METAXAS & SINS
After over 35 years of work in the field of High End Audio, from the design and manufacturing of entire playback systems to the recording of over 300 acoustic concerts to gain further musical insights, the last thing that artist-designer Kostas Metaxas wanted to produce was “another set of boxes with transistors on a heatsink”.
Kostas was dreaming of the most spectacular architecture, design and sculpture he had experienced and wanted to bring that emotional intensity, daring and seductive beauty to audio amplifiers.
As a recording engineer, Metaxas also wanted to “voice” them for extremely realistic recording playback, to be able to reproduce all the nuance and emotion of a musical performance.
His new IKARUS, SOLITAIRE and SOLILOQUY amplifiers are the result. Machined from a solid block of either aircraft aluminium, copper or titanium, they're totally bespoke and the modular electronics make them future-proof. Even the circuit boards can be CNC machined from 1mm solid silver coated clear polystyrene.
From the sensual, organic and striking casework [inspired by the stunning work in Sports cars of the 1950’s/60’s of Ercole Spada, as well as the architecture of Hadid, Gehry and Calatrava] to absolutely every part of the amplifiers including the circuit, topology, layout and casework have been developed by Kostas Metaxas. It is the logical evolution of his ground-breaking design concepts pioneered in the early 1980’s.
Then, it true “Bugatti fashion”, each and every amplifier is assembled by the master or his sins — either Andreas or Alessandros Metaxas.
Opus Preamplifier
An aesthetic engineering triumph, the OPUS preamplifier is the first example of “moulage” or draping with solid aluminium on an imaginary mannequin. The folds and drapes are impossibly sculpted using a 5 axis CNC machine. This organic, non-geometric form, allows a perfect evacuation of all chassis micro-vibrations.
The OPUS is the direct result of an intense 35 years fascination with music recording and reproduction to perfect the most transparent, reference calibre “monitoring” preamplifier to complement both the finest domestic audio playback & professional recording systems in the world. Using technology borrowed from Aerospace and Formula 1, the design also reflects the extraordinary advances that made over the last 15 years in modelling and simulation software.
In the early 2000’s, Kostas Metaxas underwent extensive training to become one of the first designers who could conceive, model and prototype an entire amplifier on a component by component basis in 3D.
The PCB software he uses not only lays out the boards, but also allows schematic based simulations which can test [or verify] the PCB’s signal integrity displaying Reflection and Crosstalk Analysis.
The "TRX" Open Reel Deck
There is no doubt that the absolute best “source” for reproduced music is analogue tape recorded on 10” reels at 15ips. The same analogue tape reel-to-reel recorders are also the absolute best way to record and capture music [concert recording]. This is a fact that is responsible for the incredible resurgence in interest in Open Reel Analogue Tape Recorders.
Fuelled by recent interest, Kostas has decided to produce an entirely new tape machine based heavily on the portable Stellavox SM8 recorder which has even received the blessing of Stellavox founder Georges Quellet.
The Metaxas & Sins “T-RX” is a portable analogue tape machine designed for ultimate location recording and playback duties. Biased for either 468 or 911 1/4” analogue tape, it will operate at 15ips using 6 brushless DC motors in a pure mechanical operation. In other words, it will be built like a large Swiss mechanical watch mechanism. The circuits will also be using 100% discrete transistors and parts similar to construction from the 1960’s to early 1970’s.
The result is a “kinetic art object” which happens to record and play analogue tape.
The new "Papillon" Open Reel Deck
The new, limited edition, 15 inch "Papillon" studio tape recorder.
Phonographic Perambulator no.1 (PP1) Turntable
The Metaxas PP1 uses a sensuous organic shape which is non-mirror image, CNC’d from a block of solid 6061 aircraft grade aluminium [or Titanium] to eliminate the usual reflections and refractions of resonances inherent in all turntables constructed from pure geometric shapes.
Metaxas constructs the round platter in such a way that the boundary between the lathe-turned aluminium base has organic undulations connecting it to a dedicated acrylic platter mat. The recessed “label area” adds another level of isolation and evacuation. An ultra-precision voltage regulated belt-drive system featuring the most advanced Swiss Maxon motor rotates the platter without adding any external speed variations or vibrations.
The Sirens
Using ideas borrowed from Neumann TLM 50 and M150 microphones, the SIREN embeds the Accuton drivers into spheres mounted onto an organic “time-aligned” sculpture. Despite the unique and unusual shape, the design is a seriously engineered, no-compromise loudspeaker with emphasis on absolute sound quality.
Accuton ceramic drivers are used in some of the most expensive systems currently available, but it’s only when you marry them to a curvaceous, inert, machined “body” that you can really hear - and probably for the first time, appreciate, their neutrality.
CNC allows us to sculpt a shape with incredible rigidity, in a much smaller form factor than is possible with other materials and at the same time, minimize baffle diffraction whilst maximizing internal volume for an ideal and extended bass response.
Since there are different “levels” of accuton ceramic drivers, up to and including their famous “diamond” tweeter, you have the choice of which tweeter, midrange and 8” woofer you would prefer to use now, or in the future. In a true “bespoke” manner, the configuration of drivers can be chosen.
The Marqui 'MEMENTO MORI' headphone amplifier
The MARQUIS borrows from over 25 years of concert recording experience with serious headphone monitoring to produce an amplifier with unparalleled transparency and effortless realism. Like all Metaxas & Sins amplifiers, the CNC-machined “head block” can be meticulously finished in a choice of 10 aluminium colours, or automotive painted finishes.
As well as a dedicated headphone amplifier and headphone stand, the MARQUIS also can be used as a minimalist preamplifier with a choice of 2 line-level inputs [RCA connectors] and a set of RCA outputs to connect to a power amplifier to drive a pair of speakers.
The solid CNC-machined base encloses the power supply to keep all stray RFI and noise from the delicate low-level signal stages.
