tech Basics and Setup

The Sky Blue is a low-compliance cartridge (5 x 10-6 cm/dyne) that works best in higher-mass arms. I achieved very distinctive results in two tonearm/turntable combinations at my disposal. The Avid Acutus Reference SP/SME V offered better dynamics and more weight, with the cartridge exhibiting tremendous low-level detail thanks to the nonexistent level of mechanical noise. The Rega P9 proved completely different, with plenty of pace and inner detail, but somewhat less definition and a mellower lower register. Warmth definitely crept in, but at the expense of resolution. Overall, very pleasing, but this cartridge changes its character depending on the platform on which it is mounted—and more drastically than others that I’ve tried.

Suggested tracking force is listed at 1.8 – 2.2 grams and, true to form, I found optimal tracking to be just slightly past 1.9 grams. It’s worth noting that this cartridge is relatively easy to set up and not as sensitive as some with regards to ultra-fine adjustment. And it still gave a great showing slightly off the optimum setup point. Output is a low, but not unreasonable .4mv, so it should be compatible with most high-gain phono preamplifiers (about 60db and up). I preferred 200 ohm loading with the ARC REF 2 Phono, with 500 ohms a bit dark. I experienced similar results using the AVID Pulsare phonostage.

Chameleon-Like

Balance and delicacy are the Sky Blue’s key qualities. At first listen, it’s easy to dismiss the Urushi as slightly soft, but it doesn’t take long to realize that you are hearing tonal gradations, often more subtly than ever before. Most of my Koetsu experience has come with friends’ SME 20 and 30 tables. I admit that I was somewhat taken aback when fitting it to the AVID Acutus Reference SP. The presentation was transformed, replete with a full measure of nuance (this, I was used to) but with an extra level of dynamics (this, I was not).

Moving through various music food groups with familiar material again revealed a level of fine detail without being too forward or harsh. My personal bias tends to favor just about anything that is ever so slightly on the warm side of neutral. Warm, slow, and syrupy gets boring, especially on a high-resolution system. But let’s face it: Most records boast less-than-phenomenal sonics, which is why you need more than one table/arm cartridge setup.

However, because most records are less than perfect, the Koetsu makes a fantastic daily driver. Although I have a couple of cartridges that have more ultimate resolution and are incredible with ideal recordings, I can’t play the first Boston album with either of them. “Foreplay/Long Time” sounds awesome when played on the Koetsu, and this is a true test of a cartridge’s merit.  Throw some of your worst-sounding records at a phono cartridge to see what it’s made of, I say. Patricia Barber sounds great on just about any analog setup, but who cares? And even if you are a classical music lover, chances are you’ve got a pile of recordings that are far from perfect. The Sky Blue’s slightly rich character goes a long way at making mid-80s DG recordings more palatable.

On the pop front, listening to Yim Yames’ Tribute to… was a treat. It’s exactly the kind of music with which this cartridge excels. Yames’ vocals and mandolin balance perfectly, and with an added bit of ambience lost on a few lesser cartridges, the overall presentation was extremely realistic and made me feel as if I were sitting in an empty theater, tenth-row center. The banjo performance on the cover George Harrison’s “Love You To” was sublime; the hauntingly realistic level of three-dimensionality the Koetsu brought forth stunned me. I had the same experience with the recent Jung Trio album on Groove Note. Piano and violin were rendered with an extra fine layer of detail; I’ve never heard a more natural rendition of a violin in my system.

Like Sleeping on 1500-Thread-Count Sheets

If you’ve slept on ultra-high thread-count sheets, you know how the bedding just seems to disappear as you sink into the bed and makes it that much easier to relax. That’s what the Sky Blue does with music. The tonal gradations are so smooth, and combined with a high ability to unravel dense recordings, it’s easy to stop thinking about gear.

To achieve this experience, cue up Shriekback’s “The Reptiles and I” from Big Night Music. While the lead vocal is airy and over processed, it goes flat without a healthy dose of resolution on tap. At the same time, synthesizers and bongos float out of phase with no specific location before disappearing into the room boundaries. None of this magic was present on the digital version of the album, even when played through my dCS Paganini stack.

MoFi’s recent release of Linda Rondstadt’s Simple Dreams revealed similar results. It’s a fairly dense recording, with an incredibly wide soundstage and various instrument tracks judiciously sprinkled in the mix. For those craving “pinpoint imaging” in their stereo system, the song should satisfy even the fussiest audiophile. It’s one of those tracks where you go from hearing Ronstadt breathe at the outset before her voice swells, producing an immersive experience that will have you searching for non-existent surround-sound speakers.

Many Koetsu owners comment on the cartridges’ ability to minimize surface noise. Perhaps this is due to Koetsu’s unique stylus profile that rides the groove in a slightly different spot, yet it was definitely something I noticed with records that are known to be on the noisy side. Minimal clicks and pops seemed to possess a similar intensity, but low-level groove noise was lower overall.

Comparison and Conclusion

If the Sky Blue has a weakness, it’s the slight softening of leading transients. The cannon shots in AC/DC’s “For Those About to Rock (We Salute You) didn’t quite have the punch that they had with the Lyra Skala. Still, the slightly thin tonal balance of Bon Scott’s voice on “Night Prowler” had a little extra body, a welcome benefit. So remember: What the analog gods give, they also take away.  However, this cartridge did such a great job with everything else, I rarely gave the slight loss of ultimate dynamics a second thought. Detail fanatics may not find this shortcoming acceptable, but again, it depends on your taste, system, and recordings.  Think of the Lyra Skala (another one of my favorites) as a Stratocaster and the Koetsu Urushi Sky Blue as a Les Paul Custom. And the Koetsu Rosewood Signature Platinum is somewhere in between, but that’s another review.

Koetsu cartridges are usually somewhat tough to find, but Acoustic Sounds carries a larger stock than anyone in the States. If you decide you need one of these exquisite transducers, give the Kansas-based company a call sooner rather than later. Otherwise, the wait for restock may prove unbearable.  And once you get your hands on one, you’ll see why these special cartridges have such a dedicated following.  – Jeff Dorgay

The Koetsu Urushi Sky Blue Cartridge

MSRP: $4,300

www.koetsuusa.com

Yay: Luscious presentation, low surface noise, easy set up

Nay: Slight lack of ultimate dynamics

OK: Expensive, but not outrageously priced

Peripherals

Amplification	Burmester 011 preamplifier 911 mk. 3 power amplifier
Phono Preamp	ARC REF 2 Phono    AVID Pulsare
Speakers	'GamuT S9"
Cable	Cardas Clear
Power	Running Springs Dmitri and Maxim    Mongoose and HZ cords
Accessories	Furutech DeMag    Loricraft PRC-3 Record Cleaning System    MoFi Cleaning fluids