Reviews

AHB2 - Driving Selah Cali4 Speakers - "Room of Distinction"

"I ended up visiting this room more than any other room at the show. I couldn’t help myself; I had to keep coming back for more!"

- Drew Gagliano, TheAudioBeatnik.com

DAC3 B, LA4, AHB2 - Driving Martin Logan ESL 11A Electrostatic Speakers

197 Rooms - Benchmark Room Makes the Audio Beatnik "Top 3"

"The overall sonic signature of this room had a remarkable sense of ease and purity. Minute details such as a breathy initial saxophone note or a solo vocalist parting her lips and taking a breath before singing were easily discernable. At the same time, they presented all of the musical energy and rhythm contained within the source material. The effortless and free-flowing nature of the Martin Logans paired up nicely with the transparent AHB2 amplifiers."

"The tonality and realism of the instruments were spectacular. An alto saxophone sounded as if it was in the room with me, and the pitch and timbre of both male and female vocals were absolutely spot-on. It was clear that nothing in this system was getting in the way of the music."

"Their room had a remarkable degree of transparency that made every listener feel closer to the music."

- Drew Gagliano, TheAudioBeatnik.com

LA4 - "Best of RMAF 2018"

"RMAF 2018 was really good, with significant numbers of attendees, and more new-product introductions than I remembered ever seeing there."

"Led by engineer John Siau and based in Syracuse, New York, Benchmark Media Systems has built a sterling reputation for making compact, well-engineered, moderately priced electronics that challenge the state of the art, both on the test bench and in the listening room."

"What I took notice of were the specifications: total harmonic distortion of less than 0.00006%, and a signal/noise ratio exceeding 135dB from 20Hz to 20kHz."

"If those claims are true, and there’s no reason to believe they aren’t -- Benchmark gear has always performed as specified on the test bench -- the LA4 should be about as transparent-sounding a line-stage as you can find at any price." 

- Doug Schneider, SoundStage! Hi-Fi

Benchmark - "The Reference Sound"

"Speaking of reference gear, few names in high-end audio are so closely attached to the reference sound as Benchmark."

HPA4 - "Found at Booths Throughout the Show"

"Their fantastic HPA4 reference amplifier could be found at booths throughout the show."

DAC3 B - Introduced at RMAF 2018

"This year, Benchmark was introducing its new DAC3 B."

"I spent some time playing around with the Benchmark pieces, and they really have a high quality pro-audio-like build to them. They're the polar opposite of some of these more DIY-feeling boutique amps and DACs out there – Benchmark has a very professional level of finish on it."

DAC3 B, LA4 - "The New Benchmark Stack"

"Benchmark Media Systems used RMAF 2018 to launch two new products that it was able to lump together into one neat little stack."

"On the top is the DAC3 B, which has the same basic circuitry as the company’s more expensive DACs, but deletes the volume control, polarity and mute buttons, and headphone amp found on those models."

"On the bottom is the LA4 linestage preamplifier..." 

"The LA4 has two pairs each of single-ended (RCA) and balanced (XLR) inputs, and boasts some impressive specs: THD of less than 0.00006% and a signal-to-noise ratio exceeding 135 dB from 20 Hz to 20 kHz."

"Volume is controlled by dual 256-step attenuators that operate in 0.5 dB increments."

DAC3, AHB2, ESL 11A - "A Well-Curated Sound System"

"That’s what Benchmark Media had put together in Chicago for AXPONA this year in room 670 at the Renaissance Schaumburg Hotel: a smooth, curated system... to showcase their AHB2 power amplifier, running here in bridged-mono mode and being directly driven by their DAC3 HGC DAC/headamp/preamp."

"The ESL 11A presents a unique challenge for amplifiers... making sure those big curved ‘stat panels are being given not only the watts they need to perform best, but the current as well. Here the AHB2’s linear amplification design excels, as a pair running in bridged-mono delivers 480 watts into six Ohms, and 29 A (peak) of current/channel."

"Whether there was rock, jazz, classical, or even electronic playing while I was in the room, the Benchmark DAC/Pre/Power combo had a way with digital files that seemed to never put a foot wrong, and maintained a balance between resolution, dynamics, and believable acoustic warmth in instruments, and vocals."

"Aurum Cantus’s new V80F loudspeaker is a 3-Way floor standing speaker using the award winning Aurum Cantus wide-band aluminum ribbon tweeter technology."

DAC3 HGC and Mono AHB2's - Driving V80F Loudspeakers

The system used one Benchmark DAC3 HGC (DAC/preamp) and two Benchmark AHB2 monoblock power amplifiers.

"Great acoustic synergy in this configuration."

- Jay Luong, AudioBacon.net

"Dana Cables, Benchmark, and Aurum Cantus joined forces at AXPONA 2018 to deliver a memorable sound."

AHB2 (Mono Mode) - Driving Cantus v80F Towers

"Fast, precise, and nice harmonics is what my notes say."

- Steven R. Rochlin, Enjoy the Music.com

DAC3, AHB2, ESL 11A - "Something a Little Different, and Highly Enchanting"

"The folks from Benchmark and Martin-Logan teamed up to do something just a little different, and entirely enchanting, in the Jackson Room!"

"Multi-channel bliss with the Martin-Logan ESLs driven by an all Benchmark system."

Benchmark and Martin-Logan System at Capital Audiofest, 2017

• 3 Benchmark DAC3 Converters (5.1)
• 5 Benchmark AHB2 Power Amplifiers (Bridged Mono)
• 5 Martin-Logan ESL 11A Electrostatic Speakers
• 2 Martin-Logan Balanced Force 210 Subs

"The resultant sound was extremely clean and fast, surprisingly dynamic, and the space, as you'd expect with good multi-channel, was get-up-and-walk-around through. Well done!"

- Greg Weaver, enjoythemusic.com