SST Trinaural Processor by James Bongiorno
$1995 USD Special Order
Our Nominee for All-Time Most Valuable Audio Component (includes HT bypass)
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No less an authority than the inventor of stereo (then called “binaural”), Alan Blumlein, documented the format’s Achilles Heel. The AES (Audio Engineering Society) documented stereo’s deficiencies and performance limitations. Stereophile Magazine published a technical article supporting the same view circa 2008.
All home theater receivers include “effects” to convert stereo sources into multi-channel, promising improved performance and greater listening pleasure. The effects range from awful to unacceptable and always decrease pleasure for critical listeners…another case of consumer audio manufacturers marketing the usefulness of a useless feature.
For music lovers there are a sum total three methods to convert stereo to multi-channel that improve performance and listening pleasure: Meridian’s TriField Synthesizer, Meridian preamp/processors with Ambisonic DSP (both long discontinued), and James Bongiorno’s SST Trinaural Processor.
My wife Debra has better ears than mine. I have learned much from her opinions. She is universally convinced Trinaural beats stereo every time, finding even the best stereo deficient. Multi-channel done right increases live music cues, causing the ear/brain mechanism to relax, thus increasing the effectiveness of the illusion.
Imaging and sound-stage qualities increase by multiples. The music takes on a palpable quality not exceeded even by cost-no-object systems renowned for this quality. If the rest of the system is up to the task, the music’s density replicates live like nothing else, regardless of the program complexity.
For systems whose total cost starts around $8k MSRP I believe a properly assembled Trinaural-based system is preferable to a similarly priced stereo system.
The magic of Trinaural Processing is converting all your prized stereo collection, including any analog source, into multi-channel. It’s a safe bet you would never choose to return to stereo after hearing a properly setup Trinaural. Forget the limited software available in discreet multi-channel formats. The Trinaural Processor easily integrates into any multi-channel audio or video system.
The Trinaural Processor won the 2003 CES “Best of the High-End” Award and was a Stereophile Magazine Class A Recommended Component in October 2005. Multi-Channel Music Editor Kalman Rubinson wrote in Stereophile Magazine “Music In The Round #7″ September 2004: “…I have yet to hear a two-channel recording in which the integrity of an ensemble was not as good as or better when subjected to Trinaural processing. I can say as much for good multichannel recordings with a discrete center signal, but my ‘old’ two-channel recordings couldn’t get there without the Trinaural…”
Though you might suspect the Trinaural center channel is simply summed mono, it is not. All channels including the center are algebraically processed with Bongiorno’s proprietary circuit.
Trinaural Details
Trinaural is pure analog only. There is no digital circuitry. All inputs and all outputs are pure analog only. Trinaural requires three front main speakers, without a sub (3.0) or with a sub-woofer system (3.1…our DSA 1.0 Distributed Sub-woofer Array exceeds the performance of any single-column “full range” system). The Trinaural Processor has 3.1 bypass for easy home theater integration.
Inputs: L/R stereo…3.1 HT bypass…all RCA unbalanced
Outputs: L, C, R, Subwoofer fixed low-pass 80 Hz…XLR balanced and RCA unbalanced (RCA in-phase, RCA inverted polarity)
Single Toggle Switch: L/C/R channels (full range or fixed high-pass crossover @ 80 Hz)
What Makes Trinaural “Most Valuable”?
The Trinaural subwoofer output is critical because it allows integration with a sub-woofer system such as our DSA 1.0 Distributed Sub-woofer Array. The Trinaural sub circuit has an active low-pass crossover fixed @ 80 Hz with continuously variable level control. A toggle switch allows the front main speakers to run full range or be high-pass filtered @ 80 Hz.
The required three front main speakers and the subwoofer circuit make the Trinaural the world’s best component to integrate a state of the art music playback system with Home Theater. This advantage can not be overstated. The fact the Trinaural is pure analog means it readily matches any upgrade upstream and/or downstream.
The Trinaural Processor’s transparency equals the best known components. It can be successfully integrated between source/preamp or between preamp/power amp. The former allows remote level control for bass, center and L/R if the analog preamp has remote control for individual channel levels (you’ll never give up this feature once you get used to it…we can not overstate the value and audio excellence of the 7.1 channel analog preamp stage in Pioneer’s 2003-2004 VSX-D912 HT receiver).
About The Designer
James Bongiorno is a most distinguished high-end audio luminary. James was the director of engineering at Dynaco where he created the renowned Dynaco 400 released in 1972. He then became director of engineering at SAE where he conceived the “full dual differential full complementary” amplifier circuit, now a world standard for high-end amplifiers. In 1974 he designed the first Ampzilla power amp as a DIY project. Ampzilla received so much critical acclaim that James left SAE to found “Great American Sound” (G.A.S.), where he designed and manufactured several legendary components.
I have owned and/or thoroughly auditioned the following components designed by James: the Dynaco 400, the SAE 31B power amp, the GAS Thaedra preamp, the Sumo Nine + 60W class A power amp, the original Sumo Andromeda, the SST Ampzilla series I and II, the SST Son of Ampzilla, the SST Ambrosia preamp and the SST Trinaural Processor. Of all these exceptional components the Trinaural Processor is the most unique and offers the greatest promise to modern audiophiles. It is even more significant for those desiring to integrate a state of the art audio/music system with home theater.
AudioKarma.org User Review Thread, 17 February 2003
Kalman Rubinson’s Stereophile Review, 21 Sept 2004 (Music In The Round #7)