Counterpoint
    Product Guide
 
 
    

Guide To Counterpoint Gear NOTE: This page is not complete. There are more Counterpoint products that I'll get around to adding as time permits. Click on any model number below to view information about it. Known issues with that product will be added as the knowledge base grows. SA-1, SA-2, SA-3 (and SA-3.1), SA-4, SA-5 (and SA-5.1), SA-6, SA-7 (and SA-7.1), SA-8, SA-9, SA-11, SA-12, SA-20, SA-100, SA-220, SA-1000, SA-2000, SA-3000, SA-5000, Natural Progression Mono (NPM) , NPS100, NPS200, NPS400, DA-10, DA-11 and DA-11.5 Pricing for other models not mentioned above . The Counterpoint Guy and Gal. We shot this picture in a room on an upper floor of the (then) Intercontinental Hotel in San Diego. City lights in the background. The artistic director wasted a lot of time and money setting up shots of the models gazing adoringly at the product. I grew frustrated and pointed out that women don't sit and admire hi-fi gear (at least none that I know) and proposed this shot. I felt that these two lovely people, hired models -- anyone recognize the Grecian Formula man? -- would more likely gaze adoringly at each other. This shot was used for several years on the Counterpoint print brochures. Several retailers took issue with the location of the woman's wine glass, fearing that it might incite more suggestible customers into irresponsibly perching wine glasses on high-fidelity gear. Despite their concern, Counterpoint never serviced a product that had had a drink spilled into it. But they serviced numerous amps and preamps that had been peed into by cats. Click here to view a Counterpoint product timeline (big GIF). Click here to learn more about getting Counterpoint gear repaired, upgraded and modified. About Imipolex G, the material from which the transformer mounts were claimed to have been manufactured. I often used rubber isolation mounts to mechanically decouple transformer from the product's chassis in order to assure a acoustically quiet product. Nearly every Owner's Manual states that these mounts are manufactured from "Imipolex G." No mention is made that this is a totally fictitious material, a "heterocyclic" aromatic polymer that plays a pivotal role in Thomas Pynchon's Gravity's Rainbow. I waited for over 15 years for someone to notice this obscure little reference. No one ever did, to my great disappointment. The actual grommets are ordinary butyl rubber and do their job quite well. What's with the "A" and "E" versions? You might own an SA-1000, an SA-1000A, or and SA-1000E. What's the difference? Nothing, really. The SA-1000 is the name of the product. Starting about 1993 or so, Counterpoint started using "A" to indicate units that were sold through retailers in North America, and "E" (for export) for units sold through distribution in other countries. This was done to make life easier for Counterpoint's distributors. Audiophiles in their countries could easily see the US retail price of any American-made hi-fi component by picking up a copy of The Absolute Sound or Stereophile. Yet, the prices charged by their local retailers were much higher. Why? The distributor who brings the product into the country has to pay import duties, advertising in the local magazine, trips overseas for trade shows and to visit their suppliers, and other overhead. In order to help them explain why the product on their dealers' shelves was priced higher than what they saw in the magazines, we were requested to either raise prices in the US, or create special versions for distribution. Unlike other manufacturers, Counterpoint elected to use different suffixes on the model names instead. This way, the distributor could explain that, yes, the one in the American magazine is less expensive, but it's only an "A" version, while the "E" version is built to more rigorous specifications. The Products (in approximate order of release) (Picture courtesy Don Caruso who graciously donated an old Counterpoint product sheet from the archives of Caruso Audio.) SA-1 Preamplifier. This tube preamplifier was introduced in 1977. It features a fully-tubed signal path. Phono stage designed for cartridges with MM-level (4.7mV) output only. Technical Summary: Pure tube signal path. The unit has two 6DJ8 triodes in the phono stage and two 12AX7 triodes in the line stage. As with all Counterpoint preamps, there are two gain stages in the phono section with passive riaa equalization. The line stage is a two-stage design with a cathode follower. There is a small amount of feedback in the phono and the line stage. Gain, Right and Left Channel Level Trim, Stereo-mono, Mute, Input Select, 3-Position Low-Frequency Filter controls. Aluminum front panel finished in black anodize, or stainless steel with gold-plated knobs. Discontinued end of 1984. Original Retail Price: $1850.00 No Upgrade Path at this time. Designed by Ed Semanko Revised in 1981 by Michael Elliott SA-2 MC Pre-preamplifier. This moving-coil pre-preamplifier was introduced in 1982. It features a fully-tubed signal path and was the first such component to use a vacuum-tube voltage regulator, including a tube rectifier. Important note: this is not a phono stage, and cannot be used in place of one. It is a voltage amplifier designed to raise the low output level of MC cartridges up to MM levels. It is intended to be connected between an MC phono cartridge and the MM input of a phono preamp that does not have a built-in MC stage. Technical Summary: Pure tube signal path. The unit has two paralleled 6DJ8 triodes per channel for low noise. There is no feedback The transformer is housed in a separate enclosure. The unit offers provisions for adjusting cartridge loading and bandwidth limiting. Transformer housed in separate box. Front panel controls for On-off, Mute, Tube Bias, with lamps to indicate when the right and left channel tubes have the same bias current. Aluminum front panel finished in black anodize. Discontinued end of 1991. Original Retail Price: $895.00 Shipping weight* 20 lbs. Contact me for upgrades. SA-3.1 (SA-3) Preamplifier. This preamplifier was introduced in 1982 as the SA-3. It was updated to "point one" status with the addition of an auto-mute feature in 1986. It features all-tube phono and line stages. As manufactured, phono stage designed for cartridges with MM-level (4.7mV) output only. MC option available with upgrading. . Technical Summary: Pure tube signal path. The unit has two 6DJ8 tubes in the phono stage and a single 6DJ8 in the line stage. As with all Counterpoint preamps, there are two gain stages in the phono section with passive riaa equalization. The line stage is a single-stage. There is no loop feedback. Solid-state power supply. Four line-level inputs, two sets of tape outputs and one set of Main outputs. Input Selector (listen), Input Selector (tape send), Gain, Balance, Stereo-mono, On-Off controls. Aluminum front panel finished in black or silver anodize. Discontinued middle of 1990. Original Retail Price: SA-3/3.1: $795/$995. Shipping weight* 20 lbs. Upgrade Path Known Issues SA-4 OTL Power Amplifier. This mono power amplifier was intoduced in 1984. It features all-tube signal path and no output transformer or output coupling capacitor. 150W (min) / 8 ohms. Technical Summary: Pure tube signal path. The unit has eight 6LF6 output tubes. Tube Current Meter, Meter Tube Select, Bias, On-Off On-Off controls. Front panel-mounted fuses. Aluminum front panel finished in black or silver anodize. A magical-sounding amplifier when mated to the right speaker (no less than 8 ohms, suggested efficiency greater than 90dB/W/m). Requires matched tube sets, which I am unable to provide. Discontinued middle of 1993. Original Retail Price: $4000.00/pr Upgrade Path Known Issues Designed by Michael Elliott from original circuit licensed from Roger Modjeski SA-5.1 (SA-5) Preamplifier. This preamplifier was introduced in 1985 as the SA-5. It was updated to "point one" status with the addition of an auto-mute feature in 1986. It features all-tube phono and line stages and a vacuum-tube power supply. As manufactured, phono stage designed for cartridges with MM-level (4.7mV) output only. MC option available with upgrading. Technical Summary: The unit has two 6DJ8 tubes in the phono stage and two 6DJ8's in the line stage. As with all Counterpoint preamps, there are two gain stages in the phono section with passive riaa equalization. The line stage is a single-stage. There is no loop feedback. Four line-level inputs, two sets of tape outputs and one set of Main outputs. Line Input Selector, riaa/Line select (listen), riaa/Line select (tape send), Right and Left Channel Level Trims, Gain, Balance, Stereo-mono, Mute, Standby, On-Off controls. Aluminum front panel finished in black or silver anodize. Discontinued middle of 1991. Original Retail Price: $1795.00. Shipping weight* 26 lbs. Upgrade Path as SA-5.1 Upgrade Path as SA-9jr. Known Issues SA-6 MC Pre-preamplifier. Designed to amplify output of MC cartridges up to MM level for use with MM-only phono preamps. This moving-coil pre-preamplifier was introduced in 1984 as a low-cost alternative to the SA-2. Not many were sold. It features a tube signal path. Technical Summary: The unit has two 12AX7 triodes. There is no feedback Solid-state power supply. The unit offers provisions for adjusting cartridge loading. Front panel controls for On-off, Mute, Tube Bias. Aluminum front panel finished in black anodize. Discontinued middle of 1990. Original Retail Price: $450 Contact me for upgrades. SA-7.1 (SA-7) Preamplifier. This preamplifier was introduced in 1984 as the SA-7 as a lower-cost preamplifier. It was updated to "point one" status with the addition of an auto-mute feature in 1986. It features all-tube phono and line stages. As manufactured, has sufficient gain for MC cartridges but signal-to-noise not really good enough for MC use. Technical Summary: The unit has two 12AX7 tubes in the phono stage and originally had two 12AY7's in the line stage. Later versions used a two 6DJ8's in the line stage to overcome a tendency of the older tube to "whistle." As with all Counterpoint preamps, there are two gain stages in the phono section with passive riaa equalization. All versions (12AY7 line stage, and the first versions of the 6DJ8 design) have a gain stage followed by a cathode-follower. Later units have a MOSFET source-follower after the 6DJ8 gain stage. There is no loop feedback Three line-level inputs. There are single pairs of tape out and main out. Input Selector, Tape monitor, Balance, Volume, Mute and Power controls. Aluminum front panel finished in black or silver anodize. Discontinued middle of 1989. Original Retail Price: $495. Shipping weight* 19 lbs. Upgrade Path SA-8 Power Amplifier. This stereo power amplifier was intoduced in 1984. It features tube gain/driver stages and a MOSFET output stage. 150W (min) / 8 ohms. (Picture courtesy Peter Badame.) Technical Summary: This power amplifier has four 12AY7 tubes and Hitachi MOSFETs in the output stage. Aluminum front panel finished in black or silver anodize. Original Retail Price: $2395.00 Contact me for upgrades. SA-9 Phono Equalizer (also marketed as "Claritas Phono," and "Magnum Opus Phono"). This dual-mono MC/MM dedicated phono-only phono amplifier was introduced in 1986. Tube and JFET signal path, and a separate vacuum-tube power supply. Hard-to-find and much-sought. Read a small review of this unit in unmodified form at High-End Audio.com Technical Summary: The unit has two 6DJ8 gains stages per channel, each switchable to JFET/tube cascode operation for extremely high gain and low noise. Passive riaa equalization. Solid-state interstage and output buffers There is no feedback. MC/MM inputs, line-level outputs. MC/MM, Subsonic Filter, MC Cartridge Loading, Output Level, Mute, On/Off controls. Aluminum front panel finished in black or silver anodize. A costly and luscious-sounding design that had the misfortune of being too expensive for the market when it was first introduced, then just as word started getting around about how good it was, everyone decided that CD players were the next step. In the middle 1990's, though, people were becoming disenchanted with digital sound and we saw an increased interest in this model. The Marketing Department added wood cheeks and improved the cosmetics of the front panels and re-released the product as "Claritas Phono," and "Magnum Opus Phono." Orders were still being taken when the company doors closed in 1998. Original Retail Price: $3995. Shipping weight* 16 lbs (audio chassis), 46 lbs (power supply chassis). Upgrade Path SA-10. There was no SA-10. I felt that if Counterpoint ever had an FM tuner, this model number was reserved for it. SA-11 Control Amplifier. Possibly the first tubed line-level-only remote control preamp. Introduced in 1984. A dual-mono cost-no-object ("do it right") design. Tube signal path, and tubed high-voltage regulators. Technical Summary: The unit uses 6SN7 octal tubes for the audio path. Power supply tubes are 5R4GB, 6080, 6GC5, 6JC6A, 5651 tubes. There is no feedback. Eight line inputs, tape loop, direct and buffered outputs. Tape Monitor, Tape Send, Program Source, Absolute Phase, Hi/Low Gain, Stereo/Mono, Remote Enable, Output Level, Mute, On/Off, Balance, Volume controls. Volume and balance are switched resistor arrays driven by stepper motor. Direct and Aluminum front panel finished in black or silver anodize. Original Retail Price: $7595 Upgrade Path SA-12 Power Amplifier. Introduced in 1984. Tube voltage amplification, MOSFET output. 85/W 8 ohms, 140W 4 ohms. Technical Summary: The unit has four 6DJ8 tubes in a three-stage circuit. There is about 26dB of loop feedback, but the output stage is not within the feedback loop. This results in a lower damping factor, but better overall sound. On-Off switch. Aluminum front panel finished in black or silver anodize. Replaced by SA-100 in 1988. Original Retail Price: $1195. Shipping weight* 28 lbs.      Note that some SA-12 were upgraded by customers to partial or full SA-100s. The front panel will still say "SA-12", but flip the amp over. If you find a copper-colored area around one of the screws the customer did the full 12>100 upgrade, which means that the unit has the SA-100-style copper-plated steel chassis along with internal upgrades. If the copper area is not seen then the customer did not elected to get the 100 chassis as part of the upgrade and only got the internals upgraded. Internally, SA12 transformers have a silver label with red lettering, SA100 transformers have a black label with yellow lettering. SA100's also have dual main rectifiers. Take the top cover off, take a digital photo (no greater than 800 x 600, I don't need some honking big 5Mb picture choking up my email for heaven's sake!) straight down into the chassis and send it to me -- we can see what's up quickly. Upgrade Path Known Issues SA-20 Power Amplifier. Introduced in 1984. Tube voltage amplification, MOSFET output. 220/W 8 ohms, 420W 4 ohms. Technical Summary: The unit has four 6DJ8 tubes in a three-stage circuit. There is about 26dB of loop feedback, but the output stage is not within the feedback loop. This results in a lower damping factor, but better overall sound. Internal mono-bridge switch converts the SA-20 into a mono amp with 600W/8. Tube rectifier. On-Off switch. Aluminum front panel finished in black or silver anodize. Replaced by SA-220 in 1988. Original Retail Price: $2295. Shipping weight* 70 lbs. Original fuses: A.C. Mains Fuse (U.S., 120VAC): 10A Slow Blow; Speaker Fuses and Rail Fuses: 6A AGC, but 10A okay.      Note that some SA-20 were upgraded by customers to partial or full SA-220s. The front panel will still say "SA-20", but flip the amp over. If you find a copper-colored area around one of the screws the customer did the full 20 >220 upgrade, which means that the unit has the SA-220-style copper-plated steel chassis along with internal upgrades. If the copper area is not seen then the customer did not elected to get the 220 chassis as part of the upgrade and only got the internals upgraded. Internally, SA20s have six tubes on a single large motherboard. 220s also have the same six small tubes on the central motherboard as well as two large blue circuit boards, one mounted to each heatsink. SA amps that were upgraded to NP220's before 2001 retain the original SA-20/220 motherboard with six tubes, and have large tan-colored circuit boards, one per channel, on the heatsinks, 2001 and later NP220's have three tubes (two octal pin, one smaller 9-pin) and two small blue circuit boards per heatsink. SA-20 & SA-220 Replacement Fuse Value: A.C. Mains Fuse (U.S., 120VAC): 10A Slow; Speaker Fuses and Rail Fuses: 6A AGC Fast. All 1/4'' X 1-1/4'' fuses. Upgrade Path Known Issues SA-100 Power Amplifier. Introduced in 1988. Tube voltage amplification, MOSFET output. 100/W 8 ohms, 170W 4 ohms. Technical Summary: The unit has four 6DJ8 tubes in a three-stage circuit. There is about 26dB of loop feedback, but the output stage is not within the feedback loop. This results in a lower damping factor, but better overall sound. On-Off switch. Aluminum front panel finished in black or silver anodize. Original Retail Price: $1495. Shipping weight* 28 lbs. Upgrade Path Known Issues SA-220 Power Amplifier. Introduced in 1988. Tube voltage amplification, MOSFET output. 220/W 8 ohms, 420W 4 ohms. Technical Summary: The unit has four 6DJ8 tubes in a three-stage circuit. There is about 26dB of loop feedback, but the output stage is not within the feedback loop. This results in a lower damping factor, but better overall sound. Internal mono-bridge switch converts the SA-20 into a mono amp with 600W/8. Tube rectifier. Differences from the SA-20 are the inclusion of output stage protection circuits and a copper-plated steel chassis. This last resulted in much clearer sound than obtainable with either aluminum or steel alone. On-Off switch. Aluminum front panel finished in black or silver anodize. Original Retail Price: $2,995. Shipping weight* 70 lbs.       Note that some SA-20 were upgraded by customers to partial or full SA-220s. The front panel may still say "SA-20", but flip the amp over. If you find a copper-colored area around one of the screws the customer did the full 20 >220 upgrade, which means that the unit has the SA-220-style copper-plated steel chassis along with internal upgrades. If the copper area is not seen then the customer did not elected to get the 220 chassis as part of the upgrade and only got the internals upgraded. Internally, SA20s have six tubes on a single large motherboard, while 220s also have the same six small tubes on the central motherboard as well as two large additional circuit boards, one mounted to each heatsink. In other words, 1 pcb+6 small tubes= SA20, 3 pcbs + 6 small tubes = 220. If you find three pcbs and three tubes (two octal pin, one smaller 9-pin) then it's an early NP220 upgrade, while five pcbs and three tubes (two octal pin, one smaller 9-pin) is a later model NP220. SA-20 & SA-220 Replacement Fuse Value: A.C. Mains Fuse (U.S., 120VAC): 10A Slow; Speaker Fuses and Rail Fuses: 6A AGC Fast. All 1/4'' X 1-1/4'' fuses Upgrade Path Known Issues SA-1000 Preamplifier. This preamplifier was introduced in 1989 and was the least-expensive of the "thousand-series" preamplifiers. It features an all-tube phono stage and a tube/MOSFET line stage. As manufactured, has sufficient gain for MC cartridges but signal-to-noise not really good enough for MC use. Technical Summary: The unit has two 12AX7 tubes in the phono stage and a single 6DJ8 in the line stage. Output buffering is provided by small-signal MOSFET source-followers. As with all Counterpoint preamps, there are two gain stages in the phono section with passive riaa equalization. The line stage is a single-stage. There is no loop feedback Two gain settings are available for disc (MM/MC), plus for use with MC or MM cartridges, plus four line-level inputs. There are single pairs of tape out and main out. Input Selector, Tape monitor, Balance, Volume, Mute and Power controls. Aluminum front panel finished in black or silver anodize. Original Retail Price: $1,195. Shipping weight* 19 lbs. Upgrade Path Known Issues SA-2000 Line Stage Preamplifier. This preamplifier was introduced in 1989 and was the only "line only" thousand-series preamplifiers. It features a hybrid video buffer/tube line stage. No phono stage. Technical Summary: The unit has a single 6DJ8 line stage followed with a solid-state video buffer. There is no loop feedback Six line-level inputs plus two tape ins. Dual pairs of tape outs and main outs. Input Selector, Tape monitor, Mono/Stereo, Balance, Volume, Mute and Power controls. Solid-state power supply voltage regulator fed by vacuum-tube rectifier. Aluminum front panel finished in black or silver anodize. Original Retail Price: $1,595. Shipping weight* 20 lbs. Upgrade Path Known Issues SA-3000 Preamplifier. This preamplifier was introduced in 1989 and was priced between the SA-1000 and the more expensive SA-5000. It features hybrid video buffer/tube phono stage and line stage. Can accept MM or MC cartridges; as manufactured, MC stepup stage is solid-state. Technical Summary: The unit has two 6DJ8 tubes in the phono stage and a single 6DJ8 in the line stage. As with all Counterpoint preamps, there are two gain stages in the phono section with passive riaa equalization. The line stage is a single stage. There is no loop feedback All tube stages are followed with solid-state video buffers, two per channel in the phono stage and one per channel in the line stage. The phono stage can be configured as a JFET/tube cascode for MC cartridges, or a simple tube stage for MM cartridges. Five line-level inputs plus tape in. Dual pairs of tape outs and main outs. Input Selector, Tape monitor, Mono/Stereo, Balance, Volume, Mute and Power controls. Solid-state power supply voltage regulator fed by vacuum-tube rectifier, and external transformer box (not shown). Aluminum front panel finished in black or silver anodize. Original Retail Price: $2,195. Shipping weight* 22 lbs. Upgrade Path Known Issues SA-5000 Preamplifier. This preamplifier was introduced in 1990 and was the most expensive of the "thousand-series" preamplifiers. It features hybrid video buffer/tube phono stage and line stage. Can accept MM or MC cartridges; as manufactured, MC stepup stage is solid-state. Technical Summary: The circuit board in this preamplifier employs a floating subchassis for mechanical isolation. The unit has two 6DJ8 tubes in the phono stage and dual 6DJ8s in the line stage. As with all Counterpoint preamps, there are two gain stages in the phono section with passive riaa equalization. The line stage is a single stage. There is no loop feedback All tube stages are followed with solid-state video buffers, two per channel in the phono stage and one per channel in the line stage. The phono stage can be configured as a JFET/tube cascode for MC cartridges, or a simple tube stage for MM cartridges. Five line-level inputs plus tape in. Dual pairs of tape outs and main outs. MM Loading, Tape Send Disable, Main Output Select, Gain Trimmers, Polarity Invert, Output Level, Mono, Volume, Mute and Power controls. Vacuum-tube power supply voltage regulator uses tw0 6DJ8/6922 type tubes and one 12AX7 for regulation and one 6CA4 for rectification (located in external power supply. Aluminum front panels finished in black or silver anodize. Original Retail Price: $3,995. Shipping weight* 35 lbs. Upgrade Path Known Issues Natural Progression Mono (NPM) Power Amplifier. Introduced in 1992. Monophonic. Tube voltage amplification, IGBT output. 150/W 8 ohms, 300W 4 ohms, 500W/2 ohms. Technical Summary: The unit has two 6DJ8 tubes as a large paralleled-tube differential amplifier. No feedback. Solid-state IGBT (Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor) driver. Tube rectifier. Copper-plated chassis, wood sides. Metering for power, current, normal/peak hold. Clipping indicator. On-Off switch. Balanced Inputs. Aluminum front panel finished in black or silver anodize. Original Retail Price: $4,498/each. Service Note: The Toshiba IGBT devices used in the output stage of this amplifer are no longer available and on May 2008 we used the last set to repair an NPM. Unless someone can find a supply of GT20D101 and GT20D201 IGBTs, NPMs with blown output stages cannot be repaired. Upgrade path Known Issues CRITICAL! Natural Progression Stereo 100 (NPS100) Power Amplifier. No picture available. Introduced in 1994. Tube voltage amplification, bipolar transistor output stage. 70W/8 ohms, 100W/4 ohms. Technical Summary: The unit has a single tube 6DJ8 differential amplifier per channel. No feedback. Tube rectifier. Wood sides. Standby switch. Balanced Inputs. This unit is as tall and wide as the NPS200, below, but only half as deep (fore-to-aft). Aluminum front panel finished in black or silver anodize. Original Retail Price: $1,995 Upgrade Path Natural Progression Stereo 200 (NPS200) Power Amplifier. Introduced in 1994. Tube voltage amplification, bipolar transistor output stage. 100W/8 ohms, 200W/4 ohms. Technical Summary: The unit has a single tube 6DJ8 differential amplifier per channel. No feedback. Tube rectifier. Wood sides. Standby switch. Balanced Inputs. Aluminum front panel finished in black or silver anodize. Original Retail Price: $2,995. Shipping weight* 50 lbs. Upgrade path. Known Issues Natural Progression Stereo 400 (NPS400) Power Amplifier. Introduced in 1994. Tube voltage amplification, bipolar transistor output stage. 200W/8 ohms, 400W/4 ohms. Technical Summary: The unit has a single tube 6DJ8 differential amplifier per channel. No feedback. Tube rectifier. Wood sides. Standby switch. Balanced Inputs. Aluminum front panel finished in black or silver anodize. Original Retail Price: $4,395. Shipping weight* 73 lbs. Upgrade Path DA-10 A/E D-A converter Introduced ca. 1991, the DA-10 is a standalone two-channel digital-audio converter featuring six was based on the Philips CD920 CD player. When Philips discontinued this model in 1994, the DA-11.5 was based on the successor player, the CD921. Both models use the Philips CDM12.1 laser mechanism. Milled aluminum CD tray, completely new power supplies and clock generation circuitry are used on both pieces. Original Retail Price: $1,895 (I think -- it also depended on which DAC Card the dealer or distributor wanted provided). Shipping weight* 17 lbs. Upgrade Path Known Issues. (No picture on hand right now) DA-11 and DA-11.5 HDCD-compatible CD Transports. Introduced ca. 1992, the DA-11 was based on the Philips CD920 CD player. When Philips discontinued this model in 1994, the DA-11.5 was based on the successor player, the CD921. Both models use the Philips CDM12.1 laser mechanism. Milled aluminum CD tray, completely new power supplies and clock generation circuitry are used on both pieces. Original Retail Price: $1,895 I am presently not offering any upgrades for these models. Known Issues. Pricing for other models not described above: SOLID 2 Solid-state 200wpc power amp: $2495 SOLID 1 Solid-state 100wpc power amp $1495 (non-THX) Shipping weight* 30 lbs. SOLID 1M Solid-state 100w mono power amp: $995 SOLID 8 Solid-state line-level control amp: $1195.00 HC808 Analog Dolby Pro logic surround-sound decoder: $1495 HC818 Three-zone audio controller for home threatre: $1695 HC828 Three-zone vidio controller for home theatre: $1595 HC834 Solid-state 100wpc four-channel power amp: $2495 VOX ANGELICA Loudspeaker: $17000/pair - never went into production but sounded great. ORPHEUM Home-theatre front speakers: $995/pair MYSTIC Home-theatre rear speakers $995/pair BIJOU Home-theatre center speaker: $545 Magnum Opus One Mono Amps: $12,000 (design completed, but never went into production) Magnum Opus One Line-level remote-controllable balanced preamp: $15,000 -- fifty made before Counterpoint closed doors. The transformers, made by a Northern California company at great expense, were unreliable due to no attention having been given by the manufacturer to proper insulation in the high-voltage section, leading to 100% failure in the field. Counterpoint had new transformers built -- properly this time -- and provided them to the customers at no charge, but the product had picked up a reputation for unreliability due to the transformer issue, so it was too late to rescue sales. Claritas One Line-level remote-controllable balanced preamp (called Magnum Opus Two on the price list). Targeted at $3,999, would have been closer to $4,999 once we had gotten into production. We only made of few of these excellent little full-tube/full-balanced remote-controlled preamps before Counterpoint had to close its doors. They kicked butt. Compared 'em to the BAT preamp of the time (1997) and the BAT sounded puny. The design's all done, too. If only I had about, say, $25,000 I could take these things into production. Make a run of 50 pieces and sell 'em direct to consumers at half the price (no retailer, right?). 50 x $2,499 = a lot of great-sounding preamps. . * Shipping weights are when packed in factory stock packaging materials.

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