System Dedicated 30A mains spur 1 x Black Rhodium Super Mains 25 Hardlink 2 x Phonosophie copper powercords Phonosophie Classic rack 2B TGS with 2 Q Boards  Phonosophie electronics:     - Impuls 1 cd player + Classic 1 integrated amplifier     - Impuls 1.5 cd player + Bi-Amp 1-4 integrated amplifier 2 x Phonosophie PK2 DD55 interconnect cable 5m lengths of Phonosophie LS2 speaker cable ALR Jordan stand-mount speakers:     - Entry M     - Classic 2     - Note 3  1 x Artkustik Room Animator

Music

Artist

Title

Format

Catalogue number

Bonnie Raitt	Thing Called Love	CD	Capitol 7243 5 82112 2 0
Sheryl Crow	My Favourite Mistake	CD	A&M 986 109-3
Dire Straits	Six Blade Knife	CD	Vertigo 800 051-2
Norah Jones	Those Sweet Words	CD	Parlophone 7243 598366 0 7

Products reviewed

1.  B-Tech International	BT606 Atlas	£ 56
2.  Partington & Company	Ansa 60	£105
3.  Partington & Company	Trophy	£130
4.  Partington & Company	Super Dreadnought	£180
5.  Partington & Company	Dreadnought Broadside	£270

Review format

Listening notes

1.     First up was the budget Atlas stand from B-Tech International. The appearance of this 60cm stand does not inspire confidence, lacking as the design is in obvious stability. The relatively light-weight nature of construction further compounded the problem. Top spikes were provided but it was almost impossible to fix these tightly to the top-plate, which negated their potential benefit and the whole assembly wobbled and rattled alarmingly. Listening to the ALR Entry M speakers confirmed that the stand was doing little to allow them to perform. The lack of clarity on Bonnie Raitt’s vocal, backed by a messy, smeared rhythm section failing to gel; the uncontrolled opening bass notes on the Sheryl Crow track with no snap to the guitar chord intro; the poor stereo image and heavy handed Pick Wither’s brush work on Six Blade Knife; the apparently out-of-tune piano on the Norah Jones performance – these were all evidence of a poorly designed, ineffective stand which is best avoided even at a budget price.
2.     It was a relief to move on to the Partington Ansa 60 stands. For one thing, like several of the models from this manufacturer, this stand is very easy to assemble and install. Levelling each stand by adjusting the 8mm floor spikes from above quickly resulting in a very stable set-up. The top platform is flat with recesses for the heads of the four hex bolts attaching the support legs to the top-plate, so small blobs of Blutack were used to decouple the speaker from the stand. Initial impressions were that this was a stand enabling the listener to hear more of the speaker’s full capability.  Bonnie Raitt’s band started to sound more in tune; Sheryl Crow’s bass was tighter and there was a more incisive guitar bite - but there was still a lack of clarity evident leading to a tendency for the band to sound overblown and strained. Dire Straits had good rhythmic drive with the interplay between Wither’s high-hat and Mark Knopfler’s Stratocaster starting to emerge. Yet the vocals were still a little unclear and the subtlety of Knopfler’s first solo was not conveyed convincingly. Norah Jones’ piano sounded rather strident and her closely-miked vocals were not as smooth as she would have wished. Nevertheless these relatively inexpensive entry-level Partington stands put in a reasonable performance. Further advances can be made by filling the hollow legs with dry sand, but this is a rather fiddly procedure and a far better result can be achieved at the next level up.
3.     The Trophy is a different design from Partington, having four 40mm diameter hollow steel legs between the base plate and the top-plate, with no centre column. Both the top and bottom plates are resin filled before leaving the factory, to add further stability to the design.  Each leg was three-quarter filled with the addition of 650g of dry sand to add the recommended mass loading, though lead-shot could equally have been used. The ALR Entry M speakers are a perfect fit with this stand both visually and, as quickly became obvious, sonically. Hugely energetic, the Entry M is a dynamic performer and therefore needs a very solid platform to deliver its potential. Using the sand-filled Trophy provided exactly that - now Sheryl Crow was really starting to strut her stuff and her band sounded more in control than before. The delivery of the Knopfler guitar solo could now be heard really clearly and Norah Jones’ vocal was less strident than with the less expensive Ansa stands. In short this is an exceptionally good stand representing excellent value for money.
4.     Next we moved on to the Partington Super Dreadnought. Similar in appearance to the Ansa 60, this stand differs in three areas : It is fully welded and so requires only the addition of the 8mm floor spikes to be ready for use; it is a far more substantial build than the Ansa even before any filling material is added; it has a superior quality paint finish – the graphite Super Dreadnought was darker and far more lustrous than the graphite Ansa. So after the even simpler set-up routine of fitting the spikes and levelling the stand, listening commenced, first using the stand with no additional filling of the centre column and legs. Bonnie Raitt’s drummer was now playing like he meant it – with real attack on the opening drum beat; Bonnie’s slide guitar sounded just as mean and dirty as she intended. With a more clearly defined note shape evident on the bass line, Sheryl Crow now really started to rock, with real power delivered on the intro to the chorus particularly. Dire Straits suddenly had real presence, with the subtle interplay between the musicians clearly apparent and the Stratocaster solo really ringing out.  Norah Jones piano phrases started to make some sense with the percussion. Her breathing to phrase each line could now be clearly heard, whereas it had not been evident via the preceding stands.   In summary, the Super Dreadnought is a highly capable stand which allows even relatively inexpensive speakers such as the Entry M give of their best. When partnered with a more refined stand-mounter, such as the ALR Jordan Classic 2, the benefits of using of a high quality stand become even more apparent. Not only is the solidity of the sound retained, but even more detail is revealed from the more capable speaker. But it gets better . . . . .
The real advantage of the Super Dreadnought is that it is designed with a hollow centre column and legs so that its performance can be upgraded by filling these with materials of your choice, the most popular being dry sand or lead shot. By putting 3 kg of lead shot into  each centre column with 175g of dry sand in each leg, the difference was simply astonishing.  The stands now exposed detail mercilessly with the result that the less than perfect recording quality of the Bonnie Raitt song was now revealed for the first time. Not for the faint-hearted, this thing called love! With the now filled Super Dreadnought supporting the Classic 2s (being  driven by the four channel Bi-Amp 1-4), Sheryl Crow’s bass could now be heard to really underpin the vocal whilst not detracting from the incisive guitar chord intro. Six Blade Knife now really started to groove - not only was each note of the Stratocaster portrayed, the different ways in which Mark Knopfler was plucking the strings of his Strat to phrase each line could be clearly heard. The clarity of the driving bass rhythm and it’s interplay with the brush work, the subtlety of the guitar phrases emphasising Knopfler’s whispered vocal – classic Dire Straits, 1978 vintage.  Norah Jones piano was now back in pitch and the double-tracked vocals could be pinpointed clearly in the soundstage.
5.     The final stand we assessed was Partington’s Dreadnought Broadside. Similar in appearance to the Super Dreadnought, this stand is far more physically imposing, with four 40mm legs around a larger centre column. Again the top and bottom plates are resin-filled, but the base-plates have substantial welded feet at each corner containing threads for the 8mm spikes to add even more stability. Finished in high gloss black, the Dreadnought is an ideal partner, both visually and sonically, for the top-of-the-range stand-mount ALR Jordan Note 3 speaker. Building on previous experimentation, we filled the stand with 1 kg of no 8 lead-shot in each outer leg and 3kg sand in the centre column (3/4 full), thereby adding 7kg ballast to each stand.    Again using the Phonosophie Impuls 1.5 and Bi-Amp 1-4 combination, there was an immediate audible improvement :  Bonnie Raitt’s bassist was now playing with uncanny precision whilst her distinctive slide guitar breaks could now be more clearly followed through the whole song. Sheryl Crow’s Favourite Mistake was obviously not the bass line, which now had even more depth and extension than before yet did not diminish the drive and snap of the rhythm guitar, so essential to the song. The first thing you notice on Six Blade Knife is the way Pick Withers drives the song with his forceful brush-work. But then you are captivated by the subtlety of Mark Knopfler’s guitar technique, as you can now clearly differentiate how he bends and pulls the strings to phrase each line. On Norah Jones’ Those Sweet Words the whole structure of the song is laid bare. The interplay between the piano and vocal dominate this song, yet now the soundstage appears wider and more three dimensional, particularly noticeable on the double-tracked harmony of the second chorus, delivered with full emotion.  The Note 3 is a true monitor quality speaker capable of portraying al the subtleties present in a high quality recording whilst delivering real weight and depth if required. The Partington Dreadnought Broadside is a perfect match for this top-of-the-range stand-mount speaker, facilitating the highest level of performance.

Conclusion

Recommended product summary