Avalon Acoustics Sentinel manual Active Reference System

1.3 The Active Reference System

A definitive transducer project of this magnitude demands the holistic integration of diverse design goals, including perfect phase response, critical damping, and point source accuracy. In addition, horizontal dispersion must be uniform across the frequency spectrum in order to generate a coherently focused wavefront and minimize room interaction artifacts. The difficulty of integrating all of these elements increases exponentially as the size of the array grows larger. It is only through complex computer modeling, meticulous physical and electrical alignment, and scores of hours of dedicated listening that correct phase response, without restricting the frequency response, has been achieved. The result is a transducer that is extremely revealing of microphone placement and phasing techniques from the recording site. The most subtle ambient information is clearly apparent. There is no exaggeration of details over fundamental elements of the recording; context is always clearly maintained.

These qualities are most apparent when using the Sentinel Active Reference System as an evaluation tool. Amplifiers, for example, that were previously thought to have similar sonic characteristics are now definitively separated by their individual signatures. The system's smooth non-reactive impedance response insures that the sound of an amplifier is not due to an interactive effect, but is a true representation of its sonic fingerprint. By ameliorating many of the technical shortcomings of all previous transducers, the music lover moves closer to the performance and the intent of the artist. Similarly, the critical evaluator now has a transparent window through which the differences between the elements under test (e.g. amplifiers, cartridges, etc.) can be clearly discerned.

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