My reputation preceded me: Everywhere I went, people who knew me stopped and asked, “Have you heard the new Lowther yet?” The speaker in question was actually a Lowther-alike from the German firm Voxativ, named the Ampeggio ($29,750/pair), and as I told everyone who asked—unsmugly, I hope—I’ve had a loaner pair in my house since mid-March.

But I’ll tell you this much: The Ampeggios sounded amazing at the show—open, dynamic, organic, detailed, and altogether musical—driven by Don Garber’s Fi WE421A single-ended triode amplifier ($3275) and Fi full-function preamp ($8200). Gideon Schwartz of Audio Arts, the New York firm that distributes Voxativ speakers in the US, also demonstrated with a 47 Laboratory 47134 Flatfish CD transport ($4000), 4705G Progression/Gemini D-to-A converter ($3850), and Voxativ’s own interconnect and speaker cables.