Specifications

©DAGOGO 2010 – special reprint by permission. Page 11
4 Ohm Speakers Become 8 Ohm Speakers!
The real fun was had with the GAIN setting used in conjunction with the Legacy Focus SE
speakers, VAC Renaissance Signature Preamplifier MkII and Moscode 402Au amplifiers (two
used in Biamp mode). These speakers are not terribly difficult to drive, and even though they are
4 Ohm speakers they are 96 dB sensitivity. However, with the Gain setting of the CD-5 only at
the null position, at a 4V output, these speakers came to life like I have never heard them prior.
They snapped to attention as though they were 8 Ohm speakers, with a crushing bass at 16Hz
and numinous highs.
Bumping the GAIN setting to Low (6V) upped their perceived efficiency to sound like 12 Ohm
speakers; with each increase in gain the speakers had more “jump factor”, more pumping bass,
creamy mids and tingling highs! The jump in power was evident by the digital readout on the
Pathos amps. Prior to using the CD-5 and the Low gain function I had to run these speakers in
the 40’s, but with it, I could achieve high levels (approx. 90 dB at 12 feet) with the setting at 20!
Consequently, I could not optimally run the High Gain setting with these speakers either. Though
the speakers handled it, once again the sound became unduly expanded and lost focus. Truly,
amps are given staggering increases in presence through this feature!
High Power + High Gain = Noise
When I was familiarizing myself with the Legacy Audio Helix speaker system, I was surprised to
hear a faint, continuous hum caused not by the media, nor a ground loop, but from the amplifier
itself. This is not an uncommon occurrence. Initially it was frustrating, as ideally there will be
dead silence when there is no signal. However, there are situations in which the additional low-