The trouble with audio shows—apart from the cheap call girls and the occasional gangland-style execution—is the fact that, even in nice hotels, the smallest rooms tend to sound like crap. So it was at the Hilton Bonaventure, where acoustical challenges plagued no exhibitor more than Audio Note. Their excellent AN-E loudspeaker—a pair of which I own and love—requires that both units in a stereo pair are sited close to their respective corners. That proved impossible at the Hilton, but Audio Note’s Dave Cope compensated brilliantly and made a fine sound nonetheless with a pair of AN-E Lexus Signatures in striking maple veneer ($15,200/pair), photographed here by JA and driven by the Jinro integrated amplifier that I reviewed in the March 2011 issue of Stereophile.

Audio Note also introduced a brand new version of their Tonearm Three, now made in their factory in Austria. It boasts an armtube crafted from a single piece of aluminum, from the headshell to the counterweight support, with a tapered bore and AN-vX silver wiring. Projected price: $1687.